Sascol

I am curious how this thread's title of 'Positions' is related to the question?  What am I missing?

7 hours ago, mldiluna said:

While descending the steps down to the tender, I slipped and fell, not once, but twice, on those wet, slippery stairs, in front of approximately half a dozen crew members.  For the record, I had both hands on the rails, which is why I'm here with pulled muscles and a wrenched spine, instead of a cracked skull.  Not one of the crew members that were there bothered to ask if I had hit my head, or did I want to get checked out beyond a brusque "You okay?".  Nobody asked for my name or cabin number, nor did they ask the names and cabin numbers of any of the people who had seen me fall, much less any of the other information that would go into making any sort of incident report. 

Sorry to hear you fell.  An incident like that can ruin a vacation quickly.

My thoughts though are that the reaction of the crew in the immediate area would depend on the situation and on your reaction to the incident.  Did you voice your injuries (or your concern for injuries) at the time?  Did you continue with the excursion?  Sounds like you did.  I would never expect the staff to get cabin/name information from witnessing passengers even if an injury did occur.  Is that part of normal protocol?  What they saw (or did not see) may not have been reason to start an incident report unless you spoke up about it at the time.

I'm not trying to downplay what happened but if evidence of an injury was not obvious to the crew around you at the time and you did not voice concern at the time I don't think they acted inappropriately based on your description of what happened.

All that being said I hope you are feeling better.

No booking fees, change fees or cancellation fees with our TA.  We also get additional agent OBCs when available (which is most of the time).  I'd change for your next cruise.

2 hours ago, Pickels said:

But you're hurting the people that serve you, cabin stewards, waiters, etc.  Most of the staff work hard and don't make a lot via the salary they get. 

Nobody is being hurt - he/she chooses not to drink on board so there'd be no tip anyway.  Someone is not going to drink just to ensure someone gets a tip.  Should I feel guilty that I never indulge in the spa services because this leads to less tips for the spa staff?  Of course not. 

On ‎4‎/‎30‎/‎2019 at 2:29 PM, elaineb said:

We were in Concierge Class on the Summit last month.  Some of those canapes were very weird.  And some needed a cracker or tortilla chip or even fork or spoon, but none was given.  Who wants to eat a beet salad with their fingers?

Many times, if you are not in your cabin when the snacks are delivered (or get there shortly thereafter), they lose any quality they may have had.  They are all in the same plate with a cover so if any of the snacks have bread and others do not, the bread absorbs the moisture and gets soft and the moist items get dry.  In most cases you're really not missing much if you skip the snacks - some of them are kind of a waste and some are really kinda funky.

On ‎4‎/‎28‎/‎2019 at 9:53 AM, tallnthensome said:

I feel sorry for those who sail to places they have been to so many times that they feel it's not worth getting off the ship? Why bother going?

Really??  Many cruise for the ship - not for the destinations.  The ship in and of itself offers things to do and a level of relaxation you will not get at home or on land based resorts. 

On ‎4‎/‎24‎/‎2019 at 2:52 PM, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

I'm sure there are - especially in the Caribbean where a lot of people are BTDT but love cruising.

 

BTDT?

46 minutes ago, jan-n-john said:

In other words, while it's true we can't totally insulate ourselves from contact with bugs, contrary to your suggestion we can improve our chances of not becoming ill from those contacts by following common sense strategies.  It's not binary; it's probabilistic.  I eat in the buffet, but I try to hand wash and sanitize (for others as much as me) and wipe my hands a lot while there.  I try to avoid touching elevator buttons or railings with my fingertips (which is the usual vector for disease when we subsequently touch fingertips to nasal opening or lips) but rather use knuckles or my palms instead as the case may be.  So far so good -- I haven't gotten sick on a cruise yet, maybe due to being a bit careful or maybe just dumb luck, like poffles up there above this post.

Valid points.  Whatever I've been 'infected' with could have come from anywhere - maybe even somewhere off the ship.  Who knows.  I wash as I enter the buffet, I get my food and I then sanitize my hands before I eat.  Made it through 20+ cruises without getting sick.  Now, I have become sick on two of the last three.  I can't pinpoint any of this directly to the buffet of course but we've just decided this time that it is a chance we'd rather not take - especially after reading all of the nastiness in this thread.  Yuck. 

I've read this whole thread and I am truly disgusted.  In my mind I knew this kind of nastiness went on but to read about it in such detail and see how some people truly don't get it nauseates me.  I sanitize and wash with the best of them and have still become ill on 2 of our last 3 cruises.  Based on what I have read here, I am going to attribute this happening in all likelihood to buffet behavior and a lack of understanding by many of basic hygiene.  For our upcoming cruise this fall, we have decided that we are going to avoid the buffet if at all possible. 

????

36 minutes ago, richsea said:

Sometimes you have to wonder how the human race managed to survive all these centuries without becoming extinct. Perhaps it’s because that by being exposed to germs (ew!!), our bodies build tolerance?

We do need germs to build up tolerance, agreed BUT we do not want someone else's nasty saliva (or worse) on our hands while eating as a result of touching the shared tongs. 

People are gross and I try hard not to think about what happens at a buffet.  For us, before we go in we wash.  It's a fact of life that if there are 100s of people eating, a good chunk of them have licked their fingers while eating and then return to the buffet and use the tongs.  Many people don't even realize they are doing it.  For this specific reason ANY time we touch the tongs we re-sanitize before we eat. 

The whole story sounds a bit exaggerated or made up.

We did well...

We have a TA on Edge this fall.  Based on today's changes we moved from an E1 infinite verandah cabin to a C3 Concierge infinite verandah cabin for an additional $140/pp.  BUT this now includes gratuities and standard drink package which we did not have before.  In the long run this saves us about $1000 total. 

We have a few magnetic hooks also.  They are pretty strong but after about two outfits they are not going to have the strength for much more.   We usually use those for temporary space for things we may need that day but not for long term storage.  Prefer not to have clothes hanging all over the room if we can avoid it. 

Booked on EDGE later this year.  Keep reading about the closet issues.  For those who are concerned, see photo below.  Might be a good idea to grab a few of these and bring them along.  We will for my wife.  We use them at home and they add needed space.  Won't help with REALLY long dresses but it will help with the ones that don't fit on the short side of the closet because you can combine 5 dresses on one of these and collapse it on the long side and save space there.

On ‎3‎/‎28‎/‎2019 at 11:19 AM, Alakegirl said:

No. Wire. Hangers. Ever.

Sorry Mommy!

On 3/29/2019 at 4:56 PM, MizDemeanor said:

Even if you live hundreds of miles from the coast, the plastic you throw away could make its way into the sea. Once in the ocean, plastic decomposes very slowly, breaking down in to tiny pieces known as micro plastics that can be incredibly damaging to sea life. 80% of plastic in our oceans is from land sources – but what does that really mean? Where is it coming from?

There are three main ways the plastic we use every day ends up in the oceans. 

1. Throwing plastic in the bin when it could be recycled
2. littering
3. Products that go down the drain 
4. THE BOTTOM LINE

How does plastic get into the ocean? The bottom line is us. Whether we mean to litter or not, there's always a chance the plastic we throw away could make it into the sea, and from there who knows? Maybe as far as the Arctic. 

Big changes start with small steps and we all have the power to make a difference. What will you do to start cutting the plastic in your life?

We’re working with Sky to protect and restore our amazing oceans. Find out more about Sky Ocean Rescue’s fight against plastic pollution.

 

 

Like!

1 hour ago, ipeeinthepool said:

 

Straws on a Celebrity cruise ship do not end up in the ocean or landfills. 

Ocean no - landfill, probably (after the cruise).  If they are incinerated along with trash, the incineration adds toxins to the air.  And yes, I know the paper ones would go through the same process but burning paper is not as harmful as burning plastic.  Regardless of what happens to them, they don't just vanish.

2 hours ago, ipeeinthepool said:

 Again, your correct.  The issue isn't about straws.  The issue is about controlling the choice of others for no real benefit.

There IS a benefit . Not sure why you think there's not. Please expand on this. 

Maybe moving away from plastic straws alone has a relatively small impact but this along with other efforts add up to huge benefits environmentally.  Nobody is saying ditching plastic straws alone is a cure all - but it's a step in helping to eliminate unnecessary waste. 

So how would you rate the overhaul overall?  We were on the Summit a while back....very shortly after is was 'Solstiscized'.  There were upgrades but there were many areas of the ship that still looked tired, worn and old.  Things like scratched elevator floors, chipping UV panels on windows, well worn furniture, etc.  Were these types of things addressed in this upgrade?

But where does everyone keep their sea pass card?  God forbid we start the lanyard argument again!

11 hours ago, mfs2k said:

The pimento stuffed olives in the martini bar are tiny and tasteless. They can do better. 

Easy to resolve though - just have 3-4 martinis.  After that you won't care about the olives anyway! 

15 hours ago, mek said:

Eight million tons of plastic flow into the ocean every year, and straws comprise just0.025 percent of that. 

 

So this is where I have a problem with the straw ban. 

 

Again - the issue is not straws ending up in the ocean - it is the plastic used to make straws taking up unnecessary space in landfills.

14 hours ago, ipeeinthepool said:

 

I understand completely and agree with you.  Plastic straws are not a direct threat to the oceans.  You need to convince everyone that is trying to use polluting the oceans as an excuse for eliminating plastic straws.  So again for the 6001st time, the real is people trying to tell others what they need or don't need.  I many others object to trying to control choices for others without any tangible benefit. 

The cruise lines have made a decision to help limit waste by transitioning to other straw options.  That's it.  No hidden agendas, no political motivations.  They are just trying to help a cause and with this there IS a tangible benefit when you lump this in with all of the other efforts going on worldwide to limit plastics.  If you want to use a plastic straw that you bring have at it. I honestly don't think anyone is trying to tell anyone else what to do here.  The cruise lines are just doing what they think is right for the future of our planet.