Live From The Breeze... well not really "live"

[Kokomo_Man]

Not Exactly “Live From” the Carnival Breeze.

 

I usually do a “Live From” during all of my cruises. But I am boycotting Carnival’s way over priced... poor excuse for Internet. I usually try to plug in during the stops at the ports, but this cruise I have a full schedule in all but Cozumel. And since I refuse to pay Carnival another penny for Internet till they bring back “unlimited” for one price, it won’t be really “Live”.

 

I’m going to just write this as if it is “Live From”. Each day or a few times a day I’ll write my thoughts on the activities and the people I see. I’ll start posting it when I get back. That way it will still have the “feel” as if I was “live”. I hope you enjoy it as much as you have my previous “Live Froms”.

 

One advantage doing it this way is that I’m going to try to post pics that go along with this. I’ve never had success getting pics up using the ship’s internet, so this will give me time to post stuff to go along with this. I’ll be able to use high speed internet. I’ll also be posting additional pics and the full story on my other places... my web site at kokomoman.com as well as on the social network... kokomomantoo.

 

Unfortunately you won’t be able ask me “real time” questions because I won’t still be on board as you read this. I will however be glad to answer any questions if I can. Also, I will be taking a ton of pics as I go so if there is something you want to see, just let me know and I’ll see what I can post.

 

OK... that’s all for now. I’m heading to the port. The first Drink of the Day is waiting for me.

 

[Added after the cruise - Just to make sure everyone knows, this cruise was the last week of August. So I guess this really makes this a review now. Just the same, it was written “live.]

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo

[pirate4me2]

Oh, I can't wait! I love your posts!

[mum2bradley]

Enjoy.

 

I am back on the Breeze December 28th. Only 103 days left!!

[KPfromCT]

Hope you had an amazing time on the Breeze.

Cannot WAIT for your review.:D

Thanks for doing this.

[Kokomo_Man]

Day O

 

Déjà vu all over again…

… all over again.

 

Ok… those of you that know me know I start out my day numbering system with “Day 0”. Since this isn’t a full day… just the afternoon and night… it’s not the first day. Of course those of you that really know me, know that the real reason is because I get all of you to start singing, “Day oh”. Sing it all together now… Day OH… Daaayyy yaay yaay yaay OH.

 

The heading isn’t a misprint or typo. It’s all over again on purpose. This is my fourth cruise on the Breeze and it feels like I’m doing it all over again. The first three times were with all or at least some of a group of funatics. I cruised with them on four cruises and went to Key West with them on a land trip. They aren’t here this time and I’ll miss them... but the ship still has the same feel… she’s kinda like ole home.

 

 

I’m coming to you right now from the Red Frog Pub… my office for the next six days. Now I know a lot of you will say, “Why on earth are you working on a cruise ship”. Well… you see, this isn’t working to me… is really my fun. I am always amused by the goings on when we are cruisin’. And I just like to share it with you.

 

Like today… there was a guy wearing flip-flops, florcescent multi-colored shorts and an orange & yellow tie-died t-shirt. He was dancin’ at the sail away and really gettin’ down. Now you’ve heard the sayin’, “Dance like no one is looking.” Well, he was. And he looked more like a goat trying to learn to skate on ice. But it didn’t matter… he was having fun and didn’t care a bit about all the little kids pointing at him. So… it’s this kind of stuff I watch and will share with ya’ll.

 

As always, I’ll be sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly with you. No one pays me to write... or not write... my opinion. Perhaps if they would bring me a wheelbarrow of money that could change. But that happened yet so what you get is my opinion. Of course, opinions are like noses… everyone has one. So I’ll get right to it.

 

I’m very pleased to tell you that in addition to the DJ, they have brought back live music on the Lido at sail-away. I think it may be the “dance band” that plays in some of the venues during the evening. They were pretty good. I still miss the Reggae or Caribbean band, but the live band is an improvement over having just the DJ.

 

I sure am glad I’m “platinum” now and get “VIP” boarding. The line outside the terminal was huge today. I suspect that people were in line for a couple of hours. The “VIP” boarding only took about 15 minutes to get through… we bypassed the long line and went right to the front to get through security. The reason I’m telling you this is because I’ve been asked several times if I think the FTTF (Faster To The Fun) “deal” is really worth it. FTTF gets you to the front of the line almost like platinum and diamond members. So, today it would have been well worth the bucks not to stand in that long line.

 

The sail-away party was another of those great first events on a cruise. This one may have been better than most... but I’ve had a lot of good ones so it’s hard to tell. There were people dancin’ on all decks over looking the Lido deck pool... all the way up to the water-park. Since this is the “last gasp” for summer for a lot of people, I think the party will be going strong.

 

Miami is my favorite port to sail from. It’s always really neat looking out from the top decks of the ship. Rather than try to describe it, I’ll post a few to go with this. There will also be more pics on kokomomantoo

 

That’s all for now… I’ve got to go see if my bags have been found. They had the wrong tags on them so I hope that has been straightened out. Otherwise I’ll have to wear what I wore when boarding when I go to dinner tonight… flip-flops, florcescent multi-colored shorts and an orange & yellow tie-died t-shirt.

 

More later…

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo

[Kokomo_Man]

Here are some pics from the Port of Miami. As I mentioned, this is my favorite port to cruise from.

 

The view from deck 11, aft

 

 

The aft pool area looking out over the bay.

 

 

A view of the high rent destrict:

 

 

South Beach as we sailed away:

 

 

 

There are more pics posted on kokomomantoo and at kokomoman.com

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo... and another cruise out of the Port of Miami

Edited September 17, 2014 by Kokomo_Man

[WAHMto5]

Hope you have a great cruise! Can't wait to read your entire review!

[SummerXU]

Keep it coming! I sail on her this weekend and need some way to pass the next 5 days!

[boaterette]

I love the colors in your pictures. They look like post cards.

[Kokomo_Man]

I sure am glad to be back on a ship with the “2.0” upgrades. One of the first things I did this afternoon was to go get a Ferengi Burger. Yeah... I know it’s Guy Fieri... it’s that I’m sure that they are Ferengi Burgers. But they are Mmmmmm - Mmmmmm - Good! I just luv Ferengi. So, I just had to have two of them. I’m glad I brought the Tums for the tummy.

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The other 2.0 stuff is just as important too... the Blue Iguana and the Red Frog bars on the Lido deck are a place I kinda like to hang out. They are one of the centers of activities during the sail away. Of course you already know that the Red Frog Pub is one of my favorite places to hang out too. Here on the Breeze they have a nice large Red Frog Pub and in the evening there is a guitar person that plays. This cruise there are two “guitar persons” that are sharing the time on the little stage over in the corner. They are both very good and I’m sure I’ll be spending a lot of time in the evening listening to them... and of course having a frozen concoction to help me hang on.

 

There’s also an outside area to the Red Frog Pub complete with hot-tub near by. This is a great place to hang out with a few folks and soak up some sun. You don’t get as much “crazy” or as many kids here so you can sit with friends and solve all the problems of the world... or have a frozen concoction to help you hang on... or a pain killer... or all the above.

 

OK... put away the smiley faces for a minute. There’s something I need to warn everyone about... my cabin, 7460. For all my previous cruises on the Breeze I booked a “Deluxe Oveanview”. I was very happy with those cabins. I used to book only balcony’s or suites, but I discovered Deluxe Oceanviews here on the Breeze are better than everything but a suite... at least that’s my opinion.

 

This time I wanted to make someone special happy... so I booked an “aft extended balcony” cabin. I had one of those back on the Destiny (now Destiny 2.0... aka the Sunshine) and that extended balcony was great. I really liked that cabin. This time, for something special, I wanted to have that again. -Insert sad face here-… I’m really disappointed. What I ended up with is not what I expected.

 

For a lot more bucks I got a much smaller cabin and a slightly bigger than ordinary balcony. I consider this a sub-standard cabin. They advertise “ample closet space”... this has 1 1/2 closets. The other 1/2 is filled up with life jackets. I had 3 1/2 closets in the Deluxe Oceanview. I have become accustomed to having a couch in all of my cabins. They advertise a “seating area”. There is no seating area at all in cabin 7460. There is only just enough room for the bed and barely enough room to walk around it. This one doesn’t even have room for a chair. This may be the smallest cabin I’ve had on any Carnival ship... or on any cruise line. It certainly isn’t worth the additional cost over even an oceanview. I’ve had “insides” with more room. I have been truly ripped-off.

 

 

 

(Full cabin pics over on kokomomantoo)

 

Just so you know, I checked the other cabins in the same category next to mine and they do have what I expected. It’s just that the corner cabins on this deck get cheated out of what the other cabins have. They just jammed in two more small cabins to make more bucks. Shame on Carnival for charging what they do for these cabins without telling folks that this may be the smallest cabin in Carnival’s fleet. I hate being ripped-off like this.

 

OK... I’ll get off my soap box and on with the cruise. I won’t let the cabin spoil my cruise.

 

We went to dinner tonight and I was surprised that the Breeze has not gone to the “American” style of dining as some of the other ships have. (I was on the Imagination out of Long Beach in April and they had the new style.) I’m pleased that the Breeze hasn’t gone to that style. Instead, it was still the fine dining I had come to expect on all of my previous Carnival cruises... they still have the white linen table cloths on every table (“American” style just has wooden top tables.)... they bring around individual servings of bread (“American” style puts a basket on the table for every one to pass around... and handle my piece of bread before it gets to me, ewwwwww)... and the wait staff pours water for every one (“American” style puts a pitcher of water on the table for everyone to pass around... another ewwwwww) I really am glad the Breeze has not gone to “American Style”.

 

The Piano Bar is my favorite night-life place on Carnival ships. I went to this one tonight and the guy was just so-so. He plays well and has a good voice, but there just was no pizzazz. There weren’t many people there so it could possibly that it’s just early in the cruise. Maybe I’ve been spoiled to the incomparable Ron Pass. Just the same, I’ll come back again tomorrow to see if the fun factor picks up.

 

After we left the piano bar we went to the Ocean Plaza band stand. The band there was great. We really enjoyed the music. They were playing a variety with stuff from the sixties all the way up to nearly today. (Hummmm... I’m not sure I really know what “today” is besides One Dimension, Beiber, and Maroon 5) We stayed there the rest of the evening. Mickie... I had a chocolate mocha whatchamacallit for you.

 

That’s all for now. Tomorrow’s Key West and I’ve got plans to do a bunch of stuff.

 

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo... and another chocolate mocha whatchamacallit.

[pe4all]

Love your reviews! Looking forward to this one. On our last Breeze cruise, Guy "Ferengi" himself was on the ship taping for his show. (kinda jammed up some places as they closed to accomodate his family doing the rope course, etc.) Love the Breeze also. Interesting about your aft balcony cabin space issue. We try to get the L-shaped cabins on the ships that have them, as they are the same price as regular balconies, but with a double-long balcony - which we love to spend time on.

[loveysbydesign]

So excited to read your review!

We will be sailing on our 1st Carnival cruise...on the Breeze this Nov!

Edited September 17, 2014 by loveysbydesign

[cruisingbajan]

Nice review so far. Looking forward to the rest of it.

 

I have never been on the Breeze but I love the decor and look forward to sailing her some day.

 

Keep it coming.:)

[JennN]

following! Thanks for the review!

[hlb76]

excited for more

[luvtrips]

so excited to read your review. I love the pics of Miami, I saved one for my screen saver pic.

[mississauga]

Hi Bob,

 

Looking forward to reading more, especially about Key West as we have never been there before. We are on the Breeze this coming Sunday. You should hop back on as it is super cheap. Lots of cabins left.

 

We've been on the Breeze for 2 cruises already but it was b2b so technically are coming back for a second time. Have it booked for January also.

 

Mary

[Kokomo_Man]

Hi Mary... (Mississauga). I wish I could jump back on... or go back to Key West for sure. But unfortunately... it's sorta like the Seven Dwarfs used to sing... I owe, I owe, it's off to work I go. I've got to pay for other cruises I've already booked.

 

And to the rest of the folks that have given me all the kind words... thank you all. That's the stuff that keeps me going.

 

Here's my post from my day in Key West.

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo... and another trip to Key West.

Edited September 17, 2014 by Kokomo_Man

[Kokomo_Man]

Key West

 

It’s day 1 and we’ve been in Key West... or should I say we’ve been in “Key Weird”. This is one of my favorite places on earth. Mostly because it’s a little “off center”. Hummmm… make that a lot off center. That’s probably why I like it most. Most places are “regular” places... where regular people live and work. Key Weird has very few of those kinds of people… few of those kinds of jobs. I think that folks in Key West are actually they way people are intended to be... the true nature of the way people are. They are not tied down with the rules of “regular people”. No one judges you in Key Weird so you can be just who you are. If you ran naked down the middle of Duval Street at high noon, no one would think much of it. In fact, during Fantasy Fest, lots of people do just that.

 

Key Weird is almost 100 percent dependent upon tourism. There is some US Navy that remains but that certainly doesn’t drive their economy. And it really isn’t cruise ships either. Cruise ships are a very small part of the tourism business. Yes, a few thousand cruise ship tourists come ashore most days and they spend bucks on trinkets, t-shirts, a few tours, and a few beers. However, it’s the land-based tourists that spend the most money by quite a margin. The land-based folks spend on same stuff the cruise ship tourists do, but they also spend on their meals, and hotels for the day. And at night the booze is more free-flowing in town than it is on the cruise ship.

 

I’m not sure why cruise ships even stop here. Most ships pull in around 8:00 AM and it’s “All Aboard” by 3:30. But… Key Weird is geared toward night time activities. The majority of live entertainment starts after 3:00 PM. Just the same, cruise folks seem to like it. There is a ton of stuff to do other than visit all the bars... if you know where to go.

 

Today I spent a some of my time finishing off some research for my next book. Most of it is finished but I had to go a couple of places to check out facts and to take some pictures. So… I rented a scooter and took Bloody Mary on three of the Kokomo Man’s tours. (No I don’t really give tours, but I’ve thought about it.)

 

I started out by going down to the end of Duval... the Gulf of Mexico end. Bloody Mary dipped her toes in the Gulf of Mexico and then we started on “KokomoMan’s Bar Crawl”. I went along pointing out each of the bars with a history... there’s lots of them. Of course since I was on the scooter, I couldn’t have any booze. Bloody Mary on the other hand, could have all she wanted. She seemed to enjoy all the places. But, by the time we made it to Margaritaville she was “done for”. I guess you can’t have a drink in all 36 bars on Duval Street after all.

 

We went on down to the other end of Duval at the “Southernmost Beach”. Bloody Mary staggered over to the water’s edge and stuck her toes in the Atlantic Ocean. It’s just one of those silly things you can do in Key West... stick your toes in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean on the same day. (Ok... she really wasn’t staggering, but I get to tease her just the same.)

 

(For those that don’t know... Bloody Mary chose that nick-name for herself because that’s her favorite morning drink when she’s on a cruise.)

 

I went on to the KokomoMan’s full bicycle tour to be sure I had it all right. (Yeah... I was cheatin’ because I was on a scooter, but I was trying to get in more stuff.) I took the long way around the island and went to a lot of the out of the way places... places cruise folks don’t usually make it to like Smathers Beach or the East Marinaro Fort. Smather’s Beach is my favorite beach on Key West. Bloody Mary and I went for a little stroll along the beach.

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We took a bunch of the standard cheesy pics all over Key West... you know... at the Southernmost Everything including the fake Southernmost Point... the “not really” Southernmost beach... and with the Southernmost Key West Chickens. Of course who can go to Key West without taking a picture standing out in front of Capt’n Tony’s, Sloppy Joes, and Margaritaville.

 

Bloody Mary ummmm... went back to the ship and I took the scooter back to turn it in. I still had a couple of hours so I continued my tour around town, visited a few old friends and made some new ones. One of the guys I met is Danny Rodriguez of the Rodriguez Cigar Factory. Danny has resumed his Cuban Grandfather’s tradition of hand rolling cigars. He is very proud of his heritage and of the quality of his product. Cigar aficionados should pay him a visit.

 

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I went down to the Schooner Wharf Bar... one of the great old time Key West Bars. I spent a little time there listening to Michael McCloud... he starts at noon. Now that I was on foot, I had a frozen concoction to help me hang on. The whole area around the Wharf has quite a history. I always just love to walk around there and along Caroline Street. I spent a little time just meandering around and then went to my favorite Key Lime Pie Shoppe for a piece of Key Lime Pie (duh). It’s Key’s Law that if you are in the Keys, you must have Key Lime Pie or you will be sent to Conch prison.

 

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There are a bunch more pics on kokomomantoo

 

Then it was back to the ship and the Red Frog Pub where I’m writing this. But now I’m really hungry and just have to have a Ferengi burger. I know Ferengi’s are really bad for you. They’ve got tons of cholesterol and other stuff that will give you a heart attack after you’ve eaten just three… and they’ve got tons of other stuff that will require you to spend your next vacation in the gym since you will be a Goodyear Blimp look-alike. But I don’t care… they have addictive properties and I can’t resist them.

 

So… it’s time to head for a Ferengi burger… or two… or three. Tomorrow’s a sea day and I’ll tell ya’ll all about the ship.

 

More then…

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo… and a Ferengi burger

[mississauga]

Hi Mary... (Mississauga). I wish I could jump back on... or go back to Key West for sure. But unfortunately... it's sorta like the Seven Dwarfs used to sing... I owe, I owe, it's off to work I go. I've got to pay for other cruises I've already booked.

 

And to the rest of the folks that have given me all the kind words... thank you all. That's the stuff that keeps me going.

 

Here's my post from my day in Key West.

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo... and another trip to Key West.

 

Bob, too bad. I did not know you were still a working man. I knew about the writing so thought that was your "job" and that could be done on a ship...lol.

 

Good thing you explained about how Bloody Mary got her name because as soon as I saw it, I thought, "here we go with Bob giving his nicknames again...lol."

 

I guess we will have to return to Key West on a land vacation to get the real flavor of Key West. For now, going from a cruise will give us our first taste of KW.

[Kokomo_Man]

Life of a writer

 

 

Hey Mary (mississauga)... you are right, I am a writer. But that’s a full time job... and then some. There are publishers, and editors, and reviewers to answer to. They don’t like it when I’m not at their beck and call on the end of a cell phone. Then there are pics to review and sometimes artwork to get ready. There’s a bunch of other stuff that has nothing to do with the actual writing part.

 

I wish I could just go on cruises and write stuff. But I’m not that disciplined either. It really does take focus to stay at it all day and a cruise ship doesn’t lend to that kind of focus. And then there are those frozen concoctions to help me hang on. If I could do it, I would just live on a cruise ship and write stories about my adventures. Hummmm... what a great idea!!!

 

Sorry for the side-bar folks. The next post is about Day 2... a sea day.

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo

[Kokomo_Man]

Sea Day

 

I like sea days. Not because of anything special, but just because you can do anything you want… sleep in, and important stuff like that. Usually I hope to get lucky in the morning… you know… clear blue skys, warm days, calm seas and stuff like that. Now what were you thinkin’.

 

I promised to tell you a bit about the ship, but first a few observations from the first part of the cruise. First and foremost… friends shouldn’t let friends Karaoke. I’m sure there are some magnificent singers on board the ship… maybe I’m missing their times on stage. But the ones I’ve seen during two separate times need to have the cats removed from their throats… or at least someone should stop stepping on their tails. And if you are their friend… please, oh please... remember… friends don’t let friends karaoke. If I here another karaoke session I’ll have to go see the ship’s doctor to stop the blood from streaming from my ears.

 

Next… old guys shouldn’t wear Speedos. In fact… guys of any age… shouldn’t wear them at all. Even if you are a hard body, it’s not going to end well for you if you’re wearing a Speedo. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why some guys think they’re hot stuff when they’re wearing a Speedo. I thought maybe it was just me… but it’s not. Bloody Mary saw one of the same guys I saw. She told me… and I quote… “ I just had to shut my eyes tight and count to ten. I just couldn’t handle it.”

 

I’ve got an idea… a new Nike commercial. It’s a play on their standard “Just Do It” slogan. It should poke fun at Speedo and say… “Just DON’T do it”. And their swoosh… instead of pointing up like a “check mark” it should point down like a… well… ummmm you get the idea. If I see one more guy in a Speedo on this cruise, I’m going to have to go see the ship’s doctor for cornea transplants.

 

And ladies… well… you already know, so I’ll just keep my mouth shut. If I said what I was thinking I would have to go see the ships doctor to have my foot removed from my mouth… and more than a few other feet removed from another part of my anatomy.

 

Now, about the ship. There’s lots to tell about so I’ll probably do this in a couple of segments. This is probably still my favorite ship. Well… not the ship itself. I still like the Ruby Princess and the Freedom of the Seas better for the ship. The Ruby was more elegant and the Freedom of the Seas has the rockwall, ice-rink, and flowrider (my favorite). But when I take Carnival’s night life onboard all their ships into account, then the Breeze squeaks out on top of everything else. She has all of Carnival’s Bell’s and Whistles.

 

The spa and gym on the Breeze is far and above the best of all Carnival’s ships. Now I’m not really a spa sort of person, but they’ve got a “couples room” that gives me evil thoughts. Not only do they have side by side massage areas, they have a hot tub in it… a couples hot tub. I don’t dare say more about it or I’ll be sent to the CC naughty room.

 

 

Since I wasn’t sure what the rest of the spa was like, I took a mini-tour. I’m still not sure what it all is. There’s a “thalassooothassaotsomethingOrAnoherTherapy pool. (My toungue hurts after trying to say that.) It’s got a kinda therapeutic smell to it. I don’t know what it is. Their claim is that it will eliminate the causes of men ever needing ******… and women will… love it. *smiley face*.

 

OK… they don’t say that. But what they really do say is, “ all your worries and stiff and sore joints will simply wash away”. Really… the part in quotes is right from their advertising. I don’t know about you… I don’t want my joints to wash away... “stiff and sore” or not. It’s not for me but I do have to say that when I walked through my sinuses cleared right up.

 

Right there they have some kinda steam rooms. I say, “kinda”, because there are three different versions. The first one you walk into is just a little bit warm with some stone recliners.

 

 

You walk through that one into a second one that is a little hot, but it is a dry heat... sort of like the Mojave Desert. Then you walk through that one into the Nile Jungle. It’s hotter in there than the Mojave Desert and it has the Schwitzer Falls creating steam clouds in the middle of the jungle.

 

When I walked into that jungle it nearly took my breath away... Bloody Mary too. By the time we got in about half way, I couldn’t see. My glasses had completely fogged up. I was instantly dripping wet. My skin was burning and turning red. I’m sure I looked like the devil from Dante’s Inferno. I needed to get out of there as fast as I could. Bloody Mary too. I saw what looked like an exit so I pushed Bloody Mary toward it. But since I really couldn’t see anything she had to push me back out the way we came in. Pewwww... I was glad to get out of there. By the way, there wasn’t another soul in there. The attendant showing us around didn’t go in there either... she’s probably still laughing.

 

After the Amazon Jungle we looked around at the rest of the place. There’s a hair salon, and a nail salon... places for a mud bath (or something like that) and a place where they wrap you up in leaves or some such… and of course there are regular massage places. Oh… and least I forget, there’s a men’s barber shop. No it’s not a place in the ladies salon … it’s a separate place where you can get an old fashioned shave and a hair cut. It’s a lot more than “two-bits”, but one of these days I’m going to try that.

 

It seems that the spa has something for everyone; Botox… teeth-whitening… hairdos... hot rocks... and rubs and scrubs. If that’s your thing, you will love the spa area on this ship. Just bring a wheelbarrow of money.

 

More pics of the Spa area on kokomoman.com and kokomomantoo.

 

More later...

 

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo... and a new pair of speedos

[Kokomo_Man]

Sea Day - Part 2 - More Ship Stuff

I’m coming to you this afternoon from the Red Frog Pub. You already know it’s one of my favorite parts of the ship. It’s a place that has a little bit of everything... a few things you can order to snack on... some entertainment in the evening... and of course you can get whatever your favorite liquid refreshment. In the afternoons they have some trivia contests and people come here to play a variety of board games. Folks also come here to hang out with friends.

 

Today they had the standard “shtick” out on the Lido deck... the Master Mixologist contest and the Hairy Chest Contest. They don’t call it the “Master Mixologist” any more. I’m proud to say that I won one of the “Master Mixologist” contests here on the breeze in the past... a frozen concoction with mango, pineaple, a little grenadine for color and a little sweetness... and of course, To-kill-ya” (Tequila). Mmmmm-Mmmmm good! I still brew up these at home. Anyway... now days they call it the Red Frog vs Blue Iguana challenge. It’s mostly the same thing. I didn’t get signed up in time so I was just a spectator this time.

 

The Hairy Chest contest never has anything to do with hairy chests. I’m never sure exactly what it has to do with. Sometimes the rotund guy that’s kinda like Santa Claus wins... you know... makes his stomach shake “like a bowl full of jelly”. Or... it’s the guy that does the best job of dancin’ “nasty”. Today it was neither of those... it was a real old guy with ummmm.... errrr..... “man-boobs”. I don’t know any other way to say it... “man-boobs!” And he seemed proud of them. This is a mild picture of him. (By the way, the ship’s video was running and now there are hundreds of discs they will sell to passengers, so I figure it’s OK for me to post this picture.)

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. I'm not kidding... this guy really was "dah winnah."

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This ship has got the best pools, sports and water park area of any of the Carnival ships. (I think “Flowrider of the Seas” has better stuff on their latest monster ships, but that’s a story for another cruise.) This cruise the pools are busting at the seams. They have been as crowded as I have ever seen them. The areas in and around them have about the maximum number of human bodies that they can handle.

 

And there are loads of kids in them. This is one thing I liked better about the “Conquest” class of ships (Liberty, Valor, Freedom, Glory, etc). On those ships, the aft pool is “Adults only”... at least they were that way on all of my cruises on them. Here on the breeze, there is no such thing. Kids are in every pool and every hot-tub on the Lido deck. (The Serenity area is adults only and does have a hot-tub, but no pool.)

 

With so many people and I suspect especially the kids in all the pools, the water has become cloudy in the afternoon.... ewwwwwww! I’m told that’s mostly because of the sunscreen. I’ll let you judge for yourself, but I’m not going for a swim.

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On a sea day, all of the other stuff gets a work-out. There were a lot of people, kids and adults, up on the “ropes course”. For those that don’t know what this is, it’s kind of an obstacle course... 15 feet off the ground. Everything is connected by ropes and you have to go from platform to platform across the rope suspended obstacles. Don’t worry; even though it may be scary, a safety rope connected to the top railings secures you. The kids of all ages seem to have a lot of fun on these. I think only the “Dream class” ships have the ropes courses.

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Another place I have found is the outside area of the Ocean Plaza on deck 5, mid ship. It’s a place that’s not as crazy as some of the other areas this afternoon. It’s an “outside deck” on the smoking side of the ship. Even though I don’t smoke, I liked it there because they have comfortable chairs around tables with umbrellas. It’s a nice place to hang out with friends that do smoke, have a little liquid refreshment, and watch the ocean go by. I’m suspect that when Carnival shuts-down smoking on the balcony’s this place will get a lot more crowded.

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This ship doesn’t have a very large area for the shops considering its size. They are abut the same size as the Conquest and Fantasy class ships that I have been on. I think they kept the shops on the small side so that they can have a very large casino... much bigger than on those other class ships. It has all the usual “slot machines”, craps tables, roulette tables, black-jack tables, and a few of those “Vegas Vacation” type tables. Hummm... we still call them slot machines, but none of them have coin slots any more. I guess it’s just the slot for your sail & sign card now days.

 

In conjunction with the casino, there’s the casino bar. In this one there is no band-stand like on most other Carnival ships. (The band-stand is at the Ocean Plaza... the next place down the promenade deck from the casino.) The bar is a nice large one and they also have a large area with tables and chairs where you can commiserate with family and friends over your casino losses. Maybe it’s just me, but I have never won a cent in any shipboard casino.

 

The casino was open this afternoon, but it was almost deserted. Everyone must be baking out by the pool. I guess the tables and slots must be luckier at night.

 

That’s all for now... time for me to go bake out by the pool too. As usual, there will be a pile-o-pics on kokomomantoo

 

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo… and a place to squeeze in by the pool.

[Kokomo_Man]

Grand Cayman

 

Grand Cayman is probably my favorite island in the Caribbean… well unless you count Key West. Then it’s a coin toss. I’ve been here more than any other place in the Caribbean. There’s so much to do here, I keep discovering new things every time I visit this place.

 

This time I wanted to try out something new as well as do some research for my book. I don’t want to write about stuff unless I’ve been there or done what I’m writing about. I wanted first hand experience with the public bus system. It’s a really an inexpensive way to get around most anywhere on the island. I also wanted to check out a secret snorkeling place on the East End of the island.

 

Before I go too far, I have to tell you that this adventure is not for the meek. I knew the place I was going to was in the middle of nowhere. Yeah… Grand Cayman isn’t that big, but even so, there are some isolated places out on the east end. There are no tourist stands, no taxis, no places for eat or drink... no tiki bars for a frozen concoction to help me hang on. If you decide to do something like this, you should take your passport with you in case you don’t make it back to the ship in time. Take food and water. You should also take an air mattress, sleeping bag and survival kit.

 

OK… you really don’t need that last stuff but you really do need to take water and any food you want for the day. You should also be prepared for a bit of a hike just in case... and you really do need to take your passport.

 

So… I got off the ship as soon as I could… second tender to town. Then it’s just a short walk to the bus station. Don’t think of this as a Greyhound or public bus system like you find in the United States. And don’t expect any of the air-conditioned luxury seating tour type buses. The “bus” I got was an old Toyota “mini-bus” with seating for about 12 crammed in. It had Caribbean air conditioning… open the window and the air that blows in conditions you.

 

The bus depot is a block and a half away from the place where the tenders drop you off. (The Royal Watler terminal.) Walk the shortest distance out of the terminal toward town and head down “Fort Street.” Walk the first block into town and turn right after the “Heroes Square” park. The terminal is a little farther on the left.

 

I’m not going to try to explain their bus system to you in detail. I’m not even sure if the Governor of Grand Cayman could explain it in detail. The essence of it is that they have big round colored circles with numbers on the front of the “bus” (mini-bus”) that indicates where they go. There are also letters that indicate where they go. “EE” for “East End”, “NS” for North Side¸ and WB for West Bay.

 

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After that, your guess is as good as mine what routes they take. I asked at the little stand at the terminal if they have a map that shows each route. I was told that they are working on that. What I have since discovered is that there seem to be no set routes. I’m convinced they just go in the general direction. You tell the bus driver where you want to go and if it’s not too far out of his way, he’ll take you there. It’s only a few bucks to go almost anywhere. For a couple bucks more he’ll take you a little farther out of the way.

 

There are bus stops but unless you are just looking for shade, you don’t need to worry about finding one. Just stand along the side of the road and wave down the bus. On my trip we picked up and dropped off people all along the way… none standing at bus stops. As you’ve probably guessed, the bus really doesn’t keep any schedule. When it gets there depends on the route and where folks want to go. I did say this isn’t for the meek didn’t I.

 

I wasn’t even sure of the place I wanted to go to. The directions I had were something like this; “It’s on the Oueen’s highway… there’s a long brick wall near an abandoned resort project… and if you get to East End you’ve gone too far.” The place had a name, but I really didn’t remember it. There was some more description and I had looked at the area using Google Earth, so I did have at least a little idea what it looked like. I wasn’t totally crazy. I knew that if I missed the place I could just stay on the bus and ride it back to George Town.

 

By the time we got to the Queen’s Highway I was the only passenger left in the bus. The driver was trying to help me out. He was going kinda slow while I looked out for the place. I saw a brick wall and said there it is… but then I wasn’t so sure. So we kept on going.

 

Another few miles I saw an abandoned resort and knew that was it. The bus driver stopped and let me out. As I got out I asked when the next bus would be by. He gave me a kinda funny look and said he wasn’t sure. If they don’t have passengers that need to come this way, they often turn around and go back to town. He suggested that I would have the best luck if I walked back to the last town.

 

I thought about getting back on the bus. But I had come this far and wasn’t going back without getting to the spot I had come for. I gave him five bucks and he drove off into the distance. I stood there for a minute or two and not another vehicle came by. Oh well… time to go see the beach. It’s what I had come for. I walked down this little gravel road that led down into the jungle. I knew that the beach wasn’t far away, but I was a little worried what may be in the jungle to eat me.

 

Part 2 after another a Ferengi Burger...

 

Bob

Searching for Kokomo… and a bus back to town.

[TennesseeTater]

Really enjoying your review.