It's the little things...

[ratherBcruzin]

...and while I could fill pages with tiny things that i didn't like or went wrong on our last trip, only one truly upset me. Maybe it was the sadness of another ending cruise or just the fact I wasn't on a Carnival ship in the middle of the Caribbean, but the Macarena doesn't go with Baked Alaska. That's right, Baked Alaska Parade with a side of the Macarena. While Never on a Sunday would've been ideal, this was the one song that actually made my blood boil. Call me crazy, I'm sure I am, but does anyone else understand my anger? Maybe it's just been one too many perfect cruises.

[johnql]

Sorry, but I think you're taking the Baked Alaska Parade a little bit too seriously if the accompanying song becomes a major detraction.

[CruiseFever]

Viewing your cruise history, how did you happen upon a Carnival cruise anyway?

 

Were you kidnapped by Funship Freddie, the Carnival mascot/felon?

 

Did you deplore the movie "Dirty Dancing" and think Patrick Swayze is a good example of "the bad help"?

 

Do you know Lovey and Thurson Howell III?

 

Are you a Titanic survivor? If so, did "your man" usually take care of such trivial matters as dealing with the crew?

 

Actually, we have cruised Carnival quite a bit and have found ourselves tending to rush through an otherwise wonderful dinner with fine food and service to avoid being there for the (what I think is, to the crew) humiliating parade. It just made us uncomfortable. When younger, our kids enjoyed joining in the parade with bread baskets on their heads which might have added to our level of uncomfortableness.

 

That is one of the things, among others, that I would have to go out of my way to "fix" to make for a fabulous cruise on Carnival that Princess just does (or doesn't) do. Still, there are a lot of others that DO enjoy this.

 

And we have had cruises on Carnival that were every bit as fabulous as our Princess cruises.

 

Are we trailer trash?

[amapola]

Oh, no, not the dreaded Macarena!!! :eek: I detest, abhor, despise that stupid stupid stupid song. And it's so last century! :D OP, I feel your pain. I would have been devastated too. And I don't even like Baked Alaska!

 

Did you at least get something comped? ;)

 

Thanks for making me smile! :)

[Coral]

Macarena just has to die!

[chopper825]

This is a joke right? Either that or someone just wants to make some waves.

[claroquesi]

I know it is a song that everyone, no matter how uncoordinated, can do. However, that song really, as another poster said, must die.

 

And while we are at it, can we get rid of the Electric Slide? It isn`t 1989 anymore. We can all stop the "boogie,oogie,oogie"

[Laurab23]

Much as I hate doing the mararena,there is just something about doing it in the dining room standing next to your waiter that does make it fun!

[susancruzs]

I, maybe the majority of one or two, feel sorry for the dining room staff as the looks on their faces tell a story that they are tired of the every night dance routines, it gets very old, very quick.

 

After a good amount of cruises, I am rather baked Alaska parade weary, too!

 

Susie

[imsulin]

Geez - next thing you know, they'll get rid of the Hokey Pokey and the Chicken Dance:(!!

[Genessa]

call me lame, but I like the Macarena, the Electric Slide, the Chicken Dance, the Hokey-Pokey and even the Gimme Your Heart and the YMCA...

 

I even like the Baked Alaska parade, but...

 

the Macarena does not go with the Baked Alaska parade :(

[cruisegirl25]

What is a baked alaska parade? So music is playing in the dining room and all the waiters dance? Being only on Princess I have no clue of what you are talking aobut. Just trying to wrap my mind around this concept.

[Genessa]

Princess does the Baked Alaska parade

 

they lower the lights in the dining room, start the Baked Alaskas flaming and send the assistant waiters on a parade around the dining room. We have only done traditional dining and it has been done on every cruise we've ever sailed on, Home Lines, Carnival, and Princess.

 

They play music and the diners clap to the music and you cheer when your wait staff parades by.

[Druke I]

Call me Ebenezer Scrooge if you must, but

 

I for one am tired of the Baked Alaska Parade! That coupled with the fact that I don't think it tastes very good - I think it (the parade) is pure cornball!

 

Bah Humbug.

[cruisegirl25]

So it is only for traditional dining correct. We ate in the dining room everynight last cruise but had personal choice, so everyone gets to desert at a different time.

[donna5]

cruisegirl25,

 

They don't have the parade in anytime, but you can still order the baked alaska the same night they have it in Traditional. It is called something like bombe diplomat(or something like that). I acutally like the one you order cause it is a nice slice on a cold plate and isn't already melting when you get it on the plate.

[Genessa]

Call me Ebenezer Scrooge if you must, but

 

I for one am tired of the Baked Alaska Parade! That coupled with the fact that I don't think it tastes very good - I think it (the parade) is pure cornball!

 

Bah Humbug.

 

it is cornball, but sometimes a little cornball is fun. I didn't appreciate the Macarena while they were doing it, though. Couldn't believe I was hearing the Macarena...

and, btw, I can't stand Baked Alaska. Maybe I just like the lights out ;)

[digital_curator]

I had to laugh when I read this- when we got married, our dj asked us if we had a "banned" list of songs, stuff she wasn't allowed to play even if guest requested it.

 

Our list:

 

Macarena

Chicken Dance

Mambo 5

 

What were the most requested songs at our wedding- you guessed it- the 3 on our banned list:rolleyes:

 

I must admit, if you are going to set dessert on fire I prefer cherries jubilee, bananas foster, or smores (lets add that to a cruise menu:D )

 

Cheers,

[kevinsac]

I hate the Baked Alaska Parade.....altho I will eat it when served.

 

We are on Anytime Dining during our upcoming cruise, and from what I have heard, Princess only does the parade in the Traditional Dining rooms, since PC/AD guests will never be finished eating all at the same time.

 

I was rather surprised that the staff (how many....maybe 15 waiters) did the parade on our last night on the Antarctic Cruise.

 

I've seldom seen it anywhere other than American ships (or ships which cater to Americans). Do any of the foreign lines do it--I've certainly never seen it in the grill rooms on Cunard.

[WeBeGone]

OP- you need to get a life!

[cruisnfool]

You can mock those songs all you want but have a dj play them and the floor is filled.......

If the op can only come up with that as a complaint it must have been a great cruise.

 

And I disagree that the smallthings are the things to complain about......truly I could list many BIG things that could ruin a cruise.

 

Just sit back and enjoy the parades they don't last long.

[ratherBcruzin]

I guess I should've expected getting flamed on a posting about Baked Alaska:).

 

And we have had cruises on Carnival that were every bit as fabulous as our Princess cruises.

 

Are we trailer trash?

As I have heard from various sources, Carnival waiters do "shows" in the dining room, including a parade or dance to the Macarena. I am not saying Princess is superior to Carnival or the passengers of one line are higher class than the other, I was simply using the facts. If I had been in the Caribbean, not the South China Sea, I would not have been so suprised by the Macarena.

 

And I disagree that the smallthings are the things to complain about......truly I could list many BIG things that could ruin a cruise.

Yes, I understand your point. It was, however, hard to convince the Purser to give me a partial refund because a Typhoon nearly ended our cruise:D.

 

I respect everyone's opinions. People are entitled to disagree.

 

I am a creature of habit. I love tradition. Baked Alaska Parades are something I have witnessed on ships for many years. I feel like the whole cruise industry is rapidly changing and all traditions are being lost. Ok, you think I'm insane. May I just end by saying I have seen many posts on these boards concerning "frivolous" topics and not expressed my opinion that no one really cares if you have 4 or 6 pairs of shorts, simply because if someone takes the time to post something for discussion with a group of fellow cruisers, they expect to discuss it.

Happy Sails,

ratherBcruzin