SonoranDevil

So glad you enjoyed your trip - following along was a blast! See you on the next matchbox tour. :)

If you ever make it out to another Phoenix show, please drop us a message on here! We would love to meet up and say hello!

Are the art galleries still on the ships or have they been removed?

My wife and I had this discussion last night. We just sailed the Imagination a couple of weeks ago and the gallery was definitely there. However, we're sailing on the Panorama in 2019 and the deck plans available currently don't show an art gallery space.

Just wanted to say how much I enjoyed this review! Been on this cruise several times (headed back next month) and I’m even more excited. Haven’t sailed the ship since they’ve added Guy’s and the Alchemy Bar, so that’ll be neat. I also think my hubby and I would love hanging out with you two (we’re huge wine lovers and foodies), so maybe we will see you onboard sometime in the future. :-)

 

 

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Funny that you mention hanging out. We have traditionally met a new couple on each cruise that we shared common interests with and ended up forming friendships with. We didn't find that on this cruise. I'm not sure if cruise demographics or just the luck of the draw, but we couldn't make any connection on this trip. We will be sailing on the Panorama though, twice over the next 2 1/2 years.

Best review. Thank you

That's very kind, thank you!

I love this review! And your "mature" attitude about it all. Next time I am annoyed by someone ranting on the boards about "horrible" Carnival, I may go ahead and point out that their immaturity is the real problem here. I am sure that would go over very well, settle the debate, and help the poster gratefully see the error of their ways. :evilsmile:

 

I too have gone from Disney and a balcony on what was then the brand-new Celebrity Millennium, back to an inside cabin on the poor old Carnival Fantasy class and still had excellent results - as you note, you need to have realistic expectations of what you are getting for your hard earned $$ and decide if it's worth it for you. Some of us are perfectly fine with moving up and down the luxury scale in order to maximize our travel options, and others just can't. If you can't then don't.

I try to avoid debating on social forums, at least I do now. There were times where I didn't faithfully adhere to that principle. As such, I tried to avoid offering polemical contributions from the outset with this review. I'm a firm believer that a person's world view is greatly influenced by the Tetris Effect...you see what you look for. This means there were some imperfections that probably weren't even noticed on the trip. I was looking for something else! But for those imperfections that didn't escape notice, I wanted to offer them up as transparently as possible, and provide perspective in what they truly meant to us on the trip. At the end of the day, there were two people capable of ruining this trip for us. None of them worked for Carnival ;).

Awesome review...I was looking for a review of the imagination, as you indicated I hadnt found any found anythng in depth prior to yours. Im booked in December.

 

You have made my excitement to wisk my husband away on this cruise, even higher than it already was. Thank you for sharing...

 

Roberta

You will undoubtedly have a great time if you choose to do so! I'm glad you found value in the review!

I will miss following along with your review...thanks for taking in all of the details so you could share them with us. Your writing style made me feel I was right there with you!

 

You mentioned your 11 yo DD...my youngest will be barely 12 when we sail this itinerary in March (along with my other two teens, my sister and her 3 kids.) She is gifting the cruise to us and she chose it mostly for the date/duration and therefore, price. Is there anything in particular that your daughter (and by extension, my kids+), wouldn't want to miss?

 

We do not plan to take any excursions, but simply explore Catalina and Ensenada on our own. Any tips for those ports with kids?

 

Thanks again for your engaging review!

To answer, it's important to understand a little about our DD. She loves music and is naturally curious. First and foremost, music is all over the ship. Between the DJ, two acoustic guitar performers, a guitar/vocal duo and a small band, there was no shortage of tunes on board. She's a bit goofy and would have undoubtedly been up on stage for some of the line dances and might have even been up on stage for the Thriller dance lesson. She also is a budding vocalist in her own right. She would have been doing karaoke without a doubt and may have even gotten up to sing in the Piano Bar.

We also noticed that there was a lot of activity in the Circle C club, which would have been her kid club group. We saw them out and about the ship doing a lot of activities, including their own "Elegant Night" festivities and a scavenger hunt. We also would have been mandated to attend the Harry Potter Trivia event on the At Sea Day.

If she was with us for this trip, we would have undoubtedly chosen different excursions for Catalina and Ensenada. I doubt we could have convinced her to go parasailing, and we didn't really research what we would have done if she was with us. For Ensenada, the kid is fascinated with visiting Mexico. In fact, this was sore spot when she learned we would be going on the cruise. She would have been completely happy with just absorbing the atmosphere and the novelty of being in Mexico. I would imagine she would even have taken part in a little haggling while shopping. She's all about stretching her legs when it comes to new experiences (that don't involve strapping herself to a parachute and being dragged behind a speed boat).

Wow! I've been a member on Cruise critic for many years having taken 10 cruises in all. Hands down, the best. Review. Ever. 😀Thanks so much for your extensive review and insight on all things Imagination! It sounds like you had an enjoyable trip overall. So glad you and your wife did!

I cannot wait to go......

Thank you. Those are very kind words. After the enjoyable experience, I think we are both a little more excited about our upcoming sailings on the Panorama in 2019 and 2020. We hope you have an opportunity to make the trip to Long Beach soon!

Observations and Opinions

This certainly was a lot of information to digest for a 4 night itinerary. Even so, I'm sure that a week from now, I'll remember something else that was surely relevant that has already escaped my addled mind. And while I've given a detailed account of what we did on our trip, I didn't include any aggregated opinions. Hopefully, this post will help in those areas.

Arriving, Parking, and Embarkation

Arriving at the port, parking and embarkation were a breeze. In spite of the ongoing construction on the 710 exchange to the port areas, we encountered no problems. As noted before, just follow the signs for the Queen Mary until you reach the parking structure. I have heard some rumblings of late that the parking structure isn't available until 11:30 AM. We did not encounter that and we easily found a parking spot right at 11 AM. With the arrival of the Panorama in 2019, I could see that parking will become an issue, though my understanding is that there are currently plans to add to the available parking at the port. If you plan on driving to the cruise terminal, make sure that you account for L.A. area traffic, especially if your cruise departs mid-week when traffic volumes increase. Though anymore, it's hard to tell the difference in some areas between a weekday and a weekend.

We purchased FTTF and we walked right into the terminal, were immediately checked in and had no wait at security. To me, this is a golden experience. The terminal seemed appropriately staffed and Carnival must be doing something right with the staggered check-in time process. We had a short wait inside the terminal before anyone could start boarding. Once on board, we were able to access our room and pick up our S&S cards immediately, once we inquired with a friendly face. I did hear from another cruiser currently on the Imagination that they were not able to access their room immediately, even after inquiring with a staff member. This is clearly contrary to published materials for FTTF and I would imagine that they have a legitimate complaint if they choose to follow up with the appropriate staff. It was nice having out bags dropped off in our cabin, S&S cards in hand and on the Lido Deck with a cold drink to watch everyone else make the mad dash to the buffet or to the bar with their boarding documents in order to purchase a drink.

Excursions

When we first booked the cruise, I didn't have high expectations for the two ports of call. Neither particularly interested us and I had been to Ensenada 23 years ago, and I wasn't overly impressed. Well, the two Carnival booked excursion we chose changed my mind. The Taste of Catalina tour was as good as almost any excursion I've taken on a cruise. The wine country tour in Ensenada was also a good quality excursion and we both enjoyed ourselves. I always felt safe and our tour guide made us feel like we belonged as part of their community. Great hosts. When we go back to Ensenada in 2019 for the Panorama inaugural cruise, I'm confident we'll find something equally interesting to do.

The Ship

We had sailed on the Imagination in 2013. Since then, she did receive the Funship 2.0 upgrades. I was hoping that some of the other areas had been refreshed as well, but it just wasn't the case. I enjoyed the relatively small size of the Fantasy class and definitely see the market value of the Imagination and other smaller ships. But there are some things that Carnival could definitely address to make the experience on board more pleasurable.

The first observation is that as much as I wanted to overlook the occasional sewage smell, we simply could not. I had already mentioned that it was a constant presence in our cabin bathroom. I know enough about plumbing to know that often this type of smell can be eliminated by simply running water down a dry drain. This didn't seem to help. The smell could also occasionally be noticed in other areas of the ship. We noticed it at least twice on the Lido Deck near the pool and my DW noticed it one evening in the Pride Dining Room. It was never a constant presence anywhere, and it didn't prohibit us from having a good time, but I cannot deny it was there. I can understand that someone more sensitive to olfactory nuisances could have their experience negatively impacted by this experience. I also know this issue not limited to the Imagination or Carnival ships.

While on the subject of smells, there were a few places on the ship that had a distinctive mildew smell. It was detectable in the Karaoke lounge the first night we were there, though not overpowering. However, one of the Carnival Fun Shops smelled like a damp basement. Again, it didn't prevent us from buying a tote bag in there and it certainly didn't prohibit us from enjoying our trip, but it was certainly there.

The Cabin was in good shape, though there is debate between my DW and I as to a dark substance at the top of the shower. She was concerned it was mold though I thought it was remnants of some glue residue from flashing that may have been there at one time. The bed was very comfortable and the bedding was as fine as some 4 and 5 star hotels we've stayed at.

The furniture in some of the public spaces have definitely seen better days. Of note, a couch in the Alchemy Bar and the seats in the Piano Bar had obvious signs of wear and patching to repair. It is also difficult to discern what is Carnival's unique festival like decor from the outdated and the gilded all too much of it. The areas that did receive attention during the last dry dock looked fabulous. The pool area, outdoor Lido bars and eateries and the Alchemy Bar (with the exception of the aforementioned couch) were all a visual pleasure.

I just unleashed quite a few words critical of the Imagination, but let me tell you what is right about her. There is a simplistic beauty in the Fantasy class ships. It has all of the things a cruise ship should have and the ratio of passengers to public spaces is just about perfect. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, there are public spaces that shine and the addition of Guys Burgers and the Blue Iguana as included food options is wonderful. In addition, the crew does a find job as stewards of the old girl. They were constantly cleaning and tidying in the public spaces.

There are some that think Carnival should give up on the Imagination. I can understand where those opinions are coming from and the industry trend is certainly pushing for bigger, newer and better. But I think the Imagination has a role to still play in the cruising world and I would LOVE to see Carnival invest some TLC in an effort to update her so she can continue to fill the 3-5 day cruise fix on the West Coast.

Food

As cruise lines spend more money in expanding additional fee dining, it is not totally unexpected to see the quality of included food options take a hit. I also know that it's not limited to any particular line. I have accepted that this is the reality that cruisers are going to experience and I see no alteration of the current course the industry is taking. If you want higher quality food, you're going to have to pay for it. There is something to be said for the a la carte experience as it can keep overall prices from soaring and put cruising out of reach for many people. On top of all that, you will typically not find entrees made to order in the MDRs. So many steak dishes, X number of chicken dishes and Y number of fish dishes are made en mass and shuttled off to the hungry hoards waiting in the dining room. So, it didn't shock me that the food on the Imagination was hit and miss. As a rule, I would steer clear of choosing items that rely on the kitchen to prepare it to an exact standard (think steaks cooked to a specified temp, reaching the optimum resting time for certain cuts of grilled/roasted meats, etc.) and stick to more forgiving dishes (think soups, baked dishes like lasagna, etc.). While not foolproof, I think it will lead to a more pleasant culinary experience.

Service

For the most part....BRAVO! When everything is done for you, every moment of the day, expecting service perfection is a challenging ask. You are going to run into individuals who would otherwise provide a memorable, positive experience, if not for a monkey wrench in their day. In a short amount of time, it's very difficult to discern the true grouches from those who are just off their game a little bit. With the exception of being disappointed in the lack of attention from our room steward (he didn't do anything wrong, but he didn't interact with us once and we only received turn down service the first night...when we tipped him a $20 up front in addition to our prepaid gratuities) and one stone faced server in the Piano Bar, the staff we interacted with were a bright spot for our experience. For comparison, Nobody does service like Disney, but the staff on the Imagination really had to make me stop and think about the small differences between the two experiences. Of course, the likes of Camilo and Margo go a long way towards the personalized experience that so many cruisers have come to expect over the years. In no small part to their efforts, the Imagination receives high marks for service. We did our best to provide both Camilo and Margo with some extra compensation that they undoubtedly deserved.

Miscellaneous

• Cabin E75 - Wee booked late, just a month out. My DW is prone to motion sickness, so we really wanted an Oceanview room, midship. There just weren't many available options left. Our PVP steered us away from a room directly underneath the Piano Bar, but we still would have to settle for a room under the Library, just off the Atrium. For the most part, there were no noise issues. We would here activity in the Atrium until around 10:30 - 11:00 each night, but it was nothing that couldn't be drowned out with a white noise application. The final two nights of the cruise, we did hear a brief bought of significant noise from some furniture being rearranged in the Library at around midnight. It woke us up one night, but as mentioned it was brief in duration and we fell right back asleep. I don't believe it would ruin anyone's trip, but if you can avoid being under a public room and further off the atrium, we would encourage you to do so.
  
• FTTF - We hate standing in lines. The disease of privilege I suppose. For us, the modest charge for this itinerary was very much worth the expense.
  
• Cheers Package - We probably broke even. We are not heavy drinkers, but in the right environment (i.e. on a cruise ship with nowhere to go) we can put a few away. Couple that with the fact we enjoy wine with dinner, and it can add up. We definitely got our money's worth on Embarkation day and the At Sea Day.
  
• Demographics - There were a lot of families and there were several celebratory and multi-generational groups. It didn't have a booze cruise vibe, though people were certainly enjoying themselves. Carnival definitely has a good time bent on their activities and we found that some of the shows we wanted to see just started too late for us (i.e. the more adult oriented comedy shows). Maybe we're older than we think we are or maybe we purposely chose to not over do the experience. Anyway, as previously noted, we would have had no issues bringing our 11 year old daughter along with us, and often caught ourselves telling each other, "She would enjoy this!"
  
• As you would expect, there is a marked smoke presence near the casino. With it's location, opening up to the Promenade, it made hanging out in that area unattractive to us. It's a shame, because there was a stage with live music in the Dream Bar area. We're former smokers and may be a little extra sensitive to the smoky air.
  
• We enjoyed the Piano Bar and the interaction it facilitates. We spent two evenings in there. I wasn't too keen on the list of Carnival approved songs as I believe it led to more of a scripted repetitions of certain songs instead of an organic evolution based on the make up of the crowd. Again, we still had a great time.
  

The big question that remains...Would we take this cruise on the Imagination again. Our answer is nuanced. It depends, just as us deciding to take this cruise was dependent on a couple of factors. If the timing and situation is right, we probably would consider it. If Carnival gave the Imagination some extra love she deserves, it would probably increase the likelihood we would choose this trip again. We have a lot of other places we want to go and because we're still limited in opportunities to travel, It will most likely be a while before we find ourselves considering another spin on our old friend. Of course, if you put Matchbox Twenty and the Goo Goo Dolls back on as our cruise directors...that all changes!

While this concludes my unsolicited offerings, we would be more than happy to answer any questions or engage in any philosophical discussions about the Imagination. Thank you for letting us share a little piece of our experience and we both hope you all have many more enjoyable voyages ahead of you, including on the Imagination!

We have been following the recent great review of SonoranDevil, who were recently on the same itinerary we are on now. Rather than hi jack their thread, why not start a new one.

 

DW and I are living near Philly. We are Gold on Carnival and Platinum on NCL. We are on this cruise celebrating our 25th anniversary, DW 30th highschool reunion (she is from LA) and visiting relatives. We took our first cruise out of this same port 25 years ago on the Jubilee. Now we are back.

 

Here we go...

 

 

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Looking forward to your report back! My first cruise was also on the Jubilee in 95! And congratulations on 25 years!

Hi

 

Doing this cruise on the 26th Sept

 

Could you please tell me what time we can leave the ship from as we have a transfer meeting us at the port at 9am

and I would like to be waiting by 8.45

 

We will self disembark

 

Thanks

 

Cruise Love

Self assisted debarkation started at 7:30 AM.

Fun Times

Day 5 Continued and Debarkation

We finished dinner just after 7:30, after both having the Baked Alaska. We were sad that we wouldn't see Camilo or Margo again before debarkation. We were even sadder knowing that tomorrow meant heading back to the real world after almost a week of having our every whim catered to. But, it's the balance required to make these trips so sweet.

We headed to the Dynasty Theater at about 7:40, with the show starting at 8. We were the second group in line and waited about 10 minutes for the theater to open. This would be the only production we would catch this cruise and the Epic Rock Show received good reviews here on Cruise Critic. The show started with a young guitar player coming out and playing solo riffs from an assortment of popular rock anthems. He played well and was faithful to the original recordings we are all familiar with. He was enjoyable to listen to.

The show was...well, we weren't terribly impressed. We love rock and enjoy all of the songs played, but we just weren't impressed by some of the arrangements. It wasn't bad, but we thought it was less than epic. To each their own.

This would be an early night, knowing we had to get up and moving the next morning and I had a 6 hour drive ahead of me. So, we returned to our cabin to finish packing our suitcases. We decided to have our luggage picked up prior to debarkation. We knew we still had to pick up several bottles of wine and we wanted to cut down on the items we were carrying of of the ship. In retrospect, we would have been perfectly fine with the self assisted debarkation.

We got a decent night's sleep and awakened in time to grab breakfast in the MDR, prior to picking up our wine and heading to the FTTF waiting zone which was located in the Dynasty Lounge. I ordered an omelet while DW went with the Port Day Express. My omelet was really good and we both had enough coffee to get our minds focused for the journey home.

The alcohol pick up was located in one of the lounges on the Promenade. I was expecting a rush of people picking up their finds in Ensenada, but we either out waited the big rush or there just wasn't a lot of alcohol purchased in port. We claimed our haul and transferred it to a tote we purchased in the Fun Shop, to make it easier to carry off. Off we went to the Dynasty Lounge while we waited for the zoned debarkation to begin.

The wait in the lounge was quiet and comfortable. We had Zone 2 and soon the announcement was made for zones 1-6 to head to the Atrium and off to the gangway. Once in the debarkation line, we were off the ship within five minutes (common theme and the small waits were very welcome). We made our way through the terminal and quickly located our luggage.

On our way out of the luggage area and to the Customs line, we came across the group of porters. We didn't really need assistance and we were prepared to carry everything out to the garage ourselves until the following proclamation was made by the porter supervisor...

IF YOU USE A PORTER, YOU CAN USE THIS EXPEDITED CUSTOMS LINE WHERE THERE IS CURRENTLY NO WAIT!

Thank you very much! Porter hired! For the price of a tip, we proceeded directly to the special Customs line and boom! We were out of the terminal and back to the garage! Soon, we paid for parking ($80 for the 4 day cruise) and were on the road back to Phoenix.

So, that's a review of our trip. We did really enjoy ourselves in spite of some less than perfect hiccups. My next post will focus on some miscellaneous items and any things I may have inadvertently left out. I will also spend some time with my overall observations and opinions. I will also post the daily Fun Times. I hope this helps anyone thinking about taking the Imagination on this short itinerary!

We found Camilo! I will try to post some pix. He remembered you both!

 

 

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We hope you enjoy him as much as we did! Enjoy your cruise!

Day 4 - Day at Sea Continued...

After soaking up our share of the sun, we went back to the room to shower before dinner. We also started with requisite task of beginning to pack for tomorrow's return to reality. We debated the rest of the evening as to whether to self assist or have our luggage ready in the hall by 11PM.

We made our way to the Pride Dining Room once again prior to catching the Epic Rock Show at 8PM. Because of the early show and the fact that we didn't eat lunch due to a later brunch, we arrived at the dining room right at 6PM. Tonight, there was a slight line, though it was mainly due to several large groups ahead of us. The line moved quickly and again, we were waiting in line no more than five minutes. As we waited, we enjoyed the acoustic guitar/singer at the Atrium stage, one deck below. There were two of these acts on board, taking turns at the various small stages on the ship.

Again, Camilo was eagerly waiting for us. We were sat at what had become our standard two top table as the dining room was quickly filling up. It seemed like a lot of cruisers had the same idea we had this night for an early dinner. In fact, one of Camilo's other regular couples were a little later getting to the dining this evening and Camilo's section was already full. They were another similarly aged couple, free of their kids while with their grandparents, from Western Massachusetts. Their kids were actually on an Alaskan cruise with the grandparents and I couldn't help but wonder why they didn't go on that cruise as well. Alaska was just awesome. I digress, Camilo quickly swept in and informed the other head waiter that the other couple was his and that he would be taking over the table. There was no pushback!

Tonight, we both ordered the beef tenderloin for dinner. The filet I had that morning gave me an optimistic feeling for what was in essence, the same cut of meat. I wasn't wrong, as again it tasted like steak. As with the filet, there is no attempt to claim it was excellent, but it certainly was pleasant, especially considering the prior night's dinner experience.

Tonight was another wait staff show night. As dinner was concluding, all of the servers began their parade around the dining room, hoisting tonight's featured Baked Alaska around with them to the song Flying High (Theme song for the Rocky movies). After the parade, Camilo and the other servers performed a couple silly songs and dances. While in danger of being corny, everyone was smiling and laughing along at our new friends dance moves, or lack thereof.

Again, our interactions with Camilo and Margo were the highlight of the day. We spent some time earlier during dinner, before the huge rush, getting to know Camilo and eagerly soak up stories about his family. His wife was actually one of the two bartenders at the Atrium Bar. I can only imagine how this might take off the edge of being on a ship for months at a time. I also relish these human connections as it provides me with a healthy dose of perspective and provides me with the essential reminder that the world, in fact, does not revolve around my little slice of Earth.

Atrium Bar, from Deck 8. Little did we know that Camilo's wife was tending bar!

Camilo wishing us goodbye with a song

Camilo and Kadek grooving to Uptown Funk

DW and Camilo

DW and Margo. Margo wasn't quite the socializer that Camilo w as, but that uninhibited smile says everything I could think to describe him.

We are on the Imagination just now. Were looking for Camilo to show him he is an internet star.

 

We tracked him to the Red Frog Rum bar and talked to Yosep- another really nice guy. Camilo never showed up.

 

Looking forward to wine tasting as well in Mexico.

 

BTW - FTTF has been disappointing- they did not let us go to our room upon arrival on the ship and our luggage is still not here - though they have stated to deliver all luggage. We have FTTF printed on every document so we did everything correctly. We even polity challenged. Nope. Not worth it so far.

 

 

 

 

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If you find Camilo, let him know that Rob and Shani from Phoenix who sailed a couple of weeks ago said hello!

Sorry to hear about the FTTF struggles!

Day 4 - At Sea Day

This morning, we awakened without an alarm. I really like those mornings. We got ready and headed to the Pride Dining Room for the Seaday Brunch. We didn't order room service coffee this morning, so we didn't waste any time. The brunch menu appeared to be the same as I have seen posted for other ships. I chose the Steak and Eggs, as I have heard it would be the best steak I would get without ordering from the Steakhouse selection at dinner. DW ordered pancakes along with sides of scrambled eggs and link sausage.

Steak and Eggs

Indeed, the breakfast filet was the best piece of beef I had on the cruise. It actually tasted like steak. I won't claim it was the best filet I've ever had, but it was pleasantly satisfying. My eggs were fried hard as requested and were tasty. I was a little disappointed in the home fries, not because they weren't tasty, but rather because they were merely a combination of three different types of french fries. Visually, it looked like leftover scraps. All in all, I enjoyed the meal.

DW was afraid that she had ordered too much food, but when the small serving of pancakes arrived, she realized the worry was misplaced. The meal was good, but don't expect a huge order of pancakes if you go down that route.

After breakfast, we changed into our swimsuits and headed to the Lido Deck to attempt to find a couple of loungers. By this time, it was around Noon. We did a full reconnaissance of the available loungers and were surprised to see many available, though the ones closest to the pool and shady spots were all spoken for. We settled in just behind the stage and we would stay there until late afternoon.

It was quite a pleasant and relaxing day. While there was too much activity to nap, Camilo soon found us and we sipped away at our Twilight Zones and Ting Mojitos as we watched various Lido activities take place. We missed the hairy chest contest (no big loss) but were present for the Thriller dance class (taught by one of the Playlist performers) and the ice carving demonstration. The DJ kept the tunes going and there were several line dancing opportunities for the more extroverted of cruisers.

Just how do you know they were 'grounds'? :evilsmile:

Well played...well played. :)

I was actually was pleasantly surprised by the coffee on the Imagination. Of course we only had it on the Lido once. The room service and MDR was perfectly palatable. I even found a couple of grounds in the bottom of my cup one morning in the MDR, evidence of it being brewed on the ship and not from concentrate.

Roasted loin which was sent back

The chocolate melting cake was a constant dessert companion, including tonight

Apple pie was also on the dessert menu. It was good, but not the best we've ever had. We ate it all though!

Xanadu Lounge, home to Punchliner's Comedy Club

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico Continued...Dinner/Evening

After a good, uninterrupted nap, we got ready for dinner and headed back to the Pride Dining Room. As we had become accustomed, we were eagerly greeted by Camilo and seated in his section. Tonight's appetizer for my DW was the beef and barley soup while I chose the smoked chicken quesadilla. We decided to forgo wine tonight in favor of lighter cocktails as consecutive days of red wine consumption at our age can get a little heavy on the digestive system. Here, I discovered, that you cannot order a double cocktail with the Cheers program. You have to wait 5 minutes after your last drink order to be served an additional shot. I thought it may not be possible, but I gave it a shot anyway. DW is infinitely smarter than I am and suggested I sip a little off the top of my cocktail and wait 5 minutes before ordering an additional shot of liquor. Brilliant I tell you. I definitely married up.

Appetizers were delivered. My wife's soup was set before her and Camilo set a bowl of the soup in front of me as well. As he did, I could see the acknowledgement in his eyes...I didn't order the soup. Quick witted and without skipping a beat he said, "Your appetizer will be right up, please enjoy this soup to warm up your stomach." Smooth. I didn't even know I needed to have my stomach warmed up. All these years of what I thought was successful eating and I've been doing it wrong! The soup was decent, though DW noted that she suspected the beef was last night's prime rib. Hey, we can appreciate frugality. My quesadilla arrived. It was more chicken and black beans between the grilled tortilla and not much queso...but it was still pretty tasty.

DW ordered the roasted loin dish for dinner while I went with the veal parmesan. The entrees arrived and we dug in. This is when we hit our first and only real food snafu. The beef loin was just not good. It had an unrecognizable taste and texture. I tasted it and concurred. She decided to ask Camilo for something different. Nothing else on the menu jumped out at her, but the port of call selection that night were street tacos. Well, who doesn't love a taco. Camilo was awesome and made DW feel good about her decision. In no time, she had tacos in front of her. I even gave a thumbs up for the carne asada in the taco, as it was better than I expected it to be. Again, the service from Camilo and his team made dinner one of the highlights of the day, even with the food challenge.

After dinner, we decided to catch the PG version of the other comedian on the ship, Lowell Sanders. We didn't specifically choose the PG version, but that's what was scheduled for the 8:30 time slot. Lowell's show was more traditional stand up than Stanely Ullman's and we both enjoyed his material. It was relevant and not as PG as I anticipated it was going to be, though it certainly wasn't obscene.

The piano bar wasn't open tonight for some reason, so our go to spot for the later night wasn't available. We walked the promenade after the comedy show, noticed the Karaoke lounge was full and roaring, but it didn't really catch our fancy this night. We hit the fun shops, caught a couple minutes of the Hasbro show and decided to act our age and get an earlier jump on sleep. Tomorrow was our sea day and we planned on sleeping in, without an alarm. More to come!

Casa Dona Lupe

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico Continued...

The next winery on our stop, as alluded to by prior posters, was Casa Dona Lupe. This is a much smaller, boutique winery just down the road from L.A. Cetto. The initial reaction was very positive. The property is less industrial, perfectly rustic and completely charming. The property includes an outside tasting area, an Aztec cultural demonstration and a retail space inside. In addition to wine, Casa Dona Lupe produces a variety of jams and marmalades, tequila liqueurs, salsas and such. We received cards to taste 6 different wines and provided with homemade chips and a variety of salsas, as well as a flatbread pizza with a Mexican twist.

As others have noted, there was a significant decrease in the quality of wine tasted from L.A. Cetto. Dona Lupe is a small winery and is attempting to make the jump to a larger commercial producer. Let's hope that they continue to hone their craft as they prepare for their next steps! I sampled four different red wines prior to resigning to the delicious edible options provided for us. The one highlight from the wines that I tried was their honey wine. It pretty much tasted like liquid honey and was of equal quality as good apple and ice wines that I've experienced. It is certainly a dessert wine and wouldn't be enjoyable as a traditional 4 or 6 oz pour. It is intended to be sipped from a 1 to 2 oz serving after a meal. Don't try a traditional, full mouth taste of this stuff as it is super sweet. Given the sweetness, the alcohol content couldn't not have been very high either.

The highlight of this stop was definitely the atmosphere and the food element. We tried a pineapple/coconut marmalade that was absolutely delicious and we ended up buying a jar of that. We also picked up a couple bottles of Mexican vanilla for my DW's baking exploits. Before leaving, Irma arranged for us to also sample two tequila liqueurs. The first was a macadamia nut tequila liqueur and the second was a tequila creme liqueur. Both were absolutely delicious. We were tempted to buy a bottle, but we just couldn't nail down a practical use for it in our house. It was certainly purchase quality though if you appreciate liqueurs.

Soon we were back on the bus with Felix and Irma, headed back to the city. The trip back involved less interaction with Irma, but that was just right. Everyone had sampled a good bit of wine, been out in the heat of the day and probably stayed up a bit too late the night before. We sat back and enjoyed the ride through the Baja California countryside on the way back to Ensenada. As we got back to town, we had the option of being dropped off at a local marketplace or be returned to the ship. One couple decided to be dropped of in town. By this point, we had a near full box of wine along with bottles of olive oil and vanilla. Irma assured us that we could check our box in at the Marketplace where they would hold it while we shopped, but ultimately we decided to head back to the ship to drop the loot off. We could then walk back down to town and search for my main objective of the Ensenada stop...a carne asada street taco. Well, we got on the ship, in the air conditioning, and that was all she wrote. It was back to the cabin for a nap before tonight's festivities.

Day 3 - Ensenada, Mexico Continued ...

Before we knew it, we were in Guadalupe. The drive was pleasant, with vineyards everywhere, mixed in with groves of olive trees. The scenery reminded me a lot of drives through central Arizona.

Our first stop was Vinos L.A. Cetta, Mexico's second largest wine producer. The winery was thoroughly modern yet small enough to be charming and inviting. Irma introduced us our guide for the winery tour (I believe her name was Arieli). She soon led us to the fermentation facility and barrel room, where the wine is aged. She gave a thorough explanation of the wine making process, the winery's different brands and how each brand and variety were made. The smell in the barrel room was absolutely decadent with the combination of the vino and oak barrels. My DW was in heaven and was literally hugging the large oak barrels.

After the tour, we were brought into the tasting room. Officially, we were to taste six wines, 3 whites and 3 reds. The reality is we sampled a lot more. Arieli, with Irma's help, soon got to know each of our preferences and was bringing us each what she believed we would enjoy. Both were very knowledable and were really able to hone in on our tastes. I could go on and on with the whole experience, but it's unlikely anyone wants to read that much detail. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience and we left buying 4 bottles of premium wine, on top of the free bottle we each received. We also bought a couple of bottles of the locally produced olive oil, which we enjoyed during our tasting.

Our awesome guide at L.A. Cetto

L.A. Cetta fermentation room

L.A. Cetta

True love

Premium French Oak

Preparing for the first pour