Adventures on the Carnival Conquest… a review of the Sep 26 7 day cruise to Cozumel

[annakay]

seeing it in PERSON was even better!!:D:D

I bet you all laughed until you cried! :D

[*Mach*]

Just wanted to say thanks again for the awesome review Mach, appreciate you and stitch for all you do for the crazies...

 

 

You know it's a pleasure for both Stitch and me. She's a wonderful partner in crime...

:)

[barbevrn]

Just wanted to say thanks again for the awesome review Mach, appreciate you and stitch for all you do for the crazies...

 

Amen and HELLO sister dear :)

[annakay]

You know it's a pleasure for both Stitch and me. She's a wonderful partner in crime...

:)

I'm glad that you have each other and are making so many wonderful memories together.

[annakay]

Amen and HELLO sister dear :)

Hello sister, love you and miss you!!!

[TravellinGranny]

seeing it in PERSON was even better!!:D:D

No, Sheri, It's ok. I don't think I would have the strength from peeing my britches from laughter.:D

[*Mach*]

We returned to our cabin to change and do some deck wandering. Augustina had been playing magic games with the towels again and left this wonderful creature behind…

 

 

Rain had started, actually, it had rained off and on throughout the evening, so we intended to limit our exposure on the open decks to the covered areas, the Crazies table in particular. Our path to the Lido Deck from the Upper Deck, where our cabin was located, always seems to begin by going down one deck to the Promenade. Without fail we find Crazies on the Promenade in one location or another… Janey and Donna at the Impression Bar at the Casino, Al and Mary perched somewhere in the vicinity of the coffee shop, Susan and Bill near Latour and so forth. We also tend to run into crewmembers we know making the time spent well worth it. Our pass through the Atrium requires that we waltz down the stairs to the Lobby Bar to see Mignon, chat with her and have a drink. She’s a gem. She gave up trying to offer me what I had previously ordered because I kept changing my selection. However, there was one thing fairly new that made me smile and became one of my staples… draught beer. Yep… Miller Lite and Heineken on tap. WOOOHOOOO!! What fun!

 

 

They serve up frosty cold pints and boy were they good!! I’m not a Hinny fan as it tends to be a bit too filling for me but, boy howdy, was that Miller Lite good!!!

 

Oooooo… please allow me another digression… I know y’all are going to like this one. Sunset. I select my cabin because of sunset. It’s for that reason that I like cabins on the starboard side for this itinerary in particular. As far as good sunsets go I had been shut out on last year’s Crazies to the Bahamas, the Dream out of New York never even saw the sun and the horizon was always murky on the Ecstasy in February. God felt sorry for me and allow me this…

 

 

OK… I’m back…

 

Arriving at the Lido Deck we found our folks in their proper place, holding down that particular piece of real estate that had become ours. There was a great deal of discussion about being able to make port tomorrow morning in Montego Bay. I didn’t hold out a lot of hope as the weather had been deteriorating throughout the evening with the seas becoming yet more active. As much as I love Jamaica, and I LOVE Jamaica, the idea of trying to have fun on a rain soaked, wind lashed island became less and less appealing all the time.

 

With that in mind we started considering Grand Cayman. We were actually pretty well west of the system as it was tracking north east at eight knots. I mentioned that I thought we had a fair shot at Cayman as long as the seas permitted, keeping in mind that Georgetown is a tender port.

 

No matter, we still had tomorrow to deal with be it a day in a soggy, windy Jamaica or sea day.

[stitchnfool]

Just a little proof it wasn't all stormy weather! :)

[GoofyDog]

I have a feeling Stitch and my wife would enjoy each other's company! My wife cross-stitches all the time! The craziest one I've seen her do is a wedding picture of her Mom and Dad! Took a long time but it is BEAUTIFUL!

[*Mach*]

We headed back to our cabin enjoying the feel of the ship as she managed her way through the somewhat turbulent seas. Again, we watched the new folks wander about as the ship rolled and rumbled through the mounting waves. Upon reaching our stateroom we both walked straight to the balcony to make an assessment of the seas. I looked at Stitch and said ‘We’re not making Jamaica in the morning.’ Sometimes I hate it when I’m right.

 

One of the things that’s most amazing about Stitch is that she can sleep. I mean, not like she can sleep the day away but that once she’s asleep, she’s asleep… end of story. In short order she was in that mode. I dozed off about 30 minutes later hoping that some down time would appease my angry back.

 

About 3:00 AM I awoke and checked the conditions the old fashioned way… I went outside. Not good, not good at all. The sea had gotten upset over the fact that the wind was blowing so fiercely that it was trying to reach up and snatch it from the sky. The wind was winning.

 

I estimated the seas to be 14 feet or better but still reminded myself that the harbor at MoBay is sheltered and on the north side of the island. With the wind blowing from due south we still had a chance. In this Google Maps image you can see the harbor at MoBay. With north being the top of the image and the wind out of the south, tempered by the mountainous backbone of the island we had a shot.

 

 

We sailed into the harbor at about 8 AM and maneuvered about for quite a while all the time wrapped on three sides by the island. I stood on the balcony and watched us maneuver toward the pier. Each time the ship became aligned with the dock she would begin to drift sideways back toward the mouth of the harbor. After several attempts it appeared we had it made. Jamaica was within a hundred yards or so. The ship shuddered just a bit and the thrusters protested but the wind, gusting to 62 knots, prevailed. Doing the right thing for the passengers, crew and the ship Captain Sammartano abandoned the port and turned back out to sea.

 

It wasn’t very long before Chris made the announcement that no one needed or wanted to hear. Jamaica was canceled and we were headed direct to Grand Cayman.

 

Given the path of the system I was pretty surprised by the winds and seas. Under normal circumstances the strongest winds, worst weather in a tropical depression, tropical storm or hurricane is in the north eastern quadrant. We were not where near that area. When we arrived home I looked at the storm archive from the NOAA website and found this:

 

TROPICAL DEPRESSION SIXTEEN CONTINUES TO HAVE A STRUCTURE MORE CHARACTERISTIC OF A WESTERN NORTH PACIFIC/NORTH INDIAN OCEAN MONSOON DEPRESSION. SURFACE OBSERVATIONS CONTINUE TO INDICATE WINDS OF 20 KT OR LESS OVER AN AREA ENCOMPASSING 100 N MI IN DIAMETER FROM THE CENTER...AND THAT THE STRONGEST WINDS AND CONVECTION ARE 250-300 N MI AWAY FROM THE CENTER IN THE SOUTHEASTERN QUADRANT.

 

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2010/al16/al162010.discus.003.shtml?

 

That’s smack dab where we were… the southeastern quadrant. Strange system.

 

We started our trek northwest to Grand Cayman with hopes for sunshine and warm sand still alive in our hearts but worries about tendering tempering everything. If the seas were anything like they were in our current portion of the sea we would lose Georgetown for sure.

 

 

Regardless, we had an extra day at sea to play with. Conditions on deck weren’t conducive to doing anything in the open so Chris arranged to have one of the featured movies shown in the Toulouse Lautrec lounge. I think it was ‘It’s Complicated.’ How prophetic…

[barbevrn]

Hey Mach......do I have your permission to post my movie of "Jamaica" to the tune of "Don't rock the boat"?

[*Mach*]

Hey Mach......do I have your permission to post my movie of "Jamaica" to the tune of "Don't rock the boat"?

 

 

Of course! And you don't need my permission...

:)

[barbevrn]

Of course! And you don't need my permission...

 

:)

 

 

 

Yes I do.......it is your review! I never ever felt in danger. The seas got my attention once with a extra big wave one time! Otherwise...it was an adventure.

[stitchnfool]

I have a feeling Stitch and my wife would enjoy each other's company! My wife cross-stitches all the time! The craziest one I've seen her do is a wedding picture of her Mom and Dad! Took a long time but it is BEAUTIFUL!

 

Holy Moly!!! I'm impressed!!! I have a bunch of questions about that, but don't want to hijack Mach's review thread. You and the Mrs. are going to have to book a cruise with us so I can hear all about that!! ;):)

[stitchnfool]

Adding a bit of my own here...we were so disappointed to see Jamaica so close only to have to wave goodbye. My first cruise, 2 years ago stopped in Jamaica and I was anxious to return, as was Mach. We've talked about it for so long.

 

My disappointment faded quickly as we rearranged our schedule and set about enjoying the moments. Vacations come and go so quickly!

[billsrobb]

Loving every word of your review Mach

[*Mach*]

Loving every word of your review Mach

 

 

Thanks so much, Robb...

It was an honor to sail with you and Marj again.

I can't wait 'til we're back on board together in February.

:)

[sixgun8]

And so you waved goodbye to the Wonderful Island of Jamaica and the Pork Pit while saliva pooled in the corners of your mouth and slowly dribbled down your chin for no reason at all.:(

[stitchnfool]

And so you waved goodbye to the Wonderful Island of Jamaica and the Pork Pit while saliva pooled in the corners of your mouth and slowly dribbled down your chin for no reason at all.:(

 

you got it! :(

[*Mach*]

And so you waved goodbye to the Wonderful Island of Jamaica and the Pork Pit while saliva pooled in the corners of your mouth and slowly dribbled down your chin for no reason at all.:(

 

 

Yeah, but to tell you the truth... considering the conditions... I'm glad we were at sea...

:)

[dane225]

We returned to our cabin to change and do some deck wandering. Augustina had been playing magic games with the towels again and left this wonderful creature behind…

 

 

Rain had started, actually, it had rained off and on throughout the evening, so we intended to limit our exposure on the open decks to the covered areas, the Crazies table in particular. Our path to the Lido Deck from the Upper Deck, where our cabin was located, always seems to begin by going down one deck to the Promenade. Without fail we find Crazies on the Promenade in one location or another… Janey and Donna at the Impression Bar at the Casino, Al and Mary perched somewhere in the vicinity of the coffee shop, Susan and Bill near Latour and so forth. We also tend to run into crewmembers we know making the time spent well worth it. Our pass through the Atrium requires that we waltz down the stairs to the Lobby Bar to see Mignon, chat with her and have a drink. She’s a gem. She gave up trying to offer me what I had previously ordered because I kept changing my selection. However, there was one thing fairly new that made me smile and became one of my staples… draught beer. Yep… Miller Lite and Heineken on tap. WOOOHOOOO!! What fun!

 

 

They serve up frosty cold pints and boy were they good!! I’m not a Hinny fan as it tends to be a bit too filling for me but, boy howdy, was that Miller Lite good!!!

 

Oooooo… please allow me another digression… I know y’all are going to like this one. Sunset. I select my cabin because of sunset. It’s for that reason that I like cabins on the starboard side for this itinerary in particular. As far as good sunsets go I had been shut out on last year’s Crazies to the Bahamas, the Dream out of New York never even saw the sun and the horizon was always murky on the Ecstasy in February. God felt sorry for me and allow me this…

 

 

OK… I’m back…

 

Arriving at the Lido Deck we found our folks in their proper place, holding down that particular piece of real estate that had become ours. There was a great deal of discussion about being able to make port tomorrow morning in Montego Bay. I didn’t hold out a lot of hope as the weather had been deteriorating throughout the evening with the seas becoming yet more active. As much as I love Jamaica, and I LOVE Jamaica, the idea of trying to have fun on a rain soaked, wind lashed island became less and less appealing all the time.

 

With that in mind we started considering Grand Cayman. We were actually pretty well west of the system as it was tracking north east at eight knots. I mentioned that I thought we had a fair shot at Cayman as long as the seas permitted, keeping in mind that Georgetown is a tender port.

 

No matter, we still had tomorrow to deal with be it a day in a soggy, windy Jamaica or sea day.

I just love the sunset pics!! Breathtaking!! I too am a sunset fanatic, I have to take some sunset pics each evening on a cruise. It is my most favorite time on the ocean. So calming and relaxing!!

[WestTxCruiser]

Yes I do.......it is your review! I never ever felt in danger. The seas got my attention once with a extra big wave one time! Otherwise...it was an adventure.

WOW, that was cool. Sorry I missed it. :( What an adventure.

[barbevrn]

WOW, that was cool. Sorry I missed it. :( What an adventure.

 

We hardly missed a step......but, we start taking meclizine on the first day. We don't always take it every day....but just happened to on this one. :D I should have picked up one of those barf bags just as a reminder though.

[IndyGirl]

 

 

I saw lots of Crazies door signs- whoever had the flip flops on their door, that was really cute. :) Glad you guys' enjoyed yourselves.

 

Thanks if you are referring to our flip flops, hot pink, 6th floor, but they went MIA. :mad:

[Meyer2]

Your review is just awesome Mach!!! I really do appreciate you taking the time to do this for us! I'm so ready for my turn on the Conquest! 8 days!! :D

 

Oh, and my hubby thinks I take steam showers too, LOL!

 

Great videos to those who posted those, thanks for sharing!