Live, Celebrity Summit, December 15-22

[rafinmd]

I am in my hotel in San Juan, preparing to board the Summit this afternoon. This is a special cruise as my nephew will be getting married this morning and virtually the entire family will be along for the wedding and the cruise. I have just come off the Monarch of the Seas and flew to San Juan yesterday so I'll start with my entry for the transition day. I don't do pictures on cruise critic but there will be some on a companion blog:

 

http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blog/rafinmd/5/tpod.html

 

When my wakeup call came at 5 there were lots of lights shining ahead of us. The promenade deck was roped off both at the bow and the stern so I went up to deck 12 for about 2 miles (9 laps). We spun around in the basin and backed into terminal 10 about 6:45, concluding our 591 nautical mile journey.

 

After snacking my way through breakfast in the WJ I went to the Gold area of the Sound of Music theater about 8:10. My Green 8 tag was called within 5 minutes of the 8:40 estimate, and I was on the bus to the airport about 9. Royal did let me down a bit here. I had pre-booked a transfer and am thankful I had my printout of the voucher for the ride. A couple of people ahead of me didn't have their vouchers and were looked up in the manifest and waved ahead to the bus. I was not on the list, and suspect I'd have had quite a problem if not able to prove I should have been. We left the port about 9:25 and were outside McCoy terminal A about 10:15.

 

My JetBlue flight to San Juan was uneventful and arrived a little before it's 4:50 schedule. As I was checking in at the Courtyard Isla Verde about 5:30 my brother approached me with the family's plan for dinner.

 

A few of the people planning on the wedding had to cancel at the last minute and there were 19 of us at the rehearsal dinner at the Metropol restaurant, a short walk from the hotel. I had not yet met anyone from the bride's family so it was a wonderful evening.

 

Today's parting shot will be a mixed bag. My current favorite RCI ship is the Enchantment of the Seas which has just finished her revitalization and is heading up the Chesapeake Bay towards Baltimore. On Saturday she will embark on her first cruise with all her new features. A hearty Bon Voyage to the people replacing me on the Monarch, the lucky people on the new Enchantment's first voyage, and to the 18 other people in our wedding party embarking on the Celebrity Summit.

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

Hi Roy, wishing you a wonderful cruise.

 

I look forward to following your blog.

 

We will begin our cruise in a few weeks.

 

Best to you.

 

Keith

[rafinmd]

Thank you Keith, and Bon Voyage to you and Anne Marie

 

The day started a bit ominously, overcast and turning to rain about 7AM. I went out to a local bakery for breakfast and soon Keith arrived there also. By the time of the wedding the rain had stopped and there were patches of open sky. The ceremony was held on a patio on the beach side of the hotel. The guests were seated under a pavilion but since the participants were not sheltered the clearing skies were a blessing. Tracey and Keith were pronounced husband and wife about 10:30.

 

After the ceremony I finished packing and checked out of the hotel about noon. I shared a cab to the pier with Tracey's Aunt and Uncle, checked in, and was on board about 12:30. After an Oceanview Cafe lunch, the rooms were available about 2. My stateroom attendant was a familiar face--Muriel was on my floor for my Solstice Transatlantic and while she was not assigned to my room she did let me into my cabin once or twice when I locked my key inside.

 

My luggage arrived about 3. I took a break from unpacking at 3:45 as Ashley took about 15 of us on a tour of the public areas of the ship. When I returned Tracey had placed a lovely decoration on my door.

 

I went up to deck 10 about 5:45 for sunset and found the family there, also learning that our 6:30 reservation for the Normandie Restaurant had been moved to 6. We enjoyed a lovely but very leisurely dinner there taking a break mid-meal for the muster drill. Dinner ended about 9 and we went up to deck 10 for the final stages of leaving the harbor.

 

There was a variety show at 10:30 featuring most of the ship's performers, a bit too long and late for my taste. I left about 11:20.

 

Today's parting shot is based on one of the minister's comments. He quoted a proverb "Wise is the man who listens to his wife, for he shall gain wisdom", and added that the reverse is also true. I would take it one step further and say that when both listen to each other, the whole wisdom gained is greater than the sum of it's parts. Keith and Tracey, may it always be true for you.

 

Roy

[Keith1010]

Roy, glad you are now on the ship and Bon Voyage.

 

I sent out the information e mail on our blog so when you are home you can check it out.

 

Enjoy this very special wedding cruise.

 

Keith

[jgnova]

Roy, looking forward to your "live from..." What a nice idea -- wedding on shore and then cruising together.

 

We'll be on Summit Back-to-Back January 5 and 12. Can you tell us what time muster drill was for your boarding yesterday (December 15)? (Oh, you had a 6 pm dinner reservation and had to take a break mid-meal for muster drill? So it was 7 pm? How did that work out? Doesn't sound relaxing.)

 

That late sailing time makes scheduling interesting, I guess. We'll probably be at dinner during sailaway -- we have Select dining at 7 or 7:15 (pre-reserved).

 

S

[KirkNC]

Thanks for your live updates!

[Superweezie]

We just got off the summit on Saturday. Our muster was at 7:45. I'd be interested in hearing how they handled muster for people who were dining at that time as well. We had reservations for Qsine at 8:30 and people were finishing dinner when we got there so we were wondering if they had to do muster a different day.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for taking us along on your cruise. Wishing you a great cruise.:)

[jkgourmet]

We just got off the summit on Saturday. Our muster was at 7:45. I'd be interested in hearing how they handled muster for people who were dining at that time as well. We had reservations for Qsine at 8:30 and people were finishing dinner when we got there so we were wondering if they had to do muster a different day.

 

We just finished the Summit on Saturday December 15. Our reservation at Qsine was set for 8pm, but we arrived just a few minutes late due to the required 7:45pm drill. Yes, the people who were dining had to interrupt their dinner to go to the drill (which would have royally pissed us off especially when paying extra for a speciality restaurant.)

 

Due to the staff trying to deal with reseating and extending apologies to those unhappy passengers, we did not see a waiter for 25 minutes after we placed our wine order. Not a good start at all.

 

HOWEVER, Kudo's to the maitre de who saw our frustration and quickly fixed the problem with super apologies and free wine for the one person in our party of four who did not get a alcohol package.

 

Frankly, we are of the opinion that Celebrity should not accept reservations in speciality restaurants that will conflict with the drill. Or do the drill a second time, like many other cruiselines. In any event, for those who do not want to interrupt your dinner with the hassles, make your reservation for 8:30pm or later.

[Arubalisa]

Frankly, we are of the opinion that Celebrity should not accept reservations in speciality restaurants that will conflict with the drill. Or do the drill a second time, like many other cruiselines.

Why is that Celebrity does not seem to have any common sense?

[rafinmd]

I woke at 5 to a beautiful morning. With only the Summit's minuscule jogging track I broke my walk into 2 segments, doing 35 laps (3.5 miles) before starting breakfast and finished the final 15 laps around 8. Our family arose on quite a scattered schedule and whenever I went up to the Oceanview Cafe a few of them were there. By 10 Keith's niece and nephew (the only children in the party) were active in the childrens' program.

 

There were 3 "Beyond the Podium" presentations today. Captain Theo spoke on "Secrets of Ship Navigation" at 10:30, Mike Malaghan on "The Caribbean before and after Columbus" at 11:15, and Staff Captain Filip on "Introduction to Ship Handling" at 2.

 

The aft deck was the perfect place for tea and scone at the 3:30 afternoon snack time.

 

The initial formal night was our first dinner in the Cosmopolitan Restaurant. Keith's father, sister, and I are at a 7-top and the rest of the party at an adjacent 12-top but we plan to rotate some between tables. At my table Savio and Anita provided excellent service. When I returned after dinner Muriel had left a fancy tote bag waiting on my bed.

 

The evening entertainment was the Captain's toast followed by iHollywood .

 

Today's parting shot. What a horrible turn of events in Connecticut. Our prayers go out to all affected. We are thankful that my great niece and nephew, Adam and Emily, are not home constantly exposed to this news.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

Frankly, we are of the opinion that Celebrity should not accept reservations in speciality restaurants that will conflict with the drill. Or do the drill a second time, like many other cruiselines. In any event, for those who do not want to interrupt your dinner with the hassles, make your reservation for 8:30pm or later.

 

I think I agree as well, although I have another thought. I assume the late muster is so people with late flight arrivals can be on board, and I think Celebrity knows pretty well when everybody boarded. Why not have the muster 5:30 ish with a makeup for people who board too late for the drill. Would certainly be good for those in the specialty restaurants, and I think even the MDR experience can run quite close to 7:45. I think last night our 7-top was finished by then but the 12-top was still having desert.

 

Now the question. I'm really not a Celebrity fan and haven't followed this forum much, but I think I remember talk here about the cold soups being discontinued. When I was on the Solstice TA, we had them in Blu, but I don't remember seeing them on the regular menu. Last night I had a wonderful strawberry soup in the Cosmopolitan Restaurant. Were they pulled briefly and then reinstated?

 

Roy

[lovestx]

Thanks for the updates, Roy. Glad you are having such a nice time together. And you are right that it is nice for your great niece and nephew to be spared the news coverage on the Newtown tragedy. It is understandably constant and so sad.

 

Can you tell me if you saw any tuxes on board last night (still trying to determine if my hubby and college son should bring theirs or go the sports coat route)?

 

Any have you seen Top Shelf?

[judatt]

 

Can you tell me if you saw any tuxes on board last night (still trying to determine if my hubby and college son should bring theirs or go the sports coat route)?

We just got off the Summit on 12/15. There were a few tuxes on formal nights. Ballpark estimate maybe 3- 5% of men had on a tux or dinner jacket. I wore a suit and saw lots of suits and several sport coats and slacks. David

[rafinmd]

Thanks for the updates, Roy. Glad you are having such a nice time together. And you are right that it is nice for your great niece and nephew to be spared the news coverage on the Newtown tragedy. It is understandably constant and so sad.

 

Can you tell me if you saw any tuxes on board last night (still trying to determine if my hubby and college son should bring theirs or go the sports coat route)?

 

Any have you seen Top Shelf?

 

lovestx, I did not pay much attention to the number of tuxes on board, but I would definitely say less than 10%, and 3-5 doesn’t sound unreasonable. I used a Travelsmith black blazer with matching slacks, roughly a black suit that would not be hard to mistake for a tux. I had planned to wear it with a formal shirt, cumberbund, and bow tie, but forgot the bow tie and could not find anything appropriate on the ship. I ended up wearing a blue dress shirt and regular tie.

 

Top Shelf does not ring a bell, although the name sounds like it might have been an acapella group. Our acapella group is the Aqua-Fellas and they have performed at the opening show and around the ship. I thought the acapella group we had on my Solstice TA was awesome, this group not so much.

 

With plans for a day in port, I planned on walking on land and did only a brief walk on deck, becoming aware I had missed sunrise today as we arrived in the harbor. This was my second time in Barbados, coming on the Wind Surf in 2009, with another trip planned next year on the Prinsendam (docked across from us today).

 

My tour was in the afternoon, so I walked in to the center of town passing the slave monument and continuing briefly to Heros Square.

 

My tour, Barbados Natural Wonders, left at 12:30, a bit awkward timing for lunch. I got to the pool grill just as they opened at 12, and was soon on the way to meet my tour. The main attraction was the Andromeda Botanical Garden, but we spent most of our time on the bus on a slow but very scenic crossing of the island. Barbados was formed by the action of shifting tectonic plates, and is quite mountainous and rugged, yet supports a variety of agriculture, especially sugar cane. Along with the cane fields, we stopped at a farm where black bellied sheep are raised, a lovely breed which is reported to be low in fat and high in protein. As a reminder of Barbados' darker slave days, we passed a chattel house, a dwelling of recently freed slaves who did not have the means to own homes, were subject to eviction at any time, and who built homes that could easily be disassembled and moved to a new location. We looked at the East coast of Barbados, directly west of Africa and unprotected from the waves, and saw plants like a lovely poinsettia tree. On the way back we passed a wind driven sugar mill, the sole survivor of over 500 such mills, as sugar production moved to large factories. We returned to the ship about 4:30, and 6 of our group sat on the back deck for sunset and sailaway.

 

Several of the group did not come to dinner after the busy day ashore, and the 12 of us who were present enjoyed dinner at the large single table. In the evening Comedian Robbie Printz had the audience in stitches and the Summit Orchestra performed Big Band music in the Rendez-Vous lounge.

 

As today's parting shot, this day had a bit of a bittersweet touch. After Crystal's 2 vessels, the Prinsendam is my favorite ship, she has just emerged from a drydock, and is doing the itinerary I have booked for next year. It was hard to see the ship in the harbor so close and yet know a ding of my seapass won't give me access. I could be very depressed except for a couple of things:

 

1. Keith, Tracey, my brother, niece, the extended family and the joyous occasion.

2. The Amazon adventure is now mostly a memory for the people now on the Prinsendam, while I still look forward to the journey with great anticipation. The glass isn't half full, the glass is overflowing.

 

Roy

[jkgourmet]

We just got off the Summit on 12/15. There were a few tuxes on formal nights. Ballpark estimate maybe 3- 5% of men had on a tux or dinner jacket. I wore a suit and saw lots of suits and several sport coats and slacks. David

 

Same here, and that estimate sounds about right. I'd add that MOST men wore sports coats instead of suits, and ties were missing on quite a few as well. The women's formal wear (including my own) was less dressy as well (few long gowns, not too many sparkly dresses).

 

Regarding cold soups, I don't remember seeing any in the MDR menu. I do remember them at the lunch buffet at Oceanview, but not in the soup section. With the notable exception of the outstanding onion soup in the MDR, we found the soups to be disappointing. In the case of the lobster bisque at the sea day MDR buffet, it was inedible.

[rafinmd]

For some unknown reason I did not sleep well overnight and was wide-awake when the alarm rang at 5. Walking is not working out well on this cruise. It's usually pretty hot when we are in port, and I found myself coveting the 38,000-ton Prinsendam's glorious quarter-mile wrap-around teak Promenade deck. I managed about 2 miles on the ship, and another hour or so in the afternoon in town. This is the first of 2 ports of call on this cruise that are new to me.

 

I booked "Coastal Cruise to the Pitons", and this was a morning excursion, leaving at 8:30. The catamaran was large, unfortunately with little sun protection. We paused to look at a couple of resorts on our way south, and made a half-hour stop next to a beach. I am not a fan of beaches, but did go in the water for about 5 minutes and it was very clear, just warm enough, and pretty much an ideal spot. Continuing South we encountered a large school of dolphins; they were jumping quite close to us. Grand and Petite Piton jut out near the South end of the 166 square mile island and are quite lovely. Our cruise back to the ship was about 1 1/2 hours and was quite pleasant except that the speakers produced pretty much non-stop ear splitting music. We returned to the pier about 12:30.

 

After lunch on the ship I took a walk into town. I did not find it very attractive, especially the section near the pier, and the walking distance must have been at least double the straight line distance. The buildings seemed to be a bit of an enigma. The Cathedral looked very run down, almost abandoned, but the clock on the steeple kept perfect time. The fire station was also a shambles, with the sign still on the building at the point where it is on the map. I saw some of their equipment on the street and it was modern and in great condition. I expect there was a newer station but cannot prove it. The square was also quite spacious.

 

My first and perhaps only Captain's Club party was in Revelations at 3:30. I'm wondering a bit about Cassie, the Cruise Director. I haven't seen her around the ship and thought she might not be feeling well. Someone I think was her made a presentation at the party, as did sales manager Anita and Captain Theo. Francesco from the singers and dancers performed a couple of numbers as did the Aqua-Fellas acapella group. They are still not really my cup of tea but I did enjoy them more in the smaller venue than in the theater.

 

There was an opportunity watch today's sailaway from the helipad. It seemed a nice change but got a very crowded and I think the larger upper decks are actually better. The bride and groom were at our small dinner table tonight as most of the group was present for dinner, I think only 1 or 2 vacancies at the 12-top.

 

After last night's light sleep I didn't last into the evening. Sirens was performed in the theater but I was in bed by 8:30 and slept until almost 6.

 

As a parting shot, this is my first cruise from San Juan. I see the advantage as we are at ports not accessible on a 7-day cruise out of Florida. I am now fortunate that my retirement opens opportunities for longer cruises and it makes less difference to me, but it is still nice.

 

Roy

[chill6x6]

Thank you so much for posting this "as it happens" review! I know doing a review is a lot of trouble but it sure helps folks like myself that have never cruised Celebrity or the Summit.

 

Hope you enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[Qwksilver]

Please, Keep the info coming.

 

I agree the southern Caribbean is amazing.

 

How is your room? How is the ship?

 

Thanks

Scott

[Keith1010]

Roy, thanks for your posts and look forward to the next installment.

 

Keith

[Texed]

Raf,

We might be on Summit in March, so thanks for posting. :)

[rafinmd]

Please, Keep the info coming.

 

I agree the southern Caribbean is amazing.

 

How is your room? How is the ship?

 

Thanks

Scott

 

I've been very delayed posting because the internet has been horrible today. I just finally after dinner got a useable connection. Keith, I know the Serenity was in St. Maarten a couple of days ago so your voyage must be very close.

 

Scott, you may have guessed I’m not particularly a Celebrity Fan. I do like this ship better than the Solstice, both the smaller size and the presence of 3 banks of stairs/elevators, but it isn’t enough to encourage to go back to Celebrity, but it sure does beat sitting at home. The room is very nice.

 

I slept very well Tuesday night, ignored the alarm when it went off at 5, but rose about 5:45. It looks like the uncrowded ports of the Southern Caribbean are behind us as the Carnival Freedom and Adventure of the Seas are docked beside us. This is the last of the ports on this cruise I will be visiting for the first time. I walked about 1 1/2 miles on deck 11 and was just finishing up as the sun came up over Antigua.

 

Tracey (the Bride) had suggested at dinner that the Nelson Dockyards might be a good place to visit. I had no real plans for the day and decided to give it a try. After getting a map at the information kiosk, I walked over to West Bus Station where I was directed to a number 17 bus. One of the things that was alarming was that the bus did not leave until every seat was full, but we did finally start the 20-minute ride. I was feeling much a stranger but was comforted by having 4 passengers from the Freedom along for the ride.

 

English Harbor was used as a refuge from hurricanes since at least the 17th century. It was the primary British naval base in the area for about 150 years before closing in 1889 due to the combined arrival of peace and steamships. It was abandoned for over half a century before reopening in 1961 and is now a National Park. I was slow warming up to the dockyard. Despite being a Park, it is mostly shops with just 1 or 2 museum sites. I didn't find the map we were given very useful. I was just about to leave when I noticed a reference on the map to Fort Berkeley and a trail leading to it from the dingy dock. Neither the fort nor the dingy dock were shown on the map but I did find the trail and walked out to Fort Berkeley. It was a very nice walk leading to stunning vistas of the harbor, a guard house, and a powder magazine. There was also a side trail which I followed briefly up to a high point overlooking the complex, but did not continue very far in the heat.

 

The bus back to town started out empty but filled up pretty quickly along the way. Once in town I explored a bit on foot, stopping at the Episcopal Cathedral, badly damaged by an 1843 earthquake and looking like a ruin, but apparently still used for daily services. Restoration seems to be a continuing process. I returned to the ship and had lunch around 2:30 and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing.

 

I lost track of time. When I heard a horn I went up to the Oceanview Cafe to see who was leaving and there were no ships around. Only then did I realize that we were moving. As we sailed away rain seemed to be imminent.

 

The headline entertainment was juggler Dan Bennett.

 

Today's parting shot comes from my trip to Nelson's Dockyard. I was feeling pretty disappointed in the place until I saw the little note about Fort Berkeley. Sometimes the best things are the ones least expected.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

I rose again about 5:45 and walked 1 1/2 miles on deck 11 as we made our way into the harbor, followed fairly closely by the Nieuw Amsterdam and somewhat later by the Freedom of the Seas, making a fairly crowded port. This is my second visit here, the first almost exactly 10 years ago on the Crystal Symphony. I believe the cruise terminal is new, and not much seemed familiar.

 

I had no specific plans for the day and took an early morning walk into Phillipsburg, returning to the ship while the day was still comfortably cool.

 

I met my brother at Noon and we took a cab over to Marigot on the French side of the island. The ride seems like much more than the 5 miles or so it is on a straight line; the road is quite indirect and traffic tends to be heavy and slow. The harbor at Marigot is quite beautiful and we found a very nice bistro for lunch. We returned to the ship about 3:15, and I wasted quite a bit of time fighting with the internet. The problems seemed to be with the ship as I had no problems getting to a login page on the Freedom of the Seas network, but the Celebrity system kept telling me the internet was down. I briefly got one email sent out about 5:30, but no really useful connection until after dinner.

 

For our second formal night we had several different arrangements. My brother and his significant other were booked in the Normandie Restaurant, and my great niece (aged 7) decided to stay with the kids club for a breakfast at dinner. That left my great nephew (9), his parents, and me for a wonderful dinner. On this cruise, at least, we have enjoyed cold soup on both formal nights, and we also had the baked Alaska tonight. I outsmarted myself as I assumed Stars in their Eyes by the Celebrity Singers and Dancers would be at 7 and 9 as usual, but it started at 8:30 and I missed the first half.

 

As today's parting shot, this island is a pretty unique place. It is the world's smallest island to be shared by 2 countries. The way the 2 halves of the island work together should be a beacon to the world.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

When I woke about 6 and went out on deck it was drizzling with evidence of recent heavy rain. Things were a bit better later on and I finished my 1 1/2 mile walk on the final stages of our approach to Charlotte Amelie harbor. Perhaps as one of the benefits of sailing out of San Juan, I was surprised to see that we were the only ship in what I expected to be a very crowded port. Perhaps because most ships sail out of Florida on Saturday or Sunday and are at sea Friday.

 

This is my 4th visit to St. Thomas, after Crystal Symphony (2002), Grande Mariner (2008) and Enchantment of the Seas (2011), so I was familiar with the port and didn't have any special plans. Others in our group went snorkeling or swimming with dolphins.

 

I had considered taking the aerial tram but it didn't seem right with the on and off rain. I did walk to McDonalds (no wifi there) and spent about an hour in the old section of Charlotte Amelie.

 

A number of our party decided to get dinner in the Oceanview Cafe and pack rather than coming to dinner, so the 11 of us who were present all gathered at our large table for our final meal together. Afterwards I met with Adrienne in the Cafe Al Bacio to show her my Panama Canal slides and then finished packing.

 

I'm not really a fan of the Caribbean but a week with family, old and new, and a special occasion are now a pleasant memory.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

I had set a wakeup call for 5am but was up just a bit earlier to find us already tied fast to the dock in San Juan. It was drizzling a bit as I completed my final stages of packing and walked a final mile and a half on deck 11. I had booked a walking tour of Old San Juan which concluded with a transfer to the airport while others in my group were either leaving earlier in the day or staying in San Juan.

 

We assembled at 8 in the Cosmopolitan Dining Room for the 8:30 tour departure. At 8 we were escorted off the ship, claimed our luggage, and passed through Customs and Immigration. We placed our luggage on a truck and left the port on a minibus about 8:45. The 7 of us from the Summit were joined by 3 others from the Brilliance of the Seas and we took about a 20-minute drive across the city. We disembarked at the grounds of El Moro, the fortress dating from 1539 guarding the narrow entrance to the harbor, along with the small Fort San Juan del la Cruz on the opposite side of the narrow channel. The 2 forts are close enough together to put entering ships into a deadly crossfire. The fort has several levels starting at the water level with a cannon placement in a tower just above, barracks on the next level, and the fortified walls on the top level. Our (New York native) guide spent an hour in the fort telling us all about it's operation and history as a Spanish Fort, a US fort, abandonment, and finally becoming a National Historic Site and UNESCO Heritage Site. Leaving El Moro we walked through the narrow streets of Old San Juan stopping at many large neoclassical buildings that have been restored to new uses. We stopped at a totem commemorating the 500th anniversary of Columbus' 1492 voyage and La Rogativa, and entered the San Juan Cathedral. Our walk ended by the Old Port of San Juan and we arrived at the airport about noon.

 

Things were a bit chaotic there. The luggage was in rows at the far end of the airport, once we claimed it there was no real support to get to the USDA inspection, and signage at the airport was very poor with no directions to the various ticket counters.

 

My flight was through Atlanta, and Delta's pricing for First Class had been quite reasonable. We boarded the first flight about 4, but both legs had delays to mechanical issues, starting with a loose row of seats. My 2 hour layover in Atlanta shrunk to about 30 minutes to cross 5 concourses and board my Baltimore flight. I landed in Baltimore about midnight and was dropped at my door about 1AM.

 

My final parting shot deals with the strange way things sometimes seem to come together. This is my first cruise with my brother, who spent most of his working life as an Executive for Eastern Airlines. On our tour today we paused outside the home of San Juan's first female mayor. One of the stories our guide told was how she made arrangements with Eastern every year to fly in a planeload of snow at Christmas every year so the children could get a feel for what real snow was like. I could almost imagine Roger helping with that effort. What are the odds that this would be the year I heard that story.

 

Roy