On the 6-30-12 Liberty... Diamond/Milestone sailing

[Sparky2]

Happy Birthday, Tom.

[hayesktrm]

We will be getting on when you are getting off. We are very excited! Looking forward to hearing about the past guest party, too.

 

Enjoy and happy birthday!

[silvercrikhix]

Happy Birthday Tom.

 

Cruising on your 50th birthday on your 50th cruise!!

 

Cool!!!

 

Ditto! :)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[legalmom]

Happy Birthday Tom! Have a great trip!

 

Ben and Lois

Jacksonville:)

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Clarifications:

 

I had mentioned earlier that the new cards did not have a strip on the back on which to sign your name, nor was it apparently necessary. That assumption was based on our first experience using the card. Following that, it was obvious that you do indeed still need to sign your card – they provide a sharpie for that now since a pen won’t do the trick.

 

Regarding the laundry, when we first received it back on the same day we had given it to our steward, I thought that was out of the ordinary – at least judging by the turnaround time when we last used Carnival’s laundry service (likely a year+ ago). I then noticed in the Funtimes that they will have it back by the same day at 7pm if it’s left by 10:30am.

 

 

Tom

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Our journey off the ship yesterday was delayed slightly by a passing shower, but we made it over to our Cabana and had a nice few hours there. We enjoyed the padded double lounger by the water’s edge. Even though there was still some high clouds, the heat of the sun was apparent – especially given the lack of a steady breeze (we are lightweights when it comes to lying out on the beach). We retreated back to the nice loungers under the shade of the cabana’s porch. A somewhat better breeze was enjoyed there thanks to the direction of the wind. The inside of the cabana was comfortable, with a wall mounted AC unit set to 72 degrees. There was a ceiling fan inside, though I think it would make more sense to have it on the porch! We were in cabana #7 (out of 8), thus near the end. There were bathrooms and a bar basically right behind our cabana – with plenty loud music to enjoy (or not)!

 

We took advantage of the bar/food service and ordered a bucket of Coronas along with some Nachos. The Nachos part of the order was quickly altered when I saw what was passing for Nachos as the guy next door received his order! We instead opted for a plate of wings and fries. Wings were available mild, hot, or extra hot. We decided on hot, wanting ours to at least have some flavor. Let’s just say that the wings are an item we will PASS on when we return on the Legend in October! Very small (pinkie size) with a sweet/tangy, but not tasty, sauce. The fries were just OK - especially when compared to the fries at Guy’s Burger Joint on the ship! We then realized that the server did not bring any paper towels. That’s OK, our Carnival towels came in handy for that! During the time we were on our porch probably 4 different groups of people walking by on the beach decided to enjoy our beachfront loungers and hammock. I will say that the two security guys they had there did a great job of informing those people of the reserved nature of those amenities, and the people would be on their way. Cheryl and I did enjoy the hammock for about 25 minutes – very relaxing!

 

End total -- small plate of wings/fries and 6 coronas= $35.

 

Tom

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Past Guest Party: Was in the smaller lounge (where they have Punchliner’s) in the back of the ship yesterday between 4:30 and 5:15. It started off with the band playing while drinks and snacks made the rounds. One thing which stood out from previous parties was the trays of drinks they were walking around with. In the past I seem to recall glasses of wine along with small glasses of colorful (green, red, yellow) drink concoctions. The small colored drinks were nowhere to be seen, and instead were replaced with larger drinks – some appeared to be frozen drinks. We passed on those and instead ordered a couple of Grey Goose mixed drinks without issue. We had brought a few ones to tip with, and saw one or two others doing this as well - likely a good idea if you are placing a special order! We were offered three different hor dourves: a so-so bruschetta, a mini “pizza like” bite w/mozzarella, and a tasty small cuplet of creamy potato soup with beef. They were passing around Mardi Gras beads to everyone – not even requiring (thankfully) what is sometimes necessary in New Orleans to receive them! :eek: :D

 

Karl then ran a couple of videos including the classic “I had a friend with a boat he was trying to sell…” :D Then the Carnival ships were shown one by one with everyone cheering out if they had been on it. They showed a couple of cute towel animal video shorts (I had already seen at least one on the Carnival website). The band then played “When the Saints Come Marching In” – a few people did get up and marched around the room at that point. Karl proceeded to introduce the Captain who gave a short speech and bit of information about the ship. Next he brought on several other officers (Head of Security, Chief Purser, F&B Manager, Chief Engineer, HD, Staff Captain, Chef, etc…). Following that Karl asked people to “stand up if you are a GOLD member”, then Platinum. Karl stated that they have two Diamond guests onboard – but then asked if they had anyone celebrating a Milestone sailing (I stood up). He asked how many Carnival cruises I had been on. I replied that this was my 50th Carnival cruise, of course drawing some attention to me (something I am not a huge fan of – but I knew it might be coming) He asked me to come up to the stage, though I initially “sort of” declined. He then asked for the Diamond members to stand up (Cheryl stood) and then come up onto the stage and meet the officers. Following that they took a couple of photos with us and the Officers. Not sure if I should expect that photo to show up in our cabin, appear at the meeting tomorrow with the Captain, or just be at the photo gallery along with the other photos which were taken at the party.

 

Tom

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

We headed to the casino for a short period of time before dinner to try our luck – not sure where it went, but it has not been seen since the first night! I play at the $25 BJ table, and except for a couple of people who played 3 or 4 hands and left, it has been only the two of us at the table. That is very common on Carnival, where most people are playing at the $6 tables. On both NCL and Celebrity there are almost always several people I play with throughout the sailing... it’s actually more fun that way! The casino host then brought a birthday cake (complete with candle) to me at the table. Along with a couple of plates to enjoy right there! As it turns out the host was celebrating his 37th birthday that day as well. We thanked them all for the cake, but asked if they could take it back to their break area to share and enjoy – as it would go to waste if we took it back to our cabin – they were happy to oblige!

 

We decided to skip the Steakhouse last night, and hit the MDR about 7pm. I had mentioned this to the F&B manager at the party and he said that the hostess would be expecting us. We had met him a couple of times previously on the ship, including a nice chat with him and the chef who came up to greet us the first night in the Steakhouse. When we arrived the Maître d’ asked what kind of table we would like, and in no time they had a nice booth for the two of us. Before we made the decision to skip the Steakhouse that evening, part of our decision to do that was due to what the TV showed as the menu for that evening (when we checked about 3 PM). A couple of starters we really enjoy and Lasagna were in our sights. Well, it turns out that the TV was wrong (surprise), but we ordered the spinach salad and the turkey/pasta – all very good! Since we did not eat a large amount (certainly compared to the Steakhouse), we asked for the dessert menu – but before that arrived an even larger cake with fresh berries appeared on the scene! We asked for a bit of ice cream to enjoy with it, and had our second round of cake for the day!! We had the remainder sent to our cabin. Following that we heading back to grab a couple of things in our cabin and then try my luck again at the casino. On our way down the hall we saw my cake heading towards our cabin. After making a comment to the fellow walking past, I think he thought we were kidding about it being my cake (he must hear that all the time) until I mentioned our cabin #. Well, we took that cake – you guessed it – right to the casino for them to enjoy! It’s obvious that our bribes of sweets has no impact on the cards I receive… I double my 10’s and get 4’s, I double my 11’s and get aces… you get the picture!!

 

Since it was the 4th of July, there was an activity in the Funtimes which was tailored to the day – a 10:20 pm hot dog eating contest on Lido deck! We made our way up there about 10 to get a good spot to watch the fun. Well, the crowd grew and grew until several hundred people were crammed up there with the DJ dishing up lots of group frenzying tunes! About 20 minutes past time they started the contest. They asked for volunteers and had three takers, including one woman. They had three minutes to cram down as many hot dogs (w/buns) as they could. Condiments were optional, water was at hand to help, and buckets were in place “just in case”! It was obvious that the real contest (Nathan’s) drew all the competitors – as this lot, though full of desire, were mere mortals! The winner managed a total of three (though the last one was still fully in his mouth at the final bell). The woman managed ONE! It was all in good fun anyway, and the bin of hot dogs quickly emptied as the huddled masses plunged in.

 

A fun end to a nice day!

 

Tom

[LizaMM]

Sounds like you had a nice birthday!

 

 

 

Thanks so much for the update on the GPD Party. It sounds good. Reminds me of what the PGP used to be like several years ago (before it got moved to the Main Theatre etc) only improved upon. I am looking at booking my next cruise for January and I will plan on going this time - I skipped the last few.

 

I am really enjoying all your updates. Continue to have a wonderful time! Hopefully your Luck will return :D

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Here is a photo of the Chocolate Treats we just received (second cruise elegant evening) today:

 

 

The first ones we grabbed looked like Rice Krispie Treats but ended up being Rice Krispies in white chocolate rather than marshmallow. I am not a big white chocolate fan, as it's a pseudo chocolate (no cocoa)! ;)

 

Tom

[golfadj]

Clarifications:

 

I had mentioned earlier that the new cards did not have a strip on the back on which to sign your name, nor was it apparently necessary. That assumption was based on our first experience using the card. Following that, it was obvious that you do indeed still need to sign your card – they provide a sharpie for that now since a pen won’t do the trick.

 

Regarding the laundry, when we first received it back on the same day we had given it to our steward, I thought that was out of the ordinary – at least judging by the turnaround time when we last used Carnival’s laundry service (likely a year+ ago). I then noticed in the Funtimes that they will have it back by the same day at 7pm if it’s left by 10:30am.

 

 

Tom

 

In the past we told our steward we had laundry for him the next day and he asked for it by 9 am and we always had it back by 5 30 and we have used laundry a good 25 times upto now. This is why i wondered about their claiming that platinum laundry was getting out of hand and interfering with other laundry. The amount of laundry they avoid by reducing it to 3x per 7 day cruise is going to be negligible.

[golfadj]

Tom they are sure taking great care of you. Happy Birthday.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Our journey off the ship yesterday was delayed slightly by a passing shower, but we made it over to our Cabana and had a nice few hours there. We enjoyed the padded double lounger by the water’s edge. Even though there was still some high clouds, the heat of the sun was apparent – especially given the lack of a steady breeze (we are lightweights when it comes to lying out on the beach). We retreated back to the nice loungers under the shade of the cabana’s porch. A somewhat better breeze was enjoyed there thanks to the direction of the wind. The inside of the cabana was comfortable, with a wall mounted AC unit set to 72 degrees. There was a ceiling fan inside, though I think it would make more sense to have it on the porch! We were in cabana #7 (out of 8), thus near the end. There were bathrooms and a bar basically right behind our cabana – with plenty loud music to enjoy (or not)!

 

We took advantage of the bar/food service and ordered a bucket of Coronas along with some Nachos. The Nachos part of the order was quickly altered when I saw what was passing for Nachos as the guy next door received his order! We instead opted for a plate of wings and fries. Wings were available mild, hot, or extra hot. We decided on hot, wanting ours to at least have some flavor. Let’s just say that the wings are an item we will PASS on when we return on the Legend in October! Very small (pinkie size) with a sweet/tangy, but not tasty, sauce. The fries were just OK - especially when compared to the fries at Guy’s Burger Joint on the ship! We then realized that the server did not bring any paper towels. That’s OK, our Carnival towels came in handy for that! During the time we were on our porch probably 4 different groups of people walking by on the beach decided to enjoy our beachfront loungers and hammock. I will say that the two security guys they had there did a great job of informing those people of the reserved nature of those amenities, and the people would be on their way. Cheryl and I did enjoy the hammock for about 25 minutes – very relaxing!

 

End total -- small plate of wings/fries and 6 coronas= $35.

 

Tom

 

A couple of photos:

 

 

 

 

Tom

[Texarribean Chick]

Thanks for the photos - we have been considering the cabana in MoBay or perhaps just the lounge chairs/canopy thingee on our Magic cruise coming up.

 

Happy Belated birthday - too bad we weren't on the same voyage - DH loves to get to know his fellow $25. BlackJack buds. And tries to play with the same folks every night that keep the table HOT.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Thanks for the photos - we have been considering the cabana in MoBay or perhaps just the lounge chairs/canopy thingee on our Magic cruise coming up.

 

...

 

Sure -- one is not showing up for some reason, so I'll try a couple of others:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tom

[LHP]

Great photos!!!!

 

The party does indeed sound a little more intimate (like the good ole days before it turned into a cattle call).

[happy cruzin]

A couple of photos:

 

 

 

Tom

 

 

Nice...very....VERY nice!! :D

[sail2day]

What is the price of the cabanas?

[iluvdoxies]

Happy bday Tom :)

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

What is the price of the cabanas?

 

They are $199 -- and that covers up to four people. Though with a discount code LHP gave me, it's 10% off (so about $179).

 

LHP -- what was the code again? (I need to cancel our October Cabana and rebook the same way we did for this one!!)

 

Happy bday Tom :)

 

THANKS

 

Tom

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Our photo from the past guest party:

 

 

Our afternoon meeting yesterday with the Captain, HD, Chief Purser, and the CD (Karl) was very nice... relaxed, comfortable, and informative!

 

Tom

[cruisercrazy69]

Our photo from the past guest party:

 

 

Our afternoon meeting yesterday with the Captain, HD, Chief Purser, and the CD (Karl) was very nice... relaxed, comfortable, and informative!

 

Tom

Did you have another event with the Captain?

[bp traveler]

Tom - always enjoy reading your informative posts! Hope you are having a great cruise!! Sorry to hear that the BJ players were such poor sports - that is really tacky!

We will be at our 25th sailing soon and I was wondering if you get 25% off or 25% obc of what you pay?? Just not really sure and I figured you would know;)

 

Thanks

Brenda

[cruisercrazy69]

Tom - always enjoy reading your informative posts! Hope you are having a great cruise!! Sorry to hear that the BJ players were such poor sports - that is really tacky!

We will be at our 25th sailing soon and I was wondering if you get 25% off or 25% obc of what you pay?? Just not really sure and I figured you would know;)

 

Thanks

Brenda

you get 25% of the fare no port taxes or fees as a NR OBC

[bp traveler]

thanks for the information - I knew you guys would know!

 

So if both my husband and I have our 25th on the same sailing -we get 25% of the fare we both paid for our cabin or per person?

 

Secondly, our son will have his 25th on the same sailing but he stays in another room, does his cabin also get the 25% of the fare?

 

Thanks