All things EARTH...

[Member123]

So, ladies… since Anita brought it up by linking to the Dr. Remedy nail polish, let me just tell you that I've been battling a personal embarrassment for years and years and years… I got a nail infection in my big toenail and it's been the source of quite a bit of angst.

 

Even the way that I got the nail infection is kind of embarrassing. I can pinpoint the exact moment that it happened! In November, 2010… in Civitavecchia, Italy… when I completely lost my temper, went postal, and kicked my suitcase! OW! OW! OW! The suitcase absolutely retaliated by not only causing quite a bit of pain to the foot that I used when I kicked it… but falling over onto the other foot that was just hanging out, minding its own business. OW! OW! OW! I won't go into the absolutely, maddening, frustrating experience that led to this moment of complete melt down… suffice to say that I've been dealing with the aftermath, ever since.

 

Anyway, I didn't realize just how much my toenails had been damaged… until I removed the polish some weeks later. OMG. By doing physical trauma to my toenails… and then neglecting to provide them with any additional care… I set myself up for this "problem."

 

So, I've been using quite a bit of treatment options. It seems that every time that I make a big of progress, along comes another cruise and I paint my toenails and then I get set back AGAIN and have a restart and a do-over. So, I found this Dr. Remedy nail polish site and decided that I'd give it a go. In addition to being free of the harmful chemicals (all the polish that I purchase is), this nail polish also has some treatment within the formula: tea tree oil, wheat germ, lavender. I can report that I took off the nail polish just a few days ago… and <drumroll> NO SET BACK to the healing of the toenails. So, I'm pretty pleased.

 

I wouldn't recommend the color that I got for either EARTH or FIRE ladies as it has a shimmer in it that flashes more silver than warm. But the name is Bold Baby Blue. The doctors who have started this line of polish need a little help with marketing some more inventive names, for sure! But, I can say that the polish might be helpful to anyone who is experiencing some difficulties with nails: be it an infection, dehydration, or brittleness. I think the polish has some brilliant properties; it's easy to apply; it lasts without chipping, in my experience, for a typical length of time.

 

@Laurie. Thank you so much for your well wishes! I'm doing quite OK. OMG, I can imagine how excited you are with the cruise on the horizon. I know you'll have a wonderful time.

[cruzisme]

Like Joby I am enjoying Anita's posts re Allure as I have never been on that class of ship.

Like to know the pros and cons which I felt I got from reading this so far.

Am not a fan of huge crowds and when I book a balcony I like to experience seeing water.

However I know a travel agency that occasionally books a large group on the Oasis class and the pricing can be convincing!

Anita, keep up the good job and I hope your leg/knee feels better soon.

[Cruisinwithagoodbook]

Nope.

 

The topic of this thread is usually centered around the posters quest to find clothes that would be defined as EARTH colored according to the color system/theory of Curt.

 

This thread is 4 years old and we have formed quite a fun little group of ladies...some of us have actually met each other IRL...and this thread is taking a tangent to discuss my experience on my recent TA crossing on the Allure. It's a tangent similar to the one the FIRE thread took when Joby (Kim) went to Africa.

 

There will be more fashion discussion as my review continues...

 

And as Laurie discusses her upcoming cruise...I believe she leaves on the 15th? And reports when she comes back...

 

And anyone and everyone else that tends to report on such things here.

 

We are approaching the end of this thread...as I think that threads are shut down at 200 pages...and so I guess I am feeling more and more like expanding our discussion here to include other topics that are interesting to our group.

 

As always...anyone is welcome to join in our conversation!

 

Gotcha. :)

[Cruisinwithagoodbook]

Enjoying your posts, Anita :)

 

Just for the record, I enjoyed the posts, but I also (being fairly new here) had the feeling as I read them that this bit deserved its own thread somewhere so that people who were interested in that type of ship could see the cool pictures.

 

I now feel from Anita's reply and your "enjoying your posts" that I stepped into something and have made y'all mad, and that was not my intention. Sorry. I'll leave you to it. :)

[laurspag]

I'm not sure what you mean? But in any event, any and all are welcome here. We generally talk a lot about color theory, and how that translates out to cruise clothing and the like. Anita is just getting back from a trip on Allure, and we've been very curious to learn more, so she is taking us through it.

 

Do you know what season you are? It's an interesting process to go through. I don't always pick the right colors, but I try my hardest to find them because I can readily see the difference when I wear a color that's good for me. I wear they clothes, they don't wear me is a good way to express it.

[laurspag]

Happy Mother's Day to all you that are moms!

 

Mother's Day weekend is always a bit interesting for me. My husband works at a large university, and this is their graduation weekend. Yesterday, he had to get up at 4:30 AM and by the time he got home, it was between 9:30 and 10:00 PM. Today, his day started just as early but he was done at 2:00. He's taking a little nap right now. I encouraged him to do so, as I could see he was pretty tired. My girls made me breakfast this morning and I sent to the mall for a little bit. In a while, we will have my favorite dinner - salmon. My daughter cooks it so well. She wraps it in foil with lemon and rosemary. It can be grilled or put in the oven. I think it will be put in the oven today - it looks like more rain is coming! We need it. We finally got some rain earlier, and I think the news said it hasn't rained since April 24th? Wow.

 

I got all my cruising clothes out yesterday! I only have some odds and ends left! I'm excited that I seem to be losing a few pounds now so I will be using the gym on the ship. I'm enjoying the exercise.

 

I can't wait to see more of your cruise, Anita! I'm seriously thinking about the thermal spa for next year when we are on the Allure. Wow!!

[Cruisinwithagoodbook]

I'm not sure what you mean? But in any event, any and all are welcome here. We generally talk a lot about color theory, and how that translates out to cruise clothing and the like. Anita is just getting back from a trip on Allure, and we've been very curious to learn more, so she is taking us through it.

 

Do you know what season you are? It's an interesting process to go through. I don't always pick the right colors, but I try my hardest to find them because I can readily see the difference when I wear a color that's good for me. I wear they clothes, they don't wear me is a good way to express it.

 

Back in the '70s there was a fad about doing your colors. I think it was called "color me beautiful" or something like that. I'm not familiar with Earth and Fire, but it seems fairly similar to Spring, Summer, Winter, Autumn.

 

For the record I'm an Autumn, but I don't always stick to that because it's too difficult to wear earth-tones all the time. I like chocolate-brown for my neutral instead of black, but who can find a little chocolate-brown dress? lol

 

For my upcoming Mediterranean cruise I've ended up with several blue things, and I'm really not fond of the color blue. I much prefer green, but it's more difficult to find.

 

I can see why y'all started this thread on the idea of finding "Earth" (or Autumn) clothes. It's a challenge.

[laurspag]

Sometimes by sharing, we help each other find these earthy (autumn) colors. I know that for myself, I get in the habit of shopping certain stores. It's a big deal for me when Margaret, for example posted a few pages back some of her swimsuit and other finds from LLBean and Land's End.

 

You could call us a support group, lol.

 

It is very challenging sometimes...I've learned that those basic dresses you can dress up or down are really hard to find in brown too. I have a theory that you can still find good basic dresses in other colors that are earth/autumn. Use them the way you would a little black dress. If you can't find it, or the color you find doesn't seem to work, I like to go with my next best season, which is fire (spring). After that, I go to Air (summer) but Ice (winter) is by far a last resort. I noticed a distinct trend when I used to wear black, white, and other cool colors....people would say I looked tired, or ask me if I was sick.

 

A very nice lady over on fire thread is looking at the 12 season theory, which breaks it down further. I think we all have best colors, within our season. One thing that is fun is to google it and then click on the images. Not everything is quite right, but boy, do you get to see our colors in their glory!

[cruzisme]

As many of you know I am an Ice or Winter but I love reading this thread.

So fun to see what you select etc as for me, it is very easy to select clothes as I can wear white, black, and deep intense colours (Canadian spelling!)

Laurie, looking forward to hearing about your cruise that you will be doing.

[Anita Latte]

Just for the record, I enjoyed the posts, but I also (being fairly new here) had the feeling as I read them that this bit deserved its own thread somewhere so that people who were interested in that type of ship could see the cool pictures.

 

I now feel from Anita's reply and your "enjoying your posts" that I stepped into something and have made y'all mad, and that was not my intention. Sorry. I'll leave you to it. :)

 

There's no way that you made anyone here mad. Seriously.

 

Welcome to CC. I understand your thoughts on my review of Allure...but, I will admit that I don't desire to open myself up to the potential backlash from sharing some of my honest opinions and observations of the ship. As funny as this sounds...this particular thread is a pretty safe place. Not many (if any?) of those involved in this discussion have sailed the Oasis class before...and I think there is interest in the topic...so I'm just sharing here in my safe place. LOL!!

 

Back in the '70s there was a fad about doing your colors. I think it was called "color me beautiful" or something like that. I'm not familiar with Earth and Fire, but it seems fairly similar to Spring, Summer, Winter, Autumn.

 

For the record I'm an Autumn, but I don't always stick to that because it's too difficult to wear earth-tones all the time. I like chocolate-brown for my neutral instead of black, but who can find a little chocolate-brown dress? lol

 

For my upcoming Mediterranean cruise I've ended up with several blue things, and I'm really not fond of the color blue. I much prefer green, but it's more difficult to find.

 

I can see why y'all started this thread on the idea of finding "Earth" (or Autumn) clothes. It's a challenge.

 

This thread is an off-shoot of an even older thread that discussed "What season are you?" based on that Color Me Beautiful book. One of the members of CC developed his own methodology for identifying the characteristics of a color that make it more or less flattering...Earth is the equivalent of Autumn...described as being warm and muted colors. ANY color that is warm and muted looks good on most with Earth coloring.

 

As with anything, some colors look better on people than others...but the beginning for us Earth ladies to begin with...is the color warm and muted?

 

So where in Texas are you? I went to college in San Antonio. Lived in the Mid-cities area of DFW for years. Then I lived in the Houston area for years...both in the Northwest and the Clear Lake area. I'm not fishing for specifics...just general.

 

OMG. I miss Texas. HEB is the best grocery store and has the best brands. For Christmas, I had my in-laws who still live in Texas and were driving to Georgia for the holiday go shopping at HEB and bring me a bunch of things that you can only get there. There used to be an HEB commercial of a Mom sending a care package to her son in college...full of things from HEB. I so relate to that commercial.

 

Thanks Ladies for letting me know that my review here is welcome reading! :D

[Cruisinwithagoodbook]

There's no way that you made anyone here mad. Seriously.

Good to know. :D

 

Welcome to CC. I understand your thoughts on my review of Allure...but, I will admit that I don't desire to open myself up to the potential backlash from sharing some of my honest opinions and observations of the ship. As funny as this sounds...this particular thread is a pretty safe place. Not many (if any?) of those involved in this discussion have sailed the Oasis class before...and I think there is interest in the topic...so I'm just sharing here in my safe place. LOL!!

I can understand that. The short time I've been on CC I've noticed quite a few snippy replies and a lot of strong opinions. I can see that it's a bit of a dangerous place.

 

This thread is an off-shoot of an even older thread that discussed "What season are you?" based on that Color Me Beautiful book. One of the members of CC developed his own methodology for identifying the characteristics of a color that make it more or less flattering...Earth is the equivalent of Autumn...described as being warm and muted colors. ANY color that is warm and muted looks good on most with Earth coloring.

 

As with anything, some colors look better on people than others...but the beginning for us Earth ladies to begin with...is the color warm and muted?

Makes sense.

 

So where in Texas are you? I went to college in San Antonio. Lived in the Mid-cities area of DFW for years. Then I lived in the Houston area for years...both in the Northwest and the Clear Lake area. I'm not fishing for specifics...just general.

 

OMG. I miss Texas. HEB is the best grocery store and has the best brands. For Christmas, I had my in-laws who still live in Texas and were driving to Georgia for the holiday go shopping at HEB and bring me a bunch of things that you can only get there. There used to be an HEB commercial of a Mom sending a care package to her son in college...full of things from HEB. I so relate to that commercial.

I'm in Cypress (NW Houston). I know what you mean about HEB. It does have some things you can't find elsewhere. Although truth be told I'm more of a Kroger girl myself because HEB pushes their own brand too much, but I do know what you mean. Still, they have a lot of good stuff at HEB and I do go there some times.

 

Right now we're all very sad here in Texas because our Beloved Blue Bell has been pulled off the shelves. :( We've all gone into deep mourning. There'll be some serious Ice Cream parties once they're back in business.

 

Thanks Ladies for letting me know that my review here is welcome reading! :D

 

I did think it was a cool review, I just was thrown by it... part of that is reading it on my iPhone the first time. I kept thinking I'd clicked on the wrong thread. :o

Edited May 10, 2015 by Cruisinwithagoodbook

[laurspag]

I'm so excited about my cruise that I kind of feel like I've "checked out". My mind is only half hear right now. My husband always looks forward to our cruises, but he is really excited about this one.

 

I made a few changes to my clothing line up, but I feel very good about it. My daughter gave me a cute necklace today that I think I'm going to wear on my sea day. It will go perfect with the outfit that I have picked out.

 

I think the hardest thing was narrowing down my choices, because we have a lot of cooler weather here, so I readily have clothes for this. I was trying not to look like I was dressed for fall, and then I had a few things that were too big. I lucked out, because I was going to get rid of a few pairs of denim capris (closer to ankle pants) last year that were too tight. They now fit. But a few of my dresses are now too big, so I had to choose differently.

 

Not that you can see it to look at me, but I do feel better, and that is what matters. My doctor was very happy with me at my appointment on Friday. I have high blood pressure, and he cut my dosage in half. I go back in two months to see if I can go off it altogether!

 

Anita, that comment about the store in Texas reminded me of a store I shop at here locally for groceries. It is called Wegmans, and has almost a cult following. I love everything about shopping there, except paying, lol.

 

Crusinwithagoodbook, I love that moniker. I don't carry actual books, by my Nook goes with me on every vacation! Close enough, right?

[Cruisinwithagoodbook]

Crusinwithagoodbook, I love that moniker. I don't carry actual books, by my Nook goes with me on every vacation! Close enough, right?

:D Definitely!! I use the Kindle app on my iPad. No way am I carrying heavy books these days. It's so nice not having to worry about carrying heavy books, or losing one somewhere. shudder.

[Anita Latte]

So here's the danger with the Oasis class ships:

 

Even if you have a plan...even if you KNOW that someone is supposed to be in a certain place at a certain time. You can STILL totally miss them.

 

(I swear this review will not be a total play by play of every day on this trip...but for now...continuing on...)

 

Mom and Dad and I agreed that we would meet in the Solarium and eat lunch at the Solarium Cafe. This seemed to be more promising than the Park Cafe for our dietary restrictions...that is, gluten-free for me...and gluten-free, soy-free, and egg-free for Mom. OMG.

 

ANYWAY...

 

After PT, I changed into my swimsuit, my red rashguard and my new black skort...grabbed my Kindle, my camera, my sunglasses, and headed for the solarium. And waited...

 

And waited...

 

And waited...

 

I found a sweet spot to sit. A lovely cushioned wicker chair in the shade. I had a foot stool. I had my Kindle. I was reading and thoroughly enjoying myself...so it's not like I was waiting impatiently. I took these photos:

 

 

The Solarium is adult only...that is, passengers aged 16 and older, I believe. It is on Decks 15 and 16 at the very front of the ship on those decks. The photo is from the port-side vantage point of Deck 15. You can see the "balconies" that are Deck 16. Under those balconies is the Solarium Cafe...with an indoor area in the middle and a sort of covered patio area on either side. Deck 16 has the Bar and a significant covered area with really cushy lounge chairs (they literally have cushions) and tables and chairs similar to what you can see in the photo.

 

Like the Celebrity Solarium, it is filled with the sound of running water. There are 2 whirlpools...and the pool has a center feature that include rain showers and jets. There is a lovely water feature that is river-like and forming a sort of bridged border around the Cafe...but it doesn't make much noise.

 

It isn't completely enclosed...as you can see from the gaps in the "greenhouse roof." So that is different from the Celebrity Solarium. There are also windows that can open...like the Celebrity Solarium.

 

 

The foliage is attractive...but the majority of it is fake in this area.

 

There is the rock look flooring...and the wood look flooring. HOT HOT HOT. OMG.

 

There are many groupings of the chairs and footstools. If there is an open chair...get it. Even if you are an odd man out in the group, so to speak. This is how I snagged my sweet chair...

 

And here's how people treated their chairs...

 

A very chatty couple that was in this particular conversation arrangement was off to lunch...I guess the guy had a plan to eat a Hot Dog every day...I say this because he said, "I'm off for my daily hot dog." And they left behind enough personal effects to save their two chairs and foot stools...and point being...they left. But they did return within about 30 minutes...I know...I was still there.

 

Because I still hadn't been found by Mom and Dad.

 

Our conversation area was joined by a family or close friends...they were Italian...I could tell from their language...which was all in Italian...and I had a great conversation with the one man. One of the ladies in the group is the lovely one in the animal print swim suit...

 

Anyway...enough time had passed that I was thinking I needed to go in search of Mom and Dad...and I found them eating in the Cafe...they had looked for me...but couldn't find me...even though they looked all over where I was supposed to be...

 

So just saying...it happens.

 

Dealing with food later...

 

We enjoyed the solarium for quite a while. And the next thing I knew...it was time for the Line Dancing activity in the Royal Promenade. Which means that it was 4:00 pm. Line Dancing was a daily activity...the song type would change daily...today's music was from the musical "Chicago" which was the then on board Broadway entertainment in the theater. (It is changing to Mama Mia.)

 

 

So here's my outfit of the afternoon. I selected this photo...not because I look so awesome...but because it is the most interesting as far as being able to see the crowd that was at the Line Dancing activity.

 

I hope you can first clue in to how many MEN were in this activity. There were a lot! Also...you can see a lot of people and their outfits. Very casual.

 

I'm getting a lot of wear out of this black skort...I'm going to keep watch for when the green one goes on sale. For me, I would say that this skirt is fast becoming a travel essential. The simplicity of the style makes it easy to dress for a nicer casual...when the tech fabric makes it very practical for things like the pool and/or more potentially sweaty activities...like line dancing.

 

And I shouldn't say...but I can't help myself...it's so unfortunate that I am currently carrying so much weight RIGHT THERE. I am NOT pregnant...but some of these pictures...OMG...I look 3-5 months along. :eek:

 

Also in this photo...the brick building in the background with the yellow walls inside is Sorrento's, the pizza joint...the people on the balcony are in the photo area...and obviously Guess is one of the fun shops on board. Dad is the photographer and he is just outside the Promenade Cafe. And yes...many people were watching the Line Dancing class.

 

And then it was time to primp for the first of THREE Formal Nights.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Anita Latte

[Anita Latte]

I'm in Cypress (NW Houston)....Right now we're all very sad here in Texas because our Beloved Blue Bell has been pulled off the shelves. :( We've all gone into deep mourning. There'll be some serious Ice Cream parties once they're back in business.

 

NO!! Blue Bell is SO GOOD. Oh...I'm sad now.

 

I lived in Cypress too! Our house was in Fairfield and we just sold it last spring when the market finally rebounded. I just loved the new HEB market at Barker Cypress but I think they have even built a new one closer to Fairfield. There has been a lot of construction since we moved from Fairfield...we left summer 2010.

 

Laurie...there's nothing like pre-cruise excitement, especially when you are doing something so new and different. You know that I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and so I for one, am very excited to see all your photos and thoughts and experiences on your west coast cruise!!

[MJC]

Anita, I'm really enjoying your review. Your comments are so much more evocative of the experience than most reviews, which seem to consist of people's personal preferences and good/bad judgments. Sometimes that is helpful, but you really seem to capture what the daily life of a particular ship feels like. I've been reading up on the Brilliance for next spring, and from what you've posted it sounds like I will like that class a bit better than this one. Maybe, because I live in a crowded place already, I am just naturally inclined away from the giant ships like the Allure. Now that you have done a TA, I would be interested to hear what features and activities you think you would look for in your "dream" TA ship.

 

Laurie, I hope you post lots of outfit pictures from your cruise. I for one am very interested to see what you end up wearing on your coastal cruise and to hear you discuss what worked well/didn't work about your choices.

 

In the past week we have gotten two black tie wedding invites for June. I will have to cover my arms so I'm going to have to seriously study my closet and see what I can do with what I have. I hate wearing shawls but that may be an option I'll have to consider.

 

I had my birthday last week and had a lovely day. DH took me shopping at Crate&Barrel for some new patio stuff, and we had a delicious dinner out. I wore my coral Calvin Klein sweater and a pair of tan patterned jeans, and heels (natch). It was a very good "warm spring evening" kind of look. Now it is in the 80s here and I am just struggling to choose work clothes that won't be too hot!

 

I'm off to Michigan next weekend to check on my parents. Planned activities so far are Zumba, too much eating, and going to my niece's soccer game. My bestie from h.s. lives on a farm, so I may get to play with her goats and see her grandbaby. :) Talk about culture shock!

[Sailor_Sally]

Anita , I am also loving the review . I have always thought that those mega ships were not a good match for me & your review is confirming it . While I think they offer awesome entertainment & dining options they hold too many people for my liking .

 

Laurie , Have a great trip & congratulations on the weight loss !

 

Margaret , I was on the Brilliance last year . The ship has glass everywhere so you always have a view of the sea . The rooms were nice in fact my balcony room was larger than the one in Anita's picture .The food & service were top notch . The only time it felt crowded was after muster .

 

I am getting ready for a trip to Lakewood , Ny . My grandson turns three . I love visiting my daughter & grand kids .It will be six days of non stop activity .

[Anita Latte]

Correction: The Chicago Line Dancing class was at 1:00 pm on Day 2. I have all my Cruise Compasses from the trip and I double checked the time. It seems that the timing of this day was slightly different than the others...the Line Dancing was usually at 4:00 pm.

 

I was ready for Formal Night before attending Music Trivia: 80s Hits at 5:15 pm.

 

Laurie...you said you like trivia...do you do the general trivia? Have you ever done the music trivia? I really like the music trivia...

 

I decided to bring my plum colored cocktail dress. At this time, I find the flared skirt to be much more comfortable than a sheath style for extended sitting. I have always tried to not cross my legs at the knees...now more that ever...and so I find that sitting modestly in a shorter sheath dress can be very tiring. I took this photo back in my cabin at the end of the night:

 

 

For jewelry, I'm wearing simple gold hoop earrings, a simple amethyst pendant necklace on a box chain, a 3-strand pearl bracelet, and unusually for me on vacation, my wedding ring.

 

We went to dinner after trivia. Again, we didn't have reservations, but we didn't wait to be seated.

 

After dinner was the Captain's Reception in the Royal Promenade. This was the opportunity to take a photo with the Captain. Also...he gives a speech and introduces high ranking crew members that represent the different functions of the ship.

 

Whenever you attend something of this sort in the Royal Promenade...look up. On Allure, the bridge that comes out doesn't span the entire Promenade (it did on Mariner). Near the Bow and Stern...the globe above separates and the bridge rolls out:

 

 

The Promenade isn't THIS crowded at other times...but here's a taste of what it's like for a big "All Ship Event" like the Captain's Reception.

 

Off we went to listen to live music in Dazzles and watch the couples dance. As we were walking through Central Park...I saw this statue...and I immediately saw the shape of a woman in this pose...(I love this photo!):

 

 

You can see my gold oxfords. These were such a good choice for me. I have to recommend that on Allure, you ALWAYS wear very comfortable shoes. There is an amazing amount of walking...I walked around 10K steps on most days...one day with a longer PT session, I logged over 22K steps. And I rarely took the stairs because of my knee... So please, even if you can wear heels...make sure they are well worn and broken in. I am wearing socks. They are a no show style of sock. If you stare at my left foot, you can see just a hint, just a peek of white sock. Which reminds me...if anyone ever runs across great nude colored no show socks...please share.

 

I think this photo combined with the previous photo of the same dress is a great example of how lighting and camera settings can affect the representation of color. Also...this dress appears more matte in daylight but you can see how the stretch part of the jersey can affect the way the fabric appears with a strong flash...this dress is a simple solid color.

 

Central Park is really beautiful at night...If you look hard, you can see both Mom and I in this photo...I think this photo offers a nice insight into how TALL the ship feels in Central Park:

 

 

Here's Mom and Dad in their formal wear at Dazzles:

 

 

Refresher: Mom (Member123) is a Fire. Dad is an Ice. Mom will have to chime in on what shoes she was wearing exactly. They are a very attractive low-heeled (maybe even a wedge?) gold sandal.

 

The feeling of the crowds on the ship is what prompts me to post this photo. Especially for you Margaret, since I know you dance with your DH on a cruise. Dazzles seems to be the place for couples dancing. This event was called "Romantic Dance Hour with Those Girlz." Those Girlz was the name of the duo.

 

 

For such a big ship...I really would have expected the dance floor to be bigger. About one half of the dance floor didn't make this photo. It extends beyond the lower edge of this picture. Some dancers also made use of the carpet areas on either side of the dance floor...something of a scary concept to me considering what I did to my ACL dancing on carpet...

 

Mom and I both love watching the couples dance. There was one couple in particular that almost made Mom and I both cry...something about the way the DH held his wife and directed her around the room...something about how obviously the couple had been dancing together for a long time...that DH took really good care of his beloved.

 

The vantage point of this photo is from the floor above the main. Dazzles has two floors with stairs within to reach the second floor. The balcony rail is solid glass so that it is easy to watch the musicians and the dancers. The ceiling is high and the windows are lovely...the view out the windows is onto the Boardwalk area.

[Anita Latte]

Thank you Margaret! I purposefully attempt to NOT cast a judgement on my experience in the retelling...I strive to use more description so that anyone reading can make their own judgement as to the quality of the experience...as best as anyone can under the circumstances anyway.

 

I have already been contemplating your question about preferences in a ship for another TA crossing. Just as I have been contemplating the idea of sailing on the Oasis class again in the future. I need to be more thoughtful about writing an answer to those questions...and reliving the sailing through this report is very helpful to me in my analysis, so I'll definitely address that at the end.

 

Sally...yes, quite a lot of people. Like I said...some of it would be related to the nature of the sailing. On a different sailing, when there would be more families on board (more than 86 passengers under the age 18), there likely wouldn't be some of the crowding in some places like the Solarium. There were never more than 1 or 2 families using the Kid's pool area whenever I walked past. Often it was empty of any people. I'm sure on other sailings that area is crawling with kids...and those kids' parents would be nearer to them...and not in the Solarium, KWIM?

[Anita Latte]

Let's talk about Formal Night just a bit more...

 

The Cruise Compass says, and I quote:

 

"TONIGHT'S DINNER DRESS SUGGESTION- Formal Attire. Tonight is formal night. Cocktail dress or pantsuit for ladies and suit (black tie optional) for gentlemen for dining in the dining rooms or specialty restaurants."

 

Did everyone dress formal?

 

No.

 

Just because I went looking for it...I DID see at least one person wearing jeans, shorts, and nice, but obviously NOT formal attire.

 

By and large, I would say that the Allure dressed up for formal night. By and large, I would say that the MEN made the biggest difference in how the ship felt between formal and non-formal nights. On formal nights, there were tuxedos enough for no man to feel overly dressed wearing one...and for those that were in suits or sportcoats, most men also wore a tie on formal night. I can say honestly that I don't recall seeing a single MAN wear a tie without a jacket. I did see children in that attire. On non-formal nights, many, many men still wore a jacket...a sport coat...neckties were uncommon though.

 

For the women, except for the few that were wearing long gowns on formal night...most seemed to be almost as dressed up on non-formal nights. I don't know if this is a function of the fact that the ship was so adult. Regardless, I saw quite a few cocktail/party dresses on non-formal nights.

 

I paid special attention to shoes. On all evenings, I saw many ladies wearing shoes that were a nod to being more dressed up...things like sparkly gold Tom's. I saw many simple sandals...black, white, metallics, etc. There were fewer ladies that were wearing what I almost think of as Margaret high heels (in the nicest way Margaret!), but there were definitely ladies in their heels also. Point being...wear whatever seems good to you to wear. I didn't feel out of place at all in my oxfords.

Edited May 11, 2015 by Anita Latte

[laurspag]

Anita, I too am very much enjoying your review. I think you are being factual. So many times, I can't really take what people say seriously, because they are in love with every thing or hate everything and want to be compensated. I love that I'm envisioning the ship in my head, and forming my own opinions!

 

I will still say, I'm shocked that my husband agreed to Allure. I will try all the ships once! As of now, my favorite class is the Freedom class. I never felt crowded anywhere. As to feeling spread out and like I had the ship to myself, that would be Enchantment.

 

I love all the trivia! I can't always hear the music trivia, so my husband helps me out because I can read his lips pretty good. The hard thing about hearing aids is that you can hear, but it isn't distinct enough for things like this. They often have picture trivia too, and that is my favorite! I don't need extra help on those. When my daughters are with us, they go to trivia too and love it.

 

I really like your plum dress. That is so pretty, and it looks very comfortable too. jersey is a great fabric. Your mom and dad look so cute too!

 

My husband is aware of his photo of the day's outfit and dinner outfit duties, lol. He gets all this. It's a good feeling that he does, and it really allows me to see how I looked in my outfits. I hope that my weight loss will show a little, but I don't know. In reality though, I feel really good, and that should show!

 

Oddball question here...as you know, there is nothing tropical about our cruise, but it appears we will be in the mid 60s all week, except for Victoria and the day we arrive in San Diego. San Diego is low 60s, and Victoria is about 57 that day. I'm thinking it would be weird for me to wear this new necklace my husband picked up for me for Mother's Day. Or would it? I wore it to work today, and didn't think anything of it. I will post a picture separately as I took it on my phone and can't bring it up on my laptop. But, I already have other jewelry picked out for the particular dress so I'll be fine either way.

[laurspag]

[laurspag]

It's for the turquoise dress. It look a it dark here but I was comparing it to my color cards.

 

 

[Anita Latte]

I don't think it's weird at all to think about wearing that necklace.

 

It's been a long time since I've lived in or even visited CA but ocean/beach/sea shell theme is totally appropriate for the coast.

 

Talk about colors looking different in different light...that dress looks way more teal next to the cards! I didn't realize it was so teal...I love that color!

[laurspag]

It's a really fun necklace. The dress is more of a real than turquoise, but not as dark

As Margaret's formal dress. I like the color quite a bit.

 

I enjoyed hearing about formal night. It's funny how it can vary. I have heard that a TA can be more formal. Generally, at least what I've seen thus far, shorter cruises are the least formal. I am wondering what a 7 night cruise will be like on Allure in comparison. I have a year to find out!