Noggins

They don't make all those french oak barrels for nothing!

I know the included wine list has been posted before but I'm not certain whether the current list has changed at all. What I do know is that the Merlot and first Malbec have suited our taste best. The second Malbec isn't available. Our white wine preference is an oaked Chardonnay. There isn't one of those. This resulted in my wondering if, on the chargeable list, there was an affordable bottle of our ultimate favourite, a Montrachet (white burgundy made with the Chardonnay grape). There isn't one of those either....at least there is but there again there isn't.....

Afternoon tea has been considerably more successful. By good fortune we found ourselves sat close to the Holy Grail (sometimes called a hot water boiler). We were brought tea pots of water that were stood to one side but when the coast was clear I filled my cup directly from the boiler and got a decent brew. The trolley came promptly and whilst part of me longed for a 3 tier wonder it was no bad thing that we went more modestly.

Oddly, at the other aft pool there was a row of 4 unoccupied beds in the shade which we spotted whilst at breakfast. We took up residence (EJ speak) on one until the pesky sun moved. We retreated to our partially shaded terrace where we have been gradually edging backwards as the sun continues it's remorseless arc. We can see land but there's no TV map / track to tell us where we are. (Ah, why didn't I think of that, I've got a phone in my hand...🤦- Dominican Republic) The seas are very smooth but there is the sound of water regularly cascading onto neighbouring terraces from above. But no screeching - so the neighbours are either out or enjoying themselves.

That's very sweet, Maggie but I'm a happily married man. 😎🤭

Looks random to me... And not to be confused with a more orderly picture of books on the wall!

To us Crystal set the bar in breakfast buffet quality / choice in the luxury sector. But Emporium now takes over the lead. But it will take us a day or two more to get the most out of it for our tastes - such is the choice. We also snagged an outdoor table in the shade. There are not many tables outside. Furthermore they are quite a walk back in to the buffet area itself. What's more, there are steps up and down involved which is not ideal when carrying one (or possibly two ..) plates of food. On the plus side the extra exercise involved going back and forth can reasonably be rewarded with an extra almond croissant....

Surely not - they are so random, and untidy. Definitely not the 'curated' approach with everything else.

Hello Ivi. I don't believe there's a library but without access to a detailed deck plan it's hard to be sure what we might be missing. We do find it a confusing ship to navigate around - and finding a toilet can take you on quite a hike they are so well 'hidden'! But I'm sure familiarity will increase each day. Back to books, though. There are display shelves in our room two of which have become depositories for past guest paperbacks. There must be 10 random books. I'm not convinced that's a good idea. (Imagine that in the days of COVID! 😳)

We ate well in Marble, a venue with quite a different look to any other, so far. It is definitely a more masculine look with less soft furnishings and luxury finishes. It's a style that suits the steak house nature of the restaurant. We were on a 2 top in a 'room' that had 4 2 tops along each of 2 sides of the room. It was Brits on one side and US on the other! The US side were actually a group and their 4 tables were pushed together. On our side we were close enough to converse with all our neighbours. Whilst we ate well, we wonder how we'll find anything different for a second visit. And this is going to be an increasing problem if the menus are never going to change. (Admittedly this is a bigger problem if your dietary choices / requirements rules out sections of the menu. Plant based dishes are there but they are few and far between.) There has been some slight motion in the night and this morning there is a fair amount of water on our terrace. Our host / steward warned us that the hot tub way above us sloshes water onto the extended terraces on deck 6. 💦 That's something to watch out for if you're out there relaxing in the sun! I'm braced for someone telling me the show was amazing. Unfortunately E has not been too well and couldn't summon the stamina for a 'late' night. (She's slept much better, so perhaps is now on the mend.) Second sea day today. The plan is breakfast in Emporium, then lecture, a bit of exercise and start my second book. There's nothing like a cruise to get back into books!

Darn it! I knew we'd regret giving in to exhaustion and missing the show last night! (sounds like no ABBA too....? 😎) Marble & Co for us tonight. Possibly an odd choice for non meat eaters so we might smuggle a sandwich in - just in case of emergencies. All being well we will manage to get to the late show.

Thanks Mike how interesting. And, please, contribute anytime! To Terry's comment, perhaps I'm giving the wrong impression - overall we're super impressed. But when you're just 2 I do believe you experience cruises differently to when you're in a group. In a group so much more of your 'bandwidth of attention' is taken up that you notice any glitches less. Well, that's my experience. Today we sat at the same table for lunch in Emporium as we did on that first lunchtime. It was not busy and the staff knew exactly what they were doing. The problem that first day was probably that they were being asked to perform beyond what was physically possible and, although looking on, their supervisors were failing to step in and help. Something good supervisors do unthinkingly! Unfortunately double dessert at lunchtime means i must break the promise to return for afternoon tea this today.... Tomorrow, perhaps. We've not had trouble finding shade today, the lecture on Churchill was very good and champagne time is not far off - so all is good. 🍾🥂

The OJ is 'subject to availability '. The evening show is now being repeated at 10.15 on the current cruise. I always think that's tough on the artists but it is very helpful.

Breakfast was Fil Rouge - the equivalent of a main dining room breakfast. Except the room is not like a MDR. Low ceiling, space broken up into multiple small sections. Very nice, very comfortable. Unfortunately minor, easily fixable issues mar the experience. (And we weren't alone - the neighbouring table was returning items. So it's not just us being fussy Brits!) Our order was taken and tasteless coffee delivered. This was replaced with lukewarm cappachino. Good smoothies and fruit were followed by scrambled egg with a side of rosti, grilled tomato and mushrooms. This is what came. Not unpleasant but just not what I expected. Our other main dish was grilled tomato and mushrooms and camembert like this... Well, it won't happen again as next time I'll know what to specify. And you know too now. I thank you..... (😎) Another sign of inexperience was the CD / entertainment manager having to make a ship wide announcement as to what the time was. They hadn't realised that everyone's phones would update and move an hour forward overnight whilst the ship has chosen to make that move tonight instead. Why? I'm not sure how many people enjoyed an unnecessarily early breakfast this Sunday morning.... (Mother's Day too - but maybe that's just a UK day / date?)

This appeared in the room yesterday. Of course , my first thought is that they're on to me and this was a compensatory gift after tea-gate. Or perhaps a thank you for saying largely nice things on CC. Then it dawned on me that perhaps everyone got one....

Yes, there is a daily programme. First of 2 seats days today. First enrichment lecture (which somehow doesn't make the front 'highlights' listing). Also something new for tonight's entertainment. Last night was a repeat (artist wise) of the first night. We didn't go - but only because we ran out of energy. Now, where for breakfast.....🤔 Oh and we picked up on the grapevine last night that there's a special multi course / paired wine event today - in the Emporium ('buffet') at, wait for it, 11am. That seems odd. There's an upcharge but I don't recall the exact figure. It's not clear who is being invited to attend but as there are probably few seats available that might explain why most people will never get to know about it. For the avoidance of doubt, we weren't 'invited'!

This evening we ate in the Yacht Club - no reservation necessary, Med style menu. We had an excellent meal, high quality ingredients (you felt) well cooked and expertly presented. The wait staff did a great job too. The room is elegant, low ceilinged and with a nice atmosphere. We were reminded that just a bit of sorting in some areas around the ship and this could be a devastatingly good product. It just needs some more experienced staff on the ground training and overseeing operations. A few of tonight's dishes....

Whilst I remember - suite breakfast menu....

Oh dear, afternoon tea has been a minor disaster. The lounge was quiet, plenty of nicely set up tables. We were quickly furnished with a quality tea bag and a few minutes later by teapots of lukewarm water. The worst possible cup of tea slowly emerged - but no sightings of the trolley that bears the other vital elements of afternoon tea We gave up and started to walk out only to come face to face with the idle trolley surrounded by chatting staff. We provided a little constructive feedback (were asked for our room number 😬) and went on our way, promising to give it another go tomorrow (with promised BOILING water!) Fortunately we were able to initiate a very satisfactory Plan B....

Funnily enough, Terry, I've been planning to comment on this and the wider subject of access. When I took my mobility challenged mum on a (Crystal) cruise a few years ago I had my eyes opened wider to the simple things that had the potential to become significant challenges if you either relied on wheels or had knees that struggle. If the designers of this ship were told to always consider the needs of our mobility challenged guests then I'd be surprised. It's not just that many of the chairs, benches, sofas etc are low it is the surprising number of steps that exist where no ship normally has steps. It does make for more interesting design but it must be presenting challenges to some guests. Even the unwary can be caught out. We witnessed one lady last night take quite a fall last night, tripping on a step that whilst lit wasn't entirely obvious. There are mobility challenged guests on board and perhaps I should break out my clipboard and interview a selection to see what they say. But, sorry, I'm on holiday so unless I have a chance conversation with someone this is probably all I've got on the subject. Maybe a couple of photos of some of the most surprising locations where steps exist.... Meanwhile I'm going to pop up and down out of low chairs just because I can. At the moment.....

Good thought. Perhaps there were a lot of 'day pass' guests on board that made it such a scrum.

CC was playing up earlier which prevented a more timely breakfast update. Seems to have sorted itself now. Last night we decided not to risk a first morning breakfast bun fight in the buffet so ordered in-room breakfast from the pretty impressive menu. (I'll post a copy later). We still took the opportunity of an 'early' additional explore of the ship and passed through the buffet in rush hour. Of course, it was calm and running well under capacity 🙄 Breakfast soon arrived after our return to the room. The photo illustrates how EJ serves an in-room breakfast..... Quality was fine with the exception of the coffee the smell of which took me back to those huge urns of coffee that used to be used at large conference venues. If I didn't know better I'd have been certain acorns were an active ingredient. Shoreside we made a rookie error of forgetting a photo ID so had to return for that before a leisurely stroll to the beach. Unfortunately seaweed rather spoils the swimming scene. Otherwise Key West retains a charm all of it's own. (And Sloppy Joe's manages to draw in a remarkable crowd even quite early in the day.) Back on board it's very quiet - as you'd expect. A recci for a shady spot confirms it helps to be a lover of lying in the full sun on this ship. Jumping back to our further exploration this morning, it turns out we had missed quite a few features yesterday. Hardly surprising as what the designers have done so well is to create very many small public spaces with different furniture and features. It is very well done, very classy - and is going to be very expensive to maintain in tip top condition. The closest comparison I can make is to Silver Dawn. EJ blows that ship out of the water (lovely though it is) on the hardware front.

If there were, Maggie, they kept very quiet about them! Crema, the coffee shop (small bites) was open - and rammed.

That's very kind, Ivi but my experience pales against Terry's - and yours! (My EJ take is gradually emerging over on the EJ board.) Adrian