The Straw...Not the Same old, Same Old

[Georgia_Peaches]

Hi everyone,

I recently started what I thought was going to be a live review of my Thanksgiving voyage out on NOLA on the Breakaway.  Well that only lasted until the first day of the trip as technical difficulties with the internet package shut me down pretty quickly.  I could rehash everything but honestly, I don't know that I could say more than what has already been reported by some other great reviews.  We had an awesome time from start to finish and I highly recommend the Breakaway to others.  That said, I wanted to at least give back to others who have taken time to write lengthy reviews and post awesome pictures.  So here goes...based on actual events. Where there's a will...there's a way.

 

The Straw

The packing began with the fill of my tote,

All things needed to take on the boat.

The outfits and shoes were carefully planned,

With hats and sunscreen ready for sand.

And with all of my planning and checking you’ll bet,

That surely there’s nothing I’d totally forget!

Wrong you would be as I unpacked and saw

 That I forgot to bring my reusable straw!

 

I bought it on Amazon just a few weeks before

At the rock bottom price of seven-ninety-four.

An assortment of colors in red, blue, and pink,

And I couldn’t wait for that first frozen drink.

But the straw I planned for was still on the bed

Right next to the things I left home instead.

 

Disappointment in check, the boat must sail on,

I gathered my wits and had a shot of Patron. 

I scoured the drink list and with the drop of my jaw

Discovered many a-drink that required no straw.

Encouraged, I thought, I can do this, I can.

And with all of the options, I made a new plan.

 

The days of the trip sailed by without delay

And before we knew it, we saw Harvest Caye.

A cute little island with so much to do

We quickly found our clamshell , but that’s when I knew.

A frozen drink on this island was truly a must

And without one I knew I’d simply combust.

 

Storing his cash in his mini armada,

DH placed an order for a pina colada.

With a hushed voice and a glimmering eye,

I asked DH to get a straw on the sly.

But the bar tender was clever and gave a shake of his head

And offered DH a plastic spoon instead.

 

I scooped my coladas right in to my mouth

And before I knew it, it was time to walk south.

A bathroom I needed and I needed it fast!

To the path I sprinted, the urge was vast.

 

Eager to return to my spot to relax,

Only one thing could compel me to stop in my tracks.

And there it was in all of its glory,

I knew right then, it would make quite a story.

 

For the abandoned coconut head shone in the light

With a clear plastic straw standing proudly upright.

You may think me crazy but I knew at the time,

That pretty little straw, it had to be mine!

 

Someone just left it?  They gave it no thought?

Hard to believe, but hey, perhaps they knew not.

 

Looking first to the left, and then to the right,

I grabbed that straw and held on to it tight.

DH was amazed at the measures I took

But securing a straw was worth his disdainful look.

 

I washed my new straw in a most careful way

And drank pina coladas the rest of the day!

And while the highlight of my cruise may have a slight flaw,

It got a tad bit better when I found that little straw!

 

So just an FYI, Breakaway has not yet moved to paper straws like some of the other ships.  I have to say it was no big deal but I did see some irony in being offered a plastic spoon with my frozen drink while on the island. 

 

[TrumpyNor]

Very nice - you made me smile while reading, so thank you! 😊

[puppycanducruise]

Very cute.

You have a way with words.

Thanks.

[tbo]

Very good little story there, thank you for taking the time, made me smile

[Noworkforme23]

LOVE LOVE 😍 it. You made me 😊 

[seemoreroyals]

We were on the cruise just before yours.  Other than a horrendous embarkation we had a fantastic cruise on the Breakaway.  It took over an hour to get from Harrah’s to the pier and about an hour and a half from the pier to get on the ship.  The MDR had just closed by the time we got on so we tried to get in O’Sheehan’s but they were handing out beepers with an expected wait over 30 minutes so we had to go to the buffet.  

 

On on the subject of straws, we packed ours, but most of the time forgot them and left them in the room. Throughout the trip My wife and I either had wine,  drank Micolob Ultra or had Grey Goose, diet Sierra Mist and a lime squeeze so most of the time they were not needed.  And I noticed they were making the frozen drinks a little thinner than usual.  The only time I remember a normally thick frozen drink was one night when we were waiting for dinner at one of the MDR’s an older lady next to us ordered a strawberry daiquiri and asked for both a straw and then a spoon and was told they had neither.  So the straw thing wasn’t as big a deal but I did feel sorry for those that were unprepared and for what we all pay for these cruises they should have had some for when they were really needed.

 

The entertainment was great.  We enjoyed the Cirque show, the comics,  the entertainers in the small lounges, as well as the various shows in the main theater.

 

Note to those with upcoming Breakaway cruises.  Make your reservations as far advance or as soon as you get on board as spots fill up fast. Especially for the entertainment that requires it. 

[Georgia_Peaches]

4 hours ago, seemoreroyals said:

We were on the cruise just before yours.  Other than a horrendous embarkation we had a fantastic cruise on the Breakaway.  It took over an hour to get from Harrah’s to the pier and about an hour and a half from the pier to get on the ship.  The MDR had just closed by the time we got on so we tried to get in O’Sheehan’s but they were handing out beepers with an expected wait over 30 minutes so we had to go to the buffet.  

 

On on the subject of straws, we packed ours, but most of the time forgot them and left them in the room. Throughout the trip My wife and I either had wine,  drank Micolob Ultra or had Grey Goose, diet Sierra Mist and a lime squeeze so most of the time they were not needed.  And I noticed they were making the frozen drinks a little thinner than usual.  The only time I remember a normally thick frozen drink was one night when we were waiting for dinner at one of the MDR’s an older lady next to us ordered a strawberry daiquiri and asked for both a straw and then a spoon and was told they had neither.  So the straw thing wasn’t as big a deal but I did feel sorry for those that were unprepared and for what we all pay for these cruises they should have had some for when they were really needed.

 

The entertainment was great.  We enjoyed the Cirque show, the comics,  the entertainers in the small lounges, as well as the various shows in the main theater.

 

Note to those with upcoming Breakaway cruises.  Make your reservations as far advance or as soon as you get on board as spots fill up fast. Especially for the entertainment that requires it. 

Seems we had quite a different embarkation experience. Ours was very smooth and took about 30 minutes from luggage drop off to first drink on the pool deck. I will say that the NOLA port itself is very dated and lack luster. Agree that advanced reservations are a must. But even things showing as fully booked opened up throughout the cruise due to cancellations. 

[seemoreroyals]

2 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Seems we had quite a different embarkation experience. Ours was very smooth and took about 30 minutes from luggage drop off to first drink on the pool deck. I will say that the NOLA port itself is very dated and lack luster. Agree that advanced reservations are a must. But even things showing as fully booked opened up throughout the cruise due to cancellations. 

That is what we are used to. Since ours was the first cruise for the Breakaway out of NOLA once we finally got to the pier they were real disorganized and pushy and forced everyone all into one line that went to the back of the building and almost back to the opening again.  We are not platinum but both us and our friends we cruise with are gold and also part of CAS so normally they usher us through quickly like the less than 30 minute time frame you experienced.  With us it literally took an hour and a half to get on the ship. Getting off the ship was a piece of cake.  It took us less than 15 minutes to get off.  Once we got in line they directed all the gold and above card holders to a different line and we literally walked right off the ship with our luggage 

[cathi007]

I LOVE you!!!!! You just made my night 🙂 Oh and I already purchased my reusable straws. And after reading your poem, I will not forget them 🙂

[Sand and Seas]

2 hours ago, cathi007 said:

I LOVE you!!!!! You just made my night 🙂 Oh and I already purchased my reusable straws. And after reading your poem, I will not forget them 🙂

Agree!  Fantastic story told in that poem.

I carry our straws in a travel toothbrush container in my purse.   Would hate to forget them!  I keep a drawer of 'must take' items in my dresser so I'm ready to pack for the next cruise.  

[Sand and Seas]

9 hours ago, seemoreroyals said:

We were on the cruise just before yours.  Other than a horrendous embarkation we had a fantastic cruise on the Breakaway.  It took over an hour to get from Harrah’s to the pier and about an hour and a half from the pier to get on the ship...

 

 

We were on that same cruise.   We always walk over from Harrah's to the pier and it took less than 15 minutes but we saw that horrendous traffic jam of taxis and cars trying to get to the pier.   So sorry you were stuck in that!  

It was a confused 'newbie' pier staff for that first NOLA embarkation.     Once we got past security check we quickly learned that being a 'Casino guest' was a faster way to get on the ship than being Platinum Plus.     Fun cruise after that extra confusing embarkation 🙂

[eddeb]

We always made straws in the 70's by rolling up  a dollar bill...😎

 

Bliss 12/01

 

It's always 5 o'clock on the ship.  🕔

[rwf1]

On 11/28/2018 at 10:43 PM, Sand and Seas said:

Agree!  Fantastic story told in that poem.

I carry our straws in a travel toothbrush container in my purse.   Would hate to forget them!  I keep a drawer of 'must take' items in my dresser so I'm ready to pack for the next cruise.  

This is a great idea!  I was considering just using ziplock bags, but this seems much better.  Thanks for the idea!

[rwf1]

Great poem!  Loved it!

 

[Heather1972]

On 11/28/2018 at 10:43 PM, Sand and Seas said:

Agree!  Fantastic story told in that poem.

I carry our straws in a travel toothbrush container in my purse.   Would hate to forget them!  I keep a drawer of 'must take' items in my dresser so I'm ready to pack for the next cruise.  

 

Good idea since it looks like I have to bring my own straws on my next cruise. BYOS! 

 

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, rwf1 said:

This is a great idea!  I was considering just using ziplock bags, but this seems much better.  Thanks for the idea!

Tested the travel toothbrush container on last two cruises now and it works well.  Look for straws that are 6 inches or no more than 7.5 inches.   They worked best in NCLs glasses and taller would be too easy to tip.  The 6 inch straws worked great in the plastic disposable cups NCL uses.   I recall reading on one person's post that the bartenders were cutting down the paper straws to fit glasses.   And that is only if your ship has gotten those paper straws yet 😉

[rwf1]

 

2 minutes ago, Sand and Seas said:

Tested the travel toothbrush container on last two cruises now and it works well.  Look for straws that are 6 inches or no more than 7.5 inches.   They worked best in NCLs glasses and taller would be too easy to tip.  The 6 inch straws worked great in the plastic disposable cups NCL uses.   I recall reading on one person's post that the bartenders were cutting down the paper straws to fit glasses.   And that is only if your ship has gotten those paper straws yet 😉

 

Since you mentioned straws that could tip glasses, are you using stainless steel straws?  We bought some recently to take on the cruise.  Glad to know that the 6" size works well for the disposable cups.  My husband and I were discussing the size when buying the straws.  Wanted to get the right height for the plastic cups.  Now I can't remember which sizes we bought.  I will have to get some 6" ones if we don't have them.

[Sand and Seas]

9 minutes ago, rwf1 said:

 

 

Since you mentioned straws that could tip glasses, are you using stainless steel straws?  We bought some recently to take on the cruise.  Glad to know that the 6" size works well for the disposable cups.  My husband and I were discussing the size when buying the straws.  Wanted to get the right height for the plastic cups.  Now I can't remember which sizes we bought.  I will have to get some 6" ones if we don't have them.

One type that works is shorter silicone straws.  Just google short silicone straws and lots of options come up.   Some are made for kids but the bright colors will make it easier to not lose them when the servers grab your empty cup!

Even if my next ship has the paper straws I'm going to continue to carry these.  They work great in a Mudslide or Mango Meltdown and they don't disintegrate like paper.

[Gershep]

Loved your poem.

[Jonslola]

I'm so glad you forgot your straws so that we could be treated to your wonderful and hilarious poem, thank you!

[rwf1]

2 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

One type that works is shorter silicone straws.  Just google short silicone straws and lots of options come up.   Some are made for kids but the bright colors will make it easier to not lose them when the servers grab your empty cup!

Even if my next ship has the paper straws I'm going to continue to carry these.  They work great in a Mudslide or Mango Meltdown and they don't disintegrate like paper.

Great tips, thanks!