Jamman's Solo FANTASY Adventure - 2/11/14 (with Pics)

[Jamman54]

Thanks everybody for your support and kind comments. Have to go to bed now, as I have to be in work at 4 am. The text is written and the photos are uploaded for the next installment, so I will put it all together when I get home from work. Thanks for your patience!!

[Crusin Karen]

Thanks again, Jamman. I guess I will have to read the rest when I get back from MY CRUISE! :D:D:D Have a great week!

[slybear]

Great review so far-Queenie wants more :) Very nicely done!

[Jamman54]

Hello again everybody! Thanks for your patience. Time to continue on with Day 2 of my solo adventure, a sea day…..

I awoke at 8:30 fully rested and ready for an omelette breakfast. The ship was rocking a little last night, so that helped me sleep like a baby! I put on a t-shirt and shorts, but also took along my hooded sweatshirt, not knowing what the weather would be like outside. As always, I grabbed my camera and took some shots on my way to the omelette station.

 

An elevator lobby…..

Elevators……

The entrance to the Aft Jubilee Dining Room…..

Here is one of the Continental Breakfast stations in the Windows on the Sea Bar and Grill. These open from 7am on sea days, and 6am on port days…..

Here is one of the two Breakfast Grills located in the Windows on the Sea Bar and Grill. These open at 7:30 am until 10:30am on sea days, and 6:30 until 10:30 am on port days…..

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The forward Breakfast Grill line located just aft of the Lido Pool area, starboard side, is open from 8 am until Noon on sea days, and 6:30 am until Noon on port days…..

And finally the Omelette Station, located just aft of the Lido Pool area, port side. It is open from 8 am until 11 am on sea days, and 6:30 am until 11 am on port days. This section then becomes the Mongolian Wok for lunch. I was concerned at first that there only one section that made omelettes, but when I saw that they could do 8 omelettes at a time here I was relieved. I never waited more than a few minutes…..

Two omelettes with everything please…..

If you prefer to have breakfast in the dining Room, on sea days there is a Brunch in the Celebration Dining Room, open from 8:30 am until 1 pm. On port days there is open seating breakfast in the Celebration Dining Room, open from 7:30 am until 9:30 am.

After finishing breakfast, I stepped outside, and lo and behold, it was 70 degrees outside. It was a little breezy, but perfectly comfortable without the hooded sweatshirt I had brought along. What a difference a day makes!!! It was perfect weather to take some more pictures out on deck. Carnival Fantasy’s Funnel…..

One of the two Lido Pool hot tubs…..

The Lido Stage. You can see that some of the chess pieces have blown over…..

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The Lido Pool……

Here’s a message for the CHOGS…..

Another view of the Lido Pool, and both hot tubs…..

A view of the funnel and twister slide…..

My favorite bar, the Lido Pool Bar, starboard side……

View of the funnel from the waterworks, located on Deck 11 Aft…..

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The racing slides…..

The Twister Slide…..

A couple of views of the Serenity Area, Deck 9 Aft…..

 

The Serenity Sign…..

The covered portion of the Serenity Area…..

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Serenity hot tub, starboard side…..

Serenity hot tub, port side…..

My view of the Fantasy’s wake…..

My view to the left…..

My view to the right…..

The point of those pictures was to show you that even though it was nearly 10 am, Serenity was nearly deserted. Never had a problem in getting a longer or using the hot tubs when I was there, which was almost every day.

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

After spending an hour or so at Serenity, it was time to visit my friends Josef and Neb at the Lido Pool Bar. I snapped these last two shot before heading there. Windows on the Sea outside seating area…..

One more view of the Fantasy’s wake…..

While enjoying a couple of Bud Light’s at the bar, I spun around and took another shot of the Lido Pool, which now was a lot busier than before, but there was still plenty of loungers available…..

I spotted fellow roll call member John standing up in the nearby hot tub……

I was planning to play in the Blackjack tournament, and the qualifying rounds began at Noon, so I needed to get moving, because I had a stop to make on the way. Of course I had to take a few shots along the way. The Grand Spectrum Skylight…..

Looking down at the Grand Spectrum Staircase…..

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Looking down at the Lobby Bar…..

My first stop would be to the Pixels Photo Gallery to pick up my Embarkation picture…..

 

 

 

Looking down at the Shore Excursion Desk…….

 

And the Guest Services Desk…….

To be continued…….

[Jamman54]

My next stop would be the Club 21 Casino for the Blackjack Tournament…….

I went to the Casino cage to pick up my BOGO entries (Buy One Get One). Usually I will use one entry for the Blackjack Tournament, and one for the Slot Tournament later in the cruise. However, since I didn’t qualify for the final table using my first entry, I used the second entry to try again. This time I wound up qualifying in 5th place for the final table. In the finals, I wound up placing third, which only got me another t-shirt that will never fit me. Oh well, better luck next time!

 

I was now getting a little sleepy, but before I can take an hour or so power nap, I need to make one more stop. So off I go. Looking towards the Grand Spectrum…..

Formalities……

21st Century Bar…..

 

A view looking down the Promenade Deck (Via Marina)…..

To be continued…..

[ohiomast]

Wow thanks for the great review and pictures!!! Love it....

We are taking our first ever cruise in Oct and it will be on the Fantasy out of Charleston

[Jamman54]

I needed to stop at the internet café and set up an account, so that I can email Patti, and see how things were going at home. This arrangement worked fine for the first couple of days, but then the problems began. More on those issues later. The Internet Café…..

Internet Café Information…..

My cabin was just a short walk down the hall from the Internet Café…..

After a short nap, I wanted to hit the hot tubs at Serenity. It was now 5 pm, my favorite time to go, since most people vacate the pools and hot tubs to get ready for dinner. When I arrived there was no one in the port side hot tub……

I stayed there relaxing and having a few beers, until it was time to get ready for Elegant Night Dinner. On a 5 day cruise, this would be the only Elegant Night. As I walked to my table, I noticed that there would be one more person joining us tonight. Let me introduce you to Julius, from South Carolina…..

Now let me explain that I neglected to take his picture this night, so the photo was from another night. Rest assured that Julius was dressed appropriately for Elegant Night. Here again, is the leader of our wait team Nenad……

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I was famished tonight because somehow I had neglected to have lunch! I started off with an order of stuffed mushrooms, followed by a Didja, the Alligator Fritters. For my entrees I had three servings, yes three, of these babies, Lobster and Grilled Shrimp…….

For Dessert, I chose the Cherries Jubilee. The wait staff then performed for the first time this cruise, singing “That’s Amore”. Again everything was served piping hot and on time. I’m starting to like these guys!!

Afterwards, I needed to head to the fun shops to pick up Chanel no.5 for Patti. It would be my only trip there. First I would take a stroll down the Promenade (Via Marina). The Electricty Disco……

The Bistro – You get your specialty coffees, milkshakes, cakes, and other treats here. All for a charge of course…..

Live band, Steel City Groove, performing on the Promenade by the 21st Century Bar…..

The Club 21 Casino is calling my name, but I will stop there later on…..

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The grand Spectrum looks beautiful at night, and the colors slowly change…..

Grand Spectrum Elevator…..

Grand Spectrum Staircase……

I ran into Julius while I was there, and we took turns taking each other’s picture. This is me in the Grand Spectrum……

The Lobby Bar at night…….

Here is the entrance to the Universe Lounge. For some reason I never stepped into the place the entire cruise…..

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

After I picked up the goods for Patti, I decided to go to the 10:45 Adult Comedy Show, which is held at Punchliner’s which is in the Forum Lounge, Deck 9 Aft. Tonight I saw comedian Derek Eason, and he was very good. Keep in mind that if you want to see the next show with a different comic, you will be asked to vacate the lounge and join the line for the next show. I planned to go see the second comedian on another night anyway, so I headed over to the Club 21 Casino to play some blackjack. I played until about 1 am, leaving about $100 bucks richer.

 

After a quick stop to the Internet Café to email Patti about my day, I headed back to my cabin. When I got inside, I saw that my bed was cluttered…..

Here is the Platinum Gift that is now being given, a Carnival Tote Bag…..

Here is a close up of tonight’s towel animal…….

After a room service BLT, it was time to hit the sack. It had been another great day. See you tomorrow!!

 

Coming up, my day in Nassau or how many places am I going to drink at today?

Edited February 21, 2014 by Jamman54

[kybluecruiser]

Another view of the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge…..

This is the view looking out to sea……

It was now time to head back to the cabin, unpack, then venture up to the meet and greet. I joined the roll call about a month before sailing, and it was a very small roll call. We decided to meet at the Lido Bar Port Side at 2pm, and 5 hearty souls showed up. In reality, we weren’t missing that many. Those that did show up were John, Joe, Jan, her daughter Lauren, and myself. Though it was chilly, we hoisted a few and chatted until it was time for the muster drill. Though I had my camera, I neglected to take any pictures. I guess I was having a real brain freeze!!

Anyway, when the Muster Drill began, I only had to walk down one flight of stairs to my Muster Station on the Promenade Deck. It’s great not having to go back to your cabin to get your life jacket! I was assigned to Muster Station “B”, which is on Promenade Deck, outside of the Club 21 Casino. I took this one picture at our Muster Station, sorry it’s blurry, but that’s probably how I felt at the time. Lol.

 

 

This drill seemed to take a pretty long time, and then we were led, two abreast, up to the Lido Deck, where we would actually board our lifeboat if the need arose. I think it was good that it was done this way. Though it was cold on the Lido Deck, emergencies can happen in all types of weather, so to get a little feel of it was eye opening.

We were dismissed from there, and I headed to the back of the ship to get some pictures of our sail away. You could feel that the temperature had dropped some more, and it was only about 30 degrees outside. As I stepped outside, I saw a new old friend pulling into the harbor. The Carnival Splendor…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

 

Nice review thanks for sharing. The fantasy is my favorite ship and charleston is my drive to port. However it is nice seeing a larger ship in port. Though hate that it was for the reasons you mentioned.

[Jamman54]

Nice review thanks for sharing. The fantasy is my favorite ship and charleston is my drive to port. However it is nice seeing a larger ship in port. Though hate that it was for the reasons you mentioned.

 

Thanks for reading!! I don't think Charleston will ever get a larger ship on a permanent basis,until they can finally agree to upgrade the port facilities and surrounding infrastructure, so the can eliminate the shuttle system. It works fine for 2,500 passengers, but it may not work efficiently for 4,000 passengers.

[suggie123]

Thank you for the detailed review with pictures. Looks like you are having a lot of fun so far. I'm also from NJ and can't wait for our cruise on the Fantasy in August. Our daughter's high school graduation celebration before college.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[michelle1836]

loving your picture review!! we were on the Fantasy in December and loved it!

[StingrayBob]

Jamman , thanks for the review. I am leaving in a few days on the Fantasy. A last minute getaway. I was glad to see a picture of the pool bar. I haven't been able to find any till I saw yours.

I had to laugh when reading your review and you mentioned your M&G was going to be at the port side pool bar. We have a small roll call also I am suggested a M&G at the same pool bar. Looks like it will be the perfect place.

Looking forward to the rest of your review.

[najnelle]

I am really enjoying this review. It is over six months until my next cruise so this gives me a little bit of that cruise feel. I look forward to the rest of the story.:)

[oneboysmom]

Hey Jamman! Loving your review....i love how you walk us through the steps like we're walking with you!!! I will be on the Ecstasy at the end of March for the 2nd year in a row. I haven't had the chance to sail any other class, but do like the smaller ship for now!! Sounds like you had a great time and can't wait to read more!!

[pbmsmile]

I have been considering a solo cruise also. My hubby and I are both HS teachers in different districts so often do not have the same Spring Break week. I am very social but I wonder if I would like it??? Enjoying your review!

[jenny105]

What a dreary first day! But looks like you had beautiful weather on the second. I am so sick of winter and all the snow. It's finally starting to melt but I hear we're supposed to get more on Wednesday???

 

Hi Splendor! See you in 79 days :)