Tricia’s Travelogue

On our last day at sea, the sun rose almost directly behind the ship, so the suites deck was too sunny for us this morning. Luckily, our balcony was shaded and cool, so we spent much of the morning out there. I read, and we spotted several container ships to the east.  Before moving on to our lunch, let me insert the description of last night’s dinner.   For dinner in Coastal Kitchen, we both had an excellent wedge salad, then Charlie also had a bowl of seafood bisque that he said was very good, if not quite up to his favorite at Joe’s in Chicago. Then I had poached lobster in a good sauce, served over a few fava beans and bok choy. It was really delicious! The woman next to me ordered two servings at once!  The servings on the ship are smaller than in most restaurants nowadays, where they often seem to serve on individual platters, but they’re certainly adequate! Charlie had lamb chops and wished for more. For dessert I ordered baked Alaska, and Charlie got the chocolate...

How’s that for a better title than simply “Sea Day Again”?  We headed out to the suites deck about 7:45 this morning, to find some disgruntled passengers, frustrated because someone had spread towels claiming the choicest spots before the attendant arrived at 7:00. There’s supposedly a rule that you can’t claim spots without a warm body, but the poor attendant doesn’t have any power. One man asked the attendant if he could sit there anyway, then did so. When the culprit finally showed up with his wife and a couple of others, they were mad to find their spots filled, but eventually found other spots. We had reasonably good spots and enjoyed our grapefruit mimosas while watching the drama unfold. Since we must be among the earliest risers in the suites area (our coffee is delivered at 6:00), we may just start our day out there tomorrow and take turns holding the fort! Once our balcony was shaded around mid-morning, we moved there for some peace and quiet. (The suites deck overlooks t...

As I mentioned yesterday, our St. Thomas tour was canceled, so we stayed on board the ship. We  had a cooked breakfast in Coastal Kitchen before repairing to the suites deck to read (me) or otherwise spend time. It was perfect weather again. We finally showered and dressed for the day about 11:45, then went in search of lunch. We ended up at Taco Loco, with make-your-own tacos and premade quesadillas, plus margaritas, of course. Very good!  And no lines! Yesterday afternoon we lazed about, with me mostly glued to my book. We also spent time watching a crew preparing to load a giant yacht (see opposite side of the barge) onto a barge that already held two smaller sailboats. It took all afternoon, and it still wasn’t on board when the men quit for the day.  We had a nice dinner, again in Coastal Kitchen, where we enjoyed chatting with a couple around our age seated next to us. They are Pinnacle level, and they’ll also be on our transatlantic cruise. They’re from McKinney. I...

  Yesterday’s winds meant the ship’s movements were quite noticeable! On the suites deck, water was sloshing a foot over the sides of the hot tub!  The 16th floor deck, where we’d intended to take our morning walk, was closed due to the high winds until mid-morning. We spent a lot of the morning on lounge chairs on the topmost suites deck, with views shown below. The second one is for Emily and Sydney to see the mini-golf course. We had a wonderful lunch — with exceptional people-watching — in Hooked, a specialty restaurant that overlooks the Solarium. I chose the coconut shrimp platter, which included slaw and fries, and enjoyed every bite. Charlie was in his element, ordering a dozen oysters, the calamari, and a lobster roll. We both ordered the coconut cream pie, and he enjoyed it, but stopped after a few bites. Okay, but nothing special.  We spent much of the afternoon in the suite, then enjoyed Happy Hour back on the suites deck. Dinner was at Coastal Kitchen, and it...

  We are really feeling the ship’s movement this morning! We’re traveling at 20.3 knots, which is about 23 mph, apparently. I  don’t feel any nausea, but it’s an odd feeling. I’m not sure we can follow our plan to exercise by walking around the top deck this morning. The wind is at 40 knots, and there aresix foot waves, so that may be part of the movement issue.  We both napped yesterday, then sat on our balcony to watch our departure from Coco Cay. There was a smaller RC ship (Radiance) there, too, and not far away, a Norwegian Cruise ship (Epic) whose passengers went to an adjacent private island. Then we moved to the suites deck, with a bar, pool, and hot tub, for a Happy Hour drink. It was mostly empty, with folks getting ready for dinner, I guess.  We enjoyed talking to a younger couple from Huntsville Alabama in the suites lounge before dinner. This is their first RC cruise, but they’ve done ten years on Carnival and said there’s no comparison. They’re gobsmack...

 We docked this morning at the Royal Caribbean’s private island, called Perfect Day at Coco Cay. The weather WAS perfect, at 73 degrees and a light breeze. We walked along a dock (trams were available, too), then walked a little farther to get to Hideaway Beach, an adults-only section. The kids’ area looked like fun, with all kinds of water features and splash zones. We found a couple of Adirondack chairs in a covered area near the bar and settled in. Is a piña colada at 9:30 ever wrong? We literally did nothing but people-watch for a long time. Very entertaining! And the calm water view was lovely. Charlie took a few more pictures.  Here’s a photo of our ship. It dwarfs the other ship here We returned to the ship for a late lunch at Coastal Kitchen, where we rubbed shoulders with some veteran cruisers, many wearing their Pinnacle pins (indicating at least 700 nights aboard). They are a friendly bunch! We got to watch the divers practicing for the evening water show from our t...

After a fairly smooth flight yesterday (apart from a delayed departure and no lunch), we enjoyed our short stay at the airport Marriott. We had a great view of the east runway and saw lots of trains and trams, too. For dinner we enjoyed Caesar salads and a tomahawk steak for two at the restaurant in the hotel.  This morning a driver picked us up at 9:00 and drove us to Port Canaveral. Check-in was quick and easy in the suites line. We walked in exactly the wrong direction to find our muster station, but eventually got checked in there. It’s right by a huge spiral slide, which I would love to try, but it’s pretty scary-looking.   By 10:45, we were comfortably seated on deck 15 with our first adult beverages of the day.   Charlie booked us into the Mason Jar, a Southern restaurant, for lunch. I had to try the PB&J Old Fashioned for Rob.   Our server also brought out jalapeño cornbread with pimiento cheese and flavored butters to start. We ordered deviled ...

 Since this cruise is for one week, I challenged Charlie to see if we could each pack in our (smallish) Away suitcases and a backpack. He was dubious, and his suitcase is stuffed to the gills. I found my packing list for last year's cruise (to the western Caribbean with Rachel and Eleanor), so didn't have to start from scratch in my planning. Here's what I'm taking (and/or wearing on the plane): 2 lightweight jackets, 4 tops, 2 pairs of pants, 1 skirt, 2 long knit dresses for dinners, 2 swimsuits + 1 coverup, exercise tee+ skort, PJs, and undies. I'll wear my walking shoes and pack a pair of sandals (and flipflops, if I can cram them in). I have downloaded on my iPad two books that have been on my wishlist -- The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store and Fourth Wing. The latter book didn't interest me until a woman in my book group raved about it, saying she doesn't usually like fantasy, either. Will report back! 

 We’re all packed and ready to fly to Orlando tomorrow, in preparation for boarding Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas at Port Canaveral. I’ve managed to cram everything for a 7-day cruise into an Away roll aboard plus a backpack, with the plan to get laundry done halfway through the trip. My iPad is loaded with some books from my wish list, and I have a sock started to work on during the sea days.  We will visit Perfect Day at Coco Cay (Royal Caribbean’s private island), St. Thomas, and St. Maarten, with sea days interspersed. Charlie has reserved a fancy, two-level suite (with 2 bathrooms!).