Carnival Splendor Journal with Pics - Tequila, Dolphins, Microphones and a Bar Card

[vanislandcruisers]

Wait, I'm having a tequila shot, swimming with dolphins. Oh ...ya.. I'm here at home and won't be doing either:p However, again, thank you for the Splendor Review...ahhhhhhh....70 some days and counting.

 

Thanks again Markmom18 - there will lots more Tequila coming;)

 

Thanks so much for all the time and effort you put into this awesome review. Not only am I reliving all the fun from last year, but you have given me so many great ideas for PV this summer. Please tell me how you got the passes for the Dream Resort. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your adventure!

 

Thanks candigirl and You are Very Welcome!!!!

 

As far as Dreams goes we emailed them at info.drepv@dreamsresorts.com and requested info on a Day Pass for October 20th/10 and this is the reponse we got back then:

 

Dreams Resort and Spa: http://www.dreamsresorts.com/drepv/...activities.html

 

Mr.____________

 

Thank you very much for interest in our Dreams Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa.

 

We are delighted to offer you our special all inclusive (lunch, dinks, facilities, entertainment and more) at $48 US dollars per adult. Children from 2 to 12 years old pay half price.

 

We are located 6 miles South from the Marina Pier and the taxi should be around $20 US dollars and takes 25 minutes.

 

We are looking forward to welcoming you on the 20th of October in our Dreams.

It is our pleasure

 

The Price may have changed by now and we did not have to Pay in Advance...just paid the $48 the day once we got there...Several did go ahead and contact the Resort to ensure our names were on the list for a day pass...others did not - they just showed up

[vanislandcruisers]

A Lion, BS Islands, Stone Island, Chicken and Fish

 

Dee got up first NOT …I dragged my exhausted, dehydrated self out of bed about 7:30am, peeled my lips off my teeth, had a shower, woke Dee up and then headed out on the Balcony to have a smoke with Donna’s Dan and take some pictures of our arrival into Mazatlan.

 

 

 

 

 

We sailed right by Stone Island and at first glance what we could see of Mazatlan looked gorgeous.

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

As we got closer to the Port it was evident that we would be docking in a very industrial area (think Container Ship Pier) of Old Mazatlan and that we had left the gorgeous part a few miles back.

 

 

 

 

 

Toy Soldiers

 

We got organized and headed up to the Lido to grab a bite and meet up with everyone else – Mo & Nicole, Karl (did not make it:o) & Tammi, Dan & Coral, Terry & Sue and Joyce and Roy – who were taking the Stone Island Tour. After eating and hearing the ‘All Clear’ we got off the Ship, had our ‘Welcome to Mazatlan’ picture taken and hopped on an open aired Shuttle that took us through the Container Pier over to the Cruise Terminal. Once there we found the fella with our Tour Sign and loaded up for the 10 minute transfer to the Pier where we would be getting on our Tour Boat.

 

We had originally booked the same tour through http://www.mazatlantours.org for our Swine Flu cruise in ’09 and since that one never happened we thought we’d do it again this time. The cost of the tour was $36.00 and included the following:

 

Free pickup from your Hotel or Cruise Ship.

 

Enjoy a 1-hour cruise of the bay, seeing Mazatlan from the water and taking photographs of the skyline.

 

Ride in a tractor-pulled cart from the pier to the tour location.

 

Make use of the OPEN BAR throughout your stay on the island, choosing from Beer, Margaritas, Cocktails, Water and Soft Drinks.

 

Enjoy the shade of our beachside palapas, and relax on the beach in between activities.

 

Have lunch at an Oceanside restaurant, choosing from Smoked Fish, Charcoal Chicken, Fish Fillet, Chicken Fillet, Quesadillas, Burritos, Veggie Plates, or a Combo Plate. For $5.00 extra, there is also a delicious shrimp plate!

 

Customize your day by choosing from two of the following activities (included in the price!):

• Kayaking

• Horse Cart Tour

• Boogie Boarding

• Horseback Riding

• Snorkeling

• Banana Boat Rides

 

Spend 3 hours on your own on the beach, to swim, do activities, explore, work on your tan, or just drink at the always-OPEN BAR!

JMHO - As far as value for our money the Excursion was well worth it but we could have done with a little shorter tour of the Bay and more time at the Beach on Stone Island.

[vanislandcruisers]

We were picked up at the Terminal and shuttled over to the Pier to start the Tour. Once there we handed in our Receipt in exchange for a wristband and 1 Lunch ticket/person. We walked down the rickety Gangway and hopped on the Double-Decker boat.

 

At this point we saw Meredith, Matt, their little guy Ryan, Leslie, Mary, Candace and Brian sitting on the Lower Deck. We also ran into a couple that Mo & Nicole and Dan & Coral had spent a fair bit of time with the day before teaching the husband how to drink Molson Canadian during their Puerto Vallarta Sea Day. Conclusion #478: He did not do so well. We will call her M and him R :D and they were from Oxnard, California. They seemed to take a real liking to the Canadians eh and had decided to book the Stone Island Excursion through the Ship the day before once they found out that Dan & Coral and Mo & Nicole were doing it. They wanted to come on the same boat as us but because they had purchased their Tour through the Excursion Desk on the Ship they had to go on the next Tour Boat. We would hear and see a lot from them later.

 

The Marina Area

 

Could see that Restaurant on the Hill being trouble after a few beverages

 

 

Terry and Sue - full names mus means they behaved...lol

 

[vanislandcruisers]

We headed out into the Bay for our tour ...

 

 

Close

 

Closer

 

Closest to the Lion's face - Have this picture framed and Hanging in my Office

 

We then cruised towards New Mazatlan and got to see the beaches and high-rises that line the waterfront. Next it was off to what they told us were ‘Bird Islands’ Conclusion #479: We call BS (Bird Sh*t). These rock formations seem to sprout out of the water in no particular pattern and several of our group wondered aloud ‘why the rocks were all white?’ The closer we got to the rocks the more obvious the answer became – it smelled like a sewer had backed up on the Upper Deck.

 

 

 

Most of us (All of us) were far too hungover to be smelling this and I admit I was pretty close to creating my very own Omelette Station between my feet. We couldn’t get out of there fast enough as far as we were concerned. Conclusion #480: Smell ya later.

[vanislandcruisers]

Some more Pictures from Our Tour

 

 

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

We were able to purchase drinks during the Boat tour, which we did, and we also received our tickets for lunch as well as the tickets for the optional ‘activities’ from our Tour Guides/Waiters. As we rounded the corner of the Inlet separating the Port area and Stone Island we had a great view of the Carnival Splendor.

 

 

Tammi looked at her watch and said “If Karl is true to form we should see him coming out on the Balcony in a matter of seconds for a smoke’. No sooner did she get the words out of her mouth then we saw a man coming out onto a Balcony on Deck 6, put down a drink and light a smoke. We all started laughing and yelling at Karl and eventually he figured out where the sounds were coming from and waved at all of us.

 

Finally we made it to the Island and hopped onto our Tractor-pulled Cart for the short ride to the Beach Club. On our way we passed a Banana Plantation (that's what they told us) and some horses just grazing away.

 

 

 

 

 

Our Guides ushered us to a Palapa with a couple of tables large enough to accommodate the 11 of us. The Beach area we were in was fenced in but there were Vendors constantly leaning over the fence asking if ‘we knew a lady by the name of Joyce who had been in Puerto Vallarta the day before’. Just kidding - but Joyce did end up leaving quite a few pesos on Stone Island. It was an ‘all we could drink affair’ so we got busy and then all of a sudden we heard someone screaming “WHERE ARE ALLLLLLLLL THE CANADIANS AT EH?” We turned around to see R, with a Guide’s Megaphone in his hand, scouring the Beach for us. Spotting us he and M made their way towards our Talapa all the while being followed and told by their Guide that he and his wife were supposed to be sitting on the other side with the Ship Group. R was having none of that meaning we were having all of him. They sat down in a couple of chairs that had been vacated by Dee, who was getting a Massage after having it highly recommended by Tammi, and Coral who was out on a Banana Boat ride with Mo, Nicole and Dan. It was quite obvious that R had taken full advantage of the Bar Service on their Tour Boat. M looked at her husband and then looked at us and said “You Canadians sure bring out the best in him” Conclusion #481: Really!!! R then reached into his knapsack pulled out a little baggie and sparked what was left of a joint. Conclusion #482: Really Dude!!! We are from British Columbia and 'BC Bud' is sought after worldwide so we weren't shocked by the Smoking of Pot itself but we did think it was innappropriate especially with all the families around. To each their own I guess.

 

Once Mo, Nicole, Dan and Coral returned from their Banana Boat ride it was time to grab 2 more chairs and order our lunch. Because Karl had not accompanied us we were able to order 12 meals for the 11 of us. I wanted to try the fish so Tammi said I should order a Chicken Entrée too in case I didn’t like the fish. I ran over to where Dee was getting her Massage and interrupted her bliss - Conclusion #483: She was literally in a trance –1st I asked if she had snuck away with R and then asked her if she wanted ‘chicken or fish’. She drooled a response of Chicken. Between Dee and I we ordered 2 orders of chicken from our Assistant Guide/Waiter and 1 order of fish. R got up and put his arm around our Assistant Guide/Waiter’s shoulder and explained that they were with a different Group but that they wanted 2 orders of chicken to be served here with us and gave our Assistant Waiter his tickets. The Waiter said he ‘could not do this’ and that ‘they would have to eat with their Group as they were getting a Buffet and not Table Service’ - Conclusion #484: No Table Service but there was Lip Service occurring - and gave R back the 2 tickets. Our Assistant Waiter went over and spoke to the Guide from M and R’s Group and soon enough he came over and R got up to talk to him and we all heard the same song again with the same response from the Staff Member. When R sat back down M asked him if ‘they should go over and eat with their group’ to which R replied “Nope, it’s all good. I took care of it” Conclusion #485: Really!!!

 

The Masseuse was just finishing up with Dee so I went over to tie up her bikini top and then we wandered through the Vendor’s section inside the fence and looked at some carvings and jewelry. We found a couple of things we liked but could see that our Head Waiter/Guide was delivering our lunch to the table so we headed back towards the Palapa. Once we sat down we could see that everyone had a meal with only 1 order of a whole smoked fish staring up at the 2 of us. Why does that fish still have its eye? I motioned to our Waiter and said we were missing 2 orders of chicken and he began to check his sheet with what he had brought. “Everything is right – 11 orders of chicken and 1 order of smoked fish and the extra Shrimp Plate and Nachos you ordered which is an extra cost – that’s all the tickets I have.” he said. He called over his Assistant and asked him something in Spanish and the Assistant waived his hand at M and R who were each eating an order of chicken. Our Head Waiter tried asking R if ‘they had ordered the chicken’ and R didn’t even acknowledge him; neither one of them looked up - R just reached over and grabbed the Nacho Chips and the Shrimp Plate and began to Double Dip in the Guacamole like there was no tomorrow. Eventually the Head Waiter told us that even though it would come out of his pocket he would get another order of chicken for Dee but that I would have to eat the fish. I was a little ticked and everyone but 2 knew it so Dee and I decided to take a quick walk over to the Vendor’s Area and grab the Carving and the 2 pieces of Jewelry that she wanted. By the time we got back they had delivered Dee’s chicken and cleared the table of everything else including my fish. At this point I couldn’t help but shake my head and laugh and when R told me ‘the chicken was really good and I should have gotten that because he noticed I didn’t eat much of my fish’ I just sat there dumbfounded. Conclusion #486: Really!!!

 

Dan & Coral and Mo & Nicole began to discreetly apologize to us for inviting M and R to which we just laughed and told them not to worry about it. Mo and Roy went for and ATV ride while Joyce, Coral and Nicole went for a Horseback ride – the rest of us just sat around the beach area and drank LOTS ….and R sparked another Doobie. If we’d have been more observant we’d of known this was coming just by seeing his ‘Chronic Alert Bracelet’ but at least if he got the munchies he could still go to the Buffet.

 

The afternoon wound down and it was soon time to get back on the Tractor-pulled Cart for the trip back to the Pier. So the 11 of us hopped on our Cart and off we went towards the Pier all the while hearing a man’s voice shouting from the Tractor behind us to ‘save them a seat on our boat’. Once at the Pier we got on the boat and the next thing we saw was M and R getting off their Cart and running down the Ramp to join up with us. Our 2 Guides were a little upset with the Guides form the Carnival sponsored Tour for letting M and R hook up with us Conclusion #487: That makes 13 of us. They ended up cutting R off from any further alcohol purchases on the ride back. That didn’t stop R from taking it upon himself to ‘ass’ist with the Docking Procedure at the Pier. I am sure the damage to the Ramp was easily repaired.

 

Back on the Mainland we tipped our Guides and then quickly found an 18-passenger shuttle to take us and Meredith and her family and friends back to the Port. Unfortunately M and R had to take a Taxi because they were on the Carnival sponsored excursion. Conclusion #488: Finally the ‘Happy Ending’ to Dee’s Massage.

 

Once on-board Dee and I headed to our Cabin to drop off our stuff and freshen up. While Dee was changing I took the gift we had brought from home for Meredith and Matt’s son Ryan and ran it down to their Cabin to give it to him. I am the Operations Supervisor at a Recreation Centre which has an Ice Rink so I handed a him a little Remote-Controlled Zamboni which he really seemed to like although being from Houston he’d never been to an Ice Rink before.

 

Back up to the Cabin I went, changed and then we headed to the Sushi Bar for a snack. It was nice to have some Seafood that was not staring back at us. We made our way up to the Panorama Deck Aft for Sail-Away and just before we set sail the HAL Ship that was docked behind us left. It must have been a Charter of some sort because there was a concert going on what I assume was their Lido Deck Aft that was in full swing. As we were looking at the Ship cruise by several of us saw a man, let’s call him Dick, all by himself on his Balcony who seemed to be a ‘little’ excited by the music or maybe he was just a happy to see us. Conclusion #489: Sure made R look better in our eyes.

 

We decided it was about time to head to the Cabin, make a drink and get ready for our Reservations at the Steakhouse. As we were pouring our drinks we heard a knock at the door and in the hall stood John Heald’s Assistant with a Carnival Splendor ‘Ship on a Stick’, a bottle of Champagne and a picture of the Carnival Splendor which John had signed with a message thanking us for the tea. Conclusion #490: Your Welcome and Thank-you.

 

I had made Reservations for Dee & I, Dan & Coral and Allen & Joyce about 6 months before our Cruise for 8:00pm which we felt wouldn’t interfere with the late evening Deck Party. Terry & Sue, Gord & Vicki and Mark and Diane had made reservations for the same time and were at a Table for 6 right next to us.

 

This was our 2nd Visit to the Steakhouse on the Carnival Splendor; Dee and I have also been to the Steakhouse on Carnival Spirit and to the Supper Club on the Carnival Freedom which was the predecessor to the Steakhouse. We were very excited for Dan and Coral to experience not only the food in the Steakhouse but also the service and while the food was excellent the Service in the Steakhouse was not what we had come to expect. It may have been an ‘off night’ or ‘newer Staff’ but the mistakes that were made that night were made early and then often. The errors ranged from incorrect drink orders to missing or incorrect sides to Entrées being given to the wrong person to incorrect desserts. We don’t know if it was the Bar Card that threw the Sommelier, our Wait Staff and our Drink Waitress off or the fact that we had 2 Tables of 6 next to each other who were on the same schedule – whatever it was it was definitely not the experience we were expecting and it was not anything that ruined our night however it certainly didn’t provide us with the memories that our other 3 visits to the various Steakhouses (Supper Club) have. And Dee and I have been to a Steakhouse since and would not hesitate to do so in the future however I should say that we do LOVE going to the Dining Room each night. Conclusion #491: Off night.

 

As far as what we had Dee had the Escargots, a Caesar Salad and the Filet Mignon while I did my best to make the Lobster Bisque, a Caesar Salad and the 24oz Porterhouse disappear. We all put our Bar Cards to good use this evening as well sampling a number of different wines by the glass and Dan and I did have a couple of ‘Double Crowns’ although mine came with Ginger Ale instead of the Coke I ordered. Conclusion #492: Not bad!! We did what we could with dessert but were absolutely stuffed by the time we staggered out.

 

Off to the Casino we went where Dan and I had some luck at the Tables while Dee and Coral made their usual contributions to the Slot Machines. After that we hit the Piano Bar and then the Dance Club before calling it a night and heading up to our Cabin When we walked into our Cabin we busted up laughing when we saw our Towel Animal.

 

Bunny Style

 

We thought there was just something so wrong with the positioning of this Towel Animal especially the way it was looking back at us but did find it absolutely hysterical. We also developed a new found appreciation for our Cabin Stewards. The laughter seemed to energize us so we decided to have a drink out on the Balcony to relax and enjoy the late night/early morning heat. Even though we had the Bar Card it was nice to have a bottle in our Cabin to make some ‘tweeners. Conclusion #493: ‘tween this Bar and that Bar or ‘tween Nighttime and Morning.

[mara93]

Subscribing! I love your reviews :D

[vanislandcruisers]

Subscribing! I love your reviews :D

 

 

Thanks Latinhunny33...We've LOVED living them!!!:D...Once this one is finished we will start posting our Carnival Spirit (Nov/11) and Carnival Miracle (Feb/12) Journals:)

[Mulege]

what is the deal with the Bar Card?

[Mulege]

what is the deal with the Bar Card?

 

I found it! Your first post.

[gone_cruisin]

 

 

Bunny Style

 

 

I was just thumbing thru this thread looking at the pics (not reading the reviews) and this photo immediately caught my eye. What was Carnival thinking????? :eek:

[vanislandcruisers]

Tequila, Cabo Wabo, a Band and a Van with a Dent

 

 

Because Cabo San Lucas was a tender Port and a short 7:00am – 3:00pm stop the 9 of us + Allen and Roy decided to book the 45 minute Land’s End Boat Tour through Carnival which began at 7:30am so we could all get off the ship as early as possible and then have the rest of the day to see the sights. Conclusion #494: See all the Sights…That was the Plan.

 

Appropriately enough I chose to wear my Amnesia Tequila T-Shirt.

 

 

The Members of our little Canadian Group within the S&S Group have talked many times about how this day turned out to be one of the best days any of us have ever had and we have had some days. The fun started early and seemed to increase as the day went along. Our last port day was truly the most enjoyable day and we reminisce about it often.

 

Anyway, onto the day...

 

Dee was the first one of us up NOT...I got about 5:45am, showered, woke Dee up, phoned Allen, who is the oldest teenager in the world - Conclusion #495: Loves to stay up all night and sleep all day – and Joyce and woke them up. I headed out on the Balcony to take some ‘arrival’ pictures in the dark and have a smoke.

 

 

Once Dee was ready we headed up to the Lido Deck where I had a breakfast of 3 small Cartons of Milk and Dee had some waffles and bacon. We then met up with Tammi, Karl, Mo, Nicole, Dan, Coral, Allen and Joyce. We were supposed to meet in the Spectacular Lounge at 6:45am to get our Tender Tickets and we did so and ended up on a Tender right away.

 

Once on land we had our Welcome to ‘Cabo San Lucas’ picture taken and then Dee and I went ahead and got on the Triple Decker Tour Boat to secure seats for the 10 of us. There was supposed to be an 11th but Roy failed to effectively negotiate the Wake-Up call function on his Cabin Phone Conclusion #496: He was Dial Tone-Daft.

 

Here comes Dan and Coral

 

Some shots of the Harbour and Marina

 

[vanislandcruisers]

 

 

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

Shortly after the rest arrived Karl thought it would be a good idea for all of us to do a shot of Tequila at 7:15am. Conclusion #497: Because it is 5 O’clock somewhere -just happens to be on the East Coast of Greenland. We choked those shots down and then got into the real drinks…the Margaritas, Mai Tais, Coronas and Pina Coladas were flying. We had a couple of Photos taken by the On-board Photographers which Dee and I and Joyce purchased. Conclusion #498: The other 8 could be called ‘Scanners’.

 

 

Dee and I also had a picture of the 2 of us taken

 

 

The Tour lasted about an hour and 15 minutes, a little longer than we expected. It started out by taking us past Lover’s Beach...

 

 

...by the rocks with all the Seals on them...

 

 

...past El Arcos (Land’s End)....

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

Some more Pics

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KuffMUp]

You Canadians are sooo much fun!:D It would be a blast to go on a trip with you guys! I know on some land based vacations when we heard there was a group of Canadians it's like OMG this is going to be a fun week!!

[vanislandcruisers]

...around to the Pacific side....

 

 

where we went past Divorce Beach...

 

 

and then up the coast for about 10 or 15 minutes Conclusion #499: or 2 drinks and 1 Tequila Shot which seemed to be the way we were measuring time that day.

 

 

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

Some more Pictures

 

 

 

 

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

Once back on land we met up with Lynne and Peewee and they along with 6 of the 10 of us made our way around the Marina and headed towards the Hard Rock Café to get our Souvenirs with a plan to meet the rest and many others at 1. Sammy Hagar’s Cabo Wabo Cantina for lunch. and then 2. take some Water Taxis over to Medano Beach to check out some Beach Bars. We were 1 for 2.

 

We walked past Senor Frogs...

 

 

and the Thong Bar Stools.....

 

then Lorenzillo’s Lobster House......

 

 

before arriving at the Hard Rock Café Cabo San Lucas.

 

 

The others purchased what they wanted and then Dee and I got our Hurricane Glass, Drumsticks for Dee’s boys and then when we looked at the Signature Bear for my daughter we started talking about the fact that it was wearing the same outfit as the ones from Cozumel and Puerto Vallarta so I opted to get a smaller version which was a kind of a Punk Rock Bear. We have been kicking ourselves ever since. Eventually we will rectify that mistake and now have a reason to visit Cabo again either by Land or by Sea.

 

We started to make our way over towards the Cabo Wabo Cantina and on our way we stopped in a few shops to browse. Dee found a Silver Ring with a large square Turquoise setting in a Jewelry shop that she had to have so I began a negotiation process with the Shopkeeper. He was either a great actor or he didn’t particularly like the way the negotiation went. I did agree with him that the quality of his product was of a much higher quality than those of the Beach Vendors but did remind him that we didn’t have to wait outside for all of his other customers to leave before we came in – in fact we were his only customers and he had told us that he “weell make SPECIAL deel for you seence you are my 1st Customers today”. Dee even said that he seemed genuinely upset with us as she was sliding the new ring on her finger outside the shop. We managed to get Joyce all the way to Cabo Wabo without her causing anymore turmoil in Silver Markets on the NYMEX and that was no easy feat.

 

 

 

...and PARTY WE DID!!!!

[vanislandcruisers]

what is the deal with the bar card?

 

i found it! Your first post.

 

ok:)

[vanislandcruisers]

I was just thumbing thru this thread looking at the pics (not reading the reviews) and this photo immediately caught my eye. What was Carnival thinking????? :eek:

 

gone_crusin.....We always try and establish as much of a rpport as we can with the Staff we come into contact with on our Cruises...some Welcome it and some don't and that's fine with us....We had been getting along very well with our Cabin Staff this cruise...we were HAPPY a lot:D;)...and this may have been a Joke or a case of that's what everyone in the Cabin Staff's Section got that night ...to be honest we didn't ask our neighbours who were part of our Group and didn't really remember until we looked at our pictures when we got home ...and by no means were we offended

 

You Canadians are sooo much fun!:D It would be a blast to go on a trip with you guys! I know on some land based vacations when we heard there was a group of Canadians it's like OMG this is going to be a fun week!!

 

Thanks KuffMUp...We try!!!...but we can't take all the Credit...there were a total of 11 Canadians (9 from the West Coast and 2 from the East Coast) amongst this Group of 40 and our American friends matched us laugh for laugh, beer for beer and Margarita for Margarita...We will continue to Cruise with all of them for a long time to come...and you are Welcome to join us ony of our upcoming cruises (January '13 and a B2B in October '13)...if ya want some Info just let us know

[oncruisecontrol]

Nice photos and a very entertaining, fun-filled review. Thanks for posting.

[alreadypacked]

Wow! Super fun review--thanks!:)

[vanislandcruisers]

Nice photos and a very entertaining, fun-filled review. Thanks for posting.

 

Thanks oncruisecontrol!!!...and You are Very Welcome!!!

 

Wow! Super fun review--thanks!:)

 

 

Thanks alreadypacked..........

 

Should have the rest of the Cabo San Lucas day up tonight...taking a little time as we have to be careful with the pictures from Cabo Wabo;):D