My Victory Journal - May 2-9, 2010

[purrlinda]

It's Wednesday night and I'm sat relaxing in my room. I've been keeping up this journal and decided I'd give posting some of it a whirl tonight. This is going to be a very text heavy review because uploading them will take a long time and internets are very expensive on the boats!

 

I've taken 400 pictures so far and will work on getting them up and pick out the choice ones to post sometime next week.

 

Also, this is more of a travel journal so it has a lot of my own thoughts about my experiences and my opinions on this trip.

 

I hope you enjoy!

[purrlinda]

April 30th, 2010

Departure

 

After 10 months of planning, it was finally time to leave for my much needed vacation.

 

I left the house at about 9PM and my husband drove me to LAX. Since I decided to treat myself to first class on this trip, I had the fortune of avoiding the long queue at the Detla counters to drop my bags off and enjoyed their Sky Priority service very much. Since I'd already printed my boarding pass that morning, I was able to just check my bag and then go through security.

 

As this was my first trip away from my hubby since we got married in January, we decided to make the most of our last bits of time together and canoodled outside of security for a little while before I went through security. Delta's Sky Priority also allows you to skip the long line waiting to get up to security. Once we said our good-byes, I headed up to security. while I was in line, my phone rang. It was him saying, "I see you!" he had taken the elevator upstairs to leave and saw me in the security line. Yes, we are cheesy newlyweds in so many ways. He stayed there until I was all through security and when I saw him walk into the elevator, I was a little sad that he wasn't coming with me. I perked up when I thought of our upcoming honeymoon to Kauai, and felt much better.

 

I digress. I needed to have a bite to eat before getting on the airplane and got some very bland food at CPK ASAP. Blech. Boarding began at 11:20PM and I got on, took my seat, arranged my blanket, pillow, iPod, and water before settling in. I did something I've never done on a plane and ordered a cocktail. I had a vodka and orange juice. I drank about half of it. I'm a nervous flyer and alcohol wouldn't help the situation. But it was nice since it was included with my air fare. The flight from LAX to Atlanta also had really cool in seat entertainment. Sadly, I didn't use this as I had been up since 7AM. I worked a full day and had intended to leave early but I ended up in my office until 630PM. (I'm a travel agent and had tons of new business come in on my last day before vacation. What a gift!) Pretty quickly, I fell asleep and while it was a light sleep, I slept until about 40 minutes prior to landing and then I watched some TV on the iPod.

[purrlinda]

May 1st, 2010

Arrival in San Juan

 

Once getting to Atlanta, I had some fruit, cheese, and crackers and a bottle of water before heading to my connecting flight to San Juan, Puerto Rico. I fell asleep pretty much right after boarding. I missed all of the drinks and meal services on the 3 hours and 40 minutes flight to San Juan. When I woke up, we were almost there.

 

Upon landing, I was to go to baggage and meet my mom, my sister, and her fiance, who were all flying in from Buffalo. They were coming in on Air Tran and as I was walking through the terminal, I noticed an Air Tran flight come up to the gate. Sure enough it was theirs, and we met there and then went to luggage. Here I learned another awesome part about Delta's Sky Priority: Your luggage is first off the plane! I joined my family to wait for theirs and once secured, we got in the taxi line, told them where we were staying, they gave us the fare and let us know that it's a $1 baggage fee per piece. They even give you a slip to give to the driver. We had a friendly guy who took us to our hotel, the Marriott Resort and Stellaris Casino. I stayed here in 2007 and loved it so chose this as our pre-night location for this trip as well.

 

While we got here early, we were able to get a room that was ready for us by upgrading to the cabana room. It was an additional $25 and worth every penny as it was ready at 1PM when we arrived and is on the ground floor and looks right at the pool. It was excellent. After a brief perusing of the room, the 4 of us got in our swimsuits and got ready to go to the beach. Unfortunately, it was quite windy and the waves were huge and there was a red flag. Some brave people were in the water but we decided to enjoy the pool, instead. Some drinks were enjoyed by my sister and her fiance. This is his first vacation (at the age of 25) so it is so joyful to see him experience this. Actually, it's the same for my mom. She had never seen the ocean and was in awe. We got into the pool that has the waterslide and all enjoyed a trip down the slide.

 

At this point, I was pretty tired from all of the travel, so I wanted to take a shower. My aunt and 3 of her friends were due in at 3PM to join us. Since I was coordinating this trip for everyone, I wanted to make sure I was able to talk to her when she landed. (Their flight was delayed.) I was able to get them all checked in and then my mother, sister, and her fiance went over to a restaurant called Via Appia. It's a yummy italian restaurant just a couple of short blocks from the Marriott. I highly recommend it. Good food and service and reasonable prices considering the location. We really enjoyed our meals and then headed off to try our luck at the casino. Well, there wasn't much luck so they headed out to the beach and I went back to the room. At this point, it was 630PM and I was now in my pajamas. I have no shame in this fact as this is just the beginning of a busy trip and I was knackered from the travel and time change. They decided to head out and wander around Ashford Avenue while I went to sleep early. After a quick call to my dear husband, I fell asleep. They came back at about 930PM and I woke up. We decided to head out for a bite to eat. We had a HORRIBLE meal at Lucky Star restaurant a block from here. I ate at Orozco's last time and it was excellent. Lucky Star had very poor service and the food was terrible. After this, we went back to the hotel. I stopped across the street for some ice cream, and then came back to the hotel to find everyone asleep. I am now wide awake so I figured I'd begin my journal for this trip so that I don't miss anything.

 

My observations thus far:

 

Arrival in San Juan and getting a taxi is very easy. The cab fares are pre-negotiated so that takes the guess work out of things. They tell you up front what the per bag charge is, and we tipped the driver handsomely because of all of the bags that my crazy family brought. (I had 1 checked and 1 carry on - they packed like they were never going home again. I gently chided them as I am a light packing ****.) The ride here was smooth and less than 15 minutes.

 

I love the Marriott. Last time I stayed in a high floor corner room with an ocean and pool view. That was very nice but the convenience of the cabana room type was wonderful. I love that I can sit on my patio and look out at the pool if I don't feel like actually sitting at the pool. The service here is good. The rooms are nicely appointed and I love the marble counter tops with the dark wood in the bathroom. The huge rainfall showerhead really is a favorite of mine and I was really pleased that they have that in the bathroom here. Beds are not as comfy as I've had in other Marriotts but the linens and duvets and pillows are dreamy. One of the most important things to me, the air conditioning, works really well here and that's good considering the heat and humidity. I find the food and drinks to be outrageously expensive, which is in line with most resorts so we just choose not to eat and drink here much. The wireless internet here pretty much sucks and I was able to get online for about 5 minutes and not again since. I'm glad there is no charge. However, I'd be willing to pay for more reliable service with a stronger signal. The bell staff was excellent and our luggage arrived less than 10 minutes after we got in our room. I'm really pleased overall and would come back here again without hesitation. I booked long ago at the AAA member rate of $157 per night plus the taxes and resort fees for 3 city view rooms, and only paid $25 per room for the upgrades, 2 for the cabana rooms, and 1 for an upgrade to a higher floor full ocean view room. Plus the girl at the front desk worked vigilantly to get us into a room that was clean and vacant. At that point, I'd have paid $100 for the upgrade just to get in a room sooner than 4PM. I was in the red-eye funk.

 

Tomorrow it's up at about 8 for some pool time, reorganizing my suitcases, and then heading down to the port at around noon to drop our bags, and then meander around Old San Juan, which I did not do for my last cruise.

 

Victory, here we come!

[duchessuta]

I'm sailing on the Victory on the 16th!! I'm so excited! I'm so looking forward to the rest of your review!! :D

[purrlinda]

May 2nd, 2010

Embarkation Day

 

We woke up to terrible rain which nixed our plans for beach and pool fun. So, I slept in, which I needed. At 11:30, we checked out and got in a taxi to the port. Just as we arrived they began to call VIP check in and once they were finished they'd board zones. By the time we got all checked in, boarding was open and we got on the ship before 1PM. We enjoyed lunch on the lido and despite my desire to see OSJ, I decided just to stay on board and have a look at the ship while no one was on it. I went on a photo journey and I must say, this is probably my favorite theme for a ship. Yes, the sea horses are little devils, if you don't know about them, but I've thus far avoided confrontation.

 

I am in a category 4J - what they are now calling "Sky View". It's at the front of the ship and has a window that looks out over a pretty deserted deck where you can go outside and sit in some peace and quiet. I had one of these on the Splendor for 2 nights and enjoyed it. I'm on the Lido deck, in 9202 which is still 185 square feet but the layout makes it seem so much larger than my sister's 4G 9204. It's got a nice set up and our luggage was all here before 3:30PM which was muy excellente.

 

As far as the food goes, buffet food is just OK for me. But the food was tasty and filling and I've learned the art of not going hog wild on vacation anymore. Once our whole gang got on the ship (there are a total of 8 of us) we went to ride the water slide and much to our chagrin, it closed just before we got up there. Well, there's always tomorrow, right? We instead swam in the King of the Sea pool while others in our party had drinks. Suddenly, there was a burst of rain that got me out of the pool to protect the stuff I didn't want to get wet. I went back to the room, showered, and got dressed. 6 of us decided to do the open seating tonight. I had beef barley soup, chicken tenders with honey mustart for starters, then I had the flat iron steak with some peas and mac and cheese. For desert, it was the Warm Chocholate Melting Cake., I eat the top and the ice cream and take one bite of the melty stuff and them I'm through. I also enjoyed a hot chocolate. Having dined on Oceania last year as well as Holland America this past March, I do realize the huge difference in the level of food aboard Carnival. I think it's good, for the most part, it's more than I would be able to cook. Fancy food isn't a huge deal to me, so I have no complaints with the food here. However, I understand how it could come as a bit of a surprise from people who may have cruised more upscale lines to the type of food you get on Carnival. I think it's good quality stuff without all of the bells and whistles of some of the higher market lines. However, being a picky monster when it comes to food, it really suits my needs and I've always found the good to be enjoyable.

 

After dinner it was back to the room to get prepared for the muster drill. Hallelujah that they don't make us don the life vests. After this weas over, I headed down to the front desk to hand in my Luggage Express paperwork and the girl at the desk said this was the first time anyone ever came with this on embarkation day. I explained to her that the truth is, once I'm on vacation, I'd prefer to take care of business first so that all I have to "worry" about is kicking back and having fun. I am always uber prepared and that makes the less pleasant side of travel (airports, mostly) much smoother and more time to enjoy the rest.

 

After finishing that, I walked up to the Lido for the sail away party, which was fun. I'd lost most of my party at that point but apparently they saw me when I was up on deck 12. As I started walking down stairs, I saw a bunch of crazy people waving and realized it was them. I joined them for a few but really wanted to go to the piano bar. Angela is our piano bar hostess and I have to say, I've only ever experienced guys in here, and it's way different with a gal. I had a good time, sat next to a very attractive French fella who was talkative and friendly to me. My other friends/family were supposed to join me at 11 but they never showed.

 

In my quest for the Ship On A Stick, I failed. I only got 16 of the 20 songs for Name That Tune correct. I did, however, win a medal. My first little treasure. The second game was who could sing the loudest. I placed in the top 4 and screamed at the top of my lungs during some parts but I just could not beat this dude next to me. Foiled again! I did walk away with another medal, however.

 

I wandered around after this trying to find my peoples, but they were nowhere in sight. I played the new South Park slot machine in the casino and lost and then won a little back. I learned about this new fangled thing they have in the casinos where you have to cash out to your Sail and Sign card and then go to the cashier for your money. Very tricky! In some ways convenient, unless you only gamble a bit here in there. As I was leaving, I fancied a snack and there was a gentleman giving out pizza in the casino. So I went upstairs for pizza but the line was long so settled for a late night hot dog and some iced tea. I came back to my room to find my aunt asleep. Apparantly, they could not find the Irish Sea Bar and gave up. Goofs! I told her about my evening and now she's back to sleep.

 

I love the layout of this ship as well as the decor. I visited most of the public rooms and have to say that the color scheme in the Red and Black Seas Lounge is my favorite. I also love the Arctic Nightclub as well. The ship is full but feels really roomy which is nice. I like that we have this little deck outside of our room where we can go and get fresh air if we like. I also love being on the Lido deck since during the day, that's where I'll spend a good amount of time when I'm back from port and it's just a quick walk from my room. I love the bit of movement and swaying we are having right now as we're sailing. It will make me sleep like a baby. It's almost 2AM now and I want to be up for 7 tomorrow as there are 3 ships with about 9000 cruisers docked in St. Thomas tomorrow and I want to get an early start in Magen's Bay. I may also nose around the shops downtown and then go up to paradise point. I am thouroughly impressed with my new camera and I'd like some great scenery.

[purrlinda]

May 3rd, 2010

St. Thomas, USVI

 

I was intending to get up very early in the morning to get off to the beach. Well my aunt advised me around 7 that I might as well sleep because it was pouring rain. So I slept until about 9:30AM. I joined her and her 3 friends and we got a taxi to Magen's Bay. I was last there in October of 2007. There were hardly any people there, maybe 60 at the most. This was not the case this time. There were hundreds of people there. We found a spot on the more northern end that wasn't terribly full. I pretty immediately got in the water. The crowd didn't bother me much as the beach is really expansive and the water was still very clear and lovely. I love this water as it was the first time I ever swam in the ocean back in 2007. It's just so beautiful. I ended up renting a float and grabbed a piece of pizza and a coke. Wow - their pizza was delicious, which I was very surprised by! I hadn't eaten on the ship that morning so I was starving by 12PM when I finally had something. We all enjoyed floating in the water and didn't even mind when the rain began. It came and went so fast that it was no bother at all. Truly an enjoyable time. I rode with my companions to downtown and they got off to shop. I decided I did not want to shop so me and another friend grabbed another taxi and went back to the ship where we had lunch.

 

I have to say, I've made the observation that Carnival is very different experience for me this time around. I took the Destiny out of San Juan in 2007 and it was wonderful. On this cruise, buffet lines have been extremely long and getting food has been very time consuming. Even just to grab a burger and fries took 15 minutes. The quality of some of the food that I've had also seems to have diminished a bit. It does the job, so no complaints. I'm also not the most patient person in the worls and standing in line for stuff isn't my cup of tea. So to combat this, I've decided I probably won't eat at the buffet anymore. The food quality (except for the fresh stuff like salad ingredients and breads) was hit or miss.

 

Back on board, and fed, I decided that it was nap time. So I slept very hard for about 3 hours. The movement of the ship knocks me out and I sleep like a baby. My aunt woke me up before it was time for dinner.

 

The movement we've been experiencing has been a big surprise to me tonight. While I am grateful that I don't get dizzy or sea sick, I've had a difficult time getting my sea legs and walking around and keeping solid footing has been surprisingly hard and I've never had this experience before. My companions are all having a very hard time, one was turning green and needed to get the heck out of the dining room for some fresh air.

 

Dinner tonight was the first assigned dining. I was disappointed on a few things with our dining. First of all, all of our bookings were cross referenced and 7 of us were scheduled correctly for 815PM. One of us was scheduled for 6PM and in a different dining room. Also, we were put in the very front of the dining room, off to the port side, right in front of the kitchen doors along the window. I had requested the Atlantic dining room and somewhere in the middle. I enjoy the singing and dancing and like to be a part of that and it's best there in the middle. This didn't happen. I believe the Atlantic dining is primarily used for Your Time dining, so perhaps that's why we were sent to Pacific. My issue is that we are all the way forward and are dining in the aft dining room. I started my dinner with some baguette, and longing for the sundried tomato rolls they used to have which were so excellent. I also had the fried mozzarella which was delicious. The caesar salad was a little heavy on the anchovie paste so I didn't eat that. I somewhat enjoyed my entree, the beef stroganoff. I wish it'd be served with egg noodles. It was my sister's birthday and they brought her out a cake that I ordered from the Bon Voyage department. That was very nice. I also tried the Bitter and Blanc since I heard so much about it. It was indeed really good.

 

After dinner, I went to the casino for a bit. Then to the Irish Seas Bar for some sing-a-long. I don't much like the voice of the host there, but she has a good repertoire and the energy in there is cool. We then hit the Red and Black Seas lounge to watch some excellent karaoke, and then some really bad karakoe. After that, I came to my room and went to sleep. All in all, a nice day.

 

May 4th, 2010

Dominica

 

I woke up today not feeling that great. Just really tired. It was raining and I'd thought a couple of times about bailing on my excursion. We dined in the dining room and was in and out in less than 30 minutes with a great breakfast. I'll be doing this every morning from now on. The french toast and sausage were excellent. We went outside and found our excursion (booked via Carnival) for the Emerald Pool and Beach Pleasures. By the time we got into Morne Trois Pitons National Park, I was feeling really disoriented. The ride up the west coast was good, but getting into the interior was really windy. I didn't get "sick" per se, but I was dizzy. I decided not to take the walk into the pool area and I'm glad I didn't as it poured and was a difficult walk up from the pool, as my mom told me. I did a bit of shopping there, and then we drove to Mero Beach. This so far was one of the highlights of the trip. I am a big fan of black sand beaches. The excursion included a drink, a chair, and umbrella, and you didn't have to pay the $1 for the restrooms. I got right into the water and it was very warm,. The sand wasn't glassy and particle-like as it was when I was in Hawaii. It's much softer and easy on the feet. It was warm, but walkable without shoes today. I couldn't believe the clarity of the water once I got in. I floated, swam, and just really really enjoyed myself. I was with my mom, sister, and her fiance today and we had such a good time and I was feeling much better than the morning. Also, by the time we got there, the weather was sunny and the skies blue. Laying on my back and floating while looking up at bright blue sky and marshmallow fluffy clouds was a truely awesome moment.

 

After the 90 minutes at the beach, we headed back down the coast to Roseau (Rose-Oh - I always thought it was pronounced Rose-Ay) and went for a scenic drive through the botanical gardens and then up to Morne Bruce for some photo opportunity. Cemetaries are an interesting thing to me and we saw a few and I was able to snap a picture from above.

 

Back on the ship, I ordered room service, cleaned up, and packed my bag for tomorrow in Barbados. I have a long day with lots of stuff to do so I want to be as prepared as possible. Tomorrow I'm going on my own, as everyone is doing their own thing, and I'm looking forward to that. After spending the last 10 months planning all of this for myself and 7 other people, I'm looking forward to going on my tour alone.

 

Tonight I had two portions of the stuffed mushrooms. They were tasty. I also had the greek salad and the chicken breast. Before dinner, I had a quick stop at the casino and won 57 bucks which was cool. After dinner I headed back up to my room and now I'm getting ready for bed because tomorrow's a big day.

 

May 5th, 2010

Barbados

 

I woke up, showered, and got ready and headed off the ship without having breakfast. I just didn't have time as I wanted to make sure that I had enough time to get to my meeting point.

 

After reading both good and bad reviews of Glory Tours on CC and TripAdvisor, I decided that I would give it a go and see how things went. Last time I was in Barbados, I went to Harbor Lights and partied, drank a lot, and stumbled back to the ship. While the beach was lovely, I didn't really get to experience the island itself. So for this trip,l I wanted something comprehensive and less generic than what the ship had to offer. So I chose the Best of Barbados with Option 2 (beach or shopping). Sarah from Glory Tours was always quick to respond to inquiries and her directions on meeting the driver was simple.

 

I saw a gentleman with the Glory Tours sign right outside the port exit. His name was Jamal. I find out that he is not my driver. My driver is stuck in nasty traffic due to the big Cricket match happenning here today. (Bangladesh vs Australia, if anyone cares.) He says he will take me to meet my driver. This worked out really well as I didn't have to wait out in the hot sun for my driver. I was picked up by Quammie about 5 minutes after we arrived at the meeting point. There were 2 couples plus me in a 12 passenger van with awesome air conditioning and the extra space was a nice treat. Quammie is an excellent story teller and you can tell that he loves his country.

 

Our first stop on this trip was Harrison's Cave. This has recently reopened after a major rennovation and the grounds were immaculate. I took the elevator down to the Gully Floor as opposed to walking because it was a glass elevator with an excellent view. When I got down there, I took a lot of pictures of the flora. It was beautiful. I then spotted my first cat of my vacation. She was a feral cat and I was told that there are 3 of them. She was skittish, so no petting, but I did get some pictures. I am a member of the unofficial crazy cat ladies society and proud of it. We had a bit of a wait until the tour but the grounds were nice enough to keep me busy. Just smelling the fresh air and looking up at the perfect blue sky was peaceful and calming. When we were allowed into the introduction center, I was amazed at the amount of information given regarding the formation of Barbados and how it differs from the rest of the Caribbean islands. We were then shown a movie about this, as well as how the caves were discovered and developed. Next, we boarded what looked like brand new trams for the narrated tour through the caves. There are no words to describe the sights, so I will just post pictures when I return home. I love water and rocks (and most geological wonders) so this was a wonderful experience. I joked with the guide that I was going to end up arrested for jumping in one of the pools. I can't wait to share my photos.

 

Our second stop was at Andromeda Gardens. I hadn't heard of this place before but the drive there was exceptional and full of GREEN. The views were outstanding. The gardens themselves were not very impressive, but I did spot my second cat of this trip. This one was a boy and was very friendly with a gentleman who was sitting on a bench. It was a wild cat so I wasn't going to approach it. But it was meowing a lot and wanted some of this man's food. I badly wanted to give the kitty something, but I had nothing on me. It broke my heart a little because these cats are outside in their fur with stifling heat. I really am a bleeding heart cat nut. Our stop after Andromeda was Batsheba. A 5 minute photo op did not do the trick for me. I wanted to sit there for a few hours and meditate. The water and rock formations was amazing and I enjoyed watching the surfers. Next time I am in Barbados, I will spend a day in this area for sure.

 

After Batsheba, we stopped for lunch. I had fries and beef stew. It was nothing to write home about, but got the job done and a nice ice cold coke was great. I spotted my third cat meandering around next door to the restaurant.

 

We then drove up to the Wilflife Reserve. We got to feed some green monkeys and I'd never seen them before. There were quite a few mom's with babies holding on to them. I swear, for a moment, I thought they were in pouches. They would take the feed right out of my hand and eat it. They are amazing little creatures. I got a good amount of photos. Then, we entered the actual reserve and I only had 15 minutes as my tour was shorter than the others becuase they were staying on the island and I still had beach time to do and had to back to the ship. This was all well organized. During my time in the reserve I saw some beautiful tortoises, deer, and while this wasn't feeding time for the monkeys, there were a ton of them about, just playing around. It was during this time that I had an indecent monkey encounter. I was wearing a very long skirt that apparently attracked a couple of the more rowdy ones. One in particular kept grabbing my skirt, and was trying to remove the beads towards the bottoms with his hands. It was hilarious. I walked ahead a bit and he followed. There was one point where I had two monkeys playing with my skirt, and one stuck his head under it. It was quite funny, as the skirt is very flowy and they'd leave me alone and then the wind would blow and they'd get all grabby again. It was a unique experience. I also saw a very sleepy monkey that made me laugh. These pictures and videos are awesome and I can't wait to share. I was then picked up by Jamal who drove some of his guests to Holetown. Then Sarah drove myself and two other passengers back to the cruise terminal. I then went on for a dip in the sea and she waited for me while I spent some nice quiet alone time floating around in Browne's beach. By this point it was mostly deserted and I had an amazing 20 minutes of sea to enjoy. I could have stayed longer but that was enough for me.

 

Sarah and I had a great talk about the island, her business, the history, and stuff on the way back. I paid her the balance of my tour and went back to the ship. I got all of this, entrance fees and lunch included for $81. I tipped Quammie $10 and the guide at the caves $10. I also bought a few trinkets. It was a truly amazing experience.

 

Back on board, I met up with my mom, sister, and her fiance. They took the taxi over to the Boat Yard and had the time of their lives. They couldn't stop talking about how much fun they had. They told me that it was a big party beach. Very good for the younger crowd looking for a party on a nice beach. For $10 they got entrance, a chair, umbrella, and a drink. They also got a free ride back to the ship and the taxi over to the beach was only $3 per person.

 

Now, on the other hand, my aunt and her friends had a horrible experience. I'd advised them that if they want beach time that they should try Accra/Rockley, Paynes, or The Boat Yard. They decided just to get off the ship, walk out to the random taxi drivers outside of the port, and tell them they wanted to go to the beach and to shop. Well. The guy dropped them off at this beach where they had to walk through an alley to get onto the beach. His son was there to help them and said there would be chair and umbrellas set up. However, only 1 of them wanted a chair. Some beach vendors came up and started rubbing aloe on one of them and when they tried to put it on my aunt, she told him not to touch her. They told the man's son that they wanted to be picked up and taken to another beach. I guess the guy wasn't real happy, but took them to Paynes. The one friend had to pay for another chair. He then took them to Bridgetown, but the shopping wasn't good, so they went back to the ship. They were each charged $10. Honestly, I wish they would have listened to what I had to say. (I am a travel agent and I also do tremendous amounts of research.) I could have set something up for them. They didn't go to the official taxi stand so they knew nothing about the pricing to various beaches. A little more preparation and they would have had a very different day.

 

When I got back, I enjoyed some time on the Lido for sail away. About 10 minutes after the boat started sailing, I was out like a light in my deck chair. Next thing I know it's close to 6:30PM and my mom is waking me up to let me know that they are heading to get ready for dinner. If she hadn't woken me up, I probably would have slept through to the morning out there. It was just so comfortable and lovely. It was nice and breezy and the ship movement puts me right to sleep.

 

I talked for a while at dinner tonight with our waiter regarding how things have changed at Carnival in the last couple of years. The cutbacks seem to be extensive. He was telling me how they no longer get one day off during the week (they used to work breakfast, and not have to be back until dinner 1 day during the week). He talked about the cutting of the Gala Buffet, and other things. I told him that I've noticed the quality of the food is remarkably different than it was when I was on in October of 2007. He nodded in agreement. I also told him that the staff doesn't seem as energetic as I remember and it seems like moral is down a bit. He seemed like he really appreciated the conversation. He's been really great all week so I'm keeping some loot aside for him. For dinner I had the chicken quesadilla which was great, and the french onion soup was also excellent. For my main course, for the second night in a row I had the corn fed chicken breast. For desert it was a scoop of chocolate and vanilla ice cream along with a hot chocolate.

 

I enjoyed a little time in the casino before heading up to the Lido for the Monster Deck Party. After about 5 minutes I decided I'd prefer a quiet night in my cabin instead.

 

I feel like a bit of a fuddy duddy as I haven't really done much by way of entertainment or activity other than the 1st night when I sang my butt off at the piano bar.

 

Today was by far, one of the best vacation days I've ever had, and certainly the best of this trip.

 

Tomorrow is St. Lucia and I decided to use this as my "sea" day. So it's sleep in time and some spa indulgence for me!

[dolfndreams]

Enjoying the review; brings back memories and great hints for next year. I may need to try Harrison's cave.

 

Looking forward to the pics.

[crusing48/51]

Very nice journal! Keep it coming, it is so enjoyable to read. I like to hear other travelers "take" on things before I go , and your writing is fitting that desire very well. Thank you for taking the time to do this!

[SoonerOne]

Thanks for your review, hoping for pictures! :) We are going in October and are on the Lido deck also. We've heard nothing but good things about the Victory and the itinerary. Looking forward to our cruise! :D

[lrtjs5]

It seems to be the problem might be with the Victory staff. I just got off theTriumph and I thought the staff was the most enthusiastic of any I have been on. This doesn't make me feel very good about my Victory trip in a few weeks.

[chachi]

Thanks for the detailled review. I am looking forward to reading the rest of it. I will be on it in 2 months!

[ladyj3641]

Thanks for taking the time to write this review. I can't wait until my Victory cruise next month!!!

[CruiseLover824]

I am enjoying your journal....I just did this cruise and loved it!

 

 

 

It seems to be the problem might be with the Victory staff. I just got off theTriumph and I thought the staff was the most enthusiastic of any I have been on. This doesn't make me feel very good about my Victory trip in a few weeks.

 

I loved the Victory crew! Everyone who I encountered was super friendly. I especially liked our dining room waiter and his assistant! Very enthusiastic and fun!

[lrtjs5]

Thanks, that is good to hear. The crew can have a big effect on the enjoyment of a cruise. But, I have not been on a cruise that I didn't enjoy and they have all been Carnival.

[TortieGal]

It seems to be the problem might be with the Victory staff. I just got off theTriumph and I thought the staff was the most enthusiastic of any I have been on. This doesn't make me feel very good about my Victory trip in a few weeks.

 

I would agree with the staff observations. We sailed Victory 4/18 and I'm not the only one who was commenting on this. They just don't seem happy. Usually everyone you meet says hello. Not on our sailing. Even our dining service was a bit of a train wreck. Definitely the worst service of my 8 cruises.

[Shahoian]

Enjoying the journal; we're on the ship on the 16th.

 

Not sure if I'm now resetting my expectations re: comments on staff and food, but we'll make the most of it!

[techgrad03]

Any updates?

[Jeans*Fanatic]

I am sooo loving this review!!!! I can't wait to read the rest!

[Buffettfan 225]

May 2nd, 2010

Embarkation Day

 

I headed down to the front desk to hand in my Luggage Express paperwork and the girl at the desk said this was the first time anyone ever came with this on embarkation day. I explained to her that the truth is, once I'm on vacation, I'd prefer to take care of business first so that all I have to "worry" about is kicking back and having fun. I am always uber prepared and that makes the less pleasant side of travel (airports, mostly) much smoother and more time to enjoy the rest.

 

 

1.)We are sailing Victory July 4th, can you get a copy of Luggage express for details on flight times? We sail Continental at 12:08 and wanted to know if noon is not to early, I have read conflicting posts. How did you get a copy so early in cruise--we are same planners, if I could fill out at home I would!

Please post debarkation if you meet at a special time for Luggage Express in a lounge, and how it went. Thanks, I love the service not worrying about luggage. (although in San Juan I think you pick it up, move it to area for them to take to airport- not like putting in hall and not seeing until home airport.)

2.)Debarkation day, Will you confirm if carry ons need to be screened at USDA since you did luggage express.

 

Are you doing behind the scenes tour?

[PreciousCruiser]

I cruised on The Victory 4/25-5/2/10 and had an overall AWESOME CRUISE! From the ship, the service, to the food and the islands and tours. The weather was perfect! The only thing I might mention is that it is probably time for The Victory to be updated some, but even that did not bother us. We were so excited to be on this specific cruise/itinerary that we never thought of anything negative, cause there was soooo many positives. All of our tours were great and when we returned from a day in port, we thoroughly enjoyed the ship, meeting up with some of our new friends we met on the ship, dining in the MDR in the evening, the casino, piano bar, karoke bar, entertainment in the theater, etc. Just wished there were more hours in the day/night to be able to enjoy it even more than we did!!!!

[purrlinda]

Hi everyone! I'm finally home and am posting the last half of my cruise.

 

I just want to say something - I'm a firm believer in everyone's experience being unique as well as everyone's views being different. I write from a really personal standpoint, and there were lots of things I enjoyed and some things I criticized. Please don't allow this to make you concerned about your upcoming trips.

 

As far as service goes, it was good in the places where it really counted - the dining room and our stateroom. I've been comparing a lot of my experiences on this cruise to my last 7 night cruise in 2007. On this cruise, I felt the staff were more subdued and not as lively. This might not be a bad thing, but after talking to our dining room staff, they explained a lot of the recent changes and how it's affected everyone on board.

 

Here goes the tale of the rest of my journey.

 

May 6, 2010

St. Lucia

 

I decided to cancel my shore excursion in St. Maarten so I had to get up early to catch the opening time for the desk. After cancelling it, I had breakfast in the dining room, then, headed back up to my room and went back to sleep. I spent the afternoon resting and then met up with my sister for lunch. The Taste of Nations was Mexico. Nothing on there except for the beef empanadas looked edible. So I picked up a couple of those, and then went to the regular buffet. I ended up only getting salad, as the rest of the food there was unappealing. Eventually, I went in the back for pizza, but the line was very long and so I ended up with a burger and some chicken tenders for lunch. I only ate half of the burger. I tried to get a coke in the dining room but was advised I had to go to the bar and get it myself. On embarkation day, they were happy to get me a drink, and on my cruise in 2007 they got them for me in the buffet area so I was surprised. I grabbed a coke and the pizza place wasn't full so I got a slice of pepperoni and that was decent.

 

After lunch, I went up for my hot stone massage. I have to say, the spa was not as impressive as the spa on the Splendor. Perhaps because that is so new. On the Victory, there was no relaxation room, no place to have some tea or something before the treatment. Just walked straight into the treatment room and she asked some questions, then had me get ready for the massage. I have a lot of problem areas including my shoulders, upper back, and legs. The massage was excellent. I was in a lot of pain (a good thing) afterwards from the work done on my knotty muscles. It was at this point that she began to give me the spiel about the products that I was going to take home and how to use them. There were 3 and the total was going to come out to a bit over $160. She told me that if I did not alkalize my muscles and get rid of some of the lactic acid build up, it could cause me to be sick and could lead to health concerns such as fibromyalgia. When I told her that I was not interested in spending that kind of money she offered to reduce the cost of my treatment. When I didn't agree, she tried to sell me the most important 2 products. I told her that the products were not in my budget. At this point, she started another pitch and I told her that I would not be buying any products today. I felt somewhat bad about this because of the way it was presented, but the massage plus tip was $165 and for me that was a mega splurge. I felt uncomfortable with the whole sales process when it came to products. Sure, offering them is one thing, but the repeated attempts began to frustrate me a bit.

 

After my massage I went and took a shower and had a bit of a rest. Then I went down for dinner. I had some cream of broccoli soup that I didn't like very much. I had a house salad, and then the Chateaubriand. I thought that was most excellent. I didn't care for the mashed potatoes or peas. I ordered the baked alaska for desert, which I was extremely excited about. This is usually my favorite cruise desert. However, the meringue was barely cooked and the cake was very dry. The ice cream was good, though.

 

I enjoyed some karakoe and actually sang Rehab by Amy Winehouse which entertained and I had a good time. We then went to the late night naughty comedy in the Adriatic lounge. After that, it was bedtime.

 

May 7th, 2010

St. Kitts

 

I'd ordered room service the night before since we had an early rise for our tour. We got some juice, coffee, and bagels and then got off the ship. Rose, from Rose and Jim's Taxi was waiting for us at the port and we all got into Rose's van. It was a very comfortable 12 passenger van, there were only 6 of us so it was nice to have a private tour. I can't get over how nice it is to have these small tours as opposed to ship excursions. It's probably the thing I'm most grateful to CC for. Anyway, we started out visiting the sites of Basseterre where Rose gave us a lot of the history of the island. Our first stop was the Caribelle Batik at Romney Manor. This was an amazing stop and I spent quite a bit of money here on a kaftan, purse, hair pin, and passport holder. It was most excellent. We walked around the garden a bit and then got in the van to go to Brimstone Hill Fortress. This was amazing. I viewed everything from the second level as it was a bit of a hike to the top level and I'm terribly out of shape. I watched the little movie in the orientation center and it was really cool to see how the fortress was made. I visited with a couple of local kitty cats. I also began to use the panorama function on my new camera and it was really cool. Our next stop was at the black rocks, the area where lava flowed into the ocean. Rocks and water are favorite sites of mine so this was pure awesome. So awesome, I can't put it into words, only pictures, which I will post when I can load all of my photos. My friend got a coconut to drink there and when finished with the water, it was split open and she ate the coconut inside and said it was excellent. We also saw the spot where the Caribbean and Atlantic meet. That was cool. We then had about 45 minuts of scenic driving (narrated by Rose) down to Cockleshell beach and the Reggae Beach Bar. There were splendid views all over this drive. I particularly liked when we got to the very narrow point of the peninsula where you look one way and you're looking at the Atlantic, and the other way and you're looking at the Caribbean sea. What's cool about this is that the Atlantic is all rough and wavy and the Caribbean is calm. Nice contrast.

 

Arriving at Cockleshell, we were all starving so we went to Reggaes. The beach was extremely crowded and it was very hot. But we sat down to eat and while the food was very good (cheeseburger and fries) it took almost an hour to get, which took a huge chunk out of our beach time. I also have to admit that I was quite bothered by all of the flies at our table. I typically don't eat outside, and I know this is just a small nuisance when doing so, but it did bother me a bit. I visited with Wilbur, little Wilbur, Oliver (the ververt monkey) and the goat - which I didn't learn her name. She did, however, begin to chew on my dress through the cage. Very nice to meat you, Miss Goat. I was really upset to see a man giving Oliver some beer. If I weren't in a different country, I probably would have opened a can of whoop-a$$ on him. I actually have to say that I didn't find the caging of those animals on the beach to be really humane. I've heard that during the day when cruise passengers are not in town, they are out and about. Rose told me that the goat loves to buck people now. Yikes! It just seems odd that as so many of these animals roam free over the island, that these are caged for entertainment.

 

When I got down to the water, I was disappointed a bit. The water didn't have the clarity that I'd expected. Also, looking to the left, there was a crane working on rocks, etc... Rose told me that they are beginning to build all over the island, and in particular, this area. There are going to be a lot of condos and hotels developed over the coming years on the peninsula. That's too bad. I did notice that if you went over to the right side a bit, the water quality was much better. I had a quick dip but became anxious to get back to the ship to start my packing.

 

While at the beach, we met Rose's husband, Jim. He was quite lovely. We drove back to the ship and Rose showed us to a store that had tons of stuff on close out and my family got lots of goodies at.

We said good bye to Rose and I am so greatful that we did this trip. It was really excellent.

 

We had dinner and then I packed up and went to bed fairly early.

 

May 8th, 2010

St. Maarten

 

I woke up just before 11 and decided to head out. I was planning to get the water taxi to Phillipsburg or a taxi to Maho. When I got on the pier, I saw one of my travel companions who said she and our other friend took the water taxi, got 2 chairs and an umbrella and 5 beers for $15 and she told me the water was nice there. So I joined them on the beach., Great Bay is nice, but flooded with beach vendors who are relentless for the duration of our time there. The same people over and over asking us to buy something. When walking off the water taxi, I went right (as my friend told me they were on that side of the beach). The beach was rocky getting in but then got nice and sandy. However, the clarity wasn't that great. Later, I decided to Jet Ski and had to go to the other side of the beach and the water there was much nicer, more clear, and a bit cooler. Jet Skiiing was superb. I went full throttle for a while and skidding across the water with the wind and the sun and the sea all there was exactly what I needed. I even squeeeeeee'd a little bit while doing it. A nice release of energy. I wish I'd have been able to stay on longer. Afterwards, I had lunch at the Ocean Terrace restaurant at the Holland House Hotel. It was the best cheeseburger I'd had and a nice treat after a week of ship food. I then took the water taxi back to the ship where I started feeling really sick. I got to my room and noticed insane sunburn on the back of my arms and my hands. Places I guess I didn't get well enough and they were completely exposed during jet skiing. I did so well all week with the sun and so I was really bummed that I got burned on the last day. The pain was pretty bad but I had 3 nurses traveling with me and they had aloe with lidocaine. It didn't help a lot. I also took some motrin and a nap when I got back on board. Then, I got up and had dinner and enjoyed a nice evening with everyone and said goodbye to our waiters. Our head waiter was really wonderful and showed me pictures of his 2 month old son back in Goa. His current contract doesn't end until November. I can't imagine how hard that would be. We tipped him generously at the end of the evening and gave hugs goodbye. I then went back up to my room, took care of my luggage, and went to bed.

 

May 9th, 2010

Debarkation

 

I used luggage express so I was to be in the Caribbean Lounge at 8AM. I set a wake up call for 7, but it came at 6. I had breakfast in the Lido and said goodbye to all of my friends and family. I had purchased Carnival's transfers. Debarkation went really well for me. I was there at 8, got let off at 8:15, and was in my transfer by 8:30AM. I made it to the airport and through security before 9AM. My flight wasn't until 1245PM. I called my mom to find out if they'd made it off alright (they had a later flight) and she told me that they were sititng at gate 36. I was at gate 37 so I got to spend a few extra hours hanging out with my mom, sister, and her fiance. It was nice.

 

I flew US Airways to Charlotte and here I sit finishing up my vacation thoughts before my flight back to Los Angeles. I didn't find US Airways to offer very good service, even in first class, so I don't think I'll fly them again. My Delta flights on the way there were excellent.

 

Here are some things that I learned during this cruise:

 

1. I will always remove the auto-tips and tip out in cash so I know for myself exactly what goes into whose hands. I didn't do this on this cruise but it seems to make the most sense to me to do this. This time I prepaid gratuities but I think I'd be more comfortable giving cash to the guys and gals who provide me with service.

 

2. Luggage Express is not worth $20 to me. I never received my envelope. I called the front desk and they told me they would check with my steward. By 8PM on Saturday night, I still didn't have my tags or boarding passes, though everyone else in my party did. I had to go to the front desk, which was madness. I was then given my luggage tag and my boarding pass from San Juan to Charlotte but not my connecting flight. The woman said they didn't give the connecting flight boarding pass. However, my aunt had hers. So she had to get someone to help her get my other boarding pass. During the week there was some concern about the cost of luggage for my family as they were told they would be charged the current rates from Delta, when they booked their tickets back when the fees were $15/$25. Guest services told us they only charge the passenger what Delta charges them. I asked the same for US Airways. They said yes. Since I have a first class ticket, I am allowed 2 bags free. This morning, when I got my bill, I was charged $25 for my checked luggage. So when I got to the airport, I checked with US who advised me that yes, first class passengers do not pay for luggage. They told me that I will have to contact Carnival, and Carnival will then probably tell me to contact US Airways. She looked in my reservation and told me that she saw no payment of $25. My aunt and her friends were also charged incorrectly. So it seems to me that this was more trouble than it was worth. My mother and sister and Brandon had no issue just getting off the ship, getting their luggage, a taxi, and getting to the airport in a reasonable time.

 

3. I'm giddy about local tour operators versus cruise line excursions. They are so much cheaper and so much better with the small groups of people. I loved the ones I did in Barbados and St. Kitts. When I go to Barbados for vacation next year, I'm planning to hire Glory Tours a couple of times while I am there. I'm not comfortable enough to drive on my own there. Those two days were the best days of my entire cruise and I am so happy to have gotten over the FEAR OF GOD that gets put into you about not booking cruise excursions.

 

4. I definitely prefer land based vacations to cruises. I thought they were about equal before this cruise but I now know that I do prefer to go to another place and stay in a nice hotel and explore that place. (Like on my trips to Mexico and Hawaii.) This isn't to say that I won't cruise again because I do enjoy checking out new places, but I don't do it for the cruise experience. I don't go to a lot of shows, I don't spend much time at the pool or out on deck. I actually spent a lot of time in my room becuase I liked the peace and quiet. This means that when I do cruise again in the future, I will definitely go with a balcony for some quiet outdoor time.

 

5. Carnival has changed a lot since my last cruise in 2007. I'm guessing it's the budgetary issues and the economic situation that befell on the world economy. The biggest part of this was in the food. The buffet food for breakfast was decent, but I found the lunch to be sorely lacking except for the salad bar. Dinner was good, but not great, as I remembered it to be. I did enjoy 2 days on the Splendor in 2009 and found the food then to be not as good as the Destiny in 2007, but better than the Victory on this trip. Also, the amount of pressure on the ancillary sales was at times, mindnumbing. Due to the low cruise prices, it seems important more now than ever for them to sell things to break even on these sailings. I understand that but the continuous announcements about excursions, shopping, deals, bingo, casino, were a bit much, not to mention the high pressure pitch after my massage to purchase the Elemis products. Last time, they were offered, I politely declined, and they ended it there. This time it was pressed much further and it killed my spa buzz.

 

6. The Victory is a beautiful ship. As I said during the beginning of my review, I loved the theme. It needs some freshening up, but for it being a 10 year old ship, I found it in good shape. I did not get attacked by the Sea Horses of Doom, thankfully. I think that after the upcoming dry dock (I believe in November?) she will look a lot fresher. I have no complaints about the ship itself.

 

7. I experienced no rude passengers on this ship. No one cutting in front of anyone the few times I went to the buffet. Everyone was friendly, no one rowdy.

 

8. Carnival has so much to offer everyone by way of entertainment through the day and night. On an itinerary that is this chock full of ports, I think some might feel like they have to choose between the ship and the ports. For me, it was all about the ports. For some, it might be a little overwhelming.

 

9. I totally over did it with the planning. I didn't stick to everything that I thought I'd do on this cruise and I've learned lots about my limits when it comes to the amount of stuff I can do in just one week!

 

This was another learning experience for me, which I'm grateful for. It really sparked my love for the Caribbean once more and brought it to a new level. It's an amazing itinerary. Someone in my party said "you see one island, you've seen them all". I could not disagree more with that sentiment. Each island is so unique in culture, geography, landscape, and history.

 

I'm happy to answer any questions anyone might have.

 

I'm in the process of uploading 524 photos that I took on this trip. I'll post a handful, and then link to my online gallery for those who really want to see them all.

 

Thanks for reading!

[purrlinda]

Enjoying the journal; we're on the ship on the 16th.

 

Not sure if I'm now resetting my expectations re: comments on staff and food, but we'll make the most of it!

 

Have a great time! I had expectations in line with my last cruise in 2007 and it didn't meet them. In the end, it was primarily the food that was a bit of a disappointment.

[purrlinda]

1.)We are sailing Victory July 4th, can you get a copy of Luggage express for details on flight times? We sail Continental at 12:08 and wanted to know if noon is not to early, I have read conflicting posts. How did you get a copy so early in cruise--we are same planners, if I could fill out at home I would!

Please post debarkation if you meet at a special time for Luggage Express in a lounge, and how it went. Thanks, I love the service not worrying about luggage. (although in San Juan I think you pick it up, move it to area for them to take to airport- not like putting in hall and not seeing until home airport.)

2.)Debarkation day, Will you confirm if carry ons need to be screened at USDA since you did luggage express.

 

Are you doing behind the scenes tour?

 

I'm sorry, I didn't bring the copy of the Luggage Express details home with me - I didn't get a chance to log back in until today, and I'm at home. Carnival's official flight guideline for this cruise is 12:30PM but I was at the airport by 9am. The copy for signing up for the luggage express was in my fun times on embarkation night. I filled it out that night and handed it in. Read the rest of my review; I had some problems with the service.

 

You have to have your carry on's screened at USDA before you are able to go through security. It was pretty quick. The airport was dead as a door nail until about 11AM on debarkation day. I think you'll be fine with the 12PM flight. My mom did not do luggage express and she originally had tag 22. We were advised that anyone with flights prior to 145PM should go to the front desk on Saturday and get luggage tags for early flights - bring your itinerary. They will give you an earlier bag tag - my mom got 3. She ended up at the airport less than 30 minutes after I got there, and I did luggage express.

 

The way it works in San Juan is that you pick up the bags after you get off the ship, just before you walk through customs. Then, after walking towards the ground transportation area, you will see representatives with black shirts that says BAGS. You hand them your luggage, they ask you the airline, and off it goes. You don't see it until you go home. If it weren't for the aggravation of being charged for luggage when I shouldn't have been, as well as having to chase down my boarding passes and luggage tag, as it wasn't delivered to me, I wouldn't have minded paying the $20.

[purrlinda]

Photos are up:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/melindatravels/2010Caribbean#

 

I'm positively exhausted, or I'd post a few here. There's over 400 in my gallery, but I'll post a few favorites on her in the next couple of days.

[camperhawk]

Photos are up:

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/melindatravels/2010Caribbean#

 

I'm positively exhausted, or I'd post a few here. There's over 400 in my gallery, but I'll post a few favorites on her in the next couple of days.

Wonderful journal and great info, just what I needed after a a very long day at work! Thankyou

 

Will be looking at you photos and the rest of your posts tomorrow after at my late hour!