Silhouette 2/19 - 2/26 - quick thoughts

[keithm]

After the first day, we didn't even go to the pool. Very uncomfortable and did not need to see the crap that went on. Put some bathing trunks on. i don't need to see your junk hanging out all over the place. Keep your freakin hands off each other. Bumping and grinding all over the ship. Actually saw 1 giving himself a "personal massage" on Deck 12. Had a chat with the captain and he said he would check the videos. Hopefully that was the person I saw being escorted off in Jamacia. Thumbs down to Celebrity for not advising that this cruise would have groups that some might not want to vacation with...especially with children. I also felt that the nightly gatherings at the Martini Bar made it so some would not go there after happy hour. And after the 3rd night, there seemed to be a crew member stationed at the men's room next to the Martini Bar...think maybe there was some action in there also. We are done with Celebrity for now

Good to see you going! We don't need the homophobia!

[drychi]

Thanks for your review. Happy Cruising To All Persons Of Good Cheer! Bob and Linda

 

 

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[Ronjon23]

Ken,

 

We also, were aboard this cruise and, for the most part, had a delightful time. While we do not expect you to be responsible for your entire troop we do expect you to be truthful about the behavior and ongoings of your group aboard the ship. Some, but not all, seemed to be looking for and even provoking confrontation. From the various offensive T-shirt texts previously mentioned to the public fondling you have to admit your team did fully push the limits.

 

We, my wife and I, are very accepting however, when behavior goes totally unacceptable we do have to draw the line. You really are not all that entitled.

 

We are very disappointed that Celebrity did not enforce their dress codes in the restaurants. Does "Evening Chic" now include jeans, sandals and a T-shirt states "Parking in Rear"? On the other hand, some of your compatriots have tremendous class, but unfortunately, not all.

 

We were disappointed that eight of your team, and we know they were part your team as they clearly identified themselves, decided to plant themselves in front of us on the day beds and begin to stroke, fondle, and oil each other. It was unclear as to who was with who as this seemed to change with the wind. Needless to say, we felt the need to call it a day.

 

Please remember, his was our hard earned vacation too.

 

Per your earlier comment, given the opportunity and/or power to ruin your vacation is something we would never think of taking advantage of.

 

A different perspective I guess.

[TessieTravels]

Sfken1977, I think you have handled your thread very well and I appreciated and enjoyed your review.

 

 

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[kayehall]

Good to see you going! We don't need the homophobia!

 

 

 

 

It's not called homophobia. It's called RESPECT ....for the people around you. Grow up and act like an adult

[dgparent]

It's not called homophobia. It's called RESPECT ....for the people around you. Grow up and act like an adult

 

You are not going to win this one, this same poster derided lv2cruz in another thread basically saying because he or she is from NC they are homophobes.

[teltrainer]

An excellent quote of the day I saw online: When you resort to name calling, you've lost your argument.

[lv2cruz]

You are not going to win this one, this same poster derided lv2cruz in another thread basically saying because he or she is from NC they are homophobes.

 

 

I did not catch that that statement was geared toward me currently living in N.C. That's rude and I can't stand when people make assumptions and don't even know a person. How are you deemed a homophobe simply because you state the truth,good,bad or ugly? Geeezzz!

I am NOT a homophobe and spending most of my life in Calif. i deem myself to be pretty open minded. I really don't care what anybody is. You live in your world, I live in mine type of attitude. Just be respectful toward all, that's key.

On this particular cruise the boundaries of social graces and respect toward 2,800 people sharing most of your common areas of space, suffice to say we're indeed crossed or blurred!

This is not the norm,unless of course once again rules of life are being rewritten. Next, will we have to accept people having sex out in public for all to see?

The overall "situation" as I will call it was just over the top and way to much in your face. I am by all means not saying the original poster may have acted inappropriately himself but SOME of his particular group and the other group for that matter were over the top, "I don't give a bleep what anybody thinks because this is my vacation, I paid for it" type of attitude. Alcohol,especially during out to sea days certainly did not help I believe. We missed Grand Cayman so we were really out to sea three different days.

Like others have said and I believe this wholeheartedly, it is indeed called RESPECT and with more kids and a fair amount of teenagers than usual (I'm comparing this based on going on the same cruise at the same time last year) some of the behavior was over the top excessive and speaking for myself, was not what I anticipated my cruise to be like.

One last and final word, you can tell from the older gentleman gay couples who did NOT act in inappropriate ways. It seemed to be the younger ones and given that younger men only. The woman couples NEVER acted inappropriately.

Bottom line, it's respect for all of us in this big,shared world that we live in.

[keithm]

It's not called homophobia. It's called RESPECT ....for the people around you. Grow up and act like an adult

Oh Please!! Look at YOUR comments, which I find quite dubious! First off there IS a dress code, so the comments I've seen about the shirts worn in Blu are either baloney or flat out lies. Having sailed Celebrity several times, the staff is quick to weed out bad dress, that includes gay & straight. I find it rather bogus that NO crew member did anything about the goings on that you claim to have seen. I do know there was an extreme right wing group on that ship. One wonders if you & a few others that have commented are part of that group.. To give yourselves ammo, so to speak. I'm gay & have never seen anything close what you've described. We don't travel in a group, just the 2 of us. As to the comment about the man stationed by the men's room..REALLY?? On the Eclipse the men's room is near the MDR. Staff is stationed there all the time. If you're going to spout untruths you better have more proof than what I'm seeing here. It's pretty obvious you & a few others dislike our community. Well, get used to it, guy we're NOT going anywhere. To those morons who DID act inappropriately, You're lucky I wasn't there, I would have gotten you booted off the ship. We know who our enemies are, we don't need you morons making it any worse. You reading this sfken1977? You guys need to police yourselves. I don't need to see this garbage posted.

[janetz]

Your review was excellent, thank you.

Are there not cruises geared towards

your group? Bears cruise, etc ?

[janetz]

Your review was excellent, thank you.

[keithm]

Your review was excellent, thank you.

Are there not cruises geared towards

your group? Bears cruise, etc ?

 

 

They do have "Pied Piper" tours, which caters to larger groups of Gay/Lesbians. They may have dozens to over a hundred pax on a cruise. There is also "RSVP/Atlantis", which charters entire ships. Celebrity & HAL are the ships usually chartered. Though I WASN'T there, I do have some doubts as to true honesty of some of the complainers. There was a far right wing group which is virulently anti gay that was on the same ship. Talk about strange bedfellows. Were these complainers part of that group? My issues here, were why didn't the pax who complained on this blog DO anything? I would have gone totally ballistic if I saw what these pax "claimed" to have seen.Trust me, Celebrity would have wasted no time in booting these offenders at the next port. The issues about the crappy shirts are justified, unless there was fabrication. Again Celebrity would take action about the shirts. There IS a dress code, after all. All that said, people do need to understand that gays are everywhere & we're NOT going back into the closet. My spouse & I do not show much PDA in public, but how is it any better when straight couples show PDA's in public. I've seen plenty of it on Celebrity/Cunard/Princess(the lines we cruise)So these "Self Righteous" pax better get used to a gay couple holding hands & maybe a kiss or 2 in public. We pay our taxes & vote, just as they do. Whether they like it or not, we DO have the same rights, even though many of these people are trying hard as they can to take those rights away.

To those "Gay Activists" who love to "shove" it in everyone else's face, please don't do it near me & my spouse, Richard. I really don't want to spend the cruise getting my foot surgically removed from your keister!

[sfken1977]

Ken,

 

We also, were aboard this cruise and, for the most part, had a delightful time. While we do not expect you to be responsible for your entire troop we do expect you to be truthful about the behavior and ongoings of your group aboard the ship. Some, but not all, seemed to be looking for and even provoking confrontation. From the various offensive T-shirt texts previously mentioned to the public fondling you have to admit your team did fully push the limits.

 

We, my wife and I, are very accepting however, when behavior goes totally unacceptable we do have to draw the line. You really are not all that entitled.

 

We are very disappointed that Celebrity did not enforce their dress codes in the restaurants. Does "Evening Chic" now include jeans, sandals and a T-shirt states "Parking in Rear"? On the other hand, some of your compatriots have tremendous class, but unfortunately, not all.

 

We were disappointed that eight of your team, and we know they were part your team as they clearly identified themselves, decided to plant themselves in front of us on the day beds and begin to stroke, fondle, and oil each other. It was unclear as to who was with who as this seemed to change with the wind. Needless to say, we felt the need to call it a day.

 

Please remember, his was our hard earned vacation too.

 

Per your earlier comment, given the opportunity and/or power to ruin your vacation is something we would never think of taking advantage of.

 

A different perspective I guess.

 

 

Fully agree with your perspective. And when I saw patently offensive things going on - I made an effort to ask them to take it down a notch. I didn't go to any of the evening chic nights, because I don't like getting dressed up - so I can't comment on that. I know my friend with the "parking In rear" shirt wore a button up shirt and a sequined sport coat. We saw him later. Just like in all cultures and subsets, we too have our bad seeds.

 

 

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[sfken1977]

Your review was excellent, thank you.

Are there not cruises geared towards

your group? Bears cruise, etc ?

 

 

There are charters, but they're really expensive (about a 50%+ markup).

 

 

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[sfken1977]

Also - let's not resort to name calling, I created this thread for a positive discussion based out mutual respect for opposing opinions. I've been very careful to craft my responses in a positive affirming way.

 

 

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[floridaag]

On our Thanksgiving cruise on the Silhouette (which also had a large gay group on board - who we became friends with) - one of our party was assaulted by a drunk woman who was trying to hit on the entire gay group and when her advance at our friend was declined called him a homophobic slur. Crew removed her and apologized.

 

As far as I was aware, that was the only issue on the entire sailing

[blueboro]

We too were on the cruise and not with any group. It was a great cruise with better food, service and entertainment than our last X cruise on this same ship. We did see some "inappropriate" shirts and a few over-the-top activities by the pool, but the last thing I expected to see on any X cruise were people dressed in drag. We were on previous cruises with the Pied Piper group and they have always been very well-dressed, polite and pleasurable to be around. Some groups on this sailing were not.

[keithm]

There are charters, but they're really expensive (about a 50%+ markup).

 

 

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We like a mainstream cruise. The 50% mark up can be ridiculous. We also just don't need to see the "goings" on that can occur on all gay cruises. Atlantis seems to be more of a party crowd, which we're not. I've seen enough videos from friends on Atlantis & it's just not our thing. We meet plenty of gay friends at the LGBT gatherings. Cunard/Princess do a much better job of organizing them compared to Celebrity. I think a corner in the Sky view lounge would be a great place. Martini Bar gets so crowded you just don't know who's who.

[keithm]

Fully agree with your perspective. And when I saw patently offensive things going on - I made an effort to ask them to take it down a notch. I didn't go to any of the evening chic nights, because I don't like getting dressed up - so I can't comment on that. I know my friend with the "parking In rear" shirt wore a button up shirt and a sequined sport coat. We saw him later. Just like in all cultures and subsets, we too have our bad seeds.

 

 

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It would make it better for the gay community to have these "bad seeds" reprimanded by others in your group, Ken. You sound like you may have some influence with some of these guys. I mean shirts like: "Parking in the Rear/It takes balls to be a Fairy", are just so totally tasteless, Ken. Do remember, this IS a main stream cruise, NOT Atlantis/RSVP. We're now entering some tough times ahead for the gay community. Poor taste in shirts & some of the antics that have been mentioned by other posters certainly won't help our cause. I read that you'll be on the Feb.4 cruise next year. I hope to see the group better behaved.

[eatdrinkfly]

It would make it better for the gay community to have these "bad seeds" reprimanded by others in your group, Ken. You sound like you may have some influence with some of these guys. I mean shirts like: "Parking in the Rear/It takes balls to be a Fairy", are just so totally tasteless, Ken. Do remember, this IS a main stream cruise, NOT Atlantis/RSVP. We're now entering some tough times ahead for the gay community. Poor taste in shirts & some of the antics that have been mentioned by other posters certainly won't help our cause. I read that you'll be on the Feb.4 cruise next year. I hope to see the group better behaved.

 

 

IMO, I'd rather see shirts that say "Parking in the Rear" or "It takes balls to be a Fairy" than some of the shirts i've seen on straight men on cruises that degrade women.

somehow every cruise, there's at least a few that pop up on the pool deck, like the stripper one that says "i support single mothers" and that sort of thing.

at least the gay slogan shirts, while you can make a case for being "tasteless", and, I agree, not the best choice for dinner attire, aren't actually degrading to anyone and are usually just word play.

[Fish Lover]

Thumbs down to Celebrity for not advising that this cruise would have groups that some might not want to vacation with...especially with children.

 

 

I wasn't going to post on this thread until I read this statement. You would expect Celebrity to call you up and "warn" you that certain groups you might find objectionable will be on board? I notice you said that about the gay group but not about the conservative group that was traveling (and whom I would more than likely not get along with). There are over 5,000 people on board. How about I tell Celebrity that I don't care for short people, Republicans, Catholics, fat people ....or how about, I don't like being on board with disabled people? Germans, Russians. etc......? Or, on second thought, maybe those things are ok as long as they hide it (and too bad for short people, fat people, black people and disabled people, because lets face it...they should just stay home). Shoul I make a list so Celebrity knows who I don't want to travel with so I can change my reservation?

 

Do I think people should behave appropriately in public and not treat the whole ship as their personal living room or bed room? yes. But I absolutely extend the same rights and freedoms to everyone to be themselves and be treated with courtesy, dignity and respect. You have no more right to enjoy a cruise than anyone else and if you want to confine yourself to only those who you approve of, then do not venture beyond your own back yard.

 

A particular pet peeve of mine on these boards are the "funny" references to overweight people. How much they weigh, how much they eat, how they dress....comments about not being a "gym goer"....etc It's shameful. Further, in all these years, I have yet to see one perfect body on board.

[Fish Lover]

To the OP. Thank you for the review. I have yet to sail on this ship and I look forward to it someday.

Also, what is a "bear" group? I haven't hear that term before.

[sfken1977]

To the OP. Thank you for the review. I have yet to sail on this ship and I look forward to it someday.

Also, what is a "bear" group? I haven't hear that term before.

 

 

Burly, furry gay men :)

 

 

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[sfken1977]

It would make it better for the gay community to have these "bad seeds" reprimanded by others in your group, Ken. You sound like you may have some influence with some of these guys. I mean shirts like: "Parking in the Rear/It takes balls to be a Fairy", are just so totally tasteless, Ken. Do remember, this IS a main stream cruise, NOT Atlantis/RSVP. We're now entering some tough times ahead for the gay community. Poor taste in shirts & some of the antics that have been mentioned by other posters certainly won't help our cause. I read that you'll be on the Feb.4 cruise next year. I hope to see the group better behaved.

 

 

Can't do anything about the shirts, but I think we can work on some of the other things. That's one of the main reasons I posted this was to see how other people viewed our group. This has been very enlightening

 

 

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[The Fun Researcher]

if you give me the power to ruin your vacation - I'm going to take it.

 

Pretty much sums it up. Wow

 

Dan

 

 

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