My Valorous Solo Cruise - Valor July 28, 2013 - August 4, 2013

[Leo's Rule]

You've been forewarned; this review gives a lot of background information before the actual review of my cruise. If you have no interest in reading a long review...spare yourselves now.

 

You're still here? Good!

 

My friends and I travel yearly for my birthday. This year was not any different until one by one the ones who did commit, slowly backed out for various reasons. My land vacation would have still taken place with or without them, but the price for a 5 day all-inclusive was way more than a 7 day cruise.

 

I began pricing cruises from different ports and an itinerary out of Miami was winning, but one day I logged in and accidentally clicked on the Valor and saw the price was cheaper out of San Juan and the sailing was on my birthday...so a Southern Caribbean cruise for my birthday was my destiny.

 

This will be my 5th cruise and right now I cruise for destination and want to see different islands, but it was no problem for me to repeat this itinerary and within 9 months at that! I did this same sailing on the Victory in October 2012. (The itinerary: San Juan, St. Thomas, Sea Day, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Kitts, St. Maarten)

 

Originally I was nervous about traveling solo and friends, family, and co-workers even questioned my sanity. They were nervous and concerned, but GAPearl eased some of my fears and I've recently navigated NYC by myself.

 

I joined my roll call (it was slow for a minute) and connected with several people. Those of us arriving to San Juan prior to the cruise decided we'd eat at Barrachina's on Saturday night. Once on the ship we decided on an informal Meet & Greet on embarkation day and participate in a slot pull on our only sea day.

 

Because I mentioned the M&G I think I was responsible for hosting it. :eek: Umm...I've never hosted one and the ones I was a part of never happened except for one, but that one was nontraditional (I think) because we met at Jack's Shack and the organizer arranged to have a cake there for all of the Libras. Now if you're familiar with Zodiacs you may be wondering why I was there celebrating with Libras when I'm a Leo...well, this was during my mother's surprise birthday cruise...so she's the Libra.

 

I got ideas from this board on things to do in a M&G. I developed a double puzzle where you had to unscramble the words and certain letters had numbers under them. Once you unscrambled all the words, you had to solve the clue at the bottom by using the letters that were numbered and placing them in the correct space. I also created a multiple choice "test" to see how well we knew our roll call mates. I wanted to hand out awards for people so I was in search of medals, but found something better; I found trophies! Then I decided to give away a lanyard as well...I found them at Walgreens of all places. I had a Carnival keychain/bottle-opener to give away as well.

 

I did a lot of my puzzles at work and even researched things to do at work. My body was there, but my brain wasn't; it was on the ship long before my body reached it. :D

[Leo's Rule]

The night before (Thursday) I didn't go to bed until 3 am because I was still packing my suitcase and guess what; I didn't even finish. I set my alarm for 7:30 a.m. so I could shower, finish packing, walk and feed my dog, and stop at a beauty supply store so I can buy some hair pins.

 

Well, I wake up only to discover that I have no hot water!!! :eek: Really! What a start of my day. I call my aunt to see if I can come to her house to shower. I walk my baby (who by the way knows that I'm leaving so she took me every possible route in the neighborhood to prolong my departure) and then I come back and prepare my belongings and hers.

 

I grabbed my needed items (clothes and toiletries), Queen's bowls, her water (yes, I give my dog bottled water), her food, and her medicine and off we go. I get to my aunt's house only to discover I left Queen's dry food at home; I only give her a little wet food to mask her medicine. Oh well.

 

To make a long story short, I completely repacked when I got home, paid some bills, and was still scrambling. My right eye jumped and I thought, oh no, I'm going to miss my flight. I couldn't stop for my needed hairpins and discovered that I left a pair of shoes at home. How was I so unprepared for this trip? I've known about it for ages!!! :p I was only supposed to take my carry-on and a personal bag; well, I ended up with 2 checked bags and 1 carry on. :o

 

(Side note: I'm crying on the freeway because Queen was looking sad as I put the final garment in my suitcase. I pick her up to give her a hug and she hugs me like her life depended on it. I put her down and as I roll my bags towards the front door, she reaches out and places her paw on my foot; as if she's telling me not to leave. I exit and lock the doors and I can hear her crying, and then she scratches at the door trying to get out). :(

 

On the freeway I hop on and navigate the Beltway to get to Hobby Airport. (Oh, I left my house at 5 minutes to 11:00 a.m. and Southwest states you should be in the airport at least 90 minutes prior to your flight...that meant I only had 30 minutes to get to the airport, park my car, and get to the counter. I had a nonrevenue ticket so I had to go to the counter to get a "real" boarding pass.) When did the toll increase to $1.75? Thankfully I only had 2 tolls to go through. I made it in record time; I was only driving 20 miles over the speed limit (I was driving 80 mph; which is a norm for me).

 

Anyhow, I arrive to ParkingSpot 2 only to learn the lot is full and only those who made a reservation would be served; and what do you know, I didn't make a reservation this go round. NO!!!!!! I was getting my 25% discount for being a AAA member and now it's going to waste. Time is slowly fading so I go to PreFlight and their lot is full too; except for Valet.

 

Do I want to risk missing my 1 pm flight because I wouldn't get checked in on time? No, I don't; so I agree to the ridiculous price of $16 per day to park my car. And you don't get anything for valet; they used to vacuum and wash your car; not anymore! Oh why didn't I make my reservation for The ParkingSpot 2? (That's why my right eye was jumping; I couldn't park where I normally park and had to pay extortionist prices to Preflight Parking). Oh and to make matters worse, someone's luggage was on the shuttle, but they weren't and the driver refused to leave because he didn't know who the luggage belonged to. I'm thinking...just leave; drop us off at the airport, and sort out the case of the mystery luggage when you return. I guess he read my mind because we soon left for the airport.

 

The line in the airport was moving fast and then all of sudden it came to a standstill. Memories of me being denied boarding to Jamaica for my birthday 2 years ago flashed in my mind; we missed check-in for the luggage by 5 minutes thanks to the massive lines and 3 out of 10 kiosks being in working order. Anyhow, I finally get to the front of the line and tell the ticketing agent that I have a non-revenue ticket. She tells me to enter my confirmation number in the kiosk and there was an error. I re-entered my information and the same error was there. She then asks me what time was my flight..."OH SHYT" entered my brain; not again. It was 11:50 a.m. I told her 1 pm and she said oh, you should be able to board. She then asked for my ticket and that was the problem; I can't use the kiosk to check in, she has to do it because my ticket is non-revenue generating for them. She said, I thought you had a different ticket (I guess a buddy pass :confused: ); had I known you had this one I would have done it to begin with. Whew! My bags are taken and now I proceed to security.

 

I didn't spend a lot of time in the airport; people were already standing in line to board the plane; which was odd, but I had B on my ticket, so there was no need for me line up...and turns out..they hadn't even called people to get in line yet.

 

Once I boarded my flight there was this little girl who talked non-stop the entire flight...I mean it...non frigging stop!!!!!!! The airline attendant told her they were playing a game and she had to use her quiet voice because others couldn't hear her when she was doing the safety drill. Did she quiet down? No! And I thought it was strange that her dad never told her to quiet down. I learned the kid was flying solo, but she was disturbing the guy who I thought was her dad. He put on his headphones to drown her out; did that stop her from talking to him? Nope! "Mister, are you watching a movie? Mister, are you playing a game? Mister, can I listen to your headphones?" OMG!!!!!! :eek:

 

I went to sleep; she was talking, I wake up to her talking...she was just talking, talking, talking!!!!!!

[Leo's Rule]

I switch planes in Tampa and I wound up sitting next to the Fart Queen. Ugh!!!!!! I had to pray on this flight, not for the lady's horrible flatulence problem, but there was so much turbulence; I wanted to make sure I would touch ground safe and sound.

 

My flight landed in San Juan earlier than the listed arrival of 7:50 pm; I believe we arrived at 7:30 or 7:35. Anyhow, I thought my luggage was lost because I never saw my luggage drop. After waiting for what seemed like 30 minutes, I was off to wait in line for a cab. I don't know why I didn't ask others if they were headed to OSJ, we possibly could have shared the cab and I could have saved myself maybe $10 or $15, but it's fine...I knew what the price was long before I got here.

 

I arrived at Plaza De Armas and the hotel is ok. I'm glad I'm only here for one night. I only say this simply because my room was hot and damp...it smelled like the room was wet. And it didn't help that there was water on the floor near the bathroom. Because there was no phone in the room, the only way to alert the staff is to go downstairs to the lobby. Management stated they couldn't move me anywhere else and the guy came up to the room and sprayed air freshener. Really?? I will say that it turns out my air wasn't on; I didn't know the light switch controlled the AC. But it still doesn't explain the smell.

 

Pictures of my room

 

Hotel. It doesn't look spooky during the day

 

 

 

look above the hairdryer; that's the switch to control the air-conditioner

 

 

The hallway leading to the rooms on the 2nd floor

[Leo's Rule]

More photos of the hotel:

 

Hotel Lobby

 

2nd Lobby???

 

 

Hope you aren't claustrophobic:

 

First Elevator door

 

2nd Elevator door (both must be closed)

 

Me in the elevator (see how cramped it is?)

 

Narrow stairwell (try toting your luggage up)

[Leo's Rule]

Me, being the Queen I am, couldn't pass up taking a photo on this chair that was in the 2nd lobby.

 

This photo was actually taken on the next day, but I felt it was appropriate to post here

 

Back to my review:

 

Anyhow, I'm hungry; the only thing I've had all day was a sausage biscuit and water. I was told that the restaurants were shutting down (though I could have sworn Raices stayed open until 11 pm) and I would have to settle for Subway, Wendy's or some sandwich shop. I ate at Wendy's against my better judgment, but I survived. I won't eat there again. I return to my room and it is ice cold in there and the smell is now gone. Much to my surprise, the bed was actually comfortable and bedbug free. The TV needs to be put out of its misery.

 

More tomorrow

[chipandsteph]

Looking forward to the rest of your review! We cruise Sunday!

[fofita01]

Looking forward to reading the rest of your detailed review.

 

I'm sure you'll cover this, but just in case: How did you like Barrachina? Did you try a Piña Colada? What did you eat?

[gapearl]

YAYYYYYY girl I've been waiting for this review! Hurry back with more! :D

[Ms. Fun Bunch]

I'm enjoying the review please come back soon!

[paget]

I am loving this review, can't wait for more!

 

Maria

[INCHARGE]

Hey lady! Can't wait for more. :D

[teetee6263]

Me' date=' being the Queen I am, couldn't pass up taking a photo on this chair that was in the 2nd lobby.

 

[img']https://sphotos-a-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/1000596_4742824143076_1267947019_n.jpg[/img]

This photo was actually taken on the next day, but I felt it was appropriate to post here

 

Love this...I too would not be able to walk past that chair without taking a few pictures.

 

Can't wait for the rest....

[Leo's Rule]

Looking forward to reading the rest of your detailed review.

 

I'm sure you'll cover this, but just in case: How did you like Barrachina? Did you try a Piña Colada? What did you eat?

 

I will answer this later tonight. But I did enjoy Barrachina. And I didn't try the Pina Colada...I know...I know. I almost ordered it, but was persuaded to try something else.

 

YAYYYYYY girl I've been waiting for this review! Hurry back with more! :D

 

I'll be back tonight. But I'm just a mere shadow in your wings as far as writing style goes. :D :D :D

[fofita01]

YAYYYYYY girl I've been waiting for this review! Hurry back with more! :D

 

I just want to say that I spent a couple of hours on Sunday reading your Valor review and thoroughly enjoyed it! You're so funny!

 

Can't wait to try the Gasolinas when I'm in PR (Breeze 9/17.... The day of my birthday!)

 

 

Leo's Rule - I'm anxiously waiting for tonight's installment. Thanks for answering my question earlier. Can't wait to read more of your experience at Barrachina and the M&G.

[Hawaii697]

So far, so good! I love long reviews! Sailing on the Valor this coming Sunday! Looking forward to more of your review!:D

[Leo's Rule]

I slept well, but I was so tired, I hit the alarm when it sounded at 8:30, and didn't officially get up until 9 or 9:30. I began getting ready for the day and there's no hot water in the shower! What is it with me and hot waterless showers?

 

I walked around a lot today. I can't even begin to tell you everywhere I went...I had no set plans. I stumbled across Raices (I planned to eat there for lunch), but I was full from the breakfast I had eaten at Carthage Express. I had banana pancakes and I wanted OJ, but they were out so I settled for a mango drink.

 

Where I ate breakfast

 

 

 

 

[PrettyHazardous]

Great start to your review! Looking forward to reading more:)

[Leo's Rule]

 

 

 

 

The stench there was horrid!

 

I eventually found myself at a trolley stop (I had passed several) and hopped on a trolley after being at the stop for 5 minutes. I saw some places I wanted to go back to, but never made it that way. I went to El Morro Fort since I didn't do it last time, but I didn't stay because it was 12:00 and my checkout was at 12:00!!! Here's a photo of what I saw from the outside.

 

 

I will say if you opt to do the trolley here; stay on until the very end. I made the mistake of getting off once I saw the sign for the fort and didn't realize I had to walk alllllllllllllllllllllll they way up to get to it. I hadn't been off the trolley that long and that sucker was full...I had to squeeze in between two people.

 

Anyhow, I arrived back to the hotel at 12:55 and all was well. My belongings were still in the room and I hadn't been locked out.

 

Side note: There was a guy and girl at the counter when I arrived back to the hotel. I don't know if they were checking in or checking out, but they were a sight. The guy had on skinny shorts and his underwear were showing and the girl was a big girl and she had on the shortest of short shorts. If you thought the back side was horrible, you should have seen the front!

 

Anyhow, they were arguing at the counter about something senseless. I happened to see them again when I was walking to the Sheraton OSJ and she was on the phone talking to someone and I overheard her say, "He doesn't look at me like he looks at those other girls. I guess I'm just an F-thing to him." Wow!!!! My thoughts are she paid for them to come to San Juan and she's footing the bill for everything.

[Leo's Rule]

I'm probably wrong for this, but here is a picture of the two at the counter:

 

 

Now I have to get myself over to the Sheraton, but check-in isn't until 3 pm!!!! Great, I have 3 bags and my laptop. If I arrived too soon they'd have to hold my bags, but I didn't want to leave my laptop with them. Well, I killed some time in the lobby and eventually headed out with my bags in tow.

 

I got turned around twice, my GPS told me to turn left on some street, but it was taking me up and I knew that was wrong. I turned off the GPS and navigated myself. It took my 10 -15 minutes to get to the hotel.

I check-in with no problems. Oh, and I used LMTravel to book my room for one night and for $136 totaled. My room was awesome!!!!!!!

 

 

 

 

I find my way to Raices to enjoy a late lunch, I can now say I've eaten there, but I doubt I'll be back. The food is overpriced and not all that great IMO. I've had mofungo before, so I didn't order it from them. I tried their Festival Tipico; it was a lot of food and I had a passion fruit margarita.

 

 

 

Afterwards, I was in search of the Coach Outlet store, but made a pit stop at DonQ; took a couple of photos, and had my free drink, then off I went for Coach. Let's just say I could have walked to the Coach store and back to the hotel at least 2x after all of the walking I did based on the horrible directions I was given. I would soon learn that the Coach Store and Barrachina was literally around the corner from Plaza de Armas. Anyhow, I bought a lovely purse and headed back to the Sheraton to shower and get dressed for Barrachina's; I was meeting a group from my roll call.

 

(I can barely keep my eyes open. I will have to finish this tomorrow. I was having issues earlier with getting my pictures here. I've fallen asleep twice already. Now I see the pain it is to post these reviews and include pictures. Anyhow, good night!)

[cuted126]

Great start! I NEED to see a pic of your new Coach bag:p I love Coach sooooooo much and that guy and girl =hot mess!

 

Can't wait to read more! Oh and that elevator looks scary!:eek:

[chosbor2]

Subscribing....love the review so far! I go on this cruise in October, and it seems forever away.

 

Didn't know about the coach outlet! Going to have to check that out!

 

 

Send from iphone 5 using Cruise Critic App

[meanjean80]

Great review...getting me psyched for my September 8 departure!

[Mrs.C05]

Great review! Can't wait to read more.

[DaisyGirl55]

I love reviews that are to the point and concise...love-love the ones with pictures...but LOVE-LOVE-LOVE the ones where there is so much personality in the writing that I feel I was right there with you!

 

Great start, and just what I need to hold me over until I sail in 25 days.

 

Like you said...my body is sitting at my desk in the office...but my mind is already on that ship!

[Neotericisis]

Love, love, love your review so far!

 

This reminds me of GA Pearl's Valor review. She is a solo cruiser as well! I think you two would make good cruising buddies!