Fogfog

We asked this am and were told the in person is for UK.

Since we got here early we took the free bus into town and walked a couple hours to see sites. Need the exercise.

Back onboard for lunch.

About to meet our CC group for our GC tour. 
Hoping the weather cooperates with no rain.

We will be gone 8 hours and miss dinner service and do dinner during our tour.

No shortage of food, I just had soup and crudite for lunch… 

@mking8288

well you called it right this am about Iceland. Just heard the  PA

26 minutes ago, dexddd said:

What is that couple up to?  Maybe trying to sneak into unguarded Haven elevators?

 

Heard years of Chocolate Cowboy and finally met him in person at Metro.  Had to relay message from fellow CC'er to him.

Some woman just got on with us earlier….we only went up a floor to 8…so she was going to have trouble 😈 since she’d need a card for any service anywhere in H anyway. And would be escorted out.

is Choc Cowboy on the ship? Will look next time we are down there.

Dinner in Le Bistro tonight..asking for extra fois gras “crap-ola”  garnish on my filet

2 hours ago, mking8288 said:

Random facts and info only "details" that we've learned onboard 

Captn Outs report this AM indicated tonight’s weather to deteriorate… sigh.

Are we getting snow tom?

On the crowd control….there are tour guides etc. And there has been signage. It is interesting re culture 

Wondering where the party girl where be…it’s like Where’s Waldo. Where she is..is where the fun is for certain. And she’s not telling.

unless you bring cookies

We ate in Commodore after Rumors w @Raybancop n spouse last evening.

got a pager. They had us in quickly. 

Good service. Steak was perfect.

20 minutes ago, Sugar Magnolia said:

I shall lobby NCL HQ for some kind of commemoration, but I think it should be an outline of your body on the floor after your fall. Henry and I will discuss. 

Chalk outline replica 😄

We love YC

So…The shows on Prima have been excellent.

As Haven the concierge made reservations for the Donna Summers show. It was outstanding.

The Rock the Pour House was great. The band did a long set..maybe 90 min…16 songs with transitions. 
Rumors, 45 min

The wait in line is a bit of a pill yet both were great.

We do feel NCL takes it here for entertainment..strong voice talent main venues.

But it’s not a YC vs Haven..that’s NCL vs MSC.

Rock of Ages on MSC was good…and we liked Cirque pre cvd.

We enjoyed the blended ballet-opera matinee pre cvd .. 

IDK what it takes to bring in talent and to plan. 

Haven menu doesn’t change…and with 15 days…the same lunch and dinner menu means getting creative with choosing. They are accommodating beyond the printed page as is YC when you do B2Bs and need a change 
 

17 minutes ago, dexddd said:

Looks like you captured a picture of the four people onboard under 70.

Haha

well under that myself.

though the avg age is pretty high for certain. 
 

We have had 2 great le Bistro meals before and 1 horrendous Cagneys that we’d never go back…other ships.

Palomar here was great.

We are in Le Bistro Tom. If it disappoints, we will move the other res to Palomar.

2 hours ago, bedfordmom said:

How were the lines for Rumors? We waited one hour in line on the Escape for standing room ( actually hanging over table) I swear I saw people eating their buffet supper in line.  Rock the Pour House on our late sailing was empty. And their last show at the end was also a walk in for a fair seat. 

We joined line at about 615 with friends 

Stood 45min.

waited in seats 45 min

Show 45 min

I did bring our cheese plate from our cabin but no food allowed in venue so after a few bites in the hall, took it to leave in neighboring bar.

others here on CC had been in line prior to 6 to get prime seats center high top. 
 

@Sugar Magnolia sorry to miss you and the posse… 

what’s the plan tonight…another sea day Tom….though we lose an hour again tonight

Good morning from somewhere off of Greenland enroute to Iceland.

No Haven priority to see the “hot” entertainment in the Syds venue. So we stood in line to see Rock the Pour Hour this week. Great cover band. Super show. Timed it right and being on a 15 night TA we know these shows are super popular. Got 2 of last seats 

Did the same last night, to see the Rumors show..the cover of the Fleetwod Mac album. Also excellent. Mind you we stood in line 45 min. Then wanted 45 min, then show 45 min. 
Done.

The big criticism even for NCL loyalists is the no reservations for those hot shows.

Good morning.

We enjoyed Rumors last night though thought the a Rock the Pour House was more fun. Dinner in Commodore after the 7:30p show

Did go by the 80s event at 10:30p looking for @Sugar Magnolia and posse yet didn’t see anyone from Cc group or those we’ve met onboard.

Flatter seas so the click in the one corner has subsided. Normal creaks 

Hear that it’s a WD 40 thing 

we get it..Heavy seas, pitch, roll. 
we do wish we had gotten an answer…If it comes back I will ask the direct question.. if it was looked at.

@UKstages

hmmm that sounds like concierge won’t really be sending engineering then…I asked before breakfast…telling them we’d be out of the cabin between 10 and noon.

came back to no notice of anyone having been here..still clicking.

Asked Concierge again..saying I didn’t know if they had been by..and we’d be out after 2…

Mentioned it to Butler where it is

Did get a cheese and fruit plate…

Still clicking.🥸

We are veteran cruisers so the pitch and roll is definitely in play here.

21 hours ago, Sugar Magnolia said:

 

I can confirm that at least one studio occupant on deck 13 has complained about the metal scraping noises from the ceiling.

 

Some noise in a corner. Have asked to have engineering look at it. Given the rolling seas ..we understand. Not new to ships. Hoping they can address it. It’s a bit of an intermittent click. Not constant. And definitely depends on roll/pitch

Re specialty dining.. we had 6:30 reserv, got seated at 7:10. Food and service was excellent. Best dessert on the ship imho is the orange/ fillo dough basket/ Greek yogurt ice cream thing Palomar .

On ship vibe etc…for us bridge players it’s been harder because mahjong groups are big. Guest services has moved mahjong to different venues to allow other board games, cards to have space etc yet some mahjong pax don’t care despite signage and being asked to relocate.

Cookies still MIA.

TYVM Peter for hosting today. We all had a great time.

@graphicguy  we thought of you in the Local.

Gentlemen…how many of you actually pack and use electric razors in this day and age?
I wonder because you see these plugs on ships, yet rarely in hotel bathrooms. And not in homes.

Inquiring minds 🤣

37 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Confirmed - the housekeeping guide a/k/a cheatsheet proof.  But, if you get a towel animal, that's a bonus 🫢

 

 

 

It's 15:30 or 3:30 PM - housekeeping is just about done. Maybe some loose ends and laundry run, someone to slip those Freestyle Daily for the next day - they are done for the day ?  Woohoo - that's pretty efficient for doing 22 rooms in 7 to 8 hours; and, they get the next 15 to 18 hours off to do whatever below deck ??  Am I missing something here ?

Our room is done minus the daily which we expect this evening. 
Housekeeping has been stellar.
Cabin is immaculate. Hallways, elevators etc all nice.

I did notice an untidy women’s restroom and reported it so it could be addressed. 
 

15 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Code Alpha just called over PA, Deck 17, Zone 2 - Guest Landing ?? 

 

This is not a drill. 

I was just going to look up the codes..Is that a stairwell?

Interesting it came over stateroom pa

32 minutes ago, UKstages said:

 

he may well be.

 

the operative term here is "word." in order for him to be a man of his word, he must respond to someone. if he doesn't respond, there is no word by which to judge his actions. 

 

as i said, he is a swell guy, affable and personable. i've praised his amsterdam presentation. but my experience was that he was almost completely non-responsive to guest concerns. i base this on my 21 days on the prima about a year ago. i've written extensively about it on CC.

 

YMMV and, apparently, it has.

Maybe he’s responding so well and thoughtfully because of your input and concerns from previous sailings. So we thank you 

5 minutes ago, UKstages said:

 

the jones act applies to cargo ships and that's the one that requires ships to be amercan owned and american built.

 

the passenger vessel services act is the one that requires ships to have a predominantly american crew if sailing on a domestic itinerary. foreign-flagged ships must stop in at least 1 non-US port in order to call on an american port. there is no requirement that the ship has to have been built in america. i don't believe any large ships are still built in america. 

 

 

i wholeheartedly agree.

 

many of your suggestions, including expanding hours for various venues, are good ones. and i think i made some of the same suggestions in my review last year.

 

i will say that i did find the F&B execs receptive to feedback on my sailing, but indulge was relatively new then and they were very interested in feedback.

 

id be curious to learn if any passengers have been unfortunate enough to be placed in a cabin with loud internal noise. i imagine that is still going on, but it sounds like you and our other CC correspondents are not afflicted.

 

a rare word of praise for marc, the GM... (or "mark" as he is incorrectly referred to in the farewell video... have they fixed that yet?)... he's a swell guy, very nice, even though he is almost completely non-responsive to guest concerns.

 

but he is from amsterdam, if memory serves. and on itineraries that include amsterdam as a port call, he does a great "lecture" in the theatre detailing top sites and attractions to visit. it's a very loving and sincere presentation (not at all focused on selling excursions) and it is quite interesting and worthwhile. (he's a little loosey goosey on facts, however... recommending, for instance, the anne frank house, but no telling everyone that you have to buy tickets online exactly four weeks in advance. similarly, his advice for the van gogh museum was just to "show up." and that dog don't hunt.)

We had a great conversation with Marc at a reception earlier in the week.
We bought tickets over a month ago for the Van Gogh and the Rijksmuseum. Marc was clear that those who bought the Amsterdam pass needed additional ticketing ahead..which we told him we had already done. We had a specific question for him..today an answer arrived. Very detailed.

He is a man of his word. We appreciated the gesture and effort.

We upgraded to unlimited Wi-Fi and have been fine with incoming email etc. not using streaming so can’t speak to that.

I will miss a zoom mtg by choice..good excuse ..ha

He’s getting some work done between eating, Ha

Balcony like all spaces ..cold wet foggy. Kinda of cool and mysterious..and the foghorn etc  … makes it fun

Robrt took a nap on a lounger on the balcony wrapped in a blanket yesterday.

He did use the pool today as have others..saying it was warm. 
 

He’s been to the gym twice as well. Can be crowded with weekend warriors so to speak.

we hear the thermal spa is nice but haven’t been.

Have noticed some pax are friendly, some aloof and in their own world AND are usually standing in the middle of walkways…kind of like herding cats in some hallways. So there are parts of the ship we haven’t ventured to yet.

Others are just grumpy and seem to forget they paid to be here. Maybe they been stuck behind the ones standing in the middle of walkways…😆

It’s supposed to be fun, and maybe a smile, politeness to others from these grumpy ones might be the “pay it forward ticket” they need…..kwim? 

Noticed that we change time zones tonight instead of moving an hour today. 
 

We will see you all for Peters CC pub crawl tom.
Have our trivia question ready.  
 

@mking8288

looks like an amazing meal. So sorry they didn’t have a better way to juggle reservations an inclement weather. 
We are going to Paloma’s this evening. Hope this isn’t foreboding for all venues.

Ship feels full and lively.

There are some large tour groups traveling together that are monopolizing spaces. 

Went to play Bridge yesterday and the room is also packed with mahjong, lacrosse and other noisier interactive games. Quite the cacophony. 
 

Haven chefs has added a daily lunch and daily dinner special. Not certain if this is a trial run or because of the long sailing. 
 

Met a gentleman who is corp IT .. he’s here assessing evaluating etc…he also spends time at shipyards as the new builds are coming together… we had discussed point of sale, web and how with smart bands servers can know pax and anticipate needs like we have had on other ships. Something NCL doesn’t use. He’s here on the ship for the sailing…so hopefully he’s seeing and hearing the issues if they are IT and not operator error/mgt fails

@skeeter195

we were at the Captains reception in the observ lounge Sunday Even.

Hope paths cross on these seas days.

In other news we were glad for Haven concierge as we saw the Donna Summer show last night. Required to be in line 35 min beforehand and Reserv is a must. The best show at sea …a full on Broadway style theater performance. Strong ensemble. Leads were WOW.

Where YC ropes off an area. And it’s easy to get a seat….

NCL instead requires Haven guests to cue up to be escorted in to reserved seating earlier for this high demand show.
In this case on the Prima, Haven is aft and the theater is fwd. So you just need to leave dining by 715p to be in line with Haven guests for 8p show.

For all other shows we won’t need reserv but do need to cue early and present room key to be seated in Haven area. The room key check is helpful 
 

Menu is the same each dinner and has been good.
Different from the style of YC. Not better. Different. 

Wine has been better. The weak link imho is YCs wine choices post Covid. I’ve been able to get a dry minerally rose in Haven when nothing was available on Seashore nor Divinia in Feb and March. Some nice choices with of whites and reds. Pre cvd MSC had great premium bev in YC, that’s dropped off a bit

Embarkation…YC all the way. NCL doesn’t come close to what MSC YC does at embarkation, luggage etc. Embarkation was so so crazy. 
 

Best

FOG
 

1 hour ago, mking8288 said:

Latitudes Welcome Back reception inside the OL is a joke, made that a big, big, really joke in hosting a large scale event for 2,200+ Latitudes guests with seating space normally for 75 to 100 plus, including back against the window "seats" on the wraparound lounge, where you can hear and music after passing the band but otherwise cannot see the rest.  Cubes of cheese & crackers only served.

 

 

Over 900+ Platinum and higher Latitudes members, over 80% of the ship passengers being Latitudes - apologies for a big turnout, really. The reception should've been held not here but in a bigger event space. 

 

 

CruiseNext manager was the only one that spoke, nobody else - not the Captain nor the GM, who was here along with (some) other officers.  

 

 

Rants done and moving from being grumpy.  Otherwise, view from the OL - foggy and ship blowing it's horn on a regular interval.

 

 

We were at a welcome back event.. Few pax there.. lots of officers. Live music. I think it was Sunday nite. Spoke w Captain, CD. Most folks sitting in chairs with cocktails while apps on spoons passed. We stayed about 25 min which was longer than the officers. We were surprised it was poorly attended

@graphicguy

coming into lunch at Haven they put a traffic cone over a tiny water spill from “condensation” just as I approached. Do they know we are CC friends?

Good morning. Well catching up on the last 5 pages with thoughts.

Embarkation was cray cray. And as bad as we thought we had it…spoke with others at the meet and greet that stood as long, yet outside.

We were feeling pretty”BettyWhite” and wishing I had a snickers bar and bottle of water yet no dice.

Once onboard things have settled a bit.

Agree it’s full a lots of popular things to do ..so pacing ourselves and expectations.

have met some lovely people and some others. Takes all kinds.

Did a fabulous 6hour private tour at Halifax once we finally got off the ship…guide was dubious why we were at that berth. Great tour of the history of Halifax, the titanic, the explosion, architecture, all kinds of great stuff. Lunch in Dartmouth looking at Halifax and the ship. Great day.

One of our fav servers is helping us learn Tagalog since we missed the lesson on Sunday. She went grocery shopping to pick up a few things in Halifax as things are more costly in Iceland. Now I’m craving pancit. Hear they make decent Filipino food in the crew galley…

saw the Donna Summer show last night. The entire ensemble is strong..the leads…just Wow. Far exceeded our expectations.

Ship started rolling good last night so I got up to secure a few things making noise. Will be interest to see posts of swells as we sail north and east.

will be looking for bridge partner today.

and hope to get some tandoor chicken at Indulge

@graphicguy we have inspected the prep of your dance floor and @Sugar Magnoliahas determined it to be perfect.

@mking8288 we took advantage of the Wi-Fi upgrade for my device today

@JIMESOPUS slow going. No whales sighted. Though we were having lunch 

Did look up the interesting details and it can be impacted quite quickly.

What’s the deal with Halifax? 
 

Food has been good. Crew has been in good spirits. Captain has quite the sense of humor.
It was nice to see so many officers at the M&G this am. And great to put faces with screen names.
 

The am… TV had one time this am and we were confused by app. Concierge told us to go by the phone in our cabin because we didn’t know what time it was..and many were walking around either early or late for things this morning.

So who is doing the drop? My dear spouse is on the way to go do it now.

oh…and we had a plate of canapés..and a plate of cookies dropped off at the room. Who was nice enough to think of this? 😁
 

21 hours ago, dexddd said:

Oh, and the actual name per the crew is 'THE BEAUTIFUL MSC DIVINIA.'

What was this in reference to?

She is an older ship and not our fav of the MSC fleet

The YC product is excellent, though we prefer other ships than Divinia. Some love her because she is small and an older style.