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Carnival Sunshine- We don’t need no stinking Bahamas - Our Unexpected Adventure

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Call8675309

Call8675309

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Just a short week ago, on a blustery day in the beautiful Carolinas, we embarked upon a journey like no other in our experience. We have been cruising for over 20 years and found an option on Carnival where we could easily drive to the port. Can you give me a Heck ya? This entire trip turned out to be a twisted tale of the unexpected. It was really enjoyable, but not exactly what I had envisioned when I hit the final payment button. Jump aboard if you’re up for a tale of vacation irony sprinkled with minor frustrations and the occasional glimpse at my unusual sense of humor.

 

We arrived in Charleston the day prior to embarkation and stayed at the Charleston Marriott. It was a blustery day, and we were tired and craving our Sunday football fix so we stayed in for the night. The most noteworthy part of this experience was our room. The hotel did right by us and we landed an upgrade to a two room, two bath suite. The trouble is, try going from this to your standard balcony cruise ship cabin. I must say, the universe has quite the sense of humor.

 

Here are a few quick shots from our suite.

 

Bedroom:

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Bath ( One of two identical)

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Living Room:

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Up next, embarkation day.  I’ll be working on that while you decide if you will join us for “Mr. And Mrs. Toad’s Wild Ride.”

 

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Call8675309

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Thank you to all who have opted in to come along for the ride. I hope it’s entertaining for you. I realized fairly quickly that writing a cruise review is not for the faint hearted. Much respect to those who write reviews. I’m working on my next installment. Please hang in there while I try to paint the picture.

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Monday - January 29, 2024

 

Today is the anxiously awaited embarkation day. From the time we reached the port until  we stepped on board was about 1.5 hours. No status nor FTF for us on this voyage. Oh well. First order of business is to add our $500 gift card to the S&S since we scored one for $450 just days prior to sailing. Next up, the “mustard” drill. Business behind us, we both wanted to try a Guy’s Burger. That didn’t exist on our last CCL cruise, so we were excited to try it. YUM! I’m not a food photographer, just suffice it to say, I didn’t plan on having this more than once, but we both found it to be one of the best lunch offerings so why not go for it?

 

In no time, we were offered an adult beverage and vacation officially has begun.

 

As we were finishing up our burger bliss-fest, the staff came by and whispered to us that our rooms were ready (before the announcement). We decided to pop down and check it out. We were not disappointed with the room, but I will save photos of it to tell you a tale that happened near the end of our journey.  You can’t make this stuff up.  Stay tuned…….

 

What I can say is what do the stateroom beds and Chevy Trucks have in common?

 

They’re both LIKE A ROCK!

 

 

 

An oddity of Charleston is the noise ordinance. We noticed that the sail away party was 45 minutes after leaving port. With that in mind, we headed back to the Havana Bar to watch the wake while we awaited the opportunity to Wobble and do the Cupid Shuffle. I enjoyed the Havana Bar a great deal as far as areas inside the ship. We sat and looked out the window and observed a pod of dolphins and the Ravenel Bridge as we sailed away from beautiful Charleston.

 

While there, some news popped up on my phone that the US had issued a level 2 travel alert for the Bahamas due to the number of murders and associated gang violence. Whelp, I was really only looking to either check out the rum distillery (still haven’t  been there) or find a place to enjoy some Kalik (it’s a tradition for us). Big sigh.  Not sure we will leave the ship. With fewer on board, we can enjoy the ship in relative peace.

 

Pod of Dolphins

IMG_1469.thumb.jpeg.b5942bd72c34ecb775a01dbf32dcbf86.jpegIMG_1469.thumb.jpeg.b5942bd72c34ecb775a01dbf32dcbf86.jpeg

 

 

Ravenel Bridge

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The deck party was mandatory after our view of the wake during sail away. James Love, our amazing cruise director, hosted a really great deck party. Best Ever! I don’t say that lightly.

 

Up next, the evening festivities. Oh, boy…..

 

 

The basic part of the evening was dinner in the MDR. He really liked his shrimp cocktail and BBQ salmon a’la Emeril. I liked the short ribs and thought Emeril’s crawfish appetizer was okay. The remolaude was the star.

 

After dinner, we were able to sneak into the early comedy show. It was SRO and we were fortunate to find a place to stand in the back. The comedian, as well as the host, warned everyone multiple times that the door was available to those who were easily offended. Literally, they said it at least three times, and with emphasis. He came out and had a pretty funny set. We laughed….a lot.  Near the end of the set, he was talking about the “famous” blue pill when someone from the audience yelled out “that’s why I take it 8 hours early “.  The comedian just went with it, but I was wondering why the audience member wanted to advertise.  I hope he planned ahead to avoid her saying “whadaya mean we have to wait 8 hours?” Some people…TMI.

 

Shortly after, a woman came up on stage, grabbed the comedian’s bottle of water, took a drink from it, put it down and yelled “Good Night” before fleeing the room. I thought she was a plant, but he seemed truly stunned. They didn’t kick her off the ship, because she was at the piano bar with us the next night. Oh, the company we keep!

 

The rest of the night was comparatively uneventful so I’m going to try to remember what happened the next day…our “official” first sea day. 

 

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Tuesday, January 30, 2024 - Sea Day 1

 

Since we had not sailed on Carnival in a while, we were ready to try our first Sea Day Brunch. I found the menu to be breakfast-forward, which I preferred. It was such a treat to have somebody else cook and serve our food. I could get used to that. Brunch was pretty good. I liked the eggs Benedict. Not sure what he ate, but I remember a lot of plates arriving at our table in front of him vs. my single plate. I wish I could eat like that.

 

We spent a lot of time exploring the ship. Since we had not been on the Sunshine before, we walked pretty much everywhere. I thought the sports court was decent, however, was disappointed that there was no promenade deck all the way around the ship. Not a huge big deal. It’s just small stuff.

 

The atrium was pretty cool, however, it was pretty congested. I did like that all of the public areas of the ship really showed the benefit of the refurbishment. The passenger cabins, perhaps not so much. This wasn’t a big deal for us. The cabin was more than adequate, and our steward was amazing. Shout out to Arnold! He’s the man.

 

Atrium:

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After some exploration, AJ decided to hit the casino. I was nervous. We went anyway.  Round one to him. He loves roulette. There was only one other player, so we sat down and got some chips. The first spin was double zero so all the chips went away.  The next spin, the other gentleman won straight up. He cashed his chips in, left a tip and walked away. Next spin, AJ won straight up! Oh my, the croupier just had two in a row. AJ cashed in his chips, provided a tip to Portia, and away we went. Not expecting the windfall, AJ decided that he would donate to the cause and take us to dinner at JiJi’s the final night.

 

Tonight is elegant night. We enjoyed dinner and a glass of wine in the MDR. Prior to that, we had enjoyed our own wine on our balcony. Bonus points to Carnival for allowing one bottle per passenger. Cool phenomenon was observed. Did you know that when the sun is descending in the sky near the juicy Caribbean clouds, if it’s at just the right angle and you’re wearing sunglasses, you can see rainbows in the void spots in the clouds? I’ve never observed this before. If you haven’t done it already, make sure to book a cruise to see if you can replicate this phenomenon.  So cool! We couldn’t get photos because it didn’t work without the sunglasses. Next time I’ll use them between the camera and the clouds to see if that works as a filter.

 

We hit the Alchemy Bar and brought our beverages to the piano Bar. If Andy is playing while you’re aboard, make sure to request Sweet Caroline. Evidently he can’t stand the song. If you’re a single person, look out. He’s working it!

 

Funny story, we were having a little wave action in the middle of the night and we heard a loud bang. I thought it was one of our more thoughtful neighbors, however, he thought I was up and about the cabin even though I was laying right beside him. Here’s how this went:

 

Him: Can you get me a water?

Me: No, I’m not getting up.

Him: Oh, I thought you were in the fridge.

Me: No, I don’t fit in there.

Him: (Silence)

Me: (Thinking - that went right over his head.)

 

A pretty uneventful day, other than the casino hit and the slightly rough seas. Let’s see what kind of mischief we can create tomorrow when we get to Nassau.

 

 

 

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17 minutes ago, casinostreer said:

Can't wait to hear the rest. We sail on the Sunshine quite a bit, next week in fact!

Thank you for the encouragement. Now I’m jealous. I want to go again.

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