"12/12/12 LIFE'S A BREEZE" a cruisin USA "Long and Lengthy" Cruise Novella

[CharmedMom]

Nice review - I look forward to reading the rest (we will be cruising on the Breeze in June, and are very much looking forward to it). :)

[dec2007w3boys]

 

 

We made our way back to the Liquid nightclub. There was a sign that said "Private Party" in front of the doors. ........ Almost 100 peeps.!!.......................

 

 

I guess I'll just say that roll calls are funny things. There's a core group of people that know each other(people who get well aquainted over roll call and other social media), but add on spouses and kids, and you have pretty much a big group where most people don't know anybody(like us). Sure, I'd participated on both the CC and "the other" roll call pages, but I couldn't place but a few of the faces. We made our way to the bar.....................A girl came up to us. She was wearing a pink mustache. Her screename was creative1. I guess that's her idea of being creative......hehe She was nice, and we found out it was her husband that was watching the door. We saw Ron and Amy. Ron stopped to ask us if we were in the gift exchange. ..... We got another drink. We just found an open seat/couch, and I plopped down. Lot's of spouses/kids just sitting there, filling the room, looking kind of "awkward" I'm sure we looked the same. ...... While we're in line waiting, a lady walks towards us. She see's Mary Ann's nametag, and says "Cruisin USA Mary Ann" and she looks at my tag. "Cruisin USA Gary". Without another word, she just continues on to the bar.(Of course, it was pretty well into the party, and the drinks WERE flowing.....hehe.) I came to find out that this was Bevie, the host of the "official" CC group. Just reads our nametags aloud, and passes through. We're veritable "Misfits among Misfits" I tell ya. ..................Note to self: Not sure if we'll attend anymore CC cocktail parties......................... It was fun while it lasted!! We went right back to the disco, and got 1 last free drink. The place was emptying out. Drink in hand, we headed out. That was the end of our plans with the roll call people(besides the glowing away party). I must tell you, I was slightly relieved.

 

 

My husband and I introduced ourselves and spoke with you for a few minutes during the cocktail party. We were also sure to say "hi" when we saw you during the week. Sorry the group did not meet your expectations. I met great friends on this trip and found the group to be nothing but friendly and outgoing. In fact, we are planning our next cruise in 2014. Happy Cruising!

[SenatorsFan]

Hi Gary, I agree with the posters above. Please continue. I'm someone who's always enjoyed your reviews, and since I'm cruising on Breeze in July, I'm anxious for every scrap of information you can provide!:D

Heather

[Crusin Karen]

I agree, I'm not even GOING on the Breeze and I love this review! If you decide not to continue, have a great cruise on the Miracle. Got off her last Monday. Sailed on her 4x. Sure gonna miss her since she is going out west. :(:(

[workn2cruise]

Whoo hoo!!! Thanks for continuing Gary!

[88Wildcat]

Yea!! So glad you will be continuing your review. I don't subscribe to many threads but I did subscribe to yours and look forward to reading more!

 

Here in Kansas we are preparing for another foot of snow (to add to the foot we already got last week) and reading about Caribbean adventures helps to keep me warm! We will be on the Breeze in July...only 154 more days...but who's counting?

[LUPY48]

So glad you reconsidered Gary!! Looking forward to it.

[beach410]

Glad you came back, I have been really enjoying your review, thanks for taking the time to share it, I know they can be time consuming, especially with such great details. There is always someone who posts something negative, sorry it upset you! Looking forward to more.

 

I really like the look of the Breeze, Carnivals decor never bothered me, I don't normally take much notice to it, but found myself noticing it a bit more on our last cruise, it felt very dark. The Breeze looks refreshingly lighter and I just love the beach/carribean tone to it, I'd like to sail her one day!

[CDNtexascruiser]

Thanks for continuing, I really like your writing style and I enjoy reading your perspective of your cruise experience.

 

Sarah

[Packerman52]

I'm enjoying it Gary...keep it coming!!!!!!!!!

[pcvtmom]

Your writing style is SO easy to follow! I'm glad you have decided to continue this wonderful review.

[Cupcrazy]

Gary, thank you for continuing this great review! That was 1 person out of so many who are loving it and thanking you for posting. I can't wait for more!

 

- Nathaniel

[Wags67]

I was looking forward to your review before we even left for the cruise! LOL

So glad you decided to finish it, Gary!

[cruisin USA]

Ok, getting things cued up to start and finish St. Thomas.

 

First, a few comments to the poster's out there.

 

 

rhcpchika........Saw STP warm up for RCHP quite a few years ago. GREAT show!!! Thank you!

 

Ron...... Thanks for the clarification. I had no idea that they'd cancelled the "official group" for this cruise. (I'm crossing my fingers for Hawaii).

 

jacksmom09, lulu57, CharmedMom, Senatorsfan, pinkiesue, 88wildcat, beach410, CDNtexascruiser, packerman52, pcvtmom, cruises42 and cupcrazy....Thank you for your support. It's you guys that I want to keep writing for.

 

Crusin Karen....Thank you for both posts

 

{{{{{{Andrea}}}}}} Sorry we won't be meeting you, SillyJilly, idiebabe, Sharon, and all the rest who befell the "Hawaiin plague" that set in on you all. (You know why I'm keeping my fingers crossed. What the official count now? 20?30?)

 

dec2007w3boys...I remember you both. Absolutely NO need to apologize to me. I'm glad you met great friends. Have a TERRIFIC time on your 2014 cruise.

 

Delta Dear.....Thank you kindly. I can feel your "niceness" reaching through the computer screen through your words.

 

Nina....You quoted the most poignant part of the chapter. The lesson learned.....I will heed that note to self in the future. I think the cocktail party will probably be a highlight of my Hawaiin novella.

 

Laura......Thanks for those nice words,(and for letting the subject drop.....hehe)

 

 

And now, as they say on TV...........

 

 

 

"On With the Show"

 

 

Just finishing up with work. Taking the laptop home, and will start posting from there within the hour

 

 

 

Gary

[Noreno]

I feel like a kid waiting on SANTA for XMAS. One of my favorite reviews. Thank you for coming back! I will continue to wait patiently

[cruisin USA]

Ahem......continuing.....

 

 

"Welcome to St. Thomas"

 

 

 

Woke up parked at the pier in St. Thomas!! I joined Mary Ann out on the balcony.

 

 

 

 

The pier is set in Long Bay. A beautiful "set in" bay surrounded by rich green hills. Plenty of houses built into those hills.

 

 

 

 

I had been here a VERY long time ago with my parents aboard the Victoria, of the Chandris line..... The pier was in the same spot but the "shopping village" now there, wasn't there before. Mary Ann pointed out the Subway and Radio Shack. Across the shopping area, we could see "Al Cohens Liquor Mall"(at least that's what the sign said). A HUGE set of buildings that we never made it over to,

 

 

 

 

Over to the left I could see the cable car lines that lead to Paradise Point. That's where we were heading.

 

 

 

We got ready, and got on the elevators to go down to the gangplank.

 

 

 

 

......to be continued.....

[cruisin USA]

.....continuing.....

 

 

I thought there'd be a line to get out, but folks were all just getting off the ship at a leisurely pace. We made our way off the ship, and headed to Paradise Point. It took us about 10 minutes(stopping to get a few shots along the way).

 

 

(our balcony was 2 left of the people)

 

They were doing some major roadwork, and we had to circumvent a LOT of orange barriers.

 

 

 

When I had heard the reviews on the Carnival website, there had been mention of the steps leading up to ski lift. Someone complained about not being warned about how many steps, and that mom had to bow out. Well, for the record. There's 2 sets of 20 stairs each(1 right after the other) leading to the ride. Hope this helps you, if you're undecided. Exchanged our tickets at the office for wristbands, and up we went. We were in a cable car(seats 8, but 6 is comfortable). We had 6.

 

 

 

(gets my vote for the worst sky ride caution sign ever!)

 

2 others were also from the Breeze. The other 2 were on the Liberty, also docked with us. They had left just before us out of Miami, but they explained that they had stopped at Nassau first. I thought our trip was fairly rough, but them having to go twice our speed to catch up probably made their voyage a LOT worse.

 

 

 

.....to be continued.....

[cruisin USA]

.....continuing.....

 

 

The ride up, was GREAT!! I had heard it was stuffy, but had no such thought. Took lots of pictures as we ascended.

 

 

 

It took about 5 minutes to make it to the top. We reached the platform, got out of cable car, and proceeded out to the observation area. As I had mentioned earlier, we had heard that there was a change of management, and it had been closed. They still had a long way to go. The "nature trail" was closed. They didn't have any food(except chips). What looked like a bandstand was being attended to. Regardless, the view was beautiful. Especially with our ship in the harbor.

 

 

 

Just seeing our ship down in the bay! There was a map showing exactly what you were seeing with all the areas labeled. Pretty cool.

 

 

What was funny was the Carnival ship that was on the map. Must have been really old!! It was hot!!! Mary Ann found some shade under an umbrella table while I took some pictures. The waitress came over. It was early, and I didn't think I could handle a Bushwacker(a local "Bailey's based" cocktail that Butch had warned us about)on an empty stomach. We were up there for about a half an hour, and decided to take the cable down. We got down into the shopping village. Pretty standard fare. Both Mary Ann and I have got wayyyyyyy too many t shirts, shot glasses, lighters. towels, ....etc. Didn't end up buying anything. Did I mention it was hot?....hehe. We headed back up to the ship to eat, There was a pretty big line getting back onto the ship. Eventually, they opened the "crew only" gangplank.. We made our way up. Going up the gangplank, I noticed the cameras on the side of the ship.

 

 

Must make it a LOT easier pulling into port. I took a couple pictures. After I took this one.....

 

 

.....the officer on duty said I wasn't allowed to take pictures here.

 

 

.....to be continued......

 

It's 4:30 am...I thought I'd be able to finish St. Thomas tonight. I'll have to continue tomorrow. Thanks again for your patience.

 

 

Gary

[Delta Dear]

Thank you, Gary for the details in your review and for the stunning photos. Both are extremely helpful for those of us who travel with someone with mobility issues.

Your review should be noted: Mobility Challenged Friendly. Thanks !

It is such a relief to see photos like the ones you included from St. Thomas to see just how much of a walk my husband will have to make to get from the ship to the area where we will meet our tour guide.

So often people writing reviews do not include details like the 2 sets of 20 stairs to the skylift. My fear of being in a cable car kept us from planning that trip, but if we had, I would have had to cancel it based on your notes.

 

We have been to Nassau so we know what to expect there. The worst experience we've had has been Roatan's long pier, but we managed after the initial shock.

Can't wait for the rest of your review. We leave on Sat. Yahoo. Also glad to hear mention of how hot it was so we will dress for that.

[pinkiesue]

Love your pics. I'm hoping we can do the skyride after our beach day. One ? did you buy the tickets on the boat or there?

Thanks

[cruisin USA]

.....continuing.....

 

 

We were hungry after all that walking. We made our way back to the lido pool area. It was lunchtime. We decided to try the Blue Iguana Cantina. The place is set up well. Basically, they have tacos on 1 side, and burritos on the other. At the burrito side, folks were lined up(most of the time). They would build you a burrito "Subway" style. Tell them your filling, and your add ons, and they'd build it to order, wrap it up, and give it to you. For the taco side, they just give you a flower tortilla with your filling (chicken, fish, or pork)on them, and you could take them over to the taco bar to "doctor them up"(as grandma would say). Lot of toppings. Black bean salso, Pico de gallo, cheese, lettuce tomato, onion, limes(essential for Mex food, and a potential supply for our Coronas), and of course jalapenos! There was no line for tacos, so tacos it was. We each ordered 2 chicken. My only complaint was about the 4 inch flour tortillas(they should have been 5 or 6. inches...hehe). I heard 1 reviewer saying they were too thick. (Although they were a little thick, it didn't affect my appreciation of this taco 1 lil bit) I went over to the taco bar. Someone was adding black bean salsa to their taco. It was Butch!! Quality control I bet...hehe. We added our toppings and I stopped to take a quick picture of all the sailboats in the bay.

 

 

We headed to the cabin to eat them. DELICIOUS! The early start, heat, and now food made me tired. We hung out on the balcony, just enjoying the view. I ended up taking a nap. I must have been tired, I was out for a couple of hours. We debated going back ashore, but decided against it. It had started sprinkling off and on, and we didn't want to get caught in a long line back to the ship in the rain. We had beach days planned for the next 2 days. It was just nice to enjoy cocktail hour till we sailed. Eventually, it grew dark. I looked towards the aft. The Liberty was already gone. We were watching TV when we felt the ship finally start the move. We started pulling out. We went out on the balcony for sail away.

 

 

The Liberty was back!!! We could see an ambulance pulled up on the pier.

 

 

Must have been a medical emergency. We pulled out and past the Liberty. We see the folks walking out on deck.

 

 

They were checking us out. Carnival's newest ship. It was cool. There were catcalls going on between the ships as we past. I joined in...Couldn't help it. TOO FUNNY is that LamenLaur posted their review of the Liberty on this voyage, and had a picture of US leaving port.

 

(you can just about make us out)

 

Soon enough we were out to sea on our way to Antigua.

 

 

.....to be continued.....

Edited February 27, 2013 by cruisin USA

[cruisin USA]

.....continuing.....

 

 

 

 

 

We skipped the Powerball Bingo and the Hasbro Game show. We found out that they had been playing the 1st Hasbro on the CD channel, and we'd might check it there eventually. We had been on 2 sea days to start the trip. On the port day, there were noticeably less activities planned in the Fun Times magazine. Fine with us. We ended sail away/cocktail hour, and got ready for dinner.

 

 

Got to our table. Got our Menus and Rolls. Tonight's choice? "Yukon Gold Potato Cream Soup(enhanced with chees and garlic croutons). Shrimp Cocktail(soooo glad they didn't take it off the menu), and a "heartsmart" grilled marinated pork steak w/grilled zuchini and sliced potatoes.....YUM!!!

 

 

 

 

For Mary Ann's main course, she chose "Assorted Seafood, Newburg Style"(black tiger prawns and ocean scallops, tossed in a creamy lobster sauce, served with saffron rice pilaf.

 

 

 

 

For dessert Mary Ann picked Bitter and Blanc, and I had tirimisu. Ken Byrnes started up with his Sinatra song, and the waiters did a version of "Hey Baby", a song that's been a Carnival staple for awhile. After dinner we went to the Red Frog pub where "Chris" was playing pub guitar.

 

 

 

 

Liked his selection, and his mix was better than Adam's. Look over to the table across from us, and it's the lead singer/dancer from the Diva's show the other night. Also at a table behind us, talking with passengers, was Butch.....

 

 

 

 

I think that we saw Butch "out and about" more than any cruise director we've ever had. (Good for you Butch! No small wonder you got the Breeze!! )After a few songs, we headed back to the cabin. We had a long day ahead of us in Antigua. When we got back, there was our cute new towel animal,......

 

 

 

 

.......along with a note on the bed saying that they would be conducting "balcony wooden handrails management.(Sanding and Varnishing)" Commencing at 9:00 am. "For your convenience and privacy we would ask that you removce all the personal items, close your window curtains and ensure that the balcony door is locked" NO use of the balcony tomorrow....sigh.

 

 

 

 

.....to be continued.....

[cruisin USA]

12/12/12 Antigua

 

 

 

 

Years from now, I'll always remember what we did on 12/12/12.(Partially, thanks to this review). Woke up, to find us parked at the pier in Antigua. More, lush green. Just not so mountainous here.

 

 

 

As I mentioned earlier, there had been a big group from roll call going over to Jolly beach. That they were doing an "all day" for 1 low cost(67.50) that included breakfast, lunch, drinks, and all hotel ammenities like pool, towel. etc. Trouble for me is that I don't get up that early. I had read on CC about the free side of Jolly beach, and that they had a cash bar. chairs and umbrellas, and clean restrooms there. The reviews were positive Fine by me. We got ready(I put on our special 12/12/12 t-shirt Brenda had made), and headed to lido for our new "standard" omelet breakfast.

 

 

 

 

"Seabourn Encounter"

 

 

 

We were parked next to another cruise ship. A MUCH smaller ship. We could look down and out onto their main deck. I took a few pics.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Turned out that this was the Seabourn Quest. Seabourn is know for being a "High End" cruise line. VERY PRICEY. I myself, wouldn't want to travel on that small of a ship. Towels and sunscreen in hand, we headed off of the ship, and onto the pier of Antigua.

 

 

 

.....to be continued.....

[Packerman52]

Keep it coming buddy!!!! Although we are taking the 6 day Breeze cruise (wife's work schedule wouldn't allow for 8 day cruise...REALLY wanted to do the 8 day) I'm becoming very familiar with the Breeze! I have a question...did you go to the RedFrog Pub? Seems like my kind of place to hang after a day on the ship!

[cruisin USA]

Note from the author...

 

"Sorry I took the night off guys. It was Mary Ann's birthday today. It's also the 3rd anniversary of our "We Missed the Boat" trip.......sigh Over the past few years we've been cruising close to her birthday. Our December cruise made it too tough. We had plans to take a limo tonight with the kids to the casino, but the bad weather made us postpone till next week." I'm going to get a couple of chapters published, and then address the questions"

 

Gary

 

 

 

.....continuing.....

 

 

 

They had a steel drum band playing. Love the sound of a live steel drum band. There's a walkway that leads right onto a main walkway of shops.

 

 

(the official cab hut up to the left)

 

Lot's of folks walking around. We proceeded.....and were ACCOSTED by huge amounts of men (with sheets of "beach choices")trying to get us to take their cab. EVERY 5 FEET!! There was an "official" taxi hut. I went over there to talk to them. Ride to Jolly beach? $12.00 per person. $24.00 each way? I thought with the many salesmen that we might be able to find a deal. No such luck, and we ended up in a store just to get out of the swarming taxi people. The last time we had to do this was running the gauntlet at El Bufadora(that's another review though). With our towels in hand, and wearing beachwear we were sitting ducks. Another guy came up to us, and wanted our business, he sure didn't look official, and no way would I get into his cab no matter what the deal. We almost decided to give it up, but went back to the official booth, and told them we'd like a cab to Jolly beach. Remembering last trip(also another review), I asked if we'd be able to get a cab back. The guy at the counter paused, but then said "It could be arranged". They got us a driver, and we followed him a short way to his van. The ride was about 20 minutes but that was mostly due to the traffic getting out of town. The rest of the ride was through huge green hills, VERY scenic. The driver would tell us about places we were passing. There was a statue of Vere Cornwall Bird Sr., who was a local leader/politicial. The driver said he was Antigua's version of Jesus. hmmmm. Lot's of green land with a smattering of small houses. We saw a bunch of cows and goats as we rode. We got to the Jolly Beach parking lot. A gal came up to our cab. She introduced herself, and said that she'd show us around. She made sure to get the cab driver's phone number, and asked when he'd be back for us?(REALLY liked that!!!!!!!!) It was 1:30. We said 3:30 would be fine. With the arrangements made, the gal takes us out to the beach area. The driver did chase us down. End's up that Antigua is on Atlantic time. 1:30 to us was 2:30 to them, and he wanted to make sure on the time. Glad we cleared that up. $48.00 for an hour of beach time wouldn't have worked for me. As we walked to the beach, the gal said I looked like Ozzie Osbourne....hehe. I went into my "Ozzy" walk, exclaiming "Sharon, Sharon"...She cracked up. Mary Ann told her not to get me started.....hehe. She shows us the bathrooms, bar, restaurant, then "hands us off" to the beach guy. He leads us to some chairs and umbrellas. He says. That the chairs are $10 each, as well as the umbrella. $30.00. I say we'll skip the umbrella(even though it was looking like rain). I had a fifty. He pulled out a 20 and a 10. I held the 50, and said that he need to give me 2 "20's" back. He finally relented, and we got the 2 chairs for 5 bucks each. Then it started raining. Pretty cold rain, but not too hard. I was regretting not getting the umbrella, but the rain stopped, and we didn't see any more the rest of the day. It was partly cloudy. The clouds were passing over pretty quickly. We'd get minutes of sun, followed by minutes of cloud. Not too bad if you burn easily. First stop? The bar of course for a couple of Pina Coladas. The bartender made enough to fill 2 9 oz glasses each. $6.00 Not bad...But there was a note below the prices. There was a 15% AND another 10% in service charge and taxes added making the drinks $7.50 each. (Still not too bad). It was a GREAT beach. I'd guess about a mile long.

 

 

 

 

 

Every once in a while "cab" gal would walk by ,and I'd hear her shout "Ozzie!"......cute. Eventually, we see Paul and Maryann(they were part of the big group). They were just checking out our side. Paul had gotten stung by a jellyfish. He showed his leg, but I didn't notice any sting mark. Made me aprehensive about going into the water, but I did. Just floated around like a manatee. The water felt great, and not a jellyfish in sight. There were LOTS of shells and coral lying around. Picked up a few for our collection. There weren't too many people on the beach. A group of 4 did get led up by the "beach" guy. When he told them there was a charge, one of the guys got belligerent, trying to get a deal for the 4 of them. How distracting listening to this guy haggle over price for umbrellas and chairs. The beach guy said he'd have to talk to his manager, cause the guy wanted to pay $20 for everything. Eventually, he got even more mad, and said "Fine, we'll just use our towels, and not have to pay anything". By this time, beach guy was more than glad to hear that. Unfortunately, they had to plop down right in front of us. Ended up it was 2 couples, and I think the other 3(what looked like his wife, and maybe their son and daughter in law) were a little embarrased. The guy tells his wife that he wants her to go for a walk to the other side with her. She doesn't want to go, but he's persistent. Glad she relented, and things got quiet again. Wayyyy to soon, the gal comes back, and tells it's time to go meet our cab. A GREAT time, at a GREAT beach. Total spent $63.00.(plus tips).

 

 

......to be continued.....

Edited February 28, 2013 by cruisin USA