Mommy and Daddy Sail on Navigator of the Seas 1-05-2013

[dplusd]

I sure am enjoying your review and I think your photos are terrific too. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your cruise!

[lady_cruiser]

Very great review. We were on The Navigator for a B2B the first two weeks of December and had a great time. I tried writing a review, day by day, but it just didn't work out.

 

Thanks for the photos of the ice show. My camera's battery died right at the beginning of the show so I couldn't get any photos. This ice show was so much better than the ones we saw on The Voyager.

 

To keep our photos in order we very early and take a picture of the elevator's floor. I am sure you noticed that the day of the week is changed daily on all the elevators.

 

Keep the review's coming.

[Cshgrand]

Amazing review and so detailed. Great job!

[lady_cruiser]

To keep our photos in order we very :confused: early and take a picture of the elevator's floor. I am sure you noticed that the day of the week is changed daily on all the elevators.

 

Keep the review's coming.

 

EDITED: The first picture we take every morning is the one showing which day of the week it is. And this is found on the elevators' floors.

 

Of course if you plan on taking a sunrise you will have to get up early, get dress, go down the corridor to the elevator to get your picture and then back to your cabin; all before the sun comes up. :eek:

 

This helps me keep my pictures organized by day they were taken.

[siestakeys04]

Enjoying your review:D

[live2cruise2011]

Hi I like you just got my first dslr and love it I was wondering if you could tell me more about the seminar were there a lot of people or did they have a few min to help you understand the settings on your camera things like that also you may want to check out the great courses has a digital photo course it is 24 lectures taught by a nat geo photographer it was reasonable or if you email me (c.espimosa@gmail.com) I could lend you a copy for free

[lemonade-sails]

Hi I like you just got my first dslr and love it I was wondering if you could tell me more about the seminar were there a lot of people or did they have a few min to help you understand the settings on your camera things like that also you may want to check out the great courses has a digital photo course it is 24 lectures taught by a nat geo photographer it was reasonable or if you email me (c.espimosa@gmail.com) I could lend you a copy for free

 

I definitely am loving my new camera! I had a lot of fun with it on this trip.

 

The Photography Seminar was held on day 1 at 8 pm and there was another one on day 2 at 11 am. We missed the first one because we were so busy. There were quite a few people at the second one. Some had attended both so it was more like a continuation and not a repeat. The photographer had some type of powerpoint presentation to demonstrate different techniques. There was time during the presentation for questions and the staff was very helpful. After the seminar they were available for more questions. I had two specific questions regarding my Canon and he helped me and even showed me how to change the settings I needed help with. It was worth it to us to go. Bring your camera if you have specific questions. Also this was not just for DSLR cameras. There were several people with point-and-shoot cameras as well.

[lemonade-sails]

I sure am enjoying your review and I think your photos are terrific too. Looking forward to reading about the rest of your cruise!

 

Thank you! I have all the Day 3 pictures uploaded but have had computer issues. Hoping to post again soon. It's not easy doing a review from the phone.

 

Very great review. We were on The Navigator for a B2B the first two weeks of December and had a great time. I tried writing a review, day by day, but it just didn't work out.

 

Thanks for the photos of the ice show. My camera's battery died right at the beginning of the show so I couldn't get any photos. This ice show was so much better than the ones we saw on The Voyager.

 

To keep our photos in order we very early and take a picture of the elevator's floor. I am sure you noticed that the day of the week is changed daily on all the elevators.

 

Keep the review's coming.

 

Thanks for reading! I brought along a notebook to write in each day. I took a few minutes here and there when I had the time. So I am going back through those journal entries and supplementing with the Compasses I saved. It's not easy but is fun to relive the memories. So glad you liked the pictures of the ice show. It was one of the best shows we saw all week. I definitely recommend it!

[lemonade-sails]

Amazing review and so detailed. Great job!

 

Thanks! :)

 

Enjoying your review:D

 

Thank you!:)

[sailingawaysoon]

Love your review and can't wait to read more! We are headed back to the navigator in Feb and your cruise review is very exciting. Thanks for posting this!

[lemonade-sails]

Today was a turning point for us.

 

Day 1 was hectic with leaving later than we planned, having to say goodbye to the kids, the logistics of parking and getting to the port, waiting in line, wondering if we would make it on with our birth certificates and all of the first day jitters.

 

Day 2 was fun but we were still a bit nervous about how everything worked.

 

Day 3 was different. It's when we actually started to relax. It was also the day we stepped out of our comfort zones and started to try new things. We were feeling good about the emails from back home. There were reports of games and fun and everything was going smoothly. Yay! It was also our first port stop - Cozumel.

 

 

I woke up at about 6:30 to see Cozumel on our Port side.

 

 

Just something cool about seeing land after a full day of nothing but ocean. We could see the mainland very far away.

 

 

We passed a Disney ship on our way to the International Pier.

 

More good news was that the clouds seemed to have broken up and it looked promising for a sunny day.

 

 

[tneah]

I'm considering a last minute cruise and this is the ship I'm considering. So far you're doing a better job selling it to me than RCI. Go Girl! (WAIT! You are the female half, right):rolleyes:

 

Great review so far!

[gambee]

I stumbled upon your review a few hours ago, I loved your first post and I was hooked. I can appreciate a planner and love in depth reviews. I could only imagine booking a cruise with so many days of ahead of it, I don't I could deal with the anticipation.

 

So far it looks like you're having fun, I hope the rest of the cruise keeps going the same way.

 

Anyway, just wanted to stop by and let you know that you have another follower/fan :)

[cathep]

I'm loving this! Why did 2 ships pass in the river? Were they smaller ships and therefore able to maneuver faster? We'll have to make sure we're outside when this happens as my kids will love it!

[ARCruisinNana]

I'm loving this! Why did 2 ships pass in the river? Were they smaller ships and therefore able to maneuver faster? We'll have to make sure we're outside when this happens as my kids will love it!

 

The other 2 ships, Carnival and NCL, were headed back to NOLA for a Sunday morning arrival.

[lemonade-sails]

I'm considering a last minute cruise and this is the ship I'm considering. So far you're doing a better job selling it to me than RCI. Go Girl! (WAIT! You are the female half, right):rolleyes:

 

Great review so far!

 

Yes, I'm the female half :D! And I'm so glad you're considering Navigator. She is a beautiful ship. If Royal is reading, I would absolutely change my schedule around to sail twice a year and write marketing reviews for them. :p

 

I stumbled upon your review a few hours ago, I loved your first post and I was hooked. I can appreciate a planner and love in depth reviews. I could only imagine booking a cruise with so many days of ahead of it, I don't I could deal with the anticipation.

 

So far it looks like you're having fun, I hope the rest of the cruise keeps going the same way.

 

Anyway, just wanted to stop by and let you know that you have another follower/fan :)

 

Hi Gambee! Met your mom a little while ago:D. Yes, we booked a loooooong way out. I think it was easy to book that far because we both probably assumed that we would have to cancel before final payment. I figured that, with so many kids and life in general, something would happen that would cause us to cancel. After everything went smoothly and final payment came we discussed making the final payment or cancelling. There was really no reason to cancel at that point so we made final payment. After that I got nervous because there was no turning back :o.

 

Thanks for reading and the kind words, I appreciate them!

[lemonade-sails]

I'm loving this! Why did 2 ships pass in the river? Were they smaller ships and therefore able to maneuver faster? We'll have to make sure we're outside when this happens as my kids will love it!

 

They both passed us on the Port side - even though it didn't look like there was room enough for a whole other cruise ship to go by. It was very cool but over in a matter of seconds as both ships are travelling quickly. Definitely worth making an effort to see.

 

The other 2 ships, Carnival and NCL, were headed back to NOLA for a Sunday morning arrival.

Yes, this is correct. :)

[lemonade-sails]

We watched from the balcony as they tied up the ship. It was very comical to watch. There was some confusion about where to tie the ropes and one of the dock workers was yelling back toward the ship in Spanish and making very interesting hand gestures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We got showered and dressed and returned to the balcony to see the Costa Mediterranea backing into port. There were several passengers out on their balconies and on the top decks of the Mediterranea also watching.

 

 

 

We could see their captain and the activity on the bridge.

 

We also got to watch their docking activity.

 

We were ready for a show from the yelling dock workers, but we were disappointed. Aside from the crew member needed to rethrow the heaving line, their docking was uneventful. No yelling in Spanish whatsoever.

[lemonade-sails]

There was a Carnival ship approaching in the distance.

 

 

 

 

We headed to the Windjammer for breakfast.

 

Yes, those are prunes on my plate and, yes, you know why. Word to the wise though, they have the pits inside so be careful when you eat them.

 

You’re welcome.

 

Then we went up to the top deck to have a look around.

 

The Princess ship and the Carnival ship.

 

The port area.

 

 

We did not book any excursions before we left. We wanted to wait and see how things went. We didn’t even plan to get off in Cozumel but, after arriving, we thought we’d better at least get off so I could say I was in Mexico! This was my first time out of the USA (Couldn’t tell, huh?) So after gawking at the neighboring ship - we were bigger!! - we headed down to this strange place called the gangway.

 

Up next . . . where is the gangway anyway?? And our shopping experience in Cozumel.

[lemonade-sails]

We made our way down to the Promenade planning on getting some coffee and hot chocolate.

 

We noticed that the crew was disassembling the enormous Christmas tree next to the Cafe. We were a little worried about this as we had begun to start using it as a navigational tool. The tree was ‘forward’ so we had to head away from the tree to our cabin and toward the tree for the Cafe or theater. It’s how I navigate at home to. It’s all about the landmarks. With coffee in hand we started descending the stairs toward the gangway.

 

 

We came to Deck 4 and noticed one of the lifeboats was down. The crew was doing something with it. It looked like some kind of cleaning or maintenance. We didn’t stick around to watch but I snapped a quick picture.

 

In the lobby elevator there was another couple looking at the directory wondering about the gangway. We decided it must be on Deck 1 so we headed down the stairs.

 

We found it!

 

 

And we were off! My first time in Mexico!

 

 

 

So many stores right inside the port area. Many, many t-shirts and souvenier type things. We were looking for shirts for the kids. My favorite ones were Spongebob shirts. They said Bob Esponja. I didn’t get a photo but they were very cute.

 

We kept walking around and were approached by a man at the bottom of a stairway. He convinced us to come upstairs to his shop. As soon as we were inside, the door closed and he offered us free shots of Tequila. (How was he to know we don’t drink, right?) Anyway, we said we were interested in t-shirts and he showed us some. They were much more than the ones we had seen in the shops already that morning so we declined. It was a little uncomfortable trying to leave but eventually we made it out and past the other shop owners who were practically begging us to enter their shops. We went back downstairs and did a little more looking around.

 

 

 

When we got home and showed the kids that picture above, my boys all said they wished we had brought the donkey home!

[mtsublueraider]

We kept walking around and were approached by a man at the bottom of a stairway. He convinced us to come upstairs to his shop. As soon as we were inside, the door closed and he offered us free shots of Tequila. (How was he to know we don’t drink, right?) Anyway, we said we were interested in t-shirts and he showed us some. They were much more than the ones we had seen in the shops already that morning so we declined. It was a little uncomfortable trying to leave but eventually we made it out and past the other shop owners who were practically begging us to enter their shops. We went back downstairs and did a little more looking around.

 

OH MY GOSH....

 

on our most recent cruise I remember those guys that kept trying to get us to check out their shops UPSTAIRS.... i never thought much of it other than I didn't want to look in any more shops.

 

I would have lost my mind if the door closed behind me. Did someone else close it or did the shop owner? Wow...

[lemonade-sails]

The port area was clean but crowded - which is to be expected I guess. We didn’t plan to go into town at all so we headed back to the ship.

 

On the pier there was a bank of payphones. As we were walking back a woman was attempting to snap a photo of her husband. I offered to get a picture of them together but she declined. She assured me she didn’t want to be in the photo. We thought it was funny so we watched them for a little bit. It looked like she was either taking a picture or video of the man on the telephone in Mexico. They were both giggling and laughing. We laughed too because we had been making short videos of ourselves dancing throughout the ship and also on the pier for the kids back home. It appeared they were doing the same thing. If you saw me dancing down the Promenade thanks for not laughing too loudly!!

 

 

 

 

Heading back onboard. And this is where I made another mistake.

 

I had my fancy camera across my shoulder this whole time and whipped it up to get a photo of the doorway back onto the ship. For the kids, right!! And the crewmember inside scolded me. I guess it’s a secure area and no photos are allowed. So, don’t be like me on your next trip.

 

We headed back to our cabin and took a nap out on the balcony.

 

Completely restful and wonderful.

 

 

I had to take a picture of the pirate ship for the kids. They asked if there were real pirates on that ship and we said ‘yes’. Keeping the dream alive I guess. Real people dressed as pirates, right?

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[lemonade-sails]

OH MY GOSH....

 

on our most recent cruise I remember those guys that kept trying to get us to check out their shops UPSTAIRS.... i never thought much of it other than I didn't want to look in any more shops.

 

I would have lost my mind if the door closed behind me. Did someone else close it or did the shop owner? Wow...

 

We talked about this that afternoon actually. My husband hadn't realized that the door closed behind us. I took a step toward the t-shirts in order to turn around in the tiny shop and my husband grabbed my arm because he thought I was going deeper into the store. We turned around and the door opened - there was a man outside the door also so we're not sure if they were working together to get tourists in or if the door was automatic. But, thinking back, the other store doors were open and waiting for people to come in. So, we think they closed it when we went through. It was pretty strange and a little scary for me. :eek:

[mtsublueraider]

We talked about this that afternoon actually. My husband hadn't realized that the door closed behind us. I took a step toward the t-shirts in order to turn around in the tiny shop and my husband grabbed my arm because he thought I was going deeper into the store. We turned around and the door opened - there was a man outside the door also so we're not sure if they were working together to get tourists in or if the door was automatic. But, thinking back, the other store doors were open and waiting for people to come in. So, we think they closed it when we went through. It was pretty strange and a little scary for me. :eek:

 

 

I think I'm going to have to pass on going upstairs next time! Yowzers....

 

We love the beach day at Nachi Cocom so won't have much shopping time anyway but it's still fun to look around before boarding the ship again.

 

Looking forward to seeing more pictures! You have a tender coming up! Any pictures of MDR food?

 

My main question about this sailing is the show/dinner schedule. My wife and I just want to go to a bar and have a drink before we head to the Main Dining Room but my parents want to see the show either before or after dinner.

 

I'm still confused about how the times work out if you have an 8:30 seating.