Jamman54

Around 10:30 we went down to the non-smoking casino annex to gamble for a while. Patti played video poker for about an hour losing a little bit, then decided to walk around for a while. I played blackjack a little longer winning back what I lost the other day. I then went back to the Burano Pool Bar and had a couple of beers, and grabbed some Asian food from the Seafood Shack. I then went to meet Patti at the Teatro Rosso for another afternoon game of Deal or no Deal….. Rich and the gang are here watching as well….. The first contestant Gina picked Case # 3….. She had a favorable board all the way and took the bankers offer of $450….. The second contestant Tracey played it down to the last three cases, and then took the bankers offer of $195….. We didn’t break even today, as we only won a $30 in casino fun play. We went back to the cabin to relax for the afternoon, where we found today’s towel animal. Really Edy? To be continued…..

Day # 11 - 10/03/23 - Fun Day at Sea # 5. We were up at 7am to a hot and sunny day. The seas are fairly calm. Here are the views from our balcony as the Venezia makes her way to Aruba….. Here are today’s Fun Times….. While Patti showered I made my way up to the Java Blue Café for my morning coffee. Rich and the gang were up there as well, so we hung out talking for a while. Feeling hungry, I made my way over to Tomodoro for a breakfast burrito…… I took it over to RoCoco and ordered a Thirsty Frog Wheat to go along with it….. After finishing, I made my way back to the cabin to work on pictures, while Patti gathered the laundry to send out this morning. To be continued…..

We sailed at 6:30pm, just as the sun was setting in the west….. Around 7pm I made my way to the Heroes Tribute Bar to get a seat for tonight’s Giant’s / Seahawk’s game. I got a great seat right at the bar, so I’m not moving. Patti went up to the Lido Marketplace to get some dinner. When she finished eating, she went to the Deli and got me a grilled ham & cheese with fries and brought it down to me. Thanks Babe! Patti then went back to the cabin for the night, but as she passed through the Piazza San Marco she got this picture of Music & Magic performing there….. I was chugging down the double rum and Pepsi’s as my Giants were getting their butts kicked. The final score was 24 to 3, but I had left in the middle of the 4th quarter, as I couldn’t take it anymore. Lol. Back to the cabin for the night. Coming up next: We’re heading south to Aruba, but first, another Fun Day at Sea!

We are heading back to board the Carnival Venezia…… We are back on board by 5:30pm. Back at our cabin we find today’s towel animal. I think Edy needs to take a class or buy the book….. From our balcony we can see that all the beaches are completely empty….. To be continued…..

You can rent one of these little cabanas for about $200….. Before I forget, Here are Patti’s flora & fauna pictures taken throughout the day….. To be continued…..

Patti heads back to our cabana. As she passes Cabana # 3, she spots Cruise Critic member Rhonda and her husband Keith out on the porch….. Once Patti is back at our cabana, we order a late lunch, another bucket of Turks Head for me, and a large Malibu bay breeze for her. Patti has the turkey club sandwich…… I had an order of the buffalo chicken wings, and Jimmy’s Jammin’ Jambalaya….. We spent the rest of the afternoon taking dips in the pool, drinking, relaxing on our deck, and even more drinking. A little after 5pm we decided to pack up and head back to the ship. Our bill for the food and drinks was $150 + tip. We were one of the last ones to leave. Goodbye Grand Turk vacation home, until next time…… To be continued……

Patti checks out the Craft Market….. Patti makes it back to the pool where there is some kind of dance contest going on….. Here are a few views inside the Margaritaville Restaurant….. To be continued…..

Patti goes over and checks out the Beached Whale Bar & Grille….. This is the Beached Whale Gift Shop..... There are restrooms right nearby…… Patti makes her way back to the Grand Turk Cruise Center….. To be continued……

Patti continues to explore the area to the right of the cruise ship pier. Here are a couple of views of the Venezia docked in Grand Turk….. There are a lot of chairs on this side, but they are mostly empty because the beach is so rocky over here….. Here are a few views of the whale exhibit….. To be continued…..

Here are a few more shops in the Grand Turk Cruise Center….. Patti heads over to the right side of the pier. Here is the Friendship 7 exhibit….. Nearby you can get a massage or your hair braided….. To be continued…..

Patti checks out the shops in the Grand Turk Cruise Center….. To be continued…..

Patti makes it back to the Margaritaville pool where I’m relaxing with my beer…… Patti checks out the Margaritaville beach and Beach Bar….. This is the Beach Shop….. The Margaritaville Restaurant is busy….. Here’s another view of the pool….. Patti bumps into Charlie again….. To be continued……

Patti has made it over to Jack’s Shack. We spent time here last January because we wanted to see how the new owners ran things. They had made a lot of improvements, but our experience there was not good, mainly due to the inattentiveness of the bar staff. Many reviews on Trip Advisor were also negative for the same reasons. When we see the reviews improve we will try them again. For now, it’s just pictures….. Here are the bar and grill menus….. You can still find friends of the four legged variety here….. To be continued…..

Patti is off and running. She takes this picture of the pool, and then heads down the beach towards Jack’s Shack….. Patti is looking over at the Venezia….. To be continued……

Let’s take a look at the menus….. This is our server. I apologize for not remembering her name or writing it down, but she was wonderful all day! We order a bucket of Turks Head beer for me, and a couple of bottles of water for Patti….. To be continued…..

Patti knows exactly which pool cabana that I’ll be at. On the way she gets these shots of the Flowrider and the zero entry section of the pool….. Patti makes it to our Grand Turk vacation home, Cabana # 9….. Thankfully, we had booked our cabana before the price increases. They sell for $400 now, and don’t include anything extra, except a dedicated server. Here are some inside views of our cabana….. As we are getting settled, this sweet lady comes up to our cabana and explains that she’s a Cruise Critic member, she doesn’t post, but she reads. She knew that we were going to be on this cruise, and from reading all of our reviews, she knew that in Grand Turk we would be at Cabana # 9 and wanted to meet us! How cool is that! Ladies and gentlemen, I would like you to meet Sylvia…… We’ll meet Sylvia again later on in the review. I’m hoping that she will post to this thread. To be continued…..

Today, like we do here most times, we have rented a Pool Cabana. Patti tells me to go ahead and get it, and she’ll meet me there shortly. Patti takes these shots while walking on the pier….. Patti passes through the duty free store and enters the courtyard. This is where the excursions meet up….. Patti heads over to Margaritaville…… The porch of indecision….. To be continued……

We went back to the cabin to pack our beach bags for the day. From our balcony we watched the Venezia pull into Grand Turk…… We went down to the Lobby Bar to wait for the ship to be cleared to debark. While there we noticed that at Guest Services it is Happy Customer Service Week. Didn’t know that was a thing! Cruise Director Joey comes over and tells everyone that he’s giving us a head start to get off. He’s about to go over and make the announcement, so off we go…… To be continued…..

Day # 10 - 10/02/23 - Grand Turk (11am - 6:30pm). We were up at 7am to a warm sunny day. The seas are fairly calm. We are still about four hours away from our first port of call, Grand Turk. Here are the views from our balcony looking forward and aft….. We had a beautiful sunrise this morning….. Here are today’s Fun Times….. As usual, I went up to the Java Blue Café for my morning coffee, and then came back to the cabin to work on pictures. Around 9am we decided to go have some breakfast. I had a breakfast burrito from Tomodoro, and Patti just grabbed some things from the Marketplace buffet lines….. Land Ho! We are approaching Grand Turk….. To be continued…..

I think that's New Jersey telling New York to be quiet!

Among other things!

Also, you have no privacy from above. The balconies above can look right down into your cabana. When we book a Havana cabin, we prefer the interiors on Deck 5. Never had any issues with noise. We have them for a B2B on the Vista next April.

A little after 6pm we went down to the Frizzante Bar….. Here are the menus….. Patti had a Raspberry Bellini, and I had a Moretti beer….. This is our bartender Andrea….. We are soon joined by Cruise Critic member Rhonda and her husband Keith….. After a couple of drinks, we went up to the Lido Marketplace for a bite to eat. Patti had a salad, and I grabbed a few things from the buffet line….. We took a walk out by the mid ship pool where it was a beautiful night….. The crowd was waiting for the Jets / Chiefs game to begin…. Patti made her way back to the cabin to read her book. I stayed and watched the game until halftime, and then went back to the cabin for the night myself. Coming up next: Land Ho! Our day in Grand Turk!

There is going to be an Art Auction in the Limelight Lounge later today….. Patti bumps into Charlie who is taking a picture of Patti, who is taking a picture of him! I meet Patti in the Teatro Rosso for “The Wave” morning show. Today it’s Cruise Director Joey, and Fun Squad member Oliver….. Afterwards, Patti and I head up to the casino to pick up our Fun Play for this cruise. To our horror we realize that this is another Elite Cruise, and the casino is pretty busy. We decide to check out the non-smoking casino annex and I sit down to play some blackjack, and Patti finds an open video poker machine. An hour later Patti is up $52, and I’m down a couple hundred. We can still catch the late breakfast at the Lido Marketplace, so up we go. After we finished eating we went back to the cabin, but Edy had just started working on it. We went down to the Lobby Bar and had a couple of drinks with Valentina while we waited for our cabin to be ready. Making our way back to the cabin, we found today’s towel animal….. We spent the afternoon reading, napping, and relaxing on the balcony. The seas are still wonderfully calm….. To be continued…

Day # 9 - 10/01/23 - Fun Day at Sea # 4. Today’s installment is going to be short and sweet. I guess the camera needed a day off to prepare for the push that’s coming ahead! We were up at 7am to another sunny and warm day. The seas are as calm as a lake…… According to the map channel, we are now as far south as Florida, and making a beeline towards Grand Turk….. Here are today’s Fun Times….. I went up to the Java Blue Café for my morning coffee, and then hung around with Rich, Charlie, Kathy, and Janice until they went to breakfast. I went back to the cabin to work on pictures for a while. Patti went out to explore a little bit. She caught the Behind the Fun Tour heading to their first destination….. To be continued…..