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Robin's (occasionally) Inspiration-al Platinum Debut

SoCalKJ

By SoCalKJ,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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I'm currently at the vet having my Basset's (recently twice-amputated) tail checked and sutures removed....cuz life is definitely back in session once they announce "this is the FINAL announcement for ANY and ALL remaining/lingering/loitering last-minute guests to make their way to the atrium for debarkation" (I wait 'til the very last minute...why battle Monday morning 405 traffic if it ain't necessary??).

 

Anyhoo, as many of you know and/or can relate, this was the "IT" cruise: Number 10! Platinum, Baby!! I told my friend I'd be at her casa by 9:30 so we could zip on down and be at the LB Terminal by 11-ish. We met that goal, parked (it's $51-$17/day) and happily made our way to a friendly porter who stapled the green "priority" tags onto our stuff and handled it from there. We tipped 5 bucks for 4 mid-sized bags and proceeded to the elusive VIP lounge to the left of the steel check-in dome.

 

I have to confess: I'm seriously much more impressed with my new status than anyone I know, have met or encountered...I wasn't expecting a red carpet roll-out; really, the earth didn't stand still when my newly-minted platinum self sashayed into any area of the terminal, the VIP waiting lounge or the ship itself. Ego mildly crushed...LOL...(yet, not surprised), I pretty much had to accept that the silver-colored card was my gift to me and no one really was gonna notice it or appreciate it as much as I would. I really am that self-centered....LOL...glad to know spiritual recovery can happen!

 

8u9egyzu.jpg Alex and me moments after arriving inside the VIP...

 

sajy9e5y.jpg Cool, calm, collected and very much refined. I'm trying to come out of my shy shell.

 

emujy4an.jpg The one that I posted on the actual day of embarkation (11/22/13).

 

ebepaze6.jpg We would dub Alex the "Green Dot Mooch!" She would be sucking off my benefits (we'd soon learn there'd be very few to suck).

 

As much as I'd have loved my DH to accompany me, he had to work Friday and Monday. While there's no way in hades he'd get to platinum by 12/31/13, he absolutely encouraged me to reach my goal. What a guy!

 

By about noon (they were running late...probably because of people like me, although they said "we're waiting for customs to clear."), we were informed that we were ready to board!! Before you know it, we're "walking the plank!!"

u4a6y7eb.jpga4uny9e6.jpg

 

Okay. Break time....dog is ready to go home!

 

Will continue later....thanks for reading and BTW: Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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cooltj

cooltj

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Congratulations on turning Platinum!!! Love your pictures... My son will be turning Platinum next week on the Inspiration... I am sure he will be posing for pictures too :D

 

Was there any big changes made on the Inspiration?

 

Thanks for the review!

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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So once we step foot inside the Atrium, I do my usual happy dance a few feet in, jump up and down, get misty-eyed and smile and laugh unapologetically to the staff around me. That initial "I'm back to my second home" emotion is awesome and I love to take those first few moments in.

 

Once done with that little ritual, I remembered we could go directly to our stateroom. We're in E-185. Initially I thought we were midship, but after walking around all of the center Empress deck area...and having to try to navigate through the sealed entries (they're closed tight!!), we finally figured out that our room, while on Empress, is actually down a separate hall directly under the MDR.

jy7evase.jpg

They are inside bunk bed cabins....no staterooms across from us! This was great...weekend Ensenada cruises tend to have LOUD boozer cruisers and being that far away from main stateroom traffic was a Godsend! It's a small room...no big deal...bunk bed, desk, bathroom, closets, drawers, the usual. I took the top bunk.

hudesavu.jpg

DH teased me about my great big Platinum room!! LOL...I reminded him that 4 cruises in one year doesn't exactly allow you to cruise in luxury....besides...Alex and I are hardly ever in the room so who cares??

 

After we unpacked, we decided to head up to the Mongolian Wok...which on this ship is: if you're at the pool on the Lido Deck and you're staring towards the general buffet direction, it's on the right side outside corner. (The fried slop of chicken tenders, fries, chili, cheese dip, nachos, etc. is on the left side.). I convinced myself to try to eat a little more conscientiously this trip. Nothing sucks more than having to come home after a cruise and needing to suck down a bottle of Magnesium Citrate to get the body normal again. So...Mongolian it is! Usual bowls of different veggies to help yourself to...only they handle the main stuff...probably to control the waste/cost. Pictures from my iPhone....apologies for lack of clarity in some!

uteguqy4.jpg

avy6u6e4.jpg

eta9ases.jpg

We then found a 2-top off to the side on the Lido and enjoyed the moment. We were there for less than 30 minutes and had about 5-6 different DOD offers come by. No thanks! No thank you! Nope! Scram! I don't drink...and I usually bring my own water and 12-pack of soda. I also bring a largo Via-type coffee mug with a lid so I can have a LARGE coffee and I don't spill it everywhere. I also pack a large cold drink container with a pop top so I can carry that around when a cold drink sounds good. Room service in the morning rocks because when the big coffee comes, I immediately fill up my Via and drink the rest with breakfast. Breakfast ALWAYS includes a bagel with salmon lox, cream cheese, plain yogurt and the two fresh fruit options. For a few bucks room delivery tip, it's the best way to start the day!

 

Anyhoo, it was overcast and sprinkling on Friday, embarkation day, but I refused to let that put a damper (har har) on this day!

are5yba4.jpg

As per usual, I leave my house with my swimsuit already on. Because after I eat, I always go to the Serenity Deck and jump in the hot tub. It is literally the only time that we will have the hot tub and the deck to ourselves. I got in, Alex dipped her feet in and we hung out for about an hour. The water was not as hot as usual and after a request to turn up the heat, which didn't really help, we decided to make our way back inside. We hung in the room for a bit, we walked around the ship and eventually made our way into the Candlelight Lounge where Muster Station E begins.

 

To be continued...

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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Congratulations on turning Platinum!!! Love your pictures... My son will be turning Platinum next week on the Inspiration... I am sure he will be posing for pictures too :D

 

Was there any big changes made on the Inspiration?

 

Thanks for the review!

 

Most changes were cosmetic and maintenance related...but I will say...

 

What I noticed: The two electronic blackjack tables in the casino are gone...grrrrr! Replaced with 2 more regular BJ tables. The electronic Poker table that was outside next to the iPad/cash draw machines is now inside the casino next to the slot machines and the cashier's cage.

 

Game show mania is gone, show cast is now down to 8: 4 males/4 females. All sing AND dance.

 

Superstar Karaoke was back-to-back on the schedule and not 8pm and 11-ish as was on prior trips.

 

I'll list more as I remember.

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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Awesome! I love a West Coast review. Few and far between. Make it long with lots of pictures please.:D Happy Thanksgiving to you as well.

 

Thank you!

 

Won't have as many pictures as usual (I've done this route 5 times and kinda ran out of photo ideas...LOL!), but I'll do my best.

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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Welcome to Platinum Land !! The new VIP building there in Long Beach is very nice... A very nice perk to get in there and checked in very fast, and to sit in there and relax:D

 

Yeah it's cozy. Surprised they didn't have coffee to offer, though, only water and lemonade.

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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I forgot to mention that we booked the Behind the Fun tour. Having been on 9 cruises prior to this one and having never done any kind of onboard excursion, this seemed like the perfect time to. This is the 5th time I've sailed on the Inspiration...may as well get to know her a little more intimately!

 

We went to the Shore Excursion desk and inquired: $55 for 2&1/2 hour tour seemed like one of the cheaper things Carnival had to offer and so Alex and I signed up. Our tickets made their way to our room later and the excursion itself was scheduled for Sunday morning at 9:15. Not too early....won't miss much else.

 

I then immediately grabbed some cash and went back to the Guest Services Desk...Platinum and Diamond, Priority & FTTF have a counter section to the left...and put money on my folio. While my S&S account was opened with my Visa, my goal was to not have any charges to it, if the Casino was to cooperate throughout the weekend. That wouldn't be the case, but a valiant effort WAS made.

 

On the last 3 cruises, $7.90 had been refunded to my onboard credit...something about taxes and fees being reduced or whatever. I expected to see the same amount this time: nope: it was amazing!!

 

$.58

 

Fifty-eight cents.

 

Awesome. Would I inquire further? You bet. The explanation was more confusing than the amount itself. What-ever!

 

Anyway, Muster & Safety Drill time was fairly uneventful...most everyone behaved themselves (not like April's Kickballers from Hell extravaganza), but I am still constantly amazed at people who think "no food or drink during safety briefing" rules don't apply to them.

 

Anyhoo, once we walked to our target muster station outside the buffet and the bell rang, we were off to enjoy the rest of our weekend. We had anytime dining so we decided to head to our room, grab a couple of sodies and head to the Mardi Gras Dining Room. Platinum status means you still get to wait in line until it's your turn to be seated. Fortunately the line wasn't long.

 

I order the same each cruise! I start with a Caesar salad, the beef & barley soup, the stuffed (tiny) mushrooms and the lasagna bolognese. Kill me! This dish is always amazing...this time being no exception.

 

Dessert was WCMC and I substitute the vanilla ice cream with pecan. The WCMC was good, but it should've been called Luke-WCMC. Gotta say, service was noticeably slower all weekend...and not real busy to justify it. Staff was friendly enough and our first evening's song was the ever-predictable, always laughable and enjoyable "Low" by Flo-Rida. "...Apple bottom jeans...boots with the fur...."

 

No food photos. Sorry.

 

ejuturav.jpg

This was one of the welcome back gifts...along with the free drink ticket (good only during breakfast/lunch in the MDR...that went to waste).

 

I should also take a moment to say I was a good wife before the Inspiration set sail. I had a lovely last minute Face Time session with my DH:

my4yquje.jpg

I should also mention that he's not cross-eyed, he was just being ridiculously silly knowing I was taking the picture during the FT call. I love the tail behind my head!

 

More to come later...thanks for following!

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Bibble

Bibble

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They are inside bunk bed cabins....

DH teased me about my great big Platinum room!! LOL...I reminded him that 4 cruises in one year doesn't exactly allow you to cruise in luxury....besides...Alex and I are hardly ever in the room so who cares??

 

I have been in those cabins more times than I think I could recall. DH joked the same with me, because that was always the weekend cruises with the girls, etc. Which now allows HIM to board early with me as the PLATINUM member :)

 

Welcome to PlatinumLand!!

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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I have been in those cabins more times than I think I could recall. DH joked the same with me, because that was always the weekend cruises with the girls, etc. Which now allows HIM to board early with me as the PLATINUM member :)

 

Welcome to PlatinumLand!!

 

Exactly!!!

 

Thanks, BTW!

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Cruizinman

Cruizinman

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Now there's a happy camper :D.

 

Almost deleted the entire thread (or requested to delete it)...I'm usually not embarrassed by stuff, but after thinking about that pic, I was like, WTH did I post that POS for??

 

Nothing to be embarrassed about , everyone is excited when they first turn platinum ;) Keep that picture for a reference thirty of so cruises down the road ;):D

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SoCalKJ

SoCalKJ

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Nothing to be embarrassed about , everyone is excited when they first turn platinum ;) Keep that picture for a reference thirty of so cruises down the road ;):D

 

LOL! I was okay with it at first...then I went back and looked at the photo and thought, "Man! Do I have an extra chromosome or something??" Between that lazy-looking eye and that (brighter than the others) cap, I'm a freakin' mess--not the supermodel I think I am! LOL!

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