Spoiled at Sea - Live from the Majesty, Cabin 901 - 06.11.06 - Part 1

[angeljt]

Well, this started out being live, but we were having so much fun that we never made it to the internet cafe to sign up for internet access. That was a first for us!

 

Good morning all from somewhere in the beautiful Atlantic.

 

Embarkation

We arrived at the Black Falcon Pier on the first sunny day all week, at about 11 AM Sunday morning, greeted by a very pleasant porter who took our bags and directed us to an elevator. Went to the desk to check in, directed to a short line that wasn't moving. Stood there for about 5 minutes when a woman called our names and told us to follow her. She brought us to an area downstairs for suite passengers, and said the concierge, Karin, would be down shortly. They had juice and water available. While waiting, our CC friends and neighbors in Cabin 903 arrived, introduced themselves, and we chatted during the short wait.

We had a bottle of Mr. & Mrs. T's Bloody Mary mix, a Watermelon mixer in a glass bottle and a couple of nips I figured we'd have while unpacking (since we seem to putz around while doing so) in a suitcase and saw it had been singled out for inspection. Karin showed up and told us to meet her in the Boardroom at 4 PM for a talk.

 

Cabin

We went to our room and unpacked our carry ons and met with Francis, our room steward. We were pleasantly surprised when we walked into the suite. It was a lot nicer than what I've read on the reviews and seen in the pictures. Much smaller than the OS on the Dawn, but still sufficient with a combo living/dining room, bedroom, walk in closet, and much smaller bath. It does show some wear, but so far nothing major.

 

Our Sunday Adventures

We walked around the decks checking out what and where things were before going to the Seven Seas for lunch. We had Syandra & Maria as our waitstaff and they were very friendly and proficient. DH had the jalepeno corn chowder, blackened Tilapia with veggies and rice, and butterscotch pie (cooking light dessert). I had cold banana soup, ricotta & spinach cannolini and chocolate rum bread pudding. The food was very, very good.

We came back to the room and our singled out suitcase was sitting in front of the door with a red liquor tape on it. I guess they let it slide, but where was the rest of the luggage? Went to the meeting with Karin and she discussed Bermuda and how some things worked on board.

We went to the Monte Carlo Casino and signed up for their Casino at Seas program which is different from the Dawns. You do not put your card in the machines, but leave it propped up on the machine you're playing and they track your time of play. Plamenka was our casino host and she is sweet, friendly and eager to please. Unlike the Dawn, all of our drinks in the casino have been comped so far. Very nice touch in my book, and will keep me playing much longer. I will write later about more of the differences from the Dawn OS and general shipboard practices later.

We went to dinner at 9 PM again in the Seven Seas. We had the Russian Salad, Beef Empanada with a delicious fruit salsa (with a llittle kick), Tortellini with pesto and I had Prime Rib, an excellent baked potato and spiced carrots. No dessert tonight! Stopped in at the Polo Club and listened to Allen Roman on Acoustic Guitar for a bit, then back to the Casino. The slots seemed to be paying pretty good. Even Terry (DH) played on the poker machine for about 2 hours on $5.00!!! His usual gambling limit is about 15 minutes. Terry went to the room to watch the MBA Finals while I stayed in the casino and spent his money. Finally quit at 2:30 AM and headed for those soft downy pillows fluffy duvet. ZZZZZ

Clocks set ahead one hour tonight.

Ahhhh..... Life is Good!

[angeljt]

Spoiled at Sea - Live from the Majesty, Cabin 901 - 06.12.06

 

Monday

Brrrringggg, brrringggg!!! Good morning, your breakfast is being delivered. Forgot about the time change when we ordered breakfast for 6:30 AM, and I never thought I would be up until all hours of the morning. Oh well, I'll suffer through the day on 4 hours sleep, maybe nap later, but I doubt it. I hate missing anything because my naps tend to last 3 or 4 hours. We have had very smooth sailing so far.

 

Karin, the concierge from Germany, came to the room to check on us and see if we wanted to make reservations for any of the restaurants or if we had any other questions. We had been talking about what we wanted to ask her, when she knocked and when we opened the door and saw her standing there, we said in unison, 'speak of the devil.' She looked perplexed and didn't have a clue what we were talking about. She asked if she had done something wrong, so we tried to explain that it was an American expression and no, she hadn't done everything wrong. I promised that we would call her an angel from now on. We all had a good laugh over the whole thing.

 

Went to the CC meeting at 10:30 am, a few minutes late since we had been talking to Karin. We arrived to an empty room set up for a classroom meeting with two pitchers of water. The rep had called me the day before to firm things up, but she hadn't arrived yet. A few people started showing up, and there really wasn't any room to sit in a way conducive to a get together of this type. We ended up moving a bunch of tables and chairs so we could fit, sit and chat. We ended up with about 10 or 12 of us staying after people saw how little room there was. We stayed until 11:30 AM when it was time for the Martini tasting and 4 of us decided to imbibe.

 

Muhamad and Gusti gave an excellent presentation and we had a great time with Deny & Peter, who we nicknamed GG. They are a fun couple and we had a lot of laughs. Muhamad started us off and Gusti finished up doing many tricks during the tasting. My favorite was the Expresso Martini. We all headed up to the buffet for a little something to soak up the booze we had consumed and then to our room for more cocktails.

 

Terry and I went to Seven Seas and had Rafael and Joseph serve our asparagus salads, Lobster tails for me and Chateaubriand for T. He had the creme brulee for dessert and I was done, fini, toast, down for the count, that's all she wrote!!!! :o

[mlh]

sounds like the first 2 days went OK. Looking forward to hearing about the rest of the week.

[angeljt]

Spoiled at Sea 3 - Almost Live from the Majesty, Cabin 901

 

We went up on deck to watch as the passage into St. George's at 8:15 AM. There were people welcoming us to Bermuda, including little children. It's great to be back here after so many years away. The island looks as beautiful as ever from the ship.

Karin stopped by with the dinner menus I had requested so we could make our decisions and plan some of our dinners. She stops by twice a day, and is very professional, sweet and helpful. She is a wonderful concierge and very attentive. Kudos to Karin, our Angel!!!

We went to the breakfast buffet before going ashore into St. George's to walk around for a few hours, taking pictures and checking out the shops. We stopped in Another World (gift shop) and I heard someone call my name. I looked up and it was a girl (woman now) I went through school with. She is also on the Majesty. Small world! We proceeded to the Information Center and while looking through pamphlets, I look up at the person next to me and it's Deny, that we had met at the CC meeting and hung out with. Smaller world still.... Good thing we're not in hiding!!! We went back on board for a late lunch and to take advantage of a partially empty ship and hang by the pool. We had lunch by the pool, Tacos and pizza for DH and a Cheeseburger and salad from Piazza San Marco. We found the burgers, fries, salad and pizza there to be very good. They serve cheese and pepperoni every day and a variety of other pizza which changes daily. Some with other meats and some with different veggies. I never got to try the hot dogs.

Time for a nap for DH and then off to the Latitudes Cocktail Party co-hosted by the Captain, Jan Ottesen and the Port and Cruise Consultant, Saskia Harm in the Royal Fireworks Lounge on Deck 5. Resort Casual is the attire. There also were other Senior Officers and Department Heads present. Some of the crew did a great job performing and entertaining us while drinks and goodies were passed. They also had raffles and gave away a bunch of things. We didn't win any, but plenty of people around us did.

We went back to the Polo Lounge with Deny and GG for Expresso Martinis and other yummy drinks. DH and I won the Trivia Contest and I got first pick at the prizes which were large plastic bottles with NCL cozies, NCL pens and smaller drink cozies. Muhamad and Revvie are great bartenders and very friendly.

We all went to dinner in the Seven Seas. Everyone ordered the Oyster Fritters for an appetizer, which is not something I would normally order, but they were very good. I had Linguini alla Putanesca which was delicious and the rest of the crew ordered the Jamaican Jerk Chicken. They weren't thrilled with it since it wasn't very spicy and different from the jerk seasonings they are use to.

We all went to the Island Night Deck Party with Caribbean Wave, the Calypso Band. We dressed GG up and had a lot of fun.

The clock strikes midnight and all of us Cinderella's went to bed!!!

Wednesday and Bermuda.....Look out.....Here we come!!!!

[Hobbins]

It's so great to read your review. Sort of like having memories without actually being there. I can pretend, right? Don't stop now.

[angeljt]

It's so great to read your review. Sort of like having memories without actually being there. I can pretend, right? Don't stop now.

Hi Al,

I'm glad you're enjoying the review. I typed up the first two on the ship and then we were having so much fun that I didn't have time for the rest.

This cruise was great, we really like the Majesty and Bermuda. The only thing missing was you and Cheryl!!!

Jackie

[cruizinwithkids]

Angeljt,

 

Thanks for the review. We are just over two weeks away and I really can't wait.:D

 

We were on the Dawn 12/7/03. I see you are from Massachusetts as are we. How was that trip home?

[Hobbinette]

Jackie - I am really enjoying reading your review. Our cruise seems so far away - 5 months. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your trip:D

[Parrot Mom]

Well, this started out being live, but we were having so much fun that we never made it to the internet cafe to sign up for internet access. That was a first for us!

 

Good morning all from somewhere in the beautiful Atlantic.

 

Embarkation

We arrived at the Black Falcon Pier on the first sunny day all week, at about 11 AM Sunday morning, greeted by a very pleasant porter who took our bags and directed us to an elevator. Went to the desk to check in, directed to a short line that wasn't moving. Stood there for about 5 minutes when a woman called our names and told us to follow her. She brought us to an area downstairs for suite passengers, and said the concierge, Karin, would be down shortly. They had juice and water available. While waiting, our CC friends and neighbors in Cabin 903 arrived, introduced themselves, and we chatted during the short wait.

We had a bottle of Mr. & Mrs. T's Bloody Mary mix, a Watermelon mixer in a glass bottle and a couple of nips I figured we'd have while unpacking (since we seem to putz around while doing so) in a suitcase and saw it had been singled out for inspection. Karin showed up and told us to meet her in the Boardroom at 4 PM for a talk.

 

Cabin

We went to our room and unpacked our carry ons and met with Francis, our room steward. We were pleasantly surprised when we walked into the suite. It was a lot nicer than what I've read on the reviews and seen in the pictures. Much smaller than the OS on the Dawn, but still sufficient with a combo living/dining room, bedroom, walk in closet, and much smaller bath. It does show some wear, but so far nothing major.

 

Our Sunday Adventures

We walked around the decks checking out what and where things were before going to the Seven Seas for lunch. We had Syandra & Maria as our waitstaff and they were very friendly and proficient. DH had the jalepeno corn chowder, blackened Tilapia with veggies and rice, and butterscotch pie (cooking light dessert). I had cold banana soup, ricotta & spinach cannolini and chocolate rum bread pudding. The food was very, very good.

We came back to the room and our singled out suitcase was sitting in front of the door with a red liquor tape on it. I guess they let it slide, but where was the rest of the luggage? Went to the meeting with Karin and she discussed Bermuda and how some things worked on board.

We went to the Monte Carlo Casino and signed up for their Casino at Seas program which is different from the Dawns. You do not put your card in the machines, but leave it propped up on the machine you're playing and they track your time of play. Plamenka was our casino host and she is sweet, friendly and eager to please. Unlike the Dawn, all of our drinks in the casino have been comped so far. Very nice touch in my book, and will keep me playing much longer. I will write later about more of the differences from the Dawn OS and general shipboard practices later.

We went to dinner at 9 PM again in the Seven Seas. We had the Russian Salad, Beef Empanada with a delicious fruit salsa (with a llittle kick), Tortellini with pesto and I had Prime Rib, an excellent baked potato and spiced carrots. No dessert tonight! Stopped in at the Polo Club and listened to Allen Roman on Acoustic Guitar for a bit, then back to the Casino. The slots seemed to be paying pretty good. Even Terry (DH) played on the poker machine for about 2 hours on $5.00!!! His usual gambling limit is about 15 minutes. Terry went to the room to watch the MBA Finals while I stayed in the casino and spent his money. Finally quit at 2:30 AM and headed for those soft downy pillows fluffy duvet. ZZZZZ

Clocks set ahead one hour tonight.

Ahhhh..... Life is Good!

 

 

Are you saying that they are now serving lunch in the dining room on Sunday when you embark on the ship, instead of having you go upstairs to the buffet.

[angeljt]

Angeljt,

 

Thanks for the review. We are just over two weeks away and I really can't wait.:D

 

We were on the Dawn 12/7/03. I see you are from Massachusetts as are we. How was that trip home?

Cruizinwithkids,

You're welcome. Yes, we were on the 12/7/03 Dawn also and I have some pics posted in the link below of that cruise. We are originally from Malden, but live in Fairhaven, MA now.

The Majesty was so much fun, I'm sure you're going to have a ball. Much different from the Dawn, smaller and older, but still a great ship.

Jackie

[angeljt]

Jackie - I am really enjoying reading your review. Our cruise seems so far away - 5 months. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your trip:D

Hi Cheryl,

Glad you're enjoying it. I need to get busy and finish it. Your cruise will be here before you know it, and at least you have it to look forward to.

Jackie

[angeljt]

Angeljt,

We were on the Dawn 12/7/03. I see you are from Massachusetts as are we. How was that trip home?

 

If you mean the trip home from Bermuda, it started off with a little rocking, but after a couple of hours the water was like glass. We had very smooth sailing overall.

Jackie

[Welove2cruise2]

Hi Jackie! I'm really loving your review of our wonderful cruise on the Majesty! Keep it coming!

 

I've been so busy since we got home that I haven't even had time to THINK!

 

Maybe next week I'll have the time to write my review...;)

[cruizinwithkids]

If you mean the trip home from Bermuda, it started off with a little rocking, but after a couple of hours the water was like glass. We had very smooth sailing overall.

Jackie

 

No, I'm talking about the snow the day we arrived back in NY on 12/14/03.

[angeljt]

Hi Jackie! I'm really loving your review of our wonderful cruise on the Majesty! Keep it coming!

 

I've been so busy since we got home that I haven't even had time to THINK!

 

Maybe next week I'll have the time to write my review...;)

Hi Peg,

I was enjoying yours too. I know what you mean, catch up is a witch...:D

I have to write while I can still remember. :D Sure wish we were back on the Majesty. I've been checking out cruises, but don't have a clue what will be next.

Jackie

[angeljt]

No, I'm talking about the snow the day we arrived back in NY on 12/14/03.

OMG, it was brutal!!! I can remember pulling into NY that dark, cloudy morning, but no snow! Within an hour there was over an inch on the balcony. Our friend drove in from New Fairfield to pick us up and the one hour drive took him 3 hours in and 3 hours back.

We also hit the blizzard Friday night before the cruise, when we left home for New Fairfield. The weather reports were asking people not to drive on Saturday, so we rushed to finish packing when DH got home from work and left late Friday instead of Saturday. We hit it anyway and did a 360 on Route 84. We didn't think we were going to make that sailaway party! We ended up on the side of the highway, luckily without damage and we were only traveling about 20mph. We were very lucky that there weren't any cars close behind us, because there was no stopping. It was like driving on ice. We finally got to New Fairfield around 1 AM (normally a 3 hour drive, took 7 hours). Well, they live on top of a mountain and we couldn't get up the road. We had to drive back down and call from a pay phone since we didn't have any cell service where we were. They had just come home from a wedding and came down the mountain in their 4 wheel drive vehicle to pick us and our luggage up. By now there was a lot of snow accumulated, and it snowed most of Saturday. Sunday brought about abundant sunshine and melted a lot of it and we had an uneventful drive to the Dawn.

How was your adventure?

Jackie

 

http://img155.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lakewsnow3tq.jpg

 

http://img95.imageshack.us/my.php?image=welcometonysnow3kj.jpg

 

http://img148.imageshack.us/my.php?image=bimboloungewsnow5cd.jpg

[angeljt]

How quickly things change! This was our first sunrise....

 

http://img75.imageshack.us/img75/614/firstsunrise12803monday3ea.jpg

[cruizinwithkids]

We have a family joke going about that cruise. Maybe you can help us decide.:D

 

In October 2003 I babysat my two nephews, ages 2 and 4 for four days while my brother and wife went to Aruba. The Red Sox were in the playoffs. I had right seat roof tickets for one game and standing room Green Monster tickets for another game. My family ended up taking a friend while I stayed home and babysat.

 

In December my brother drove DH and me to NYC. We left Sunday morning, early. We are on the NH border. The first few hours through Mass were terrible. Once we hit CT it was pretty much clear sailing.

 

The following Sunday my brother picked us up. He had planned on arriving to the pier at 10 or 11, I can't remember which. He ended up getting there at 1. We actually waited for him in a pizza place a couple of blocks away. We got home around 9.

 

Three years later, I say he still owes me. He says "NO WAY."

 

It's a fun fight.

 

My favorite part was being up on the pool deck with the crew while they made snowballs, snowmen, slipped and fell and just had an all around good time. I think that morning was the all time best memory I've ever had of a cruise.

[angeljt]

Okay, I'll give it a shot! Hmmm.... Red Sox playoffs and you couldn't go, while they're basking in the sun!!! I would have asked the friend to baby-sit or locked the little rugrats in the closet.

 

Okay, I'm guessing at least a 10 -12 hour round trip into NY in blizzard conditions most of the way, and another 15 hour or so trip for him the following week to pick you up!

 

Boy, this is a close one, but we need to remember this is New England and the weather can change at any minute, but the Red Sox don't make the playoffs that often. ;)

 

It does sound like a fun 'fight,' and I think you should keep it going.

 

Our friends offered to drive us the next time, but we declined and parked in the garage above the pier. It was a very easy trip that time.

 

We stayed in the room until it was time to get off the ship, so we missed all of the crew that saw snow for the first time. They must have been having a ball.

 

Fun reminiscing with you.

Jackie

[Lthouselady]

OMG, Angeljt!!!!! That sunrise pic took my breath away!!!!

 

Probably the most beautiful one I've ever seen!!!

 

Oh, I can't WAIT for my Majesty cruise to Bermuda on August 6th!!!!!

[angeljt]

OMG, Angeljt!!!!! That sunrise pic took my breath away!!!!

 

Probably the most beautiful one I've ever seen!!!

 

Oh, I can't WAIT for my Majesty cruise to Bermuda on August 6th!!!!!

Lthouselady,

I'm so glad you liked it, but it was the first sunrise on the Dawn after leaving in a blizzard. I was talking about the Dawn cruise with cruizinwithkids. Sorry for the confusion, but I bet you will have sunrises that beautiful on your Majesty cruise. It is one of my favorite pics too. I have more pics if you want to see them. Just click on the link in my signature.

Lucky you to have your cruise in front of you. Have you been on the Majesty before? I will try to get my Majesty and Bermuda pics posted to webshots this week.

Thanks again,

Jackie

[angeljt]

Achilles Bay....

 

http://img63.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p10100194dp.jpg

[angeljt]

St. Catherine's Beach and Fort.....

 

http://img144.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p10100322io.jpg

[angeljt]

Shot from the Lighthouse.....

 

http://img86.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p10101305fg.jpg

[angeljt]

Leaving Boston.......First nice day after a week of rain.....

 

http://img90.imageshack.us/my.php?image=p10100344rf.jpg