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Independence 5/2-5/6 Cruise

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OCSC Mike "Live from...." Rare

OCSC Mike

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What are the rest of your dinner plans, Ron?

 

We're big fans of Giovanni's and hate that Jamie's has replaced it on so many ships. Looking forward to eating there in July.

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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2 hours ago, jk04 said:

We will be on Indy in Sept.  Just a lowly JS, though. :classic_laugh:  I love sitting out on the balcony, just listening to the sound of the water.  So relaxing.  Thanks for sharing your time aboard.

This is our last Royal Suite for a while.  We are doing a Suite (I forget which one) on Grandeur in August and then we will probably just do balconies.  This is a great suite and nice to do once or twice, but we have just as much fun in a balcony cabin!

 

The best thing about the room is the Concierge.  She is proactive and visible, unlike the one we had on Mariner.  Totally different experience this time.  I like the kind of service we are getting but we can live with a lot less!

 

 

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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A great day onboard…massage and other stuff for my wife, a little day drinking, lunch at Playmakers, a little nap, champagne and the hot tub, and now it is time to get ready for dinner.

 

Alex, the manager at Playmakers, is married to the Concierge, Grecia.  We introduced ourselves and had a nice long chat with him.  These two folks are hard workers who represent Royal very well.

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mdd3145

mdd3145

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On 5/3/2022 at 1:50 AM, bmc alabama said:

Thanks for the Compasses.  We sail next Monday (though we are in an Oceanview, not a suite) and don't have a beverage or dining package, so we'll miss Chops, but make great use of the Windjammer and Sorrento's...

We will be there next Monday too! So happy not to cook and clean for a few days. Escargot every night!

 

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splashsmom

splashsmom

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Hey, TexasRon!  We are right next door to you!

 

As to the Playmakers Campfire Cookie, we finally had our first one yesterday.  I apologize that this is the first that I have seen this thread, otherwise we would have taken a picture for OCSC Mike.  We just did a b2b on Mariner and then a s2s onto the Indy.  We enjoyed Playmakers very much on both ships.  The campfire cookie is incredible with roasted marshmallows, a huge gooey chocolate chip cookie, Nutella, vanilla ice cream and a milk shot.  My husband and I shared one and it was still too much for the two of us (and, yet, we ate it all).

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OCSC Mike "Live from...." Rare

OCSC Mike

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11 minutes ago, splashsmom said:

I apologize that this is the first that I have seen this thread, otherwise we would have taken a picture for OCSC Mike.

 

No worries, I've seen pictures, I just wanted to see another one. 🤣

 

Any other food-related highlights from Indy?

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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Dinner last night was at Chops.  They did not have our usual wine for dinners there.  Supply chain issues.  We picked another bottle and also asked them to open the same wine for us Thursday night and decant it for us.

 

We both had filets.  We shared the spinach and asparagus.  No dessert; just coffee for us.  Everything was done well and we had a great time.

 

Then off to the casino…and we were there for a while.  Lots of fun but not as fun as winning the first night.

 

The point accumulation for craps is worse here than on Mariner.  I have like 15 points for 8 hours total of $61/hand play.  Based on my Mariner rating, I would have thought the number would be 300-600 or so…

 

Skipped CocoCay today…not very nice this morning and we decided to hang out and do some people watching.  

 

 

 

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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2 hours ago, splashsmom said:

Hey, TexasRon!  We are right next door to you!

 

Nice…say hello if you see us wandering out of the room…I will be the one with grey hair and a goatee…my wife will be the pretty lady with me…

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splashsmom

splashsmom

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1 hour ago, OCSC Mike said:

Screw the water, thanks for the cookie porn! 👍

So far we have done Chops for lunch and dinner (spicy shrimp and salmon - we overdid the filet on Mariner in Chops - and key lime pie; all excellent with the exception of over baked pretzel rolls which were excellent on Mariner); Giovanni’s for dinner (gnocchi, filet, carbonara, cannoli) - excellent food, slower service; Playmakers for nachos with shredded pork, jalapeño poppers and the campfire cookie.  Playmakers does not disappoint on either ship.  Just did Johnny Rockets for frings and burgers and a shake.  Was actually the best JR food we have had on a ship, excellent service too - pleasantly surprised on both counts.  JR was still closed when we were on Mariner.

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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They added a movie and maybe something more today due to the weather.  It was not a complete bust as it got nicer as the day went along, but it was certainly less than ideal.

 

The crew we have interacted with has been great.  The service is on point and you can “see” the smiles even with the masks on.  Many of them are very good at remembering, and using, names.  That just makes the service feel better…

 

 

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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We had lunch yesterday at Playmakers.  The food is very good and we have liked every item we have tried.  Yesterday I had a delicious hamburger and jalapeno poppers; my wife had the pork BBQ sliders and we shared onion rings.  Too much food...

 

Relaxed all afternoon...some people watching on the pool deck and a nap.  Then it was ready for the evening.  First stop was the suite lounge.

 

We had met Humberto on the pool deck providing us bar service; he told us that we needed to come see him in the lounge.  Grecia had already insisted we stop by.  We sat down and had a drink.  A couple came in and we said hello...then it got very cool for my wife...

 

The gentleman mentioned that he was retired and was on the board of directors at a local credit union in Florida.  My in-laws (both passed now) were best friends with a couple...and the husband worked at the same credit union late in his career and was on the board after he retired.  She asked if he knew him, and he did...said really nice things about him.  That touched my wife's heart because we have always stayed in touch with "Uncle Bill"  and "Aunt Ginger".  

 

I knew then from when we were in high school and we had visited "Aunt Ginger" in the assisted living facility quite a few times after "Uncle Bill" passed.  Ginger passed last year...she was a wonderful lady who ALWAYS sent a hand written "thank you"  note after we visited.  Anyway, it was a great "small world" moment.

 

The older folks were part of a whole generation that moved to the Space Coast for the exciting opportunities in the 60's and 70's and away from their extended families.  They made friends and celebrated holidays together, since family was so far away.  Great times were had in those friendships.

 

Grecia escorted us to dinner at Izumi.  We the Hibachi meal again.  It was great--the tenderloin was perfectly seasoned and cooked, the fried rice and vegetables were plentiful and delicious, and th e show was very good.  We really enjoyed the meal!

 

A long night at the casino followed.  Still up for the trip but not doing as well.  I hung in there at craps but the slots were $100 bill munchers...

 

 

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mac_tlc "Live from...." Rare

mac_tlc

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We were along side you on Oasis at CoCo Cay yesterday. Quite the thunder and lightning show early on. Glad it cleared up in time to enjoy the island.

 

 

mac_tlc

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TexasRon "Live from...." Rare

TexasRon

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You can’t drink all day of you don’t start in the morning…got my first drink at 11:57, so I am good!

 

Passenger count is around 3900; they are expecting over 4000 on upcoming cruises.  Kid count is around 300; 500 expected on the next couple of cruises.

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