Celebrity Reflection - Nov 1, 2013

[vulcan1971]

sounds great guys, looking forward to meeting you all.

Mike and David we met last year and have developed a great friendship with,

Walter, I look forward to meeting you as well! Be nice to meet sometime in Toronto too.

Looks like its shaping up to be a good cruise so far

 

I'll be in Toronto next weekend to celebrate my partners birthday.

 

 

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[Schplinky]

Welcome back! Sounds like you had an amazing cruise. I hope you are able to bring your pictures in November so you can tell us all about the trip. It has been a dream of mine to see the south pacific.

 

 

Walter

 

 

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Easily my favorite vacation ever so I'm not sure I'll ever shut up about it. We'll post our pictures soon and share them here.

 

Looking forward to making new memories with everyone here.

[sdbart]

Bart, I'm sure I'll learn plenty more from folks like you before we board the ship. It will be 19 months since our last Celebrity cruise by the time we board the Reflection. Hands down, it's been my favorite cruise line to vacation on. Looking forward to meeting all the folks here and prolonging my birthday celebration.

 

 

Walter

 

 

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The ship was so neat, Walter, that we came to almost resent the port days. We had eight days at sea, which we found to be too short; there were places on the Solstice we meant to check out, but never got around to. Guess we were having too much fun. :D I'm going to make an extra effort this time around. Bobbie wasn't too sure how he would like all the sea days on a TA, but he ended up enjoying himself tremendously; he was almost mesmerized by the vastness of the ocean and spent a lot of time gazing out to sea spotting whales, Atlantic dolphins (smaller than the ones we see off our coast) and flying fish. The ship was just about full, but never seemed the least crowded. I was an art director and Bob is an artist and we loved the art collection.

[sdbart]

Easily my favorite vacation ever so I'm not sure I'll ever shut up about it. We'll post our pictures soon and share them here.

 

Looking forward to making new memories with everyone here.

 

I can't wait, Lee. Friends did the trip on Renaissance Cruses before they crashed and burned (you were on one of their former ships) and loved the cruise as much as you did. Can't wait to hear all about it! Tom and Ann (tomo@sea) from the main roll call are sailing from Honolulu to Sidney via Tahiti on the Millennium, before flying to Rome to join our cruise. I'm envious. ;)

[mookyboi]

I'll be in Toronto next weekend to celebrate my partners birthday.

 

 

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Thats great Walter! Sorry we will miss you, we are on the Reflection next weekend for a week sailing! I hope you have a great time celebrating! let me know next time you'll be in town! (after next week)!:D

[Schplinky]

Thats great Walter! Sorry we will miss you, we are on the Reflection next weekend for a week sailing! I hope you have a great time celebrating! let me know next time you'll be in town! (after next week)!:D

 

Have a great time on Reflection and come tell us all about her!

 

We were in Toronto for one night on the way to Tahiti, a few weeks ago. Went to our favorite restaurant (Ruby Watchco) and had a great time. Walter, have a great time and wish Iain a great birthday.

[Schplinky]

Is everyone planning to get to Rome a few days ahead of the sailing? I think someone from the main roll call mentioned the possibility of a dinner the night before the sailing but maybe we could all meet ahead of that for drinks, or afterward?

[sdbart]

Is everyone planning to get to Rome a few days ahead of the sailing? I think someone from the main roll call mentioned the possibility of a dinner the night before the sailing but maybe we could all meet ahead of that for drinks, or afterward?

 

I don't think anything other than a suggestion for a dinner on the main roll call has been mentioned, Lee. In any case, we tried that in Barcelona, and it didn't work; we couldn't find a venue that could hold everyone or even a venue that people could agree on. We just ended up meeting in smaller groups.

 

We plan to do the same thing in Rome. How about we do a pre-cruise dinner with the men from this roll call. There's a (supposedly) very good gay-owned restaurant near Piazza Venezia in the center of Rome..

[Klettberg]

We will be flying in the day of the cruise, so please make sure they don't cast off before we make it there. (Munich has been known to have fog or snow on occasion). :-)

[Schplinky]

I don't think anything other than a suggestion for a dinner on the main roll call has been mentioned, Lee. In any case, we tried that in Barcelona, and it didn't work; we couldn't find a venue that could hold everyone or even a venue that people could agree on. We just ended up meeting in smaller groups.

 

We plan to do the same thing in Rome. How about we do a pre-cruise dinner with the men from this roll call. There's a (supposedly) very good gay-owned restaurant near Piazza Venezia in the center of Rome..

 

I'd be happy to do that.

[sdbart]

I'd be happy to do that.

 

Here's the Trip Advisor review page for the restaurant: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g187791-d1917363-Reviews-Edoardo_II-Rome_Lazio.html. It sounds like a fun place.

[vulcan1971]

Is everyone planning to get to Rome a few days ahead of the sailing? I think someone from the main roll call mentioned the possibility of a dinner the night before the sailing but maybe we could all meet ahead of that for drinks, or afterward?

 

Iain and I are planning to arrive the weekend before so we can spend most of a week in Rome. We'd most likely be interested in a pre-cruise dinner or other type of gathering.

 

 

Walter

 

 

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[Schplinky]

Here's the Trip Advisor review page for the restaurant: http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g187791-d1917363-Reviews-Edoardo_II-Rome_Lazio.html. It sounds like a fun place.

 

Sounds great to me. It's just a few blocks from our hotel. It turns out the nice thing about staying near the pantheon is that when you turn on satellite view on google maps, you can find out how far anything is from the big round dot that the Pantheon makes.

[sdbart]

Sounds great to me. It's just a few blocks from our hotel. It turns out the nice thing about staying near the pantheon is that when you turn on satellite view on google maps, you can find out how far anything is from the big round dot that the Pantheon makes.

 

Actually, unless you get lost (easy to do with all those narrow, twisting streets), everything in the centro storico is within easy walking distance from everywhere else. The entire area between Piazza Venezia and the bend in the Tiber is packed with restaurants, gelato shops and interesting sites.

[Schplinky]

Actually, unless you get lost (easy to do with all those narrow, twisting streets), everything in the centro storico is within easy walking distance from everywhere else. The entire area between Piazza Venezia and the bend in the Tiber is packed with restaurants, gelato shops and interesting sites.

 

 

Sounds like my kind of town.

 

For those who have been before, do you ever go to the gay nightclubs? Does Rome still have a bar scene or has it been obliterated by the internet and iPhone apps the way is has here? Our city of a million had several gay bars a decade or so ago and now has only one rather tired bar.

[sdbart]

Sounds like my kind of town.

 

For those who have been before, do you ever go to the gay nightclubs? Does Rome still have a bar scene or has it been obliterated by the internet and iPhone apps the way is has here? Our city of a million had several gay bars a decade or so ago and now has only one rather tired bar.

 

Rome has never had quite the type of gay nightlife of the northern Italian cities, and certainly don't expect what can be found in northern European cities. But here's a link to what's most current:

 

Gay Rome Travel Guide and Map: http://www.patroc.com/rome/

[Klettberg]

I'd be happy to do that.

 

Thank you! You are a true gentleman. I trust we'll be o.k., however.

 

Herbert:)

[Schplinky]

Hey everyone! We are Ted and Kim (zentha from above post) from Rockmart, Georgia and we will be joining you on this Transatlantic at the end of the year. Looking forward to meeting everyone....Martini bar?

 

 

And the Molecular Bar. They have the most creative drinks there.

[sdbart]

And the Molecular Bar. They have the most creative drinks there.

 

But the Martini Bar is the gay hangout! Last year on our TA, the LGBT gathering every day was even in the daily bulletin. It always said meet in the Martini Bar.

[Schplinky]

But the Martini Bar is the gay hangout! Last year on our TA, the LGBT gathering every day was even in the daily bulletin. It always said meet in the Martini Bar.

 

 

But Bart, we're gay men; we don't always do what we're told! Besides, on Eclipse, had all the gay men shown up to the martini bar, it would have been impossible.

[ottawapuppy]

Hey everyone!

 

I'm Lee's partner (or should I say fiance) Mike. Lee mentionned people were chatting here, so I thought I'd better check in too!

 

I *LOVED* the transatlantic we did on Eclipse in the fall of 2011. I can't believe how quickly the sea days went by, and we had seven in a row. There was a great group of guys on that sailing and we have stayed in touch with several of them. The seas were pretty choppy on that sailing (they closed the treadmills in the gym since people were falling off) but thankfully nobody in our group was motion sick.

 

This will be our fourth cruise on a Solstice-class ship (twice on Solstice, once on Eclipse). I love the decor of these ships and the variety of venues for dining and drinking. Aqua Class is awesome, I really enjoy the food and ambiance in Blu and the extra little perks are great.

 

We're spending a few days in Rome before the cruise. I am currently using Rosetta Stone Italian to prepare for the trip. I took some classes before visiting Italy a few years ago, but not speaking the language very often did not allow me to retain much of it.

 

This will be cruise number 26 for us, and will be our honeymoon. We are getting married on Sept 28th.

 

Look forward to seeing everyone onboard (or in Rome beforehand)

 

Mike

[sdbart]

But Bart, we're gay men; we don't always do what we're told! Besides, on Eclipse, had all the gay men shown up to the martini bar, it would have been impossible.

 

Well, it's not like we can't wander back and forth. ;-)

[sdbart]

Hey everyone!

 

I'm Lee's partner (or should I say fiance) Mike. Lee mentionned people were chatting here, so I thought I'd better check in too!

 

I *LOVED* the transatlantic we did on Eclipse in the fall of 2011. I can't believe how quickly the sea days went by, and we had seven in a row. There was a great group of guys on that sailing and we have stayed in touch with several of them. The seas were pretty choppy on that sailing (they closed the treadmills in the gym since people were falling off) but thankfully nobody in our group was motion sick.

 

This will be our fourth cruise on a Solstice-class ship (twice on Solstice, once on Eclipse). I love the decor of these ships and the variety of venues for dining and drinking. Aqua Class is awesome, I really enjoy the food and ambiance in Blu and the extra little perks are great.

 

We're spending a few days in Rome before the cruise. I am currently using Rosetta Stone Italian to prepare for the trip. I took some classes before visiting Italy a few years ago, but not speaking the language very often did not allow me to retain much of it.

 

This will be cruise number 26 for us, and will be our honeymoon. We are getting married on Sept 28th.

 

Look forward to seeing everyone onboard (or in Rome beforehand)

 

Mike

 

Looking forward to meeting you in Rome, Mike!

[Schplinky]

Well, it's not like we can't wander back and forth. ;-)

 

 

Oh, too true. I just resist having any "have to" things on vacation.

[sdbart]

Oh, too true. I just resist having any "have to" things on vacation.

 

I have no idea where the LGBT meetings were SUPPOSED to held, but someone on the gay roll call suggested the Martini Bar, and people just showed up there. Someone also must have complained to someone, because a few days later, the notice started appearing in the daily bulletin, which is apparently unheard of. No one was forced to go, but a lot of the men who were in Blu, just started the evening in the Martini Bar.