Just back from Legend & Thank you!

[gfyjny]

Any pizza place in particular? I know there are lots of places for pizza in NYC.
Pizza would be perfect for lunch in between museum visits. We weren't thinking about having pizza onboard anyway. Don juan toes either. :D

[foilman2002]

I haven't been hanging around Manhattan enough to tell you which pizza place to go to. My wife just found a great one around us, but that would be quite a trip to take. Although, we just drove almost 100 miles round trip on Saturday night for a falafel sandwich, costing all of $8.50 between the two of us. and that included the sodas. If the pizza place is busy, go in. If it isn't busy, don't bother, they either just opened up, or are about to close down

[gfyjny]

That makes so much sense. Why did I think of that? :p

100 miles for a falafel sandwich, must have been a great one. Probably the price of gas was more than the meal.

[foilman2002]

And yes, I'm sure the gas did cost more than the meal. The place is a strictly Kosher Pizza Place in one of the outer boroughs, Queens. I used to live near it (32 years ago), but don't remember how I found it, or when. But, we've been going there for years, and everybody I send to it keeps going back on trips in and out of the city. My daughter, the pregnant one, told us to be sure to bring her back a falafel sandwich, she loves them, but can't find one even close to it around us. The secretary at the church was upset with me because I didn't bring her back one, but it would have been a day old by the time she got it. They also have other things and they all look good, but I've only had the falafel, pizza, and the coffee they used to serve.

When we left to go to the Legend last year, I was very tempted to tell the limo driver to go to Naomi's so we could all have falafel. The only reason I didn't was because one of our party wouldn't have eaten it, nor anything else they had. He's a meat and potatoes man only, nothing different, and of Italian descent, yet doesn't eat cheese, so pizza was out. That and I knew we would be eating on the ship shortly.

Anyway, when my wife suggested going there, the first thing I did was look out the window to make sure it was dark out. It was Saturday, and they're closed until after sundown. Going there at any time is a culture shock, but Saturday night especially; most of the patrons are families which just came from Synagogue to eat, and run the gamut from Hasidim to Reform. The owners are Yemenite, so it is a polyglot experience, with English, Yiddish, Hebrew, and Yemeni being spoken at various times, sometimes by the same person. And there is an Israeli Grocery about two stores down, so we went shopping too, buying foods we don't normally find out on the Island. The whole thing came to about $25.00. The best was my son-in-law who thinks we are COOL, for traveling so far to get something so cheap on a whim.

I did just remember a place in Manhattan that would be rip for you to go to, but is all the way downtown on Houston (that's howston, not youston) St.:

http://lower-east-side.nyc-restaurants.org/other/yonah-shimmel's-knishes-bakery~2955

The place has been there for 94 years, since 1910, and I believe is still in the same family, though just barely, at least it was a couple of years ago. They've made some concessions to modernity, but the food is still cooked downstairs and sent up by dumbwaiter. They say on Sunday morning its funny just to watch all the limos that line up while the drivers go in and get foodstuffs for their employers uptown.

Man, somebody would think I lived in the city.

[gfyjny]

We could definitely do falafel. I know they don't serve it on the ship. Queens shouldn't be too far from where we're staying, or is it? Never been to Queens before. So it would be an interesting trip there.

The place you recommended, is it a bakery? I'll check out the website.
Question for you. We bought the Carnival drink and soda coupons. Did you ever use them before?

[foilman2002]

Sorry, no we didn't. I love iced tea and lemonade, and they're both free on board, so it was no big deal not to drink anything else. My wife had a few club sodas, but not enought to warrant buying coupons in the future. Others have remarked about it on the boards, so you should be able to get some answers.


No, Queens is not that far from where you're staying, but I think it would be a waste of your precious time, and you'd have to have a knowledge of the subway and bus systems, or take a taxi, which would be way too expensive. And my guess is that you're flying in to NYC, probably landing at JFK or LaGuardia, both of which are in Queens. If you take a taxi to The Barclay, you could make a side trip, but just keep in mind, there are probably dozens of falafel places in Manhattan, some may even be better than Naomi's.

Yonah Shimmel's is a bakery in the sense that they bake things for consumption on premises and off; but they aren't cakes, breads and cookies! Yonah Shimmel's is a knish bakery, but the real knishes, not the ones you can buy frozen in the supermarket. It's an old place, small, and I went a couple of times, and there was no body else there. How's that for contradicting my remarks about the pizza places. Welcome to NY. But the knishes were fabulous. When you go to that website, which is not Yonah Shimmel's, you'll read about the guy who bought knishes on the Rockaway boardwalk. I remember that too, and also a great knish bakery across the street from Naomi's, that is now gone. I remember the knishes in Coney Island that where soooo good. All I can say is, they are all gone, Yonah Shimmel's is still standing. Yonah Shimmel's pre-dated them all, and out lasted them all.

To see the type of knishes I'm talking about go to

[url]www.knishery.com[/url]

This is Yonah Shimmel's website. You'll notice that they say they've been around since 1890, but they've been at this location since 1910.

Always remember that you can get anything in New York, it's unlike anywhere else in the world. There is even a "pub" that serves, or they used to, only ale, two types, light and dark, and to eat, boiled eggs, ham and, I think, onions. And to top it off, it used to be male only, until about 20 years ago. McSorleys has been around for something like two centuries and that's all they ever served.

There are 170 some-odd nationalities represented in NYC, and I'm sure there is at least one restaurant for each. Asking at the Barclay will give you plenty of ideas in your local area.

[Gingee]

We will be going the end of May. Has anyone had the back area of upper deck? Can you see around the lifeboats? Feel free to e-mail me at [email]rcw02@insightbb.com[/email]

Thanks

[gfyjny]

Larry, I checked out the website and those knishes looked so tasty.
I'm thinking about just ordering them online. Which ones are your favorites? They all looked goog but I don't know about the cabbage one. We would probably stop by at the falafel place when we first arrive in NYC (JFK).

Gingee.
Which deck and do you know the cabin # by any chance?

[glrounds]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=3][color=navy]Just got off the LEGEND Oct 6th. Met an ole "tablemate" from a GLORY cruise a year ago (she lives in NJ). [/color][/size][/font][/i]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=3][color=#000080]I had all day before my flight back to LA at 9:46 that night. She met me at debarkation and when we got in the cab I said, "This is your city, Lady. You call the shots, where should we go to get something to eat"[/color][/size][/font][/i]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=3][color=#000080]She smiled and said we absolutely had to go to [b]Carmine's[/b], I think on 42nd or 44th St near 8th Avenue. Great Italian food. A bit pricey for this LA boy, but just out of this world. Great old world service, wood floors, high ceilings w/fans, etc. $97 with $20 tip for 2 lunches, 4 glasses of wine and a "to-die-for" desert pie of some sort which was superb. :) I couldn't have been happier.[/color][/size][/font][/i]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=3][color=#000080]We didn't have a lot of time, so she suggested we take one of the bus tours which all run down 8th Avenue, zigzagging through all the different neighborhoods of Manhattan. $37 each for a great 3 hour tour and there are 4 or 5 more that go to many other places. Fantastico ! ! :) [/color][/size][/font][/i]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=3][color=#000080]For someone with a later flight out of NYC, I would recommend this to anyone. What a great time I had. Thank you, Amy. :) [/color][/size][/font][/i]

[i][font=Comic Sans MS][size=3][color=#000080]Incidentally, the cruise on the LEGEND was terrific.:rolleyes: [/color][/size][/font][/i]

[foilman2002]

Jenny,

What glrounds says just proves what I've been saying. There are over 18,000 restaurants in the city.

And the bus tour is really a good idea. It's something you're supposed to do in every city you go to, take the tour, then go back and visit the areas that interested you most.

I always go for potato knishes, then spinach, then the fruit ones, those are really deserts.

I checked out McSorley's. I haven't been there in ages, and they started letting women in in 1969, 35 years ago. But apparently its more or less the same, just more crowded.

[url]http://www.worldsbestbars.com/city/NewYork/McSorleysOldAleHouse.asp[/url]

If you wanted to do an "old" tour, Yonah Shimmels (1910), McSorley's (1862), and then go to McNulty's, the oldest coffee roaster in the country. I haven't been there in ages either, but when I went, they would create a coffee blend just for you, note it on index cards, and when you came back, make adjustments.

[gfyjny]

Thank you for the info Gary. Our flight leaves JFK at 6:25pm. I assume we should be at the airport by 4pm. What did you do with your luggage while you were on your tour?

Larry, an "old" tour sounds good. I wouldn't want to miss those places. Also creating my own coffee blend sounds enticing. I'm keep thinking about the knishes.

Do you know anything about Carnival Paradise? My matron of honor is planning a cruise to Baja Mexico for my bachelorette party. An opportunity to go on a cruise? I have no objections. :D

[foilman2002]

Jenny,

My last post ended abruptly because my computer froze, and I decided to lay off them for a while. Stayed away from computers all weekend.

Anyway, McNulty's is 1895, and I guess they still do the personal blends, as I read someone who talked about their family blend, although I'm sure its on computer now, not index cards.

[url]http://www.mcnultys.com/[/url]

All of these places are in "walking" distance of one another, if you really like to walk.


The only thing I know about the Paradise is that it's smoke free, and if you smoke, don't go on the ship. Getting caught smoking is bad news all the way around, between the non-refundable abrupt cancellation of your cruise, and I think that includes anyone in your room, and the room cleaning fine. In other words, its great if no one in the party smokes, but if anyone does, its going to be a pain.

[gfyjny]

We are all non-smokers, so it would be perfect. And I think most of us are first time cruisers. Only think is that we are all on the budget and having hard time deciding whether to go with 2 per bunk cabins or 4 per two twin cabins. Would cat. 4A cabins too small for four people? (Four girls and one bathroom, that's a scary thought. :p )

We are also looking into Royal Caribbean as another possibility. This one is also 4 night cruise, leaves from LA to Catalina Island, San Diego,Ensenada and back to LA. We are just looking for best possible rate since most of the girls are starving students.

[foilman2002]

I think that's a question to pose to the board. I don't know if the money saved would be worth the aggravation. Four guys might be pushing it, but four girls? Probably definitely over the edge.

Is this trip before or after the Legend cruise?

[gfyjny]

This one is before the Legend cruise.
We have decided on 2 per cabin on Royal Caribbean, Monarch of the Seas. The cabin is much smaller than Carnival Paradise, I think only 119 sq. ft. After the 16th person free and $25 discount per cabin, the price came out to about $275 per person. Not a bad price for a 4 night cruise. We've already warned people that the price didn't include the gratuity. I think Royal Caribbean also recommends $10 gratuity per day, per person.

I'm really looking forward to this cruise, now this is going to be my first cruise. :D

Have you been on any Royal Caribbean cruises?

[foilman2002]

I have friends that just came off the RCCL Voyager of the Seas, and they had a fantastic time. It was their first cruise, and they raved about it. They were a little nervous at first, but can't wait to go back now. We're looking to book a cruise together, but have to decide dates and itineraries.

Except for some outrageous thing happening, or if you get a really bad dining room waiter, a cruise is what you make of it. If you plan on having a great time, you probably will, small things notwithstanding. If you expect that you will be treated as total royalty, waited on hand and foot, and believe that every little thing will be perfect, you'll have a lousy time.

I've only been on two cruises, NCL and Carnival, and had a great time on both.

My NCL cruise was quite a while ago, and to me, it caught the end of the "golden age" of cruising, so was different. I loved that cruise, and felt that the giant ships of today, the floating resorts, would be a let down, with Carnival being the worst of the lot. I couldn't have been more wrong. I was leery of Carnival because of the reputation that precedes them, of the wild drinking and the kids all over the place, but determined to enjoy myself. The cruise couldn't have been any better. And I really mean that. The Legend is a beautiful ship, the crew and staff seemed very well trained to do their jobs, and I enjoyed the food and the music. And my understanding is that RCCL is in the same category, equal to CCL in most areas, lagging in others, and ahead in others.

Are they the best cruises afloat? No, but as I wrote in the review I wrote for the Legend trip, if you are expecting a $10,000 or a $5,000 cruise for under a $1,000, you'll be disappointed (I understand that you spent more, but it's relative, and actually my friends on the RCCL ship had spent quite a bit more, they had booked an owner's suite, and the friends they went with booked the royal suite, the price of which is not quoted online). And that's just the point, it's a great bargain for the money. And they really do want you to sail with them again, so they don't try to mess up on purpose.

I'm saying all this to say that if you determine to have a good time, and with 15 friends, how could you not, then you will. Just go with the flow. And personally, I'd go on the RCCL board and ask for hints and tips there, find out what the purser's desk has free for you, etc. And just think, its going to amount to about $75.00 per day, including meals, I just hope you can all still fit in your gowns after the cruise. How much is a decent hotel in San Franciso? Without meals!

[CinWin]

Foilman2002: The Paradise used to be a non-smoking ship. That is not the case any more (sorry to say). :mad:

[gfyjny]

Lots of mixed reviews on this cruise. Some people liked it and some didn't. I guess it's like that for any cruise. We're all looking forward to it and know what a great bargain this is. We're going to have a great time. We're not expecting too much as far as being catered to. All we need is to get our room clean and get our food when we are hungry. As long as there are enough activities on board to keep us busy, we'll be fine. We're not planning on doing any shore excursions.

However, I do expect more from my Legend cruise. The suite and the wraparound balcony would just make this cruise much more elegant. Definitely the Supper Club is in order, as well as shore excurisons. I'll get a taste of cruising from RCCL and endulge on Carnival Legend. (I would prefer a rock climbing station rather than a water slide though.) :p

Larry, you are so wise. Thank you for sharing your wisdom on cruising experience. You are a gold mine when it comes to cruising info. I'm not quite done with my Legend and NYC planning yet, so keep the recommendations coming. I couldn't find any threads on RCCL Monarch of the Seas. I'll start some new threads and see what other information I can get from other experienced cruisers.

[foilman2002]

Jenny,

Just go onto the RCCL board and post a question about the MOTS. They'll answer for sure. I posted a question there, that I also posted on Carnival, and got more responses there.

And you'll be catered to on both, just not to the extent that you would be on one of the upscale cruises.

And, you can always email me.

As to people and their responses about a particular cruise, I was reading a thread about one of the ships caught in the storms earlier this month. They had a severe problem, in a storm, with 30 foot waves, with a gangway breaking loose and smashing in a window in one of the lounges, and a passenger getting hurt. Several people on the cruise said that the crew and staff acted well, and took good care of the passengers, considering the circumstances, and several people said just the opposite. It's all in what you are expecting. I'm afraid that many people compare cruises and cruiselines with the SS Titanic, before the iceburg. In First Class, of course.

If I spent $10,000 per person for a 7 -8 day cruise ($1250. - $1428. per day), I would expect top notch service, and everything to be perfect. I would probably be a somewhat nit-picky. But, $75.00 - $125.00 (RCCL, I know your Legend cruise is $250.00) a day? I'd just be looking to relax and enjoy myself, with clean rooms, smiles, and good food.

[gfyjny]

More change of plans. So now we are going on the Monarch of the Seas on March 18th-21st. It's a weekend cruise, and the weather should be warmer. I'd guess it would be more fun. Just one stop though, in Ensenada. Oh well, we weren't planning on doing any shore excursion anyway.
All the girls are so excited about this trip. Some of the girls didn't know what to expect from a cruise so I shared some of the info I've learned from this board. :D We have girls who are in their early 20's and some in mid 40's. There should be plenty of activities for everyone. Although, some of my ladies in their 40's wanted to know if alcoholic beverages were free in the casino area. My guess would be "no". I did tell her that the Captain's Ball will have an open bar for about an hour or so. That would be a good incentive for her to dress up and go to the party.

Is there a cruise that cost $10,000? I would much rather take 5 or 6 moderate priced cruises than just one luxury one.
Clean rooms, some occasional smiles, and good food work just fine for us. And with two per cabin, there should be plenty of space.

[foilman2002]

Hi Jenny,

Whatever you do or wherever you go on your cruise, you'll have a great time. The only problem will be that you'll feel it's too short. So you're the cruise expert of the group. Do you know the definition of an expert?

Aaaand, I thought of something else in NYC. Along with the bus tour, there is a boat that goes around the island of Manhattan, the Circle Line. Again, I haven't gone on it in many years, but as a teen, I used to go on quite often. Of course, it was about $3.00 then, I'd hate to think what it is now, but then again, here it is, price and all:

[url]http://www.circleline42.com/index.ihtml?page=sightseeing[/url]

Are there $10,000 cruises? It depends on the itinerary, the level of accomodations, and the cruise line. As I tell my kids, no matter what you spend, there is always a higher level. Buy a $3,000 sofa, and I'll show you someone who just spent $7,000.00, and then I'll show them someone who spent $15,000, and so on. As you spend more on a cruise, you get more. The question is, is it worth the extra. Go to this website and watch the opening video, then look at the prices:

[url]http://www.seabourn.com/[/url]

There are people who complain about CCL, NCL and RCCL nickle and diming you to death. They would like the free booze, free soda, free shore things, caviar in the water and the free massages. My way of looking at it is if you want the "free" things, pay more for your cruise, and you'll get them. Just don't expect a $5,000 or $10,000 cruise for $1,000. Yes, food should arrive hot from the kitchen, but don't complain because it didn't arrive looking and tasting like it came from a 4 star restaurant. On the Legend the food from the kitchen came hot, looked very good, and tasted okay to excellent. But I keep remembering that it was included in a ridiculously low price for a vacation. If I was home, I would be paying approximately $30.00 or more per person per dinner, and I couldn't ask for seconds, or a replacement dinner if I didn't like the taste. And it would be the same quality as what I got on the ship. And if you don't like the waits for food, or that it doesn't come hot, then don't sail on a ship that is feeding 2100 people in a four hour period. Not too many restaurants do that. I agree that if they book that many on a cruise they should be able to handle it, but things do happen.

Anyway, enough of the ranting.

[gfyjny]

Wow, maybe once in my lifetime I would be able to go on that $10,000 cruise. I was checking out their special offers. Some of the deals were pretty good. Not anytime soon though, perhaps after about 10 budget cruises. :D
We wish we could stay longer in NYC after our cuise. There are so many places to visit and so much stuff to do. How do I fit them all in just three days? :eek:

[foilman2002]

You don't. You sit down and think of all you've read and heard and seen about NYC, and then decide on what you want to do. You have to remember that it is not the quickest thing to move around the city.

I laugh when my kids say they're going into the city, and then tell me where they plan to go. Eastside, Westside, all around the town. And when they come home they made it to two of the places they planned on. NYC is easy to get around in, but not always quick. And then there are the side trips that come from the main trips. Pick an area and concentrate on it for the day; that's why the bus trip is good. And don't exhaust yourself. The city itself will do that to you; the pace is frenetic. You don't even have to do much to get tired, yet at the same time, it's exhilarating (sic).

When I go anywhere, I walk at a leisurely pace, and I drive normally. Put me in NYC, and my hands go into my pockets, my head goes down, and I can weave and dodge the crowds with the best of them. And I drive like a taxi driver in the city. You'll see what I mean when you get here. And remember, I don't go into the city all that often, just old habits from years ago take over.

Will you see it all? No! Just make sure that you enjoy what you see.

You'll have a ball, both in NYC, and on the ship. There's a recent review of the Legend and its all positive.

[gfyjny]

Hello Larry. Boy, it has been very hectic for me. No time to dream about my cruises and a trip to NYC. :o
I'm sure you are busy with planning for your grandchild's arrival.
Two of my co-workers are expecting real soon too.
I wish we could stay in NYC longer but we can't. I want to do the "old" tour for sure, hit a couple of museums and a show taping in Rockefeller Center. Once we disembark from Legend, we have to wait for our flight until 6:00pm. Would it be wise for us to use that time to go on a bus or ferry tour? I was thinking the three hour full island tour (departure time at 12:30pm) with Circle-Line 42. Good idea or are we pushing our luck of maybe missing our flight back home at 6:00pm? I'm assuming that we should be at the airport by 4:00pm, if not sooner.

[foilman2002]

dates already. There were four of them, and we are now one day past the last one. My daughter is not happy. She spent last night in the hospital, because she was having pains (they're called contractions, but not according to her. The doctors agreed with us). Anyway, the contractions spread out during the night, and they sent her home this morning.

Trying to do the Circle Line at that time is going to be rough. First, you have to get off the ship, and get your luggage stored somewhere, then get to the boat dock by 11:50. Possible, but not a guarantee. Then, you get off the boat at 3:30, have to go gather your luggage, and make it out to JFK by 4:00 or 4:30 (you probably have longer, but, I really don't know). Let me just say that rush hour in NYC, especially the expressways and parkways, is not a picnic. Businesses start letting people out at around 3:30, and it continues until about 6:00. So that clogs the roads until about 7:00. There are several ways to get to the airport; taxi, limo, I believe the Carey buses still run, and the monorail, but I can't tell you how long it would take for any of them. I'll see what I can find out for you.

So, when is the special day for you?