DandDM

Continued... Itinerary. Chose these cruises because of the ship and superbowl; didn't really think about the stops. This might not be a popular opinion, but I don't have any real desire to go back to either private island. If I want to do a beach stop, can do at other ports, but I never do because I don't really care for beach days. Wouldn't NOT do a cruise just because it is one of the stops; I think of them as sea days. Have no problem with Nassau and St Thomas; talking to others, regret (a little bit) not doing any excursions. Finally, no desire to stop at any Jamaican ports; been to three different ones and have stayed in a resort, and can't think of a reason to get off the ship in the future. I may talk about this later if I get that far, but for future cruises, want to do more stops in Central/South America and Panama canal. I'm a history fan so enjoy the Mayan ruins and old civilization stuff Superbowl. Guess I should talk about that. I ended up having a good time, but only because I paid for a seat. To be part of the crowd and get a decent free seat, probably would have needed to claim the seat 60 - 90 minutes before kickoff. If I was with a group, might have been more fun. As I put in my earlier post, I wish they had the game on in more venues with different viewing options. And since there is a suite lounge and a suite debt, seems like they could have set up an event on one of those spots... Future cruises. This goes back to my comment about ports. For once in as long as I can remember, do not have any cruises booked. Usually, I book one on the ship and already have the next one or two set up already. When I booked these two, they were four and five on the list. I spent a fair amount of time looking at options while on the ship, and got some ideas the Next Cruise folks (both for Royal and Celebrity) but didn't find one that jumped out. Some friends recommends a few Celebrity opitons that I will keep looking at. What I found was that the newer ships had very boring (in my opinion) itineraries and very high price tags. When I found cruises that were interesting, they usually left from less popular ports, were on older, small ships, and were still very expensive (but cheaper than the big ships). The two I found most interesting was a partial Panama transit on a small ship out of (can't remember which it was) Tampa or Galveston. Then there was a Mexico cruise out of New Orleans that was priced well and I've never been to New Orleans so could do that. I almost pulled the trigger on that one, but I want to do more research on New Orleans first. So nothing booked...

Will try to keep this someone organized without too much wandering...will see what happens. For those that have followed along, hope you'll agree that it was a great cruise. Met new people, did new stuff, saw new shows, won in the casino, ate too much; everything I'd wish for in a trip! Cabin. I was in a GS on deck 14. Chose this floor as I knew I'd want to go up to the SL/CK on deck 17 often, but didn't really even consider a CLS on deck 17 as they are so big, a pain to get to (if you don't use elevators much) and frankly, very expensive. This was as close as I could get to that floor. However, this was not a great choice as I was under a public deck and more importantly, under a table tennis court. There was very little noise from the deck (late one night I got out of bed and climbed up a level to yell at some kids who were jumping off the furniture), and couldn't hear the table tennis from my room, but on the balcony, the table tennis could get noisy. Did like that the room was close to the stairs. If I could choose again, would look for something on the starboard side, close to the elevators, and on deck 12 or 13. Room steward was great and usually had my room done without me seeing him, but often saw me in the hall and said hi/asked how it was going or if I needed anything. Got 'gifts' on two nights each cruise: a fruit tray and small desserts. Had many cups of coffee from the machine. Food. I won't spend much time on this as you saw what I ate and I gave my opinions, but overall was completely satisfied with the food. I guess you didn't see it all; I stopped by Windjammer two or three times for a snack and made some nachos in el loco fresh (I think that is what it is called). I didn't try the main dining room so can't comment on that. I thought the quality at Windjammer was fine, but didn't have enough of an experience, and don't have a lot of past experiences, to really form an opinion on how it compares to the old days. One comment on the CK - by the end of the second week was struggling to find new things I wanted to try on some nights, so if on another week, would be revisiting stuff I already tried. Service there was fantastic and waiters quickly learned my name, wine preferences, and to not bring bread. Entertainment. Think I saw all the shows and a few of the events. The only 'dud' was Tracta the impressionist (intentionally didn't report on that because the review would not have been good). Saw the aqua show twice. In another year or so, if I'm back on the Oasis, would watch Cats again. You know, I guess I do want to tell my Tracta story... I got to the theater early and it was pretty empty. Grabbed a seat about ten in from an aisle, near the middle. Right when the show was starting, a family of five or six sat in front of me. A little girl (maybe five or six) was in front of me, and she wasn't interested in the show at all; was playing "peek-a-boo" with me and squirming around. She was small and it wasn't a big deal. Then maybe ten minutes after the show started, a big family came in and filled in the seats between me and the aisle. A bunch of kids. Next to me was a young man, probably 11 or 12, who at first was on his phone. Its screen was bright and his mom made him turn it off. With no phone, he quickly got bored and started to mess with his siblings, and sometimes when he turned to interact with one of them, his lankly legs would shift and he'd kick me. THEN, a toddler from one of the families started to babble. No words, just ba-ba-ba-baaaa. No one did anything and the kid kept going, so after the third time the kid kicked me, I got up and moved as far as I could the other way, feeling bad because I sat right in front of one couple and next to another, disrupting their space. Once I got away from this mess, focused on the show, and realized that not only had a seen it before, I didn't like it the first time. It was not my type of thing and was way outdated (recall it was outdated when I saw it a few years ago). So now I just wanted to leave, but had the two families to my left, and 12 people (I counted them) between me and the isle on the right. Mapped out that if it climbed over a couple rows of seats, there was a route where I would only have to get around six. Finally decided I would just wait out the rest of the show, thankfully could now just barely hear the kid babbling. It is a short show; 40 or 45 minutes and I made it through. Would think this was over, but no! I patiently waited in my seat for the show to end, the CD to make his comments and the crowd to thin. I didn't want to deal with the family. When I finally left, had to walk around a group of people that had gathered near the exit and noticed some motion. The same kid that kept kicking me was messing with a brother within the group; he stumbled and fell right into me. I don't know what I did to get this bad karma; I just went back to my cabin and went to bed after that. Comments to be continued.

Oh, President's Day...I thought it was Veteran's! My apologies on that; to defend myself, the ship had a nice presentation for Veterans on the last sea day, and without researching, jumped to the conclusion that it was for the upcoming holiday. I'm usually the idiot at work who will have someone say "see you Tuesday" and I'll be surprised that we don't have to work on Monday!

I have the laptop out and opened a bottle that was left after the cruise (and don't want to carry home) so will work on wrapping this up. May have some more posts today or tomorrow as I get back, and will also make sure to update folks about the race! Cheers,

This is different for me too! I'll share my thoughts, but welcome anyone else with more 'local' knowledge to chime in. I consider the service charge the gratuity (or tip) and have not given extra. Kinda like the 18% that cruise lines add to bills (I wonder if that is where the idea came from here...) Where I live (Pacific North West USA) there was a period of time where restaurants would claim to be socially responsible by adding a "Living Wage" tip to your bill. For most places it was 15 - 18% and they were upfront about it, saying that the tip ensured that employees received a 'living wage'. If you didn't like it, you could have it taken off, or you could give extra. Once again, very upfront about it. This didn't last long and all of the restaurants I know of that tried it out, later stopped and went back to a traditional tipping system. Have treated what I've seen here as being similar, but it has not been done the same way. First off, I didn't notice anything on menu or table that specifically talked about it. Second, it was buried in the bill as a 'service charge.'. Finally, the receipt to sign (or when the bring the machine out) had it included on the total with additional line for tip. I specifically asked my waitress about it today, I said, "This is the tip, right?". She nodded agreement, but based on a language barrier I noticed when ordering, not 100% sure she understood me. If I was going to tip extra for outstanding service, would only calculate the tip based on the food and drink cost before taxes and the service charge. Now that I've seen it twice here in Miami Beach I am guessing that it is pretty common in the area...other might have more thoughts. Cheers,

A couple more photos - the outdoor ‘gym’ is really getting busy. And view of the roof top pad at the place next to my room.

Trip is winding down. Really plan to give my final thoughts soon! Anyway, lunch, but first a little off topic. One of the many things I miss about my wife was her meal planning/research. She would spend a long time on her phone before meal time, finding the best place and usually a coupon or deal. I’d occasionally get frustrated with the time it took, or hesitate about her choice - but the meals rarely disappointed and I learned to go along. We (she) found some real gems. Now I don’t find the golden nuggets she did, and instead find places that look good and are close when I’m hungry. With that said, was thinking about tacos so found a place that seemed to have an ok menu and was busy so went for it! Today was a place called Oh Mexico and it was fine. Not much more to say. Chips and flight of salsas (all spicy). Fish tacos Margaritas and the surrounding views. Once again, bill had an automatically added 20% service charge and then the request for additional tip.

12th and final run today! More runs than I thought feasible for the trip. The run itself was just ok, after two weeks of ‘practicing’ on the ship, thought I would crush this. But of all things, my shins bugged me from the start…the only reason I can think of is that I’d gotten used to the softer track surface on the ship, so running on concrete and brick was the issue. While not what I’d hoped for, was able to get five miles in and kept time under 11 min/mile. A lot of people out, forgot that it is Veteran’s Day. A big Thank You to the veterans out there!

Yes, much nicer today! Was only 60 when I left for a run, but sun is coming out now 😃

The rain calmed down this evening, in time for dinner! Ended up at Thai House South Beach after wandering around for a while. place was kinda expensive (for Thai), this order of chicken with peanut sauce was $27.95. It tasted good, not great for that price, and the temperature was inconsistent. When I got the bill there was an added 18% service charge… seen that from time to time and I was going to tip anyway, but it bugged me that the final receipt (after credit card) had the total, including the SC AND also place to add a tip with recommended amounts based on a % of the full bill. Walking back, passed the Blue Moon, does look like it would be a nice place.

Heard the Daytona 500 got postponed - ouch! The wind and rain gave me an excuse to take a nap and not feel guilty that I was missing out on anything.

Got the room just in time! But now I want another IPA…

I sure can pick my days in Miami! IMG_8330.mov

Waldorf towers wins! Got my room a little after 1 pm. When I went back to Blue Moon to get my bag, the same guy was at the desk and he apologized again and said that house cleaning was getting my room ready. Haha. Happy with the room at Waldorf and since I had a decent time this morning doing some new stuff, happy that I saved some money! Room photos, this is an ocean view corner room. View Edited to add: towel animal!

Still waiting. Wandered down to South Point park. Had jogged past and wanted to check it out. Tried to find a tour or attraction in the area and came up empty, but did find a bar. The South Point Tavern. Ordered a local Hazy IPA which is pretty good Fancy place. They have the Rip Van Winkle on the bottom shelf. Club sandwich was good.

Nice, competent driver had me at the hotel quickly, arrived 9:50, just a few minutes early. Looks like a nice hotel, but we got problems! At first the clerk said he was having a problem finding my reservation, and then admitted they were overbooked. Said that I would get the first room available after someone checked out 😞. I argued for a minute, but the guy was really nice and I’m sure he didn’t cause this, nor had a better solution, so I dropped off my bag and am now chilling at the beach. Did discuss the need for a price adjustment when (if) I get a room. The hotel is the Blue Moon. Quick update: went to the hotel where I have a reservation tonight and got on the ‘list’ for when a room is available. Will see who calls first!

Quick update on disembarking. After breakfast, Willie the concierge came over and offered assistance. Initially I thought this would be useful to avoid some lines, but then realized that he was using the elevator! I wasn’t about to break my perfect stair record for that! Ended up not being a big deal as the line was moving fast on deck five and I was off the ship in just a few minutes. Was pretty surprised how many people were taking their bags off, even people with two or three bags. Got one photo of the bags on the escalator. Once down stairs, quickly found my bag and went to customs, they were using the facial recognition system. Only a couple people in front of me for that, then was outside. Took maybe ten minutes total to get off the ship and most of that was walking. Once outside it took awhile for the Uber app to find a driver and said 20 minutes until arrival. While waiting, saw the confiscated items table. The Uber app wasn’t updating the countdown or driver location - my cell phone had lost its signal. I found a spot where it worked, but that wasn’t where I needed to be to get my ride The situation was hectic- a ton of people and their luggage so it was difficult to maneuver to watch for my car, luckily I did find it, and even then, had a tough time getting people to move so I could get to it! Was very relieved when I finally sat down in the car and was on my way. And guess what - raining again!

Killing some time…don’t think I posted these.

Forgot to take a photo from my room, but here is the general view. Sad to see the empty ship.

The hotel I booked a long time ago couldn’t arrange an early check in and can’t promise a room until 4 pm (should have thought about that before booking…). So the other day, I checked out Hotels for the Day and found a day room at a place around the corner from that hotel for $109. I can get into that room at 10am. Original plan was to use the room as a base for a run, but looking at the weather, it may turn into a napping spot! I have no solid plans for today (or tomorrow) but will share what ever I end up doing!

The ship docked the other way today, next cruisers in my cabin will have the water view. But it looks like rain today. Last breakfast in CK. Fruit and Benedict. The Hollandaise had more mustard taste than I’m used to, but it was still good.

Thanks! Both…I think that is a suite benefit. Service has been great.

Just closed down Vintages. Maybe not the smartest thing as I have to be out of my stateroom in eight hours, but fun nonetheless. Had a great time with the guests there and bartenders Roman and Sherwin. A lot of thoughts about these cruises (favorable), no doubt currently influenced by the wine they served. More to come tomorrow.

You are welcome! I hope you have a great cruise!

Now packed 😞. Guess I can’t stay here forever! I am planning a post of random thoughts from the cruise, but didn’t get the chance to do it today. Maybe tomorrow. Sunset Dinner. Hamachi Crudu. Had no idea what this was so asked, glad I tried it. Next tuna, one of my favorites from last week and enjoyable again. Finally, Fried rice. As I recalled the serving size of the tuna, wanted something smaller. Waiter threw me for a loop, asking how I wanted my egg…I responded something like, “whatever’s easiest”. This dish was ok, slightly bland. I met a family from Pittsburgh earlier this week and going to meet up with them at Vintages this evening.