Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[George C]

1 hour ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

I've always been partial to the The Firm.  I think that's the first Grisham book that I read.  I remember really enjoying The Partner, The Pelican Brief, and The Rainmaker as well.  It's been many years since I've read them and I don't know how well those books would work many years later...I'm guessing they would still be great.

 

I haven't read them yet (Micheline has) but the Camino Island and Camino Winds books were supposed to have been inspired by Amelia Island.  There's a book store in our downtown area that is supposedly the book store from Camino Island.

John Grisham's Ode to Amelia Island – Garden & Gun (gardenandgun.com)

 

I liked almost all John Grisham early books and film adaptations , one of my favorite was “ playing for pizza “ didn’t care for some recent, prefer David Baldacci. 

[dani negreanu]

1 hour ago, DaniDanielle said:

Did you see the movie A Time to Kill?  Matthew McConaghy was the lead.

 

After I finished reading  A Time to Kill, I told DH: "You absolutely have to read this book" [the problem is, he's only reading in Hebrew, and not every author/book are translated]. I told him in general lines the story, and he goes: "Oh, I've seen the movie".... Well, he's more into movies, and I'm a more [as in a lot more] books....😉

 

How is your son feeling?

 

16 minutes ago, NHProud said:

Dani , do you pack before or after your Covid test ? I’m guessing before because you are a planner and leave nothing to chance.  

I have no choice but to pack. The test is carried out inside a travelers shop, which is supposed to be open at 10am, but, me being the planner, I went in "reconnaissance" last Saturday, and the Arab [Jews are not allowed to work on Saturdays] nurse working there told me that 10am is not really 10am, more like 10.30am... Our flight leaves at 3PM, and our eldest son will arrive at noon to take us to the airport.... That's why we're in a "bubble" this whole week. No room for "mistakes"...

 

You aren’t going museum hopping before and after your cruise ?

 

We'll have one full day in Rome, and DH has already announced that he's going "photography" ALONE. That we'll leave me, very happily, do some ALONE, without a shadow, shopping 😉 I've set my eyes on a very nice pair of earrings at Swarovsky.

Then we'll have 3 days in Barcelona, which I could do without. Been there many times. No definite plans, beside going to different markets, La Boqueria mainly.

 

16 minutes ago, NHProud said:

We are thinking of booking a cruise with three port stops in Greenland. Good idea ?

Never been there... Iceland, though, if it's included also in the itinerary, was amazing.

 

Have a fantastic vacation !  Thank you 😘

 

[Keksie]

2 hours ago, ReneeFLL said:

Ugh! It’s that time again. I hate having to decide which appliance to buy. Some have features I like and others have different features I like. Wished I could take features from both and put them into one. 😁

 

Does anyone have a dishwasher with a tall third rack (top)? I like the KitchenAid but the rack is tall (maybe 4 inches) and takes up more room. I’m thinking I won’t be able to put tall glasses in the second rack without taking out the top one. We don’t have a third rack with our dishwasher now so not sure just how much we will use it. It also has water jets that spray up under the third rack which the Bosch doesn’t. The jets are on bars/tubes that spin around that will get the third rack, but will also spray down onto the second rack. In the link you can see the spray bars. They are red on the end.

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/KitchenAid-24-in-PrintShield-Stainless-Steel-Top-Control-Built-In-Tall-Tub-Dishwasher-with-Stainless-Steel-Tub-44-dBA-KDTM404KPS/312285805#overlay

 

Mike likes the Bosch because it’s top rated in Consumer Reports. It has the third rack but is short. Won’t be able to put much up there. It doesn’t have any water jets that will spray from up underneath. Both of these models have a spray thing that sprays down onto the top rack.

 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Bosch-800-Series-24-in-Stainless-Steel-Top-Control-Tall-Tub-Dishwasher-with-Stainless-Steel-Tub-CrystalDry-42dBA-SHXM78Z55N/310500139

 

Any thoughts on these or other dishwashers? 

 

 

 

I have a new Kitchenaid (I know) however I really like it.  The bottom rack is tall and holds even my really large plates, the middle rack holds bowls, containers etc., the third rack is short and holds glasses, spatulas and small bowls.  Sometimes I think I can get my complete kitchen in it at one time. It has a lot of settings too.  The silverware tray is skinny but long and holds a lot of silverware.  My previous Bosch (that came with the house) had a huge silverware tray and I could not get many dishes in it.

Edited June 8, 2022 by Keksie
Added content

[Luckynana]

8 hours ago, Lionesss said:

 

Only time will tell what the next chapter of our world presents.

Sue, just sit back, and enjoy the Journey!!!  Lots of wonderful excitement is heading your way!🥰

[DaniDanielle]

@dani negreanuMy son is feeling better, the leg is still swollen so they are keeping him another day or two.  Thanks for asking🥰

[bobmacliberty]

27 minutes ago, derorim said:

 

Andy and I also honeymooned in Hawaii and have fond memories of a couple of Mai Tai catamaran sunset cruises where the drinks flowed freely.  I checked out your link to the recipe and appreciated they explained how to pronounce orgeat.  🙂

 

 

• How do you pronounce orgeat? Say Or-ZHAAT in your best French accent, where the “ZH” is like the J in the name Jacque.

 

The pronunciation of orgeat helped me also, so that I could ask in the liquor store and appear to know what I'm talking about.  I would have otherwise pronounced the end of the word as eau (like the french word for water, or eau de cologne)

[Sunshine3601]

17 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

 

 

I think we will all have our fingers and toes crossed 🙏 for everyone to have a negative covid test.    I am really excited for you and your Husband.     And you get to meet Sue and Gary too @sgmn - How nice that will be 😃

[Luckynana]

3 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

I think we will all have our fingers and toes crossed 🙏 for everyone to have a negative covid test.    I am really excited for you and your Husband.     And you get to meet Sue and Gary too @sgmn - How nice that will be 😃

+1😍

[Keksie]

6 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

I think we will all have our fingers and toes crossed 🙏 for everyone to have a negative covid test.    I am really excited for you and your Husband.     And you get to meet Sue and Gary too @sgmn - How nice that will be 😃

+2

[NHProud]

24 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

The pronunciation of orgeat helped me also, so that I could ask in the liquor store and appear to know what I'm talking about.  I would have otherwise pronounced the end of the word as eau (like the french word for water, or eau de cologne)

I wasn’t going to say anything but I’m French -American and I don’t know where the Or-Zhaat comes from but definitely pronounced like J in Jacque which is partially my child’s name and my maiden name has eau in it.  

 

Were you the one complaining about our May gray days and June gloom while you were staying at the Hotel Del ?   Well , it is cloudy outside. 

Edited June 8, 2022 by NHProud

[John&LaLa]

40 minutes ago, Keksie said:

I have a new Kitchenaid (I know) however I really like it.  The bottom rack is tall and holds even my really large plates, the middle rack holds bowls, containers etc., the third rack is short and holds glasses, spatulas and small bowls.  Sometimes I think I can get my complete kitchen in it at one time. It has a lot of settings too.  The silverware tray is skinny but long and holds a lot of silverware.  My previous Bosch (that came with the house) had a huge silverware tray and I could not get many dishes in it.

 

My 3rd rack is about useless. 2020 model. Newer one is better

[John&LaLa]

3 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

I'm interested in what you think about going solo.  Do you know anyone else on the cruise?  

 

Nope. It wasn't supposed to be a solo, but Laura is headed to Atlanta to babysit grandson. 

 

I'm looking forward to the freedom. Laura has done it dozens of times. My turn now.

 

Unfortunately we won't get any points for the trip

[John&LaLa]

2 hours ago, molly361 said:

You don't do too many solos do you?

 

First true solo. That's why I got dining pkg

[bobmacliberty]

16 minutes ago, NHProud said:

Were you the one complaining about our May gray days and June gloom while you were staying at the Hotel Del ?   Well , it is cloudy outside. 

 

That was me.  This is almost the exact time of year that we were there.  Best weather in the country, 50 weeks of the year. 🤪

[John&LaLa]

1 hour ago, derorim said:

 

Andy and I also honeymooned in Hawaii and have fond memories of a couple of Mai Tai catamaran sunset cruises where the drinks flowed freely.  I checked out your link to the recipe and appreciated they explained how to pronounce orgeat.  🙂

 

 

• How do you pronounce orgeat? Say Or-ZHAAT in your best French accent, where the “ZH” is like the J in the name Jacque.

 

Reminds me of Advocaat

[mets07]

18 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

My 3rd rack is about useless. 2020 model. Newer one is better

I think mine is the same as yours. I really don't care about the 3rd rack (I just use it for large utensils), however I need to use Express Wash and Extended Heat Dry settings ..... so it does not take 5 hours to wash/dry. Crazy.

[NHProud]

9 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

That was me.  This is almost the exact time of year that we were there.  Best weather in the country, 50 weeks of the year. 🤪

I enjoyed our Amelia Island vacation. Also enjoyed watching on TV the women’s tennis championship tournaments from there. 

[h20skibum]

Just a few random observations from our travels today.  No animals, but a few nice flowers spotted on our walk this morning. 
 

Blue morning glory

 

 

Hydrangea

 

We went to the Big Rock Deli and Cafe, since my son said they had some good eats there.  Evidently, what we ordered, I would not consider good eats.  This is their Governorator ( pastrami, bacon and cheese with a few other things). It did not meet my expectations.  This, plus a burger and two cokes came in at $45.

 

The Big Rock Deli isn’t too far from the Big Rock trail (about 4 miles).  Susan and I hiked it a few years ago, and I had hoped to do it again on this trip, but Covid had other ideas.  It is a nice trail along the mountains, and there are a few spots that overlook Skywalker Ranch, owned by George Lucas. 
 

Oh, and I guess you can get good weed delivered to your door out here. 
 

 

[Sea Dog]

2 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

Thanks for the link.  Of course I used Kraken (is there any other choice 😁) but I used it as a floater on top of the base drink, which used light rum.  Without the floater, the drink was too light in color, so I ended up mixing in the Kraken to make it a little darker.  Next time, I'll use a mix of an Anejo Rum and the Kraken.  Grand Marnier would definitely be better, but I only had Cointreau.  I'm on the lookout for some Pierre Ferrand Dry Curacao since that's what the original recipe calls for.  I'll post here how the improved version works.

Sounds great. I like the idea of Kraken as a topper. Boy now you got me in the mood for a Mai Tai.

 

1 hour ago, derorim said:

 

Andy and I also honeymooned in Hawaii and have fond memories of a couple of Mai Tai catamaran sunset cruises where the drinks flowed freely.  I checked out your link to the recipe and appreciated they explained how to pronounce orgeat.  🙂

 

 

• How do you pronounce orgeat? Say Or-ZHAAT in your best French accent, where the “ZH” is like the J in the name Jacque.

 

Thanks for that. I wondered how to correctly pronounce that.

[Luckynana]

29 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

Just a few random observations from our travels today.  

Oh, and I guess you can get good weed delivered to your door out here. 
 

 

Two of the women at Mahjongg this afternoon mentioned that a store was opening next to their Shop Rite that was going to be selling Marijuana..

[mets07]

3 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

It's happy hour, so time for some drink experimentation of my own.  Micheline and I honeymooned in Hawaii and had a Mai Tai just about every night before dinner.  The taste was amazing.  I've had Mai Tai's in several other places since then, but they never tasted quite as good.  I always thought that was just because everything in Hawaii on a honeymoon is going to taste better.  After doing a little research, I found that there are several variations to the Mai Tai recipe, with some using various fruit juices.  Those are typically sweeter and might be the versions that I didn't like.  The original recipe only contains lime juice and relies instead on rum, orgeat, and orange Curacao. 

 

I bought some orgeat syrup at my local liquor store (it's a non-alcoholic sweetener made from almonds and orange flower water) and had most of the other ingredients at home (substituting Cointreau for Orange Curacao since it's hard to find).  I used light rum as the base rum rather than golden rum, so the final product was lighter in color.  Next time, I'll get a bottle of Anejo rum, which should make the cocktail more amber in color and punch up the taste a bit.  It was still pretty tasty with the light rum.  Here's the recipe that I followed for anyone interested:

The Original Mai Tai – A Couple Cooks

 

 

My husband likes mai tais also. I thought you would get a kick out of this. We have a Royal drink booklet from I don't how many years ago. Check the price (and not the ingredients you prefer). 

 

 

 

 

[Ocean Boy]

1 minute ago, mets07 said:

My husband likes mai tais also. I thought you would get a kick out of this. We have a Royal drink booklet from I don't how many years ago. Check the price (and not the ingredients you prefer). 

 

 

 

 

Those hurricane glasses were awesome.

[Sea Dog]

1 minute ago, mets07 said:

My husband likes mai tais also. I thought you would get a kick out of this. We have a Royal drink booklet from I don't how many years ago. Check the price (and not the ingredients you prefer). 

 

 

 

 

Wow that’s a blast from the past. Never see those prices again.

[DaniDanielle]

1 hour ago, Keksie said:

+2

+3

[mets07]

2 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Those hurricane glasses were awesome.

Yes, we have one of those and a marguerita type one as well. Treasures. 😉 I am sure we are not the only ones....