Willdra's Peculiar Carnival Panorama Oct 16-23 Cruise

[willdra]

1 hour ago, cgladin said:

I’ve really enjoyed your review.  Thanks so much for sharing!

Thank you for reading it! 😁

[TravelGirlinDallas]

16 hours ago, willdra said:

I don’t love packing to fly. You have to be so meticulous about where everything goes. Hate it.

Isn't that the truth!! I HATE having to leave room in my checked bag for my toiletries, since I can't carry those on anymore (I have more than will fit in a quart ziplock). It's so much easier to be able to drive to the cruise port, but sometimes you have to venture beyond and deal with the hassle.

[willdra]

Eviction Day

 

 

My alarm was set for 8 am. I woke up a few times before then, so I was up when my alarm went off. I could swear we were still moving, which was kinda strange. Usually when I wake up, we are already parked in port. I got up and checked, and yep we were still moving. We were almost there tho. I could see land on the horizon.

 

I got all the way up and started getting ready to roll. Our goal was to be out of the room by 9, and before the cabin steward came and started the tap tap on the door. As I was rushing around to get dressed, my stretchy jeans that I packed to wear home were so tight, I popped off a press on fingernail trying to pull them up. Maybe I slightly overdid it with the food? The worst part of it, is that I couldn’t find the fingernail after it popped off. I think it was caught somewhere in the skin tight jeans. How lovely. Now my fingernail is permanently attached to my body somewhere, and I’m lightheaded and dizzy cuz these pants are cutting off my circulation. Help. Me.

 

 

Our flight wasn’t until 4:50pm which means we will get back to Atlanta at midnight. Flying to Cali was awesome, cuz we went back 3 hours.  Going forward in time is not your friend. In addition to the sadness and sorrow of having to leave this Panorama Paradise, and getting home at 0 dark 30, I'm now hoping that my disobedient fingernail is found before I go through the body scanner at the airport. This is not my favorite day.

 

Since we had nowhere to be, we made our way up to Lido. When we first got to the aft elevators, it was kinda busy. One elevator came down, and it was full, but everyone on it cleared out on deck 2. That never happens. The peeps who were already there got on. We waited a total of 5 minutes for another elevator.

 

The Lido breakfast area wasn't too full either. We were able to get our breakfast selections and find a seat fairly quickly. We took our time eating and talking (after coffee). 

 

 

[willdra]

Debarkation started at 9:45. We had luggage tags for Zone #2. We decided to stay on until 10:30 or so. As slow as debarkation was moving tho, we didn't have a choice. They started by calling Muster Stations for self-assist first.  A4,A5, B3, B4, and B5 were all carry off guests that were called by 10:15. They called muster station D3 at 10:17. Good thing we didn’t have an early flight. At 10:30 they called self-assist D3 and D4. It seemed like most of the passengers were carrying off their luggage. C4 and C5 self-assist was called at 10:35.

 

 Checked luggage tags 1 through 10 was called at 10:39. We walked out of the building, after picking up luggage, at 11:08am. After we got all the way out, we checked Lyft and Uber, and the price was minimum $80 to the airport. W went to check on the price for a taxi while I was doing that. The price to LAX was $60 for the taxi, so we went to stand in the taxi line. The taxi line was long, and it was taking a while.  I checked Uber and Lyft again, while we were waiting for a taxi, and both had better prices, so we went with Uber for $47.96. This was almost the same price as the Carnival Shuttle. If we were in a hurry, we would’ve chosen Carnival. Since we were not in a hurry, this worked.

 

The Taxi Line

 

The prices when I first checked Lyft

 

Uber prices the second time

 

 

We moved out of the taxi line and went over to the pick-up drop off zoo. It was a madhouse over there. There really are no clear lanes for pick-ups or drop offs. We asked where we should wait, and the porters said anywhere. This proved to be quite entertaining, as we witnessed an "almost" brawl. It was an altercation about parking places. A guy got out of his car and started yelling at another guy because he cut him off. Mkay. I know it's annoying, but it is certainly not serious enough to resort to ye old fisticuffs over. Especially when that might end in ye old handcuffs. 

 

  We waited maybe 15 more minutes for our Uber. He was dropping some ladies off at the port, so when we spotted them jumping out, we jumped in. Sweet! We got to LAX at 12:32. We had time to rearrange our luggage when we got there, so the carry-ons didn’t have liquids. We also weighed the check in bags, and we were good on weight.  We couldn’t check into American Airlines until 12:50, which was 4 hours before the flight.

 

We went potty (I still didn’t find my missing fingernail) and waited a few more minutes. When it was time, we checked in on the kiosks, printed boarding passes and luggage tags, gave the bags to the agent, and went through security. No additional enhanced security screening for me this time! Whoop Whoop!

 

After a long day at the airport, we boarded our flight, and went back to GA.

 

Before I fell asleep, I said a prayer asking God to keep the rest of my fingernails safe, and on my fingers, until I was ready to remove them. Amen.

[willdra]

9 hours ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

Isn't that the truth!! I HATE having to leave room in my checked bag for my toiletries, since I can't carry those on anymore (I have more than will fit in a quart ziplock). It's so much easier to be able to drive to the cruise port, but sometimes you have to venture beyond and deal with the hassle.

 

OMG Yesssss!!! It is a huge pain, but the end definitely justified the means. I would totes do it over again in a heartbeat (and still complain about it). 😆

[Sadebud]

Willdra,

 

I have been a silent lurker on all of your reviews but I have enjoyed them all!  This was no exception!  When do you cruise again?  I will mark my calendar to look for the review!  😀

 

Tracy

[nwcruiselover]

I thoroughly enjoyed your reviews and excellent pictures from start to finish.  Thank you so much for the great review.  I’ll be on the Panorama on January 29, 2022 and am looking forward to it very much.  

[2wheelin]

1 hour ago, nwcruiselover said:

I thoroughly enjoyed your reviews and excellent pictures from start to finish.  Thank you so much for the great review.  I’ll be on the Panorama on January 29, 2022 and am looking forward to it very much.  

So are we and now I am getting worried about how early a flight we can get. Not much available in the afternoon.

[peteandpris]

Loved your review, it will be our turn on Nov.27 and Dec.3, 2022 BtoB. thank you for a great job.

 

 

[AKR2011]

Thank you for another amazing review! I look forward to reading the next one. Will your daughter be back at sea with you again? 

[emoorehead]

Willdra, I enjoyed your review very much. Thank you for giving such great detail. I almost felt like i was right there with you.

[monykalyn]

Great review again, love the style.

Down to 30 days for us til we board! Never get seasick but now slightly concerned about that last day as we are Lido forward. Probably should get some non drowsy Dramamine I guess!

On you Cabo day- the “back on board” is 130 -do you remember the “port” time? Was it 630-130? Our “port time” is 630-300 and wantin to do the Jaun More Taco walk-in tour but tour is 11-2 so unsure if we will have time 😬

 

Thanks and looking forward to your next review!

[MistyRo76]

I have cruised once out of Long Beach down the Mexican Riviera and I remember clearly those colder than (at least I) expected temps both ways. It was October and was very warm in the Long Beach area and on embarkation day. But that Day 2 Sea Day was C.O.L.D! And same with the return. Those days we were bundled up under towels on Lido and wearing sweatshirts to keep warm. So odd that there's that section of cold air on that trip! Next day was hot, hot, hot as we had hoped! 

 

Great review as always! So entertaining and informative! 

[willdra]

On 12/14/2021 at 5:11 PM, nwcruiselover said:

I thoroughly enjoyed your reviews and excellent pictures from start to finish.  Thank you so much for the great review.  I’ll be on the Panorama on January 29, 2022 and am looking forward to it very much.  

Thank you 😊! 

[willdra]

On 12/14/2021 at 10:28 PM, emoorehead said:

Willdra, I enjoyed your review very much. Thank you for giving such great detail. I almost felt like i was right there with you.

Thank you for reading along! 🤩

[Houst]

Hi Willdra,

I was truly having a horrible day. Then I saw you commented on a post. Here I'm thinking of scolding or pleading with you to please go on a cruise so I can selfishly use it for my own entertainment. I click on your profile a BAM! here it is! Thank you so much for being you!

I really wish we could be neighbors so I could just stop by and you could make me laugh. I doubt you'd like Salt Lake City (Cold). I might be able to handle GA. But we'll just go with the 2 to 3 times a year reviews! 

Thanks again! Tell W we all love him too!  

[willdra]

1 hour ago, Houst said:

Hi Willdra,

I was truly having a horrible day. Then I saw you commented on a post. Here I'm thinking of scolding or pleading with you to please go on a cruise so I can selfishly use it for my own entertainment. I click on your profile a BAM! here it is! Thank you so much for being you!

I really wish we could be neighbors so I could just stop by and you could make me laugh. I doubt you'd like Salt Lake City (Cold). I might be able to handle GA. But we'll just go with the 2 to 3 times a year reviews! 

Thanks again! Tell W we all love him too!  

LOL well this just made my month! 🤣🤣🤣 Thanks so much for making me smile today! We are planning on cruising again next month, so I’ll be back soon with more tales from a ship 🛳! 

[RenoNanaOz]

On 12/2/2021 at 6:41 PM, willdra said:

All the leaves are brown and the sky is gray. I’ve been on a cruise, on an Autumn Day. I’d be safe and warm, if I was in L.A.

California dreaming’ on such an Autumn day.

 

 

Hello, Hello, Hello! Come on in and get comfy!

 

Willdra is back with another very long, boring at times, rambling, ridiculous, and repetitive review. On this cruise, it was just me and my husband W, who's also my ride or die, partner in crime, concierge, chauffeur, cook, busboy, bank, bellhop, and BFF. He actually has lots of other jobs, I just can't think of them right now.

 

If this is your first time with us, welcome! This review is not kid tested, and probably not mother approved, so keep reading at your own risk. 

 

Here are links to my other foolishness, in case you want to get caught up (or if you want to know what to avoid).

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2670311-willdras-bodacious-carnival-breeze-april-27-may-4-cruise/page/14/

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2617548-willdras-outrageous-oasis-ots-october-21-28-cruise/

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2474813-willdras-dramatic-carnival-dream-october-15-22-cruise/

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2540688-willdra%E2%80%99s-hyperactive-carnival-horizon-april-15-22-cruise/

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2416686-willdras-vivacious-carnival-vista-may-14-20-cruise/

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2336437-willdra%E2%80%99s-majestic-carnival-magic-october-15-22-cruise/

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2296425-willdra%E2%80%99s-magnificent-carnival-magic-july-9-16-cruise/

 

 

If you are already one of my cruise cousins, I missed y'all! Thanks for not kicking me to the curb. At least not yet. If you aren't one of my cruise cousins, hopefully you will be by the end of this review.

 

Before I get this cruise review party started, I would be remiss if I didn’t fill y’all in on some of the madness that happened pre-cruise. After all, we're family right? Absolutely.

 

This is a long backstory, but I am including it so that maybe 1 person can learn from my disorder and do better. Get into it.

 

First of all, my husband W and I booked this cruise as a result of 4, yes 4 cancelled cruises in 2020 (the nerve).  We were offered $600 onboard credit if we rebooked by May 31, 2021. We planned on rebooking for 2021, but as time went on, I forgot when the deadline for us to rebook was. Not surprising. Thank God that I looked at it in May. I booked on May 29. Again, the deadline was May 31. I almost missed it y'all! Shame (along with despair, disappointment, and detriment) would've just pulled up and moved into our house with us, if I lost all of our onboard credits by forgetting to rebook. Good thing that didn’t happen cuz there really is no room here for alla dat.

 

 W and I were fully vaccinated by the time I rebooked, so that's all we needed and no worries right? Wrong. On Aug 4, we got an email stating that we had to bring negative COVID tests taken 3 days prior to sail date. Alright. Got it. Then on Sept. 2, we received another email from Carnival stating that testing must now be completed 2 days prior. Here is where I began to have some concerns. And questions. Many questions.

 

W and I are considered “essential” workers (unluckily) so both of us have worked this entire time. El yucky.  I went into my office pretty much every weekday, since half of my job can’t be completed remotely. Apparently I have to roll my eyes and shake my head at people face to face, and not over Skype. Cool. W can work from home the majority of the time, but there are parts of his job that also have to be completed in person. Neither one of us caught COVID, (that we know of) tho. W had gotten tested before because he donates blood from time to time (to do his part for other humans and vampires).  I'd never taken a COVID test cuz I didn’t have a reason to. I also didn't love the idea of sticking a QTip all the way up to my brain. That thing is fragile, and I need to avoid poking it as much as possible. Obviously, I can't afford to lose not one precious brain cell.

 

I started looking at testing options and scheduling in Sept. after we got that second email. I discovered that we could schedule rapid tests at CVS, 2 weeks prior to the date that we needed to test. I marked my calendar for that date, and told W that I would let him know when he could schedule his test. The day came, and I made my appointment to get the rapid test at CVS on the Thursday before sail date. I reminded W as well. He scheduled his test for later on that same date as mine, but at another CVS. No problemo. During all of that time I was also researching and reading as much info as I could to make sure that we had everything. I must've read Carnival's "Have Fun Be Safe Health Protocols" a thousand times to make sure that I understood them, and to ensure that nothing changed since the last time I read them. I checked my vaccination card and it was good. I checked W’s card and his was kind of chaotic. Well not kind of. It was a whole fully grown adult mess. They put the labels with the Lot Numbers on wrong and you couldn’t really even see the Lot Numbers. Carnival’s site said the Lot Numbers must be legible, so I didn’t think his would work. I asked if they emailed him the info when he was vaccinated, but he said they didn't. I got my vaccinations at a hospital and they emailed me the info after each shot, in addition to completing my card. W got his shots at Kroger (no surprise there) and all he got was the card. He said he would go back and see if they could redo it. I didn’t have a lot of faith that it would work out. Cuz Kroger. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I got home the next day and he had a completely new card. They remade it all nice and neat. Now his card actually looked better than mine. The heck?!?!

 

2 weeks prior to testing I also reminded W not to take any chances, to always wear his mask, wash up even more, and stay as quarantined as possible. This is not the time to be distracted. Distracted will get you left in GA, or worse, on the pier in Long Beach. I had to stress this with him a lot, cuz W likes to dance with danger. Not on my watch tho. Not on my watch.

 

On testing day I was a little unsettled for some reason. Regrettably, I would soon find out why. I took my test at 9am. By 9:08 I had the email from CVS stating that I was negative. Yippee Skippy. I printed out my results when I got to my office, sent W a screenshot, then breathed a half sigh of relief. 1 down, 1 to go. W was already on vacay that day, therefor he was taking his test later. At about 2 pm he sent me a text asking how I got my results so fast. Huh?  What do you mean so fast? It’s called the rapid test. It comes back fast. The word "rapid" is in the title. After more back and forth, I found out he took the slower test that comes back in 1-2 days. He said that he did his nose swab and placed it in a secure drop box. He didn’t really even have to interact with anyone. How sway? How did that process even make sense to him knowing he had to have results in hand by Saturday morning? And also knowing that his wife would kill him if he messes this up? To this, his explanation was “Oh I thought I couldn’t do the rapid”. Silence. 12 fast eye blinks. This is bad. This is Thursday. We fly to LAX Friday, and we set sail Saturday. We don’t have time for this. I blame myself though. Why? Because I made sure that he got scheduled for the test, but I didn’t double check to make sure he knew what to schedule. My bad. When it comes to W, assume nothing, and you might not be wrong for expecting the worst. I broke my own W management rule, and now I may have to end him. **Taps starts playing in the background.** I'm really gonna miss you W, cuz I’m gonna be on that cruise. I am not throwing away my shot. JK. I think.

 

When stuff like this happens, I don’t waste time stressing. Instead, I plot and plan. I started thinking that maybe there’s a chance that W's life could be spared after all. I’m a reasonable understanding person. On occasion. Let me see what I can do. I jumped into these internet streets and worked my magic, looking for rapid testing options for him.  It wasn’t actual magic, I just asked the Google gawds.

 

All of the CVS’ were booked by then. Walgreens said don’t even think about us. Mad disrespectful. Meanwhile, I was also at work trying to tie up all of my going on vacay loose ends. I REALLY didn’t have time for testing delays. All day long I’d been able to sit in my office in the quiet and complete my crap. Now all of a sudden the office was on fire around me and 7 people needed my help at the same time. Including W who was at home. With several computers. And good WiFi. But I digress. After I solved everyone else's problems, I literally had to lock my door and mute my phone. That’s when I found 4 clinics close to us that took walk ins. I sent W screenshots and phone numbers. Cuz it’s W. Trust my process. Shortly afterwards, I got a message from him saying he was on his way to retest. Whew. I felt better, but I couldn’t exhale until we got results back. Hopefully I wouldn't pass out.

 

I finished up work as quick as I could. I got home around 5:30 and he wasn’t back yet. I checked his location on my phone (shout out to app developers), and I saw that he was still at the clinic. It occurred to me then that he would prolly get his results from that first test on Friday. I didn’t want to chance it tho. I can always use one less thing to worry about. About an hour after I got in, W came back with negative results in hand. Now we were ready to go. And I could let him live. Hooray!

 

It just got real quickly, and it's about to go down. I finished up my last minute packing and cleaning up behind us, which is the worst part.

 

Random Picture Test

(Ignore this. Especially if you can't see it. I'm still trying to decide the best way to post the pictures)

 

Edited March 23, 2022 by RenoNanaOz

[willdra]

14 minutes ago, RenoNanaOz said:

 

Welcome to the after party! ♥️🎉🎉🎉🎉♥️

[jerseygirlinAZ]

Well this review was just fantabulous!  Thanks for sharing, Willdra!  We'll be cruising on Panorama in May so I greatly appreciate the time you took to share your experience!

[willdra]

4 hours ago, jerseygirlinAZ said:

Well this review was just fantabulous!  Thanks for sharing, Willdra!  We'll be cruising on Panorama in May so I greatly appreciate the time you took to share your experience!

Thanks for enjoying it! 🙏🏾😍

[rwest898]

Wildra  when you go on your next cruise will you please post the link on this review. Since I'm following this review to I will know when to follow you on the new one.  Thank you!

[willdra]

19 hours ago, rwest898 said:

Wildra  when you go on your next cruise will you please post the link on this review. Since I'm following this review to I will know when to follow you on the new one.  Thank you!

Will do! 😍

[Megan_Strick]

On 3/25/2022 at 2:49 PM, willdra said:

Will do! 😍

Wildra,

 

I see 3 reviews in your signature. Are there any, any where else?

[Jamman54]

On 3/23/2022 at 6:02 PM, willdra said:

LOL well this just made my month! 🤣🤣🤣 Thanks so much for making me smile today! We are planning on cruising again next month, so I’ll be back soon with more tales from a ship 🛳! 

Hey Willdra! What ship will you be on? 😎