Carnival Miracle Journal with Pics - VD at Sea: The Miracle Cure

[vanislandcruisers]

It is tradition that Dee and I have our 1st Fun Ship Special in the Atrium and with that the first of what would eventually become 4 pages worth of Charges showed up on our S&S Account at 2:23pm. Coral and Dan have bought into that tradition as well so the 4 of us sat back and relaxed, drinks in hand. There’s nothing quite like sitting down and taking in that first view of the Atrium on a Carnival Ship and the Carnival Miracle did not disappoint. We waited for Tammi and Allison to join us and by the time they did we were each on our 2nd FSS.

 

Since it was her 1st cruise we gave Allison some time to take everything in before we made our way up to see if our Cabins were ready; they were. Our Bon Voyage orders had also been delivered:

• 2 Beach Towels

• 1 bottle of Crown Royal

• 1 bottle of Grey Goose

 

 

And for Valentine’s Day I had ordered Dee:

• A Dozen Red Roses

• Fruit Supreme Basket with White Wine

 

 

The Gifts from the Ocean Player’s Club had arrived as well:

• 4 Drink Coupons

• 6 Chocolate Covered Strawberries

• A bottle of “Fine White Wine”

• 1 Photo Coupon

 

We also had slips for our OBC's from our Future Cruise Certificate and our Travel Agent and although there wasn’t a slip for the MasterCard Promotion it showed up on our S&S Statement at 7:26pm.

 

We decided to have a drink and were joined by Dan, Coral, Tammi and Allison. A toast, a drink and a smoke out on the Extended Balcony had us smiling from ear to ear.

 

Against our advice because of Carnival’s crackdown on and increased inspections for the smuggling of Alcohol Tammi and Allison had emptied several of the bottles of Water in the middle of their carry-on case of Water and filled the bottles up with Vodka but they were able to successfully get their Vodka through Security and on the Ship.

 

Dee, Dan and Coral laughed out loud when I pulled a large Rum Runner of Crown Royal out of the side pocket of my Cargo Shorts. I had walked through Security with it in my pocket without any problems. Dee did say that she “was glad I didn’t tell her beforehand”

 

I hung up our Group Door Sign as well as our ‘Dee and Jim’ caricature Door Sign ....

 

 

...that we bring on each Cruise and while doing so our neighbours, Donna and Dan had arrived. They along with Lynne and Peewee who were on the other side of Donna and Dan joined us for a drink.

 

With a plan to meet the men on the Lido Deck Tammi, Allison Coral, Dee, Donna and Lynne went down to Guest Services to request the Balcony Dividers be opened between the 5 Cabins and this was completed the next morning. Some of the best times on this Cruise were spent out on our 5-Wide Balcony. Dan, Dan, Peewee and I finished up our drinks and headed up to the Lido and the ladies were already there and the rest of our Group were beginning to congregate and we ordered our first Bucket of Molson Canadians at 3:37pm.

 

 

 

Edited October 25, 2012 by vanislandcruisers

[WeBeCruisin']

We actually were not supposed to be able to use the VIP enterance. We just kind of followed Donna, Dan and Sharon it the door. The folks checking the boarding passes were all talking about how they could not allow this family to all boarf through VIP because the children were not actually VIP. They were heavily in to this conversation Sharon and I just kind of looked at each other and figured that Peewee and I wee going to be sent away. Next thing we knew our boarding passes got initialed and we were waved through. Then we got waved through the next security check point where our luggage got scanned. When we made it to the counter where we were to get our S&S cards we were finally told that we were in the wrong place and that our cards were across the street. An agent said to have a seat and she would see what she could do. They were unable to retrieve our cards so they ended up giving us employee tags in order to be able to be cleared to board the ship.

 

Being in VIP boarding did not speed up the process whatsoever. We still ended up having to wait hours before we were permitted to board. There were so many VIP passengers that we were packed in there like sardines. Once they did allow us to board however the lines did move fairly quick though. We were told to proceed to guest services to pick up our S&S cards. We intended on heading that way anyhow since we prefer to use cash for our S&S account and had to go there anyhow. After we had our cards we had to return to the "ding" machine to get officially dinged in.

 

I was in VIP and crippled and had to wait an hour or two in one area where there were no seats available. I would have given anything if someone had offered me a chair. The other passengers kept giving me looks like they were saying "Quit making painful faces, you geezer wimp!"...... My foot was really giving me a lot of pain with all that standing. I was really wishing I could have been with Jim and the gang at that point, because they would have looked out for me. But I survived. :)

[vanislandcruisers]

At the Tables on the Lido we met 4 more people who were part of the Group; Cindy, Laurie M, Trevor and Angie. It was nice to finally put a face to those we had become friends with online. Trevor and Angie, like Rick and Laurie, live close to where I grew up in Nova Scotia. They were supposed to be on the S&S 6 Cruise on the Carnival Splendor but as it turned out they found out they were going to be blessed with their 1st child about that time so were unable to make it. This was the first time they had been away from their son and you could tell they were missing him more than words can describe.

 

During the course of the year we had become friends with both of them on facebook and in looking at Trevor’s profile he listed himself as the Majority Owner of ‘The Place 2B Bar and Grill’ in Bedford NS. About halfway through 2011 a friend of mine in Dartmouth NS opened up a Pub so I sent Trevor a long drawn out message detailing this and mentioning that if he was ever “interested in some cross promotion between the 2 establishments to let me know and I would put the 2 of them together.” I never heard back from him and didn’t pursue it.

 

In the course of our conversation this afternoon, after the introductions were over and done with, I mentioned this to him and Angie, hearing the conversation, turned and punched Trevor in the shoulder and said “You didn’t tell him! I told you to tell him.” Trevor started laughing and turned to me and said ‘The Place 2B Bar and Grill is the Bar in my basement” Conclusion #666: Fool me once. I laughed and told Angie not to worry about it as she was apologizing profusely. A few minutes later I said to Trevor that “it must be so neat for you to be cruising to your birthplace?” as he had listed Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos as his hometown on facebook. This question got him another punch in the shoulder from Angie. Trevor laughed and said “Nope I was born in Cape Breton, NS” Conclusion #667: Fool me twice. Catching on I said “So I can assume the Degree in Bio-Medical Engineering from Brown University is not hanging in the The Place 2B Bar and Grill right next to the picture of your Turks and Caicos Birth Certificate?” He laughed, had a swig of his beer,, put his head down and said “No” Conclusion #668: I catch on quick. We had a GREAT 8 days with these 2 as we did with everyone in the Group.

 

Between Dan and Coral and Dee and I we bought 4 Buckets of Canadians before it was time to head to our Station for Muster Drill.

 

The 10 of us who all had Cabins in a row were all at the same Muster Station and as the Drill was progressing Dan W turned to us and said “I am just surveying the Crowd in case we end up in the middle of the Ocean drifting in a Life Boat or stranded on a Desert Island without any food. I want to know who am I going to eat first and Coral I am afraid you look the tastiest.” We all put our heads down and busted up laughing. From this point on in the Cruise we nicknamed Dan ‘Ninja Dan’ as on many different occasions throughout the Cruise he sat back, listened to a conversation and then when we least expected it he made a comment that had us all in stitches. The Drill ended up being quick and painless and before we knew it we were heading back to our Cabin to make a drink.

 

While we were there our Cabin Staff introduced themselves and they took GREAT care of us over the course of the Cruise. They were personable, friendly and always had smiles on their faces.

 

 

Next on the itinerary was a Group Sail Away Part on Rick and Laurie’s Balcony; they were in Cabin 7258 which is one of the ‘Bowling Alley Balconies.’ So we grabbed some drinks, a Rum Runner or 2, some Mix and made our way up 1 Deck to their Cabin. I had arranged for a Port Everglades Webcam Group Wave through http://portevergladeswebcam.com/wave.html

But due to our late departure they weren’t able to take a picture but were able to Videotape the Sail-Away. We all watched the Video when we got back and you can see them zoom in on our Group about the 2 minute mark and stuck with the Group until we were out of Camera range.

 

 

 

Representing...

 

 

Fort Lauderdale at Sail-Away

 

 

[Jimmy Geegitz]

Good Review

[Margarita Mom]

Reading this review is getting me excited to see all you guys again in January.

Jim, one thing I can't figure out. How can you remember all these details considering the amount of "hydrating" we all did. Or is that working to your advantage. None of us can dispute your version of the truth. hmmm

[vanislandcruisers]

Good Review

 

Thanks Jimmy Geegitz!!!

 

Reading this review is getting me excited to see all you guys again in January.

Jim, one thing I can't figure out. How can you remember all these details considering the amount of "hydrating" we all did. Or is that working to your advantage. None of us can dispute your version of the truth. hmmm

 

Can't wait to see you and Rick too!!!!:D

 

You wanted truth???:rolleyes:.........I do take some 'point form notes' as the trip goes along on each Cruise...I Photocopy the Calendar Week from my Day Planner on 11 x 17 paper and put the notes in there...some stuff just stands out like the last night;) of the Cruise for example....I also use our pictures ...and our S&S Statement which more than anything tells me when we got to that Bar by the time of our first order and when we left:D;)

[jigger]

Neat !!

[vanislandcruisers]

Once the Sail-Away Party was over we headed back to the Cabin to make a drink and unpack and we invited Allen and any others who wanted to do so to join us. Don’t know if it was the late debarkation at Port Everglades that day or what but everyone in the Group’s smuggled Booze made it on the Ship including a Suit Case full of Beer for one lucky individual. Conclusion #669: Would take a Bio-Medical Engineering Degree to accomplish that feat.

 

When we got to our Cabin we busted up laughing as Bonnie had managed to hang a picture of our Group’s Valentine’s Baby on all of our Cabin Doors.

 

Our Cabin Door

 

Our Valentine's Baby

 

Bonnie was able to arrange to have the picture in Allen’s Menu when he opened it at the Table in the Dining Room….some were signed by the Maitre’d….the Cruise Director, etc. and as the Cruise went along other passengers would look at Allen and say “You’re that guy!!!” There was even a lady at a Table relatively close to us in the Dining Room who wanted her picture taken with him. Conclusion #670: He loved the attention.

 

Lynne had brought a Cordless Electric Kettle to heat up Water up for the Jell-O Shots and used Ice in the Jell-O Cooler to allow the Shots to harden so after unpacking we were able to find time for a couple of Rounds of Jell-O Shots.

 

Lynne hard at work making the next batch

 

We met up with everyone at the Bar in the Mr. Lucky’s Casino for some pre-dinner Drinks, Slots and Blackjack before our 8:15pm Dining Time.

 

Once at the Casino Dee and I each got a drink and then I headed over to the Casino Cashier’s Cage with my ID and my Sail & Sign Card to collect my $140.00 Cash Comp from the Oceans Player’s Club. I gave the Cashier my ID and my S&S Card and fully expected I would be receiving Chips but she counted out one Hundred dollar bill and two Twenties and gave them to me and then said “Please wait here for 1 minute James as the Casino Host would like to meet you” and off she went to look for him. She came back a few minutes later and said “That she was unable to find him” bit “that he would find me at a later time.” Conclusion #671: Little did she know how true that was.

 

Dee, Allen, Donna, the 2 Dans, Coral, Trevor and I found an empty Table so the 8 of us sat down and introduced ourselves to the Dealer, Richard, and to Vic, the Pit Boss and his female Assistant who we nicknamed Madonna right away because of her looks. This began a GREAT Cruise-long relationship with the Carnival Miracle Casino Staff. I handed my S&S Card and the $140.00 cash to Richard so Vic and Madonna could start rating me during the Cruise. Dee asked Vic if he ‘was the Big Boss?’ and he said “No, Small Boss” so that became his name for the rest of the Cruise. Vic and I shared the same hairline so we were always back and forth with the “You need a Hair Cut” as the Cruise went along. We spent about a ½ hour playing with a promise to return after dinner.

[vanislandcruisers]

Neat !!

 

Thanks jigger!!!

[Bonds73]

Great job Jim, I'm putting in another solid 12 hour shift at The Place 2B tonight waiting for Notre Dame to school the Sooners tonight and of course game 3 of the fall classic, go SF Giants! Now if I could just find that piece of paper from Brown I would be all set....

[Bonds73]

And yes I did manage to smuggle a suitcase full of beer which sadly was gone before I made it back to my hometown of Grand Turk. Luckily for me I have a masters degree in smuggling from Brown university...

[WeBeCruisin']

When we got to our Cabin we busted up laughing as Bonnie had managed to hang a picture of our Group’s Valentine’s Baby on all of our Cabin Doors.

 

Our Cabin Door

 

Our Valentine's Baby

 

Bonnie was able to arrange to have the picture in Allen’s Menu when he opened it at the Table in the Dining Room….some were signed by the Maitre’d….the Cruise Director, etc. and as the Cruise went along other passengers would look at Allen and say “You’re that guy!!!” There was even a lady at a Table relatively close to us in the Dining Room who wanted her picture taken with him. Conclusion #670: He loved the attention.

 

.

 

All I can say about the Cupid Poster Boy is that he's obviously having a great time and feeling no pain. This picture was obviously taken before the nightstand encounter. :)

[WeBeCruisin']

And yes I did manage to smuggle a suitcase full of beer which sadly was gone before I made it back to my hometown of Grand Turk. Luckily for me I have a masters degree in smuggling from Brown university...

 

Was the Brown University of maybe Amber U. Porter U. and Stout U. are also possibilities.

 

I went to a small Australian University and got a BAF degree. :cool:

[kpatrick74]

Loving your review!! Your group sounds like such fun.......I can't wait to show my DH how you setup beer pong in the hotel lobby. He made us Florida Gators beer pong tables n they travel with us in our RV......maybe someday I will have the honor of meeting all of you.

 

Can't wait to read more

Edited October 28, 2012 by kpatrick74

[vanislandcruisers]

We made our way down to the to the 2nd Deck to the Entrance to the Bacchus Dining Room where we were escorted to Table # 230 and met our 3-Person Dining Room Team for the 1st time.

 

 

Dee was able to bring this Assistant Waiter out of his shell. Our Head Waiter made a point of telling Dee "how HAPPY she was that Dee was able to do so'

 

 

 

They like our Cabin Staff took GREAT care of us throughout the Cruise. Dee and I were joined at our Table by Dan and Coral, Tammi and Allison and our Valentine’s Baby, Allen.

 

 

Trevor, Angie, Rick and Laurie were at a Booth for 4 to our right and there were 4 friends of Lynne’s, - Danny and Vicky and Kim and Greg - who we really didn’t see much of throughout the Cruise who were at the booth behind them. Bonnie, Sharon, Cindy and Laurie were at a Table for 4 to our left and Shelly and Jimmy, Donna and Dan and Lynne and Peewee were at a Table for 6 just behind us.

 

We quickly established a relationship with our Bar Waiter and after ordering our drinks we made an agreement that he would have a Double Crown and Coke in a Tall Glass with lots of Ice ready for me each night with the exception of the Aruba night. Dan entered into the same type of agreement although he substituted Ginger Ale for the Coke. I had my usual first night’s dinner on the Ship consisting of a Caesar Salad, the Beef and Barley Soup and a Medium Rare Flat Iron Steak. Dee also had the Soup and went with the Grilled Chicken Breast for her Entrée. During dinner a Bar Waitress came around with a tray of Shooters for sale where you get to keep the Shot Glasses so we bought a round. They did have some ‘Special’ valentine’s day Desserts this night but I ordered the Warm Chocolate Melting Cake with 2 Scoops of Vanilla ice Cream while Dee had a Banana Split off of the Kid’s Menu. Everything was excellent!!!!

 

After dinner we headed up to a freshly made-up Cabin and saw our first Towel Animal of the Cruise. We always crack up when we receive this particular Towel Animal.

 

 

Conclusion #672: Not like we haven’t seen one before. We made our way back to My Lucky’s Casino around 10:00pm and settled in for a 3-hour stretch. Dee and Coral decided they were going to hit the Slot Machines while Allen, the 2 Dans, Donna, Trevor, Tammi and myself sat down at a ‘Fun Pairs’ Blackjack Table. We all play the same way; ‘by the book’ so to speak

Shortly after sitting down it was time to switch up the Dealers and a fellow from India became our new dealer. Someone asked him how he pronounced his name and before he had a chance to answer Small boss said “Just call him the Love Guru” so we did. We had a great time with him with the Love Guru every time he was our Dealer as we did with all the Dealers during the Cruise. Unfortunately the Cards were not going my way and I ended up going through the rest of my $140.00 Casino Cash Comp so the advances on my $&$ card began. Carnival charges a 3% Administrative Fee to advance cash this way.

 

We stayed in the Casino until about 1:00am and I ended up leaving with a little over $100.00 in Chips while Dee lost about a $100.00 dollars at the Machines. A bunch of us made our way towards the 24 hour Pizza Restaurant with a quick stop at the Odyssey Pool Bar for a drink and a couple of Calzones in hand we made our way down to our Cabin to finish our snack and drinks and to get some much needed sleep.

[vanislandcruisers]

Great job Jim, I'm putting in another solid 12 hour shift at The Place 2B tonight waiting for Notre Dame to school the Sooners tonight and of course game 3 of the fall classic, go SF Giants! Now if I could just find that piece of paper from Brown I would be all set....

 

Thanks Trevor...Your Giants are a game away...Break out the brooms????

 

And yes I did manage to smuggle a suitcase full of beer which sadly was gone before I made it back to my hometown of Grand Turk. Luckily for me I have a masters degree in smuggling from Brown university...

 

I think you may have a PHD in consuming too;):D

[vanislandcruisers]

All I can say about the Cupid Poster Boy is that he's obviously having a great time and feeling no pain. This picture was obviously taken before the nightstand encounter. :)

 

Think you could be the Poster Boy for Good Times

 

Was the Brown University of maybe Amber U. Porter U. and Stout U. are also possibilities.

 

I went to a small Australian University and got a BAF degree. :cool:

 

BAF - Big Can of Foster's???.......funny how all the acronyms you use end in 'F':rolleyes::D

[vanislandcruisers]

Loving your review!! Your group sounds like such fun.......I can't wait to show my DH how you setup beer pong in the hotel lobby. He made us Florida Gators beer pong tables n they travel with us in our RV......maybe someday I will have the honor of meeting all of you.

 

Can't wait to read more

 

Thanks kpatrick74!!!!.....Glad you are enjoying it!!!......We gave Dan a real nice Beer pong Set-Up for his Birthday a few years back...he's got gloves with cut out fingers and everything...lol

 

They are a GREAT Group of people who we were very fortunate to meet. As of next October we will be going on our 5th and 6th Cruises with Allen and 4th and 5th with many of the others. We consider ourselves the lucky ones.

[WeBeCruisin']

Think you could be the Poster Boy for Good Times

 

 

 

BAF - Big Can of Foster's???.......funny how all the acronyms you use end in 'F':rolleyes::D

 

Trevor and I refer to them as Big Azz Foster's. It always cracks up the drink servers.

[njoyndride]

Loving your review.

 

 

After dinner we headed up to a freshly made-up Cabin and saw our first Towel Animal of the Cruise. We always crack up when we receive this particular Towel Animal.

We call her sealgina.:p

[vanislandcruisers]

‘2 Fisting’, 2 Hours of Cocktails, a Wedding and As Elegant As We Could Be

 

I woke up about 9:00am, late for me, to the sounds of the Maintenance Staff opening the Balcony Dividers between our 5 Cabins. The sun was shining brightly and the water was calm and the colour of the water was starting to turn to that Aqua-Blue that we were so looking forward to Dan and Coral witnessing for the first time.

 

After a shower I made my way up to La Playa Grille Lido Buffet to grab an omelet and some sides for each of us. After returning to the Cabin I woke Dee up and then headed out on the Balcony to join Dan, Donna, Lynne, Peewee, Dan and Coral for what would become a morning ritual – Coffee with a shot of Bailey’s, Mimosas using the Wine and Champagne we had brought on board, purchased or received and several rounds of Jell-O Shots. We were all joined shortly thereafter by Dee, Tammi and Allison. The laughs we had on the Balcony each morning were well worth the price of the entire Cruise.

 

Out on the Balcony

 

 

All we had on tap for the day was a 2-hour Paid Group Cocktail Reception at 2:30pm in Sam’s Piano Bar and a scheduled Group Slot pull in the Casino at 4:45pm and of course we all had to be elegant for 8:15pm that evening in the Dining Room.

 

Once Dee was ready and the 10 of us had finished the morning batch of Jell-O Shooters Dee, Dan, Coral and I made our way up to the Lido Deck for a Caesar and met up with a number of the others from the Group. Trevor and Angie were each having a Bloody Mary and Rick and Laurie were each having a morning Margarita while Allen, who was having his breakfast Coffee after rolling out of bed at 10:30am, got an added bonus when we pulled out a Rum Runner full of Bailey’s and added a couple shots to his cup.

 

When I told Dee ‘I was going to go get a Caesar’ and asked her if ‘she wanted one’ Trevor said “Sorry you are going to have to settle for a Bloody Mary. They don’t have Clamato on the Ships.” “They’ve had Clamato on all the Ships we’ve been on …well until we drank them out of it” I replied and off I went. When I returned with a couple of genuine Caesars the path of destruction Trevor left between our Table and the Bar was incredible. The first casualty was our very own Valentine’s Day Baby and his Bailey’s infused Coffee, followed by a little old lady on a Ccooter and then an elderly man with a Walker. Conclusion #673: Happy to report the latter two’s Hip Replacement Surgeries were both a complete success. When Trevor returned with a Caesar for both himself and Angie I looked at him and said “Et tu Caesar?” Being a Brown University Graduate Trevor understood Shakespeare humour.

 

We had a few more Caesars with Trevor providing the experienced and excellent ‘spicing’ from his many hours of tending Bar at the Place 2B before Dee, Dan, Coral and I made our way up to the Sun Deck to ‘catch some’ for a couple of hours. We found 4 loungers next to Bonnie, Laurie and Cindy and managed to catch a few rays as the sun darted in and out behind the clouds and there were even a few light rain showers that served to cool us off. Dan, not one to just lie around, lasted about an hour before he and Coral decided they were going to go wander around The Fun Shops and then go to the Studio Photo Gallery to find their Embarkation Photo. We told them we’d meet them at the Cabin at 1:30 to do some ‘priming’ before the Cocktail Reception.

 

We ordered a Bucket of Beer just as they left and after waiting an hour the only thing I got to drink was the sweat off my top lip so we told the 3 ladies ‘we’d see them at the Piano Bar in an hour for our Reception’ and headed towards the Cabin but not before making a a quick stop at the Asian Corner Restaurant for a plate of food for the 2 of us to split.

 

Back at the Cabin I went out on the Balcony and Dan said “Want a drink?”” and I said “Yep” and went back inside to make one for each of us. Apparently he did the same as we both came back out to the Balcony with 2 Crown and Cokes. It was like we were in Jamaica ‘No Problem Mon, we be havin’ 2 hands each.’

 

Like a Good Baseball Coach would yell "2 Hands!!!"

 

 

The picture I took of Dan '2 fisting' would also be the first one of our own pictures from the trip. I wanted to charge the battery for the Camera as I knew we had taken a number of pictures beginning with our first flight in Victoria. When I went to take the Battery out I realized that we had not put a Memory Card in the Camera when we left Victoria; we had both of our Memory Cards but neither of them were in the Camera. Coral said “not to worry… that she had a lead at home that would allow us to recover the Photos from the Camera’s Memory directly on to our Computer.” That would have worked fine had I not accidentally - Conclusion #674: Spelled ‘drunkenly’ wrong - dropped the Camera in the Dining Room on the last night of the Cruise. Thankfully the Memory Card was salvageable but that was about it. And much to our relief the others in our Group had no problem with us borrowing some of their photos to help chronicle - Conclusion #675: Spelled ‘remember’ wrong – our Vacation.

 

After a few drinks and a batch of Jell-O Shooters it was time to head to Sam’s Piano Bar for our Private 2-hour Group Cocktail Reception. Even with all the FUN we had experienced up until this point, for us this Cocktail Reception is when the Cruise really began.

 

Our GREAT Bar Waitress at the Reception

 

 

[vanislandcruisers]

Loving your review.

 

 

We call her sealgina.:p

 

Thanks njoyndride!!!!....Love your Screen name!!!

 

...and LOVE the Nickname :D

[Margarita Mom]

All the god fearing readers might want to skip over what we did next!!

[vanislandcruisers]

all the god fearing readers might want to skip over what we did next!!

 

lol

 

:)

Edited October 29, 2012 by vanislandcruisers

[parisbully]

Really enjoying your review. What a fun loving bunch you are. Just wondering if you had any complaints from neighbors that were not in your group......I imagine you were all pretty rowdy....