"LIVE" (hopefully?) from Allure of the Seas, November 10th, 2013

[cruizeblues]

From St. Maarten...

 

 

 

 

We took a water taxi over the the shopping are, round trip $7 pp.

 

Along the beach area you can rent chairs with umbrellas.

 

 

I just changed my screensaver at work to your AWESOME picture of the sailboat sailing the beautiful waters of St.Maarten! Wishing I was on that boat right now instead of at work! Thanks for the great review....definitely an enjoyable way to spend my lunch break! :)

Edited November 15, 2013 by cruizeblues

[Lionesss]

Beautiful pictures, very well done reporting.

Keep it coming.

Cannot wait till July, but, I guess I have no choice.

Gotta get to the ice show this time!

Sea ya

[niksmom630]

Today was another great day inboard, although this boat is REALLY moving. We had lunch at Rita's, $3 pp cover charge, and anywhere from 2-4 dollars for the food items. Was it good Mexican food? Well, not really, but palatable and a nice change of pace.

 

There is a fundraiser for the victims of the Philippines, which we gladly contributed to. We found this in our cabin earlier today and gladly contributed--RCI has already donated a million to the relief efforts

 

 

[niksmom630]

DD and I participated in the walk for wishes, but the belly flop contest was just finishing up....

 

 

 

The winner!

[donna10]

DD and I participated in the walk for wishes, but the belly flop contest was just finishing up....

 

 

 

The winner!

 

There seems to be some debate in the background with the bellyfloppers. Hahaha

[maureencruiser]

Thank you very, very much! Pretty funny that it is $20 cheaper on the ship.

 

I thought that was strange, as well. This was September 29, could the price have gone up since then?

 

There seems to be some debate in the background with the bellyfloppers. Hahaha

 

A belly flop brouhaha! :D

[niksmom630]

DD and it spent some time at the pool. The motion of the ocean transformed it into a wave pool....

 

 

Drink special of the day....

 

 

Not a great photo of us, but we had just completed the walk for wishes, and someone walking by asked us to take a picture of them, so they snapped one of us in return.

 

 

Walk for Wishes meets on the boardwalk on the Aqua Theatre. We had lots of water seeping up from underneath the stage

 

[niksmom630]

View from the stage...

 

 

It was a pretty abysmal thrum out, but I heard lots of people did make a donation, but likely opting for pool time instead.

 

The lovely wake we encountered while walking on deck 5...

 

 

There were some watch and jewelry sales running on the Promenade, but I wasn't in the mood to be trampled by the shopping mob, so I sat safely tucked away in the Champagne Bar, and as luck would have it, caught the Rising Tide Bar on its way down....

 

 

 

[A&L_Ont]

Thanks for a great review, I am sad to see you are getting off today, but happy because we are boarding in hours!!

[niksmom630]

Thanks for a great review, I am sad to see you are getting off today, but happy because we are boarding in hours!!

 

I wish there was staying on, but It looks like I will have to subscribe to the live reviews next week, for a virtual back to back!

[niksmom630]

The promenade....DD will be doing the adult cupcake decorating class this afternoon...

 

 

The Bow and Stern....

 

 

The Champagne Bar....this photo is too dark...will have to try and capture another shot if this today...

 

[niksmom630]

And finally, this mornings sunrise photos.....another great one!

 

 

 

 

That's all for now, folks! 9 a.m., two suitcases already packed, and the morning update complete. I'm off to enjoy the last day onboard. Only pool time planned today, although I see a Michael Kors handbag sale in today's compass, so I may make an exception to battling the shopping hoards on board. Feeling ready for battle!

[niksmom630]

If you get a chance next time you're at a bar getting a well deserved drink, could you ask the bartender if Glenroy is on board. We sail on December 1st, and he is my son's favorite bartender. :D

Enjoying your review your pictures are just breathtaking. Enjoy your last couple of days on the ship.

We're also from 630 Chicago in Lombard who knows we may be neighbors!!:)

 

You know, that's an unusually name. I seem to recall a bartender on Navigator with that name. Maybe they are one in the same?....I'll ask around today!

[Cruisegirl6]

Beautiful photos :p

[A&L_Ont]

I wish there was staying on, but It looks like I will have to subscribe to the live reviews next week, for a virtual back to back!

 

For part of the week you will be leaning against the counter while you brush your teeth. You will wonder who will make your bed and cook your meals. More importantly you will surf these boards reliving your last week at sea, counting the days until you return.

 

I am also very happy to see that RC is helping inspire cruisers to donate to typhoon relief. I did at home, but I will helping on board too. ;)

 

Andrew

[gpw45]

I wish there was staying on, but It looks like I will have to subscribe to the live reviews next week, for a virtual back to back!

 

I'll be on the December 1 Western Caribbean route. I will try to post, but you have set the bar very high. I will just have my iPhone for a camera, so the quality won't be as good. You were concerned that you had a camera in one shot. I'm happy if I don't have my fingers in a shot. Still not used to having the camera lens in the corner instead of the center. My cameras have to be PHD - Push Here, Dummy.

 

Thanks again for all your posts.

 

Gordon

[jcl410]

I have a Nikon D5100...when you took these pictures at the show were you in auto no flash or did you do it manually? The lens I currently have will only go to AP 5 so I am wondering how it will do under these conditions...

 

 

The Nikon D5100 is a decent DSLR, but I'm not familiar with the phrase "AP 5". Is that related to F-stops? For my Canon T3i, the primary lens I use is an 18-55mm zoom that goes from F3.5-F5.6. It does OK in most situations. But for shooting in lower light I bought an inexpensive 50mm lens that is F1.8. That allows for a faster shutter speed in less light.

 

 

FYI - There is a photography forum on Cruise Critic, they should have lots of info!

 

Aloha,

 

John

[niksmom630]

I'll be on the December 1 Western Caribbean route. I will try to post, but you have set the bar very high. I will just have my iPhone for a camera, so the quality won't be as good. You were concerned that you had a camera in one shot. I'm happy if I don't have my fingers in a shot. Still not used to having the camera lens in the corner instead of the center. My cameras have to be PHD - Push Here, Dummy.

 

Thanks again for all your posts.

 

Gordon

 

Haha, funny! Actually my iPhone 5 as well as my iPad air taken credit for the photos through day one, so I'm sure you'll be able to capture some good shots!

[niksmom630]

For part of the week you will be leaning against the counter while you brush your teeth. You will wonder who will make your bed and cook your meals. More importantly you will surf these boards reliving your last week at sea, counting the days until you return.

 

I am also very happy to see that RC is helping inspire cruisers to donate to typhoon relief. I did at home, but I will helping on board too. ;)

 

Andrew

 

Thanks, Andrew! I'm afraid you are correct about next week.....I only hope your week is as fabulous as ours has been. Enjoy!

[Lionesss]

I have truly enjoyed your journey.

The Allure is an awesome ship.

I am sure you will share more pictures as you settle down when you get home (hint-hint), you really take beautiful pictures.

Safe travels.

Sea Ya

[1 Buffett Fan]

Thanks for the review! We're considering a summer cruise on either the Allure or Oasis next year, so thank you for your on-board perspective this week.

[ButterBeanMcGee]

DD and I participated in the walk for wishes, but the belly flop contest was just finishing up....

 

 

 

 

The winner!

 

 

Does Ken Rush EVER get a break? He was director on my cruise in April. He must really love his job! I hope he's there when I'm back in March.

[smeck]

Bob is correct about getting one drink at a time.

 

As far as having to sign each time, I've heard from friends as well as other posters that you do not need to sign anything. The bartenders can tell from your SeaPass card that you've purchased the package.

 

Also, keep in mind that if there are two adults in the cabin, both need to purchase the package if one does. They don't allow just one to purchase it, obviously to discourage sharing.

 

I think they got rid of the rule, if one does so does all just recently with the new packages just announced.

[Ken076]

I have a Nikon D5100...when you took these pictures at the show were you in auto no flash or did you do it manually? The lens I currently have will only go to AP 5 so I am wondering how it will do under these conditions...

 

Sorry to hijack your thread! Please know how much it makes my day to wake up to your post! The sunrise with the storm was awesome and the colors of your last sunrise pictures were beautiful!

 

You might want (before the show) to set your ISO to "extended mode ISO" and either ISO 12000 or ISO 25000 and use shutter Select set to 1/125 and see what aperrture the metering selects. You might have to go down to 1/60. The high ISO speeds tend to be a bit grainy/noisy but you should be able to get a fast shutter speed and a aperture with some depth of field.

 

 

ken

[MrFunInTheSun]

Thanks for the almost daily sunrise photos. It's always my goal to wake up at least once to watch them but it never seems to happen. Unfortunately a sunrise photo most likely will not happen in my live report. :-) So on your second half of your back 2 back cruise you get to sleep in. :-)

 

 

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