POA1

@Caribbean Chris just reminded me about the super-valuable Club Orange Tote Bag (of Magnificence) in another thread. You would think that after going on about it for months and months, I might have spent some time opining about its greatness. I did not. In fact, other than a single photo of Poohby Joe and the tote bag, I didn't really address it at all. It could be that I was awestruck by its beauty and functionality. Completely at a loss for words. Nope. The real reason was that I was using it as place to store all the paperwork I was saving for future scanning. It also gives me something to write about during our March/April 2024 cruise. I fear that I might run out of things to share. 😉

I think I may have mentioned that once or twice.

Thinking about my last comment. Maybe I spoke too soon. Some bright young thing would get the brilliant idea of slapping QR codes all over the place and you'd have to scan the code to read about the piece. Or use an RFID proximity sensor or Bluetooth transmitter to pull up the web page - thus creating a whole new set of tech support headaches. Gotta put the breaks on what you wish for, Brian old boy.

I really do think that the art guide is a very nice enhancement to the cruise experience. I used to download the old guided art tour files and listen to them. They were in Apple AIFF format because they were designed for the little iPod players you could borrow. Not owning an Apple player, I'd have to convert them to MP3 so I could use them. (Eventually HAL made them available in MP3.) The new tours would really lend themselves to web based presentation, particularly for tablet users. There could be a link in the Navigator app which renders most of its content in HTML anyway... Baby steps, I suppose. That, and the paper version needs no batteries, Wi-Fi signal, or tech support. I guess I can't really fault the paper version considering that we use the paper daily program to plan our (busy! exciting! action-packed!) days

The biggest price benefit to the upgrade is usually within the verandah categories. That's because there are more categories in the verandah meta category. Solo travelers really benefit because you only upgrade 1 person in Club Orange (Orange Club is a Florida Fruit of the Month thing.) in order to get the category upgrade. Normal paid upgrade is based on double occupancy. We should probably stop talking about that before they decide it's loophole in need of closing. While I'm at it, Reteat Cabanas & Signature Suites... Don't do it. 😁

Another one of the art installations from the forward elevator area. As I mentioned earlier, there is a an art guide for the ship. Special thanks to the associate researchers who pointed that out. Guest services was not able to email the guide to me, but the nice employee at the front desk was able to print it out. I'll take a new, still in the package, USB memory stick with me on the Rotterdam. I'd rather have it as a PDF instead of paper. Besides helping to save the forests, it'll save the work of rescanning the paper version and turning it back into a PDF.

Thank you. We set out to have fun on vacation and in almost every case, we do. We've also realized that some of the funniest stories stem from things not going exactly according to plan. We'll be back at this nonsense in a few months on the Rotterdam.

Thanks, Ruth! We've been to many of the Caribbean ports many times before, so there was not a whole lot new to do. Sailing on the Pinnacle Class ships was new to us though. We figured it would be interesting to explore what was "new to us." On day 3, when the disembarkation packet showed up, Michelle said, "Now I remember why we don't take 7 day cruises." Our next sailing is only 9 days, but I guess we'll just have to work our way back up to longer cruises. We had a genuinely enjoyable voyage. Service was top notch and the food was delicious. All in all we had a great time. Five years was too long to be away from cruising. Thank goodness we only have a little over three months until we sail again.

Somehow, I failed to take a photo of the library entrance door. So, pretend that you see the sign below and then you turn around and are looking at the library's double doors. Below the normal library door handles, you'll find a latch handle. The library door will appear locked when you pull it. It's probably not. Just turn the latch handle and then you can open the library door. It works a lot like some of the balcony doors that used a two handle, interlocking system.

It's the one I was looking forward to most. I really like homemade eggnog. Store-bought eggnog will do in a pinch. When we first moved to Florida, I found this concoction called "Southern Style Custard" next to the nog at Publix, our local grocery store. The internet told me that it was a traditional Southern egg nog alternative. Being a fan of all holiday drinks with the consistency of snot, I had to try it. It's not as thick as commercial egg nog. It's got a consistency closer to homemade egg nog. It can be improved by the addition of rum, or better yet, bourbon. (Really though, what can't?)

When we went, it appeared to be locked. The doors, which look to be regular pull doors, have a latch handle at the bottom. Turn it, and the door opens as expected. I pulled the normal handle and the door didn't budge. However, we saw someone in one of the chairs, so we realized that there was another piece of the puzzle. You have to turn the latch handle first. Not an intuitive design, but we read a lot of whodunnits. 😃

Thanks. It seemed to be the least festive option. We were looking forward to the coffee Christmas drinks, but we not have been a good boy and girl, because Santa never brought the ingredients to make them.

Us as well. I only mentioned it because we were seated next to a table of people who thought their Mariner discounts applied to items that have a surcharge.

OK. I was able to remedy the situation. Flipping my avatar is a little bit tougher than it would be for a normal image. I use an animated GIF. It's a whole bunch of frames that have to be flipped and then re-animated. Bottom line: I can see now but my drink is hidden.

Filed under unfinished business: We never got around to trying the Rudolph's Red Margarita. Margaritas just don't scream Christmas to us. The Christmas coffee based cocktails did not show up during the week which prevented us from trying them.

@Huskerchick is a big fan of the traditional wings. She order "all flats" which does not include drumettes. Not sure if you knew that or not.

Thanks for the recommendation, Karen! We just hit 400 days in a row today. Broward County Library has a great selection of books available electronically. I see 17 titles in the recommended series. (Yay.) They have reciprocal privileges with a few local colleges when we need something more specialized. We've gotten used to reading on screen. The Paperwhite and the newer Fire tablets work well, even in sunlight. We spend a fair amount of time outside reading and the library saves us a fortune.

As the Nieuw Statendam steams out of Port Everglades, we reach the sad conclusion that vacation is over. There is still a fair amount of trip report wrap up, but the work week looms large and ugly on the horizon.

We're still waiting on the Odyssey of the Seas, Celebrity Reflection, Viking Mars and the Nieuw Statendam. The HAL ship should be up first, followed by the Reflection. The enormous Royal Caribbean ship will probably be next, with Viking out last. Poohby Joe is anticipating the sail away by his former home for a week. He's decked out in his classic Holland America logo shirt. (He's quite conscious of having his tag show now.) The NS is on the move!

As is often the case in Florida, a days-long storm is followed by a bright and sunny day. Although it's sunny, the wind is brisk. It's blowing at 21 mph from the north. We have a southern exposure so we're pretty well protected.

We went for pizza (Anthony's Coal Fired at the mother ship location in Fort Lauderdale. Highly recommended.) We then drove along the beach with the top down before arriving back home to watch sail away. There are a lot of beaches and palm trees down in the neighborhood. Our property was all decked out with poinsettias when we left. They're all scraggly and windblown looking now.

He's happy to be home with his friends Big Poohby and Round Poohby. I'll post a photo later. Poohby Joe is from the big Disney store in what is now Disney Springs. Big Poohby was a gift from Michelle's coworkers. Round Poohby came from the CVS at the corner of SE 17th Street and Federal Highway (US Route 1) in Fort Lauderdale.

Also, bear in mind that your Mariner discount is not going to apply to the caviar or other supplements. The Mariner discount is off the restaurant cover charge only.

There are a fair number of places that farm-raise sturgeon for caviar. I know Browne Trading in Portland, Maine used to have the HAL contract for the US, but I don't know if that's still the case. They were where we went for caviar when we lived in Maine. They have a decent bit of educational material online if anyone is interested. Start here: https://brownetrading.com/pages/how-to-buy-caviar

I still have to scan the daily programs, the Art Guide to the Nieuw Statendam, and write up the 2023 Guide to Cabana Living. So, like Rudi's Sel de Mer, this thread ain't dead yet. 😉