Knights on the Beach

We originally had the trike tour booked in Aruba. About a week before our cruise we started watching videos and weren't crazy about most of the stops. This looks like one of those places and no thank you, big rocks are not my friend! So we cancelled it. Later I kind of wished we'd done it just so we had seen more of the island but we had a good day anyway. Heading back to where I left off now . . . . 😂

Our room on Vista last month could have been slightly cooler but it wasn't so warm that we were uncomfortable so we didn't say anything. On the other hand, Heroes Bar was so cold I couldn't stay there long. Every other place we went on the ship, I thought the temperature was perfect.

If I can count, Patti's surgery will be in 10 days. I know both of you are looking forward to getting that done!

Pig & Anchor is free for dinner on Excel ships but does have some extra fee items on the menu.

Actually we were on Celebration in December and were surprisingly happy with the MDR food and service. We ate there more than we'd planned to that week because we had such a good experience. And I know someone earlier said the food on Vista is superb this week but that was not our opinion during our cruises 4/14 - 4/28 so we gave up on the MDR and ate elsewhere. We love Carnival but if they're consistent about anything, it's their inconsistency in the MDR. 😂

What time were you at Java Blue in the mornings? Maybe it just needed to be restocked. Our son and DIL are on Mardi Gras this week and said they've definitely had fruit & granola there the past two mornings. We aren't fans of the MDR on Mardi Gras. We went there only 3 or 4 times over the course of 4 cruises. There are so many better options for dinner on MG that it just doesn't bother us anymore. We have 2 more booked on MG and will be happy with specialty dining or even pizza or a Guy's burger just before they close.

Great plan Jeff, I hope you and Patti have a wonderful day!

@Jamman54 you inspired us to book Venezia today! I just started reading your review and we watched a few videos and we're intrigued. We booked a balcony on Lido since our favorite location was available. 😊

I feel like there must be some secret hidden industry here making hotel astronauts. 😂

Wow! Spectacular pictures! While Patti was being super productive, we were not.🤦‍♀️ We went full circle, starting at the Ocean Plaza Bar in the morning for coffee (and duck hiding) and to say hi to Jeff of course. After breakfast, we hit the walking track for several laps hiding ducks here and there, then took advantage of the quiet(er) ship while people were at Half Moon Cay and jumped in a hot tub by the Tides pool. Then we just pretty much ate and drank the day away, making Ocean Plaza Bar our last stop of the night.

The Diamond lunch was amazing! Easily the best meal of the week and we enjoyed the experience and most of all, the company. Jeff & Patti were so sweet to invite us and we truly appreciated it. At the lunch, I was drinking champagne with Peach Schnapps but Mark was drinking margaritas, so we spent the rest of the afternoon at Blue Iguana Tequila Bar. 🤣 Dinner was pizza & buffet and we caught the sunset on our way to Ocean Plaza Bar where Setyo got special permission to add Christine's Fave (from the Golden Jubilee Bar on Celebration) to the menu for us. We had quite a few of those over the course of the next two weeks. 🙂

Embarkation day was only the first of many relaxing, lazy days and we turned in early that night. When we got back to the room, we found this letter in our mailbox. Dude, we totally went to muster - it was the first thing we did even before getting a drink and we never got cut off so . . . . 🤷‍♀️

We're just platinum so we walked on the ship about 10 minutes after Jeff & Patti. We headed straight to muster since it was in Reflections dining room right next to the atrium - couldn't have planned that any better. By 10:48 we were sitting across the atrium bar from Jeff & Patti, happy to have found seats and happy to be back on a ship. We each had a Funship (I can't remember when the last time was I'd had one of those) followed by a Miami Vice each. After we grabbed a couple Guy's burgers for lunch, we headed to our room (10295 - the first inside room on Lido) and unpacked. More than once we'd kicked ourselves for not booking a balcony for these two weeks but this room was in the perfect location so we got over it. 🙂 Next up was Red Frog Pub where we enjoyed talking with Jeff & Patti until sail away time. At that point we headed to the Tides Bar on deck 10 aft and eventually had pizza and deli for dinner later on. Precious the deli lady (never did find out her name) was barking at everyone but it didn't take as long as I thought it would to get our orders filled. I had the grilled ham & cheese which was actually pretty good. Mark ordered a cheese steak - which as it turned out didn't have any cheese on it and it really didn't even have much steak on it either. 🤷‍♀️

I'll jump in here with a few thoughts and pictures from embarkation day. We live 3.5 miles from terminal 6 and we prebooked a taxi ($20) to pick us up at 9:00 am. We had a 10:00 - 10:30 arrival time but we've seen those traffic backups for the last few months. It was an entertaining ride and the driver got a little feisty when someone cut her off but we arrived at 9:08, dropped our bags with the porter and were first in the priority line.

I thought the same when I saw the picture. Bye bye home - see you in two weeks!

It totally should and this is coming from someone who did NOT have Havana on Vista the last two weeks and wished we did.

Speaking of ol' Stubby, we saw her go out today. We were out on the balcony admiring the gorgeous blue water, so pretty this afternoon! And then I went back inside and took a nap! 🤦‍♀️

There's definitely one at the Radisson. 🧑‍🚀

We sit upstairs when we go to Ryan's - we were there on St. Patrick's Day! 🍀

We truly enjoyed spending time with you and Patti! My pictures won't hold a candle to Patti's but I'll pop in from time to time and share some as well. Looking forward to reliving our 2 weeks! 🙂

Yay, I made it here before you got on the ship!!! 🤣 I hope I can keep up, this week is killing me. 🤦‍♀️

On our last several cruises, it was random. In December, they put a sticker on my card but not my husband's. Last week, I heard a bartender tell someone they were out of the stickers.

@Jamman54 so sorry we didn't get to say goodbye! We had a great time with you two and enjoyed getting to know you and Patti. Safe travels home!

Shoot, I made it a point to look for ornaments in port, but forgot to buy one on the ship.🤦‍♀️

People were sitting at that bar last night on Vista. On Vista this bar doubles as the meat locker. We tried to watch the draft there Thursday night but it was already packed an hour prior. We ended up in Red Frog Pub. No sound there either but did have bartenders.