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Live Emerald b2b Jan 17 and Jan 27

vickie_bernie

By vickie_bernie,
in Princess Cruises

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cdnguy

cdnguy

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Out of curiosity, how long is the walk from the ferry pier to Honeymoon Beach?
Hi Vickie. Hope you don't mind me answering for you.

The pier to the beach is probably several hundred yards but when you get off the ferry there's quite a steep hill and then as you approach the beach there's another long hill down to the water. If your short of breath just take your time. Also one thing to remember, and my wife reminded me of this, :mad: your a long way from urgent medical help on the island so if your an older person like me, just be aware of that.

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Tweedy

Tweedy

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Hi Vickie. Hope you don't mind me answering for you.

The pier to the beach is probably several hundred yards but when you get off the ferry there's quite a steep hill and then as you approach the beach there's another long hill down to the water. If your short of breath just take your time. Also one thing to remember, and my wife reminded me of this, :mad: your a long way from urgent medical help on the island so if your an older person like me, just be aware of that.

 

Thanks for answering. Is it like a 15 minute walk, 30 minutes walk... 1/2 mile, a mile??

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PescadoAmarillo "Live from...." Rare

PescadoAmarillo

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Just a quick FYI- there is free wifi in the terminal on Grenada and if you get off the ship early (we walked off at 7:05 this morning) it is fast enough to make Skype calls (for about 2 cents a minute, vs. $2 a minute using the cell system).

 

Having a great time! Really enjoyed a long walk on Dominica and last night's production show (I've got the Music). We leave Grenada early today (on board by 1:30) to arrive in Bonaire by noon tomorrow. The arrival into Bonaire is not to be missed (on this exact itinerary)...the ship skirts right around Klein Bonaire.

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vickie_bernie

vickie_bernie

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We are pulling in Roseau the Capital of Dominica and we are the other pier, but it isn’t far and the ship tells us it is a short walk, about a mile, and if we want a ride it should go for about $2 per person. It is raining but lightly and should pass soon.

We were met at the pier by Neysa who was our guide last year, but this year we are missing her daughter. Our group consisted of 20 and we filled two vans for the 30 min ride to the river. Antour was waiting for us at the drop off spot and informed us that the river is flowing really fast and therefore we are starting a little bit down stream but we will travel further than last time.

I recognized some of the guides from last year! They are all so great, so professional and very friendly and are very professional. The water is really flowing – we didn’t get stuck as the current kept us flowing.

After about 40 minutes of riding the tubes were went ashore and everyone is treated to a cold beverage, either water, soda, or rum punch (Kennedy Punch made with the local rum), so guess what I had, yup the rum punch.

Neysa promises to take us to a local place for cold local beers and doesn’t disappoint. We then stop at the store so we can all buy local beer and the rum punch.

We are dropped off at the terminal and we head back on quickly to shower and go back ashore.

We want to go downtown and get a meal ashore, the taxi quickly drops us off right at the other pier and we stop for a meal. We share an entrée of mahi mahi fish with a coconut curry and Bernie has a bowl of pumpkin soup. Both were so good and we are so glad we indulged. We then head out on foot exploring the town, Bernie even helped a car that broke down in an intersection by giving them a push and getting it started. We ended up walking back to the ship so I could take some water shots.

We are back on just before sailaway and I head up to watch the sailaway as Bernie makes another attempt at trivia. Tonight the Café Caribe is offering Bavarian Night so we decide to head up there for a quick bite. We then head to Skywalkers for the Most Travelled Cocktail Party and have a nice conversation with Deidra the Customer Service Manager. After the cocktail party we head to Club Fusion for 70’s multi media trivia and we come in second. We are both tired and head to bed shortly after ten.

 

pictures can be seen at my blog

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vickie_bernie

vickie_bernie

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Grenada the Spice Island

We wake up to the ship’s thrusters pulling us into the dock. Celebrity is in port with us and the skies have opened and it is pouring rain. We meet up with Brian/Christine and Paul/Yvonne in the Coffee Bar with plans to go ashore and have a photo competition. Paul discusses the rules and the topic, today the photo topic is signs – so after the rain stops we head out, and man is it humid!

We trek around the town and up and down mountain sides, up to the Fort and then back down! Pictures are snapped everywhere trying to gain the prize.

A cold beverage is needed we all agree so we head to BB’s Crabback (which is recommended by the ship’s Cruise Director Tim) www.bbscrabback.com

Anna takes care of us with a cold drink, beer for the guys and a rum drink made with fresh fruit juices. Bernie and I share the appetizer of crab and goat curry for our entrée with pumpkin fritters. All I can say is wow how good, and just over the railing we watch a guy snorkel for shells and he catches a octopus and show us, pretty neat.

We walk back to the ship as we depart early today, and all aboard is 1:30. We stop at the Coffee Bar for a drink and chat with the bar tenders as they are very busy. These workers are amazing, they really have patience, certainly more than either of us could handle. As we sit there we see two couples beside us who personally I would of reached over and strangled.

Crew on board the Emerald are amazing and go so far out of their way to accommodate all our needs. Nicola the Matre D’Hotel has been so wonderful and we are glad we got the chance to say thank you personally today to him. Kikki and Nicole, oh and Robson at the front desk make us feel so special and their quick hello to us as we pass makes us feel special. Peter at the Captain Circle Desk is such a joy to be around, you can certainly see the extra effort he puts in to make all the passengers not just the past passengers but the new ones feel special.

Tonight is the first of two Captain Circle gatherings. Tonight is all the white hot deck party, which we hope to make it to as it is always a guaranteed good time. I also took part in the elevator roulette at the aft elevators where I met four lovely ladies from Victoria who I was glad to see won the last round.

I am sitting here enjoying a glass of white wine with some cheese and fruit as I wait for Bernie to come back from the afternoon trivia.

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cormike1

cormike1

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I am really enjoying your postings Vickie...sounds like you are having a wonderful time. I am getting e-mails every morning from my friends that are also onboard and they are having a great time also. Have fun tonight at the all-white party and looking forward to your report on Bonaire

Corinne (your neighbour to the east)

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cruizecrazygramma

cruizecrazygramma

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Water Island is always amazing. We caught the 10:30 ferry and there was quite a few of us, in fact they had to send the ferry back to catch the few that didn’t make it. The hill up and then back down to Honeymoon Beach is a little bit of a trek but if you are use to walking then it won’t be a problem. Many of the locals will offer a ride with their golf cart if you ask nicely.

 

The beach was quiet – for about an hour – then a large catamaran arrive, a Princess excursion with about 60 people on it and they got off to enjoy the beach. Note when we got back on board we checked out the excursion and found out it was a $110 cost per person, they did stop at a snorkel spot and it did provide free beverages and lunch, but we opted to go there on our own, which cost $10 per person return for the water taxi, and we purchased our own beer at the corner store (brought a small cooler full of ice).

 

We all headed up for sailaway from the beautiful island of St. Thomas, Peter the Captain Circle Host came with us and it was nice to catch up with him. This is his second contract at a Circle Host, he came from the stores prior and he is doing a great job as a Circle Host, he met many of the Cruise Critic gang and well he is very happy that there is botex on board! Really is that a hint Peter! He certainly doesn’t need it!

 

Bernie didn’t make it to the afternoon trivia as we were at the sailaway, but Anita went and her team came in second, but was saddened to report that there was no prizes handed out! Nope, the host said no prizes on times that we are in port. A little sad I feel, they could of handed out the Princess shopping bags at least.

 

Dinner in the Dinning Room was Princess Dinner theme. Francesco our matre d made us a special treat, we opted out of the appetizers and salad as he gave us wonderful bruchetta, escargot and then a lovely tomato and mozzarella salad. For the entre I had the beef strogonaoff, with sherbet for dessert, Bernie had the coffee crème brule.

 

After dinner we went to chat with our favorite Purser Kikki from Vancouver and got to know Robson who is from Brazil and we caught up with him and picked his brain about going to there next year. We then went to the 10:30 show that was a comedian – Rollin’ Jay Moore – who we have not seen before but after a half hour we left, he was not really our type of comedian and he kept referencing U.S. things that we had no idea what he was talking about.

 

We were asleep by 11:30 getting ready for Dominica. We are currently pulling into the pier for a 9:00 am departure, we have a group tour planned with Antours for River Tubing again, can’t wait it is so much fun. Oh and we are dock at the pier that is about a mile away from the town as there is another ship in port.

 

Another addition, Tim the cruise director is back but there is still no morning trivia question no shout outs and I have to say it is really missed

we will be on the emerald in just a couple of weeks and I am enjoying your postings very much.

can you explain in more detail how to get to honeymoon beach. I don't want to do an excursion but a little nervous to get there on my own. You mention water taxi, is that different from the ferry. Any details and instructions you can provide are very much appreciated. Enjoy the rest of your cruise!!

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vickie_bernie

vickie_bernie

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we will be on the emerald in just a couple of weeks and I am enjoying your postings very much.

can you explain in more detail how to get to honeymoon beach. I don't want to do an excursion but a little nervous to get there on my own. You mention water taxi, is that different from the ferry. Any details and instructions you can provide are very much appreciated. Enjoy the rest of your cruise!!

 

no prob... if you check out my blog -- link below and search water island on it you will find more detailed info with links also the boards under St. Thomas here on CC are very helpful

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vickie_bernie

vickie_bernie

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Bonaire

I first will start out that last night’s deck party was a blast as usual, we danced danced and then danced some more, our clothes were soaked. The Princess dancers even made an appearance and did a great performance, and they were darn good, and not bad on the eyes! We didn’t make it back to the cabin until midnight!

Once again we wake to showers, but light showers and they soon end and the heat hits us. We are not scheduled to dock until noon so we have the morning to enjoy the ship.

Bernie has promised me breakfast in the dining room so we are off to the DaVinci dining room where we are sat at a table with two other couples, one from Israel and one from Delaware we had a great conversation with the couple from Israel and loved hearing about their travels and their family and promised to meet up with them again.

Around 10:30 we went up on deck to watch the sail into Bonaire, wow how beautiful and definitely not something to miss, you really need to go up on one of the higher decks to get a great view.

We are off the ship at 12:10 and we quickly hook up with Renee of Reneesnorkeltrips.com we went with Bill and Cathy who have used Renee before and have raved about her and justifiably. She first takes us to a spot very close to the ship (her van can accommodate only 4 comfortably and she limits her tours to 5 maximum) we are in the water and Renee leads us and points to items then comes up and tells us what we are seeing, then she takes us a little way over and points to something else then comes up to tell us what this is. We are blown away not only by the amazing sea life her but by how many things we just would not of seen had it not been for Renee. We saw a flounder the size of a dinner large dinner plate that hid on the sandy bottom that we just would not of seen – she even pointed to a small crevice with a hole in it and guess what inside was an octopus.

She then takes us to our second dive spot at “the Plaza” where we go to a deep dive spot and then into a more shallow spot, where here Renee dives down and picks us a snake eel! The snake squirms but not before we all get a chance to see it. After about 2.5 hours we are back at the pier where we bid adieu to Renee and promise to be back soon.

Bernie and I head on board for a quick shower with every intention of going back ashore for some food and shopping but once on board and after the shower we both agree we want to rest. We grab a hamburger a lounge chair and our book and relax but we are both struggling to stay awake so we are back in the cabin around 4 pm and lay down for a quick nap for a half hour before we met up with Peter the Captain Circle Host.

At five pm we head up to Skywalkers where Peter is waiting for us and we are joined by Johannes (Customer Relations Manager) and we all enjoy some Cosmos and Champagne – isn’t cruising great. Jerry/Rose and Bill/Cathy soon join us and we laugh and chat and watch our sail away from Bonaire.

At 7 pm we head down to Vines to meet up with Peter again for sushi and wine, we enjoy a lovely bottle of Santa Margarita (well okay we actually enjoyed two bottles) and sushi. What is great about Princess is this bar called Vines which you MUST try, a huge selection of wines are offered by the glass too, and every night there are flight parings for you to sample as well. Sushi and tapas are also available complimentary with wine purchase. The staff there go out of the their way to ensure you are taken care of and just ask if you have any questions.

Tonight Beetle Mania is being preformed in the Princess Theater we head down but we are late and it is difficult to find a seat, we could go to the later one at 10:30 but both us know we are not going to make it till then.

Oh I should add that Johannes brought out his moose to meet Jasper and they really hit it off, well they hit it off really really well that we had to give them their space in the cabin, just check out the pictures.

We watch a movie in the cabin (Social Network) and we are asleep by 11:00! And this morning I am suffering with a slight headache, wonder why?

 

 

 

pictures can be found at blog link below!

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PescadoAmarillo "Live from...." Rare

PescadoAmarillo

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Vickie, so sorry you missed Beatle Maniacs. It really is the best show of the cruise. But, like you said last night, there's always next cruise!:D

 

Lots of free Internet on Aruba...

 

We had a great day on Bonaire, took Paul's glass bottom boat (Google glass bottom boat Bonaire) to Klein Bonaire. The reef is spectacular, and, snorkeling alone I lost track of time so DH stayed behind while Paul went back for his next tour, which luckily had space for us. And also luckily, DH knows why I am called Pescado Amarillo and wasn't worried about me. We returned to the ship with just enough time for a quick shower before dinner. We simply can't miss dinner with Marta and Dominic- they're the best! Then very early to Beatle Maniacs (an hour) and even then we couldn't get our favorite seats. There were a few song changes from last cruise-I missed Imagine-but they are still so enjoyable!!!

 

Today we took bus #10 to Eagle Beach. It was a great day, but stick a fork in me, I'm done! I think tonight's Skywalkers lounge might be my favorite Stilton with port wine reduction snd Sandemans port wine (or else it was last night and we missed it), and we have a CC get together at 4:30, the lounge at 5, dinner at 6 our Captains Circle party at 7:30 and Motor City (another favorite) at 9. There is no rest for the weary cruiser!

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vickie_bernie

vickie_bernie

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Is Johannes from South Africa?....and was on the Ruby last March?

 

yes this is him

 

Vickie, so sorry you missed Beatle Maniacs. It really is the best show of the cruise. But, like you said last night, there's always next cruise!:D

 

Today we took bus #10 to Eagle Beach. It was a great day, but stick a fork in me, I'm done! I think tonight's Skywalkers lounge might be my favorite Stilton with port wine reduction snd Sandemans port wine (or else it was last night and we missed it), and we have a CC get together at 4:30, the lounge at 5, dinner at 6 our Captains Circle party at 7:30 and Motor City (another favorite) at 9. There is no rest for the weary cruiser!

 

yes it is good, we have seen it before and don't know what we were thinking only going just before the show, but next cruise we may try and get in

 

ohhh I love the port night we might pop up there before the cocktail party for Captain Circle at 7:30 we will then go for dinner.

 

have to say the crew on this ship are AMAZING

 

we love going to Eagle beach too but today we ended up at Starbucks and meeting up with great friends who are aboard the Celebrity Ship, sat and caught up for over two hours. since I got so little sleep last night we came back to the ship around 1;30 and grabbed a bite and then crashed for an hour and a half until there was a knock at the door. There is a CC gathering at 4;30 for sailaway but won't be making it just too relaxed in bed watching tv and checking hockey scores,, Bernie is saddened to hear the Canucks are not performing without his watching. :p and cheering

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chrysalis

chrysalis

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Thanks for the info on Johan.....I have his email address, and will send him a note, but if you see him, please mention that Marc and Margaret from Canada with an RSA connection will be on the Emerald for 20 days in March. We were with him for 20 days on the Ruby last March.

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Tweedy

Tweedy

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Princess has a whole show dedicated to The Beatles? As if I didn't already feel badly enough about not being able to go ... :mad:

 

Not to pour salt in the wound but it is a really great show! Almost like being at a real beatles concert... the passengers actually get up and dance and it's one big party.

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