Essiesmom

I believe the menus are standard fleetwide. If you look through my Live from on Seaside last week (it’s back on the second page now) you will find the menus for the first four days. Plus the always available page. My cruises were only 4+3 days. EM

Likely not. The water from the tap is purer than what is in those bottles anyway. EM

Island and Coral dining rooms are both midship. palm is all the way aft on deck 6. The galley is between Coral and Palm. EM

Hot is only relative. I live in coastal GA and we have hotter summers than on the equator. It will be humid, it might rain off and on. Just looked up temp in Colon, Panama: 83 and rain, expected high 80’s for the week. Our temp right now I’d 93, feels like 101. EM

I did not explore the buffet for dinner - guess I should have. But I thought it was great for breakfast and lunch. But perhaps it’s a trend. My previous cruise, this past June, was on Celebrity Summit. They had a wonderful lunch buffet. I had anytime dining as I booked late. I found as a solo I was pretty low on the totem pole for the MDR. First night there were no reservations and I had to wait an hour for a table. Second night 40 minutes. We went to Bermuda, so on a port night there was no wait. Other than those nights, I ate in the buffet. And the selections were much fewer there. And none of the items on the MDR menu were available in the buffet in the evening. . EM

MSC also has solo cabins on the newest ships. But the problem becomes…some lines do not want to sell you a cabin as a solo, even with the single supplement. I just did an experimental booking on MSC, and when I specified I was solo, it was sold out. When I went back and tried as if there were two, all categories were available. And I don’t need much. I’m okay with an inside gty. Their loss. EM

And it shows terminal 10 for Meraviglia port stops. EM

You should ask this on the Florida Departures board. Locals there can advise you. EM

Willdra, do you do your hair in colors when you cruise so W can find you in a crowd (but never does)? EM

Thus far it has been terminal 10. EM

Inward about this here, and was also on Seaside last week. I asked my waiter and he said they are starting to do it on the 3 day sailings. I reported that in my live thread. EM

A visit to the Panama Canal board here under Ports of Call would refute that. it’s been suggested they cancelled those cruises because of lack of interest/soft bookings. EM

My pics finally populated from phone to cloud to iPad and I see what I missed…because at that time I wasn’t looking for it:

That is what has been reported here. EM

Cabin 14142 has the bed by the balcony. Since placement usually alternates, you can count up to 14114 to figure it out. 14137 also has bed by balcony. Only relatively nearby pics on cruisedeckplans. EM

This is arranged through your ROLL CALL, if there is one. EM

And just so I am not quite so anonymous, here are the two pics of me from the trip: embarkation and diamond party. I don’t do selfies and don’t feel like I look good in picture’s anymore. I do these mostly to document I’ve been there. And to prove to my family that I actually had a glass of wine.

It was almost a desperation thing. I was having trouble booking as a solo and when I found the 3 day, I booked it. And I needed an MSC cruise to keep Diamond status. But right away I was thinking about doing the 4 day up front, so booked it the next day. Now I need to go looking again. I’m home now, got on the road by 0825. Other than the express walk off people, I was in the second group. But for those who haven’t debarked at PC, it’s not well organized. They organize your luggage by group number, but the highest numbers are right as you come off the ramp. Those of us with the lowest numbers had to go all the way past CBP to the far end of the room to find our bags, then go all the way back to get in line to be outfaced. I say outpaced, because if you have a passport, you don’t even need to show it, just look at the camera and pass through. Got to my vehicle and packed it up. Wound my way out of the garage, the lot, and the terminal areas. Traffic was not bad on I95 u til after I-4, and there still weren’t many trucks. In and out of light rain, and saw a rainbow to the west. Driving back, I realized that though I think I saw grits at the Marketplace buffet at breakfast, I didn’t see biscuits and gravy. SC needs to work on that. I’m going to miss the sticky buns. If anyone has questions, please ask. I don’t get involved in a lot of things, so didn’t report on them. I would have liked to sit out, people watch and do a little needlework…but I found few chairs that were comfortable enough for more than a few minutes. There are various couches that look great, it must have had some pillows for your back at the beginning. Or they were meant for very tall people.

These short cruises on Seaside there were folks of all ages and genders in the MDR in shorts. EM

Bag is just about ready to go out. I carried on, but there is too much carpet to drag my case over. I went to supper in my white, as it is again white/Italian night. They seated me on the other side of the Seashore MDR. I was carded three times. For the first time my water glass was filled from a pitcher…that was sweating…instead of a room temp bottle of Acqua Panna. So, it was cold. I had the caprese salad again, but tried the meatloaf this time. It was okay…meatloaf. The onion rings were not crisp. I did not order dessert as I planned to have another gelato cone from Venchi. Which I did. As I ate my gelato I sat along the walkway by the shops and people watched. What a show. One lady (?) was wearing something like a body suit bustier with a tulle over skirt, transparent. Another had a short figure hugging ruched dress with huge net puffed detached sleeves. And then there was a group of perhaps 8, all dressed in white, but not alike. But each was wearing a pixie wig in a neon color, from silver to blue and all in between. Free entertainment. The show tonight is Starwalker, the Michael Jackson tribute…which I have seen twice so took a pass. Back to the cabin to change into what I am wearing tomorrow, and pack the rest. EM

It fits the bill if you want to sail longer than 3 or 4 days. I did a 5/5/4 once on Millie, I turned Elite after the second leg. I was told by the most traveled guest that I would notice a difference between the 4&5 night segments. He was right, only on the 4 night did I see cargo shorts and a wife beater shirt on formal night. I walked down the starboard corridor of my deck today, and counted three strollers and a scooter sitting out. The strollers were obviously too wide, although could have been folded. The scooter was a rental and could have fit in the cabin…if the bed was by the balcony. I have also seen a side by side stroller onboard, but I think it was umbrella type and probably folds. I was just out on my balcony and smelled cigarette smoke. Not sure where it was coming from.

Thank you. Actually, I hadn’t t thought about it at the time

Yes and the cabin stewards will deliver tags and instructions the day before. EM

Absolutely. I asked for it the first night, and the waiter brought me a glass. And later came around with a pitcher and refilled without asking. EM

To be honest, I don’t notice much, if any difference. I was hoping that short cruises from PC would draw in guests from Europe who have been in Florida/Orlando doing some theme parks. I think that might be happening. I can usually pick out the Romance languages, German, Slavic languages, Tagalog, Native American languages, but there are some on here that I can’t place. The vast majority of people who sail on a cruise do not stay in a restricted area, nor are they in suites. And they appear to have a good time. I am one of those people. I am budget conscious, though not so much as I used to be. I booked an inside gty and got a balcony. But I would have been content in the inside. I’m not a mixer, but I like to be around people, to watch them. To see what they are wearing…or almost wearing. To be honest, even on this 3 day, all beach, I think the women are better dressed than on my Carnival cruises fromJAX.