LIVE from Anthem of the Seas, 23 September to 5 October 2022, "Discover the Canaries"

[Sunshine3601]

13 hours ago, FionaMG said:

First time I've ever seen that on any of our cruises. All the beds in that whole area were dirty.😕

Unfortunately, this is a common problem with soot from smoke stacks.   

[FionaMG]

1 hour ago, Jimbo said:

Can you explain more about the MDR buffet and maybe take a few pictures of the set-up they have in the MDR. Don't think I have ever heard of that before?

We're going to try the MDR buffet tomorrow do I'll see if I can get some pics.

Before the pandemic I experienced several ships with a breakfast buffet set up in a section of the MDR.

On this ship, however, it's going to be a bit different because this is one of the ship's that was designed for dynamic dining. The a la carte breakfast is in American Icon and the buffet is in Silk. 

I'll post back tomorrow to let you know.

[FionaMG]

Today was our first port stop and it was in Vigo, Spain. It could potentially have been a bust as we didn't get to do the walking tour we'd booked because of the changes in the port times on this itinerary.

 

However, it turned out to be fine. It was a nice day and we wandered around, eventually making it up to the castle walls, from where we could see the ship. (Pic taken by our new friends from the CC roll call - thanks @cricketts 😊)

 

 

Back down in the centre we found the 9-metre tall merman statue. I expect there's a story to it but as it would undoubtedly have been explained on the walking tour I hadn't researched it so I don't know.

 

Heading back towards the port we drifted slightly off the more touristy streets and came across a place where locals we're having lunch. When in Vigo...

It was a great choice. Iberian ham and cheese, followed by veal tenderloin. Absolutely delicious.

 

 

So all in all it turned out to be an enjoyable and undemanding port call.

Edited September 25, 2022 by FionaMG
Sp.

[FionaMG]

Day 3 MDR dinner menu

 

Seafood cake. I liked it; DH didn't care for it. He thought the sauce was too acidic.

 

Mushroom risotto and pan-seared sole. Both good.

 

 

Lemon curd tartlet and Mississippi mud pie. Very yummy.

 

 

[FionaMG]

The show tonight was a comedian, Josh Daniels.

If I'd realised it was a comedy show beforehand, we'd have skipped it because DH's first language is not English and comedy in English mostly goes over his head. Unfortunately because we got stuck in the middle of a row so we couldn't leave, so he had a nap while I enjoyed the show, which I thought was very good. 😂

 

Tomorrow we will be in Lisbon, which is weird for us. We flew to England to get on a ship that's stopping in a place we can drive to in two and a half hours! 😂

 

Interestingly, the compass states that masks are mandatory in the terminal and on public transport but this is out of date. Those requirements were lifted several weeks ago, so I guess they somehow missed the change. 

 

Edited September 25, 2022 by FionaMG
Sp.

[Another_Critic]

37 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

Tomorrow we will be in Lisbon, which is weird for us. We flew to England to get on a ship that's stopping in a place we can drive to in two and a half hours! 😂

Have you followed the adventures of @JessyCruises ?  Drove to Cape Liberty, took a cruise with a stop at St. John, NB.  Walked across the street to her condo, cuddled with her dog, ate lunch, did some laundry, did some work (enjoying the fast internet), walked back to the ship.  😄

[FionaMG]

10 hours ago, Another_Critic said:

Have you followed the adventures of @JessyCruises ?  Drove to Cape Liberty, took a cruise with a stop at St. John, NB.  Walked across the street to her condo, cuddled with her dog, ate lunch, did some laundry, did some work (enjoying the fast internet), walked back to the ship.  😄

I have not but I will have to look her up! 😂

[FionaMG]

Welcome to Lisbon

 

[FionaMG]

Today's compass

 

 

 

 

[FionaMG]

@Jimbo, promised update on the MDR breakfast buffet.

At the entrance to the restaurant there are two lines, one for a la carte and one for buffet.

You are escorted to a table and coffee, juices etc are poured at the table by roving servers.

The buffet is obviously much smaller than the WJ but has all the basics, except for made to order omelettes.

 

 

 

 

 

The hot items in the middle are your usual bacon, sausages, scrambled eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and beans, as well as French toast and pancakes.

I liked the set up, much more civilised than the WJ, especially not having to hunt for a table.

If there's anything else you want to know about it, just say. I think this is going to be our go-to breakfast place for the rest of the cruise.

[Jimbo]

2 hours ago, FionaMG said:

@Jimbo, promised update on the MDR breakfast buffet.

At the entrance to the restaurant there are two lines, one for a la carte and one for buffet.

You are escorted to a table and coffee, juices etc are poured at the table by roving servers.

The buffet is obviously much smaller than the WJ but has all the basics, except for made to order omelettes.

 

 

 

 

 

The hot items in the middle are your usual bacon, sausages, scrambled eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and beans, as well as French toast and pancakes.

I liked the set up, much more civilised than the WJ, especially not having to hunt for a table.

If there's anything else you want to know about it, just say. I think this is going to be our go-to breakfast place for the rest of the cruise.

Nice set-up, much more relaxed then the zoo in the Windjammer. I bet this will nice earlier in the cruise then later when more passengers find out you can have breakfast in the MDR.

 

Do you know if they will have this option for lunch also or is this just for breakfast?

[vjmatty]

2 hours ago, FionaMG said:

@Jimbo, promised update on the MDR breakfast buffet.

At the entrance to the restaurant there are two lines, one for a la carte and one for buffet.

You are escorted to a table and coffee, juices etc are poured at the table by roving servers.

The buffet is obviously much smaller than the WJ but has all the basics, except for made to order omelettes.

 

 

 

 

 

The hot items in the middle are your usual bacon, sausages, scrambled eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and beans, as well as French toast and pancakes.

I liked the set up, much more civilised than the WJ, especially not having to hunt for a table.

If there's anything else you want to know about it, just say. I think this is going to be our go-to breakfast place for the rest of the cruise.

 

This does look like a quieter option than the WJ if you don't feel like waiting for table service and want more variety.  How would you compare it to 270 or the solarium for breakfast, neither of which I have been to on Anthem.

[FionaMG]

47 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Nice set-up, much more relaxed then the zoo in the Windjammer. I bet this will nice earlier in the cruise then later when more passengers find out you can have breakfast in the MDR.

 

Do you know if they will have this option for lunch also or is this just for breakfast?

I don't know. We've not made it to the MDR at lunchtime. I'll see if I can find out and let you know.

[FionaMG]

37 minutes ago, vjmatty said:

 

This does look like a quieter option than the WJ if you don't feel like waiting for table service and want more variety.  How would you compare it to 270 or the solarium for breakfast, neither of which I have been to on Anthem.

It has a bigger selection than the solarium. I believe 270 is mostly sandwiches and possibly cereal. But those two venues are potentially more attractive in term of view and surroundings unless you're lucky enough to get a window seat in the MDR.

[JessyCruises]

13 hours ago, Another_Critic said:

Have you followed the adventures of @JessyCruises ?  Drove to Cape Liberty, took a cruise with a stop at St. John, NB.  Walked across the street to her condo, cuddled with her dog, ate lunch, did some laundry, did some work (enjoying the fast internet), walked back to the ship.  😄

 

It was a weird experience for sure!  We had not originally intended to cruise home.  We were already booked for the following 3 cruises and happened to get a casino offer for the shorter one right before that just happened to dock across the street from our front door. 🙂 

[FionaMG]

16 minutes ago, JessyCruises said:

 

It was a weird experience for sure!  We had not originally intended to cruise home.  We were already booked for the following 3 cruises and happened to get a casino offer for the shorter one right before that just happened to dock across the street from our front door. 🙂 

Haha, that's amazing but definitely worth taking advantage of! 😂

[FionaMG]

We had a nice wander around Lisbon. The ship docks close to the centre, about a 20 minute walk, half of which is on the zigzagging ramps between the ship and the terminal exit.

 

There is not much in the terminal itself but you can get hoho bus and tuk-tuk tour tickets there. Hoho bus was 25 euros pp and someone I was speaking to while we manoeuvring to the dock said the ship price was 60 dollars so definitely better to wait and buy on land.

 

On the way back in, there a small but nicely laid out shop selling souvenirs, food and drinks.

 

 

 

 

[FionaMG]

Evening sailaway from Lisbon. 25th of April Bridge.

 

 

[FionaMG]

More random stair art, deck 16 outside the gym

 

 

And some of the gym itself for peeps who like to work off a few extra calories 💪💪💪

 

 

 

[njkruzer]

Royal used to be known for the art it placed on its ships.  There is a book that details it's decision to do so.  Published 2002.

[njkruzer]

Here's the book.

[FionaMG]

Tonight's MDR menu

 

Hope it's legible; we were in quite a dark spot.

 

Seafood puff pastry. This was better than I was expecting.

 

Mojo marinated pork chop. The sauce was a bit too sweet for our taste.

 

Bananas foster and classic chocolate cake, both get a thumbs up.

 

 

[FionaMG]

Tonight's show was a variety with a couple of numbers by the royal Caribbean orchestra, 3 songs by one of the cast members of We Will Rock You and some more tricks by magician Jamie Allen. He really is excellent.

 

Tomorrow we have another sea day. Our next door tablemates at dinner we're discussing their strategy: "We better put the towels out before breakfast. It's going to be a fight to get good sunbeds." 😡

[Merion_Mom]

@FionaMG

 

First, thank you for taking us all along with you.

 

Second, is The Gift back yet?

[FionaMG]

I stopped off at guest services earlier to ask about the sheet with officers' names and pictures. The agent went looking for one but came back empty handed. She said they had none printed at the moment; however she took our room number and said she would request one to be put in our room. Whether it will materialise remains to be seen but I appreciated the gesture.

 

We also asked how many passengers are onboard for this sailing so she looked it up and it's just a bit over 3,800.

 

Interestingly I have never seen guest services so quiet on any of my cruises. There never seem to be any more than a couple of people waiting whereas on all our other cruises there have been long queues.