bionicman97 Posted April 27, 2011 Author #101 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Day 1 - The Schooner Bar & More Next up, we went to the Schooner Bar I like how they had it decorated Up next - The Safari Club. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 27, 2011 Author #102 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Day 1 - The Safari Club Next up, we went in the Safari club They have those self leveling pool tables that I always think are neat and want to play, yet never go to while on the ship This picture was a real shocker to me. I just never expected it. I still can't believe they got a picture of not one, not two, but three Carnival ships together and hung it up on a Royal Caribbean ship (Sorry - I just couldn't resist) Part of the seating area All in all, the Safari Club was a nice place and we came here several times during the cruise, but more on that later. Well, I have to stop for now, because we are getting close to our destination. I have to drive home (our family deal is usually wife drives one direction husband drives back) so, I should have more of the review going around 8pm or so. Coming tonight - An International Ice Cream War / The Windjammer / Solarium / Sail-a-way and so, so much more. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mabers Posted April 27, 2011 #103 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Those breadsticks are addicting, aren't they? Congrats on the little-one-to-be, and thanks for doing this fab review. I was on the same cruise and it was right up there with the best. That ship is gorgeous! OK....WHERE DID YOU GET THE BREADSTICKS??? All we had were rolls.....not even any crusty bread! I am so jealous! Sheila. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 27, 2011 Author #104 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Congrats on the little-one-to-be, and thanks for doing this fab review. I was on the same cruise and it was right up there with the best. That ship is gorgeous! OK....WHERE DID YOU GET THE BREADSTICKS??? All we had were rolls.....not even any crusty bread! I am so jealous! Sheila. Thanks :) Definitely a great cruise. Oh, sorry, those breadsticks were in reference to when another CC Poster talked about Olive Garden :o On the ship, we got sour dough rolls, savory bites, banana muffins, corn muffins, about 5 different types of sliced bread, a french loaf and some type of cheese bread, but we didn't have any breadsticks either. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judie43 Posted April 27, 2011 #105 Share Posted April 27, 2011 I am loving your review pictures. I do have to say...your wife is glowing. Pregnant women are so beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 27, 2011 Author #106 Share Posted April 27, 2011 I am loving your review pictures. I do have to say...your wife is glowing. Pregnant women are so beautiful. Thanks so much :) She definitely has the glow, hopefully it will stay and morning sickness will go away soon ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Teen Posted April 27, 2011 #107 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Enjoying the pictures so far! :D Jewel looks like a very nice ship! On the flip side, those 3 Carnival ships are ugly! :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 27, 2011 Author #108 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Enjoying the pictures so far! :D Jewel looks like a very nice ship! On the flip side, those 3 Carnival ships are ugly! :eek: Thanks :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FL_Cruiser_519 Posted April 27, 2011 #109 Share Posted April 27, 2011 (Had to google "bear with me" -- wasn't sure if it was bear or bare. It's "bear". The other "bare with me" would mean to undress together, and well, we just don't know each other that well -- This PSA brought to by Curtis ~ "now you know, and knowing is half the battle" ~ where did that phrase come from, I can't remember) That would be from the wildly popular 80's GI Joe cartoon. YO JOE!! Your reviews are great, keep up the good work. I am looking forward to the rest of the trip. It is helping hold me over until our cruise in May on the Freedom of the Seas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerriDHair Posted April 28, 2011 #110 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Thanks -- I'm enjoying the little free time I have left ;) For Grand Cayman, since we were with some first time cruisers, we did an excursion through RCI (we usually do private or on our own). It was $72pp called Catermaran Sail and Snorkel. The tour operator was something like Red Sailing (I think). It went to the ship wreck and the reef. After that excursion, we did find a place to snorkel on our own, which I will talk about during that portion of the review. Thanks -- We had a great wait staff and they were rewarded accordingly ;) Those breadsticks are addicting, aren't they? We took that tour, what time did you go? I don't remember whether there were different times, we took the 12:00 tour. We really enjoyed it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #111 Share Posted April 28, 2011 That would be from the wildly popular 80's GI Joe cartoon. YO JOE!! Your reviews are great, keep up the good work. I am looking forward to the rest of the trip. It is helping hold me over until our cruise in May on the Freedom of the Seas. YES! That's what I am remembering it from. Wow, that was a long time ago! Thanks. Enjoy your cruise, we had a great time on the Freedom :) We took that tour, what time did you go? I don't remember whether there were different times, we took the 12:00 tour. We really enjoyed it! Must have been separate times, because we went at 8:30am and got back about 12:15pm. It was really enjoyable :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Familygoboston Posted April 28, 2011 #112 Share Posted April 28, 2011 First off, I wanted to introduce you to the family. They always go on a cruise with me. LOL Bionic for years my husband has been bringing his other " woman" NIKKI on vacation! (sometimes more than 1:eek:) He shoots Nikkon obviously;) Congrats on the new baby coming!! The only thing better than traveling to see the world is showing it to your child!! I wish you and your wife all the best! Looking forward to the rest of your review... I'm reading it with my babies 14, and 16 who will cruise Jewel with me next year.:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #113 Share Posted April 28, 2011 . . . LOL Bionic for years my husband has been bringing his other " woman" NIKKI on vacation! (sometimes more than 1:eek:) He shoots Nikkon obviously;) Congrats on the new baby coming!! The only thing better than traveling to see the world is showing it to your child!! I wish you and your wife all the best! Looking forward to the rest of your review... I'm reading it with my babies 14, and 16 who will cruise Jewel with me next year.:D I know what you mean. Sometimes people think I had a camera surgically attached to my hand ;) I hope you and your family have a great time on the Jewel next year :) Review will be starting back up in just a minute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05mak05 Posted April 28, 2011 #114 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Thanks :) Definitely a great cruise. Oh, sorry, those breadsticks were in reference to when another CC Poster talked about Olive Garden :o On the ship, we got sour dough rolls, savory bites, banana muffins, corn muffins, about 5 different types of sliced bread, a french loaf and some type of cheese bread, but we didn't have any breadsticks either. :) Too funny, I thought I had also missed the breadsticks. We've had them on Celebrity but not RCI. And, Curtis, you're funny, too! What a marvelous sense of humor you have ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #115 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Too funny, I thought I had also missed the breadsticks. We've had them on Celebrity but not RCI. And, Curtis, you're funny, too! What a marvelous sense of humor you have ... Thank you :) So Celebrity has breadsticks! I'll have to check in to this. It's hard to pass up a good breadstick ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #116 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Day 1 - International Ice Cream War & More So, when we last left off, we were in the Safari Club. Rather than bore you all with more pictures of the ship, I figure I'll save the rest of the ship picks for sea days. Let's move on to the meat and potatoes of Day 1. Did I say meat and potatoes? I meant ice cream (ignore the cookies in the background, we aren't talking about cookies right now ;)) So why do I call it a war? Because my wife and her uncle began to have a contest as to who could make the best ice cream cone for the entire length of the cruise When the uncle brings back the last cone, he claims he got applause at the ice cream machine - fact of fiction? While he was eating this particular cone, a gentleman comes by and verifies the applause along with saying that the uncle can "make me a cone anytime". Now, I like ice cream, but I really like desserts in general. While they were playing "The next Dairy Queen Idol", I was busy getting the good stuff The one thing was an apple strudel, but I still don't know what the other thing was, but it was pretty good. Coming Soon - The Windjammer - Is it Muster or Mustard? - Sail-a-way - and much, much more. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
05mak05 Posted April 28, 2011 #117 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Thank you :) So Celebrity has breadsticks! I'll have to check in to this. It's hard to pass up a good breadstick ;) We haven't sailed Celebrity in several years as we decided to stick to RCI. We noticed bread sticks in the salad bar during the noon buffet. So, we asked for them in the Main Dining Room. Every night our waiter had them for us. In fact, after our table mates tasted them, they also requested breadsticks ... skip the rolls. We did not think the food on Celebrity was any better than RCI, however, the bread sticks are fantastic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #118 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Day 1 - Muster or Mustard So on the way down in the car with the first time cruisers, we had the mandatory "Why do they call it a Mustard drill?". So of course, we say "no, it's a muster drill?". Which begs the question "Why do they call it a muster drill?" Our best guess was that "muster" was like "to muster the strength to do something" so we figure it must mean "to gather". So I guess its a "gathering drill" Well, our station was at the Theater (Thank you RCI). We had one of the singers and dancers doing the demo and they made it as fun as it could be Here we are at the drill After the muster drill, we headed up to deck 12 for sail-a-way They had the usual festivities going on The Regent something pulled out right behind us Here's a shot as we left Coming soon - We haven't ate in an hour! Where's the Sea View Cafe? - & More. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #119 Share Posted April 28, 2011 We haven't sailed Celebrity in several years as we decided to stick to RCI. We noticed bread sticks in the salad bar during the noon buffet. So, we asked for them in the Main Dining Room. Every night our waiter had them for us. In fact, after our table mates tasted them, they also requested breadsticks ... skip the rolls. We did not think the food on Celebrity was any better than RCI, however, the bread sticks are fantastic! I will definitely keep that in mind. We're pretty loyal to royal, but we will probably try Celebrity one day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #120 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Day 1 - The Sea View Cafe and More So, by this time, I am completely wasting away to nothing, I can barely walk, I need food fast. Sea View Cafe to the rescue. I had a Cuban and some fries, along with some onion rings - all of which were fantastic! After this, we went by to see the solarium Then to the Viking Crown Lounge (Got excited in the picture - thought we saw another ice cream cone machine :D) I could kick myself for not posting this earlier, but it was kind of funny to watch everyone on the HAL ship do the muster drill right before we did it Coming up next - Dinner, a Show & Will the first Day of the cruise ever come to an end? (or will I just drag it out forever?) - Coming up next! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #121 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Sorry about those last pictures - grabbed the large link on flickr instead of medium - it may load a little slow for some. A quick note: Inevitably when I post a review, someone ask about taking pictures of the shows. Before every show, they always announce "No videos or FLASH photograph" - I don't use flash, it would ruin the picture anyway. Day 1 - Dinner & a Show At 7:20pm, we went to the theater to make sure we could get a seat. They were only having one show this evening. As you can see, we made it just in time! The show started with a video about the cruise line Then the Orchestra started playing Then the Singers came out Then the Singers and Dancers Then they had this Dance Crew Demonstration - passengers could go to classes and perform at the end of the cruise Up next - the rest of the show & more. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #122 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Day 1 - The Rest of the Show Up next, the cruise director came out I'm pretty sure his name was Simeon. He was pretty good. I saw him a lot during the day around the ship. I think his assistants name was Frankie and then we had a comedian. I won't pretend to remember what his name was. I can't remember where I put the cruise compasses at the minute to look. Comedy is beyond subjective. The best way I can rate him is to say he was about like the average cruise ship comedian. Take that however you may Up next - It's Dinner time!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
proudpatriot07 Posted April 28, 2011 #123 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Thank you :) So Celebrity has breadsticks! I'll have to check in to this. It's hard to pass up a good breadstick ;) I love a good breadstick, but if Royal has good bread in general, that'll make up for the lack of breadsticks for me :). The solarium pic looks super beautiful too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #124 Share Posted April 28, 2011 Day 1 - It's Dinner Time! We arrived at 8:30pm to the table. Our waiter was Maricio and the assistant waiter was Jesus. To start with, I had some sour dough (of course!!) - It was good Then, the Vadilia Onion Tart - It was good and a good temperature Then, the Caesar Salad - also good Then, the Pork Medallions - They were very good My Aunt, sitting next to me, got the Chops steak. She could only eat about half, so lucky for me, I got half a Chops steak also!! It was very good, but I probably wouldn't pay $14.95 for it. For dessert, I had the chocolate cherry cake and ice cream. This dessert seems to be a hit or miss thing, some people like it and some don't. I like it, but I must have the vanilla ice cream with it. Up next - Dinner is over -- or is it? & The rest of the evening -- coming soon. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bionicman97 Posted April 28, 2011 Author #125 Share Posted April 28, 2011 I love a good breadstick, but if Royal has good bread in general, that'll make up for the lack of breadsticks for me :). The solarium pic looks super beautiful too... I pretty much liked all of the bread they serve at dinner time. The solarium is beautiful. I'll share a lot more pic's from it throughout the review :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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