EdmPair

I can safely say I would rather have a stolen passport cause my friends and family to worry for 24 hours that I might be dead than the alternative -- actually being dead.

It is sad that a passport stolen that far ahead of the plane boarding was used to get a ticket and fly. Again, some of airport security is security theatre. Not all, but some.

I have been to Quebec City and can not plug it enough. It is the most European city in North America from the star fortress of the citadel and the walls of the old city to the mix of people and language. It is immensely walkable if you can go up hills. You can buy a coffee and go outside in hundreds of places to sit beside a cannon in the sunshine to drink it.

I have no opinion of the two ships and know the OP will ultimately have to make a value choice. However, there is no place like Quebec.

Later,

M

I would guess some big agent had a block booked with a small deposit relativity and when they did not sell well enough, they released them. I saw somewhere on this board where a wedding had 20 some cabins booked. Imagine if the happy couple hit rocks well before the cancellation deadline.

You may never know but happy for you.

M

Very nice. Hoot to hear you wish your friends bon voyage!

I prefer to think of it not as boat perving but rather boat stalking..sounds so much more tame :eek:

I like that ... 'boat stalking'.

Or if you travel on the right line, it could be Voyeur of the Seas.

Sorry, I did not mean to snap. Your point on photos being a profit centre is well taken. It must make money as they give it premium space. In comparison, look at the floor space given to pubs/lounges/bars/clubs for alcohol service. I remind people the price of drinks on a cruise is like buying all your drinks on land at a bar. A beer is WAY cheaper if you buy a case and drag it home. I see the photos much the same. You are captive for both services while there and that certainly drives the prices to a large degree.

Have I kick this dead horse enough?? I think so.

Way too much $$$. :(

I take from your post, it is not of value to you. However, given the amount of photos sold, it is of value to others. I can take good photos and after many shots a few will be really good. I can not take such shots of myself or me with friends, so the on-board people with good equipment do that job. How much I spend is up to me, but it is not way too much to me.

We were on the Grand in 2012 so my comments might be dated. A single 8by10 is a bit over $20 if I recall. There are whole types of packages where you buy multiples of the same photo in various sizes and then a group of different photos in the same sizes. I do not recall any options for digital files and I suspect there is not one so they can protect their copyright.

If you think you will want many different photos, wait toward the end of the trip to order a package. It is a gamble but do check with staff the first photos will still be there. They usually are.

On a related note, if you see a photo of yourself on display and do not want it and do not want others to see it, you can pass it to the staff and they will discard it. If they are not going to sell, they would rather have the shelf space to try to sell another photo.

Hope this helps,

M

Well, part of me thinks "boat perv" is a bit much and part of me laughs at it too. I am not sure I can be accused of voyeurism if they put up the cams!! "Your Honour, I am innocent!"

Anyway, I have watched cams in ports and on ships many times. It warms me to see sunny places even as I freeze here. All the Princess ships have them and most of the other lines too. In looked at ports, most of the bigger busy ports have cams too. The hard part for me is to see the camera while it is light there.

Congrats! And I am certain you can get a nice cake.

I had a BD on my first cruise on the HAL Nieuw Amsterdam. I did not order a cake but did book the upscale Italian restaurant. When we returned to the room, the ship had delivered a cake. It was so sad. It was two layers of boring but 'nice' chocolate cake and basic frosting. A single simple flower was dropped on top. Poor thing would be in a plastic box on the shelf at our local grocery store. We had a piece but it has gone into family lore as 'underwhelming' for HAL. The Italian restaurant was great.

great Caesar's ghost! the things people on low end cruise lines like Princess worry about and talk about! water? really?

 

 

 

and lugging aboard bottled water or soda pop to save a buck or two....or buying a freaking coffee card or soda card! this is cruising? i think not.

And I earn my money the hard way. I do worry about saving a coin here and there and still have fun on my vacation. I am happy you have more money to toss about. I also like polite and informative conversation. [cough]

The tap water is perfectly safe to drink.

 

 

 

I've been drinking tap water on cruise ships for 52 years and am still alive to post about it. :D

 

 

 

LuLu

 

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I am going to start with the ship water is safe.

However, this argument is not valid. You are a survivor looking back and that one data point does not say how many people died from some effect in the same time you survived through. I am 50 and have never been harmed in a traffic accident. Nobody would see driving as fully safe just because I am still alive.

Now, I shall get off my abuse of grammar and statistics soap box.

There are people on every internet board, forum or social media who ask questions of fact which could be so easy to find with Google. Let it be as it shall be. If you know the answer, give it. If you think them lazy, ignore them and perhaps somebody else will reply. Sniping will not help.

I also like the mechanics of things. I always wanna know how something works. And growing up on the Canadian plains is great, but it means everything about a ship and the sea are new. I look for the details to see how the lifeboats and liferafts work and anything else I had not seen before. Have you noticed the baffles slid onto the shorelines to keep rats from walking up those big ropes? I have and asked.

I get the sentiment of an 'elegantly appointed ship' but really the halls are long boring places with door after door exactly the same excepting the number. Of course, I can find my cabin but it is just a bit more fun to have it personalized. I had photos of us on a previous trip and some of the birds and cats from home along with a magnetic tangram game. There were many times I would return to the cabin and find people looking at the photos or playing with the game to make some new image.

I guess I should not even mention to some about hanging a pirate flag from the balcony on the Caribbean cruise. You can photo your ship from the shore and point out your cabin easy to friends later. Aarrrrr.....

Later,

M

Being the animal saps we are, it is so tempting to pet the 'puppies'. We also know it BEST to not even reach for the dogs. I am guessing the handlers would not even tell you what the dog was sniffing for should you ask. The three ideas posted just ahead of me are the big ones and getting off a ship, I bet drugs are the prime search.

I just hope I am not too close if a big take down happens. Hit the floor and roll if you can out of walkways and under/beside furniture and walls. All you can do.

We are probably a small crowd who even notices the fire doors. I work with them professionally but not on ships. I did pay attention on the two cruises I have been on -- Nieuw Amsterdam and Grand Princess.

However, I read the plans given in tourist advertising with doors as just doors. I know some will be fire rated but it is not the type of plan which would give the specification for them. I have seen doors sitting in recessed wall pockets held with magnetic hold opens and know most folks walk by then and never really 'see' the. If I was selling cruises with a floor plan, I would never show those as passengers would never have to open them.

Later,

M

The start of packing starts about 3 weeks ahead mostly due to picking out my fave clothes and getting them laundered and not worn again. Plus setting out the suitcases takes some space and are a bit in the way. That loss of mobility in the house for 3 weeks is a price I will happily pay.

Enjoy the waves,

M

Well said 'mom'. I stand corrected. Easy for me to say on a full keyboard.

I load up the iPad with time consuming games more for the airports than the ship. I am willing to tolerate a few ads, so have free games and some are very strategic and fun. Ships have so much stuff and you can go get cards if you wish.

There was a time -- and I am old enough to remember it -- that even text was expensive to send on the intertubes. This was the time of BBSs and dialup modem. Being short was valued then but now I find it cute as long as it does not impair understanding. After all, modern communication still has to communicate.

I guess I have been around enough that I know the abbreviation like DH and such but wonder why they persist. By all means ask if you can not guess from context and I will go back to lurking on this topic.

I spend a full day walking Tallinn Estonia in the rain. I had to dress well under the rain coat, but it never stopped me from taking photos or shopping. I walked the walls and a few towers. I wanted sun but it was far better than a day at home at work. It could have rained MORE and it would still be better. Hot shower when back on ship.

Go. Experience. All.

M

Eat at least a few meals in the big dining room -- ya did pay for it in your fare. Read the listings they put in your cabin for the next day and pick something new. Couples can get separated and still have fun -- perhaps more. Eat your veggies.

I guess it was more than ONE idea. Too bad.

Well, I like the idea of a Dame ... there is nothing like a Dame ...

Dame Edna. "Hello, possums!"

I guess we could move into this century a bit and go for Lady Gaga!

Seriously, I hope they avoid young 'stars' who may fade. Also, politicians are easy to get to speak but it always feels like they are campaigning even when they officially are not. Avoid the politicians please.

And why does it have to be female? Anybody can symbolically open the gates to flood the dock or smash the bottle on the prow. We could look to science or engineering too. Do you think NASA will bring back the Mars Rover if asked nice??

For that coin you have lotsa choice. Heck, most any ship will do and then take me too!

You can move a bit upscale in either line or cabin.