Jim_Iain

Thanks John. It wasn’t on a radar until it was.

Ok now a biggie --- Let's Compare menus --- Oceania doesn't have a Suites Only Dining room so like the old days all guests eat in the Main Dining Room if not dining in the no fee Specialty Dining. I will be posting the Menus on the Oceania Live for the remainder of the cruise but for comparison I am posting Day 1 Oceania vs Day 1 Luminae Day 1 Menu 1 Luminae For Comparison I will also post MDR Celebrity Day 1

A couple more comparisons -- this time Barista Barista is the equivalent to al Bacio. They use smaller paper cups which of course means a stronger coffee --- Something I like. Currently all coffees, teas and soft drinks are included in the fare. Service is quick. Very small selection of mini pastries. The regular coffee served is very drinkable unlike the battery acid Celebrity brews up in the buffet. I had a cup of coffee with breakfast this morning and was very nice.

That's great. If you have stayed in a SS on Celebrity, how would they compare. BTW - do Penthouses have under bed storage. I was just wondering what the non-suites would do for storage.

Thanks Heather --- you won't be disappointed. I'm favorably impressed. It is a nice size ship and doesn't feel small at all.

Actually the Vista Suite is larger than the Royal on Millenium The Vista Suite is 622 Sq Ft and 344 Balcony While the Millennium RS is 538 Sq Ft and 194 Sq Feet balcony The one negative is that there is no door between the living room and bedroom. Also another feature I miss of the Royal Suite is there are no Closet in the Living Room. One other feature I don't like about Vista Suite is there is no under bed storage for the suite cases. The bed itself is a true U.S. King and like Celebrity they have a nice pillow menu but display it nicer on a silver platter (at least in the Vista Suite)

We took a full ships tour today from top to bottom. I was reading the burgers at Waves Grill.... incredible To be honest I don't think I saw the pizza but when I just asked Iain he said yea at Waves Grill. Iain said the pizza with prosciutto, arugula and burrata cheese sound fantastic

Will take a look around and get back to you.

I have to agree with you there. I've made clotted cream before as we can buy Raw Unpasteurized Milk at some of our specialty stores. Will be interesting to see if they have clotted cream on Oceania. They definitely do on Cunard, but some not in Grills have been complaining that they have been substituting whipped cream on some of their cruises.

I was telling Iain I was keeping the recipe for Creamed Spinach also. It was really good. What surprised me was how fast it was to make. They key is to wilt the spinach to keep a bit of texture but some may prefer it cooked down.

Thanks much. I don't drink so about the only name I know is Chateau Lafite Rothchild. Maybe we will find someone that will enjoy it

Iain use to work for Janet Yellen when she was president of the SF Federal Reserve. As president she was entitled to limo service, she is so down to earth she took Bart from Berkley instead. While our place in SF is now our cruise fund, I really miss Russian Hill. You definitely felt like you were in SF with the cable cars running down Hyde and the early morning fog horn. I loved walking out our front door and seeing Alcatraz and the bay. Iain used it 4 nights a week and called it his dungeon. My dog and I would just come up occasionally for a dinner and overnight. To me it was like being on vacation. BTW. It was tiny but to use as a pied-a-terre it was perfect.

There were 3 ships in port yesterday but we didn’t check in until 2. Looks like long lines for Princess and Holland America. One advantage of Oceania small ships.

I was contemplating it but went with Almond Cronquette. I also ordered a Butter Pecan Ice Cream. It was really good.

These are our reservation. I thought I booked Toscana for day one but must have been wrong. Toscana is tomorrow

Internet really is terrible right now. Sure it is due to heavy use. the high Jitter and loss of packets usually are an indicator of heavy usage. Current around old dialup rates.

Really impressed with the Versace dinnerware the little lamps add a nice ambiance. Nice bread basket Steamed local muscles for a starter Iain had the cauliflower soup. Turbot and a Sid of rosemary potatoes Pork Medallions and Polenta- really good For dessert Vanilla soufflé And Almond Cronquette

Now that @bbqoug brought up dinner.... Here's Menu for Day 1 Day 1 Dinner Menu forMDR

We ate in MDR last night and I have to say --- I was impressed. Can't wait to try the specialty dining.

San Francisco often takes a bad wrap. Like all major cities there are bad areas that I would stay clear of but most of the city is beyond safe. We use to have a place up on Russian Hill at the top of Lombard Street. Nob Hill and Russian Hill are probably the most expensive part of the city. I would often walk down to the Marina, Fisherman's wharf and lil Italy. Never would have a fear at all. Market Street, Union Square and The Tenderloin are areas I will rarely go to. A really fun thing to do if ported in SF is to take the Ferry to Tiberon or Sausilito --If you stay on the Ferry it will also go to Angel Island which was the equivalent to Ellis Island of the west . It is now a National Park with fantastic hiking and views and lots of wild deer.

Joanie --- We have also had some wild experiences. The worst was a couple years ago - We were flying in 2 days early for a cruise and the big floods of Fort Lauderdale hit closing the airport. We got as far as Dallas and our flight was cancelled so took 2 days getting out arriving at 2 AM the day of the cruise.

In California, Pot is legal but still illegally by the Feds. Most areas it is also not permissible to smoke outside or in public place but of course people do. I though it was interesting that on the Canadian Customs Declaration there was a question - Are you carrying any Marijuana. I guess it's legal to bring in but you have to declare the quantity is less than some type of quantity limit (personal consumption).

Well the internet seems to be working pretty good at the moment and uploading photos are not bad at all. Yea... BTW to you tech nerds - Many have asked about the TV's and the availability of ports. Like Celebrity, Oceania use Samsung TV's. Both also use them as dumb monitors and there is an Ethernet connection which provides content from the main menu. The Room remotes do not have any Input buttons nor other ways to intuitive get to the ports. Also the living room TV was really tight against the wall. I always bring some HDMI extenders and a pair of long hemostats, which helped... The TV's have 3 HDMI Ports as well as a a USB which can provide power. I also have a Universal Remote with me. The universal remote has an Input button as as soon as I pressed it a little box popped up USB1. Since I used USB3 I clicked it 2 more times and the Firestick Menu popped up.... Yea. Bandwidth is a different story. At times one is unable to stream but still playing around with that. I can stream better on my iPhone so may try casting later.

Thanks for posting. You will have to remind me your name. I hate calling people by their monikers. Thanks for the wonderful information. It was of course much quieter when we arrived. Just after crossing the ramp down to the parking lot a Guide asked if we were boarding a cruise. When we acknowledged she walked us over to the ramp and said just walk down the ramp and follow the signs. I have to say it was really efficient.

It has only been less than a day but I LOVE the ship. The peaceful Blue and Silver pallet are both modern and relaxing. Everything is pristine and the staff is engaging and helpful I believe the butlers meet all the guests but hopefully some of the Oceania regulars can confirm When we arrived there was no lines for any class. Just a slow trickle of those later checking in. On the way to our room there was a general announcement that all rooms were available. We were told our room would be available immediately upon boarding at 11AM, but of course we were late.