SC_Floaters

It's the cost of compiling the old paper surveys. How Many Man Hours Were Spent per cruise Collecting, Unfolding, Checking and feeding those old paper forms through a reader...

An Online Form is just so much faster.

Oh and most of that paper is totally recyclable.

Dennis

Just did a quick check on Priceline...

Multi Destination from Charleston SC to Vancouver and then Anchorage to Charleston was listed at $596 pp

RT Charleston - Vancouver was $450 pp

RT Charleston - Anchorage was $705 pp

The Multidestination on Price line is about the average of the two Round Trips (RT).

Dennis & Sue

PS. I usually fly in a day early if I book the flights...

My Wife had the same issues, Maiden, Previous Marriage & Current Last Names.

In 2006 we knew we were going to do a lot of crusing. So we both got Passports.

Passport is our defining identification document...

Dennis & Sue

The oritinal Title Says it all...

Use Ur Timex (Takes a lickin and keeps on tickin)

THE first regularly scheduled cruise ship to call at the Port of Key West arrived in 1969. But not until 1984, when the city upgraded its dilapidated dock at Mallory Square, did Key West have a dock suitable for the larger ships that were already transforming the cruise industry.

In the years since, the decision to open its docks to cruise ships has paid dividends for the approximately two-mile by five-mile island with a population of about 27,000. In the 2002 fiscal year, 927,740 passengers stopped for the day in Key West (cruise ships are not permitted to stay overnight), up from 662,910 in 2000. The combination of port fees levied on the ships, the $8 passengers pay to disembark and passenger purchases in town have all helped to provide jobs in Key West's vital tourist economy.

In 2014 there is/was a small cruise ship (88 Passengers) trying to get the OK to overnight. That may still be pending.

Dennis & Sue

OASIS Class Cruise Ship

225,282 Gross Tons

1,181' Length

154' Beam at Waterline

198' Max Beam

31' Draft

16 Passenger Decks

5,400 Double Occupancy

QUANTUM Class Cruise Ship

168,666 Gross Tons

1,139' Length

136' Beam at Waterline

162' Max Beam

29' Draft

16 Passenger Decks

4,180 Double Occupancy

FREEDOM Class Cruise Ship

154,407 Gross Tons

1,111' Length

126' Beam at Waterline

183' Max Beam

28' Draft

15 Passenger Decks

4,370 Double Occupancy

VOYAGER Class Cruise Ship

138,000 Gross Tons

1,021' Length

157' Beam at Waterline

29' Draft

15 Decks

3,114 Double Occupancy

RADIANCE Class Cruise Ship

90,090 Gross Tons

962' Length

106' Beam at Waterline

27' Draft

12 Decks

2,501 Passengers

VISION Class Cruise Ship

70K to 80K Gross Tons

867 to 990' Length

106' Beam at Waterline

11 Decks

2,076 to 2,446 Passengers

(The Enchantment was stretched from 916' to 988' in 2005)

SOVEREIGN Class Cruise Ship

73K Gross Tons

880' Length

105' Beam at Waterline

24' Draft

12 Decks

2,744 Passengers

(Majesty of the Seas will be leaving the RCI Fleet in April 2016)

We did this cruise December 30, 2013, New Years Eve in CoCO Cay and New Years Day in Nassau...

We have it booked again in 2014...

Formal Night is usually New Years Eve (This Year In Nassaua 12/31)...

The Enchantment knows how to Party on New Years Eve. Parties about the Ship for any taste, they had two combined bands in the Centrum doing Pop/Rock. They had a Latin band in Boleros, They had the Ship's Ochestra doing Big Band music in the Spotlight Lounge and a Pianist in the Schooner Bar. Every host/hostess started bringing out trays of complimentary Champagne about 11:45pm. There was a Buffet on the Pool Deck at 12:15am and if you were wondering what was happening in the Viking Crown Lounge, well, they started a Disco Party about 12:15AM (The First Party of 2014) that went, I'm Told, until 5AM... There were also parties in the Diamond Lounge and Concierge Lounge....

Last year we started 2014 January 1st at Sr Frogs and this year will end December 31st at Sr Frogs...

The Enchantment is a FUN ship.

Dennis & Sue...

Do Them Both... BTB... See Most Ports Twice and you'll see Sardinia, La Spezia and Livorno.

Dennis

Was that the Allure? Looking at the compass's you posted it doesnt look like their normal eastern, or even western itinerary. The normal on for Eastern is Nassau, St. Thomas, St. Maarten.

Thanks for catching that... Had the correct Documents but copied the itinerary for the 7 Night Western Caribbean that we are taking on the Celebrity Silhouette on Sunday...

The link & code should be good now.

Dennis

Wife & I did the Allure 7 Night Eastern Caribbean on 9/28 of this year.

I've scanned & created PDFs of each day's Compass and put online..

Visit http://www.the-hotline.net/Allure

Dennis & Sue

Thank you! I was looking for the 3nt Compass for clients. You wouldn't happen to have a spa menu with prices, would you?

Sorry No Spa Menus, Someone Else Might Have...

Dennis & Sue

actually it was tootHpicks no tootpicks. My first 5 words ( or so i was told) were Mama, Papa, Grandma, Grandpa, and OK. I did know a guy who invented an instrument that was a cross between a guitar and a trumpet. Now HE coulda used a "tootpic"!

Heck, and I thought we were gonna talk optics and eyepics

D

not to hijack this post but what about the toothpicks on board? Do they have both the flat ones that are less sharp at the ends as well as the round pointy ones that "you could take your eye out" with? And do the frou fru drinks have umbrellas on the ends of toothpicks? IF they have both kinds can anyone tell me in which ares of the ship I can find each. Also, if I pay an upcharge for a meal in say Bistro on 5 or a speciality restaurant can I take more that one toothpick at a time? Yes I know that I can bring my own toothpicks onboard but that doen't help anyone else who might want to have the info requested.

Here we are, having a nice discussion about the EGG and someone wants to talk tootpicks...

Your first 5 words should tell you to start a new thread.

You are not supposed to use tootpicks in your eye or they'd be called eyepicks ...

Interesting Facts About Chicken Eggs

Hens and eggs

•Female chickens are called pullets for their first year or until they begin to lay eggs. For most breeds, around 20 weeks is a typical age for the first egg.

•Some breeds lay eggs daily, some every other day, some once or twice a week.

•Some individual hens never lay eggs, due to narrow pelvises or other anomalies.

•Normal laying routines can be interrupted by molting, winter daylight shortage, temperature extremes, illness, poor nutrition, stress, or lack of fresh water. Hens usually return to normal laying habits when the disruption-causing factor ends or is corrected.

•Most hens are productive layers for two years before declining in production, but some continue to lay eggs for several years.

•Hens will lay eggs whether or not they’ve ever seen a rooster. Roosters are necessary only for fertilization of eggs.

Egg development and laying process

•A female chick is born with thousands of tiny ova, which are undeveloped yolks. Once she reaches maturity, an ovum will be released into a canal called the oviduct and begin its journey of development.

•At any given time a productive hen will have eggs of several stages within her reproductive system. The eggs most recently discharged from the ovary are just tiny yolks, and the eggs farther down the oviduct are progressively larger and more developed.

•From the time an ovum leaves the ovary, it takes approximately 25 hours for the egg to reach the vent for laying. During that time period, the yolk will grow larger while being surrounded by albumen (egg white), wrapped in a membrane, and encased in a shell. Pigment is deposited on the shell as the last step of the egg production process.

•If sperm is present, the yolk will be fertilized before the albumen is deposited.

•As a chick embryo develops in a fertilized egg, the yolk provides nourishment and the albumen cushions the embryo.

•Although a hen has only one exterior opening (the cloaca or vent) for egg laying and elimination, eggs are not contaminated during the laying process. Two separate channels, the oviduct and the large intestine, open into the cloaca. As the egg nears the end of the oviduct, the intestinal opening is temporarily blocked off. The egg passes through the cloaca without contact with waste matter.

•The typical interval between eggs laid is about 25 hours, so a hen that lays an egg every day will lay a bit later each day.

•Hens don’t usually lay eggs in the dark, so once a hen’s laying cycle reaches dusk time, she will usually not lay till the following morning.

•Eggshell production drains calcium from the hen’s body. The comb, wattles, legs, and ear lobes will fade as the calcium leaches out. Calcium must be replenished through either feed containing calcium, supplements such as oyster shell, or high amounts of calcium in the soil of birds with outdoor access.

Egg variations

•Young pullets often lay malformed eggs before getting established in a normal laying routine. Older hens may occasionally lay abnormal eggs due to age, stress, or illness.

•Pullet eggs--the first ones produced by each pullet--are smaller than the eggs that the same hen will produce as an older hen.

•“Fart egg” and “oops egg” are terms for tiny eggs that quickly pass through the oviduct without reaching full size.

•Shell-less eggs are released before they have time to develop a shell. They may have membrane holding them together or just be loose yolk and white.

•Double eggs or “egg in an egg” are created when an egg with a shell is encased by the next egg in the oviduct and a shell is produced over the outer egg as well.

•Double yolkers may have a normal amount of egg white with two or more yolks. In the shell, the egg may be unusually large.

•Yolkless eggs, also called no-yolkers, dwarf eggs or wind eggs, consist of egg white alone.

•Occasionally an egg will come out with a wrinkly, misshapen, rough, bumpy, or unusually colored shell.

•Egg size is dependent on breed, age, and weight of the hen. Larger chicken breeds tend to lay larger eggs; banty breeds lay small eggs. Older hens tend to lay larger eggs than younger hens.

•The shell color is a breed characteristic. Most chicken breeds lay light-to-medium brown eggs. A few breeds lay white, dark brown, green, blue, or cream colored eggs.

•Shell color is only “skin deep”-- the eggs inside are the same as eggs of other colors.

•The shell color intensity of eggs laid by one hen can vary from time to time, with an occasional darker or lighter eggshell.

•While most eggs have a slight sheen to the shell, some breeds or individual hens tend to lay eggs with a chalkier texture.

Chicken-and-egg behavior

•Most hens will lay eggs in the same nest box as flockmates, so it’s not necessary to have a nest box for each hen.

•Some hens like to lay their eggs in private and others will join their sisters in the nest box. Often two or three hens will crowd into one box while another nest box remains empty.

•Sometimes a hen will sit on previously laid eggs and add her egg to the clutch. Another might prefer to sit in another area and deposit one egg by itself.

•Often a hen will sing “the egg song” before or after she lays an egg. Some will sing during the process of laying. It is a cheerful song that seems to be a proud announcement.

•Chickens learn by example, so a fake or real egg left in a designated nest box may encourage hens to lay there instead of on the floor or outdoors.

•Unconfined hens may lay eggs anywhere outdoors if they don’t want to return to the nest box. Sometimes a free-ranging hen will go missing and reappear weeks later with a parade of chicks.

•Chickens like to eat eggs, even their own. An egg that gets accidentally broken will likely be eaten by one of the chickens. If you occasionally find pieces of shell or egg yolk in the nest box, it’s usually nothing to be concerned about.

•Some chickens become habitual egg-eaters that break eggs open and eat them. An egg-eater should be culled from the flock if you wish to have eggs for the kitchen. Not only will that chicken continue to eat eggs, but others will learn from watching and you may end up with several egg-eaters.

•Holes in eggs and cracked eggs do not necessarily mean there is an egg-eater in the flock. A hen can accidentally crack an egg in the nest when she sits down or adjusts the nest to lay her own egg. Sometimes curiosity or boredom leads a chicken to peck at an egg without the intention of eating it.

•Chickens can be fed their own or other eggs either raw or cooked. Eggs provide protein and the calcium in the shell is beneficial for laying hens. A potato masher can be used to break boiled eggs into pieces of egg and shell.

•Empty eggshells from the kitchen can be fed back to chickens as a calcium supplement without concern for developing egg-eaters. However, to be safe, crushing the shells or running through a blender is a good idea.

In the kitchen

•A normal fresh egg has a yellow yolk, a layer of thick albumen (egg white) surrounding the yolk, and a thinner layer of albumen surrounding that.

•At opposite sides of the yolk are two chalazae, short white twisted strands of albumen that anchor the yolk to the white. A large chalaza does not indicate embryo development.

•Every egg yolk has a white disc called a blastoderm. It is usually visible but may be very pale. In an infertile egg, the blastoderm is solid white. In a fertile egg, the disc has a faint or distinct ring that makes it look like a donut or bulls-eye.

•Fertile eggs are completely edible. In fact, some people consider fertile eggs more nutritious than infertile eggs, but scientific research does not confirm this.

•Fresh fertile eggs collected daily will not have embryos in them. Embryos do not begin to develop unless the eggs are in a favorable warm environment under a broody hen or in an artificial incubator.

•The yolk of a chicken egg may be any shade from pale yellow to orange, depending on what the hen has eaten. The color is usually consistent if hens are fed only one type of feed, but foraging hens and those fed kitchen scraps will often produce a variety of yolk colors.

•The egg yolk or egg white may have red or brown specks in it. These “blood spots” and “meat spots” are harmless bits of tissue and are allowed in commercial Grade B eggs. If they look unappealing, the spots can be removed with a spoon or knife before cooking.

•An eggshell has a protective coating that prevents bacteria from entering the egg. To retain this coating, eggs should not be washed until just before use.

•Some eggs are soiled with blood from minor tissue damage or mud or feces from the nest box. This can be wiped off carefully; the shell should be thoroughly dried.

•If you aren’t sure how old an egg is, you can submerge it in water. The freshest eggs will remain at the bottom of the container, while old eggs will float. Floaters should either be discarded or opened far from your nose.

We did the 11 Day British Isles on Infinity this past May. Sailed from Harwich, England to Copenhagen, Denmark. Stops included Le Havre (Paris & Normandy) France, Cobh (Cork) Ireland, Dublin Ireland, Liverpool England, Belfast N.Ireland, Greenock (Glasgow) Scotland, and Oslo Norway. We spent 3 Days in London precruise and 3 days in Copenhagen post cruise.

A really great Vacation...

Dennis & Sue

I've got to mention the New Years Eve Cruise on Enchantment...

We did this cruise December 30, 2013, New Years Eve in CoCO Cay and New Years Day in Nassau... We have it booked again this year in 2014, New Years Eve in Nassau and New Years in CoCo Cay (that means we started and will finish 2014 with a margarhita or two at Sr Frogs with friends....

The Enchantment knows how to Party on New Years Eve. Parties about the Ship for any taste, they had two combined bands in the Centrum doing Pop/Rock. They had a Latin band in Boleros, They had the Ship's Ochestra doing Big Band music in the Spotlight Lounge and a Pianist in the Schooner Bar. Every host/hostess started bringing out trays of complimentary Champaign about 11:45pm. There was a Buffet on the Pool Deck at 12:15am and if you were wondering what was happening in the Viking Crown Lounge, well, they started a Disco Party about 12:15AM (The First Party of 2014) that went, I'm Told, until 5AM... Reyno, the Concierge, had a party in his lounge too...

New Years Eve Hats and Party Favors were at your dinner table...

The Enchantment is just a FUN ship.

Dennis & Sue

11/28/2013 - Thanksgiving on Infinity's 15 Night Eastbout Panama Canal Cruise, visiting Puerto Quetzal, Guatemala. Very nice traditional turkey dinner.

Get a Cabin as far forward or aft and as high or low as possible. Then every time you need to visit your stateroom, you will get a nice hike, Walk fast for better results.

We did a 10 Night Southern Caribbean on Celebrity Mercury out of Charleston, SC back in 2010... The two cruises before us had a lot of noro onboard, our cruise was delayed one day and all of us had the option of sailing and getting a 25% discount on a future cruise or not sailing and getting a full refund and a 10% discount on a future cruise.

My wife, an ER Nurse, and I decided to take the cruise, very glad we did as 50% of the cruisers cancelled and the staff to guest ratio went way up..

Now here is what is really important, IT WAS NOT the ship that was sick, It was the City of Charleston... You see, cruise ships have to report when there is a certain level of Noro/GI issues onboard, Hospitals do not... My wife's ER and others around the city were overflowing with sick people.. Just coming through the city would give you the chance to spread the virus onboard...

The ship went to some extremes to keep everyone from getting ill. No self serve anywhere on the ship. No salt/pepper shakers anywhere. Waitstaff would hand you individual packets. The same for coffee condiments. There was nothing passed from guest to guest at meals. All coffee was served to you. Even in the casino, if you played black jack, you had to sanitize your hands before getting any chips..

Just another story.... Sometimes it not the ship to be blamed...

Dennis & Sue

We have started using a Glade Hanging Air Freshener in the bathroom on all our cruises. Take out of the cellophane and just hang it. Works pretty good. Get a 3 pack at a wal mart.

(That is not a candle, it's a piece of scented fiberpaper with a picture of a candle)

Dennis & Sue

New Years Eve Cruise on Enchantment...

We did this cruise December 30, 2013, New Years Eve in CoCO Cay and New Years Day in Nassau... We have it booked again in 2014... Reversed a bit New Years Eve in Nassau and New Years Day in CoCoCay.

That Means We Had Margaritas at Sr Frogs on 1/1/2014 and will do it again on 1/31/2014....

The Enchantment knows how to Party on New Years Eve. Parties all about the Ship for any taste, they had two combined bands in the Centrum doing Pop/Rock. They had a Latin band in Boleros, They had the Ship's Ochestra doing Big Band music in the Spotlight Lounge and a Pianist in the Schooner Bar. Every host/hostess started bringing out trays of complimentary Champaign about 11:45pm. There was a Buffet on the Pool Deck at 12:15am and if you were wondering what was happening in the Viking Crown Lounge, well, they started a Disco Party about 12:15AM (The First Party of 2014) that went, I'm Told, until 5AM... There were Parties in the Concierge & Diamond Lounges too...

The Enchantment is just a FUN ship.

Dennis & Sue

Good Morning,

I have updated one of my WebPages for the Enchantment of the Seas.

On it you will find the Cruise Compass(s) for the 4Night Bahamas of Sep15 and the 3Night Bahamas of Oct11.

I have also put the 'As You Depart', 'Diamond + Onboard Savings', 'Diamond + Concierge Priveleges', and 'Drink Voucher & Drink Menu' Documents there too...

Here is the Link

http://the-hotline.net/enchantment/

Dennis & Sue

Here's a link to a good article on Fox News.

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/10/17/dallas-lab-worker-quarantined-aboard-cruise-ship-other-passengers-stranded/

The Corkage Fee has not been removed from the RCI Home Page...

Dennis & Sue Here From the Charleston, SC area.

The Enchantment 3 and 4 day cruises out of Port Canaveral are our favorite getaways. Just a quick, relaxing week/weekend...

She is a seventeen year old ship that sails twice a week with up to 4,800 passengers total, we think She's great... We are booked in October and December...

We've sailed the Sovereign 3 times, Monarch 11 times and Enchantment 6 times to the Bahamas out of Port Canaveral since 2007... We've visited Nassau 26 times and CoCo Cay 19 times.

Plenty to do in both port visits without spending extra cash.

At CoCoCay we often take our Kindles, get a lounger in the shade of a palm tree and relax, then enjoy the BBQ before going back to the ship. The drink of the island, a CoCoLoCo is great too (you can get it with or without the dark rum)...

At Nassua, a walk around town is just outside the terminal. There is a pretty new staw market (local goods) that is really large with lots of local vendors. A favorite stop for us is Starbucks sometimes but most often a visit to Senor Frogs' ...

I have never had a cabin upgrade on any of the 3 or 4 day cruises out of Port Canaveral...

The Enchantment is just a FUN ship.

Dennis & Sue...