Live from the NCL Jewel May 1-15, 2023 (caution: may contain grumpiness and sarcasm.)

[MommaK2D2]

Good ideas and tips for NCL, @YVRteacher (from both you and your dad LOL!!). I like how you highlight the great things and the things that could be done better!

      I was ready to dislike NCL as I read the boards before our trip- but was pleasantly surprised at what a nice ship and good time we had. The staff was great (except the desk people at excursion and guest services who were ok but not impressive). The ship and size of ship was wonderful and the cast shows were super fun!  The itenerary and time in ports was perfect for us as well!  And we enjoyed Modernos and Cagneys.   Drinks and the staff and bartenders were good.   And I loved that the spa has such great panoramic views out the front of the ship (royal mostly the ceramic loungers face nothing I hear- watching the sunset each night from those heated loungers was a big highlight for me!!   I am not a smoker, but my dad appreciated having the outdoor smoking area sheltered enough from the wind to not be miserable when at sea, so that was a big plus for him. 

     I was sad to only have 1x day cabin service (only because we had to do up and down the sofa to bed every night), but I hear all the cruise lines have done that. And it wasn’t super hard, but a bit cramped (the rooms are a bit skinnier from side to side compared to other balcony rooms I have been in, made it hard to squeeze across). I miss the high afternoon tea as well (the scones in the great outdoors aren’t as fun as a 3 course tea accompanied by live string quartet LOL.   I kinda miss the more formal dining vibe of other lines, BUT  it was great for dad and the perfect choice cruising with him!  I can see how the flexibility is a must for many travelers. 
    I was not impressed by the dining in the MDR or buffet (they were alright I guess?)l

strangely the buffet was often better than the MDR) nor  O’Sheehan’s nor Chin/Chin (not a fan…with exception of the appetizers at chin chin which were good if listening to the piano below) And I found the desserts were all underwhelming. I miss all the ice sculpture and fancy garnish and carved fruit and presentation from royal carribbean or princess, and the better tasting food on those lines. I feel like the “okay” food maybe is meant to push people toward spending $$ in specialty maybe. 
    Overall a great experience though- and couldn’t have chosen a better ship or itenerary for dad- freestyle is perfect for him!!!  Beautiful Alaskan cruise. Dad says he wouldn’t change a thing!

[alackas]

1 hour ago, Nilbog said:

@alackas which date in September?  We're on the 25th.

We are on the 11th

[Dachgraf]

I have another question about the excursions organized by NCL:

Long time ago on our first trip on the Jewel, we met with many others at the Stardust Theater and waited to be called for the excursions. Then we walked off the ship in a group to the bus.
On other cruise lines, we walked off the ship by ourselves and searched for the right bus.
What method is currently used on the Jewel?

[arpie05]

On 5/15/2023 at 9:49 PM, YVRteacher said:

Nothing like returning from vacation to find out your principal has eliminated the teacher librarian position for the next school year.

 

I'm so sorry! Hopefully it wasn't out of jealousy. I know someone who was a cruiser and she didn't get a promotion because her co-workers thought she cruised too much.

[YVRteacher]

2 hours ago, Dachgraf said:

I have another question about the excursions organized by NCL:

Long time ago on our first trip on the Jewel, we met with many others at the Stardust Theater and waited to be called for the excursions. Then we walked off the ship in a group to the bus.
On other cruise lines, we walked off the ship by ourselves and searched for the right bus.
What method is currently used on the Jewel?

Both methods are used on the Jewel.  Most excursions meet on the dock though.

[YVRteacher]

23 hours ago, MommaK2D2 said:

Good ideas and tips for NCL, @YVRteacher (from both you and your dad LOL!!). I like how you highlight the great things and the things that could be done better!

      I was ready to dislike NCL as I read the boards before our trip- but was pleasantly surprised at what a nice ship and good time we had. The staff was great (except the desk people at excursion and guest services who were ok but not impressive). The ship and size of ship was wonderful and the cast shows were super fun!  The itenerary and time in ports was perfect for us as well!  And we enjoyed Modernos and Cagneys.   Drinks and the staff and bartenders were good.   And I loved that the spa has such great panoramic views out the front of the ship (royal mostly the ceramic loungers face nothing I hear- watching the sunset each night from those heated loungers was a big highlight for me!!   I am not a smoker, but my dad appreciated having the outdoor smoking area sheltered enough from the wind to not be miserable when at sea, so that was a big plus for him. 

     I was sad to only have 1x day cabin service (only because we had to do up and down the sofa to bed every night), but I hear all the cruise lines have done that. And it wasn’t super hard, but a bit cramped (the rooms are a bit skinnier from side to side compared to other balcony rooms I have been in, made it hard to squeeze across). I miss the high afternoon tea as well (the scones in the great outdoors aren’t as fun as a 3 course tea accompanied by live string quartet LOL.   I kinda miss the more formal dining vibe of other lines, BUT  it was great for dad and the perfect choice cruising with him!  I can see how the flexibility is a must for many travelers. 
    I was not impressed by the dining in the MDR or buffet (they were alright I guess?)l

strangely the buffet was often better than the MDR) nor  O’Sheehan’s nor Chin/Chin (not a fan…with exception of the appetizers at chin chin which were good if listening to the piano below) And I found the desserts were all underwhelming. I miss all the ice sculpture and fancy garnish and carved fruit and presentation from royal carribbean or princess, and the better tasting food on those lines. I feel like the “okay” food maybe is meant to push people toward spending $$ in specialty maybe. 
    Overall a great experience though- and couldn’t have chosen a better ship or itenerary for dad- freestyle is perfect for him!!!  Beautiful Alaskan cruise. Dad says he wouldn’t change a thing!

Hi!  Do you think your dad will cruise with you again?

I wish we had shared a lunch or drinks together!

 

[YVRteacher]

7 hours ago, arpie05 said:

I'm so sorry! Hopefully it wasn't out of jealousy. I know someone who was a cruiser and she didn't get a promotion because her co-workers thought she cruised too much.

Nope. No chance.  It has to do with cutbacks and how teacher librarian time comes out of resource teacher time and we lost 30% of our resource teacher time.  

[YVRteacher]

Got a wedding save the date in the mail today. Need to book a cruise for July 2024 to have an excuse not to go to the wedding!

[ChiefMateJRK]

5 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

Got a wedding save the date in the mail today. Need to book a cruise for July 2024 to have an excuse not to go to the wedding!

Love it!!  @ChiefMateJRK would probably just claim something much more lame.

[YVRteacher]

I called my dad today to see if he also received a save the date card (it’s a cousin who is getting married and this cousin has never once acknowledged a birthday or said thank you for birthday or Christmas gifts.)

 

My dad initially thought it was a birthday card for him and was irate when he opened the envelope and saw what was inside.🤣

[cruisequeen4ever]

I thoroughly enjoyed the recounting of your cruise; thank you for taking the time to share it. I wish you the best of luck with your job situation! 

[YVRteacher]

8 hours ago, cruisequeen4ever said:

I thoroughly enjoyed the recounting of your cruise; thank you for taking the time to share it. I wish you the best of luck with your job situation! 

Thank you so much!  It was confirmed yesterday that Human Resources won’t budge.  My principal called me into her office yesterday to say, “guess what Yvonne?  I have news that is going to fill your bucket…”

She went on and on about all the good things HR had to say about me and how I am regarded in the district.

I said, “why would I care what HR thinks of me?”

I was absolutely baffled that she would think this would ‘fill my bucket.’

 

Anyhow, I’m transitioning from the sadness of how this was handled and how I have been treated toward feeling hopeful and excited for something new.  I read that when one starts to feel complacent that is a good time for change.  Quite frankly I was happy being complacent!  
 

There are great schools and great kids out there and hopefully I’ll be teaching art, reading and writing (or better yet teacher librarying) at one of them.

 

 

[ChiefMateJRK]

4 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

It was confirmed yesterday that Human Resources won’t budge.  My principal called me into her office yesterday to say, “guess what Yvonne?  I have news that is going to fill your bucket…”

She went on and on about all the good things HR had to say about me and how I am regarded in the district.

I said, “why would I care what HR thinks of me?”

I was absolutely baffled that she would think this would ‘fill my bucket.’

Interesting.  I've never really considered schools to fall into the "MegaCorp" mold, but here we are. 🤣

 

Best wishes.  I really liked the times that I could go home at the end of each day with a sense of accomplishment.  That was probably 50% of the days.  The other days?  I just reminded myself that the paychecks were still coming every other week.😎

[YVRteacher]

Just to show how wonderful the food is on the NCL Jewel…

 

I follow the Alaska Sea Life Center (this is the aquarium and marine animal rescue in Seward) on Instagram. Here is a recent post, caption and my response

 

 

[YVRteacher]

1 minute ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Interesting.  I've never really considered schools to fall into the "MegaCorp" mold, but here we are. 🤣

 

Best wishes.  I really liked the times that I could go home at the end of each day with a sense of accomplishment.  That was probably 50% of the days.  The other days?  I just reminded myself that the paychecks were still coming every other week.😎

@ChiefMateJRK thank you!  What did you do to celebrate your retirement?

[ChiefMateJRK]

14 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

@ChiefMateJRK thank you!  What did you do to celebrate your retirement?

If I had been more of a cruiser back then, I would have taken a great cruise (well, they're all great, aren't they?).  I really didn't do anything special.  Just grabbed the final paycheck and started enjoying retirement life.  I made a commitment to myself to do NO work during the first two weeks.  If I thought of something that I should be doing, I just added it to the to-do list and returned to my recliner.  Freedom can be celebrated by just enjoying being free.  That was eight years ago and retirement will NEVER grow old.  Fortunately, DW finally retired so we can just cruise whenever we want to. 😎

[wesorbeth]

On 5/23/2023 at 10:22 PM, YVRteacher said:

Got a wedding save the date in the mail today. Need to book a cruise for July 2024 to have an excuse not to go to the wedding!

Why wouldn't you want to go?

 

[bluesea777]

8 minutes ago, wesorbeth said:

Why wouldn't you want to go?

 

see post #535

 

[quack2]

In parts of the US, school librarians can be imprisoned for having the "wrong" books on the shelves.  I presume Canada is far more enlightened than that.

Edited May 26, 2023 by quack2

[YVRteacher]

Yeah-we make displays about the books that are banned in the US and the kids flock to those displays to sign out the books. This week I read Angel Girl (which takes place during the Holocaust) with my grades 3-7 students.  It is National Jewish Heritage Month. 
 

We have a book buyer in our district and all schools get the same books with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion. We also have separate school budgets for our own purchasing. My students love graphic novels and manga so I’ve worked hard to develop those two collections over the last year.  It is an expectation that our libraries contain books representing LGBTQI2S people, people with different abilities, people from cultures and countries around the world, different types of families and relationships and that we aren’t avoiding “tough subjects.”  I am currently in a school where the majority of students are refugees from Syria, Jordan and Lebanon so I make sure the books I’m buying represent Muslim people, holidays and traditions.  We also have a district goal of enhancing Indigenous education so 30% of library purchases at our school are by Indigenous authors.  

[SenatorsFan]

I used to be responsible for my branch "Banned Books Week" display. People were always surprised by some of the titles on the list and the books were always checked out. Thanks for what you do @YVRteacher. ♥️

[libtrek]

Diverse? Open minded? Not so much in our thumb area. Our Lapeer public librarian was threatened with arrest over a LBQ book. The prosecutor backed off when a backlash occurred but it was obvious from his statement that he hadn’t actually read the book, only the jacket blurb.

[YVRteacher]

My heart goes out to that librarian!  

[YVRteacher]

Did you all know that the shareholder benefit for onboard credit is per cabin, not per person? We finally both purchased NCL stocks and I thought we would each get $100 onboard credit on our next cruise.  I was wrong.

[psalm104]

Since you cruise with your dad (and some others on this thread mentioned they do as well), I was wondering if you know of a way before a cruise to have other family members be able to see the details of our cruise so that they can look at things like itinerary and dining and excursion options without having full access to the payment/document/check in/booking capabilities?

 

I am paying for my family group (we are in multiple staterooms), and I have booked everything myself. Now some of my relatives are asking if I can get them a log in for the app or a way so they can look at the itinerary and dining/excursion options, etc. precruise. Because of the complicated nature of our situation (too many reasons to list), I prefer not to give anyone access to make actual changes to any plans, etc. ahead of the cruise. Let's just say there is a wide range of ages and technical abilities and dispositions and dynamics that could potentially cause some nightmares that are being wonderfully avoided at this point with me being the "administrator" who does all the paperwork and booking. I also would not like anyone to see the cruise fare costs out of discretion, as this is a gift to them. But I would like them to be able to see the cruise information so they can get excited for the trip and see all the ship details and read about the itinerary and restaurants and excursion options. Any ideas?

 

Another question: It is my understanding that once we get onboard, everyone can activate the NCL app in a different mode/iteration than what it is precruise without having an NCL account, is that correct?

 

Thanks for any insights or tips!