lola2013

Sadly, some of our legends are gone (Ernie Banks and Ron Santo), but there are several Cubs that can be termed “legends”.  Maybe I’ll pack my Cub jersey for Evening Chic night 😉

I booked this cruise months ago not knowing it was a Legends of Baseball cruise!  Looking at the roster, it won’t matter since they are all New York players!   Not a Chicago Cub in sight. 

…or young at heart!

We did this cruise in a SV…sunsets were amazing.

6 minutes ago, CruisinBanka said:

Thanks for your honest answer. My favorite was Richard Spacey, who was on Royal Carribean for years and then moved to Celebrity. He has since moved on from the cruise industry and is back home in England. He was one funny guy, who never needed a script, and totally interacted with guest all over the ship. I would book cruises based on the ship he was on, because you knew the sailing would be fun. Nowadays most Cruise Directors are just MC’s. 

Agree…Richard Spacey is hands down the best cruise director…followed closely by Sue Denning who we sailed with on Reflection a few years ago.  

3 minutes ago, dazey said:

lola2013: Yes on 12/9,  

Just found you on the roll call 😎

1 minute ago, dazey said:

lola2013: Yes on 12/9,  

See you on board.  Have you joined our roll call?

13 minutes ago, dazey said:

Very much enjoying your review.  We have been on Apex before and will be again in December on the same itinerary as yours.  Cannot wait.

 

Did you do any excursions either through Celebrity or private?  As two ports are tendered I plan to use Celebrity for those as we had a tender experience in Martha's Vineyard(bad weather) and want to make sure ship waits for us if delayed.

 

I also enjoy Eden especially for lunch and even breakfast.

 

Thanks so much for refreshing my fond memories of Apex.

Are you sailing December 9?

1 hour ago, durangokid said:

Susan I believe you will be boarding APEX as we get off from the December 2 cruise.  I agree this post has made me want December to get here - now!  Thank you @Dreamer68for these pictures and if you have more please post!

 

Mary

Yes, I board December 9…can’t get here soon enough.  And I know I will love it so much that I booked the same ship (different itinerary) for December, 2024.  I hope you have a wonderful cruise 🚢.

Susan

I have to wait another 142 days to experience Apex.  If possible, your photos have me even more excited than I already was 😎.

Susan

Yes...please continue!

I am doing the same itinerary on Apex in December.  Looking forward to the rest of your review and photos.  Thanks for taking the time!

Susan 

1 hour ago, Stem to Stern said:

It is always nice to have options.

Less than 2 hours to Port Everglades.

Just over 2 to ports in Miami and Tampa.

3.5 to Port Canaveral.

J-e-a-l-o-u-s 😉

6 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

Thanks!!

 

Yes!! They are spoiling me rotten in Blu!! I was commenting to my TA today that it is really going to be a toss-up for my Beyond cruise next year between the sunset veranda OR bumping to Aqua. I don’t mind the IV cabins, so that makes it even more challenging a decision!!

 

Will definitely tell Putu hello for you!!

Subliminal message:  SV, SV, SV……..😉

Unless your Captain Tuvo has a twin, it looks like he jumped ship from Princess.  I watched a Smithsonian Channel program last night showcasing Sky Princess which featured Captain Mikele Tuvo!  

2 minutes ago, KKB said:

THIS--this unfortunately is along the lines of behavior I saw on my MSC cruises (in steerage).

Far too many passengers with zero regard for their fellow passengers & common courtesy.

Steerage? 

I prefer a SV in the middle of the row.  The balcony is not deeper, but usually wider than the others.  I typically choose deck 7, 8 or 9.

4 minutes ago, cml4958 said:

Snicker at the villagers comment; when we were in the 3 bedroom suite, the living room overlooked the pool deck, I believe.  We called it looking at the masses.

Ouch 

Is this Northwestern in downtown Chicago?  My dad had excellent care there.  Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery.

Susan 

In case I missed someone mentioning it, Wednesday night in Hamilton is their Harbor Nights celebration.  Street festival with food (check out the funnel cakes 😋), entertainment and some craft vendors.  It’s a lot of fun and a great way to spend the night. 
Happy Birthday and Bon Voyage.

Susan

20 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

Thanks.  They used to cruise but they are in their 90's now.  In fact today is my dad's 92nd birthday.  So they cruise vicariously through my family's travels..

Happy birthday to your Dad.  My parents dream cruise was through the Panama Canal.  When my Dad passed away, I took my mom on a Princess PC cruise.  She and I did a few more cruises after that!  She’s also gone now, but I always let them know I have traveled safely and had a great time.🙏

2 hours ago, mahdnc said:

1. We go to stateroom to drop off bags and pick up SeaPass cards.  I will check balcony furniture to make sure it is adequate.

2. We will both connect to the ship wi-fi and login to our wi-fi packages to get that established.

3. I head straight to the specialty restaurants to make reservations for rest of dining package.

4. My wife goes to the spa to make appointments.

5. I check on MDR seating/reservations (sometimes)

6. Somewhere in all this we do the muster drill on the app and check in at the muster station

7. Go to Oceanview Cafe for lunch.

8. Go back to stateroom to get things unpacked and setup; meet the stateroom attendant and discuss CPAP supplies (if we didn't receive them already), getting the refrigerator cleared, getting an ice bucket and water pitcher (and tip of course).

9. Call my parents via FaceTime and let them see the stateroom and the port from the balcony and to tell them we are having a good time.

10. Go to the bar to get a drink and head to the roll call sail away function (usually Sunset Bar).

 

Love that you call your parents to check in!

Happy, healthy thoughts to Norris, the patient…and Carol, the soon to be Florence Nightingale!  Hope you’re home soon.

Susan

1 hour ago, GenerationX said:

I’m starting to think that booking this cruise may have been a terrible mistake…after lunch, we did some light exploring and while Gen Z is doing her sweet little best to play it cool, I’m already starting to get a little concerned that she may never want to settle for a Celebrity ship again.  

 

She was so excited to see the arcade, water slides and waterpark.  When we got to our stateroom, she also had a personalized welcome treat of a plate of chocolate chip cookies with her name written on it in chocolate!

 

That said, there have already been a couple of times when we were outside of YC where she’s shown signs of being slightly overwhelmed by the crowds, noise of other kids screaming and having meltdowns and the volume of announcements (being made in 3 languages on this ship rather than just English on Divina).  Time will tell how it plays out over the week.

 

We just finished doing the MSC muster drill the “old fashioned way”, which resulted in multiple shoulder to shoulder, dead stop traffic jams on the stairs down to our station and it didn’t exactly instill a ton of confidence in me that this massive ship could be evacuated quickly in the unlikely event of an emergency.  As we were stuck in the gridlock Gen Z actually turned and said to me “this is WAY easier on Celebrity”.

 

For lunch, Gen Z and I split the pakora main dish as an appetizer and then Gen Z had the burger off the adult menu and I had the pansoti pasta.  One thing I learned from my Divina sailing is that the Indian food on MSC tends to be pretty good and the pakora kept that track record.

 

My pasta was ok but it could’ve been really good if it was served hot. Instead it came to the table barely warm and the cream sauce had started to thicken and get a little grainy.

 

On our way out of lunch we bumped into Z, my amazing server in the YC on Divina, who just joined the ship yesterday!

 

Sharing some pics from our first few hours onboard.

 

Well we’re all dressed and ready to head off to dinner and a show. More to come later tonight!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Love the Lily dresses!

Bon Voyage!