Awjeez317

So we’re on the Odyssey of the Seas 6-nighter starting on the 28th of January. Our labadee port was shortened by 2 hours and now Falmouth was randomly changed to an arrival of 9:30 and all aboard at 1:30. we didn’t plan on getting off the ship so it doesn’t bother us but does anyone know what’s going on? If you know Falmouth at all…then you know the 4 hour port time basically cut like 75% of royals excursions out. We all know they love to make money so why would they do this??? the “ship gossip” I have heard is that we aren’t operating all full engine capacity and move much slower…this we have to shorten the ports just to get home. The people I heard that from are of course….cruisers…and we all know how prone we are to ship wife hearsay and gossip. Hoping someone knows something. Haven’t said a word to us on the ship that I’ve heard…

We didn’t actually go for the shuttle to the South Beach location because we had been there and arrived later in the day. But I will say that you are right…if you’ve never been to south beach and you have the time you should definitely go. People watching is pretty amazing and there are some amazing restaurants if you’re looking for a nice dinner place.

Doesn’t matter how close you are really haha. You’ll still be in cruise port traffic for an hour. That cruise port is crazy. We had a LOVELY time staying at The Gabriel. It’s like…RIGHT there and they have an amazing roof/terrace pool and some great views of the port and ships. We watched the Virgin Ship leave port from the balcony and it was really amazing. Definitely pricey so we used HHonors points. Worth it.

Small little post today and then Ill give overall grades. The last day, I woke up at 7:30am so I decided to walk up immediately to the Solarium. There was ONE available day bed and I quickly snagged it. I spent the morning just reading and lounging and definitely deciding not to do Jamies for lunch. I just grabbed a quick quesadilla at Loco. The casino brought me a bottle of wine on night 6…which was the second bottle they brought me. I hadn’t started the first bottle and my suitcase was going to be full already, so I decided I would do something different with it. Tipping the stateroom attendant is always something I kind of struggle with. I know tips are included, but I believe you have to leave something! But a few years ago, we had a Loft Suite on the Anthem and the state room attendant left us gifts on the last day! A hat, a shirt, a little ship, and some chocolates. That was sweet! So we left some more individual gifts to go along with our tip and kind of loved it. So this cruise, I left the book I finished for him to read or to give to someone he knows who loves to read (or the library on ship), the bottle of wine from casino, and of course…Cash. The book donation might become a thing I do every time. It also freed up some space for that chess board i bought! I saw iSkate Reach for the Stars, which was fun and unique in its own way. I think I have seen iSkate about 4 different times on different ships and what I love is they all have their own thing….its not the same show on every ship. There’s the Seasons one, the weird one with the jewel thief, and this one was about songs that inspire you and lift you up. It was great. And the drones are always cool. Had chops for dinner and it was everything. I love finishing the cruise with FINALLY having my mushroom soup. I love that stuff. Final grades coming soon!

Thanks so much! It’s sad to be coming to the end!

So the final two days were days at sea filled with laying flat and reading and seeing shows and eating and doing all the cruise things you would expect. I’m largely just going to go over some of the moments and observations and one BIG change at Jamie’s that occurred MID CRUISE 1. I went to Chops for lunch on the first sea day and I just LOVE Chops for lunch. Usually, I get the burger, but I asked my server which I should get between that and the Salmon. I got the incredible Beef Carpaccio as an app and he suggested the salmon so I went with that. I swear…it was one of the best pieces of fish I have ever eaten. It was cooked PERFECTLY. And it comes with this subtle mustard cream sauce around the sides. To DIE. 2. I noticed about halfway through the cruise that we had basically stopped. Like….we were not moving at all? Odd….I thought maybe we were just hanging out because we were getting to back to LA too quickly, but that didn’t seem very likely, as the captain generally knows what speed they should be going. At least I hope so. Then I noticed our wake show up in my little view from Chops…Uh…..What’s happening? Later, the captain got on the bullhorn to announce to the cruise that many of us had apparently noticed the ship turning around and basically sailing in a circle for the last hour and apparently we were curious. UH DUH. I think he probably told us about this incident largely so people would stop asking him, his crew, the bartender, or a potted plant what the heck was going on? Turns out, someone reported seeing something floating in the water that looked a LOT like a human being. For fear that someone had fallen overboard or perhaps that we needed to rescue someone from a genuine “Castaway” moment, the captain decided to go check it out. In the end…we spent a considerable amount of time just to pull up to a human shaped bit of debris. Hey at least we’re being sure! 3. I had Jamie’s Italian for dinner, which I was pretty excited for if I’m being honest. I kind of just wanted that Bruschetta again! I was surprised to find a little laminated mini menu on table in addition to the regular menu. “Specials $9.99” Interesting! Outside of the Lobster at Chops I hadn’t seen too many instances of Specials at a Specialty restaurant. There was a Filet Mignon option and also a Lobster Linguine special with half a lobster cooked “bechamel” style and a linguine with a red sauce chocked full of seafood. Clams, mussels, shrimp and squid to be exact. I asked about it and they said the specials and the new menu had changed on Day 3. Wait? The menu changed? Typically, when menu’s change, I think we can all agree that we get a little suspicious. What did you take out? One change is that you are only allowed 1 app, 1 entree OR pasta, and 1 dessert. Historically — and by historically…I mean THREE DAYS AGO — you could get a pasta and an entree. I always opted for a small portion of the pasta just to have a few more YUMs in my meal. So that was kind of annoying…and it seems a little silly that the Garlic Bread would count as your one appetizer. They have a Burrata as an appetizer which is now a Truffle version of that dish. I imagine they just tweaked the preparation though. I ordered the Bruschetta again along with the Lobster special…I had to try it people!…and then a tiramisu for dessert. There I was, basically hopping up and down in my seat waiting for the bruschetta, when my server arrived. He put the dish in front of me and I basically just deflated. What used to have fresh mozzarella, balsamic vinegar, olive oil and whole roasted then blanched cherry tomatoes — now had cherry tomatoes cut in half and piled on a piece of toast. No cheese, maybe a little olive oil, and the large leafed basil had shrunk themselves into essentially micro basil. BEFORE: AFTER: Oh good god. I took one bite of it and shortly after all of the tomatoes tumbled off the bread onto my plate, I realized it as just cut tomatoes on a piece of bread. I can honestly say that it wasn’t worth the calories. I didn’t finish it. I actually sent it back. If I only got one appetizer. This isn’t it. The manager informed me I could switch it out to something else. He also informed me that the corporate chefs were onboard for the change so all feedback is welcomed and he actually encouraged me to be specific. I told him… “They’ve taken all the cooking out of it.” And I couldn’t think of saying it any better. It was just chopping and a toaster. The replacement truffle arroncini was great though. They added a cream sauce to the plate and and a piece of cheese in the middle of the little risotto ball which melts like heaven when you cut it open. Delish! Then the special landed on my table. I mean, it looks amazing. And it definitely will be one day. I really loved the flavoring and the sauce and pasta…its just that all the seafood was overcooked. The mussels were literally like little rubber balls. I do have confidence that once they get used to cooking it more often, it will get better. Little advice though….the menu says NOTHING about the spice level of this dish. It definitely has some heat. I was fine with it, but mother would have taken two bites of it and stopped eating. If you are sensitive to spice then I would ask if they can change the spice level or if they have perhaps changed it since they rolled it out and read my very specific notes on my Royal survey. I also got the charred broccoli appetizer and it was a HUGE improvement over the broccoli before. It had some nice seasoning/flavor and that little hint of smoky char to it. Tiramisu was tiramisu — it was great and delicious and I did that thing where you accidentally inhale the espresso dust on the top and nearly cough your whole dessert onto the table. Best Cough Ever. But yeah….Jamies has had A HUGE CHANGE. So definitely inquire about the specifics of your dishes before you order. And tell them to bring back the small pasta to go with your entree if you get a survey from a cruise recently!

Just a quick one today as I am sadly back at work. I left off with dinner the night after my ATV adventure. After cooling off and relaxing a little bit in the room, I realized I was due for dinner! Izumi again tonight! As I got on the elevator and was met with a stagnant and hot chamber, I realized it was “Inevitable There Is No AC in The Elevator or on the Higher Floors” day. Seriously, does this happen to you guys? It’s like at least once every cruise, while we’re at port, the Suite Lounge, or Viking Lounge, or whatever is high up, and the elevators are just….HOT. Izumi was also pretty hot. But we were starting to leave port when I sat down so it gradually got cooler and cooler. I had Renni again as my sever, which was great. He had such great energy. I also decided to test Izumi a little. I always get the same exact thing when I go there and I always love it. But to see if it really was good, I figured I should order something different. Let’s see just how good your REALLY are Izumi! I was seated next to a bunch of people that looked familiar somehow. I noticed one of their nametags and realized this must be one of the entertainment casts. I was seated next to the whole cast for iSkate. I think it’s cool they do group dinners like that. A friend of mine has been singing on the Anthem for years now and says that is normal practice for the entertainment crew. They are allowed to mingle about the ship and yes, even drink. But they still got to be classy y’all! App - Chicken Karrage Entree - Lobster Tempura Truffle Roll and Poke Bowl. Dessert - Sesame Rice Balls. The appetizer was wonderful. It’s basically fried boneless chicken bites. But the chicken has been marinated and the breading is distinctly Japanese. It’s served with a Thai Chili Sauce. It was great. Renni introduced the dish and said “A man from the Philippines, serving you Japanese food, with Thai Chili sauce!” HA The Lobster Roll was absolutely incredible. I lied though…I’ve had that one before. One thing that has changed with Izumi is almost all of the rolls are now only 5 pieces. This was not the case in January on the Wonder. Is this fleet wide? Anyone know? The Poke Bowl was interesting and delicious, though the salmon was a little tough…almost like it was different than the salmon they serve as the sashimi. If you remember from my first sushi dinner, I was seated next to someone who tried the Sesame Balls and she started to cough a little bit like it was spicy. I vowed to try it myself. Either I have no taste buds left because I’ve burned them out or she was incredibly sensitive to spice because I couldn’t imagine ANYONE thinking that it was spicy at all! It was one of the most mellow desserts on the ship. It was sweet and flavorful, and kind of tasted like a beignet. It was surprisingly soft. A Japanese doughnut hole! After the show, I wanted to make sure I say Showgirl — the Navigator’s unfortunately named original production. I poked into the 8:15 a little late and liked what I saw enough that I left and decided to go to the 10:00 show, but get there early so I could sit on the first floor and get a good seat. The show was basically a dance show, with four singers who were actually REALLY good. The dancers were phenomenal as well. It’s basically a review show that goes through songs and costumes of Vegas from the past, present, and future. I would strongly encourage it! I will also say that there was probably no better place to be for dinner than Izumi. The view leaving port from Puerto Vallarta is absolutely stunning. I mean it was just Mountains dropping right into ocean, an absolutely beautiful coastline. The sun was setting and lighting everything up. If you’re going to do Izumi, I would recommend picking Puerto Vallarta day for sure. Nothing but sea days in front of me and no excursion to wake up for, I headed to bed ready to sleep in as late as I wanted… Naturally….I woke up at 7:30 the next day anyway.

Puerto Vallarta - As I’m sure you can tell — since you can probably do math…or really just counting…my cruise has ended at this point. But because I still wanted to spend much of my time of the sea days finishing my book and just in general laying flat, I had to do these a bit delayed. The cool thing about that though is it gives more time for reflecting. So that’s cool! We arrive early on Day 5 to Puerto Vallarta - 8:00am to be exact. My excursions wasn’t until 9:15. So i got a few more sleeves in! Just looking out the balcony of my cabin I have definitely noticed the complete change in topography with each one of our ports. Cabo - no real city when you look into it. No trees. Mostly desert and bars and bars and hotels and then some bars. Mazatlan - More people and commerce and a small town vibe. There was a sign that said “A colonial city on the beach” Has a Puerto Rico vibe to the old town and history stepped in the city. Definitely more trees but not quite lush. Mountains WAY in the distance. Puerto Vallarta - First time time I felt like i was in a CITY city. A lot more traffic…actual traffic lights and close to the port —behind it actually — mountain scapes can be seen nearby. This felt like JUNGLE. There were rivers and areas you WOULD NOT want to hike through for fear one very itchy mosquito death. When I left the port….I ONCE AGAIN had to take transportation to the transportation. Another gold cart towing a golf cart escorted us to the tiny little market area and all the light blue polo-wearing Excursion people. I found the person with my sign and she pointed me towards the end of the market. “Turn left and find the bus with your excursion on it.” Oh a bus…joy…. I was surprised to find myself boarding a Charter bus! Like one with curtains and air conditioning blasting! I LOVED it. The couple in front of me…did not. They asked the bus driver if he could turn down the AC (he was a wearing a tank top and did not have an ounce of the natural insulation I have…fat…I’m referring to my fat. Lol), and the bus driver said “Turn it down? You are cold? You don’t have a jacket?” Why would anyone have a jacket after the sweltering heat that Cabo and Mazatlan offered us? Hilariously, the bus driver (who was on my side whether he knew it or not), completely ignored the request and kept the AC on. A young couple sat behind me and we finally were welcomed by tour first guide. He told us we would be on our way soon and we were! The couple behind me had a pretty funny commentary at first…they were those people that just read the names of stores out loud and gasp when they know one. OMG H&M! OMG a movie theater! They were particularly delighted to see that right across the street from the port was a Sam’s club and a Walmart. The level of glee they had that they’ve seen a Sam’s Club was downright alarming. “OMG Sam’s! We should have brought our membership card! I love Sam’s!” Okay…a few things. First, Sam’s doesn’t have an app where your membership card is digital and always on you? Points to Costco. GO COSTCO! Second, WHY would you go to a Sam’s on a cruise!? What are you going to do with 48 rolls of toilet paper or 18 boxers of ziploc??? THERE IS NO ROOM! And also I’m pretty sure even Sam’s 2 ply toilet paper would wreck the ships plumbing. I held a giggle and smiled while they took a picture of the Sam’s club. Now the Walmart on the other hand…I can see that being useful for sunscreen that you’ve run out of and don’t want to be quadruple charged on the ship. Or if you need antacids or something. Turns out that EVERYONE agrees with me, because I later found out from my server at Izumi - the line in Walmart was so long it snaked around almost the whole store. Poor Rennison just wanted to get some cranberry juice…but saw the line and abandoned ship….Oh…wait…not the actual ship. He very much stayed onboard the Navigator. He abandoned the Walmart ship. Yeah, that got confusing. So word to the wise…if you don’t already have an ear religious belief to avoid Walmart…I would avoid it in Puerto Vallarta or prepare to be ready to wait for a LONG time to get what you need. Emergencies only people! Our very large bus navigated the city streets pretty well but I was starting to get a little confused about how on earth it was going to make up to the top of a mountain for ATVs. Oh yeah, this was the ATV tour excursion. My questions were answered quickly when we parked, were given yellow wrist bands, and told to get off. Huh? I don’t see no ATVs? We were escorted to an office where we had to sign our names and cabin numbers on a group waiver. Okay….then we were told to get on a DIFFERENT bus. Okay…so transportation to the transportation to the transportation. Cooooooool. The second bus was smaller, but also AIR CONDITIONED! God, I’m such a softie aren’t I? But can you blamed me after that Mazatlan Sweat Hike? Oh I forgot to mention that I was so sweaty on that hike…that the stickers on my shirt fell off on the trail. I sweated through ADHESIVE! Anyway…we sat down and were mingled with groups with green wrist bands and blue wrist bands. Feeling like we were in different tribes on Survivor…OFF we went! Everyone couldn’t fit on one bus so they used two…the second one was an open-air green truck with basically just benches and bars in the back of it. Glad I won the bus lottery. For now… So Puerto Vallarta is very passionate about speed bumps. And our driver was very passionate about ignoring them. My seat was basically right on top of the back wheel as well. So basically…I had about 20 flashbacks to elementary school, when you would sit in the back and hope up and down on your seat in the hopes that a bump would launch you into the air. At first it was annoying, but then it was just funny. I laughed like a kid every time it happened (except for the first time when I thought the bus was actually trying to reject me and jettison me into the jungle.) The city gave way to more dilapidated structures that somehow both looking like they were being built and being abandoned at the same time. Those structures gave way to steep cliffs filled with trees and ravines and rivers. It was beautiful. It really struck me how much Mexico has to offer. No matter what you’re re looking for, there is a place that has it. We weaved and curved and hurtled up and down through the mountains. It had rained the previous night which was SUCH a blessing. NO dust! Also Puerto Vallarta has these black butterflies (I think AND hope they were butterflies at least) that seemed to be absolutely ENTHRALLED with something that was pooled on the ground of the streets. HUNDREDS of them were crowded together on the ground in very tight groups…they looked like bees do when they are crawling all over themselves. ANd when we drove by they all took flight at the same time. The bus was SURROUNDED by butterflies! So cool. Also, I was very glad I wasn’t in the open air truck that probably got dive-bombed by butterflies. It’s pretty, until one of them flies into your mouth while you say “WOW.” We kept climbing and climbing and finally saw a sign for “Canopy River.” I had read that there was a great ranch with a pool and restaurant at the top with incredible views. I was beyond excited. Also, I’ve never been on a ATV so….there’s that too. We got off the bus at the ranch/complex and were told to apply sunscreen and mosquito repellant. Uhhhhhh….crap. Duh. Jungle. Bugs LOVE the jungle and bugs LOVE me. I had no repellant. For fear of being bitten so much that I turn into one giant pink itchy mosquito button —looking like that girl who turns into a giant blueberry in Willy Wonka — I began scouring the crowd. Surely I could find some lovely group that would lend me a spray or two? My first group I spied was far too big to ask. There were 21 of them?! How could you not be intimidated to ask 21 people for bug spray…it felt like giving a speech to the class in 5th grade. NOPE. Then I found a smaller group spraying something…that looks good! But, alas, it was sunscreen only. I was starting to panic a bit because it had just rained and mosquitos love me and moisture and I’m pretty sure the butterflies (which were still EVERYWHERE) didn’t feed on mosquitos. Uggggh. Stupid mosquitos and they’re stupid diets. Finally I found two lovely ladies that were gracious enough to let me OFF! myself. That sounded like I murdered myself didn’t it…Off myself. Haha. Again…to be clear. I am still alive and now hopefully insect bite free! Though even when I spray myself back at home, I still get bites. And that’s South Carolina..NOT MEXICAN JUNGLE! At least I would be moderately less itchy now. We walked up closer to the ranch and the going was slow…I wasn’t sure why until I realized that a staff member of Canopy River was positioning everyone in front of a big entrance sign for a photo op. AND he was using a NICE camera. It did not seem all that optional either. There was no getting to the ranch without walking through the camera’s line of sight. So I —though I usually avoid them — got my photo snapped and made my way up to their restaurant with an INCREDIBLE pool and view. You could see mountains, and then ocean, and then more mountains behind them. Several selfies later we were ushered towards the ATVs. The guide showed us how to turn them on, put the parking brake on, brake in general, accelerate, and gave us hand signal he would use that we would mimic for the ATVs behind us. We showed HIM how to freak out because this seemed way more complicated than we thought and nobody want to destroy an ATV while tumbling down a mountain. Then he said “But, don’t worry because we will turn them on and put them into 3rd gear and you can just leave it there the whole time.” PHEW. Also…why did we just learn all that stuff. He collected all of our drivers licenses and we put our bags in a locker. Well, not so much a locker. It was actually just a large barrel with a door on it. Whatever, it fit the bags in it. I brought a mask from the COVID masking days to cover my mouth because I had heard this was a VERY dusty excursion. Good news I never had to use it because everything was so damp from the rain. YAY RAIN! Also the rain provided more puddles I could splash though like an action star! I got lucky with my ATV selection when we left we were in single-file (and stayed that way the whole time) and I was third to the front! Our guide was in a Jeep and had told us that if any of us wanted to stop or couldn’t keep going..he had 4 seats if you just wanted to drive. How serious is this?! Well about 2 minutes later I was second in line. The first two were a married couple, the wife of which went down about 10 feet of a slightly steep driveway leaving the ranch (not even on the trail yet) and stopped to just say NOPE. She did not like heights or elevation or anything. I later was speaking with the couple about the ride and she said she had done ATVs before but it was flat. Apparently the entire trip up the mountain had done nothing but make her more and more nervous. I get it. Everyone has something just WONT do. Me? It’s a hard pass to Bungee jumping, eat live insects a la Fear Factor, and entering the jungle without OFF! With one down, I was second in line and it only took a couple of minutes to get the hang of the accelerator. For the first minute or so I was definitely that embarrassing new driver that lurched forward too fast and stopped, then lurched again and stopped again. This things was touchy! I got the hang of it though. The accelerator was a little lever on the right handle and the brakes were just like a bike. Front brakes on one side, back on the other. I ignored that and just decided if I needed to brake…I was going to crush BOTH brakes. We were winding and bouncing and going through mud and…yes swarms of butterflies that ricocheted off my sunglasses (luckily my mouth was closed). Yes, butterflies..you’re cute and all…but like…chill out okay? All the sudden one of the Canopy River guys on an ATV SCREAMED past us….that was weird. Then we got to the first place where we went across a little river…well it a smooth finished concrete path that a river was running over to the tune of about 3 inches. Still. ACCELERATE! I wanted ALL the splashes. Then, about twenty feet in front of me I see the same guy who tore past us a minute ago, positioned at the end of the water crossing, snapping photos of all of us. Interesting… This happened about 4 more times. Guy speeds past us. Guys takes pictures. Repeat repeat repeat. I’m sensing a photo package coming… Small note…When you go through water quickly in an ATV, the water goes up. And up…is where the engine is. When hot water hits a hot engine….steam happens. Steam also goes up. And up…is where my legs are. It wasn’t like…melt your skin hot…but it was SURPRISING the first few times. At first, I thought my ATV was overheating and about to explode which is…you know…not ideal. After going through tight turns with no guard rail and precarious hills, I was having a blast. I started letting the guys in from of me get a little ahead so I could hit certain moments at acceleration and really feel like the MOUNTAIN WAS MINE! Funny though, every time I did that he would look back with this weird face. I later decided he was probably living in a state of fear of being rear ended by an ATV in a Jungle. Or maybe he felt like the was the one running in Mad Max Fury Road. Either way, it didn’t stop me! I was an ATV MONSTER! We pulled up and our guide in the Jeep jumped out a a gate that was locked. It had a big sign on it that said “Prohibio!” on it in bright red letters. I don’t speak Spanish but I know what that means…. Interestingly, our guide didn’t care. He opened the gate and drove through, calling us all along with him like ducks in a row. Okay…I guess we’re okay? No prohibio? As we entered this section of the trail everything opened up. It was magnificent. The views were incredible. I found myself slowing down to see the mountains and the forest. I also found myself wondering if I might ACTUALLY rear end the guys in front of me because I wasn’t looking at the trail as much as I should. Okay…refocus. We passed a section with a huge tree standing by itself. In that tree were about 30 vultures. Let me just tell you that being escorted into a prohibited area in Mexico with Vulture staring at you from a tree is enough to give anyone a…how should i say this…a little bit of moment. Trusting our guide, we waved goodbye to the vulture and carried on upwards. Then there were more vultures. And beautiful views. Oh and a cow! And more vultures… We pulled up to the top and everyone stopped on a little curl de sac/round about thing. They turned our ATVs off, we took our helmets off, and they handed out a bottle of water to everyone. We all just started to wander and stare. It was INCREDIBLE. I mean, I felt like I was in Jurassic park…but without the carnivores trying to kill me…though the vultures still seemed quite sus. We snapped a bunch of photos and learned a bit about Canopy River the company. It’s a 100% Mexican company created by the people who live in the highlands/mountains. Their families own all this land and years and years ago they started with zip lines. He told us to make suggestions about what they could add because the guests had really built this place. At first someone said “there should be a restaurant up here” so they did it. Then ATVs, then horseback riding and a pool. They also built one of the longest ATV bridges in the world. You could see it in the distance. He told us that it could hold the weight of 35 ATVs at one time. I started counting our ATVs with concern….before he told us we would NOT be going on the bridge. Seeing as how the bridge looked see through and about 500 feet above the ground…everyone was cool with that. Turns out that a guest told him they should have a hotel up there, and sure enough, as we drove back to the ranch we passed a building being constructed that will be their hotel, which opens next year. Great way to build a business. very impressive. We got back and They gave us about an hour before getting back on the bus. I’m fairly certain that’s to give us time to enjoy a margarita and some very reasonably priced food at their restaurant….AND for their sales team to approach you with a tablet of every photo they had taken of you on your ride. There were 17 of them! What were they hiding in the bushes or something?! I was told it was 1 picture for 20 bucks or all of them on a USB drive for 60 bucks. If I had a family with me and a bunch of pictures, I would have paid the 60. They are essentially selling a USB drive for 60 dollars. Great margins in that. Good business move guys! Instead I bought 1 photo of me splashing the most amount of water possible with my ATV. ACTION SHOT! I overpaid…but I love it and memories are supposed to be priceLESS people. Though this one was 20 bucks… I ate some food (Ceviche bad, fish tacos great!) and went to go head back to the ship. This time my luck ran out…no AC bus. Only open air green bench truck. It wasn’t bad on the way down to be honest. It was when we got back to the city at what I imagine is a pretty busy time to be traveling around the beach and hotel area. I don’t think I have ever hated red lights and traffic more than I did at that moment. No breeze in your hair during gridlock. Finally we made it back and I bought a little hand carved chess set from one of the vendors (the only thing I bought on this trip). Back on the ship, I plopped onto bed and tried to remember what was next. I had about 3 hours before dinner at Izumi and Showgirl —their poorly named production show that evening. So I decided to read a little bit, finish up a post you guys read days ago and get ready for dinner!

Some photos of Hooked dinner. Puerto Vallarta tomorrow!

So a few posts ago I mentioned that I would be finishing out MAZATLAN with a review of Izumi for dinner…well I got my days mixed up. I’m keeping notes in my phone but because I am both unplugging and doing this, I’m having to do everything after the fact and my mind has gotten a little hazy…it could be the vacation…its could be the vodka. Who can say?! I actually ended up going to HOOKED again but this time for dinner. I had requested my same seat I had for lunch. Against the window on the back left. The giant porthole design of the window actually serves as a nice little arm rest when you against the windows in the booth, and as most who know me would tell you…I LOVE my conveniences. I did not have the same server interestingly. I got Frances. A lovely young woman from the Philippines. She greeted me and made her suggestions. I am increasingly aware that the chef suggestions might be the lowest cost items they have. Once again…clam chowder, clam chowder, clam chowder again, and the platter that has shrimp, a 4 oz lobster tail and cod/salmon. I don’t like clam chowder people! Also, why would I get the plate with 4oz lobster when you have a surf and turf that gives me a filet instead of cod or a 1.5 pound Maine lobster??? I flat out ignored all of her suggestions except for dessert. I didn’t know what to get at lunch previously so I just didn’t get anything…plus it was day 1 so I wasn’t in full stuff-face mode yet. She suggested I get the brownie. It had a salted caramel ice cream with chocolate and caramel sauce served on it. She sold me when she said: ’Also, Mister Jesse, the brownie is made with dark chocolate. And we want to be healthy on this cruise, yes? Dark chocolate is good for the heart. You should order it for your health.” HA. I loved her instantly. Oh, the biscuits…they were still fluffy and warm. it wasn’t just Day 1 luck! I got oysters again (they barely take up any room, why wouldn’t I?) and ordered their shrimp cocktail because I wanted to compare to Chops. She asked me if I wanted traditional or Mexican style? Uhhhh. Say what now? Mexican style is basically shrimp cocktail sliced into little bites, combined with avocado, onions, jalapeño, cucumber (???), herbs, Tabasco, and tossed in a tomato-ish cocktail sauce. Being torn between comparing to Chops and trying something new…I did the Cruisiest thing I could think….I got both. First, I will say I was skeptical of the Mexican style shrimp cocktail but it was actually really really good. I love the little micro greens on the top! So cute! Surprisingly the cucumbers added a nice freshness to the tangy and spicy dish, and the avocado provided some creaminess. YUM! The traditional shrimp cocktail…well compared to Chops it wasn’t even close. You get 5 shrimp and not 4….so YAY MORE SHRIMP. Points for Hooked! Also, Shrimp cocktail is all about the freshness, size and preparedness. They have to be cooked perfectly to be great. Chops can sometimes be a little on the…done side. These shrimp were perfect. They were larger, there was an extra one, and they were done better. Points again! I went with the Maine Lobster because…I mean….do I need to say anything else. Now, I was on the Harmony in January of 2021 — back in the good ole days when you only had 6 people allowed in an elevator and there were like 22 people on the top of the ship for sail away (no kidding I have photos) — and I had the Maine lobster there too. Back then they steamed the whole thing and bibbed you. Though the lobster was good, something about being bibbed never makes dinner seem very…mature. Also, cracking and dismantling a lobster is WORK. If you don’t know what you’re doing…and I didn’t…you will leave satisfied…but probably stabbed in the hand by the nasty little devils shell spikes. I know they have changed how they serve it. Now they cut it in half, remove the meat from the claws and place them in the shell, and serve them like a dissected open faced lobster. You have the option for steamed or grilled. If anything can add a little smoke to my dish…I do it. I went with grilled. The new serving method is fabulous. So much easier and WAY less work. I mean who wants to work on a cruise!? Well…I guess you could argue me since i just spent two lengthy posts describing the IMMENSE amount of work I did climbing a mountain the same day. Well, that’s more reason to NOT have to work for dinner. My work quota has been filled. In fact, I will be requesting someone carry me my next activity. Walking is too much work. Who’s got the wheelbarrow? Soon, after my lobster was served (I got seasonal vegetables as a side) my server did one of those server things I just love. She walked over and dropped a plate in front of my lobster….with ANOTHER lobster tail on it. She leaned in and said “quick put it on your plate!” While she put her finger to her mouth in a “SHHH” manner, she smiled, looked over her shoulder, looked at me, and in a decidedly louder voice said “there, you can put your shells on this plate!” She winked and walked away. I love that she used the excuse about the shells…especially considering they now serve it in a way that you don’t really need to discard. Nice story though. I know it’s a small thing, but there is a feeling you get when a server does something like that…like they are more on your side than Royal Caribbean’s. I mean, I know she isn’t and that the lobster tail might have been an accidental order and that one measly lobster tail doesn’t make any difference to the cost basis for a restaurant on a cruise with thousands of people. But it does make you feel special, which is why it made me realize that you just don’t get that stuff in the specialty restaurants. That was a MDR move for sure. And I was living for. Also I was eating it. OMG it was good. Even the seasonal vegetable (zucchini, squash, broccolini, and carrots) were seasoned and grilled. The lobster still had its precious juices at the bottom of the shell, and of course clarified butter…I mean just give me an IV of the stuff…Well, actually don’t. I think that’s how you die. But I’ll eat it! Finally she came with the dessert. She dropped off the DELICIOUS looking brownie and we had a little moment when she placed it in front of me and we both looked at each other and said “For my health!” I took my first bite after laughing, and then I just couldn’t stop smiling. It was delicious. And I didn’t feel bad about it…I was merely replacing the calories I burned people. I don’t want to waste away! Overall, this is ship is the best that Hooked has to offer fleet-wide. I’m fairly certain there are only three (could be wrong…hard to keep track with all the AMPing going on), but there was honestly no comparison. The service, the food, the ambience and location. Hooked feels like an afterthought with its placement over the Solarium Bistro at the front of the Oasis ships. This restaurant is purposeful and proud. I think there is something about a restaurant that isn’t a new experiment that makes it a little different. I don’t know…I just know it was different. And it was great. I gambled a little bit, but honestly just a little bit. I went to bed EARLY due to all the sweating and work and food that I had in my comfy belly. It was a great day full of work and sweat and lobster and decadence and pride. I don’t think I stop smiling from brownie to bed.

It was definitely work that’s for sure!

Some photos of the mazatlan hike! And one of a very sweaty Jesse

Glad to help! I know that agony sooooo well. You’ll be there soon!

Ah! I’m so sorry! Hopefully todays two updates got you covered! As my first live cruise blog I have to say there is an interesting balance you have to consider….responsibility to post and NEED to just unplug and vacay. Mostly that’s because it’s become apparent I don’t know how to write a short post….so the updates take more time than I thought hahah. but I mean…that hiking story…how could I NOT tell all the details!? And I still left some out. again. Hope you liked the hiking story for your fix haha. More “food porn” to come!