just back from the Dawn(review)5/29

[tommy2811]

First off my grammar stinks(read at your own risk)

 

sorry.

Tim,i posted this early for you,i knew you were waiting.

 

Well im just back and have loads to say.

everything im going to say is my opinion and my opinion only...

 

to be fair,before we left our family cat"Freddie" took Ill...:( but we put our best face forward,and away we went...

 

getting to the pier was a nightmare until a nice NYPD told us about a shortcut and away we went....

 

Iv only been on one cruise before this one(Carnival Victory)

 

first off the food.

 

OMG the best iv ever eaten.and iv cooked and been around chefs for 15 years,so i no food!

 

1,Le Bistro-maybe one of the best dining experiences iv ever had,escargot,Lobster and Filet,onion soup and salad....this restaurant should not be missed...chocolate fondue was the best dessert iv ever eaten.

 

2, La Trattoria-great food also,as we dined we watched a display put on by at least 30-40 sharks that were swimming by the boat...nice Pasta and i had filet mignon+all the appetizers on the menu(4)skipped the salad...

 

3,Cagney steak house-i was a tad disappointed although my rib-eye was juicy as could be....not disappointed as in the food was no good,just did not live up to La Trattoria and Le Bistro...also we were charged the full 30.00 and i had to deal with the front desk and Sonny....no problem,the bill was adjusted.(it was 50% off night)

 

4-Aqua,Impressions and venetian all feature the same menu and were always outstanding....

 

Garden Cafe always wonderful...

 

i can`t say enough what a wonderful treat it was to dine,munch and flat out stuff my face on this ship....freestyle dining was great,outstanding.food was everywhere.truly awesome...

 

***** bravo

 

ports of call,

 

Port Canaveral,with the rain and a crowded MGM it was a flop:(i also had to phone the veterinary that day so no one was in a good mood..(we got stuck on the tower of terror for 20 min....up top!!!:p

 

Miami,we went to south beach and had some fun hanging on the beach,they were also filming for a music video so that was fun watching....it started to rain and we called it a day.

 

Great Stirrup Cay,Sun and fun,loved it here and we are now starting to feel like we were on vacation....we were out on the first tender and had some ok food,some great scuba diving,and some monkey head pina coladas....i loved this Island.as i new i would.

 

Nassau,Yuck,Yuck and Yuck.ill say no more:p

 

the ship was beautiful and very clean....although i just never took to the layout.we just flat out kept getting confused..

 

where the Victory was Vegas style glitz,the Dawn was elegant in everyway...a beautiful ship.

 

let me throw a couple negatives in here.the Spa people were a tad rude...as soon as they found out my wife had a pre-paid 150.00 GC, they turned A BIT cold/rude.no big deal as the 30.00 tip my wife had put aside,stayed in her pocket.i also found the front desk people a bit negative(or they had no personalities)...on our way off to Miami the towel guy grabbed the pool towel out of my wife's hand while telling her,this is for the pool,this is for the beach,i got in his face and asked what his problem was...he responded with a look,and we moved on to the beach...no big deal.

 

i found all the Bar staff and servers amazing,drinks were also amazing:D although as some people had mentioned in the past,they pushed and pushed and pushed the drinks....this did not bother me at all...but i could see were some people might get annoyed.

 

((Tip))get the souvenir glass(5.99)and use that for refills at 4.99,great bargain...

Now as far as the ship.

 

there was one thing missing,a sing along Piano bar!i found the entertainment in the bars all the same,Piano,Piano and more Piano...it just got a bit boring for me...when we cruised Carnival they had a sing along Piano Bar that was a blast...i missed that.(does any of the Norwegian ships have anything like this)???

 

the kids club was allot of fun for my 11 year old....she cried when we said good night and goodbye ...

Colin was a blast,....Thursday night in Nassau was party night at the pool,great drinks,great fun....the entertainment was also top notch there was a Carnival ship next to us doing nothing.....it was kinda funny....

 

Bingo however sucked.to much money.

 

before i end this highlight/review of my cruise, id like to say- we had a good time considering my cat, and the weather.......

next up,next year is Bermuda,i hope NCL is going there as id like to cruise her again ,with good weather in a better frame of mind...

(im now off to the vet,wish me luck)

[NJcruiser21]

Tommy - thanks for the quick review. :D

 

I agree about Bingo and the ship layout. bingo was like 50 dollars I think when we went to just check it out and see what it was about (we got up and left). The ship was a little confusing I thought as well - especially the Venetian. We got confused many times trying to get there. :confused:

 

Sorry to hear about the weather. :o

 

that shark feast sounds so cool. I also LOVED le bistro as well but Cagney's was right up there IMO. I had the filet mignon and it literally melted in my mouth.

 

I posted a review and pictures if you want to check that out. Good luck at the vet. Let me know how it goes.

 

Welcome back to reality - it sucks!

 

The Crown and majesty goes to Bermuda (majesty out of Boston and Crown out of Philly and NY). Adams parents are doing the Crown in July...I"ll be sure to find out how it is.

 

Take care.

[bahama2]

:) Tommy, glad you had a good time. What is a monkey head pina colada - is it different than a regular pina colada? How is Freddy? I hope he's alright. Let us know.

[greenie]

Tommy, I hope Freddy is OK! I know how worried you and your family must have been while you were away...:(

 

I agree with the lay-out being seriously confusing. That was the one real negative in my book. (Then again, plenty of people seem to have had no problem with it, so go figure!)

 

Thank you for your review.

[tommy2811]

The Monkey head drink is a carved coconut with an insert for a drink....pretty cool...id post a pick,iv got 3 of them:D but unfortunitly my cat has kidney disease and will need to be put down in 48 Hrs if he dosent start to eat...:mad:he went from 10.1 pounds to 5.1 in 8 days.

[shoreguy]

The Monkey head drink is a carved coconut with an insert for a drink....pretty cool...id post a pick,iv got 3 of them:D but unfortunitly my cat has kidney disease and will need to be put down in 48 Hrs if he dosent start to eat...:mad:he went from 10.1 pounds to 5.1 in 8 days.

 

So Sorry - thank you for taking the time to post your review with everything going on. I enjoyed it and thought it was right on target.

[Casshew]

Hi Tommy... I am a cat lover too - how is Freddy doing?

 

Thanks for your review, you sound like a fun, easy going family and you were right on with your description of Nassau :D

[Suesan Jean]

I enjoyed your review!!! I am so sorry that Freddie is not well, this must be a very terrible time for you and your family. I do hope that Freddie eats soon, can't you just bring him/her home? Poor little thing......:(

 

Suesan

[vespagirl]

Tommy

I am wondering what the time-saving port advice was from the NYC cop,please share.

[judyf]

there was one thing missing,a sing along Piano bar!i found the entertainment in the bars all the same,Piano,Piano and more Piano...it just got a bit boring for me...when we cruised Carnival they had a sing along Piano Bar that was a blast...i missed that.(does any of the Norwegian ships have anything like this)???

 

 

First, thanks for posting a review so quick and under the condition with your cat. I'm a proud owner of 9 yeah, that's not a typo I had nine. I had 3 and took in a stray cat that her mother was hit by a car and she had 5 kittens before I could get her fixed and that's how I ended up with nine. Last year we lost one of my older cats that was like my baby since the kids moved out. I also had to have one put to sleep for medical reasons. It's so hard. I also have one that lived 3 years after the vet said he wouldn't make it. My prayers are with you!

 

Now on to the cruise, I so agree the entertainment was lacking compared to my CCL cruises. I missed the sign along and I also really, really missed the midnight adult stand up comedy shows a lot. After 12:00 there wasn't much to do. But I loved the freestyle, will have to decide which I liked more for my next cruise entertainment or freestyle. Actually it will depend on ship, itinerary and price!

[tommy2811]

Tommy

I am wondering what the time-saving port advice was from the NYC cop,please share.

 

ves i forget the exact street....keep in mind i went during fleet week with 3 ships in port:eek:

 

basically they had(nypd)blocked off that little u-turn coming from the Lincoln tunnel and a cop told me to turn here and go down to 79th and come in through that way...got right threw...

 

thanks for the wishes for Freedie Mercury Scarano....however it`s not going well as he Phomed a thick Mucus as i tried to give hime his pill...anyway-

 

my 11 year old is due home so i need to pull myself together,unfortunitly reading this thread makes me tear:(

 

ill update you in a few days.

 

Tommy

[NJcruiser21]

Tommy - So sorry about Freddie, your cat. I hope things turn out for the best. :o

 

Thanks again for the review.

[2Cruise4Ever]

Tommy ~ I will keep you and Freddie in my prayers. Please visit the roll call thread for the Wotta Hoot Cruise. Suesan Jean, Debjo, and I have all lost a "furry" family member recently. We each gave each other much needed support. You'll likely find the comments posted very comforting. I know I did. It really is the worst. But, the good news is.... he's still with you right now. And, he loves you. And, when he does go to the sweet by-n-by, he'll be with Bobby (Suesan Jean's dearly departed family member), my Darcy (our dog of 12 years), and Debjo's Knight (her horse that just recently passed unexpectedly) all together in a field, chasing each other and butterflies!!!! Please keep us posted on his condition.

 

 

All the best,

Liza

[Welove2cruise2]

Tommy and family...

 

sorry to hear about Freddy -- we lost a beloved cat Mittens to kidney disease 8 years ago. I won't go into details, but it was not pleasant. We now have a brother and sister -- Samantha and Oliver -- that we just love to death. I feel your pain... :(

[greenie]

Tommy, I'm so sorry about Freddy! I too understand and know the kind of sadness that goes along with losing a dear "member of the family." You and Freddy and your family are in my thoughts ... take care.

 

:(

[tommy2811]

thanks everyone-

 

the good news is,Freddie is eating a little,my wife gave him some treats this AM,and i picked up a bunch of different flavors of science diet can food,and he chewed down some ocean fish.:D

 

although were not out of the woods yet,it looked good watching him eat.

 

my problem is this-

 

before we left,the doctor gave us some feline amoxicillin..us parents no from our children that drugs like this and augmentin can be very strong on the stomach...well common sense told me that if he lost 5lbs in 8 days and took this drug 2 times a day(on an empty stomach)that can`t be good....maybe when my wife and i started to giving him this drug before we left,it turned his stomach..that caused him to loose his appetite...on top of that,my mom not knowing kept sticking this drug in his stomach just compounding the problem...

 

imagine giving your child this for 8 days while she wasent eating...:( her tummy would be like WW3

 

well i mentioned this to the doctor as it seemed like common sense to me, he just shrugged it off!!!!and gave me more:eek:

 

i threw it away....

 

time will tell,

 

tommy

 

this is freddie.

 

[mortysmama]

Tommy...I wish you the best for Freddie. While not going into great details....our Morty(actually my DD's dog) has been very ill then he started doing better...until he had a relapse.($4,000.00 in vet bills) (Morty is a 5 yr old basset hound) He lost a great deal of weight (15 lbs in 3 weeks)...he couldn't/wouldn't eat. He was on massive medication...12 pills a day which really hurt his tummy so he would throw up and again, NOT EAT! My DD worked out a great solution which seems to be working very well. She is feeding him stage 3 baby food on light toast sprinkled with crushed up meds.(for now he can't have any dog food) She is hand feeding him...(she even plays airplane and choo-choo train) He has finally started to gain some weight and he isn't throwing up which is important both for keeping the meds down and for getting his nutrition.

 

I told you this story just in case...somehow it could help you. I don't know if...or how...but I thought I would just pass it on in the hopes that maybe it could help. You all probably think I'm nuts...but when you have a beloved "member of the family" you do just about anything to help them.

 

I do hope Freddie is doing better......our prayers are with you all.

[judyf]

Freddie is so cute. He looks a lot like my Sam that we lost in Sept. I still miss him dearly. My prayers are with Freddie!!!

[Lunchlady]

The Monkey head drink is a carved coconut with an insert for a drink....pretty cool...id post a pick,iv got 3 of them:D but unfortunitly my cat has kidney disease and will need to be put down in 48 Hrs if he dosent start to eat...:mad:he went from 10.1 pounds to 5.1 in 8 days.

l

 

 

I have to agree on most of what you said. The reception desk staff were not real pleasant ,we had a thing with the keys cuz we had 2 cabins, kids lost 2 keys so it seemed like it was a big deal to fix. Also the staff at the spa real snobs. We went in to get fills (nail thing) and they really didn't want to bothered with such a small charged item. So we left. Glad you wife kept her money in her pocket. We wanted to also do Bermuda next year but not sure if NCL is crusing there or not. The Dawn is only doing 10 day cruises next year- to long not enough time off and don't want to leave dog that long. Hope your cat makes, people think we're crazy but they are like family members. Guess you need to have one to understand.

[debjo]

For Tommy...

Enjoyed your review, and can understand what you are going through with your "Freddy" kitty. One of our cats, "Tony" nearly died after we brought him home from having his rabies shot in 2002. We were scheduled to leave on a cruise for our 25th anniversary three days later, so left Tony with the vet during our trip. We visited him each day at the vet's before we left and he seemed worse each day...we didn't know what to do...cancel the trip or go. Reluctantly we went...managed to have a decent trip and came home to our kitty that was "on the mend". Now, after our April cruise, "Tony" (age 16) had to go to the vet because he just seemed "off" and wouldn't eat. Xrays, exam, and bloodwork revealed nothing, so he was put on Amoxicillin and Pepcid because he was vomiting everytime he woke up and then had bloody diarrhea. After his second visit to the vet, she added Metronidazole, another antibiotic geared toward intestinal problems, to the pills we already were trying to get into his system. Our "trick" is to embed the pill in a ball of butter, open his mouth, and then put it on the back of his tongue (without getting bit), stroke his throat to encourage him to swallow it. It works about 80% of the time. Tony really didn't want to "bland" food from the vet (some liquid similar to pedialyte for children and some soft-moist morsels for stomach problems. Well...after one week Tony took interest in his regular Iams food, so we just started feeding him anything he wanted (lunch meat, tuna fish). After two weeks, he was strong enough to really object to taking any more pills. And today...three weeks later...he seems to be back to his "normal" self, although he's lost about 1/3 of his body weight! The vet still doesn't know what was wrong with him!

 

I share this as an encouragement to you and your "Freddy"...keep doing all that you need to do...perhaps he's having a similar problem to our "Tony". The love and care you have for "Freddy" can make a difference. I don't know if all the pills made a difference with our "Tony" or not. I do know that when he didn't want to take them anymore, I wasn't going to force him to...sometimes the animals know better than we do! I'll definitely keep you both in my prayers...prayers for "Freddy" to eat something and prayers for strength & comfort for you. I do know what you are going through! As Suesanjean said before, we have a bunch of "wotta hooters" that have been consoling one another through some trying times with our furry families. I hope that you'll soon be able to "report" that "Freddy" is back to his feline self and all will be "well" in your world again! Thanks for posting "Freddy's" picture...he is such a cute bundle of fur!

 

Debjo

[cosmo1027]

Thanks for the review Tommy! I wish we had found the nice NYPD officer that told you about the shortcut. We turned onto 12th Ave from 42nd St around 10:30 am and from that point it took us 2 hours to pull into the terminal. It was awful. In fact we spent most of the time sitting northbound then got to 55th and they wouldn't let us turn left -- told us to get over to the right lane to go under the parkway. Couldn't get in and finally ended up going up about as far as 79th and came back southbound which was heavy but moving. What an absolute nightmare! Fleet week and three ships in port!!!! I think NCL should wait another week to move the Crown from Philly to NYC. And maybe Carnival can adjust the Legend schedule since those are 8 - day cruises. It's unbelievable that the cruise lines would plan for 3 ships to be there for fleet week. But once on board the ship we had a great time.

 

I am sorry about Freddie. He is adorable. I hope for the best for him.

[judyf]

We were getting off when you were getting on and it was a nightmare. It took a long time.

[tommy2811]

++++++++++++++update+++++++++++++

 

 

Freddy passed on today Sunday July 10th.....

 

just wanted to let you know the outcome....he faught good and hard until he could barley walk..my wife and I fed him with a tube for the last couple weeks...last night he laid so peacefully eyes closed i prayed to god for him to take him...i woke up today and knew it was time...he was so weak.

 

anyway-

 

on the ride to the Vet Queens bohemian rhapsody came on the radio...for those who did not know my cats are named,Freddy and Mercury,after the great late frontman from Queen...no words were spoken in the car as the song played quietly in the background...when the song ended,the radio was turned off....it was the last song he ever heard.

 

it just felt so right.

 

well thats that.

 

thanks-

 

tommy

[snorklinbarb]

Tommy,

 

So sorry to hear about Freddy. We have our own little 3 yr old furry feline and love him to pieces. Having no children, he's just so much a part of our family.

 

I'm sure it was that with you and Freddy. It sounds like your wife and you did everything you could to make his last days comfortable. Mercury will miss him, too.

 

You will never forget him, nor he you. I'm sure you had many wonderful times together.

[judyf]

Sorry to hear about Freddie. It's so hard when a beloved pet leaves us.