pirate4me2

Today is off to a GREAT (that’s a sarcastic great, by the way), start. Seriously, I try to roll with the flow most of the time. The crew works hard. Bot sea day brunch today was, for us anyway, a complete let down. We got up at 945, went to ocean plaza bar to get go go juice, and checked in for brunch. At 9:54 our table was ready, so we went down to the deck 3 MDR. We sat our bum bums in our chairs at 9:59. At 10:17, our waiter finally came by to take the order. Chris had drained his water cup by 10:27, and nobody ever came to refill or check in with us. At 10:57, with still no food or water, or check in from our waiter, we got up and walked out. Nobody came to stop us or ask what was wrong. Like I said, I try to roll with the flow, but I think that’s some of the worst MDR service I’ve had on a CCL ship. But hey, on the upside…it gave me an excuse to get an espresso martini from the ocean plaza bar, and that’s breakfast! And with the platinum & diamond party at noon, this could be FUN!

After we got back onboard (the Hop got us back 2 hours before back onboard time), we headed to the rooms to regroup. I did some packing (how is tomorrow the last day already??) while Chris napped. At 6 we headed out to the Havana deck and got in the hot tub. It felt sooooo good! We stayed until about 7, then went back to change and grab a bite to eat from Lido. I got the steak & cheese from the deli, and it’s really, really good with some aioli (right there at the deli in the squirt bottles) added to it! After dinner we hit the casino to see if we could turn our $25 in FunPlay into something more. We did! We each walked out with $10 cash. Yahoo! We hit Alchemy for 1 last drink of the day, then came back to the room to crash. It’s been a great day!

El Pescador was our third stop, and it’s in throwing distance of Coconuts. They have crocodiles here!! I never got a pic, but this family of crocs lives in the pit across the road from the bar. Don’t go swim in there! You can swim in the ocean here tho. The welcome shot at this stop was something blue, and good, and I also got a fantastic mai tai. The last hop stop was Rastas, and the Iguana (welcome shot) was good. This place was gorgeous, we sat right on the beach. I got a rum punch (ok) and coconut shrimp (delish!). After Rastas, the Hop dropped us off right at the port entrance. The ride back was fun, with music and singing. I was sad to see the trip end!

Next up on the hop: Coconuts! This bar is perched up on a cliff overlooking the ocean, the views are spectacular! The walk up (and back down) is uneven, so be very, very careful! The vibe of this place is fun too, but not for the easily offended. If you don’t mind some adult ummmm, how shall I say this, “entertainment,” ask to see the family “photo album.” The blue margarita here was SO GOOD, but STRONG. Oh my. I also got some conch civiche to help soak up the alcohol, and the plate was HUGE!! It was delish. They also served complimentary salsa (it’s spicy!) and chips.

Today was COZUMEL!! We woke up at 9, went to get go go juice from the Ocean Plaza bar, then some breakfast. Blue Iguana was HOPPING this morning! It took about 15 minutes to get from getting in line to getting my burrito, but hey, it’s all good. The burrito was worth it! We met the “family” in Havana at 10:15 and went to debark the ship. We had booked the Cozumel Bar Hop, something new for me and Chris! It was $20 for all 6 of us to take a taxi from the port Carnival docks at to the Senor Frogs downtown, where the tour meets. Our guides were Sergio and Colleen. They were awesome! They explained how the tour would operate, as well as some history and info on the island. Our first stop on the hop was Punta Moreno, and the welcome shot was a Mayan Sacrifice. It was really, really good! This stop can occasionally take credit cards ( the rest are all cash only) and can run a blender for frozen drinks. The other stops are all on the rocks. You can get in the water at this stop too. It was an absolutely gorgeous way to start the hop off!

Yes, first sea day and then Grand Cayman day.

We spent from 5:45 to 6:45 at Alchemy. I only had 1 drink, I’m proud of my restraint! It was a coconut something something made by Alan, and was good. We checked in for dinner about 7, and BAM…our table was immediately ready! This surprised me since it’s our second elegant night. I got the calamari to start, which was good but needed to be a hotter temp…it was lukewarm. The spinach salad was AWESOME, and the crawfish fettuccine…well, to tell you how good it was let me say that I cannot really eat fettuccini Alfredo, my body hates it, but my tastebuds love it so I do order it now and again…and this was well worth the price I’m paying now. It was DELICIOUS. The cream brûlée dessert was good, but SWEET. We found out at dinner that on Saturday when we return the Coast Guard is doing an inspection, so there is a lot of training going on this week. Also found out that we are returning to a different terminal than we embarked at, we will be at F for disembarkation.

The afternoon was spent again in Havana, in and out of the pool. Stefany (I think that’s the spelling) is a great bar waitress. We did comment that the pool water was looking a little, uh, murky, and shortly after some white shirts came down to take a look, shortly after that, the pool began filling. Also, for some reason, if you lean on the edge of the pool, your arm/foot/back/etc turns blue…the paint rubs off onto you! I guess we we are turning into Smurfs! 😂

Hello from a passing-shower, currently sunny Grand Cayman! I wanted so badly to sleep in this morning, but Chris was like an elephant when he got up, so a 7:30 wake up it was for me. I walked outside and was like “why’s everything wet? Did they clean the WHOLE area last night?” Then I realized it had rained. I threw my stuff in a clamshell anyway (Havana area was and still is EMPTY, I’m the only one out here!) and went to get a blue iguana breakfast burrito…and an arepa. It was delish!

After dinner we hit the 9:30 Love & Marriage show, which was funny as always. It was over at 10:30, and since Chris and “grandpa” have an early excursion tomorrow (they have to meet in Liquid Lounge at 7:30!) we called it an evening. “Aunt & Uncle” are hitting the casino, “Aunt” is on a hot streak…she’s up like $500 from putting just $100 in!

Thanks for reading! All the food in the MDR has so far been very good! We love the Emeril’s additions!

We checked in for dinner about 7, and had Lowrence and Gil as our servers. Dinner was FANTASTIC. The street salad was yummy, and the eggplant parm was SO DANG GOOD. The banana split from the kids menu was the perfect ending!

So the early afternoon was spent in Havana, then napping and reading on the balcony. About 4 I took a shower, and we headed to Alchemy to hang with Zoltan. I had a coconut something, then a mint chocolate something, then a “something fruity and pretty.” All 3 were delish!

Thanks for following along!

Lunchtime: I decided to sample different offerings from the salad bar. My regular salad had a funny taste in the dressing, so I got coleslaw (yummy), a mixed greens & Parmesan salad (meh, ok), Moroccan potato salad (pretty good) and a roasted broccoli & feta salad (ok). The steak & cheese sub from the deli was a tad dry but good flavor. I won’t go hungry!

About 10 of us in/around the Havana pool. We have dubbed ourselves the “I love Ocho Rios” crowd…either never got off the ship today or got off for 15-20 minutes and back onboard. 😂

Hello from Ocho Rios! We slept in until 9, and have done NOTHING but relax in Havana. Vista class is officially my favorite ship class due to the Havana area. 🙂

Where did I leave off? Oh yes, headed to the Alchemy! We got there about 545 and all the chairs at the actual bar were full, but the “overflow parking” had lots of chairs available. We ordered drinks from Zoltan (almond joy martini! So good!) and sat there until 2 guys got up, then we snatched their seats. We hung out with Zoltan trying his creations, and about 7:00 the place cleared out…it was crazy! Our friends arrived about 7:45, and we all headed to dinner. Tonight’s menu didn’t excite me, but oh man…it ended up being a winner! I got the Caesar salad, which was good, and then 2 entrees…the branzino, which I’d never had and wasn’t sure I’d like, and the Indian vegetarian as my “safe” dish. The branzino was SO GOOD y’all….not a fishy fish, and the light bbq sauce they did complimented it well. The Indian dish was delicious as well, and had good spice. I nibbled from both and was a happy camper! Dinner was finished about 9:15, so we headed to Ocean Plaza to listen to the rock band, who are REALLY good. They did a Christmas set, then a millennium set. We hung out for both, and are now calling it a night. Tomorrow: Ocho Rios, or for us, a “fun day onboard!”

We have spent today hanging out and relaxing in the Havana area. It’s a nice oasis compared to the rest of the ship! It’s not too busy and the staff are wonderful. I’ve had a few La Buena Vida drinks (my favs) a Havana Especial (ok) and a Papa Doble (ewww). For lunch I ventured to the deli and got a Southwest chicken wrap…it was sooooo good! Tonight is elegant night, I just showered and am about to get ready to head to Alchemy. More later!

Our cabin door decorations!

Breakfast today was sea day brunch, it was yummy! Check in said 10-20 minute wait, but was more like 10. The brunch burger was so dang good.

Pool area not too busy at all, and the staff onboard are WONDERFUL. Yoga (pool deck attendant) made sure to introduce himself and tell us if we had any problems or needs to let him know. Nita (waitress/attendant) is super sweet and not only walked the pool area but also by the cabana patios to offer fresh frozen fruit and see if we needed anything. They’re fantastic!

So, for today our room “patio” has not received any sun, but I’m wondering if we will on the return trip? I’m happy since I can go to the back to get sun, then go to my patio for shade. Looking at the other side of the ship, at “grandma & grandpa’s” patio, they do have sun right now.

From what I am seeing there is no way to open the patio door from the outside. I’m in and out thruout the day so leaving it unlocked to go in and out of. ohhhh I love expresso martinis! Trying one later today! according to my hubby…he doesn’t want to see anything worse 😂