Motegi

Day 5 - Dinner at LeMuse

Tonight was the White Party onboard.   Participation in the theme among fellow guests was quite good. I think most cruisers expect a White Party on every trip. 

Our selections and ratings * to *****
 

Beef Tartar ****
Asparagus Tarragon ****
Smoked Swordfish *****
Pan Fried Sea Bream ***
Arroz con Leche **
Rum Cake **

1 hour ago, PRH said:

Costs Maya is one of our favs for Maya Chan.  Yesterday there were eight of us. Snorkeling , kayaks, paddle boats—all included.  Delicious lunch too! Authentic “all you can eat” tacos with handmade tortillas and local fare including fish.  Hesitate to spread the word but they need the business.  Our 4th time there.

Looks great!  How far is it from the port?

Day 5 Costa Maya 

Day 5 - 

After we ordered our fruit smoothies this morning the Aurea Spa bartender gave us a complimentary fruit and gelatin platter.  
 

1 hour ago, jamesboat said:

Am I reading the daily planner wrong, or is there no food past 9pm?

The Pizzeria and the Sports Bar are open till midnight.  Also the Top Sail lounge for Yacht Club guests.

1 minute ago, rkacruiser said:

In your last photo of the treats, what is that item?  

 My best guess is candied lemons covered in dark chocolate. 

Day 5 - Costa Maya

Lunch at LeMuse 

Our selections and ratings * to *****
 

Caesar salad ***
Duck Rillettes ***
Mushroom Cappuccino ***
Fish and Chips (not pictured) ***
Tutti Frutti Sundae ****
 

Day 5 - Costa Maya

 
Always one of our favorite stops since they completed the new post facilities, we were looking forward to coming back.  

Divina was the only ship in port and with the low passenger count there were very few tourists ashore. 
 

And of course with the pandemic there have been some changes to the port itself.  
 

First the Cantina Latina Lucha Libre restaurant and bar no longer has the wrestling show and has removed the ring completely for social distancing.  But we still enjoyed a few cold ones and hanging out in the pool.

Next the taco stand, La Tortilleria, appears to have gone out of business. 
 

The people in traditional costumes that typically stood at the entrance for souvenir photos were not there.  Neither were the aerial artists inside the plaza.  

Many of the stores have also changed with a few stalls completely empty.
 

Diamonds International is still open for business despite rumors that the company had folded.  They just aren’t sponsoring shopping guides onboard the ships anymore.  The inventory on the luxury watch side seemed a little sparse now though.   
 

Prices on certain items seem to have gone up but we found some shops toward the back nearby the excursion departure area where we were able to bargain for a good deal.  

Day 5 - Costa Maya

1 hour ago, quattrohead said:

We found out from the photogs, apparently they are not allowed to advertise it because dressing up spreads disease now LOL. We have special t-shirts for Italian nights let's see who gets them.

 Pam and I dressed up!

Day 4 - Theatre Show - Autumn in Paris

This was a French themed variety show with singing, dancing (including the can-can), a juggler who tried his best on a swaying ship, and a pair of acrobats.  

We got there a bit late but there were still plenty of seats available.

1 hour ago, dexddd said:

We never got the canapés but did get the dog turd.

I initially thought they were chocolate covered pickles. LOL.

After tasting them I think they’re chocolate covered candied lemon?

Day 4 - Elegant Dinner at LeMuse 

Although the Daily Planner described today’s attire as “casual”, the menus indicated “Elegant”.

So we decided to dress up for dinner with black dress and black tuxedo and noticed a few others on the ship in Elegant style as well. 

Our selections and ratings * to *****
 

Blue Cheese Soufflé ***
Burgundy Snails (escargot) ****
Risotto (****)

Filet Mignon with a skewer of panko crusted jumbo shrimp and calamari ****
Crepe Suzanne ****

Day 4 - Trivia time

We tried our hand at Trivia again this afternoon at the Jazz Lounge. 
 

We were just 1 point off from winning the Visual Trivia but didn’t fare as well on general knowledge or classic rock. 

At least all participants get free slice of pizza at the buffet so everyone is a winner, right? 
 

Day 4 - Lunch at LeMuse and Calumet Buffet.

Seeing a couple items we wanted to try at LeMuse and also having a craving for MSC pizza we decided to partake a bit of both. 
 

Our selections and ratings * to *****
Seabass *****
Cuttlefish ***
Corn soup *** (**** after adding soy sauce per our waiter’s suggestion)

Buffet pizza (ham and cream, Margherita) *****

Day 3 - Voyagers Club Captain’s Party in the Black & White Lounge

This was not on the daily planner.  We received an invite in our cabin the night before.

We think it was one of the best attended events on this cruise so far.  
 

The Captain announced seven new MSC ships in the next few years and the start of a sister luxury line of “all Yacht Club” vessels. 
 

I had a video camera recording the event but it was accidentally knocked over by one of the MSC photographers and, sadly, the footage was lost.  

Some Yacht Club Suite Treats that have been placed in our cabin the past few days:

Day 4 - Sea Day

We slept in a bit this morning and decided to try the Thermal area at the Aurea Spa (included with Yacht Club).   

First, we checked in at the Spa desk and exchanged our keycards for spa locker keys. The  Spa attendant said that the current capacity for the Thermal area was limited to 6 and that there were only two other passengers in there at that time. 
 

The first sauna we tried was apparently not working as control panel outside did not seem to respond to any commands and the temperature was not hot at all.  
 

The second was working and unoccupied so we hopped right in.  Apparently neither of us are sauna people because it reminded us of standing at a Las Vegas bus stop in the middle of summer.   We lasted for less than 5 minutes.  LOL.  
 

Next we walked to the Steam rooms but both were occupied so we relaxed on the loungers while waiting to see if one would open up.  Apparently the steam rooms were amazing because both of the passengers stayed in their rooms for the long haul.  

Having skipped breakfast, we decided to meander over to the juice bar for some smoothies and plan to come back to the steam rooms another day.

Day 4 - Sea Day

3 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

That tour was not available in 2020.  Enjoyed seeing your views of this.  More evidence to me that Ocean Cay has many possibilities for the future.  

Yes.  I don’t remember seeing it as an option when we were here in late 2019. M

As long as you don’t mind heights I highly recommend this tour.  The views are incredible!

And if you could time it around sunset it would be perfect! 

Day 3 Ocean Cay

We booked a lighthouse tour through the concierge desk for the last departure at 4:30.  
 

Thinking that we would relax at the lighthouse bar before our tour we walked over there around 3:30 only to find that the bar was closing.  
 

At 4 we went to the lighthouse to see the staff wrapping up for the day.  They were surprised to see us and even more surprised that we had tickets for a tour.  
 

After radioing back to the excursion desk they opened things back up and took us on a quick tour to the top.  
 

So thankful that they let us up!

Day 3 Theatre Performance: Cuore Italiano

A variety of Italian classics and Bocelli hits.  We enjoyed the performance but were surprised it didn’t coincide with Italian Night.  

Day 3 - LeMuse Dinner

Our Selections and ratings * to *****
 

Potato and Marscapone Flan *****

Guinea Fowl ****
Rack of Lamb *****

Butter Chicken ****

WiFi speed comparison between MSC Divina, MSC Meraviglia, and NCL Bliss

58 minutes ago, PRH said:

On this cruise and had the carne asada at Ocean House.  Mine was excellent.  Tender meat and nice and spicy.  From Maine so we don't order lobster from Caribbean.  Guess it does come down to personal taste.  

I agree that the meat for the carne asada was tender.  We just didn’t realize it was served cold over a salad with a sweet dressing.  
 

Our waiter recognized that Pam didn’t really care for it so he brought her one without dressing along with a lobster roll.  
 

I lived in New Hampshire for several years and made a few trips to Maine for seafood.  Definitely a different kind of lobster altogether. 
 

But I will say Caribbean lobster can also be quite delicious.  There used to be an Oceanside seafood stand, Big Daddy Brown’s, in Grand Bahama that served the freshest and tastiest fresh lobster tails and conch salad.  I don’t know if it’s still there. We used to stop there every time we were in port.