Live (soon enough!) from Journey, Panama Canal 12/18/08

We are in Miami eagerly awaiting our embarkation on Journey, 16 nights through the Panama Canal to get back home. I’ll post periodically, mainly in diary form, and if you have any questions I will do my best to find the answers. One think I do plan to do is get the wine lists, since that’s a $64 question.

Our flight from LAX was delayed by 90 minutes, but we had a ferocious tailwind, so ended up landing only 60 minutes late. We were on American Airlines, a 777, in the exit row. Getting those seats, which normally are reserved for elite flyers, was the last nice thing our former TA did for us before he vanished. We had lots of extra legroom and, for a 4 hour flight, it was better to have those seats than to burn miles in business class. For a long haul flight, I’d still want the upgrade, though.

We took a cab to the Hyatt Regency downtown ($23.20 plus tip) and had dinner at the bar since the restaurant closed at 10:00. The Hyatt is quite nice. It has undergone some refurbishments, but can’t really do anything about the slightly bleak (after dark) neighborhood that it’s in. We’ll see what’s up tomorrow morning.

OK, that's how tired I was last night, LOL! We embark today, 12/18!:o

We'll be on the Journey soon and I'd love to know who the hotel director and cruise director are, and whether they'll still be there on Jan 19.

Have a great time!

Hi Jean !

Have a WONDERFUL time on Journey. We look forward to your updates.

BTW, I changed the thread title to adjust the departure date. Bon Voyage !!!!!!

Hiya Jean! I'll be following along, living vicariously through you! I'll post this link on the 4/19 for anyone else that would like to join in.;)

So you went back to the Hyatt in Miami? I hope they didn't wake you up early doing renovations like last time!:rolleyes:

Hi Jean!

I am jealous!!! But I do hope you have a great trip. Panama Canal is one John and I want to do some day.

Jean... I'll be following along on your adventure! I know you & Don will be having a great time.

~Jill

Jean, Don,

I too will follow your cruise and can't wait for a review. Was great seeing both of you this morning. Geez, I felt like boarding with you two. :(

Happy sailing....;):p

Jean & Don have a wonderful cruise and I will be reading about your adventure as you post. :)

Jean, Don,

I too will follow your cruise and can't wait for a review. Was great seeing both of you this morning. Geez, I felt like boarding with you two. :(

 

Happy sailing....;):p

Yes, I heard about Jean and Don having breakfast with you!:p

Yes, I heard about Jean and Don having breakfast with you!:p

Did ya'? ;)

We even got lost in the port. :D

Thankfully it was in the port though. :p

So, ya' gonna cruise with us on the Mariner in 2010? :D

Well, let's not hijack this thread.

Did ya'? ;)

 

We even got lost in the port. :D

Thankfully it was in the port though. :p

 

So, ya' gonna cruise with us on the Mariner in 2010? :D

 

Well, let's not hijack this thread.

Yes, and they had a lovely time.

I haven't booked the Mariner in 2010 yet, but have two booked for '09.;) You'll have to let me know the date!

Now back to our regularly scheduled programming!:D

We are anxiously awaiting your "journal" from your trip as we will be on the ship going from L.A. to Miami. We are interested in what you will be doing in Costa Rica & Nicaragua.

Have a great trip.

Thank you, Andy! I'm still working on my diary for Day 1, but the Hotel Director is Philip Herbert and the Cruise Director is Sue Denning. More to come...

Thank you, Andy! I'm still working on my diary for Day 1, but the Hotel Director is Philip Herbert and the Cruise Director is Sue Denning. More to come...

We are waiting in anticipation...patiently...;):D

Here I am!

December 18, 2008

We awoke to a crisis, which was that our petsitter did not spend the night as we had paid him to do. Thank goodness for animal-loving neighbors and a security system that let us monitor the situation. He did come to the house, the critters are fine, and we had gone on with our day.

We had breakfast with a CC friend, Oliver, then walked to the CVS drugstore to pick up supplies that we didn’t want to carry, and on to the wine store for some in-cabin beverages. Then Oliver drove us to the port, where Journey was the only ship. It was quite a contrast from my last visit, in 2007, to sail on /Liberty.

Embarkation was a wee bit slow. We went through security first, and our four bottles of wine drew no notice. There was a suites line, but the people in front of us seemed unprepared to produce their documents and credit cards. Once we were in front of the check in clerk, it took all of 2 minutes to be checked in and onboard. After bypassing the welcome aboard photo, we were handed a glass of passable pink champagne and stepped onto the ship.

Journey is a beautiful ship. She is slightly less deluxe than Oceania’s Regatta, but is easy on the eyes nonetheless. Because she had just arrived from a transatlantic crossing, the crew had to go through a full immigration, and there were Coast Guard and USPH inspections to boot. The end result was that cabins were not ready until 2:00. We spent the time exploring the ship. We did visit the buffet at 1:30 and found that it had been invaded by locusts. I think they did not expect so many people not have gone to their cabins by then. We put together a passable plate, but were less than impressed.

When we did go to our cabin (Sky Suite 8044, midships), our butler, Ravin, was there to greet us. He went through all of the cabin details, including letting us know what items were complimentary and which had charges (wine, a toiletries kit). We later met our head butler, Pras, who went over a few things and picked up two items to be pressed (suite passengers get two garments each for free, and it can be at any time during the cruise).

We headed to the Pool Bar at 3:00 for the first CC meeting, and didn’t see any likely candidates, so we headed back to our cabin, where our suitcases were waiting for us. We unpacked and had everything put away prior to muster drill.

Muster is a pain in the rear. First you go to your assigned station (Discoveries dining room for us), listen to the spiels, and then you troop out on deck, stand breathing fumes from the refueling barge, and then are mercifully released.

The next CC get together (we are a small but mighty group) was at 5:00 in the Looking Glass lounge. I made a key discovery here – Journey’s pomegranate martinis are made with gin, not vodka. Fortunately they substituted the vodka one with no argument or charge. It was $10 plus 18% gratuity, and easily a double.

We made reservations for Aqualina and Prime C for tonight, the 29th (Don’s birthday) and New Year’s Eve. Space permitting (suite passengers are guaranteed 3 bookings; others get 2), we will try for Prime on Sunday evening, too.

Prior to dinner we stopped by the casino to lose some money. I chose to spend mine on a glass of wine instead of a slot. Don lost the first of his $20 and joined me. At 7:30 we headed for Aqualina, and a fabulous dinner. Dann was our waiter, Laurentzia our wine steward(ess), and they took great care of us.

We attended the opening show, which featured a little of everything to give us a taste of things to come. The singers are awesome. We ended the night in the Looking Glass lounge, where the band played some dance music until midnight, when the DJ took over. By then it was just us and some ship’s crew, which didn’t stop us from making idiots of ourselves on the dance floor, all great fun.

December 19, 2008

Today will be a brief entry, as I slept for most of it. We arose at 10:30, puttered around until lunchtime and headed to Discoveries, the main dining room for lunch. The food was very good, although I am finding that there is a real language barrier, which means that special orders (dressing on the side, not all THAT special) are not always fulfilled. The food was good, though.

After lunch I took a nap. I got up to go to the gym, and life quickly took a turn for the worse. We had a bit of a nasty swell going, and the gym is on Deck 10 all the way forward. After slapping around on the elliptical (there are 3 of them, plus a bunch of treadmills, bikes and weight lifting equipment) for awhile, I decided to return to the cabin and take my ginger Altoids. Imagine my horror when I discovered that I hadn’t brought any! I took a “less drowsy” Bonine instead and promptly passed out. We awoke in time for dinner, were led to a table all the way aft in Discoveries, where I lasted 15 minutes before the swell and the engines got to me. We secured a table closer to midships and had a dinner that was just ok. The veal chop was overcooked and tough enough that it went back in favor of some splendid chicken that is on the “any time” menu.

After dinner it was back to bed. So whatever activities went on during the day, I can’t tell you about them.

December 20, 2008

Another day at sea. We’re past Cuba, so the ocean was quite a bit calmer. We slept in anyway, had coffee and fruit for our late breakfast, and then I wnet oup to the Thalassotherapy pool. It’s a $175 charge (plus 15% gratuity, bringing it to $206.50) for the length of the cruise, and, had we not received a $150 spa credit, I don’t think we would have indulged. It is very nice, but it was almost full when I went up there. I did secure a seat, however, and got a few minutes of sun and napping in.

Lunch was at the Windows Café, which has an outstanding selection of items. We managed to snag a table at Breeza, the outdoor section, and shared it with somebody when the place got full (people don’t hesitate to ask, and I don’t mind sharing at all).

After lunch it was back to the T-pool, which was nice and quiet by then. We went to the port talk at 4:00, but the guy was fairly dull and unfocussed, so we basically learned that Oranjestad is pretty. Then I went in search of ginger. The medical facility doesn’t have any, just pills. Guest services was nice enough to call the galley, which delivered a big honking ginger root on a plate. She laughed, I laughed, he went back and shredded it for me. Two bites and my stomach was now focused on heat instead of nausea – that stuff works like a charm!

Our ship-sponsored CC meeting is in a few minutes, so I will post more later…

Hooray critterchick...you are on the ship!!!

Can't wait to hear what you do in ports as we will be sailing on the Jan. 3 trip.

Like kstornado, we'd love to hear what you do in Costa Rica and Nicaragua.

Have a fabulous trip.

i have a year to wait but same ports almost. I am really enjoying your posts. thanks

Jean,

Do you normally get seasick? Do you think it is the ships size, age or just bad weather? I get sick often but it doen't stop me from cruising.

Thanks,

Fran

Thanks critterchick for your posts.

We are taking the Jounery on 1/31/09 and are looking forward in getting advance info from you.

Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Larry

Jean,

Do you normally get seasick? Do you think it is the ships size, age or just bad weather? I get sick often but it doen't stop me from cruising.

Thanks,

Fran

I usually get a little queasy when there are swells. Just bouncing up and down doesn't normally bother me. But once I had a few swallows of ginger, all was well.:D

And here is the link to the wine list: http://community.webshots.com/album/569304330dEuJhL

A little grainy, but you'll get the picture. I'll wait until I'm home to put it into an Excel spreadsheet.

We're in Oranjestad now - a crewmember fell ill, so we had to accelerate our arrival. We have nothing planned, but will wander the town, then perhaps head out to De Palm Beach for a look.

Hi Jean !

Thank you for your updates. Sorry to hear of the rough waters. As you know, sometimes its unavoidable. Hopefully, the seas will be much calmer the rest of your Cruise. I look forward to your updates. Have a great Cruise !

Thanks for the wine list. I know on some ships we have been on, you can purchase a wine card for glasses of wine &/or a wine packaged to drink on the ship. Is that available?

Also, does the spa offer any specials? Sometimes on port days, the massages are discounted.

I have used ginger tea when I have had "motion" problems on ships & it does work wonders. Feel good & enjoy the rest of your trip.

Donna

Thanks for the wine list. I know on some ships we have been on, you can purchase a wine card for glasses of wine &/or a wine packaged to drink on the ship. Is that available?

 

Also, does the spa offer any specials? Sometimes on port days, the massages are discounted.

 

I have used ginger tea when I have had "motion" problems on ships & it does work wonders. Feel good & enjoy the rest of your trip.

Donna

There is no wine card or package that I've seen. I have to say that I think this is a really fair wine list. We had a good bottle of Shiraz and a fabulous bottle of Malbec, for $30 and $45, respectively.

Today's port special was a 50 minute treatment, 25 minute facial and 25 minute back massage, or something like that, for $109. The regular prices onboard are appalling. :eek: I can't tell you specifically because I tossed the price list, but I do remember my beloved hot stones treatment was something like $195 for a 50-minute treatment, so no, thanks...

There is no wine card or package that I've seen. I have to say that I think this is a really fair wine list. We had a good bottle of Shiraz and a fabulous bottle of Malbec, for $30 and $45, respectively.

 

Today's port special was a 50 minute treatment, 25 minute facial and 25 minute back massage, or something like that, for $109. The regular prices onboard are appalling. :eek: I can't tell you specifically because I tossed the price list, but I do remember my beloved hot stones treatment was something like $195 for a 50-minute treatment, so no, thanks...

Ouch!!:eek:

Glad you are feeling better!