Come sail with me on a virtual cruise on Majestic Princess to Fiji!

[Lucky TGO]

I enjoy your virtual cruise. I also loved the photo’s thanks for sharing.

Tony

[winifred]

Relaxing on my virtual balcony too! What a cruise this has been! My husband said if only they all cost this  much i.e. nada🤣

[TeaBag]

Don't feel pressured, Ellie.  We are happy to read your posts when it is convenient for you.  Grandkids come first!

[ellie1145]

I’m Back - thanks for your Patience!

 

Well, here I am back again. We’ve had a hectic weekend looking after our very energetic four year old grandson. He enjoyed helping to decorate my birthday cake and was a bundle of energy, waking at 6.00 am ready to play. I have to admit we are exhausted when we finally wave him off, but he is worth every minute and we have plenty of time to recover before his next visit. At the moment he is our only grandchild and one we waited many years for, so he is very special. He is the sole reason I abandoned all you lovely Cruising Adventurers. 

 

Thank you all so much for your patience, and kind words.

 

My cake. We had to restrict the number of candles in order not to burn the house down! 🤣

 

[ellie1145]

On 8/29/2020 at 10:43 PM, Digistorm said:

Hope you enjoy the rest of the weekend!

 

Thank you so much, Digistorm, I did.

[ellie1145]

On 8/29/2020 at 11:57 PM, Loucat said:

Ellie-Enjoy time with your grandson. This is a special time. We will all be here when you have time.

Have a great weekend!

 

Thank you, Loucat. 

 

We had a great weekend, despite being up with the larks! He starts school next week and I know that we will see less of him, and as a infant teacher I realise how much they grow and develop once they start school, so it was a very special time, indeed. 

[ellie1145]

21 hours ago, cnd crsr said:

Hi Ellie --- following along and so glad you are enjoying time with your grandson. Grandchildren are the best!

 

I am very content to relax on my balcony watching the sea go by until you rejoin us,

.

Gail

 

Thank you Gail. I’m glad you have had time to relax on your balcony whilst you wait. Nothing better than watching the sea.

 

You are so right, grandchildren are the best!

[ellie1145]

16 hours ago, Lucky TGO said:

I enjoy your virtual cruise. I also loved the photo’s thanks for sharing.

Tony

 

Lovely to hear from you, Tony.

 

Great to hear you are enjoying our virtual cruise.  Thanks for following along. 

[ellie1145]

4 hours ago, winifred said:

Relaxing on my virtual balcony too! What a cruise this has been! My husband said if only they all cost this  much i.e. nada🤣

 

Good to hear that, Winifred! 

 

It certainly has been a bargain cruise! 🤣

[ellie1145]

3 hours ago, TeaBag said:

Don't feel pressured, Ellie.  We are happy to read your posts when it is convenient for you.  Grandkids come first!

 

Thank you so much, Teabag! 

[ellie1145]

What’s on today?

 

 

So what is going on today, our penultimate sea day? It’s the final formal night tonight, of course. 

 

Well, there are a few old favourites such as the the Effy Final Call - End of Year Sale up to 60% off - sounds a bit like the Oak Furniture Land sale familiar to us Brits! 🤣), the Onboard Outlet Sale (where you can buy all sorts of things you never knew you needed, with the names of places you have never visited or are ever likely to visit, but are too cheap to miss), the Culinary Demonstration and Galley Tour at 10.00 am (try not to miss this!), the Princess Pop Choir Rehearsal at 11.15 am, the Voice of the Ocean Finale at 2.00 pm which is fed live into Princess Live, the Production Show: Encore at 7.45 pm and 9.45 pm, and our personal favourite, The Marriage Match Game Show in Princess Live at 9.00 pm.

 

There are plenty of things to do, such as Zumba at 9.00 am, Ping Pong Tournament at 9.30 am, Line Dancing at 10.45 am, a South Pacific Enrichment Presentation: A Short History of the South Sea Islands at 11.15 am, Dicey Wooden Horse Racing at 11.45 am, Bean Bag Toss as 12.45 pm, Future Cruise Presentation: Caribbean and Alaska at 1.00 pm, Ballroom Dance Class: The Bachata at 1.00 pm, Arts and Crafts with Gareth: Animal Bookmarks at 2.45 pm, Ukulele Progressive Class at 3.15 pm, Stand Up Comedy Showtime with Sam McCool at 5.45 pm, 8.15 pm and 9.30 pm, Watercolour Fantasy ‘Frank Sinatra’ at the Fountain Pool at 9.00 pm, and finally the Karaoke Power Hour at 10.15 pm in Princess Live.

 

As usual there plenty of movies starting with Movies under the Stars: ‘Aladdin’ at 9.30 am, a Music Concert: The Rolling Stones - Havana Moon Live in Cuba at 12.15 pm, Cirque du Soleil: Kooza at 2.30 pm, Music Concert: Sting Live in Berlin at 4.30 pm, and the Evening Movie: ‘Yesterday‘ at 7.00 pm and 9.30 pm.

 

 

Live music is available all over the ship, with Classical and Contemporary Melodies with Music Wave String Duo at 4.30 pm and 5.45 pm, Piano and Cocktails with Vadim Tutov at 6.15 pm, Guitarist and Vocalist Michelle Joly at 6.45 pm, 8.00 pm and 9.15 pm, Music Favourites with Jaame’s Band at 7.45 pm, our favourite Rudi Douglas at 8.00 pm - 11.00 pm, 70’s Disco Hits with DJ Reno at 9.45 pm, Late Night Music with Zinger Quartet at 10.15 - late, and finally Formal Night Disco with DJ Reno at 11.45 - late.

 

Of course for Trivia fans there is Morning Trivia at 10.15 am, Progressive Trivia at 12.15 pm, Art Trivia at 1.15 pm, Afternoon trivia at 3.00 pm, and the Early Evening Music Quiz: The Fairy Tale at 4.30 pm.

 

Now there is so much going on today that, although I had made a solid commitment to attend the Secrets to a Flatter Stomach, (oh boy do I need that after all those fantastic bread rolls in the dining room, not to mention the soufflés!), and the Refresh and Restore Your Look (now if anyone can do that for me, for free, they deserve a medal), and of course, the Skin Tightening and Lifting Therapy with Thermage, (exactly what I need, but I have a felling it would take a little more than Thermage), I’m afraid that I just couldn’t fit them into our busy schedule.

 

But, after all, tomorrow is another day, as the late great Vivien Leigh would have said. (Cue full orchestra and angelic choir, with sunset in the background ....).

Edited August 31, 2020 by ellie1145

[rmf11699]

1 hour ago, ellie1145 said:

That cake looks awesome! Happy birthday Ellie!

[azbirdmom]

Happy birthday Ellie!  Glad you were able to wing back to the present in your Tardis and could enjoy your special day with your grandson.

[cnd crsr]

3 hours ago, ellie1145 said:

I’m Back - thanks for your Patience!

 

Well, here I am back again. We’ve had a hectic weekend looking after our very energetic four year old grandson. He enjoyed helping to decorate my birthday cake and was a bundle of energy, waking at 6.00 am ready to play. I have to admit we are exhausted when we finally wave him off, but he is worth every minute and we have plenty of time to recover before his next visit. At the moment he is our only grandchild and one we waited many years for, so he is very special. He is the sole reason I abandoned all you lovely Cruising Adventurers. 

 

Thank you all so much for your patience, and kind words.

 

My cake. We had to restrict the number of candles in order not to burn the house down! 🤣

 

Love it! There is nothing like a birthday cake decorated with the help of a 4 year old grandson,

Happy birthday Ellie!!!

[Lucky TGO]

5 hours ago, ellie1145 said:

I’m Back - thanks for your Patience!

 

Well, here I am back again. We’ve had a hectic weekend looking after our very energetic four year old grandson. He enjoyed helping to decorate my birthday cake and was a bundle of energy, waking at 6.00 am ready to play. I have to admit we are exhausted when we finally wave him off, but he is worth every minute and we have plenty of time to recover before his next visit. At the moment he is our only grandchild and one we waited many years for, so he is very special. He is the sole reason I abandoned all you lovely Cruising Adventurers. 

 

Thank you all so much for your patience, and kind words.

 

My cake. We had to restrict the number of candles in order not to burn the house down! 🤣

 

Hi Ellie,

Happy Birthday!! That’s a great looking cake. Next time you take your grandson on a cruise order him this (See Photo)

from the kids menu. I think he will love it. I always order at least one 😋 On every cruise from my self. 😁.

It’s called a Volcano.

Tony

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 1, 2020 by Lucky TGO

[ellie1145]

21 hours ago, azbirdmom said:

Happy birthday Ellie!  Glad you were able to wing back to the present in your Tardis and could enjoy your special day with your grandson.

 

Thank you, azbirdmom. It was a very special weekend. 

[ellie1145]

20 hours ago, cnd crsr said:

Love it! There is nothing like a birthday cake decorated with the help of a 4 year old grandson,

Happy birthday Ellie!!!

 

Thank you cod crsr. He had so much fun decorating it - and eating a whole lot of chocolates as he did it! 🤣

[ellie1145]

18 hours ago, Lucky TGO said:

Hi Ellie,

Happy Birthday!! That’s a great looking cake. Next time you take your grandson on a cruise order him this (See Photo)

from the kids menu. I think he will love it. I always order at least one 😋 On every cruise from my self. 😁.

It’s called a Volcano.

Tony

 

Thank you for my birthday wishes. The cake was quite delicious I have to say. 

 

The ‘Volcano’ looks amazing. I had no idea it was available. It’s definitely on my ‘must eat’ list for our next cruise, whenever that may be. 

 

Thank you for the great photos! 👍 

[ellie1145]

Wednesday, October 30th At Sea

 

 

Morning Trivia over, we stay and chat for a while before going up to the buffet for a late breakfast. It is amazing how long the hours are in the buffet, and whatever time of day you can always find something to eat. It’s brilliant.

 

That very Australian spread, Vegemite, available in the buffet.

 

We have Progressive Trivia at 12.15 pm in Princess Live so we must be ready to join our group. But we decide that the ‘p’ word is looming and we dash down to the cabin to sort out our suitcases ready to start that most miserable of tasks, packing to go home.

 

There are lots of things we really like about the cabin.  It is very spacious, and has a long sofa, something sadly missing from normal Princess balcony cabins.

 

 

There is normally just a chair to go under the dressing table in those cabins. That is where Royal Caribbean score as there has been a sofa in every balcony cabin we've had.

 

This is a photo of a balcony cabin on Caribbean Princess, showing the chair that is standard. 

 

There are two TVs, and lots of power points, including USB ports. Princess are the best for entertainment on the TV. There is a superb range of movies available, and a new one is added each day. Being ‘on demand’ is a real plus factor, as we can stop and start at will.  NCL offer nothing, as does RCI. We don’t want to watch non-stop TV but being able to dip in and out of a movie is a real plus factor.

 

The wardrobe, which is typical of every Princess ship we’ve been on, is huge and open, almost the width of the cabin, with a tall shelved cupboard alongside, where there is a large safe. 

 

As you walk into the cabin the bathroom and wardrobe area is on your right, and separates itself from the main living space. Again, we rate it better than any other cruise line we’ve been on. The fact that it is separate from the main bedroom area also makes it a handy place for getting changed.

 

We love the bathroom, as of course, it has a bath with a shower over. I love having a relaxing bath before bed and use the shower during the day. It has lots of storage and is very functional, so no complaints there. I don’t like the shower gel they provide and always bring my own shampoo etc.

 

 

We are also given plenty of bars of soap, which we prefer. All in all, a great bathroom. The only problem will be going back to a ‘normal’ bathroom with no bath.

 

The balcony, of course, is small, as on all Royal Class ships. The Grand Class balconies are much bigger. But we have found it adequate, and we have great views as we leave each port. However, it’s a deal breaker for some folks.

 

Service in the cabin is great. Our cabin steward is brilliant, the cabin and bathroom is kept spotlessly clean. He was happy to bring me more hangers, plus two bath towels each every day, and he replenishes the ice daily. We are not demanding passengers. He does his job well, he is very pleasant but not ‘in your face’ every minute, so for us he is perfect.

[ellie1145]

Progressive Trivia

Then we make our way to Princess Live, where our team mates are ready and waiting. This is the penultimate Progressive Trivia and we are hoping to improve on our previous scores, so we wrack our brains for the answers, and think we have done quite well.

 

But there are lots of teams who have stayed the course so it’s going to be a nail-biting finish we think. We are definitely in with a chance, but there are some great teams competing so it’s going to be touch and go. But whatever happens, it’s been great fun, and we’ve met such lovely people that winning is not really important.

 

Here are a few Trivia questions for you to mull over.

 

1.  What is the only insect that can turn its head a full 360 degrees?

2.  Born in Saumar, France in 1883, who is Gabrielle Bonheur better known as?  

3.   What is the name of the red dragon in Mulan?

[ellie1145]

The Shops Of Princess

 

Majestic Princess was built specifically for the Asian market. The Chinese like shopping, especially high end shops. Hence the shops onboard include such names as Cartier and Dior.

 

This seating area is outside the main shopping arcade

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[PurpleTraveller]

Gabrielle Bonheur was better known as Coco Chanel. Have no idea about the other questions.

 

I am sorry your cruise is coming to an end as I have so enjoyed following along. Thank you for taking the time to write your wonderful review. 😊

Edited September 1, 2020 by PurpleTraveller

[Loucat]

Here is a shot at the 360 degree head turing insect- A praying mantis? I used to watch them years ago in the northern US but I do not see them in my area now.

[rmf11699]

I think Loucat beat me to the answer. I too would say praying mantis.

[DUCHESSRN]

One happy girl with her Volcano