Observations From The Poop Deck- Equinox Aug 1

[morpheusofthesea]

16 minutes ago, cangelmd said:

Are we neighbors ?

We just might be. I have found your posts a delight to read. I, myself am a very dull, boring person. I would so much love to remain incognito. I am reminded of a moment, in her waning days on stage, of Marlene Dietrich. She could see from the stage a gentleman in the front row using opera glasses. She stopped her act and said to the gentleman, "Please sir, put away your opera glasses and not spoil the illusion."

[cangelmd]

12 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

We just might be. I have found your posts a delight to read. I, myself am a very dull, boring person. I would so much love to remain incognito. I am reminded of a moment, in her waning days on stage, of Marlene Dietrich. She could see from the stage a gentleman in the front row using opera glasses. She stopped her act and said to the gentleman, "Please sir, put away your opera glasses and not spoil the illusion."

LOL, I hear you, didn’t even think of it until I saw your video and realized I have the same view - just a little closer to the bridge. Have a wonderful trip, I’m also enjoying your posts, I don’t have your turn of phrase, too many years of facts only, no impressions allowed!

[FLCruiser97]

Morpheus, enjoy your lunch! By the way, have you enjoyed that hot tub on your balcony yet? Looks like it might be delightful.

[morpheusofthesea]

3 hours ago, FLCruiser97 said:

 By the way, have you enjoyed that hot tub on your balcony yet? Looks like it might be delightful.

Too decadent .

[neverlaysup]

22 hours ago, choochella said:

We too are on the Sept 5 sailing and are praying this variant doesn’t get any worse that the cruise may be canceled. 🤞We’ve had 4 cruises canceled over the last year. I am so ready!!

So are we and my fingers are crossed that the cruise will go forward without anymore restrictions.

 

[choochella]

1 hour ago, neverlaysup said:

So are we and my fingers are crossed that the cruise will go forward without anymore restrictions.

 

Well, it seems that Carnival has now adapted the pre-cruise Covid testing and has also added that masks are now necessary on the ship. Not sure I’d want to wear a mask on the ship. Just hoping it doesn’t go that far with Celebrity. 

[sdnich]

I am really enjoying your report  !! Our last cruise was November 2019 on the equinox we did a B2B for a total of 15 days in sky suite and loved every meal in Luminae !! Cheers! 

[morpheusofthesea]

Today we visit Cozumel. It may be an important aspect of the balcony cabin connoisseur  which way the ship docks in port and at what time of day depending on sun or shade desired. Took a photo of the unpacked theatre at last nights 9 pm show to give one an idea of the voluntary social distancing and ships capacity for many more passengers. Each day when we arrive back at our cabin we find this covered acrylic  on the dining room table with some treat inside. Today chocolate nut bark.

  We find it nice to have the same waiter/waitress each day in the Luminae. They get to know  you and anticipate your needs. Today for example, like at every meal at the Luminae we are greeted by the hostesses and one escorts us to "our" table (If we arrive early enough). She pulls our seat back and 'tucks' us in. Then she finds a pillow on a near by chair and 'plumps' one up and places it behind your back. Next 'our' waitress comes to greet us a 'good morning' and proceeds to 'plump' another couple pillows behind our backs. One can not help but feel like a 'Pasha' in colonial times. Next, our waitress brought over a few of those lovely pastry bags (without being asked), before the pastry tray made its rounds. I cut back a little this morning and only had two apple turnovers. I bagged a blueberry muffin and asked if she had more ' in the back'. She promptly returned with the tray filled with more blueberry muffins. (I don't have to tell you but she had to refill these muffins for the rest of the guests after filling my pastry bags for later).

[Jim_Iain]

Enjoying your blog very much.    

 

Are they serving afternoon tea in Retreat in the afternoon?   

[morpheusofthesea]

Last night we took advantage of another suite 'perk'. We went to the Retreat Concierge and got an appointment with a Future Cruise Desk specialist to come to the Retreat Lounge at 7:30 after dinner and before the show to take advantage of booking on board and receiving additional OBC of up to $500. It is a really nice touch for suite guests. One doesn't have to sit and wait (not that there is much of a wait with the reduced number of passengers on board), but in the event there were, its a nice perk. We got to the Retreat Lounge a few minutes early and sat down and I 'scoped out' the light cold cuts and other fair put out for suite guests. (We just finished dinner and dessert, I was just curious to see what I may be missing out on) I sat back down and witnessed a shocking scene. A women approached the food I had just left, did not take a plate or use the tongs, she just grabbed a morsel of something and popped it into her mouth as she walked away. My jaw dropped open, I was speechless. I just witnessed something we only hear about in polite circles. Then I saw her mosey on back and whispered to DW "watch this women, quick!" This women gave us a repeat performance ! (No, I did not say anything. It only reinforced my enmity toward buffets and 'certain' people , even in suite class).

[morpheusofthesea]

24 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

Enjoying your blog very much.    

 

Are they serving afternoon tea in Retreat in the afternoon?   

Yes. But from what I witnessed last night we will not be attending. Instead what we did this morning was dropped into the Retreat Lounge to make sure we would not miss out on the delicious raisin and plain scones that are not found anywhere else on the ship. Now my DW will not allow us to use the TV remote or the telephones in any cabin, she swears they harbor too many germs, so we can only leave messages for our butler rather than use the phone to call. So we left a message for our butler with the concierge to bring at 3:30-4:00 2 plain and 2 raisin scones, covered (they even come shrink wrapped with cover).

[Jim_Iain]

7 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Yes. But from what I witnessed last night we will not be attending. Instead what we did this morning was dropped into the Retreat Lounge to make sure we would not miss out on the delicious raisin and plain scones that are not found anywhere else on the ship. Now my DW will not allow us to use the TV remote or the telephones in any cabin, she swears they harbor too many germs, so we can only leave messages for our butler rather than use the phone to call. So we left a message for our butler with the concierge to bring at 3:30-4:00 2 plain and 2 raisin scones, covered (they even come shrink wrapped with cover).

 

Thanks.    Unless they changed the tea service is served by the butlers on a rotation basis and there is nothing left out for someone to touch.   White glove service with two forks used to serve sandwiches, scones and sweet bits.    We often enjoy afternoon tea when returning from a trip ashore and only want a small bite for lunch. 

 

I bring disinfectant wipes and spray with us and wipe down all touch surfaces, especially the remote and phone.  We have done that long before Covid and gives some peace of mind.    

[morpheusofthesea]

Again the scuttlebutt from the staff is that Celebrity has only been able to get back 1/2 its staff and get them vaccinated "properly". Seems that those that got vaccinated in their home countries are now finding it difficult to return due to the type of vaccine they were administered. It appears in the days leading up to coming back into passenger service the staff were 'treated' to specialty dining venues in order to give wait staff practice before paying passengers boarded. The staff person commented that he was lucky enough to have garnered a spot in the Luminae and how exceptional was the service and food. I do not think he was actually 'preaching to the choir' at that moment, just more excited to have been chosen to dine at that venue and acknowledging their 'best of the best' aboard the ship.

[Oceangoer2]

I'm happy when any and every staff member has an opportunity to move up a notch or two.  I'm sure this person was elated to serve in Luminae and deserved to be promoted.

[Pinboy]

7 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

A women approached the food I had just left, did not take a plate or use the tongs, she just grabbed a morsel of something and popped it into her mouth as she walked away. My jaw dropped open, I was speechless. I just witnessed something we only hear about in polite circles. Then I saw her mosey on back and whispered to DW "watch this women, quick!" This women gave us a repeat performance ! (No, I did not say anything. It only reinforced my enmity toward buffets and 'certain' people , even in suite class).

It just shows you-- 

Just because some folks choose to cruise in '' Suite " class , doesn't mean they have any " Class ". 

I've posted many times that we avoid the " slugfest on 14 " , except the famous ( to me  ) scones at 4pm , because of people like her--- and, there a lots of them. 

 

 

 

 

 

[miched]

On 8/2/2021 at 1:08 PM, cltnccruisers said:

We're doing mini-suites on a couple of upcoming Princess cruises.  That will be our first taste of any kind of suite.

Not the same.  A Princess mini suite is just a larger cabin.  
 

X is a totally different experience. Dedicated private  lounge with complementary drinks, separate dining room with “gourmet  menu “ private sun deck area and some special events 
 

We only do a suite when there is a real deal.  We enjoyed it but never had a problem of sailing in a lower class of cabins especially with the drink packs and being able to buy multiple night dining packages.  The cost of a dining pack for every night of the cruise is cheaper than the additional price of a suite and the food and service is way better

.

We found that breakfast and lunch in the MDR is just as good and sometimes better as the menu has more choices and service has always been great. 
 

Non suite passengers also  have room service and it has a decent menu for a  pot of coffee and pastry in the morning while enjoying the morning on your balcony before going to breakfast 

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[cltnccruisers]

8 minutes ago, miched said:

Not the same.  A Princess mini suite is just a larger cabin.  
 

X is a totally different experience. Dedicated private  lounge with complementary drinks, separate dining room with “gourmet  menu “ private sun deck area and some special events 
 

We only do a suite when there is a real deal.  We enjoyed it but never had a problem of sailing in a lower class of cabins especially with the drink packs and being able to buy multiple night dining packages.  The cost of a dining pack for every night of the cruise is cheaper than the additional price of a suite and the food and service is way better

.

We found that breakfast and lunch in the MDR is just as good and sometimes better as the menu has more choices and service has always been great. 
 

Non suite passengers also  have room service and it has a decent menu for a  pot of coffee and pastry in the morning while enjoying the morning on your balcony before going to breakfast 

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

I acknowledged that we were only doing it for the extra space and why.   I'll take your comments as tongue in cheek as the alternative isn't very palatable.  

[morpheusofthesea]

Well we got our invitation to the 4:30 sailaway from Costa Maya on the helipad. Funny we did not get one on the Edge last month. I have a feeling the whole ship will be there on the helipad for this one. The only problem for me is no shade. Celebrity does provide umbrellas in the clothes closet, rain or shine.

[terrydtx]

7 hours ago, miched said:

Not the same.  A Princess mini suite is just a larger cabin.

Same as  Signature Suite on HAL, larger cabin and balcony, but nothing else as far as amenities. Aq class on Celebrity has more amenities than a SS on HAL. After our cruise next year we are done with HAL , only doing it to use up some FCC. 

[morpheusofthesea]

Being on a cruise is really not a time for reflection. Wait till one gets home. Enjoy the present moment. I began to chastise myself for  eating 5 too many pastries at breakfast and then again at tea time. But the day broke anew and I was tempted once again. In moments like these I find solace in the words of Mark Twain "I never struggle with temptation, I yield to it."  We are docked at Costa Maya and the breezes are kicking up some light white caps. Am having second thoughts about attending the sailaway party on the helipad. We still are in a pandemic and why tempt fate by congregating in a hallway waiting to be escorted in mass out onto the helipad. Perhaps that was the thinking for scrapping the helipad sailaway on Edge. Hopefully in the future we will have that 'treat' again. (And next time I will remember to bring a safari tie down hat for the sun).

[graphicguy]

Dang am I ever enjoying your pics and vlogs.  Thanks again!

[morpheusofthesea]

Our room stewardess ran our doorbell yesterday while we were having our 'tea time' in the cabin (scones and pastries). She just wanted 'to touch base' and asked if everything was to our satisfaction and if there was anything else we wanted (what you would expect from any good steward), but then she said something we have never heard before, "And thank you for keeping your cabin so clean".  I can only fathom that it was because DW brought more cleaning supplies to clean the cabin than Celebrity provides her.

[graphicguy]

As an aside, I talked to several crew the I was on the EDGE 3 weeks ago.  They were vaccinated by Celebrity.  What I don't know is if they were vaccinated in their home countries or in the U.S.   Didn't talk to all of them.  So, I'm not sure if they were vaccinated in their home countries, and were able to travel to the U.S..  But, sounds like Celebrity actually was doing their vaccinations. 

[Oceangoer2]

4 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Our room stewardess ran our doorbell yesterday while we were having our 'tea time' in the cabin (scones and pastries). She just wanted 'to touch base' and asked if everything was to our satisfaction and if there was anything else we wanted (what you would expect from any good steward), but then she said something we have never heard before, "And thank you for keeping your cabin so clean".  I can only fathom that it was because DW brought more cleaning supplies to clean the cabin than Celebrity provides her.

Seems I now understand the 8 suitcases...LOL

[Oceangoer2]

5 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Our room stewardess ran our doorbell yesterday while we were having our 'tea time' in the cabin (scones and pastries). She just wanted 'to touch base' and asked if everything was to our satisfaction and if there was anything else we wanted (what you would expect from any good steward), but then she said something we have never heard before, "And thank you for keeping your cabin so clean".  I can only fathom that it was because DW brought more cleaning supplies to clean the cabin than Celebrity provides her.

We have had the same comments from room attendants....in my nature to keep things tidy so wasn't aware this was unusual?