Galaxy Trans Atlantic Review Oct. 17-31 part 1

[teedee]

Galaxy Trans-Atlantic – 10/17/05 – 10/31/05

It’s taken longer than I had hoped to get to this, but it was such a wonderful cruise I definitely wanted to write a review. It’s somewhat all run together in my mind, so I’ll just post my impressions of things.

Rome – The most amazing city I’ve ever been to! I fell in love with Rome. It’s such an amazing mix of old & new with something to see on every corner. I had the weekend before the cruise to explore and it definitely wasn’t long enough. I arrived Saturday morning (Oct. 15) after an overnight non-stop flight from Atlanta. The flight was un-eventful except for the screaming toddler across the aisle from me. At first we felt sorry for him, but after a few hours of it we were considering spiking his sippy cup with a shot of something to put him out! OK, I don’t think we would REALLY have done that, but it was discussed.

Stayed at the Hotel Lancelot, located near the Colloseum. I was quite pleased with the hotel itself, very clean and very nice staff. At 100 euros a night reasonably priced too. If you want to be near the Colloseum it’s great, but not close to much else, I ended taking taxis quite a bit, which can get expensive. Next time I will look for something more centrally located.

I spent most of my time in Rome rushing around trying to see everything, which isn’t possible, but there were some high points. I loved the Colloseum, the Trevi Fountain, (I put 2 coins in for insurance on returning, I hope they don’t cancel each other out!) and Spanish Steps. I loved just wandering around and taking in the city. Went to Hard Rock for lunch & to buy shirts for friends, and the funniest thing happened. I’ve traveled thousands of miles from Georgia, and in the Hard Rock I’m seated in the R.E.M. room! All that way and I’m in a room dedicated to a rock band from Georgia! I’m actually a huge fan of them, so it was cool to sit in there. Anyway, back to my wanderings after lunch. There are beautiful fountains and statues on almost every corner. I also got in the habit of looking at the top of buildings as many had lovely rooftop gardens. I got in too late to get into the Vatican Museums, which was a disappointment. I had a wonderful experience at St. Peter’s though. It was very crowded as I walked toward the square Saturday afternoon. I kept squeezing in closer trying to see what was going on when I noticed 2 large screens like you see at concerts with the Pope on them addressing the crowd. They were having a program with children from all over singing to the Pope. I finally got close enough to see him in the square, which was very moving. He was actually out in the square, not just waving in the window. At one point he blessed the crowd, so I can honestly say I’ve been blessed by the Pope! I’m not catholic, by the way, but it was still an incredibly moving moment and brought tears to my eyes.

Sunday I spent the day wandering around, shopping and taking in more of the atmosphere. I had another experience I’ll always remember, even though it wasn’t at any of the historic areas. I was shopping and stopped at a sidewalk café for lunch. The weather was beautiful, sunny and warm and I was enjoying a plate of spaghetti with a glass of wine when an accordion player came out & started playing “Can This Be Love” (the song from Lady & The Tramp that is playing when they are at the Italian restaurant sharing a plate of spaghetti). It was just a perfect moment in a perfect place!

Sunday afternoon I went to the Pantheon, another awesome reminder of ancient Rome, and is fully intact. Sunday evening I met up with some of the cruise critic group for dinner. It was great meeting some of the people I was about to spend the next 2 weeks with. It was also nice to see Gail (Tuggers) and Joan (Joramrose), who I’d cruised with before. We found a wonderful sidewalk Trattoria right in the square and had a great dinner with quite a bit of wine. Some friends of Gail’s from England were in Rome to visit her and came to dinner. I really enjoyed meeting Colin & Margaret & hope to be able to cruise with them someday! After dinner Gail. Colin, Margaret & myself went to another place for more wine and conversation, which turned into another highlight of my trip. We talked & laughed and had a wonderful time. I’m not sure what time they poured me into a taxi, but it was a wonderful evening!

Monday was the official start of the cruise…..and I didn’t want to leave Rome to get on the ship! I was having such a wonderful time. Of course I got over that. Someone on our rollcall (Thanks Kendal!) had charted a bus for us to get to the ship. This was wonderful, and saved us quite a bit of money as it was only 10 euros each including tip! I highly recommend doing this. It’s about 90 minutes to the port, the bus was very nice, and a pleasant ride.

GALAXY – We got on the ship quickly, embarkation was not bad at all. The day was cloudy & cool, but that would be the only cloudy day for the entire cruise. There have been a lot of reviews lately about the deteriorating condition of Galaxy, but I honestly did not see it. I thought the ship was beautiful, and in good condition. I only saw minor signs of wear, nothing that affected my cruise at all. I had an inside cabin, which I was quite pleased with. I go back & forth between inside & outside and both are fine with me. The price on an inside was very good for this cruise, so I went with it. The only other Celebrity ship I’ve sailed on is Century, which I dearly love, but Galaxy is very nice too. I’t’s similar to Century, but larger with better shopping options onboard, I thought. I like the martini bar location better on Galaxy, as it is separate and not tucked into a corner like on Century. One strange thing is signs on the ship direct you to a different location for the martini bar, apparently it also used to be tucked into a corner of a lounge but was moved some time back. I was surprised the signs directing people to the wrong place were still up.

I was in cabin 1086, as mentioned before an inside cabin. It was on the Penthouse deck. I prefer being on upper decks on the ship, I like the motion up there better. I think it feels like more of a swaying motion and there’s less engine noise. My cabin steward was ok, maybe a little disappointing though. Several times I came back to the cabin in the late afternoon for a nap to find the cabin still unmade. Once I came back and while the cabin had been cleaned, a dirty, wet wash rag had been left on my bed. Yuck! He came quickly and changed the bedding when I called though. The water had soaked down to the sheets and I didn’t want to lie down on it. That was the only disappointment on the cruise, and it wasn’t that big a deal.

Onboard Activities – All the regular stuff: bingo, trivia, the casino, and games. We were lucky to have Chef Mark Cummings from the Food Network onboard, he did a series of enrichment lectures and we got to sample his recipes which were universally delicious! He is a very nice man, I quite enjoyed meeting him. We were lucky enough to have him join our table for dinner one night. I also enjoyed John Maxwell Graham’s talks onboard, he’s very entertaining with great stories on life at sea. He has written several books, which I recommend checking out. We played bingo a couple of times, and I’m happy to report I won $193 on the first day. It was straight line bingo and I won after only 6 numbers were called. I did not exactly feel the love from the others playing though! We played trivia a few times, and I’ve got to say the questions were harder than I’ve been used to in the past, but it’s a lot of fun. I also entered a slot tournament, something I’ve never done before. I made it to the finals, but came in 3rd which means NOT in the money. I did get a t shirt and a long island iced tea, which was pretty good! More often than not I spent mornings laying out on deck with Gail, Joan and Donna (DonnaW on cruise critic). The weather was wonderful, much better than expected on a Atlantic crossing. One day it was too windy to lay out, but other than that I think we were out every sea day.

That's all for now, but be warned - There's more to come!

[Texed]

Thanks Terri. :)

[Lois R]

Hi Terri, thanks for Part 1. I am enjoying your review and looking

forward to part 2.:)

 

Hi Texed, how was your Century cruise?

[gkm]

Very enjoyable Terri. I'm looking forward to your next installment.

 

Garry

[newmexicoNita]

Terri, thanks I have been waiting for a review as that was the cruise we had planned on taking til we switched to the new NCL ship in Sept as we liked the itinerary and the newness a little more. I knew you would all have a blast. I don't regret taking the cruise we did, but I do wish we could have done Galaxy as well. NMNita

[Karynanne]

Thank you Terri...can't wait to read the next installment!

 

Karyn

[donnaw]

Terri, thanks I have been waiting for a review as that was the cruise we had planned on taking til we switched to the new NCL ship in Sept as we liked the itinerary and the newness a little more. I knew you would all have a blast. I don't regret taking the cruise we did, but I do wish we could have done Galaxy as well. NMNita

 

Nita, We missed you and Pat! I hope you had a wonderful cruise and would love to hear more about it!

 

Terri, Can't wait for the next part! I sent mine into CC but never thought of posting it here and I'm not now since it is 14 pages. Hey, we congratulated you on your win even if the cute little chubby guy had a tear in his eye at the time!

 

Waiting for more!

[teedee]

Thanks for the kind words guys. The second, and final part is now up.

Terri

[newmexicoNita]

Nita, We missed you and Pat! I hope you had a wonderful cruise and would love to hear more about it!

 

Terri, Can't wait for the next part! I sent mine into CC but never thought of posting it here and I'm not now since it is 14 pages. Hey, we congratulated you on your win even if the cute little chubby guy had a tear in his eye at the time!

 

Waiting for more!

Thanks Donna, we had a great CC group on our crusie which helped termendously; we will be on the Zenith in 3 weeks for our granddaughters wedding. As most know my cruise loyalties are split between NCL and Celebrity for totally different reasons. I guess I really need to try Princess as that is the only mass produced line we have not cruised. Our Sept cruise was the best we have ever had. There is nothing like a brand new ship plus the wonderful and unusual itinerary. I say there is nothing like a brand new ship, there is also nothing like an older ship; each offers something very special. If we do the transatlantic again maybe we will have the opportunity to meet some of you and do Celebrity. NMNita

[dmarch@islc.net]

The only other Celebrity ship I’ve sailed on is Century, which I dearly love, but Galaxy is very nice too. I’t’s similar to Century, but larger with better shopping options onboard, I thought. I like the martini bar location better on Galaxy, as it is separate and not tucked into a corner like on Century.

I've never sailed "C class" and don't quite understand. Galaxy sounds nicer. Could it be the staff? We hear a lot of good things about Century while Mercury and Galaxy just kind of fall to the wayside.

 

Really enjoyed your review, especially Rome. I must get their one day.

David

[teedee]

David - I think the staff is a large part of what makes Century so special. They seem to really love the ship and it shows. I can't remember ever walking past any Celebrity employee on that ship, from the highest up to the guys painting the rail where they didn't stop smile and ask me how I was. It's hard to put into words, but there is just something special about that ship!

Terri

[dmarch@islc.net]

Thanks Terri,

Really looking forward to our Jan. 2nd sailing on Century. She's has almost a magical allure for us at this point.

David

[joramrose]

TERRIfic!

 

It was almost like being there all over again. It was a great review with TERRI stamped all over it -- your enthusiasm and your openness to what comes next.

 

I really enjoyed it. I sure wish you were going to sing OPERA with us.

 

Now if I could read Donna's ----

 

love

joan

[teedee]

we will be on the Zenith in 3 weeks for our granddaughters wedding. . NMNita

 

Nita - My cousin Deb (DebCee) is on your Zenith cruise. She's a great person, I don't know if you saw the thread titled "What Cruise Critic means to me" about a CC member who went to check on, and took supplies to some folks who were without power from hurricane Wilma, but she's the one they were talking about.FONT]

Terri

[excitedofharpenden]

Thanks Terri. A fun read and thanks for sharing. It sounds like you had a great time in Rome and will go back again soon. Did you manage to get an exit seat on the plane OK? Sorry to hear about your noisy neighbour.

 

I'm away to read Part Deux.

 

Phil

[donnaw]

David, dh still prefers Century. She was the first build and changes were made to the Galaxy/Mercury making them slightly larger and with a few different options (indoor pool is one of them) but there is something special about the eldest sister. You'll have a great time!

 

Nita, I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time at the weddng. We have a long time to go (oldest is 9) but I am looking forward to that time. In the meantime have to start working on getting her to go to work for a cruise line!

 

Joan, I have emailed it to you! I sent it in to CC but have no idea how long it will take. I hesitated putting it on here since it is long!

 

Terri, Are you going to have to wait until April?

 

 

Still working on him!

[teedee]

Phil - I was able to get a bulkhead seat with no problem, all that worrying for nothing!

Donna - Yep, April on Mercury will be the next one, I hate waiting that long, but originally my next one was next October, so it's not too bad.

Terri

[roboref]

Terri,

Great review. We sure loved meeting you and I wish we could have visited even more.

What a wonderful cruise to go in our memory banks!

Have a great week! Only one more audit to go!

-- Pam