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

[taznremmy]

4 hours ago, DaniDanielle said:

Sherlock has settled in.  Wendall, still not sure about him!

Love the head tilt. 😃

[BonTexasNY]

54 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

The big globe is still there.

Unisphere, then and now:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DaniDanielle]

Just made northern Italian style stuffed peppers.  Plop them on a heated roll with a slice of tomato!

My father-in-law’s recipe, his father was a chef in Manhattan.

[A&L_Ont]

5 hours ago, DaniDanielle said:

Sherlock has settled in.  Wendall, still not sure about him!

I love this photo. 

[reallyitsmema]

13 minutes ago, DaniDanielle said:

Just made northern Italian style stuffed peppers.  Plop them on a heated roll with a slice of tomato!

My father-in-law’s recipe, his father was a chef in Manhattan.

 

I have never heard of a stuffed pepper sandwich, will have to give that a try sometime.

[DaniDanielle]

The first time I ate with the future family, I wasn’t too sure about the peppers that way.  After a few times I really got to enjoy them.

[Ocean Boy]

17 minutes ago, DaniDanielle said:

Just made northern Italian style stuffed peppers.  Plop them on a heated roll with a slice of tomato!

My father-in-law’s recipe, his father was a chef in Manhattan.

I love stuffed peppers.

[DaniDanielle]

Come on over😊

[A&L_Ont]

3 hours ago, HBE4 said:

I get an e-mail offer once a month from my local Lexus dealer asking me to trade in my 2015 RX for a new one.  I guess because there is a big demand for used cars.  While some of the offers are tempting, I'm pretty sure my next car is going to be something a bit sportier.

We decided to go with the new one now as the trade in offer was very decent. We got half of what we bought the car for after 7.5 years of ownership. Had it been less we might have considered keeping it for Owen but it was hard to say no. 
 

It already has it’s auto-spa appointment for PPF, window tint and ceramic coating. Weather-tech floor mats ordered as well. 

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, Keksie said:

These are a few of my thoughts about our cruise.  Pictures will come later once my husband can come inside and download his camera.  He is mowing now that most of the storm damage has been taken care of.  Still have 2 trees down and 1 that I think is too dangerous for him to attempt by himself.

Embarkation and debarkation could not have been faster. 

Food:

We had the key so lunch the first day and breakfast the last day were in the MDR.  They both were delicious and peaceful.

Breakfast and lunch everyday were in the Windjammer, we were very happy with the choices every day.  We had Chops +1.  Our 1 was Izumi.  Both meals were great.  I got the lamb chops in Chops.  I got the Champagne Lobster Roll and the Tempura Lobster Roll.  For dessert I had the Sesame balls with the red bean paste which was the perfect balance of not sweet/sweet.

Two other dinners were in the Windjammer and 3 were in the MDR.  All were good.

The not so good was the Windjammer the last night.  We wanted to go to the show so decided to eat first in the Windjammer.  The food in there all week was really good with roast beef, brisket (my husband got the burnt ends which the carver was about to throw away).  The last night however the food was not appealing at all.  We then went to the show and ate in the MDR after.

The staff was very friendly and service was as good or better then any of our other cruises.  The cruise director was fun and the game shows were hilarious.

The internet was horrible.  We needed to keep in touch with our house sitters because of the bad weather.  No way would it work in our cabin.  My husband found one place that he could make wifi calls without them dropping.  We found that if we were on the pool deck before the younger people were up the internet was fast, after that not even the app worked well.  Since they don’t give out the compass any more you need the app to know what was going on.

The game shows were great but the rest of the entertainment was not.  The music was not anything that interested us.  One night there was no show.  The comedian had 2 shows.  The first show he was funny but the second show he kept checking his notes, his watch and he seemed to be in a down mood.  I know it is a small ship but seriously?

The ports:

Cozumel – Nachi Cocom – great as always

Roatan – Maya Cay – the winds were up so we could not snorkel, the beach was nice and I got to spend at least 30 min. talking rescue animals with one of the staff.

Belize – Took a river safari. The wind was still up so it was a good option to not be bounced around in a small boat.

Costa Maya – 1^st excursion was a catamaran snorkel, with the winds they refunded our payment because of poor visibility.  It would have been awesome if the wind had not been so bad.  2^nd excursion was the aviary at the port and it was very nice the way they had it set up.

Thanks for your thoughts. That’s too bad on the wind’s putting a damper on your excursions. I’m happy that it seems your overall trip was good.

[A&L_Ont]

2 hours ago, Keksie said:

These are a few of my thoughts about our cruise. 

I’m sorry to read about the storm damage, but happy to read that overall the cruise went well.
 

After missing cruises for as long as you had did it feel great to be back?  I sure hope it did. 

[bobmacliberty]

44 minutes ago, BonTexasNY said:

Unisphere, then and now:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's also this view from 1997, which is one of the only times that I've seen the Unisphere.  The other times are as background shots from either the US Open (tennis) or a Mets game at Shea.  For the record, I was also 3 for the 1964 World's Fair.

 

[Keksie]

44 minutes ago, A&L_Ont said:

I’m sorry to read about the storm damage, but happy to read that overall the cruise went well.
 

After missing cruises for as long as you had did it feel great to be back?  I sure hope it did. 

It was wonderful.  I really enjoyed being on a ship again.  I am already looking forward to our next cruise in May.  Maybe earlier if I can talk my husband into something.  It is going to such a busy fall that finding a time is difficult.  

[Keksie]

So what does your husband do on the last morning of the cruise.  The internet is finally fast since most people are still asleep and he has had all the pool time he can take.  

 

He looks at all the categories on Craigslist and now meet our newest family member.  Her name is Sabel and she is 9.5 weeks old.

 

[grapau27]

1 minute ago, Keksie said:

So what does your husband do on the last morning of the cruise.  The internet is finally fast since most people are still asleep and he has had all the pool time he can take.  

 

He looks at all the categories on Craigslist and now meet our newest family member.  Her name is Sabel and she is 9.5 weeks old.

 

Sabel is lovely.

[HBE4]

18 minutes ago, Keksie said:

So what does your husband do on the last morning of the cruise.  The internet is finally fast since most people are still asleep and he has had all the pool time he can take.  

 

He looks at all the categories on Craigslist and now meet our newest family member.  Her name is Sabel and she is 9.5 weeks old.

 

 

Sabel is adorable!

[HBE4]

17 hours ago, Coralc said:

Bill said the high today was 56 degrees F. 13 C. 

 

I know you have 2 houses and are in the process of moving (or have moved) but I missed when you purchased a 3rd hours above the Arctic Circle? 😉

 

[DaniDanielle]

How pretty is Sabel😊

[HBE4]

1 hour ago, A&L_Ont said:

We decided to go with the new one now as the trade in offer was very decent. We got half of what we bought the car for after 7.5 years of ownership. Had it been less we might have considered keeping it for Owen but it was hard to say no.

 

Good luck with the new car.  That is a hard deal to pass up on. Most of the offers I've received are a little less, no surprise considering it's a year older and the last year of the previous generation.

 

And while the RX is a beautiful & smooth driving car - if a bit ponderous on the curvy roads - I'm sure Owen would prefer to have the Storm Trooper. 😉

[Ozark_Kid]

3 hours ago, Keksie said:

We had the key so lunch the first day and breakfast the last day were in the MDR. 

Would you do the key again?

 

3 hours ago, Keksie said:

 I got the lamb chops in Chops. 

Were they grilled?  I didn't realize how good grilled lamb chops where until I tried them in the Samba Grill on Allure. 

 

3 hours ago, Keksie said:

 I got the Champagne Lobster Roll and the Tempura Lobster Roll. 

Those are my 2 favorites in Izumi. 

 

3 hours ago, Keksie said:

Cozumel – Nachi Cocom – great as always

We love going here.  So relaxing.

 

Thanks for sharing.  Looking forward to the pics!

[derorim]

1 hour ago, Keksie said:

So what does your husband do on the last morning of the cruise.  The internet is finally fast since most people are still asleep and he has had all the pool time he can take.  

 

He looks at all the categories on Craigslist and now meet our newest family member.  Her name is Sabel and she is 9.5 weeks old.

 

 

Awwwww!  Sabel is precious!

[A&L_Ont]

16 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

And while the RX is a beautiful & smooth driving car - if a bit ponderous on the curvy roads - I'm sure Owen would prefer to have the Storm Trooper. 😉

Indeed, there is a big difference between the two.  Ponderous is a great description.

 

He actually got to drive it home from school today as Lisa’s car is in the garage with all the rain. He now has an idea how sensitive the gas and brakes are. That took a bit of time but he adjusted quickly. 

[A&L_Ont]

1 hour ago, Keksie said:

It was wonderful.  I really enjoyed being on a ship again.  I am already looking forward to our next cruise in May.  Maybe earlier if I can talk my husband into something.  It is going to such a busy fall that finding a time is difficult.  

I’m so happy for both of you. Hopefully you can get one in before May but it will come soon enough.
 

Give Sabel a rub for me too. 

[HBE4]

1 hour ago, Keksie said:

It was wonderful.  I really enjoyed being on a ship again.  I am already looking forward to our next cruise in May.  Maybe earlier if I can talk my husband into something.  It is going to such a busy fall that finding a time is difficult.  

 

So glad you had a wonderful time on your cruise  despite the sub-par entertainment & are looking forward to the next one. I know you didn't want to return to cruising until it was pretty much 100% as it was in the before times so it's good to hear your thoughts, both good and not-so-good.

 

I think that leaves me as the only one who has not returned to a ship yet. That might change this fall. Maybe. I think.

[Keksie]

23 minutes ago, Ozark_Kid said:

Would you do the key again?

 

Were they grilled?  I didn't realize how good grilled lamb chops where until I tried them in the Samba Grill on Allure. 

 

Those are my 2 favorites in Izumi. 

 

We love going here.  So relaxing.

 

Thanks for sharing.  Looking forward to the pics!

I would get the key again.  What I enjoy about it is the ability to drop our carry one off and not lug them around until our cabin is ready.  I like the Chops lunch away from the crowded Windjammer.  I liked not having to worry about the tender in Belize.  I like the last morning breakfast away from the crowds and being able to leave when we want.  Super easy to find our luggage.  Plus we both had the internet package which we would have gotten anyway.  On a larger ship I would have liked it even more for the show seating.

 

The lamb chops were grilled.