Celebrity Reflection January 14 to 21 2017

Hi Norris! Reading along & just wanted to let you know that I'm also enjoying your wonderful review! I found my 1st Norris review a few months ago while researching Alaskan cruises for 2018 & now I'm hooked! This is just what I need in February in Buffalo (although it will be 45-50 here today)!

Hi Norris! Reading along & just wanted to let you know that I'm also enjoying your wonderful review! I found my 1st Norris review a few months ago while researching Alaskan cruises for 2018 & now I'm hooked! This is just what I need in February in Buffalo (although it will be 45-50 here today)!

Hi and thanks for the kind comments! Glad you are enjoying and especially glad you used one of my Alaska reviews for research. You read the Star Princess review from September I imagine. We'll go back to Alaska-same ports over and over but always something interesting to do on excursions.

Cheers!

Norris

Great review Norris, been on the Reflection before and like you think she is a wonderful ship, we have tried all the speciality resturants except Murano. We intend to try it when we again sail on Reflection in August in the Med, so looking forward to your opinion on that restaurant.

Sent from my SM-T800 using Forums mobile app

We are back opposite the shores of the Labadee complex.

 

 

Lots of water toys and structures there.

 

 



 

Private cabanas

 

 



 

 

The zipline which we'll see more of later

[/quote

 

Did the zipline--tremendous fun!

I have known from your previous revious reviews that you were a drummer on the SON, but I had never heard your story about how you ended up working on her. Some things in life are meant to be, and that sure sounds like one of them. :D

 

We have not yet sailed out of Miami because it is a much longer drive for us than Port Canaveral for us, and the little bit farther that Miami is past Port Everglades has put us just a bit outside our comfort zone to drive down on the day we cruise. After watching your sailaway video I do think I would love that sailaway, so I may just have to re-think that comfort zone! :D

 

The LCG looks like one specialty restaurant we would really enjoy! When we finally book a cruise on Celebrity, I will have to make sure it is on a ship that has a LCG.

Hi Norris,

 

I am visiting from the Princess board as well...we, too, sail both lines, and I lurk on other boards as well, just to keep informed.

 

We are just back from the Crown P, Rio de Janeiro to Valpairiso, and YES...I drank my fair share of excellent Malbecs!!! Definitely a good trip for wines!!

 

Looking forward (although sad to hear it is winding down) to reading the rest of your review!

 

Cheers,

Tracy

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using Forums mobile app

 

 

We are back opposite the shores of the Labadee complex.

 

 

Lots of water toys and structures there.

 

 



 

Private cabanas

 

 



 

 

The zipline which we'll see more of later

[/quote

 

Did the zipline--tremendous fun!

 

Trip, I so much want to do that on my next visit to Labadee.The view from the launch tower must be amazing. I'll have bits of video and some photos a little later. Was it $95? I heard that number from a rider who had just got off.

I have been very busy at work this week and haven't had as much time to write as I would like but am off work on Monday and hope to do a chunk.

Thanks, as always, for reading this far.

Norris

Hi Norris, Amsterdam checking in here. :-)

Thanks so much for giving me another virtual vacation! The combination of your wit + pictures and Carol's notes makes for a wonderful read every time. It's so much fun to see the stuff you guys have been up to! Reading this review while listening to one of the 'ocean/beach sounds' video's you can find on youtube makes it even better, hahaha

Sorry that it's already coming to an end again. :-/

 

Trip, I so much want to do that on my next visit to Labadee.The view from the launch tower must be amazing. I'll have bits of video and some photos a little later. Was it $95? I heard that number from a rider who had just got off.

I have been very busy at work this week and haven't had as much time to write as I would like but am off work on Monday and hope to do a chunk.

Thanks, as always, for reading this far.

Norris

 

 

Norris,

 

I think it was $99 pp. Well worth mounting the GoPro for. There's a mini warm up version they make you go through that's about a 15 second ride. The actual zip lines takes just over a minute. The views are tremendous and it's quite a thrill. This is a chair style version. Pam and I did a different type in P.R. where you lie on your stomach in a sleeping bag type of hook up . It was over a mile long and we were 850 ft in the air. These were our first attempts at zip lining and we loved them both. I'll try to send some video for your perusal. Have a good weekend.

 

Trip

 

Trip, I so much want to do that on my next visit to Labadee.The view from the launch tower must be amazing. I'll have bits of video and some photos a little later. Was it $95? I heard that number from a rider who had just got off.

I have been very busy at work this week and haven't had as much time to write as I would like but am off work on Monday and hope to do a chunk.

Thanks, as always, for reading this far.

Norris[/

 

Norris,

 

Made a quick one

 

Trip

 

https://quik.gopro.com/v/XEefbhBm8v/

 

 

Sent from my iPhone

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Trip, I so much want to do that on my next visit to Labadee.The view from the launch tower must be amazing. I'll have bits of video and some photos a little later. Was it $95? I heard that number from a rider who had just got off.

I have been very busy at work this week and haven't had as much time to write as I would like but am off work on Monday and hope to do a chunk.

Thanks, as always, for reading this far.

Norris[/

 

Norris,

 

Made a quick one

 

Trip

 

https://quik.gopro.com/v/XEefbhBm8v/

 

Great video clip! It's now a must do when next in Labadee.

Thanks for putting that up so fast!

Norris

Way back on page 10 Norris hoped I would remember what "Jamaican" food we ate at the buffet. I would rather forget it, but I unfortunately remember this disappointing meal well. I'm not sure if I've told you folks before, but I am half Jamaican myself. My mother's family goes back for several generations and they were in the shipping business, which is why we thought I might have some relatives buried in the Jewish cemetery in Falmouth. My mother lived in Kingston until she married my father, an American, at about age thirty, and every summer when I was young we would visit her mother and my uncle and his family. I have many happy memories of this beautiful island and its warm, loving, funny, and in those days peaceful and tolerant people. It's hard to believe today, but my cousin and I when we were teenagers used to go to block parties at night in Kingston where the music was live and the dancing was energetic and the vibe was mellow. I suppose we were the only white folks there but it was never a big deal. I used to take the public bus downtown to Kingston by myself to go shopping and again nobody thought anything of it. My uncle was a country doctor in one of those small towns such as the ones we drove through on the way to Ocho Rios. Again I would have felt quite comfortable stopping for a coke in any of them in those days. Ocho Rios was a tiny quaint village where Jamaicans from the south coast would go for a vacation and my family often rented a small beach house there for a couple of weeks in the summer. So I know Jamaican food and I was so homesick for some. But the slop at the buffet lacked the main ingredients of fresh local produce and a spicy, peppery flavor profile. There was some sad rice and peas devoid of flavor, a mushy tasteless chicken stew, some boiled cabbage (NOT calalou), some dry fish, and the best item was the jerk pork which had a slight kick to it but there was only one piece of it left. No patties. No breadfruit. No salt fish and ackee. Sad. This was my first time back in Jamaica in at least forty years as my family eventually either died or moved away when things became more dangerous. But it was still so nostalgic for me even without the food and I am grateful for Celebrity for taking me back home. I took a trip on a sailing ship, and when I reached Jamaica I made a stop.

Carol

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Jamaica Farewell - Lovely song (Harry Belafonte). A lyrical version for your more gentle memories! Sometimes things are bittersweet. I like to embrace them anyway....

Kimberly

Way back on page 10 Norris hoped I would remember what "Jamaican" food we ate at the buffet. I would rather forget it, but I unfortunately remember this disappointing meal well. I'm not sure if I've told you folks before, but I am half Jamaican myself. My mother's family goes back for several generations and they were in the shipping business, which is why we thought I might have some relatives buried in the Jewish cemetery in Falmouth. My mother lived in Kingston until she married my father, an American, at about age thirty, and every summer when I was young we would visit her mother and my uncle and his family. I have many happy memories of this beautiful island and its warm, loving, funny, and in those days peaceful and tolerant people. It's hard to believe today, but my cousin and I when we were teenagers used to go to block parties at night in Kingston where the music was live and the dancing was energetic and the vibe was mellow. I suppose we were the only white folks there but it was never a big deal. I used to take the public bus downtown to Kingston by myself to go shopping and again nobody thought anything of it. My uncle was a country doctor in one of those small towns such as the ones we drove through on the way to Ocho Rios. Again I would have felt quite comfortable stopping for a coke in any of them in those days. Ocho Rios was a tiny quaint village where Jamaicans from the south coast would go for a vacation and my family often rented a small beach house there for a couple of weeks in the summer. So I know Jamaican food and I was so homesick for some. But the slop at the buffet lacked the main ingredients of fresh local produce and a spicy, peppery flavor profile. There was some sad rice and peas devoid of flavor, a mushy tasteless chicken stew, some boiled cabbage (NOT calalou), some dry fish, and the best item was the jerk pork which had a slight kick to it but there was only one piece of it left. No patties. No breadfruit. No salt fish and ackee. Sad. This was my first time back in Jamaica in at least forty years as my family eventually either died or moved away when things became more dangerous. But it was still so nostalgic for me even without the food and I am grateful for Celebrity for taking me back home. I took a trip on a sailing ship, and when I reached Jamaica I made a stop.

 

Carol

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Carol,

Sorry to hear your return to your ancestral land wasn't what you hoped it would be in terms of the native cuisine. However, it sounds like returning to your roots was a nice experience, cuisine not withstanding. Thanks for your report. We always like when you give your take on what happened to you and your husband during your adventures on the high seas (and sometimes on the autobahn too). The good news is that "your heart is not down, your head is not turning around and Norris didn't leave you in Kingston town!" :p:p Jimmy Buffett introduced us to Harry's song. It truly is a classic.

Trip and Pam

The best jerk chicken I had was at a roadside stand between the airport in Montego Bay and Ocho Rios. I was visiting a friend who was working there. She sent a company driver who decided I needed to sample some really good local cuisine...it was wonderful, friendly people and a wonderful way to start.

Carol you would have loved it.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Carol was actually describing the attempt at a Jamaican buffet onboard Reflection, which unfortunately sounds like one of the weakest meals anybody has ever experienced on a Celebrity ship! That's a shame, truly. What a bummer, Carol.

I am so intrigued to hear there's a Jewish cemetery in Falmouth, and now I've read about the whole history of the Jewish community in Jamaica, plus the three cemeteries. Fascinating! We love visiting cemeteries. Now I can look forward to another stop in Falmouth, should the situation arise. I liked my tour the other time, but was clueless that I was missing something I might've preferred to do.

Thx for stopping back to visit with us, Carol!

After that satisfying burger which could only have been improved by some hot crispy fries* I decided to go exploring the environs.

* I imagine fries would be logistically awkward as the oil would take a long time to cool before disposal to a tank which would have to remain on the island. Then what to do when the tank is full? Oh yeah, pour it into the sea? Problem solved!

I knew there was some good lookout spot where I could get a photo of the ship so away I trudged to find it.

These are the anchor points for the zip line cables

 

 

Some exhilarated folks enjoying their $99 ride!







 

 



 

 



 

 

Kudos to RCI for maximizing the potential of their investment in Labadee. There wasn't much to it back in 1986 beyond a beach and some toilets. The ship had to tender to a small pier which is still there at the extreme right of the beach where you would begin your walk to the village on the rocky path around a promontory .

A little bird told me there was something special going on today....Happy Birthday Norris!

:D:D

There's some kind of viewpoint here but the closed gate was a bummer.

 

 

 







 

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for...

Aha!

 

 

 

 

U2

 

 

 





 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Still enjoying your wonderful review, Norris. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

Cheers,

Tracy

Still enjoying your fabulous pictures and wit!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Norris!!!

Cheers,

Tracy