MamaFej

I’m happy to report that attention to detail seems to be improving in Blu. The sommelier, Nandha, is a delight, though very busy. We noticed that waiters, the Maitre D’, and lovely hostess Yury (Estephany) refilling wine. We have not seen guests being rude to staff. That would infuriate me. For the scenic cruising yesterday, we had thought that people might do the chair hog thing, leaving items in prime spots, then leaving for hours, but we didn’t see any of that. Folks who came early stayed, and some very nice conversations ensued. Couples would take turns for bathroom or food runs. There was one couple who asked a pair of sisters to save their seats. Many people came up and asked for them, and were politely turned away. When the couple had not returned an hour into the scenic part, the sisters decided to give the seats to others. It would have been nice if a member of the couple would have returned to report they no longer needed the seats. Two prime spots went unused for too long, and that is a shame. Once the scenery got beautiful, a few people decided they needed to walk in and stand in front of those who had been patiently waiting for hours. I’m glad that others made it clear that that was not acceptable. However, most people would come up when there was something particularly photo worthy and ask if they could step in front for a few moments for photos. Those of us sitting happily obliged. We had to go to the bar to ask for sodas and water ourselves, and that is absolutely not the fault of the crew. With all chairs facing forward, they simply could not get to us. As far as I know, everyone was okay with that. It was a lovely day over all.

We sailed the sound, but did go into a fjord and got near a lovely huge glacier. The announcements made a big deal of the fact that we were the first Celebrity passengers to ever go into this fjord. Weather cleared up and the helipad was opened. From our vantage point in Sky Lounge, we watched a man propose. When the woman said, “Yes!” the bridge blew the air horn. Crew members took photos and brought out trays of treats. It was clearly coordinated with them and was lovely to see. I wish the couple many decades of happiness, discovery, and travel. Here is the path we took. IMG_4175.MOV

We spent 12 hours in Sky Lounge today. Hubby staked out a great spot in the very front and center. We played a couple of games of Scrabble and just hung out until we got to the scenic part, then we sat in absolute awe and took time lapse videos and pictures. If you see a couple in their 50s playing Scrabble or Quirkle in any public area, it’s very likely us. We don’t always have a predictable pattern. Most nights, we eat early, so we could meet you for drinks after our dinner and before yours. We would love to meet you and your delightful husband in person.

I was mistaken. The woman who is getting things done, jumping in and helping, and making things move faster is an Assistant Beverage Manager. Her name is Leigh, she is from the USA, though her accent makes me think she was born/and or raised elsewhere. When I paid her a compliment this morning at Cafe Al Bacio, she quickly shared credit with her team. She is my kind of manager!

When the glass is lovely Riedel stemware half-full of PBP wine, a take it in stride attitude is pretty easy to come by.

I mean… it’s pretty darn DELICIOUS! But, no, the amazing man directly to my right is absolutely the love of my life. He’s the one in the Tahitian shirt you can see in the background.

We had AMAZING Auroras from our balcony last night! It was SO cool to hear our shipmates literally cheering from their balconies and up on deck as the lights danced in the sky!! The Captain posted cool pix on his Instagram, too. The forecast is good for Auroras overnight, but it’s MUCH cloudier than it was last night. I’ll set an alarm, anyway, just in case. Tomorrow is a scenic cruising day, plus we will gain an hour. so it’s not a big deal losing some sleep. And, to keep it on topic, I would totally trade seeing Auroras in person for PUPs. But I actually earned CC points whilst viewing the Auroras. I am very fortunate, indeed. Note: these are cellphone photos. I’m sure there are far better ones out there from folks with real cameras.

@jelayne, I’m guessing you are following this thread. I still haven’t caught up on the earlier pages. It took until Night 4, but we finally made it to Martini Bar, and I am currently enjoying my Honorary Jelayne Lycheetini (which is becoming a MOST welcome tradition). It is absolutely delicious! We look forward to cruising with you again in December! Shoutout to everyone who is kindly realizing that I am NOT actually a whiny griping jerk. I am simply being honest about my experiences. I was genuinely concerned that I would be coming across as an entitled bleephole. Y’all are great! And, seriously, between being home with countless chores and tasks in 98F heat, making my own bed, cooking, and cleaning, or being on this ship, having seen and photographed Auroras last night, on a 58 day trip, I am pretty darn happy and grateful to be exactly where I am, with the Love of My Life!

We are not fans of the canapés served in the afternoon in Concierge and up. As such, we politely request to have fruit and cheese instead. We have always been accommodated. Two of the following pictures were taken aboard the Constellation in May. Two were taken aboard the Summit yesterday and today.

It was so carefully placed on the woven vinyl mat at a perfect 90 degree angle that I doubt it. But I’m going to lean into your theory, because it makes me more comfortable. On another note, we were waiting for quite a long time for some Port at Cellar Masters two nights ago. Service was crazy slow. The Beverage Manager arrived, and service got substantially better. Hubby saw her the next day and thanked her. She explained that she had just boarded in Reykjavík. Since then, we have seen her several times. We tend to find a place, then sit and play a lot of Scrabble or Quirkle. We have seen her show up to Cafe al Bacio, Rendezvous, and Sky Lounge and check in with crew, asking if they need anything. She seems like a very good manager/supervisor. We are getting our water, juices, teas, coffees, and sodas during the day much faster. Same for more potent drinks at night. Managers make a huge difference! Perhaps the one she relieved was more lax.

The food in Blu has not been quite as good as we are used to, but it certainly isn’t bad. The sloppiness and lack of attention to detail are much more of an issue. I’m having trouble reloading my previous post to edit, but here is the aforementioned mystery toothbrush, lest anyone think I am exaggerating.

Another thing: a pink toothbrush mysteriously appeared on the bathroom counter after breakfast today. I used a tissue to pick it up and throw it away. Perhaps the steward found it under the cupboard when mopping the floor? We are on Day 4. Why was it just now discovered, and how long had it been wherever he found it? I know it sounds like we are griping, but some things are really not okay at any price point. We truly are happy and grateful to be here!

We are noticing a serious lack of attention to detail. Dirty creamer pitchers and soup carafes, crumbs and spills left on the table runners in Blu at nearly every meal, mismatched glassware, lots of stuff like that. I was served moldy raspberries. I quietly pointed it out and asked them to please let the kitchen know so it doesn’t happen to others. Next to us at breakfast on Day 2, a man was served eggs Benedict on a hamburger bun. I’m not kidding. C’mon, If you’re out of English muffins, just tell him and let him decide if he wants to order something else. But to serve a poor substitute without even acknowledging it is not cool. I don’t know if he said anything to the host or Maitre D’ on the way out, but he was not happy at the table. I don’t blame him. Laundry sent out on the 20th was just delivered. Hubby asked about his dress shirts, which were supposed to be pressed. The man who delivered the bag said that he had delivered them and hung them in the closet yesterday. Hubby double checked. Nope. They were in the bag, folded, but most definitely not pressed. We will send them back out. Hopefully, we won’t get charged. I asked a bartender for a Bellini. He gave me a blank stare, then went and asked a colleague what that was. It was good, once I got it, but I was surprised that a bartender wouldn’t be familiar with such a common and simple drink. Don’t get me wrong, we are both fortunate and happy to be here. We absolutely do not expect the level of service we got on Viking Ocean earlier in our trip, nor on Azamara or Windstar in the past nine months, but we do expect reasonably close to what we are accustomed to on Celebrity, and have gotten on three X cruises since the restart. We had great views of the Auroras from our deck 11 starboard aft balcony. We heard people cheering from other balconies and from Deck 12. We only have cell phone pictures, but we have amazing memories! We can complain that our roses have thorns or we can be grateful that our thorns have roses. We choose gratitude.

It’s a pot strainer. I use it for pouring pasta water out. I had used a piece of pegboard during a previous eclipse, but didn’t have any this time. I figured the strainer would work, and it did.

The 2017 total eclipse was a partial one in Southern California, and was five years ago today. As such, it popped up in my Memories today. Here are a few photos from that day:

We LOVE traveling and cruising with the young adult offspring. Two are teachers, and the 20 year-old is in college (he is disabled and takes classes mostly online). He’s our dog sitter and house sitter. His big sister used to teach in the middle of Nowhere, and recently got a new teaching job closer to us and moved back in. We now ALSO have a RENT-PAYING dog and house sitter. The two of them are far less lonely than before, and we have less (perhaps no) guilt about the fact that we travel far more than we are home. I’m sure we will find another trip or cruise that works during a school break for all three of them before long, and we will all five have a blast doing so!

That reminds me of a story that’s amusing (at least to me). We were on our first RV trip around the US with our kids. Naturally, they had a higher vantage point than from the car. We passed a cemetery. The four year-old had never seen one, and asked what it was. We explained. From that point on, every time we passed a cemetery, he would say, “That’s where they keep their dead people!” Hubby and I still say it to each other as we travel the world. The aforementioned four year-old is now 20, and he has had enough of our nonsense.

BLASPHEMY!!!!!!!

Also, be on the lookout for trolls. our tour guide for Godafoss three years ago explained that these are marshmallows for them:

Indeed. As we drove out of the tunnel a few days ago, we saw the Summit docked where the Mars is now, and the Island Princess docked where we are now. The photo I posted today is from our Starboard cabin.

I came to post a picture of the Mars, but Jim beat me to it. I’ll do it anyway, ‘cause, why not?

We added an Azamara cruise to our spring trip in order to get grandfathered in, then added a second, because it was another great itinerary at an awesome price. We are hooked! We have had small ship cruises on Windstar, Azamara, and Viking in the last nine months, and we are finding that we are preferring the smaller ships for our he same variety of reasons many others do.

Of course more darkness equals a better chance, but there was a small chance forecasted overnight, so I figured it was worth a shot. We definitely want to come back for longer in the future, and will do so when the chances are better. Four days last time and nine this time were nowhere near enough time in this awesome place. The captain announced last night that we had auroras on Friday night, and there was another chance last night after 1am. I set an alarm, got up, and saw nothing. I was tired enough to need to get back into bed after 20 minutes or so, but left the drapes open. I drifted in and out of sleep for the next few hours, but never saw anything that made me think I should get back up. The one night I forgot to check my Aurora app, they happened, and I missed them. 🤦‍♀️

I totally agree with charging double for gratuities, as the workload certainly isn’t halved, and crew should not be affected by booking numbers. However charging double for beverages and internet strikes me as unfair. Solos are not going to consume double, and consumption varies widely, anyway. (steps off soapbox) I’m glad you generously tip additionally, Linda.

Dani, that was SUCH a fun Roll Call group, wasn’t it? @DrKoob’s photo name tags at sail away and another get-together sure were fun. He got Shawn and Bobby mixed up, but they took it in stride. By the way, they got married in November 2019. We are way overdue for a get-together with them, but we follow each other on social media, and they’re doing great. Nurses are awesome!