Btank

26 minutes ago, Nabalab said:

This is how it looked on Oasis (last night)

Is... is that a latke? 😱

      --bruce T.

On 12/7/2023 at 11:53 AM, Tree_skier said:

Put Tillamook on sailings out is Seattle and Braums out of Texas.

Braums?  BRAUMS?!  Son, we need to talk. 🤪

https://www.bluebell.com/

      --bruce T.

On 12/4/2023 at 8:59 PM, grandgeezer said:

My neighbor recommending renting a knee scooter from a medical supply company. It was one where you put your bad leg on the pad and pushed away with your good leg.

My turn in the box is 3 days after we return on Harmony, when I get foot surgery.  I've already got the scooter, and I'd agree that this would be the way to go if @chiguypaul can kneel without issues.  It might help to practice three-point-turns before into a very tight cabin. 😬

Good luck, @chiguypaul!

      --bruce T.

On 9/24/2023 at 9:09 AM, not-enough-cruising said:

You will receive an email in the weeks leading up to embarkation with instructions and timing.

Talking to Royal this morning (and taking the agent's information with a giant grain of salt), this doesn't seem to be the case anymore.  We've gotten nothing for our Sunday cruise - for last year, we received the email about 6 days prior.

        --bruce T.

On 5/18/2023 at 11:32 AM, not-enough-cruising said:

not to mention every airline in the world that relies on the weather reports available to us all.

• American Airlines: staff meteorologist
• Delta Airlines: staff meteorologist
• United Airlines: outsources meteorology
• Southwest Airlines: staff meteorologist
• Air France: unknown
• British Airways: unknown
• KLM: staff meteorologist
• KAL: Unknown

 I kind of have to wonder about the shade being thrown at van Fleet in this thread.  Or, maybe I don't have to wonder.

     --bruce T.

On 4/23/2023 at 12:36 AM, kayjaypea42 said:

Any advice (even if the advice is to not try it...) Thanks!!

I'm glad those halcyon days are behind me! 🤣

It's unclear to me why Starlink Maritime would function differently on a TA.  As others have pointed out, Starlink Ground restricts the location to supported countries and just offshore.  You can see the Starlink constellation by clicking here.

Another factor to consider will be your actual connection to work - particularly if your IT department requires a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to access SalesForce, your email, etc.  VPN was not supported on Voom Internet; however, I was above to get it to work on Freedom OTS a few years back.  I've seen anecdotal comments about VPN working on RCL Starlink-equipped ships.

I think the key takeaway here is to hope for the best, but expect the worst.  If connectivity is required with minimal off-line time, a TA may not be the best for you.  

Good luck!      --bruce T.

We did the private custom tour in December of 21.  It was raining, so we limited the tour to an island drive-around plus the sloth / monkey experience.  We also had a "real" Roatan lunch... excellent baleadas at... a gas station / convenience store, which amused our guide to no end.  Our guide was excellent!  I can 100% recommend VB Tours.

      --bruce T

11 hours ago, CatLadyFemme said:

Yep! It’s a memorial for my grandmother and uncle, who both lived in Socorro 💜

I might have gone to the Owl Cafe more than a few times... 🍔

      --bruce T.

P.S. Readers, please humour me as I weep for my lost college years. 😄

9 hours ago, topnole said:

The cruise lines are all debt laden businesses that make no money from customers unless they spend extra while onboard.... Lower food quality is probably the new normal unless you spend extra   

Which kinda discounts the effects of a competitive market.  A cruise line - like almost any other business - that offers consistently higher Quality of Service than the competition will gain more revenue.  More revenue = higher profits, both in total profit $$ as well as the opportunity for lines to increase revenue in other & more profitable areas.  Lower Quality of Service often leads to having a higher profit margin... but on lower revenue.

Example: Food is arguably central to the cruise experience.  If Celebrity cut back on food quality, wouldn't you expect some of their pax to jump ship (sorry) to MSC?  And if RCL cuts food quality, wouldn't you expect some of their pax to jump to NCL or <GASP> Carnival?

     --bruce T.

9 hours ago, BennyandBo said:

Has anyone here ever seen food with steam coming off of it (my definition of piping hot) be sent back? Ever? Does this all sound nuts anymore?

9 hours ago, topnole said:

Oh I’ve seen it, unfortunately.  If you wait just a minute or two with certain food it is no longer that hot.  

But... but then steam would likely not be coming off of it then, would it?

      --bruce T.

9 hours ago, BennyandBo said:

Has anyone here ever seen food with steam coming off of it (my definition of piping hot) be sent back? Ever?

No, but going back to my gazpacho comment... 🤣

      --bruce T.

9 hours ago, teddie said:

Not sure if you've watched other vlogs by Ben and David, as your take could not be farther from the truth.  They are consistently polite, self-effacing, and I believe, extremely objective.  Even in this video, they tried for the bright side whenever possible.

☝️This right here!

On 4/27/2023 at 4:47 PM, CatLadyFemme said:

I'm CatLadyFemme, a professor at the University of Michigan...

Is that you with the NM Zia tat on your arm?

        --bruce T. (NMSU Alum)

2 hours ago, HappyTexan44 said:

Thinking about this, even though the review is damning, there is a bright side.   The food itself seemed mostly good.   They didn't complain about the quality of the base ingredients or the taste (mostly).

Agreed.  They were more concerned with the inconsistencies - for example, offering Indian curry and mozzarella sticks on a French-themed night, etc.

2 hours ago, HappyTexan44 said:

The problem was in the execution.   Part of that is their plan of plating everything hours early, but part of that has to be the employees.    

I would lean more toward the latter.  I doubt they've changed much of anything in preparing and plating meals... but clearly, something was broken in the service.  There is no way that just their table was experiencing this; IMHO, there was a systemic failure in service quality that the head waiters and restaurant management should have been aware of.  The fact that they had issues with MDR lunch service as well kind of reinforces that.

      --bruce T.

6 hours ago, cynt said:

We were on the Symphony in October 2022 and had great food and service.

Was that before the new menus kicked in?

      --bruce T.

9 hours ago, goldfish65 said:

Again, what is so hard about merely informing the server and/or captain of any issue with the food, so they can resolve it then and there?

I'm guessing they did - they had to send back several plates that were anywhere from "cold" to "ice cold" (their words).

I'm betting that you might be a more conscientious server than they had.  It was interesting was that after clearing away several dishes that had barely been touched, the servers didn't ask them if everything was OK with the meal.

      --bruce T.

35 minutes ago, Weelynn said:

And I’m sorry but I don’t think anyone likes cold food. 

Well, maybe gazpacho. 😄  Try it, you'll like it.

     --bruce T.

3 hours ago, zebra36 said:

...they can get over the top spmetimes on their comments, usually favorable, regarding food.

Exactly.  They normally wax poetic about food - clearly, this is one of their favorite parts of cruising.  The fact that they were so clear here about the problems in quality of product and service - real or perceived - is (IMHO) telling.

     --bruce T.

10 minutes ago, gkbiiii said:

If fish or chicken dishes, were frozen in the middle, how is this not a health issue?  This was clearly mentioned in their report. 

Not to mention the Yorkshire pudding being raw in the middle.

        --bruce T.

2 minutes ago, Thisguylikestocruise said:

When you’re recording a video and talking instead of eating naturally food is going to get colder…

They were pretty clear that the food arrived cold.  They're big Royal fans, too (check out their other videos).  Oh well, like I said - your mileage may vary.

     --bruce T.

6 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Not too bad, but I didnt watch to the end, just the first meal. 

It gets worse.  Skip to the end of the video for their summary. ☹️

     --bruce T.

9 hours ago, Ret MP said:

While I was at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR), NM, it was amazing what we were involved with and participated in.  WSMR was more than just a missile range.  

 

Dad used to be the commander of McAfee Clinic at WSMR (as well as a Nuclear Surety Officer).  His favorite assignment!  And yes, there was a LOT going on in those days that he sadly (or maybe happily) couldn't tell me about...

       --bruce T.

6 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

I thought they seemed to like it.

One of the problems they had was that the food often arrived cold.  The were also concerned with the inconsistency in quality.

      --bruce T.

On 4/24/2023 at 10:16 AM, binro01 said:

Thank you for nicely formatting your code. 😄 

       --bruce T.

On 4/28/2023 at 3:45 PM, LobsterStalker said:

Also our CocoCay stop was cancelled due to wind which surprised me a bit knowing the technology the Captains have at their disposal to maneuver these Mega ships.

The waves might have been breaking on / over the pier.

        --bruce T.