luv2cruz44

I tried to post the email I received from friends who are aboard the Coral Princess. Yesterday, the passengers who needed medical assistance were off loaded along with the Floridians in hired cars. This morning about 400 Aussies along with west coast passengers left for CA. Also the Brits left on flights to Heathrow and the Canadians were due to leave this evening on chartered flights to Toronto. The rest of the passengers which number 500 will stay on the ship until chartered flights can be arranged for a few more days. Looks like the ones who are not showing symptoms will eventually get home.

Where is the best place to eat right after embarking? I know the buffets get crowded so is there a quieter, little known venue? We have FTTF if that helps.

That class of ship has a fish & chip station one deck up from the main buffet. Find what you want to eat in the buffet, then take the elevator with your food upstairs for a quieter place to eat. There is also a drink station there.

merryink, aren't you on the 14 day Pride from Tampa to Baltimore. I will meet you on that one before Vista. I am doing b2b now like mary ann Mary.

When are you going to Tampa? I am spending 3N at BW Bay Harbor with Ginger's big group.

Loretta,

You are in for a treat. You will find Ruth & Francis some of the nicest Aussies you will ever meet and Mary can attest to that. They are good looking, smart, easy enough to understand and down to earth. In addition, Ruth is an expert jewelry maker and you can tell by the unique gorgeous jewelry she wears. And when the two are together you can tell they are as in love as they most likely were when they first met. Just two beautiful people.

Lovely to see so many familiar faces booked. Nancy and Vince also booked, Joyce (ladysail)and the list goes on. Shame that Gale doesn't want to do another TA but not everyone likes them. I love that it is stopping in Gibraltar instead of passing in the dark and of course Bermuda and New York again.

Great, it will be good to see Nancy & Vince again! Tracey & John from Oz just booked as well.

You might.

Apart from the stormy weather on the Breeze in the Med prior to the TA as others have mentioned, we had a bad storm trying to get to Barcelona on the Dream. That was when it was sailing out of Civitavecchia. Barcelona was missed and we overnighted in Monaco (which was magical).

 

As someone mentioned take medication the night before you travel and every night after that and you should be fine.

Hi Mary Ann (and Loretta),

Debbie from Seattle mentioned you had booked this cruise. I wondered where she saw that as CC still has no option for starting a RC. Anyway, I am booked too for the TA only in one of those 4J cabins, without DH Gale. He has no interest in doing a TA although we talked about taking a train home from NY to see more of the U.S. and he may be in NY to meet the ship so we can travel the train together. A lot of people we have cruised with, while with you and especially on the Legend to Oz are already booked. Also a couple, like Aussie Ruth, who you know and a lady named Marsha are married but traveling without their mates. We are all doing anytime dining so will always have someone to dine with. Come and join us and you too Loretta.

Awesome review so far,Jane! And you know a fellow maniac would chime in eventually. As to San Juan, we just went for the first time on our recent Liberty cruise and loved it. We return there in November of next year in the Triumph and can hardly wait to spend more time there doing the things we missed this time around. Make it a return trip for another cruse...you won't be disappointed.

As you mentioned, in PV you can just walk out of the port and catch a bus (look for "Centro" on the windshield) for about 50 cents (in Pesos). My suggestion is to simply walk through the downtown "Centro" area along the Malecon and then you go over the pedestrian bridge into the southside (also called Old Town, Viejo Vallarta, Romantic Zone or Zona Romantica). Once you are in the old town area you will quickly come to the Sea Monkey (its the first bar with chairs set-up on the beach). The Sea Monkey sells Corona and Pacifico as well as Margaritas for only $1. Snacks are also pretty reasonable. And you can sit at their tables right on the beach for no other cost other then a drink. It is possible to enjoy your day for less then $10.

 

You might also enjoy exploring the shops on the island in the middle of the river (you will see the steps down to the island as you cross the bridge to the southside) and there is also an adjacent flea market and plenty of other shops (browsing is always free).

 

Hank

Hank,

A few years ago, we went to Puerto Vallarta for the first time, took a cab downtown and had lunch at a restaurant recommended on this board. I've forgotten the name of it but it was 2-3 blocks from the ocean and they made the best guacamole right at the table, a good selection of local beer and other food selections that were good. Since you spend some time there each year, perhaps you've eaten in this restaurant, or one as good and would be willing to share the name. We will be there next January and again, next September. Thank you so much.

Hello to Calamity Jane and Morgan,

 

It is Mary from the two new ladies (Cathy and Mary) that you met on the Breeze. I finally got around to signing up for CruiseCritics.com and saw your wonderful note about our Cruise on the Breeze. So many good memories! Can't wait to cruise again...I hope all is well with you two. I already heard from Bonnie...we will keep in touch...I told her to pass my email on to you. I was wondering about Ann and Gail and how their 2nd week of cruising went. Fantastic I am sure!

Hi Mary,

So glad I popped on here and caught this message. If you'd like, you can email us at galenann4244@sbcglobal.net. Doesn't Jane write the best reviews! The teacher in her sure comes out.

The second cruise was what we had always heard about Spring Break cruises. We did meet some wonderful people from the roll call, the roll call I didn't think I wanted to participate in as they seemed so young, etc. The turnaround day, we got some the lounges down that had been in front of our cabin on Deck 7 and were just enjoying the ocean breezes and peace and quiet when a couple came by and started chatting. Turns out, they were on the roll call and we stayed together with them most of the cruise. They talked me into going to the M&G where I did meet Jena and her family, the person who was on our roll call for quite a while before she decided it would be better to start one for that sailing. We met another "older" couple and all banned together to play Super Trivia. Some of us did the other trivia as well. We were in first place after the first round and thought for sure we would walk away as the overall winners with SOAS's for all of us. That was not to be but, since the rest of us had already gotten one for the other trivia contests. we pleaded with our social director and she gave Jena a default SOAS. I actually had two so was able to send one to Jane so she could compete with Bonnie, lol.

This was the highlight of this cruise. What made it so bad was getting to know our room stewards and how hard they worked. When we would see them day after day, waiting in the halls for the same 2 rooms to vacate so they could finish their morning chores, it struck us as to how self centered the young can be. If you want to sleep in, have the courtesy to put the snoozin sign out when you go to bed. Without that sign out, the room stewards have to remain on duty until they finish the rooms. That and some of the things we saw in the dining room on the 6 day cruise made us realize that spring break cruises are not something we want to do in the future. I guess that is why SAG's post about the doing the Freedom during Spring Break made me chuckle a little.

Anyway, it was good to meet you and email me if you would like.

I think that's a bit of a stretch. My guess is that a $30 bottle of wine on the ship would go for about $15 in a retail store. Can you back up your claim?

 

Absolutely...before Carnival took out Beringer White Zinfandel and substituted a cheaper company, we frequently found Beringer White Zinfandel on sale at $4.00 a bottle. The regular price is around $5.99 and yes, on Carnival they wanted nearly $30.00 a bottle

 

In any case, would you smuggle a box of wine into a fine restaurant because you don't want to pay $30 there?

Apples and oranges. Most people take boxed wine to have a glass of wine in their cabin before dinner or whatever. Most people also take that wine to their hotel room if on a land trip. Just sayin.

We are happy for both of you, renewing our vows with family and friends was special and will be remembered for the rest of our lives. Shhhh, don't tell Tracy but I would like to do it again, our 25th maybe.

Mums the word, Mike!

Someone posted this thread on our upcoming Miracle B2B. I don't usually read threads that have no direct relevance to me but decided to check it out. Like everyone has said, what a heart warming experience. We actually have 2 couples that are planning on renewing their vows on that cruise and I am so hoping they too will read this thread. Thank you for making my day!

This was on our 4/30/10 Panama Canal cruise on the Elation!

Ann and Gale's formal pic made larger

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Since you have such a limited time to spend in town, take advantage of the taxis waiting at the pier. For 10 Euros they will take you quickly from the Gruz harbor to the Pile Brsalje, the busiest and most congested area in town. Ask the driver how much extra to go from the harbor up to the viewpoint above the old town and drop at Ploce (plo-cha) entrance. You can then enter the old town via the so much less busier side of town. Just a few meters down, on the left, is another entrance to the city walls. Only 32 steps up to reach the walls and a much easier and less crowded entrance.

Remember, good walking sandals, a sun hat, bottle of water and losts of memory in your camera. The views are spectacular and unfortunately most guests don't bother to hire any guides, so they don't have a clue about the details of the old town. I do not believe that Dubrovnik is a do it yourself town, however most tourists think it to be so. However those folks do always miss the many hidden gems which is the essence of my home.

Dubrovniktravelady,

I am new to this site as we just booked the Carnival Magic for its last European cruise. This will be our first trip to Croatia and you have given me plenty to do with your suggestions and your maps. We, for sure will be taking the 2 hour bus tour. You mentioned guides. Are you allowed to recommend any or can we just find one as we get off the ship? Any other suggestions as to obtaining more information about your city? Also, perhaps I missed it as I did not read all the posts, but where in Northern California did you come from? Thank you so very much for all the help you have given on this board.

We had arranged to use Bully for our recent visit to Aruba. Since there were 14 of us and a taxi can take only 5 people, he arranged to have Sonny take all but 4 of us. Sonny has a very nice vehicle that holds 14 people comfortably. He worked for De Palm, the largest tour company on the island and had just recently gone into business on his own. We did a 4 hour tour, saw half the island and found Sonny very helpful and informative. We paid $25.00 pp and felt we more than got our money's worth. In addition, Sonny's wife works at one of the jewelry stores and if you shop there, you receive a very nice discount. He can be contacted at binns.tours.@yahoo.com

01 CRUZN BUCKEYE - 0HIO

02 Icarrythebags - Ohio

03 CrazyAboutCruising- New York

04 bbiggar-Wisconsin

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07 Tom-n-Cheryl - FLORIDA

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79 KenMo & DH - Missouri

80 smarks & DH oldfart - GA.

81 Floatway and Hubby - Friendswood, Texas

82 Luv2cruz44 - Redding, CA

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OceanDreamin,

Thank you soooooo much. They will love this review!!

Hi CJW,

Thanks for the great review. Wish I knew how to send the link of the whole thing to friends who are cruising the Paradise with us for their first cruise. Especially enjoyed your enjoyment of Kareoke! We have assingned 4A rooms so hope we get Nelson. What was your room number, if you don't mind. Also was the casino still smoke free or did you notice? Again, thanks.

Fred,

I never doubted your information. I was just amazed that an employee would be so emphatic in her "wrongness". I have made mistakes along the way and shared mis-information but I just hope I was never as rigid as this person appeared to be.

FYI,

I called Carnival today to book the Paradise for 12/07. The PVP I talked to (new to me as my old one left) flatly denied this information. She said that if the Paradise casino had gone smokeless, they would be the first to know. Even when I told her I had read an email from the CD, she implied it was a lie as they (I assume PVP's) would have known. Never could convince her otherwise. She did mention that they have now made all the area around the pool smokefree which I didn't realize. In fact when I sat briefly on a chair by the pool, there was a full ashtray under my chair. Someone needs to enlighten PVP's, or at least this one...I tried but didn't do it!