italianfemmy

Looks like you had a great time. We are thinking of booking this ship and your pictures really helped out on wanting to really go now, thanks.

I encourage you to explore all of your options and make the decision that's best for you. 5 years ago, the Dream would not have been the ship for me. But my lifestyle has changed and thus, it was an amazing ship for this time in my life.

I think I've always done so much research on every cruise I've taken that I always know which ship will fit me in the moment. This is partly why I hesitate to book cruises really far in advance.

I'm glad you liked the photos. I love how photos make things come to life and explain details without saying a word. :-)

Great review. Great photos also. However it didn’t look like there was anything that I would have liked to eat. We will stay in the main dining room. Thanks for taking the time for your review.

Glad you liked the photos and review. And I thought I was a picky eater! lol. You don't like fish, beef, pork, duck or chocolate? I would think there would be at least 1 dish that would appeal to everyone. :-)

Honestly, if I had seen this review before going and eating the dishes, I would have thought that 1/2 of it would be wasted on me. But I was pleasantly surprised. One thing that the photos cannot convey is the flavors, the textures, etc. I'm not trying to sell you on this.. I am just saying that the thing I learned and took away with me is that an amazing chef can change the way you view certain dishes. I liked and loved things I thought I hated. Apparently, I just hated them in the ways I'd been formerly introduced to them. :D

I want to thank EVERYONE again for reading and supporting this review. In the Carnival section, this review is in 12th for the most viewed thread. And in 5th for the most viewed review thread. Of those review threads, this one was started the most recent by a 6 month differential. And the review thread with the most views was started 15 months prior to this one. All of this was pointed out to me today by a friend. It really kind of geeked me out inside. I didn't realize that you can click on "views" at the top of the Carnival (or any other) section and that it sorts them all by view count. Pretty interesting and lead me to start reading other stuff that I didn't know existed by other people too!

Anyway, I thought I'd share these interesting tidbits since I just discovered them myself. Secretly, I am kind of hoping this thread will get over 100,000 views. We're more than 3/4 of the way there!

:D

I enjoyed reading your review. It makes me want to go on another cruise.

It makes me want to go on another one as well! The great part of this review is that I get to live vicariously through it as long as it's alive. lol. :-) Glad you enjoyed it!

Fantastic review Alicia, and your pictures are wonderful! We're still a ways off from our cruise (October), but I like to get stuff planned out early and your review is helping. The wife has always wanted to swim with the Dolphins so your pictures might convince her to finally sign up for it. Thanks again!

 

John

I too, like to plan things early. My next cruise isn't booked until November now on the Breeze and it just cannot come fast enough. I wanted to swim with the Dolphins for years but was terrified for some irrational reason. I now feel like a dummy that I was ever afraid. They're such gentle creatures and it was truly a highlight for our trip and something I'll remember for a lifetime!

Simply amazing! I just read the entire 31 pages start to finish (it is now 1am in MN)

We booked our cruise 10 days ago and was looking for a positive Dream experience. You should be on the Carnival payroll... your review has sold more add-on's then a PVP could ever hope for! Add one more for the SPA based on your review :) I appreciate the time and effort you put in to the review. I feel it gives the readers a realistic expectation of what the cruise will be. We all tend to set the bar way too high, myself included and my disappointment is usually self inflicted. If we slow down and just enjoy it as it happens, it seems to be just fine. Thanks again - Debbie

Wow... you read it all with no breaks? What time did you start? I am curious how long it takes! :-)

I am just beyond flattered that you and so many other people think I should be getting paid for my review. I just wanted to share my trip. The great thing about doing this review is that I now have edited photos from my vacation. I didn't do a review on my last cruise and I only edited about 10 of the photos for myself. The rest still sit unedited. Doing this review made me have to edit them to show them off so now I have loads of great photos from my trip that I can enjoy for a lifetime without procrastinating to edit them. :-) And that is pretty awesome.

Wow...spent many hours today reading your review and could not 'put it down' so to speak. I was directed to your review sometime this morning in reference to a discussion about the Chef's Table and read the whole thing start to finish. I, like others here, have no immediate plans to sail on the Dream, but your pictures and writing style are so captivating!!

 

Thank you for taking so much time to provide so much information about your voyage on the Dream. I did the same itinerary on a different ship last year and loved it (except stopped at Grand Cayman instead of Jamaica). Like you we loved Roatan and also did a tour with Victor Bodden and the monkeys but added the ziplining which was great. The tour was so wonderful because you saw the whole island and the island is still so 'raw' in so many places.

 

Anyway...I am very thankful for the extremely detailed reviews of the Spa and Chef's table most specifically. I have not yet been on a ship which has the Cloud 9 Spa - and heard of the Thalassotherapy (sp) pool, but did not know much about those hot stone chairs and access to areas where you can be in the beautiful Spa and still enjoy the view. Very good info to have in the event we end up on a ship with that option. We have started to enjoy the Steakhouses on our last two cruises but I would like to bump it up the next time to try the Chef's Table - just need to convince the hubby -but your review might help as he is a pickier eater and prefers beef to fish.

 

I only own a point and shoot camera (although a fairly high end one with lots of options and a long zoom which I just got early last year), I have recently had more interest in photography. I know nothing about any of the technical terms, but have gotten better at getting decent shots just playing around with using 3-5 different settings for the same picture when I have time to see which works best and it is exciting to see the end results get a bit better. I know there is a specific section here on CC just talking about photography but it would be too advanced for me. I must say if you do get a blog going about travel photography I would be very interested. You are the first person who has been able to describe some of the technical terms in a manner I can somewhat follow and have learned a lot about what to focus on when I am ready to go to the next level in this hobby without necessarily investing a ton of money.

 

Thank you so much for this great review!! The photos are wonderful and I appreciate you taking so much of your personal time explaining how you got some of those wonderful shots, especially since this is your professional job. You and Latanya look and sound like a great couple and I very much look forward to reading your next review. I was also very happy to hear the feedback you had been receiving inspired you to get back into some writing. What a great pair of talents to possess - writing and photography!

 

Wishing you continued success and happiness...

 

Carol

Hey Carol! I am so glad you loved the review and I can't imagine reading this entire thing including others comments in a day! lol. I wonder how long it would take from start to finish with absolutely zero interruptions.

Photography is something that many people are interested in and I think it's great for people to express themselves through photos. When I wanted to start out, I contacted many professional photographers and asked for help. I wanted a mentor. I was willing to carry their bags to observe and learn. But everyone told me no because they were afraid I would become their competition. (They were right.) lol. But, it motivated me to show them all that I could do it without them. I hired models to practice and I practiced all the time and read every book I could read every night before the book store would close down on me. And eventually, I felt confident enough to start taking real clients but that was many months (almost a full year) later.

My point is that I don't mind helping others when I have a free minute here or there to do so. I always said I'd never become one of those people that wouldn't even take a minute to respond to me. Some people are just very selfish. With that said, I won't teach someone everything I know for free but helping a little here and there does go a very long way. I might be a pro at this as you said but it hasn't changed the core of who I, as a person am.

I am glad to see your interest is piqued for Chef's Table and Cloud 9 Spa. I think Chef's Table is offered on every ship (not 100% sure though). I hope that you'll book it and enjoy it. If there's 1 or 2 dishes you or hubby don't care for, it doesn't matter... there's plenty more to fill the tummy nicely!

I never thought so many people that aren't even looking to sail on the Dream would have read this entire review!! You all know how to make a girl smile. :-)

Alicia,

 

still loving your review - I just went and read it from the beginning again.

 

 

I also have a potentially huge favour to ask you...

 

1. feel free to say no, I will still adore your photos and this review

 

2. I was at the pyramids last weekend, and did my first attempt at a panoramic shot (my camera made it easy) - but due to someone harassing me, I couldn't get all the scenery in an exact sequence... it looks fine when it's all together (camera program did that for me) but some of the colour seems a little bit off.

 

I have NO IDEA how to fix this, and I have no one to ask.... (this is where you are free to say no)

 

I was wondering if I posted the picture here, if you have any free time and think you could fix it, I would be super appreciative....

 

It's something I'd like to get printed and hang on my wall....

 

Anyways, that's my question, and potential favour and I cannot emphasize enough - feel free to say no -

 

Thanks for reading.

 

~Melissa

Hi Melissa, you can email it to me and I'll take a peek at it and see what we're dealing with. Send it to me stitched together already. My email should be within a couple pages back when I helped another poster with a photo.

Glad you loved the review!

Alicia

This is the best review of the Chef's Table I have yet to find. Your photos were excellent... I didn't have any questions! (and that just doesn't happen...)

 

Great job! You have confirmed my decision to try this out on our first cruise and honeymoon next January. :D

Haha.. I am one of those people that always has questions too. Not only in reviews but with books, movies, etc. Glad it answered all of yours!

Enjoy it for your honeymoon! And congrats on your engagement (or marriage).

What an amazing review and photos thank you so much for sharing. Are all of the menus the same on each ship? Would love to surprise my husband on the Splendor in July.

Thank you so much for reading and enjoying it! I honestly have no idea whether the menus are the same fleet wide or not. This was my first Chef's Table so I have nothing to compare it to. :-)

Alicia,

 

I have just spent a few hours enjoying your amazing review and breathtaking photos! We sail on the Fantasy in a month, so am in the middle of getting my CC fix! We have friends from Tampa who sailed on the Dream last fall and really enjoyed it. Thank you so much for sharing so many details in your review and also sharing about yourself! Take care and I look forward to hearing about your next review.

 

Kiersten

Thanks so much for spending so much time reading through all of these pages! I am glad you loved the review and I can't wait to cruise again and be able to write another one!

Hi Alicia,

 

I and my 3 children are going aboard the Dream in August. For a while there I was really skeptical about my decision because of what seems to be a good amount of bad reviews about the Dream. However, after reading your review, especially seeing the wonderful pictures, I am now looking forward to our cruise. Thank you so much for providing a different and positive perspective on cruising with the Dream.

You know, it was the bad reviews about the Dream that inspired me to write my own review. I really was scared going on the Dream because of the reviews I had read and was just so surprised with how amazing my vacation was. I hope you have the trip of a lifetime and thanks for dropping in!

Just got back from our Carnival Dream vacation- Thank you so much for your review! We did the Chef's Table based on your feedback and it was wonderful! Also LOVED the SPA VIP, my favorite was the mineral pool! Fun Force was awesome, I made sure to catch them based on your input as well! Missing the Dream already!

Wow, I am glad to see that my review brought you some amazing experiences on your own trip! I am glad you had a great vacation. I missed the Dream too... I still do. Was Trevor your chef for Chef's Table?

We did a Disney Wedding, and you could hire non-Disney photographers, that was 5 years ago though.... We chose Disney ones because we didn't know anyone at the time... but since then I've seen others and wished we had used outside photographers.

Was your wedding at a Disney resort or at a park? We had a client that tried to hire us to photograph their wedding at the Magic Kingdom last year and they were told they weren't permitted to hire outside photographers unless they were Disney approved photographers. I would LOVE to photograph a wedding at Epcot or the Magic Kingdom. That would be awesome. I've done engagement sessions there though...

Your pictures are absolutely outstanding!!!

 

Loved this behind the scenes look at Chef's Table. Thank you:)

You're most welcome and thanks for the compliments!

You're twisting my arm pretty hard so I will do it. lol It does look like a great experience between the behind the scenes action, and all the unique food creations. Is this usually done on sea days?

Ours was not on a sea day. It probably depends on your itinerary and number of ports vs. sea days. But it wasn't until dinner time. I'm not twisting your arm.. just encouraging you... haha.

After reading your review and seeing the great pictures, I am seriously considering doing this on our upcoming cruise for my wife's birthday. Carnival should definitely hook you up with a free cruise for all the business you are giving them from your review and amazing pictures.

Lol. It's kind of shocking to me to see how many people feel this way. It's extremely flattering. You should definitely do this for her birthday! She would appreciate it so much. My girlfriend was beyond thrilled that I did this for her. It's a great gift and a great way to enjoy each others company. Not to mention to feel kind of VIP for an evening. :-)

This is one of the best reviews I have read on CC. Thank you for posting.

 

-Adrienne

You're welcome! Glad you liked it!

Hey there. I am SO LOVING your review of the Dream. I'm booked for August and your review is making me even more excited about going. Keep it coming!

Well my review is all done now (you just have to sift through the pages of comments to find the rest of the review.) :-) I am glad you're loving it and welcome to CC (I see you only have made 2 posts). Glad 1 of them was for my review!! Enjoy your cruise in August!

This made me spit coffee all over my computer. Alicia... speechless... I kinda had to check to make sure the sky wasn't falling or something! :p

Hiya stranger! I was thinking about you last night and thinking that we haven't talked much in a few days :-)

Sorry to make you itch...but if you have not felt the effects by now, chances are the monkeys were lice free, so all is good, lol. The next time we come across these darling little monkeys, I think we will all take our chances and play with them!!

 

As for the Fit Flops, our Macys has them, so you could probably try them on there.

 

Love your photos!!

Awesome! I'll check Macy's out. Latanya and I go to Orlando quite a bit so if they don't have them here, we can check them out there. Shoot me an email... we could all get together one day for lunch or dinner or something. Latanya and I both are really into theatre and performing arts as well :-)

Wow, I just found this review this week and have really enjoyed it. It is rare to find a review that is both well written and has such incredible photos...well, I'll just say yours is the best I've read. The photos are simply amazing. A few thoughts:

 

1. Your mom would be so proud of you and what an honor to her memory your photography skills represent! My son is very active in the theater and I have met many young people who are afraid to come out to their parents and, as a parent, I just cannot imagine something as silly as sexual orientation (which I firmly believe is inborn) coming between family members. I'm sorry your other family members were not more accepting and hope they come around soon.

 

2. I firmly agree with you about the photography skills of the ship's photographers. Rarely do we find a photo worth purchasing and the candid shots in the dining room are usually the worse. Surely, Carnival would sell more photos if the quality of the photos (and equipment) was upgraded.

 

3. This is a topic I've never seen much written about, so I may be crazy, but here goes...were you at all concerned about getting hair lice from handling the monkeys? We saw similar monkeys in St. Kitts and I know my kids would have loved to have interacted with them, but after having a daughter who brought home the dreaded hair lice from school, I was afraid. When the monkeys "groom" you, aren't they looking for lice to pick off? Maybe I am just paranoid, but it is because of the lice issue that we have never interacted with these adorable creatures. We live in FL, so a trip to the Miami place with the monkeys would be great fun if I were not so afraid!

 

4. I gather it is the increased salt intake that causes one's feet to swell, but something I absolutely swear by for cruises (and most of my off work hours) are fit flops or sketchers tone up flip flops. They are truly like walking on a cloud of air and although I don't think they prevent swelling, if you are swollen and uncomfortable, I'd think these would be the best to wear. I don't work for either company, and found them quite by accident, but to me, there is not a more comfortable shoe out there!

 

5. Living in Orlando, I've made note of your profession and bookmarked it for future reference. Your photos are just stunning. I wonder if you ever photograph theaterical performances? As I mentioned, my son is quite involved in theater and I am always trying to take decent photos of his performances without a flash with horrible results. Of course, I just have a point and shoot camera, but would love to get a DSLR and learn the ins and outs. Maybe one day...

 

6. Finally, you and Latanya are a beautiful couple and I wish you many years of happiness and loads of fun on future vacations. Hope you are feeling better. (I'm only on page 22 of the review, but was so moved, I had to write now before I've even finished it all).

 

Thanks again for a wonderful review!!

Wow! Thanks for taking your own time to write such beautiful remarks. I am speechless. Okay, maybe not speechless... haha... but you get my point.

I would like to believe that you're right, that my mother would be proud of me. One of her sisters (my aunt) and I stay in touch and she has been rather accepting of Latanya and I but she is really the only other family that has at all. At the end of the day, I've learned to be okay with this because I am who I am and I'd rather live a life with little family and be happy with my choices than live a life with family that don't love me for who I really am and force me to supress my individuality.

I have never even considered getting lice from a monkey! Oh god... I am a paranoid individual so thanks for putting that into my "head".. pun intended. lol. I think the places where we've visited the monkeys care a lot about their monkeys and take good care of them. I've never even been the slightest bit itchy from holding them or anything (allergy wise) and I do get that way even when I hold my own cats occasionally.

I've been considering fit flops for a while now. My feet are so oddly shaped that it's hard to get shoes (even flip flops) that work well for me. I wish there was a retail location I could check them out and try them on at...

As for everything else you wanted to know, why don't you shoot me an email? My email is (no spaces) P u r e E m o t i o n s P h o t o g r a p h y @ g m a i l . c o m

Look forward to hearing from you! Glad to hear you live so close by!

I thoroughly enjoyed your review. Thank you for taking the time and energy of posting it! I'm so excited to be sailing on the Dream soon in my Spa Cabin!!!

Your countdown clock says 31 days! Oh how I wish I could be sailing on her again in 31 days! Enjoy the trip! P.S. I got your email and will write you back soon... I didn't want to write back until I really had the time to do so. :)

Well we booked way back in May, so it sounds much better now...at least we're in the right year now!

 

There is no love like that between a Mom and her daughter...thank God for that!

 

I have now also looked at the slideshow on your website and the photos are fabulous! So unique...just amazing! Keep up the good work!:D

Aww thanks :-) I see you have another cruise on the Miracle in just 3 months.. perhaps that is helping you a bit with the cruise itch! Haha. I wish I had another cruise planned mid year at some point. I used to do 2 a year but now am lucky to have the time to take off of work for 1 a year.

Alicia, thank you SO much for the excellent review! Your photos are marvelous...so full of life! I especially love the real life photos...also one of my favorite things about cruising. Get me away from the cookie cutter ports and let me see where I am...really gives you a sense of what life is really like for many. And the joy in your faces while you were with the animals is wonderful! We also did Victor's tours twice in Roatan (loved them!) and stopped at Victor's house. The first time was in 2007 and he had a couple of animals, including 2 monkeys in a small cage. When we went back in 2010, we got to hold them again as adults (I think the adults you held), and then we got to hold their babies. Very special, and amazing to see the sanctuary that he has built!

 

It's funny, as I was reading this, I was thinking that not only are you a gifted photographer, but you are also a gifted writer! It wasn't until pages later I saw your post about your past writing. My heart hurts for you...I lost my Mom 2 years ago, rather quickly as well, and I know how wrenching it can be. But your Mom has obviously given you some very special gifts which you are now sharing with many, and you have to think that she is behind you nudging you on:)

 

I am thrilled to be sailing with you and Latanya on the Breeze...can't wait to meet you!:D

Hi there! Latanya and I can't wait to meet you and everyone else on our roll call too! It seems like it's still forever away before we'll be "breezin" :-)

I am sorry to hear about your mom. Losing a mother at any age is extremely difficult. Mine was my entire world, my only family and I was just 22 when she was taken. I just try to live my life now in a way that I know she would be proud of me.

I am glad you loved the review. I plan to do an even better one for the Breeze! :-)

WOW!! Incredible photos. My dog can take better pictures that I can. ;)

 

I've been to Cozumel and Roatan but was able to see them in a whole new way. Thanks for that.

 

I'm planning my next cruise and may have to consider the Dream.

 

Thank you for sharing your incredible talent with all of us.

Haha @ your dog! That's cute. :-) I'm glad you were able to see places you've already been in a new light. That's the very reason I like to go back to ports I've already been to in the past... to challenge myself to get something new out of them... to see something completely different and bring home new memories from those experiences.

Good luck with planning your next cruise, regardless of which ship you choose!

Thank you so much for posting your review! Your pictures were awesome. I am so glad you are doing a blog. I really hope you can post the link here. You have definitely sparked an interest in the Dream! You definitely have a gift of photography and writing!

Thank you very much! The Dream most likely isn't for everyone which is why there seems to be a love/hate relationship for her between most people. Like I mentioned a while back, if I just wanted to go-go-go and party party party.. I probably wouldn't have loved the Dream as much as other ships that seemed to have more fun stuff to do all the time. But, I had a ton of fun on the Dream and also was able to relax. Are you torn between the Dream and another ship?

Outstanding review. After I reserved a place for three I found myself with buyer's remorse even though I have yet to experience it. Thanks for assuring me my initial intuition was spot on. I know we will love this in a couple weeks.

No buyers remorse needed! This is an exceptional experience that you will be glad you booked! I am glad you found this thread and that it put you back on track to yummy flavors and an awesome experience! Enjoy and come back and tell me how it was!

It is what made the differance in Our Cruise last Sept (2011). Really enjoyed your review of your Chef's Table. We did not think to ask the Chef if we could take pictures, thanks for the advice on that. BTW your pictures have PE logoing, It that your private lable or you do Pro Photography?

Hey, no problem! And yes to the latter of your question :-)

What a treat to find this thread!! We are hoping to be able to do the Chef's Table on our March 25th Miracle cruise!! Just wondered, did you do a review of your Miracle cruise too? I would LOVE to see those pictures!!

Hi there! Thanks so much for your kind words! Unfortunately, I did not do a review of my cruise on the Miracle. I didn't take very many photos that cruise which I regret. I have some though and have thought about doing an old review.. a short one just to share the photos I do have and some of my experiences that I can still remember :-)