Return of the Jedi… Ovation of the Seas, Live Aug 26 - Sept 2

[Tree_skier]

Got this shot and then changed my mind about chilling on the deck went to Music Hall for DSB’s last show.

 

 

Glad I did. They are mixing it up with all kinds of classic rock hits from the 80’s. Good decision!

 

 

[Tree_skier]

 

We’ve docked in Victoria.  She is showing ver well today. This is Victoria at her finest.  I almost feel guilty not getting off at my home and native land. Not guilty enough to actually get off but a little bit guilty none the less. 

 

[Tree_skier]

The saddest post of this thread.
 

I’m all packed up and ready for tomorrow.
 

I’ll head out a little later to the music hall for one last round of the house band Switched on Band. I just caught on that there initials are SOB.  I can’t believe it took 7 days to catch that. 

Dinner this evening at Jamie’s Italian can only be described as a feeding frenzy. 
 

 

 

 

Dessert was the Pavlova, the Tiramisu and the Brownie shared by two of us. 

Prior to this cruise I had been really good on my diet. I had lost 17 1/2 lbs. I’m terrified to get on a scale. 
 

This evenings cocktails will be the Classic Old-fashioned. Thanks @Sea Dog for the recommendation.  I am, most assuredly a convert. 

 

One last pic from the golden hour. 
 

 

I might drunk post from the music hall but I might not. . Otherwise, I’ll wrap it up in a day or so. Thanks for following along you all make doing this fun. 

 

Anakin can finally Rest In Peace

 

 

Edited September 2, 2022 by Tree_skier

[mil76]

Been on Ovation this week as well.  Enjoyed having temps 50 degrees below the broiler at home.  We heard that the MDR was overwhelmed, so we switched to UDP which sounds like the right call.  Chops and Wonderland were great, Jamie's was good and Izumi meh. 

 

Flowriding has been awesome.  3+ hours by myself day 1 and no more than 3 doing stand-up in any advanced sesions. Couple of sessions cancelled due to the temp, but no complaints here. Glad I brought my full suit.

 

I'm not a Journey fan, but the DW liked DSB.  Sorry I missed the non-Journey set.  They seem too talented to waste it on Journey 😀.  I preferred Switched On Band.  Going to see them tonight as well.  This cruise had the first decent pub singer (Craig Elliott) we've had in quite awhile.

[Tree_skier]

Correction: SOB is in 270 tonight 

 

 

[DaKahuna]

4 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

 

After that we went to the the theatre for a performance by the lead from last nights show. He did a collection big band numbers. He was excellent. We’re just chilling on our deck relaxing before dinner at Jamie’s tonight. 
 

 

 

 

We are very interested to read your thoughts on Jamie’s.  We are scheduled to have dinner there tomorrow evening.  Will be our first time we’ve eaten there. 
 

[Tree_skier]

Just now, DaKahuna said:

We are very interested to read your thoughts on Jamie’s.  We are scheduled to have dinner there tomorrow evening.  Will be our first time we’ve eaten there. 
 

Jamie’s was great. I’m a steak man but, in my humble opinion, it was better than Chops. 

[DaKahuna]

2 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

Jamie’s was great. I’m a steak man but, in my humble opinion, it was better than Chops. 

 That sounds good but I have already been chastised for all the red meat I have consumed this cruise.  
 

Maybe since I had chicken for lunch and fish for dinner tonight I will be able to get away with steak tomorrow night! 
 

[mil76]

28 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

We are very interested to read your thoughts on Jamie’s.  We are scheduled to have dinner there tomorrow evening.  Will be our first time we’ve eaten there. 
 

Loved the short rib last.night.

[Sea Dog]

@Tree_skier So glad you liked the Old Fashioned.It's my go to.

[Tree_skier]

Sorry for the long delay in my clean up post. I've been in a conference since I got off the ship.

 

Debarkation was a bit of a zoo.  Long lines waiting to get off and long lines in the embarkation hall. The line to get off the ship was long and slow.  Once you got off the ship and into the embarkation hall you understood why.  Both our ship, with 4100 passengers, and Celebrity Solstice, with however many were on their ship, ended up emptying all the passengers into the same spot where 3 immigration officers slowly processed all the debarking passengers.  There was no organization to the process at all.  There were ropes to form lines. Once you got into the embarkation hall there was just a mass of humanity slowly moving forward toward the vastly understaffed CBP officers.

 

People joined the lines from all points.  Some joined at the back and other pushed their way in from the side half up.  It was the worst debarkation process I have experienced in my 4 post pandemic cruises.  A couple more CBP officers and a few ropes on poles creating a proper flow of passengers and the whole thing would have been completely different.

 

 

 

This isn't Royal's fault but it would behoove them to lobby CBP for a couple officers to smooth the process out a little.

 

Overall it was a great cruise.  The food and drink were exactly as expected.  The service, with the exception of one night in the MDR, was exceptional.  Special mention goes to my Cabin attendant Vineet who was honestly the best we have ever had.  He went above and beyond several times.  

 

Our weather and shorex's were more than acceptable.  I like the cool weather and it was especially appreciated since back home our weather was only slightly cooler than hell. 

 

The best part about the end of this cruise is that my next one is only a week away from today.  I board Navigator for a quick sailing we are taking two of the Grandkids on.  

 

Thanks for following along. It was fun to chronicle it.  I have all the Cruise Compasses etc. but will only post them if someone asks.  

[justKirbo]

We board on Friday and are so ridiculously excited for our first post-COVID cruise. Thanks for taking us along on yours. (And I hope our exit is better than yours but I'm guessing it'll be exactly the same.)

[G-DawgMN]

8 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

 

Thanks for following along. It was fun to chronicle it.  I have all the Cruise Compasses etc. but will only post them if someone asks.  

I appreciate you taking the time to chronicle your adventures. Looking forward to boarding the Ovation in a cpl weeks and change. 

[Sea Dog]

Great review! Thanks for all your hard work and especially enjoying a classic old fashioned.

Cheers to your next cruise!

[Ourusualbeach]

9 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

It was the worst debarkation process I have experienced in my 4 post pandemic cruises.  

I definitely agree with you on this.  Our embarkation wasn't any better, dropping off luggage was absolute chaos.  Once we cleared CPB at the end then the line for taxis started.  I know they are only seasonal but it's every year.  You would think they would have this figured out.

[TravelGirlinDallas]

9 hours ago, Tree_skier said:

People joined the lines from all points.  Some joined at the back and other pushed their way in from the side half up.  It was the worst debarkation process I have experienced in my 4 post pandemic cruises.  

We had the exact same experience. And I was inadvertently one of the mid-point line jumpers because I had no idea there were actual lines in that giant crush of people. One of the agents yelled and me and was super-rude about the whole thing, insisting that the lines were very obvious. Not that I could see! It was chaos.

 

We waited even longer than most because Brian can’t balance taking luggage down an escalator, and there’s only one elevator. The porters kept pushing the wheelchair folks in front of us (my husband has a disability but can walk) as well as another injured guy on crutches who had to wait forever with us even though he was obviously in pain.

 

Worst debarkation ever. But it was a great cruise.

[TravelGirlinDallas]

4 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

You would think they would have this figured out.

Right?!? This is the part is don’t understand. 

[Ozark_Kid]

I thought it was not that good in May but it looks like it was a lot worse for you. 

Thanks for taking us along.  Glad you enjoyed it. 

[barbeyg]

11 hours ago, TravelGirlinDallas said:

We waited even longer than most because Brian can’t balance taking luggage down an escalator, and there’s only one elevator. 

Our experience was a bit better than all of you. Because my sister was in a wheelchair, we ended up with a porter once we got down the elevator, and he streamlined us through it all.

 

Your comment above reminded me of our return flight from Mexico after our Panama Canal cruise years ago. Ken and Brian must be related. 🙂I have a tendency to get ahead of Ken, and I was stepping off an escalator at the Aculpulco airport, when a woman going up the other side gasped. I turned around as I was getting off at the bottom only to see Ken body-surfing our largest piece of luggage down the escalator. 😳🤭 I laughed myself silly over that one then, and still do when I am reminded of it. 😂🤣 

 

He still has no good explanation for how that happened. 🤷🏻‍♀️🙃