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LandlockedCruiser01

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Everything posted by LandlockedCruiser01

  1. Imagine if there was someone named JoeBlow'); DROP TABLE Passengers;-- .
  2. This may be true for its rules and policies. But I found its onboard social atmosphere to be very solo-friendly. Fellow passengers treated me as a decisive traveler who does what he wants, and readily "adopted" me. Crew members either treated me no differently than how they'd treat a group, or they gave me extra attention that didn't feel pitying or patronizing. In fact, one woman I met even called me "bad-ass" for cruising solo, and defended me when someone said "couldn't he get a friend to go with him?". All in all, I'd say give Carnival a chance as a solo, policies nonewithstanding. One major caveat is that they eliminated paper menus and Fun Times schedules, which means you always gotta carry your cell phone around to scan QR codes. So if that bothers you, stick with Norwegian instead.
  3. I've been on the same itinerary on Inspiration (R.I.P.), and visited the same ports. I had a blast. As for petting the tiger cubs, it's "legit", meaning it does exist, but it's questionable morally and environmentally. I saw a storefront in Ensenada advertising this; it also advertised bear cubs to pet. A worker tried to invite me in with a sales pitch. I told him, "gracias, pero no" (that's "no, thanks", or "thanks, but no" if translated literally), and walked away. My logic was that tigers are wild animals. They're not evolved to be around humans, like dogs and cats, nor are they naturally friendly to humans, like dolphins. In order for them to be safe to pet, they're probably drugged up beyond safe levels. I'll make do with petting a domestic cat; they're close enough.
  4. Interesting. In Eastern European cuisines, a salad serves the opposite role: it's served with or instead of a heavier appetizer. (such as pickled herring on rye bread) In those cuisines, a salad almost never includes lettuce, and usually consists of tomato, cucumber, white onion, and dill. Sour cream, or oil and vinegar serve as the dressing. A light appetizer like this salad was meant to excite your appetite for the heavier dishes that would come later.
  5. That would be hard to pull off. America is an oddball on the world stage with its firearm laws: in many states, owning a rifle is as normal as owning a car. But lots of countries make obtaining a firearm very difficult. So how would a tour operator get licensed to issue rifles to people who aren't even local citizens? And what about accidental injuries? If these excursions get made, it's best to leave the hunting to clay targets or pest/invasive species. I don't like the idea of hunting for sport/entertainment. Let the locals hunt animals for food instead.
  6. I had the same concerns when I came up with the idea. That's why I think it's best to limit this kind of excursion to US ports. Better animal welfare protections. As for dogs who age out of cuteness, they can be made available for adoption without the "mob" part.
  7. I did a comparable excursion during my Birthright Israel trip in 2006. We were served a meal in a large Bedouin tent. It was decorated like the nomad tents Bedouins normally use, although electric fans and cable lights were hooked up to a generator outside. The food consisted of fire-baked pita bread, lamb kebobs with pickled vegetables, some honey-based dessert (I forgot what exactly), fruit, and mint tea.
  8. I've done a cooking class like that---it's covered in my Sensation review. We made conch dishes, a coconut dessert, and a rum drink. I had a blast, and the food was more interesting that what's found back on the ship. Plus, with the rum we drank, half the people napped on the bus ride back. 😊 I went to husky dog sled demos here in Chicago. You were allowed to play with the dogs between their sled pulls. The dogs were amazing and super-friendly. They treated you like a best friend from the first minute. Needless to say, I ended up with dog saliva on my face and dog hair on my clothes afterwards. They were adult huskies, so the cute factor wasn't there, but it was still a lot of fun.
  9. Such cafes are popular in Japan. I saw one in Chicago, even, although it was just through the window. But I'm a dog person, so I'd enjoy a getting puppy-mobbed a lot more. 😊
  10. Basically, the thread title. Here's my idea: a puppy mob. The cruiser comes in, signs a waiver saying that they acknowledge that puppies may nip, scratch, damage clothing, or have bathroom accidents, and the facility is not responsible for it. Then they're escorted to a grassy area, and sit on the ground. Then a gate is opened, and a mob of Labrador retriever or golden retriever puppies is released on the cruiser! (These breeds tend to be very cute and social.) The cruiser gets, say, 20 minutes to play with them, pet them, cuddle them, rub their bellies, etc. Basically, anything they want, as long as it doesn't make the puppies uncomfortable. That's like getting a giant shot of oxytocin (a bonding hormone that gets released during close contact with people or pets). Plus, their soft puppy fur feels amazing. There's also an opportunity to donate to the puppy welfare fund at the end. This excursion is best left to US ports, like Key West or Catalina, since America has very good animal welfare laws. But I suppose it can work in foreign ports too, provided there's a way to guarantee that the puppies are treated kindly. While pet adoptions are out of the question on cruises, charity donations can work well.
  11. Rules are rules. None of us here are rule [those German politicians], but we gotta know what we're getting into when we go on a cruise. Including not sharing SDP food. If we want an exception, the most we can do is ask nicely and give an explanation, but even then, a "yes" is far from guaranteed. Are you for real!? Tuna salad is one of the fastest-spoiling foods. Do you really want to give yourself food poisoning, and spend the bulk of your cruise on the toilet instead of the lido deck? I can maybe see a peanut butter and jelly sandwich staying safe in a cabin drawer for a few hours. But definitely not tuna salad!
  12. Who said I was insisting this wasn't true? The only gift I said was OK was a thank-you card.
  13. Of course! I've done that too. But that's not a gift in a conventional sense, and this is a gift thread.
  14. That's because it's on a ship registered in Bahamas or Panama. According to US laws, when sold stateside, unless it's an actual orange JUICE, from concentrate or otherwise (doesn't need to be fresh-squeezed; if it was kept in a steel tank for a year, it still counts), it's a DRINK.
  15. I agree with most people on here: CASH, CASH, and again, CASH. That's what the crew works for. Not for a baseball cap from a city they couldn't care less about or for a box of Oreos they can easily buy in any port. (And most non-US cookies are far better than Oreos to begin with.) But if you're dead-set on giving something non-cash, give a thank-you card. Write a sincere, succinct message on it, thanking them for their work. If you know their native language, write it in that. A card takes up almost no space until thrown out, and it'll give the worker a brief warm feeling. But even then, give the card IN ADDITION to cash, not INSTEAD OF cash.
  16. The current VIFP program feels very flawed. Blues get nothing, that's fine. Reds get only a bottle of water. Well, OK; but something like a drink coupon (actually a feature of the old VIFP program), or a one-time souvenir glass for the price of a regular glass would be nice. Golds basically get the shaft! What do they get? A ridiculously restrictive drink coupon and a "made in China" trinket that quickly turns to clutter upon arriving home. Where's the VIFP party? (also a feature of the old VIFP program) Where's a free Steakhouse Selections entree, even if at one dinner per sailing? Something extra would be nice, given how much Golds paid into Carnival. Then you have the Platinums and the Diamonds basically getting the same benefits, with the only difference that P's get priority dining reservations and D's get guaranteed dining reservations. Also, D's get more free laundry service. In other words, there's minimal incentive in moving up from P to D. And most P and D benefits can be purchased via the FTTF add-on.
  17. In Long Beach. By the pier and in city parks, to be exact. I saw new birds and squirrels that I haven't seen around Chicago. That said, the Florida wildlife from my past cruises was more interesting: I got to see pelicans.
  18. I think "presumptuous" is more suitable than "crazy". That is, he assumes that everything is hunky-dory, and that the world is a fully of cuddly puppies and rainbow-farting unicorns. Well, it's not! Airlines delay or cancel flights at the drop of a hat, and suffer no consequences for it. Weather can throw a monkey wrench into plans any time it wants. Stupid drivers can mess up even a 15-minutes trip to the airport. There are so many things that can easily go wrong, I can't even! $150+ for a pre-cruise hotel is peanuts compared to the peace of mind it gives you. Think of it as insurance of sorts, an insurance against airlines' negligence. I myself flew in to LA/Long Beach the day before my cruise, and had a blast. I... 1. Stayed in a historic hotel, that was actually a refurbished ocean liner Queen Mary. 2. Had a fun conversation with two friendly ladies I met on a water bus on the way to dinner. 3. Tried an In-N-Out Burger, Animal-Style. (Which is a big deal if you're from Chicago.) 4. Enjoyed a low-humidity climate for the first time in my life. 5. Ate breakfast at a small business owned by a US Air Force veteran. 6. Saw some new, interesting wildlife not found in the Midwest. Other than the "friendly ladies" part, perhaps your husband can be convinced by a first-hand account of a fellow cruiser. (See my "Day 0" portion of the Inspiration review.)
  19. All in all, the dance community is very friendly and welcoming of new solo dancers. (Exceptions are park district programs; most of them require coming as a couple/pair.) Dance studios generally push you to rotate partners with other attendees, to get you to adapt to different people's dancing styles. While dancing only with the person you came with is permitted, it's generally discouraged, because it goes against the spirit of social dancing. That's on land. At sea, it's anybody's guess. I've been lucky for the most part, and had little trouble finding women to dance with on my cruises (Carnival so far). MSC is fairly traditionalist, so most dancers you encounter will be familiar with the dance etiquette. Which means you won't have a problem finding a willing dance partner, as long as you understand that a dance is just that. Then again, your best bet is to come to the dance venue early, track down the instructor, and ask them how they handle solos. Then go from there.
  20. Most chocolate made in the US isn't good, with Godiva being one exception. (Although you wouldn't expect Godiva to be served at a buffet on a mass-market cruise line; even on Cunard, it's a stretch.) I bet the chocolate buffet was Hershey-quality. That stuff was fine in the 80's and 90's, because that's all Americans knew back then, but today, they've tried better-quality European chocolates. So it's one cutback that won't be missed for the most part. Besides, if you dump ground chocolate into the ocean, it could make the dogfish sick. 😁
  21. I'd do to them what everybody and their brother does to IT workers: keep being nice to their face, then complain bitterly about them to their manager behind their back. (I know because I work in IT.) And maybe remove their gratuities, depending on how snooty they acted. In the meantime, I'd just look at the MDR menu posted at the entrance, memorize it the best I can, and order something from memory. Or just ask to look at another diner's phone.
  22. Well, some of the pre-Covid stuff on Carnival is gone for good. Paper menus are gone, and I don't carrying around a smartphone; some waiters even put up an attitude when you ask for one. Fun events that encourage mingling never returned. But crowded casinos did. What started as "for your safety" turned into "for our money". While NCL gets lambasted for its "nickel and dime" M.O., it won me over with its free (like speech) Covid policies.
  23. This is true only on their Fantasy class ships, most of which were sent to the scrappers. On their newer ships, Carnival cabins are fairly small, until you get at least to the balcony level. Interiors and oceanviews are fine for a solo or a couple, but would be too small for any group bigger than two (or two people who like their space). Then you won't like most Carnival cabins. Orange is the predominant decor color, with smatterings of light blue in parts. On Breeze and newer, as well as on some renovated older ships, the cabins were designed to look like resort hotels rooms. But there's only so much you can do when the "chassis" of the cabin remains the same.
  24. I was convinced last year. That was when Carnival went from "Fun Ships" to "Nanny Ships". They had draconian mask rules, forced social distancing between passengers (no idea if you were debarked for violating it), no more shared tables, elimination of real menus in favor of QR codes, and elimination of passenger parties that made Carnival fun. Royal Caribbean wasn't much better, and pricier to boot. Norwegian, on the other hand, really put the "free" (as in speech) in "Freestyle". Minimal mask requirements, full-on social events, and real paper menus. I look forward to trying NCL in the future. Especially with that XXL (or whatever) variant on the horizon.
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