willdra

11 hours ago, Shell557 said:

Be sure to let us know when you do!

Y'all will be the first to know! I can't leave my cruise cousins hangin'! 🥰

21 hours ago, princess76021 said:

I agree!!!

Hugs from Texas

Thank you! I will be back soon! 😉

On 2/12/2024 at 3:02 PM, Essiesmom said:

I’m happy with my Lume soap, just wish they made smaller bars.  And unfortunately I have to have unscented, as I turn scents sour.  EM

I have some of the Lume body wash that I received when I ordered the starter pack. I still haven't used it yet, but I will soon. Hopefully I will love it as much as the deodorant! 😍😍 

On 2/12/2024 at 1:34 PM, BigNance said:

Willdra,

Thanks for a great cruise!  Your writing style (and humor) are terrific.  I am snorting and chuckling at work!!

I am always happy when I can find your reviews!

 

AND, now I have to try the BCS....

N

LOL thank you so much!!!!! 😂

22 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

I’m so sad to have come to the end of another Willdra review. 😫 

Me too! It feels the cruise has ended again. 😉

On 2/12/2024 at 1:19 PM, mimmy52 said:

I couldn’t figure out how to paste the paragraph I wanted, so now it looks as though I’m quoting you saying nothing. I am now wondering what the correct way to hold a wine glass is. I thought you would show a picture, but no. I hate to go out in the world showing my ignorance at how to hold a wine glass. Also, I think it would be awesome if the Cetto folks had a wine bottle with a purple label and skull like the big wine bottle you posed by.

 

No worries, I got you covered! Here is the correct way (according to the team at L.A. Cetto) to hold a wine glass. They were adamant that it should only be held by the stem and not the "bowl" because our hands can warm up the wine. 

On 2/12/2024 at 10:52 AM, Sadebud said:

Another GREAT job, Willdra!!!   Thank you for your time, energy and your sense of humor!  I will say a prayer tonight thanking God for your writing ability, and that you and W get to cruise twice as much this year...maybe even 3 times as much!!  Speaking of which, when do "we" cruise again??  Oh, and add me to the list of people who will buy/read/recommend any book you write!

LOL, thank you! We need all the prayers we can get! 😇😇

On 2/11/2024 at 9:14 PM, MEUB1112 said:

Great timing to be there during the grape crush!!

Yes, it was perfect and it smelled heavenly! 😋

This is exactly what I was looking for! Thanks so much for posting! 😁

When the plane landed it was chaos. People were trying to let those with connections go ahead, but they would then inadvertently be in someone else’s way. Since we were in the front, we just told the people ahead of us to go. If we deplaned normally we would make it.

God was watching out for us that day, cuz the next gate was right across from us. Remarkably, no planes trains or automobiles had to be involved in us getting to the gate. However, they were in fact waiting on us. W and I wasted no time getting over there. We also had our boarding passes out and ready to scan. We moved quickly cuz we didn’t want to inconvenience anyone any further. Onboard, we were fully prepared to be told to sit wherever. We were not told that tho. We were told that there were plenty of seats, and we could sit where we wanted. We had an entire row to ourselves. Look at God. Won't He do it?

This was a pretty short flight, at only an hour and a half. It was also quiet, since it was so late, and empty. After we landed, we went down to baggage claim, but we didn’t have high hopes that our bags made it there.

Welp we were wrong. Our bags actually came out first. We collected everything, then we were off to catch a shuttle to the "off airport" parking lot. We didn't wait long for that either. Everything was seamless and it all worked out in the end. Just like it always does.

We officially closed the book on this cruise when we got home. It was everything that we wanted and then some. 

Before I fell asleep, I thanked God that the Popeyes on our way home stays open until midnight. Of course they did the usual "we are out of that type of chicken", even tho W had ordered on the app before we arrived. I honestly wouldn't know what to do if Popeyes ever just gave me what I ordered. Food without an attitude? That would be some suspicious chicken indeed. This time, we were desperate, so we told them to just give us what they had, and they hooked us up. All was right with the world again. Amen.

Our flight started boarding at 1:05. We were leaving at 1:50. I always pay the extra cash to have Southwest Early Bird Check In. For us it’s worth it to not worry about checking in for the flights, especially when we are out at sea, or on an excursion 24 hours before. Also, with Early Bird Check In, we usually get a good boarding position. This time we were A29 and A30.

We lined up, boarded the flight, and sat in Row 4. Right around the time we should've been leaving, the pilot got on the intercom and said we were 300 pounds overweight, so they needed to unload cargo. Ok no big deal. I thought. It really was a big deal. That weight issue set us back an hour. This meant that we would arrive after our connecting flight departed from HOU to ATL.

About 5 minutes after we received the latest departure time, the flight attendants announced that they were working on fixing our flights. First they said the ATL passengers would be bumped to the 9:15 flight, and the other connecting passengers would have to stay until maybe the next day. Welp the crowd didn’t like that at all, so they told everyone to hold on. The gate agents were still working to sort it out. 10 minutes later, they announced that all of our connecting flights would be waiting for us. I felt bad for the peeps on the next flights. Hopefully this wouldn’t inconvenience them as well. I was also concerned about whether our luggage would make it. These of course, are all minor 1st world problems. Our safety in getting home was priority one.

The flight time from LAX to HOU was 2 hours 45 minutes. I slept half of the way and read the other half. W did the same. When we could tell we were landing, we started getting our bags together so we could run from one plane to the other. Side note: how do people who sit by the window keep the window closed during landing? I need to see the ground please. It’s totally 100% mental for me. I just feel better when I can see where we are.

All of that phone losing creeped me out, so I put mine away for the ride to LAX. We pulled out of the port at 10:34 am. We arrived at 11:00. We filed out, checked our bags, and walked thru TSA Pre at 11:18. 

We still had almost 2 hours. First, we sat at the gate for awhile so that W could charge up his phone. After it was charged enough, he got some juice, and we perused the shops. I went into the CA Store and bought some gifts. Our son was born in CA, so we get him souvenirs from there when we visit. I also like to say "I've started my Christmas Shopping already", cuz it makes me seem like I know what I'm doing.

There is a huge Chick Fil A in that terminal, but the line was off the hook, and I didn’t feel like fighting for it. I just ordered a pizza from California Pizza Kitchen for later. I’m so glad that I did too. It was so good and cheesy! I couldn’t wait to dig in.

We made it to the igloo building at 9:41. From there we picked up our luggage then exited. Outside, we crossed the street then asked where the shuttles were. They said to go to the right down the sidewalk. We walked down and we saw a Carnival Shuttle to LAX. We inquired as to what we needed to do, and were told to check in with the guy in the orange vest. We went over to him and got in line to check in. He kept walking away to “investigate” stuff while people were lining up.

One of the times that he walked away, I saw a lady holding a printout, pointing at it, and saying a lot of words to orange vest guy. Maybe she didn’t get the tickets that they gave us, or maybe she threw them away by accident, or maybe she was a shuttle riding vagrant who liked to get free rides by pretending she was on a Carnival Cruise. Either way, we wanted no parts of whatever that was, so we kept our distance. 

We were escorted to the next bus that pulled up around 10. We dropped off our luggage first, then climbed aboard. The drivers wait to get the buses as full as possible. While we were waiting, a lady to the left of us suddenly asked the couple behind her for a favor. She asked them to call her phone cuz she couldn’t find it. She gave them the number and they reluctantly called it. At first, it went to voicemail. Then the man called it again, and Guest Services answered it. They told him to tell the owner they had it, and she needed to come back. As soon as she heard that, the lady jumped up, got her bags, then went to tell orange vest guy her special issue. At first he said “You can’t go back” but then, with crazy eyes, she told him again how Guest Services said she needed to go back. Orange vest guy decided that he didn’t want that smoke, so they got her luggage from the bottom, then sent her on her way. I prayed that they sent someone to meet her, so she didn’t have to go all the way back.

From that point we got back in the “go” line. We were behind a family with teens. There was an issue because one of the teens left something in the cabin. This must be a recurring theme. They ran back to get it but didn’t find it. We were moving so slow, the teen caught back up to their group right after we entered the Liquid Lounge. Yes this ship uses the Liquid Lounge to debark. W didn’t remember it from the last time but I did. Yep. It’s still weird.

When we finished up, we reluctantly went on a last minute phone hunt. Yippee! This time we went to the Aft Elevators to see if we could get one going down. There we found success. We waited exactly 1 minute for an elevator. We got down to 4, and there was a huge line down there of peeps getting off of the ship. Great! We jumped in the line, then exited to the left to go to the American Heroes Bar as soon as we could. I would wait there while he went to GS. Or so I thought. 

As soon as he was gone, inconveniently, a Crew Member came thru and told us we couldn’t wait there. I told her that I received a letter that said different. She said "Diamonds left a long time ago”. Huh? The announcement was made when? Gerry hadn’t called any luggage tags yet. They were still debarking self assist. She adds “All of the luggage is ready down there. I have to clear this lounge” Umkay. I got up and made my way down to Guest Services praying that W was still there.

Going down there I was walking upstream but trust, it wasn’t by choice. When I started out, I was told by another Crew Member to go that route back to the stairwell, then go down. I kept moving until I saw that W was still in the line at Guest Services, then I relaxed a little. I still needed to get down there as soon as I could, before he left. I made the last of my downward trek, and I didn’t have to ask if he found his phone, I saw them handing it to him. Hallelujah!

He’d left it in the dining room. I wondered why they didn’t call him. They had our info, and the table we were assigned. The waiter even remembered W’s Folio Number when he ordered a Diet Coke that night. Welp, I guess they forget everything after we leave the table. In any event, I was thrilled, cuz getting thru the airport was gonna be a nightmare if he didn't have his phone. Thank God for taking care of fools and babies. 

I checked the cabin again thoroughly before we vacated it. When we left out, W wanted to go to Guest Services to see if they had his phone. We couldn’t get down there in the forward elevators, so we decided to eat first, then we would go down. We also planned to meet the Diamond Group to leave the ship around 9:30. The letter that we received said 10am, but that seemed too late to me.

In the Lido Marketplace we got random food items and ate pretty fast.

This is the menu from the sit down breakfast that we did not do:

Eviction Day

When we returned to the cabin the night before, W announced that he’d misplaced his phone. He thought he either left it in the MDR, or he dropped it somewhere. Hamburger help me.

On Eviction Day, I got up officially at 7:45, and I started the last minute throw everything in the bag ritual, while I was simultaneously getting my body ready. W, on the other hand, was still all the way under the covers, exhibiting no signs of (human) life. At 8:13, Gerry with a G piped into our cabin and said that cabins had to be empty by 8:30. Sweet.

When I heard that, I told Cocoon to get up, cuz it was time for us to go. He mumbled something incoherently and then got up. After he was fully awake, I double checked under the beds to make sure his phone and nothing else fell under the cracks. It was all clear. I checked the nightstand next to my side of the bed, and there wasn't a phone, but there was a duck in there. I grabbed it and threw it in my bag. I heard several kids the day before upset because they didn’t get a duck. Hopefully I would find a kid to give it to on the way out.

On 2/10/2024 at 4:35 PM, Retired20 said:

I am so glad I found your review !! Your pictures are fabulous and your sense of humor is the best !! I have read all your past reviews and am always looking for a new one ! I do wish you two would cruise more often !! I need the entertainment !  Thanks for taking the time and energy to write this review . I love it ! I hope some day I can meet you and we can sail together !

Replies like this keep me writing! Thanks so much for the encouraging words! 🥰🥰🥰 

On 2/9/2024 at 9:33 AM, Bollycats said:

Why are you not an author??? I would buy your books. 

I have honestly thought about writing a book. Maybe one of these days when I get my life together, I’ll do it. 😉

11 hours ago, MzShae said:

Before I fell asleep, I thanked God for Buff City Soap. 

I ❤️ Buff City Soap!! Magnolia & Cherry Almond are my favs!

LOL 😆 I just started using a Cherry Almond bar this morning. It’s my first time using it, and I love it! It smells really good, and it made me want some cherry pie!
♥️🍒🍒♥️

On 2/9/2024 at 3:54 AM, edspec said:

@willdra DH and I have the talk about where we were and now here we are.  We were so, so broke in the early days and now here we are comfortable and able to take lovely vacations.  It's odd how it happens, one day you're checking over every item in your grocery cart, balancing the bank statements, staying up nights trying to figure out how to pay a bill and then slowly it starts to get better.  I still remember going into a gas station in 1996 and buying a soda since I was thirsty. A really big deal as money for something like that was absolutley not available up to that point. 

 

Your review has decided me, we need to do another Panorama or Firenzia cruise before we leave California.  We're buying in Latitudes Hilton Head so need to take care of our west coast cruises before the move.

Congrats on buying in Latitudes Hilton Head! I’ll bet it’s going to be so much fun! They have so many activities it’s hard to get bored. ♥️🎉🎉♥️
 

California cruises have a different vibe and the ports are 👌🏾👌🏾👌🏾. I wish we could sail more from there!  😃😃😃

On 2/8/2024 at 10:28 PM, purpleally said:

Loaves and fishes, my favorite Gospel 

Mine too!!! 😇

Before I fell asleep, I thanked God for Buff City Soap. If you don’t know about BCS, let me put you on game. A few years ago, I was minding my own melanated business on the innanets, when I pulled up on Buff City Soap’s website. I love to try different soap, especially when it smells good, so it wasn't unusual that the innanets led me there.

I ordered a few bars, and I’ve been hooked ever since then. I also managed to hook everyone that I shared the bars with. Buff City Soap has lots of locations now, so I don’t have to order it anymore, and I go every chance I get. Two of my favorite soaps are Fruity Loopy and Shore Thing, which I keep in my travel bag at all times. Shore Thing smells like the best part of being at the beach. Buff City Soap is so luxurious, you just pop it in your soap sleeve(one of the best inventions ever), and get ready for the lather of your life. I don’t know what I did to deserve this soap, but I pray that I keep doing it. A lot.

Also, thank you God for not letting me walk around smelling like I cut grass for the city of Atlanta. Amen.

We left the show right at 10. There was a short line waiting to get into the Limelight. They opened the doors at around 10 after 10. After we found seats, I ran back up to the cabin to get a glass of wine. We had way too much wine with the 2 bottles that we brought on, and it was weighing down our suitcases. I volunteered as tribute, and told W that I would drink the wine that we embarked with. Was I already tipsy? Yes. Was I going to take one for the team? Still yes.

The elevators were crowded going down, so I got back right when Quest started. While we were in the lounge, lots of people kept coming in and leaving cuz they thought there was a comedy show happening. Sorry y’all. This ain’t that kind of comedy.

Per usual Quest protocol, I was shocked, which means it was fabulous. I saw stuff that I won't be able to unsee, and I enjoyed it. 

When the game concluded, we went back to the cabin to get ready to be a mess on debarkation day. The ship was really moving fast to get us back to LB, which I didn't understand, cuz we were already so close. The Captain understood the assignment tho, and cranked it like Soulja Boy.