abbydancer2003

Yes. The pastries are free, the drinks are not.

Thank you both. I called, and she said she sent an email to loyalty(?) to have the points added. I did ask if it's because DH and I have different last names, and the primary is not always the same. She couldn't really answer that as to being the cause, but she did confirm that I should probably check that it's there on the first day.

To Captain's Club? Thanks

That's what usually happens for us. I do Go Green on every cruise, but on this one I got double the regular points, but NOT the additional night worth for Go Green. It was a 12 night cruise, I got credit for 24 nights (ie double the 12) but not the 25th for Go Green. I don't need a thread on what it is, or how it's awarded on double points. I need to know what to do when they weren't awarded. I did do a Go Green search, but nothing on that particular problem. I figure since this is the points expert thread, maybe someone here knows.

I booked my October Galapagos last May, but found out yesterday I have a date conflict (wedding to go to, election to maybe work), so I called today to move it to December. Just under the wire.

Yes I know that, but neither is Gelato, or Regent. I figured this was as good a place as any to ask about missing points.

I've been out for a few days, being on the Connie for 12 days, followed by 3 full days of training to be a poll worker, and then a bit of time with my visiting sister. She left today, so I've had some time to think about this. My experience on both the Apex and Connie with the "team" approach was good. On Apex, the head butler introduced himself as we dropped off our bags, and was generally around. He arranged for coffee every morning and helped us set up our Roku when I called him. He also confirmed that laundry would take 2 days. On the Connie, our head butler Tony was always around, set up a party for us, and on mornings that we wanted coffee, he had the same room service guy deliver it (and he plated and poured). He also offered to bring us drinks during the day, but we didn't need that. So if it was like that on every ship, it would have probably worked, but we talked to a couple of guys who said they had no butler type service on the Equinox at all. A random musing here ... if they say by June, my guess it it will be rolling. By ship? By category of Sky suite (ie, AS, SS, S1). Or maybe on June xx they'll all join their ships. No one seems to know. The retreat manager on Connie said she thinks it would be a team approach but with a dedicated butler. I have no idea what she meant, and I'm not sure she did either. I guess we'll see. I'm hoping that soon there will reports here of dedicated butlers here.

Here's a new question that's probably not new. I just got my points for the cruise ending last Wednesday. The good news - I had a double point offer, and the points were doubled. What I didn't get was my "go green" night of points. Should I contact someone? Should I have confirmed on the ship? DH and I have different last names, and sometimes he's first on the booking and sometimes I am. Could that be why? Will it matter down the road? I have no idea. Thanks!

Connie - Day 5 -Cartagena Day 1 - Tuesday 1 We were up early for breakfast, as we were meeting our friends for a city tour of Cartagena. Even though we just had one course, we barely made it al Baccio at the meeting time of 9:00. They got there just before us, and by the time everyone got what they needed we left at 9:10. We have a private tour booked with Tours By Locals, with a meeting time of 9:30, outside the port. We have no idea how long that will take, so we wanted to allow about 30 minutes. There’s no big issue, because we’re overnighting here. The first step was taking a shuttle bus across the container part of the port. Next to the shuttle bus, was this small bus. Notice it’s a funeral van? Our bus is smaller than the big buses for the cruise line excursions. The bus ride is short and the cruise area is lush with aviary and animals. A flamingo enclosure is near the bus exit. There are birds all over. We wandered past the taxi stands, with drivers offering us tours (of course). Eventually we made it to the port exit, and found Raphael with no issues, and he called his driver and away we went. Our first stop was San Sebstian del Pastelillo Bastion. That was the first fortress (using the term loosely) built. It has nice views of the new hotel zone in the city. And here’s the Bastion itself. Following that, we headed to the monastery on the largest hill in Cartagena. We’d been outside there in our fist trip in 1998. There are great views of the city there. When we were here in 1998, this was all a cardboard shantytown. Also machine gunned police at every corner. Very different now. We went into the monastery starting at the courtyard. In the right foreground, you can see the cistern used for collecting rain water. We saw a display with the history of who has visited. It goes way back. Raphael showed us what he called Miracles. It turns out it’s a couple of display boxes of charms in the chapel, each of which represents some sort of miracle that’s happened. And flowering trees as we head back down. Following that, we drove to the walled city. Along the way, we saw the vaults, which apparent was the last structure built by the spaniards. Now it’s a bunch of shops. From there, after passing the main fort (one end of the Spanish Main), we headed to the old walled city for a walking tour. One of the first things we learned is that on the doors, the knocker (is that the word?) represents the occupation of the original owner. The the size also represents their relative position. This lion represents a military owner. It looks like this is a more important military person. As we walked we saw an open door, so you can see that the homes here had interior courtyards. The lizard represents someone who worked for the King of Spain. An interesting lizard. Two lions mean it was a more important person. In addition, a fish represents someone who works with the sea, probably a fisherman, and praying hands represent someone who works for the church. We saw lots of church buildings. The statue in front is kind of interesting. We did peek into one of the many cathedrals, but couldn’t go in since there was a service happening. And saw many squares where slave auctions had happened. And one with art representing people at play. After our city walk we made two stops. First was at a store that Raphael likes for buying coffee. We got a couple of whole bean bags. This is our new thing - buy coffee when visiting coffee producing areas. On the way back we stopped at a store for Arie to get some local chocolate. Raphael dropped us at about 1:30, and we walked through the various aviaries to the shuttle to the ship. After a brief stop at our room we met at the buffet. It had pretty much the same unappetizing food as the day in Grand Cayman. Following lunch I went back to the room and checked on my new class materials, which drop every Tuesday. The concierges are very good about printing things for me, but there was a problem with this one, because it bounced, so I played around with getting it split up and eventually got it printed. Once I sent the email, we went to Michaels for a drink and it turned out that I’d only sent one of the two split emails. I had Penelope hang onto the printout until I send the second. At 5, we went to the Reflections (aka Sky on other ships) lounge to meet Arie and Cheryl for drinks. We had a nice conversation, and then, when they went for the early seating dinner, we left. We got dressed for dinner and then went to the show. It was the second show for singer Mike Mentz. It had some silly moments, including him showing a video of him singing along with himself while dancing with people on a beach. You had to be there. Following the show, we went to Rendezvous to meet Arie and Cheryl. This was a tradition we started on the Summit last year. We had a nice conversation, and then headed to dinner. Tonight I started with the burrata with eggplant. Very good, but a lot of it. For my main, I ordered the short ribs from main dining (Luminae’s are a little too spicy for me) and for dessert, I had to try the Cherries Jubilee from main. After dinner we headed up to the room and called it a night.

So sorry. I hope he's improving (FYI, I have Khrons so two resections over the course of my life). And I have not abandoned this. We got home Wedensday night, and Thursday - Saturday I was in training for working the primary all day, and had no energy to do anything but have dinner and go to bed, as the training was not near my home. I'll start posting again later today.

Quick question - do you know if one of the Eden bartenders is Daniel from Romania?

Hi. My sister and I are on this cruise next month, in a sky suite, so I'm following although starting a bit late (disembarking the Constellation right now). Thanks!

I don't think there are many on this cruise, as I've seen none. Our friends report seeing a baby and then a family with a couple of small children. I think it's a school thing. Also, you might see more kids on a shorter cruise, but I'd still say December is not typical. On another note - tomorrow is our next full day. I'll have at least the first port day tomorrow, and then hopefully more quickly. If you have any questions that I can answer on the ship, I'll make a point of trying to get answers tomorrow.

I thought that the free cone was a hit and miss thing pre covid. Of course, I haven't had my free scoop in over 2 years, since last time I tried it it wasn't very good.

Connie Day 4 Sea Day 2 - Monday 1 Our original plan was to sleep in, but we ended up awake in time for breakfast. So we went. I had a single slice of the peach cobbler French toast, and it was good. During breakfast we got a text from Arie that we could play Catan this morning and the Captains Club rep had arranged a conference room for us. We agreed to 11 am, and headed to Michael’s club until then. When we arrived, there was a small table only there. The Captain’s Club people were in the process of getting us a desk to play on. (Thanks Josh). We had a fun game, and I actually won, for only the second time ever. Our plan for the afternoon was to take them to lunch in Luminae. I’d arranged with Arif to bring them after the rush at 1:15. So, we agreed to meet at the entrance at 1:15. We basically wandered around looking at some of the art on the ship until we met them at Luminae at 1:15. We were quickly seated at a table set for 4, which is in fact on this cruise, the only time they’ve had a table for 4 (maybe the last time, too). Apparently this cruise is all parties of 2. A couple of gentlemen sitting near us said it was nice that there was a four top, even if only for one meal. We all started with the bib lettuce salad, and enjoyed it. For entrees, everyone but me had the halibut, but I had potato leek ravioli. For dessert, Arie & Cheryl both chose a panna cotta, and Glen and I had poached pear. After lunch I went back to the room to work on this. I wanted to work on the balcony, but it was too sunny. Aft 5, we went up the the Relfections Lounge (not sure why it’s not called the Sky lounge) and met Arie & Cheryl for their pre dinner drink. Following that, we headed to the first Officers’ Soiree at Michaels club. We took a seat and were mostly ignored by the officers. We did meet the marketing and inventory managers. We did have a nice chat with the suite manager, Jess, on the way out. We next went to the Broadway Caberet show by the singers. As usual, it was pretty much old stuff and an obscure song from the musical Anastasia. They did finish with You Can’t Stop the Beat from Hairspray. They were fine. They Hairspray song was better on Royal Caribbean. We stopped by Rendezvous to chat with Arie and Cheryl for a while; The acoustic duo was playing but their songs weren’t as danceable as last night. After that we went to dinner. We both started with a soup - butternut squash for me (not sure if it was man dining or Blu) and Luminae tofu for Glen. For my main I had the steak and chips from main, but with a filet from Luminae, and it was good. For dessert I had the Raspberry Hibiscus, which was very pretty. After dinner we walked around for a bit, and then called it a night. Tomorrow, we start two days in Columbia.

Yup, the parrots are still there, and you can't move them. Very annoying. We don't seem to have much water run off, maybe they fixed that? And so far, not a peep out of the penthouse next door.

Hi Ken I'm finally catching up on your trip - have a wonderful time. By the way, we're in the Caribbean, and earlier in the week some Columbian pigeons wanted to also wish you a good trip.

Connie Day 3 Grand Cayman - Sunday 1 Today is our first port stop, Grand Cayman. I was there with my sister several years ago, but it’s Glen’s first time. During a sale on Shore Excursions, he booked a snorkeling excursion with Arie and Cheryl. Since I don’t snorkel, I decided not to go. We woke in time for breakfast, but decided to have coffee in the room. We called Tony and he passed it to room service. Then we asked him for beach towels. Tony with towels and the coffee from room services arrived at the same time. We gathered our first round of laundry, and then headed to breakfast. I ask for a small omelette and Nolan asked if I wanted a single egg one. I did, with bacon and what I got was perfect. It did take a while, so Glen had to rush to get down to where to meet Arie and Cheryl for their snorkeling adventure. Rhonda, our very good room attendant, was cleaning, so I grabbed my backpack and sunscreen and headed to the lounge to be escorted to the tenders. Jiro took me down immediately, and there was no line to get onto the tender, but I sat for about 15 minutes. As we left, I took a picture of the ship. On the back on the lowest balcony level our balacoy has the door in the lower left. Once on shore, I decided to walk around. Last time I was here I found a bus stop, and my sister and took a bus around. I didn’t see anything like that, so I just waked around. I did see a nice sign. The souvenir shops around the port were open, but not much else, since it was Sunday. At one point I used my Find my app to see where Glen was, turns out he was pretty close to the shore. (An hour later I learned that their snorkeling excursions were indeed near the shore). I did buy a couple of small rum cakes from two different brands, since that’s what they seem to sell here. After I got tired of that, I went back to the port and just waited for them. Once they showed up at around 12:30 (talking about how close to shore it was), we went back to the ship, since not much was open. Once onboard, we agreed to meet for lunch. The buffet was surprisingly crowded, and the food choices were not good at all. I ended up going to the grill for a hot dog, which wasn’t bad, but the bun fell apart pretty quickly. I also got a salad. Because they’re still doing Noro procedures, everything is a hassle. They did have pineapple upside down cake, so I grabbed some of that, expertly served to me by Hannah, one of our assistant waiters. After that, I went back to Michaels club to work on this for a while, then up to the Reflections Lounge (Sky lounge on other ships) to have a a drink with Arie and Cheryl. It’s the first of 3 or 4 “Captain’s Club cocktail hours) that the’ve brought back. No food, but sill pretty well attended. After they left for dinner I watched sunset from our balcony. We went down to Michael’s for a while and then just after 7:15, our friends texted that they were at Rendezvous so we met them there. The acoustic duo was playing and fortunately they weren’t too loud, so we danced for a bit. They also danced a song, which was nice to see. They then went to the 9:00 show, and we went to dinner. I started with the almond cruised baked brie, better than Normandy’s on the Apex. For my main, I wasn’t very hungry, so I tried the lasagna (butternut squash). I twas good, but I didn’t eat much of it, since I wasn’t hungry. For dessert, I tried what they call citrus, which is orange and lemon puree, an orange sponge , and lemon sorbet. I liked it. After that, we walked a little and then headed to the room. Second sea day tomorrow.

I'll try to gather info as I go. but on the desk, there's one Eurpoean on one side, and one American on the other. There's a European next to the couch, and one next to the door of the penthouse. That's all we've found so far.

Thanks. Arif and Preshant are both great. Glen has a drink that was customized from a Chairman of the Board on the Reflection several years ago. He now gives it to every bartender, and Preshant is doing a great job. He does make a great Sangria.

I just have them cut it in half horizontal. I think it's 1/2 pound, so I make it 1/4 pound. The first time I asked for a smaller burger, I asked them to make it with a kids burger, but they said no, because the meat is different, and better on the regular. So now I do it that way.

Of course that was where it first surfaced that they were being eliminated I think.

I've read that you have to be in the room when they do it.

at lunch today, I told my friends that after lunch I'm off to see the Captain's Club guy about the points not showing in my total. 5 minutes later, they were there.

Connie Day 2 - Sea Day - Saturday 1 Since it’s the beginning of the cruise, we decided to get up for breakfast. We opted not to order coffee for the room. I started with a grapefruit half. Why is that cruise lines can’t order grapefruit utensils? At least they separate the segments for me. I also had pancakes and bacon. Both were good, but I intended to order two, and forgot, so I had three. I ate two. After breakfast I wandered into the casino, put in 20.00 and promptly lost 10. I did much better on the Apex. I decided not to cash out the ticket yet. Next stop was the pool deck, where I found Arie and Cheryl after their hot tub visit. We chatted for a while and then agreed to play Catan at 3. On the way back, I ran into Jess and Tony in the hallway. Tony reiterated that we should call him for any butler needs (except laundry). Jess also asked if everything was good (so far so good). I next decided to go to Al Baccio for a latte, but it was busy, so I headed to Michaels club instead. The bartender made me a latte macchiato, which is, I guess, steamed milk with a small shot of espresso. I prefer regular lattes, as those are more coffee than milk. But, learn something new everyday. At 11, it was time for the slot pull that a fellow CC member had organized. It was Ok, but we ended up not doing very well. We were down to 7.00 each (from 15), and Nino, the organizer, suggested we each to one more max bet. I didn’t particularly want to, but those who wanted to won, so we did one more bet, and ended with 6.00 each. Oh well. The Captain’s club welcome event was at 1pm, so we stopped by and sat with our friends. One of the bands was playing so we danced to a song or two. We left as the future cruise guy was talking since it’s always at the middle of lunch for some reason. Since this is the second day, the lunch menu is one I have every time. I started with the broiled feta salad, and I still have yet to ascertain what exactly is broiled about it. Next was my modified Luminae burger, and they made it correctly. Dessert was the white chocolate mousse. It’s still one of my favorites. Because we started so late it was almost game time when we finished. We went back up to the room to get one of the Fluxx games and a magnet that we had for our friends. (When we did book on board on the Silhouette, they gave us 2 ship magnets, so we are giving them one). We played one game of Catan and one of Fluxx. After gaming we went back to the room to watch the sunset from the very nice balcony. It turns out it’s one of the best things about this room. Usually, there’s a officers meet and greet (or Soiree as they call it) on the first formal night. But looking at the schedule, I noticed there’s one in a couple of days on a regular night. With nothing much to do before dinner, I decided to finish my school paper due Tuesday. I turned it in, got dressed for dinner, and headed to the Rendezvous lounge. There was a band, but they were very loud, so we went back to Michaels club for a drink. Somewhere in all of this, I put my ticket back in a slot machine, added another 20, and played 10. On that one, I broken even plus 23 centers. So now I'm down 9.78. Next up in the Rendezvous was a duo, so we checked them out, and their volume was fine, so we danced a couple of songs, and then went to dinner. Tonight I started with a cold pear and honey soup from main dining. For my entree, I asked for the ribeye dinner, but with the 4oz filet instead of the center of the ribeye they usually serve, but the same sides, including the brown butter bearnaise. Apparently the brown sauce on the bottom is in fact the béarnaise sauce. We both finished with the mascarpone cheesecake. After dinner we took a walk around the upper deck, and then called it a night.