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The challenge for us is the longer trips stress on the DW because of dog care and her mother who is 97-1/2 who still lives in a senior apartment. We just increase the amount of time the in house health care staff spends with her (which of course costs money) and we add laundry to their duties. The DW is really worried about our trip next year, when we fly to Singapore in February and fly home from Vancouver in May. On our 3 month Airstream trip she flew home twice for a few days just to check on her. That is pretty much not an option from Australia. JC

I am starting this thread because we fly out tomorrow for Houston, and I woke up at 4 something AM worrying about all of the things that I need to do, even though, I have done most of them already! Went to bed last night with tornado sirens wailing, went outside on the front step to see the storm. It seemed completely underwhelming, so I came inside after a few minutes expecting to see wind. However the Welsh Terrier, Rodrhi, was impressed by the amount of rain, and despite me standing in the backyard with my umbrella encouraging him to do his business. He pretended to. This morning first thing I found was a piddle. He is very good about not having accidents that said, the storm timing and rain level convinced him to let the consequences flow.🤣 One worry, of course, is the dog on his own for 35 nights. We are spending 1 night in Galveston pre-cruise at the TownePlace Suites, and 1 night at a Hyatt Place in Frankfurt before flying home after our cruise ends in Ravenna, Italy. I have 3 people and a vet (boarding) involved in his care. I prefer to have someone house sit, but as we and our friends get older it is harder and harder to do that. So, a near friend will spend several hours a day baby sitting for 17 days. My eldest nephew will come take him to the vet for most weekends and bring him back. Then our friend and former co-worker, Nurse Sally, of my wife, Krystal, will take him to her house for 11 days plus take us to and from the airport. I know the math doesn’t work and he will be kenneled at the vet for 13 nights. He is a perfectly healthy three year old, but I prefer the vet to a regular kennel. On a sad note, those who have followed my past threads might remember Lord Wellington, aka Wellie our Wire Fox Terrier, we had to put him down around the first of the year, right before our 3 plus month Airstream adventure. He was a good boy almost 14. Enough downer stuff. I hope the people on these cruises feel free to join in. Adding insights from their perspective. My perspective as many of you know is not typical!😂 Now on to the important stuff. We booked these cruises with a member of this forum, who will go unnamed but not un-appreciated, who is currently I believe on a cruise himself. The TA of 15 nights was very reasonably priced (as most TAs are), but the 11 night cruise departing from Barcelona was not. We were able to get a corner aft on the TA with lots of space for my gear to dry between trips to and from the FlowRider. (Board, board shorts, rash guards, and wetsuit are all packed as they were job 1 of planning). The last leg of the cruise is expensive but not quite as bad as the middle cruise. We are booked into the same cabins for the last two cruises a balcony on deck 12. Airfare was booked using frequent flyer miles. I think the flights to Houston on American Airlines cost me $11.20 and about 16,000 miles. We booked a Lufthansa flight from Venice to Frankfurt for about $300 outright including an extra bag for by Flow Board. Then we spent about $300 more on the United flight along with 75,800 miles for the trip home mostly because we upgraded to economy plus seating. I will now devote no more time to accounting unless specifically asked. 😉 Hopefully, this thread will benefit someone else’s planning, as I am always trying to pay forward all that I have learned from many of you in this forum. JC Attached are some pictures of Rodrhi from the inside of the airstream. The last two are of Rodrhi and Wellie doing what they do best.

Of course, just saying the only current returns are OBC and share pricing. Just less definitively.😂 jc

Crocs, which I wear all the time around the house and the FlowRider (actually light Ride or Life stride, they keep rebranding them. Are the worst sized shoes in the history of shoe sizing. I wear a men’s 10 medium in most shoes, Crocs, I wear an 8. I have made the mistake of ordering online Crocs, and they come and swallow my feet. That said, with the bit around the heel and if you got lucky and had the right size, they probably won’t fall off. Not that it matters to the sports staff operating the zip line, and you will have to wear proper laced shoes!🤣 jc

Don’t think we are getting any returns (aka dividends) but I have 100+ of both CCL and RCL and RCL is worth about 7 times more than CCL and CCL was more expensive when I purchased them. Since they don’t have FlowRiders, I have only gained a few hundred dollars on shareholder benefits, and overall, CCL has been a complete bust as an investment. 😂 And as a cruise line for us! JC

You should try it…. Pretty tasty. I am from a long line of Germans, and while I like my ancestral food, if I had to give up all of my food tastes to a single culture, it might be Thai or Japanese. I could probably do Stir Fry and Sushi and get by if I had to. I would miss a good burger or a good steak, and bacon and tomato… o my. JC

Year over year…. You watch every single company traded on the stock market? Amazing.

Done the Hibachi on Allure? That would be one of those. You really need to get out more. When are you going to sail with us?

Most of the rafts have an enclosed top…. Feeling better now?🤣

I am going to agree with you Alfred picks Rear Window and North by Northwest, doesn’t get better than that as far as simple suspense movies goes. jc

$54 for two at Chops is way better than anything I have seen in my cruise planner on any of my upcoming cruises. I booked BOGO for D+ for Giovannis for $42. So, are you talking BOGO? JC

Ok, while rolloman used to be one of my favorite posters and has since become a curmudgeon, (I am well on my way too) it doesn’t change the fact that the 84$ a day they are giving you might cost them 10$ a day and $60 dollars actually costs $60… some people don’t drink so, do you think they wouldn’t prefer an actual discount or per diem over getting 6 free cokes? That actually cost about $1 total. I am pretty certain they are going to want their $60 to cover a massage or money for the slot machine.

12 years ago I spent close to a couple of weeks at Atlantis on Paradise Island with a couple of hundred guests of mine. Beer in 2012 from the refrigerator in your room was $6 for a local beer. It was $6 if they brought it to you at the pool, or while you were having lunch. Breakfast at the buffet was $40 a person, plus a 18% gratuity. Dinner was OMG. I can only imagine what things cost there now. If you can’t afford to cruise with any cruise line, don’t. They will miss you, but complaining about it don’t mean a thing. O, and dinner for the pile one night, buffet style with an open bar was about 30K. The food was average at best and some of the beer was cold.

Can you taste the difference in the duty free alcohol and the alcohol at your favorite restaurant bar? The fact that they are outside the local network is something that they should as a business exploit. The true question is why is duty free cheaper than what you can buy locally…. Answer the government who is taking their cut. I would like to buy like Royal if I had a bar, but I can’t because the government is stopping me. I don’t see Royal as the villain. I just see people who are exploited daily complaining about someone who isn’t.

Yeah, I agree, it is not about the free drinks, but I do like them, very much. It is about the FlowRider.🤣 If they didn’t have a FlowRider, I would be way less likely to book with them.

We all do what makes us happy. Glad you are. Awesome way to spend your golden years. 🤣

Yep

I know this is a really stupid question, and yes I know there are no stupid questions, BUT, this one is. I am sailing on the Voyager B2B2B, shortly. I have a check in time for boarding on the first cruise the TA. I think I need to check in for the 2B2B, but I don’t think I care about anything else, aka check-in time. I don’t need to rush to do this. Am I wrong? jc

I am sorry😂

O I agree with you. I was referring to using words like complicit for a discussion on this topic.

I love when posters start sounding like someone on Dateline. Queue ominous music. 🤣

Almost, it is also about the imminent take over of Jamaica by the Haitian Navy using the personal watercraft after the battle of the beach cabanas. Got to keep this straight, although it is very confusing. 🤣 I just keep thinking if we could only have whirled peas. As it is I am thinking I just need to stay in the Airstream today, as it has been raining and blowing 40MPH outside most of the morning. Hopefully, I won’t drown when the Airstream gets washed off the beach at the OBX and I end up in the ocean. 😃

Lots of drama. Thanks for that!

So, we should visit Haiti never? You have gone on, but I am still waiting for the invasion of the zip line and the battle of the jet skis. I mean there was so much danger, think of all the Coca Cola left behind. If I was starving the battle of the mountain coaster would keep me alive for months. 😉