1st time Carnival cruiser (DREAM) complete review & pictorial (from a NCL cruiser)

[mitsugirly]

So at this point, we decided it was time to try out the canoes. Now you see this thing floating in the water? Well it was there when we arrived and this picture was actually taken as we were walking down the dock and headed toward the "yard" area.

 

 

Standing in the water and looking up toward the bar area.

 

 

 

Just in case canoeing wore you out and you needed to sit down and relax the minute that you got out of them...they had a couple of stools waiting on you.

 

 

Looks like they had every kind of canoe possible. One person, two person, three person.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**disclaimer** In my defense, we were having such a good time that I did not check my settings on the camera when we took off in the canoe. I still had it on the underwater setting, which gives off a RED look when it's above water. So, Sakari is really not a red girl...just so you know.

 

 

She decided to take over the oars. I let her and daddy do all of the work. Seriously...she did and she did a fine job of it too. I actually took a video and she rowed us all the way back to shore. Just look at the determination on her face.

 

[mitsugirly]

Some of the sights while canoeing. There she is, Little French Key, from the other island.

 

 

 

 

 

WAIT, STOP. HOLD UP....JUST STOP THE CANOE!!! What is that I see under the water? Back up, turn around!!! Husband doing a complete omg face and turning the canoe around quickly.

 

 

Could that be? Is it what I think it is? Is this a sea cucumber? I have never seen one in person before. I have seen pictures of people finding them while snorkeling and holding them. Heck, I didn't even know what it was until this board and people that had posted pictures of them. Had I run across one before, I would have NEVER touched it for fear of what it might do. But, since I had seen pictures of people holding them, I figured they must be harmless.

 

I needed to make sure that's what this was in the water. I mean the water was crystal clear and you could see to the bottom, but just to make sure...(I'm now sticking my camera down in the water)

 

Now pulling it back up out of the water and viewing my picture:

 

 

YEP!! IT REALLY IS A SEA CUCUMBER!!! WOO HOO. Another "first" for me (or what I thought was the first time spotting one until I got back to the room, downloaded my pictures onto the computer and when reviewing them, I found that this is actually what the picture of the weird looking thing around the mangroves was when I first started snorkeling. Remember the scary looking thing that I snapped a picture of and hurried off before it ate me?)

 

So now I took note of exactly where it was located. How many feet and inches from the other island, directly in line with the crab babysitting palapa, 90 degree angle from the sea grass, 180 degrees north of the paradise beach...yep, I think I got it. Once we returned from the canoe trip, I was headed back out with my snorkel gear on a cucumber hunt. I WAS going to touch one of these things.

 

P A R A D I S E !

 

 

[mitsugirly]

As we circled around the lagoon, we passed the second story jumping deck. Now the bad part about carrying around a water camera is that when you dunk it in water and then pull it out of water, you get water spots if you don't wipe it off. Who has time to wipe it off? Especially if you are, well, basically still in the water, but out of the water? I usually pull it out and then give it a shake and that usually clears it. My memory was slipping because my mind was still fixated on the sea cucumber that I was about to go hunting for. Oops. This is the only real picture I think I got of under the two story deck. So, I'm sharing it, like it or not, blurry and all.

 

 

Here's some of the conch shells over by the sea grass in the shallow area I was talking about. Sorry, just a random picture.

 

 

So we made it back to the shore. Without a word, I ran for my snorkel gear as if I was Rocky training for the fight. Not a word was spoken to the hubby. He knew that look in my eyes. He knew I was on a mission and nothing was stopping me. I was cucumber hunting.

 

Snorkeling along the way.

 

A Juvenile Beaugregory, yeah yeah

 

 

 

A Bluestriped Grunt, yeah yea...get to the cucumber...

 

 

 

I made it. There it is in all it's "glory?" Well, they are kinda ugly but still.

 

 

So I had to touch it. I just had to. Really easy. Very gentle, I picked it up and waited for something to happen. Nothing did. Ok. So I think I'm good. It's time for a few pictures.

 

[mitsugirly]

The underside of him was pretty neat and it had shells attached to it.

 

 

 

Is this it's face? Remember, this is my first encounter. I don't know anything about sea cucumbers. I'm a "newbie". I keep meaning to look them up and gain a little knowledge about them.

 

 

So I gently put him back where I found him and quickly swam back to the other side to brag to the hubby about my find. Thank goodness I took good notes on the directions to get there. I had to show him the pictures on the camera. He gave the "yeah, I'm real enthused about it" look to me and continued sipping on his drink.

 

Out I went again to snorkel. Along the way I find this...Yes, it was a real conch.

 

 

Of course tons of more trunkfish everywhere

 

 

 

Maybe a Damsel Fish of some type.

 

 

A Foureye Butterflyfish

 

[mitsugirly]

Isn't he just a cutie patootie?

 

 

 

 

So now I had a fulfilling day and when I got back to the shore, the hubby was saying that he was hungry. Well, our admission did include a lunch. They were preparing it and passing it out at this time, so we thought "why not."

 

He had went over and got a plate before I could even get my snorkel gear back and the "hut" and grab Sakari. When I went over to them to get a plate (which they were lined up down a table) the lady there ask where I was sitting, my reply "I'm not sitting anywhere yet, I'm still standing here." She said "We'll bring it to you." Um ok. So I pointed...um...let's see..."how about over there?" as I was pointing to a table under the roof of the bar and right behind the "live" band (which was a singer, a guy playing a guitar maybe? and a sound system that was really loud as I was trying to eat.

 

A guy brought over the plate and I was trying to get situated with getting a place at the table (which was one of those high tables), I was trying to get Sakari up on the chair and situated while she complained that she was not hungry and just wanted to play with the crabs, and trying to move a chair out which was really close to the speakers...I hear the guy serving the plates ask for a ticket. I ignored him thinking...um the tickets were for the 2 drinks that come with admission. You are NOT getting one of my tickets I'm suppose to use for the drinks...PAH-LEEZE! He didn't bother to ask again when he seen I was too busy fumbling with trying to get everything situated. I really didn't understand this after thinking about it. I mean we had wristbands on that are colored. The color tells the staff there what package you paid for. Our color would indicate that we paid for the meal with the package. WHAT TICKETS???? I'm still confused about this but oh well.

 

So here was the meal:

 

 

Now I can't tell you really what all was on this plate. I'll have to look in my email from them to see if they mention what all it is. BRB...you're not going anywhere are you???

 

Ok, I'm back. Are you all still with me? Here's what the email said is included:

 

includes Brochettes of Fillet Mignon, Lobster, Shrimp, marinated chicken

breast, fresh home made Yucca chips, fresh home made salsa, rice

and beans. They did bring out the lobster at a latter time and came around putting it on everyone's plate.

 

Now I'm a lobster lover and a shrimp lover. I also love chicken. I'm not a big red meat eater.

 

I have to say, and this is MY opinion...I hated the food. Completely hated it. The lobster was probably the worse I had ever ate and actually the smallest and worse I had ever seen. It was totally weird...the texture and all. The chicken....now I love chicken in the Caribbean, every place I have EVER been in the Caribbean that had chicken, it was the best...but this chicken, um, I just don't know. It had a weird texture to me as well. I hate anything with fat on it and I will completley choke if I see fat. Well, this didn't have fat on it, but it had that texture in your mouth type of fat feel. The salsa was ok, I took a few bites of the yucca chips (which I have had before and knew what they tasted like. They are kinda bland to me) and the rice and beans were "ok". But I had just came from cave tubing the day before and their rice and beans are amazing. This just wasn't cutting it for me at all.

 

Now like I said, this is MY opinion. Others had stated that they liked the meal and how good it was. So, food is one of those subjects that it's a personal preference. The hubby didn't seem to mind his food. He ate every bit of it other than the yucca chips (and he don't eat lobster so he declined it when they came around serving it).

 

All I can say is that I'm glad I wasn't "too" hungry at the time and what I did eat tied me over until we returned to the ship. Sakari didn't care for it either.

 

So, if and when I return to this place, I will NOT buy the package that includes the meal. It is just not worth it. They did tell me that if you did not get the package with the meal, and if you were to "buy" the plate of food, it would cost you $22 a plate. YIKES. IMO, I wouldn't pay $10 for this plate. But that's just me. So, to each his own.

 

A few more pictures of looking out from the deck

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Some more of the deck area facing the other direction. You can see how close the other island is in front of (or beside) LFK.

 

 

 

 

Sakari having a good old time

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

 

This is the life...

 

 

 

I was snorkeling around this area and looked up at the hubby now pearched back up on the palapa table. I was under the water looking up at him and snapped this picture.

 

 

Looking toward the beach area.

 

 

[mitsugirly]

You can never have enough mermaid dolphin pictures right?

 

 

The deck leading over from the main island to the small island:

 

 

And now it's time for a little more snorkeling one last time. Another Bluestriped grunt

 

 

 

It looks like a shark got ahold of these conchs...there was nothing in them.

 

 

A Rainbow Wrasse

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Popping head up every so often to see where the family was and what they were doing while snapping a few pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ok, enough of that, back to snorkeling

 

[mitsugirly]

She was a pretty big fish. I'm not sure what it is. I had never seen one before I don't think.

 

 

Live conch

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

Tons of neon fish in groups

 

 

 

 

A Bluestriped Lizardfish. It had been awhile since I had seen one of these snorkeling.

 

 

 

A Blackbar Soldierfish. I don't see these very often either. I think I have only seen one once. They are really red and have huge eyes compared to their bodies.

 

 

 

I can't remember what this is called. I know they kinda look scary to me and he was watching me. His fins looked kind of spiney and sharp to me. Anyone know what it is?

 

 

 

Looky what I just ran across again? A different one. hehe

 

[mitsugirly]

I was told by another guy that he found a huge rock that was loaded with "those little black and red spikey things", which I knew he meant sea urchins. He pointed in the direction and I headed that way. I quickly found the rock and it was coverd with them along with some sea worms (feather dusters).

 

 

 

But guess what else was hiding there? I know this guy didn't see it, otherwise he would have said something. If he knew what it was, he would have been thrilled, if he didn't, I'm sure he would have called it some striped spikey looking fish.

 

However, I have only seen one of these once and that was at the NCL's private island, Great Stirrup Cay and it was the highlight of my day. It was the first time I had ever seen one in person (other than at the first store) and it was simply amazing. This would be the second time and this dude was a pretty nice sized one....a Lion Fish.

 

 

They like to swim kind of sideways and blend in with something they are beside that looks similar to it. The sea urchins seem to look the same as it, but my keen eye spotted him!!

 

 

Some coral in the area.

 

 

 

 

 

[mitsugirly]

At this point, I figured I had done enough snorkeling for the day and turned around to head back. I had to get one last shot of the Lion Fish on the way back. I believe it's usually rare to see these. I think I read that they are normally not in the Caribbean, but have been migrating that way lately. People do not like them and boy can they put a hurting on you. I was thinking about a thread for Great Stirrup Cay and residents in the Caribbean where trying to get rid of them whenever they found one.

 

 

 

 

Just so that you are aware...there is a baby baraccuda that hangs out in the area. He is small, but keep in mine he will grow older and bigger. He stays in the VERY shallow water right where you step down into the water by the palapas. He watches everything you do and doesn't go far. The owndes are aware of him.

 

 

Now this little guy (the same guy also told me about him and was laughing the entire time) was hurrying across the bottom of the ocean. He was hilarious going sideways and all as fast as he could. I got a video of him and Sakari just laughed the entire time. It's what you call a true hitch-hiker. Of course Sakari being curious about everything related to any creature, wanted to know what happened to the conch that lived there. Then wanted to know what happens when he grows up and needs a bigger house...and so on and so on. You know how curious their little minds are and the questions never stop. Well, they stop when you dunk your head under the water and she knows you can no longer hear her and the advantage of having a snorkel is that I can last longer under the water with it than she can above water asking the questions. wink wink

 

 

 

So I am done with snorkeling. It's time to do the one thing we had been waiting to do...the JUMP!

 

We gathered up our courage and headed to the second story dock.

 

[mitsugirly]

I am going to leave you with the suspense of wondering who jumped and how it all went down. Everyone must have went to sleep on me. What's wrong with you early to bed early to rise people? I feel all alone. It's now 2:30am in the morning and I still can't manage to get this review done. Geesh.

 

I hope you are enjoying it. I will try to get a little more done tomorrow in the morning (whenever MY morning rolls around, which isn't going to be too early) and before it's time to leave to watch my son walk across the stage and graduate. It may be a little hectic tomorrow, so I may not be back but I will try. Some time this weekend I have to finish all of those chapters and study for my upcoming test. I will pop in for a few post here and there when I need a break.

 

Until then...goodnight and enjoy the updates from tonight. :)

[cruiseclues]

Oh yea, that was it. Tiger, pepper, blackened, something like that. Either way, they were pretty bland. :(

 

NOT Blackened...a species of shrimp. :):):):)

[cruiseclues]

Thank you for your extensive review and the large number of good photos in it.

 

I must say I've not been on a cruise without a room service menu, and since you like menus, I'm surprised you didn't investigate. Carnival has a 24/7 Room service Menu, so you can order from it anytime, even when you place your room service breakfast menu order, you can add in anything from the 24/7 Room Service Menu to accompany your breakfast order...or just order from the 24/7 Room Service Menu for breakfast and not use the room service breakfast menu at all.

 

This is helpful when you have an early lengthy excursion and want something substantial...to help until you finally return to the ship. :):):):)

[vols_159]

So can we get a back of the book subtitle review did you like ccl highs and lows compared to ncl and would you pick ncl over ccl for same price and ports? I've read like 6 pages and my cell phone life has lost 15% just on this thread ..lol enjoyed the review

[Winterstale]

It's such a pity about the lion fish everywhere in the Caribbean - they have "lion fish clean-up" days where we charter in the BVI - divers gather in locations to hunt them - they are destroying coral everywhere....which is what they do.

 

Thank you for this fun and detailed review - I am having a great time every night, pouring myself a cocktail and reading the latest installment.

[medicalma'am]

So nice to re-live LFK. I will HAVE to return in warmer weather!

 

Headed to work myself, hoping to catch more of your fantastic review tonight.

[mitsugirly]

NOT Blackened...a species of shrimp.

 

I know, I have already been corrected. :p

 

Thank you for your extensive review and the large number of good photos in it.

 

I must say I've not been on a cruise without a room service menu, and since you like menus, I'm surprised you didn't investigate. Carnival has a 24/7 Room service Menu, so you can order from it anytime, even when you place your room service breakfast menu order, you can add in anything from the 24/7 Room Service Menu to accompany your breakfast order...or just order from the 24/7 Room Service Menu for breakfast and not use the room service breakfast menu at all.

 

This is helpful when you have an early lengthy excursion and want something substantial...to help until you finally return to the ship.

 

I have to say that I really never investigated because we are never in the room to begin with (remember we are in the interior rooms so no amount of time is ever spent there other than to sleep). So, I never really investigated it. I do know that their wasn't a "book" like you have at the hotels, at all in the room. I checked all of the drawers and everything. They had the breakfast room service menu hanging up on the wall with the "I'm snoozing" door hangers.

 

I did go back and check all of my papers (I keep everything from the cruise, even if I don't use it while cruising...including the corny "International Diamonds" adds from EVERY port call) and there is not a menu in there either. :rolleyes:

 

I DID NOT know that you can order ANYTHING by adding it on the menu. That's the first I had heard of that before.

 

I'm learning and I'm glad to have all of this knowledge for the next time around. :)

[mitsugirly]

So can we get a back of the book subtitle review did you like ccl highs and lows compared to ncl and would you pick ncl over ccl for same price and ports? I've read like 6 pages and my cell phone life has lost 15% just on this thread ..lol enjoyed the review

 

Yes, I will do a comparison at the end of the LFK review. ;)

 

I will also give details on the packages as well and cost and my thoughts.

 

It's such a pity about the lion fish everywhere in the Caribbean - they have "lion fish clean-up" days where we charter in the BVI - divers gather in locations to hunt them - they are destroying coral everywhere....which is what they do.

 

Thank you for this fun and detailed review - I am having a great time every night, pouring myself a cocktail and reading the latest installment.

 

Although it may be a pity and they are doing destruction, at least I'm glad that I can say I have seen one in real life. They are really beautiful creatures and now that I have experienced them several times, they can go away. :D (Also, LFK is not the only time that I will see one on this cruise either). ;)

[mitsugirly]

So nice to re-live LFK. I will HAVE to return in warmer weather!

 

Headed to work myself' date=' hoping to catch more of your fantastic review tonight.[/size']

 

Was it cold when you went? When did you go?

 

Have a good day at work. I'm getting ready to head off to a graduation in about 45 minutes. I think I'm more nervous than my son. Yikes. :eek:

[mitsugirly]

Well, it's time to do the one thing that we have been wanting to do, but yet putting it off because we were completely unsure of how it was going to go.

 

We headed toward this...

 

 

 

 

 

So we decided to stay behind on the deck and let daddy "try" first. So he headed down the deck.

 

He gets up there, he looks, he looks over at us, he just stands there. Um ok...jump, do it, do it. Nope! Sakari is standing there with me and I said "Daddy's too scared." She looks at me and says "come on, I'm going first. I'll do it. I want to go first!!!" LOL She is aventurous I told ya. She's not scared to do anything.

 

So we head down the deck and up the stairs. Now I have to admit, once you get up there, it is a little intimidating. It doesn't look that high from below, but up there...yikes. Then you are looking down into the water and you can see the bottom because the water is so clear. "Are you sure this water is deep enough? I can see everything on the bottom of the ocean!" There were several people up there and they said that it was a good 12 foot, which reassured me. But yet they were too scared to go.

 

Well, it looked as if it was up to me to be the first to jump. Sakari was not happy about it, but someone had to be down there for when she jumped and swam back up to the top to catch her just in case...I mean after all, I was just informed that it was 12 feet deep...even though she can swim and the water is calm, I still don't "trust" her/it if you know what I mean.

 

A view from standing up at the top.

 

 

Whew, here comes a boat. Ok, that saved me for a minute. Meanwhile I'm hearing Sakari say "Just go or let me go." I'm trying to explain to her that I have to wait because a boat is coming (as I feel a bit of relief knowing it wasn't my turn YET).

[mitsugirly]

I gathered my wits and here we go....JUMP!

 

Ok, that wasn't so bad. Now it was Sakari's turn to jump. Now I have to say that we did not get any actual "pictures" of us jumping. We video taped all of them. So these pictures are not the greatest because I had to pull them from the video and do a screen shot.

 

So here goes Sakari, she is ready.

 

 

Notice the look on the girls face as Sakari jumped.

 

 

 

 

Yippee, you did it big girl. She was so excited.

 

 

We did encounter a minor problem...she managed to loose her goggles with the jump. She had them on top of her head instead of on her face. So, mommy had to go back and retrieve them. Thank goodness they float is all I can say.

[mitsugirly]

So now it was daddys turn to try.

 

 

Yeah for daddy.

 

Sakari couldn't wait to do it again and headed back up the steps to repeat this over and over a few times as older people looked on in amazement. LOL "How old is she again?" We hear a lot of "You see, she's not even afraid to do it and you guys are" back and forth between each other on the deck.

 

 

 

Mommy jumping again

 

 

 

Sakari taking one last plunge.

 

 

 

So then we were done. We accomplished something new and now I can relate to all of the numerous videos I had watched prior to going. What fun.