Semi-live from the CB - Quebec to NYC 10/1/2015

[satxdiver]

Day 5 aboard the geriatric cruise – Charlottetown, PEI

Today was warm with little wind and a bright sun in a clear blue sky. We had breakfast in the room again as we had to be in the theater at 9:10 AM for our 10 AM trolley tour. The ship came in on time and was attached to the pier. We were led off by a crew member and greeted in the terminal by a tour representative. The trolley was a bus configured like a trolley which held 22. The 2 hour tour was interesting and the guide was informative but I would not recommend this excursion. We would have been money ahead if we had simply walked off and did a self-guided walking tour. For those having trouble walking, this would be a good tour. We were back at the terminal at 11:30 and decided to go back aboard and have lunch in the HC – only alternative and our second time there. The HC was not very crowded as many were off the ship. We did make one big discovery in the HC. There were two pre-school boys so we have 2 children on this cruise. First time we have seen them. Returning to the pier, we walked down Queen Street stopping in stores, visiting the RC Basilica (very stunning architecture) and having a beer break. We were back on board by 3 PM. We spent time on the balcony for the first time without a coat and hat. The elite/platinum party in Skywalkers was not as crowded as it had been Saturday but the ship was not leaving until 6 PM. From our high viewpoint we were able to see two tour busses return to the ship after 6 PM so the ship was not able to drop its lines until after 6:30 and set sail. Tonight was the tribute to Neil Diamond in Explorer’s lounge which lasted 45 minutes by guitar player Jumari. He is really good and put on a good show at 8 PM (and later at 10:15). The basic theme tonight was Oktoberfest with a few games in the Piaza followed by a musical show by the Princess musicians. Even though they lacked a tuba and accordion, they were actually quite good. Due to the evening activities we went to dinner in the MDR at 6:30 and were able to get a table after maybe 10 minutes. It was very hectic in the MDR so we are not going to go so early again. I had the seafood skewer and my partner had the surf and turf. The surf was a large shrimp however. Both dishes were very tasty. Burned from last night’s waiter suggestion, we opted for ice cream which was really good. Today we received our invite to the Captain’s Circle party in Club Fusion on Wednesday night at 7:30. We also received the dreaded disembarkation notice – really? We don’t want to think about the voyage coming to an end so soon. They were offering transfers for all three airports for $34/each and to Grand Central Station, Pen Station or Port Authority Terminal for $29/each. We will be staying a few days in NYC and it turns out our hotel is two blocks from Pen station. The transfer should work out well. The notice stated that taxi’s will be very scarce and recommended Princess transfers. The problem is that the port is in NJ and two of the airports are in NY meaning taxi’s, etc., have to cross state lines and different state regulations. We sent laundry out yesterday morning and it was returned clean tonight. Tomorrow we will be in Sydney and be using tenders. More to follow.

 

Tree report: There are no large forests near Charlottetown. The trees that are in the city for the most part had not changed colors although a few have.

[Kristal Blade]

Thanks again satxdiver,

Enjoying hearing about the ports and very good of you to include the tree report.

Enjoy your cruise!

[white cap]

Love reading your reports. So, it sounds like the temperatures are mild. What are they? Sounds like we won't be seeing full fall color…..

[satxdiver]

Day 6 aboard the geriatric cruise – Sydney, Nova Scotia

Although Sydney has room for one cruise ship in port, we were not the ship. The Veendam had that honor so we tendered into port. The ship put down 6 tenders for the 15 minute ride to the port. The ship arrived on time at 8 AM while those of us with Princess excursions gathered in the theater. We managed to arrive on shore at 8:45 on a cool morning for our 8:30 walking tour of Sydney. Sydney is very small so we maybe walked a total of 1 mile. This port is an easy self-guided walking tour. Walking maps are offered for free in the port which also has free WiFi. Our tour guide was dressed in period clothing as were the guides at the historical sites we visited. After a nice lunch at an Irish pub we were back on the ship by 2 PM. The comedian tonight in the theater was Tom Briscoe and he was really good. The 7:15 show was SRO. He is well worth seeing. Dinner in the MDR followed where both of us had the Szechwan shrimp which were artfully displayed and delicious. Dessert was apple strudel also very good. Tonight was German night in the HC. Club Fusion had 50’s & 60’s Rock and Roll night. We have seen this show before complete with hula hoop contest. Both the theater show and club fusion show lasted 45 minutes. Chris Watkins put on two shows in the Piaza with his four strings and was very good. He is quite the showman. The ship is rocking a bit tonight as we make our way to Halifax. They were again up in the port side of the HC replacing the carpet. It has to be done while the HC is closed of course. We did not make it to the elite lounge or the two BOGO for $1. We are still looking for trees that have changed colors so maybe the next ports. More to come.

 

Tree report: Still looking for the fall tree color.

Edited October 7, 2015 by satxdiver

[satxdiver]

Love reading your reports. So, it sounds like the temperatures are mild. What are they? Sounds like we won't be seeing full fall color…..

 

Today's high was around 59F and the low around 50F. We were able to open up our coat during the day and rode back on the top of the tender for the first time this cruise without freezing to death. We are from the southwest and get cold easily. The wind was very light and the sun was out until later afternoon. Tomorrow is predicted to be 61F and 56F.

[white cap]

Thanks for the trip, tree,and temperature reports... We are from the Dallas area, so we get cold easily too…….Ha.

[satxdiver]

Day 7 aboard the geriatric cruise – Halifax

We were notified to close our drapes as they would be working on our balcony today. We again had room service bring our breakfast to the room. The ship arrived in Halifax on time but it was 8:30 or so when we got off the ship due to port clearance etc. using port supplied enclosed ramps. The weather started out with heavy fog over the water but burned off by late morning. The temperature was great, 56F and no wind on arrival. The temperature finally peaked at 68F under clear blue sky. We met our fellow pax for a private tour of the city and a trip to Peggy’s Cove. Time was spent in the graveyard where Titanic dead were buried some identified and others not. After leaving the city for Peggy’s Cove, we stopped first at a maple syrup factory for samples and items to take home and for a lunch break later consisting of a 1 ½ pound delicious lobster. At $22 CDN it was a real bargain! Our private guide, Eddie, was quite the cut up while being very informative. Our 5 hour excursion turned into almost 6 hours. We were back on the ship long before the 4:30 deadline. There were vendor stalls in the cruise terminal offering all types of items. Once aboard the ship, we made our daily visit to the pizzeria for a slice of the daily offering. We do like Princess pizza. There were a number of pax up on the Lido deck using the loungers and hot tubs in the sun for the first time. Tonight we attended the Captain’s Circle party in Club Fusion. The pax with the most Princess sea days had 1439 days. We have 313 elite and 723 platinum members aboard. Dinner tonight was Italian. Our choices were veal Marsala and a baked shrimp/scallop plate with cream sauce followed by decadent tiramisu and Italian gelato. After dinner we spent time in the Explorer’s Lounge listening to the Leal Quintet playing rock and roll hits. One duo group that we have listened to several days is the Fiore Duo. The two ladies are very accomplished violinists putting on a good show. Today we were notified that US Immigration will come aboard Friday in Bar Harbor and we will have to show our passports, sea cards and notice to the ICE officers in the Explorer’s Lounge before being allowed off the ship. This includes those who are not planning to get off as well. Thursday we will be in St John, NB. More to follow.

 

Tree report: We did see some color in the trees but not a lot. Our guide told us it will be at least two more weeks before the real show starts due to the weather.

Edited October 8, 2015 by satxdiver

[Kristal Blade]

Thanks again satxdiver,

 

We are doing a tour in Halifax too so your report was great for us. We will be in Halifax in about 10 days, so maybe by then the trees will have a bit more colour.

 

Interesting to hear that customs come on board, I expect the Canadian officials will come on board for out trip. It will be good to hear how quickly they process everyone.

 

Looking forward to the St John report!

Thanks again, Libby

[cruzrbachoua]

Thanks for all your posts! I am curious too how the ICE boarding before pax get off in Bar Harbor goes. On our cruise we have a ship tour to do whale watching so curious as to how early they board to clear us to leave the ship and if there will be a special line for those with ship tours?

[Kristal Blade]

Hi again,

I have another question for you, satxdiver. Really hope you can help.

Our roll call has not set up an official meet and greet on board. We had thought we could have an impromptu meeting in Skywalkers lounge at 5 pm on Monday 12 October, after our day in Newport. We have been told that the Elite and Platinum event will be held there, every night, at that time.

Could you suggest an alternative venue in a public bar which would not be in use for another event please? I know this is rather cheeky, but none of us has been aboard the ship before so we are not familiar with the layout.

Thank you very much for any help you can give us.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise,

Libby

[satxdiver]

We were just notified by the captain that we will not be landing in Bar Harbor due to high winds and heavy seas. We will spend tomorrow as a sea day. We have visited our last port and headed for NJ. They had already changed our debarkation port from Manhattan to Bayonne, NJ. We will be turning the clocks back one hour tonight so that we are on EDT.

[gbolton]

Hi again,

I have another question for you, satxdiver. Really hope you can help.

Our roll call has not set up an official meet and greet on board. We had thought we could have an impromptu meeting in Skywalkers lounge at 5 pm on Monday 12 October, after our day in Newport. We have been told that the Elite and Platinum event will be held there, every night, at that time.

Could you suggest an alternative venue in a public bar which would not be in use for another event please? I know this is rather cheeky, but none of us has been aboard the ship before so we are not familiar with the layout.

Thank you very much for any help you can give us.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise,

Libby

 

How is the OP going to know if any of the public bars are being used for another event? They use the public spaces for a variety of programs and events depending on the demographic of the passengers on board. You should probably call the cruise line for a more definitive answer.

[satxdiver]

Day 8 aboard the geriatric cruise – St John, NB

Day broke at 47F so a bit cold for us. Luckily the sun came out in a clear blue sky and warmed up to the high 50’s. Since the ship was arriving later, we had breakfast in the MDR. The special was a southern breakfast complete with grits and gravy both of which are not our favorites. We ordered from the regular menu. The ship arrived at 10 AM but it was 10:20 before anyone could get off. We had decided to do our own walking tour which was easy in St John with most of the few attractions being within one mile walking loop. We were off the ship at 11 and proceeded to the market. They had an elevated walkway called pedway that went from the market to the farmer’s market. The city is built on a hill so the pedwalk with its escalators was a welcome relief. King street beside the two markets rises 80 feet in two blocks. After viewing our share of churches and buildings, we returned to the ship at 3 PM. We retired to our stateroom with the requisite two pieces of the daily pizza. We did not make it to the elite happy hour in Skywalkers. The comedian tonight was Tony Daro who was good but not as good as the comedian several days ago. He is well worth the time. The 7:15 show was SRO again. Most seats were taken by 6:50 so go early. Dinner followed in the MDR with little line to get a table. I had the orange roughy and my partner had the pork tenderloin both were excellent. This was the chef’s special night. Dinner was followed by the Motown night in Skywalkers so it was time to redeem our coupon for BOGO during the 10 PM special music night. Most likely due to the fact that tomorrow is a sea day, Skywalker’s was crowded for Motown night and the happy hour BOGO for $1. We were notified to move our clocks back one hour to EDT. More to follow.

 

Tree report: Again we did not see but a few trees that were starting to change colors. We were told two more weeks before it became more widespread.

[satxdiver]

Thanks for all your posts! I am curious too how the ICE boarding before pax get off in Bar Harbor goes. On our cruise we have a ship tour to do whale watching so curious as to how early they board to clear us to leave the ship and if there will be a special line for those with ship tours?

 

As you probably know, we will not be calling on Bar Harbor and will go through US Immigration and Customs in NJ. However we were given letters with a time and place to report with passport, sea pass and letter to the Immigration officers. We were to report to the Explorer's Lounge at 10:00 AM which was too late for our private tour. I talked to guest relations and they told my to just go earlier. I was on a ship out of San Juan, PR to the southern Caribbean. Our last port of call was St Thomas, USVI before returning to San Juan. We reported to the MDR with documents in hand to clear immigration. The line was long but it went fairly quick within one hour. We filed through the MDR in several lines to appear before the several officers onboard at that time. I imagine it would have gone the same this time.

[satxdiver]

Hi again,

I have another question for you, satxdiver. Really hope you can help.

Our roll call has not set up an official meet and greet on board. We had thought we could have an impromptu meeting in Skywalkers lounge at 5 pm on Monday 12 October, after our day in Newport. We have been told that the Elite and Platinum event will be held there, every night, at that time.

Could you suggest an alternative venue in a public bar which would not be in use for another event please? I know this is rather cheeky, but none of us has been aboard the ship before so we are not familiar with the layout.

Thank you very much for any help you can give us.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise,

Libby

 

Skywalkers is used for the elite/platinum party 5 to 7 PM every night. Looking at our current schedules, it appears that Explorer's Lounge and Club Fusion has not been used in the 5 to 6 PM time frame. However this could be different for your cruise. The Wheelhouse Bar is in use. These are the only three private areas on the ship and on deck 7. An alternative is Crooner's Bar on deck 7 which is open to the Piaza. The bars will most likely not be open. Hope this helps a little.

[satxdiver]

Thanks for all your posts! I am curious too how the ICE boarding before pax get off in Bar Harbor goes. On our cruise we have a ship tour to do whale watching so curious as to how early they board to clear us to leave the ship and if there will be a special line for those with ship tours?

 

We had a private tour. Pax with Princess tours will be sent through the immigration early and taken to the tenders to meet their tours. Those with private tours will be delayed but will be most likely processed at the same time but slower.

[Kristal Blade]

Hi satxdiver,

Thanks for your help re public areas for our meet and greet, you have been more than helpful with all your posts.

Sorry you are missing Bar Harbour, hope there are some extra activities laid on for your entertainment.

Many thanks for the tree reports too.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise and hope the sea is not too rough. Safe journey home too,

Libby

[cruzrbachoua]

We had a private tour. Pax with Princess tours will be sent through the immigration early and taken to the tenders to meet their tours. Those with private tours will be delayed but will be most likely processed at the same time but slower.

 

Yes thank you for all your posts and this does help. I am sorry you are missing Bar Harbor as it is a very nice place...but better to be safe than sorry. Hope your last 2 days are fun filled and I am sad to see it come to an end as I was living through your journey!

[satxdiver]

Day 9 aboard the geriatric cruise – day at sea

Our first day at sea opened with a temperature of 50F but did warm up a bit with a bright sun and no clouds. We decided to have breakfast in the MDR and luckily this was eggs benedict day which we both ordered. They were great. We once again decided to prove we did not do well at trivia and ended up with a score of 12. The winner had 20 out of 20. While relaxing in the Piaza we found out that Sabatini’s was serving pizza for lunch so off we went not to be disappointed. The afternoon was spent in our stateroom and balcony until the sun shifted to the other side. We did manage to make it to the elite party tonight. We have made friends with Marie, a cocktail waitress, and she has taken good care of us. All through the cruise we have opted for 6 top tables in the MDR and elsewhere. We met a lovely couple in Skywalkers this time. Tonight was the last formal night and the usual lobster dinner which everyone at the table ordered. Great dinner as usual. The MDR was crowded per usual and we had to wait in line with many in front of us waiting for a table for 2 so we moved to the head of the line. At our table was a couple that will be with us next fall on the TA from London on this ship! We adjourned to Skywalkers for the ABBA and BeeGee’s hour followed by BOGO$1. The ship was rocking significantly while we were up there but pax were dancing. Again we met a lovely couple who were from our home state and made for an interesting conversation. We retired to our stateroom with the ship still rocking. Tomorrow is the last day which will be at sea before landing in Bayonne on Sunday. More to follow.

[Kristal Blade]

Thanks for all your posts, we will be on board tomorrow.

Lovely blue skies in Newark today, hope that follows us as we cruise north.

Safe journey home,

Libby x

[satxdiver]

Day 10 aboard the geriatric cruise – day at sea

This is our last day at sea and last full day on the CB. The cruise is drawing to an end and the only solution for end of the cruise blues is to book another cruise so we have a few booked for the first months of 2016. We went to the MDR for all meals today. We arrived early around 8 AM for breakfast which was good as it became a lot more crowded later. Lunch we waited until 1:00 PM and was able to almost walk right in. The MDR was very crowded and full. Dinner we went to the Island MDR (ATD) at 7 and had to wait a short while. Breakfast was the normal omelet etc. while lunch was paella. Our table mate asked for some extra mussels and they brought him a whole bowl full which he shared with me since we seemed to be the only ones that enjoyed them. Dinner was kingklip for my partner and mussels in wine sauce for me. Today was a mussel day! This morning was the culinary demonstration which was good but we missed the theatrics we have seen on other ships. Following this we had a hosted veteran’s gathering and had 30 or so present including 4 ladies. Most veterans were from the Korea era but there were some from the Viet Nam era including me. This afternoon was the wine tasting which was really good. It was then back to packing our luggage. I did make several journeys up to the lido deck and pax were out sunning as it was warm in protected areas with the clear blue sun. Temperature today was in the middle 50’s early to high 50’s later in the day so not too bad. We were able to enjoy some time on the balcony. After dinner we listened to the comedian in Explorer Lounge – he was better than last time – followed by the 50th anniversary balloon drop in the piazza. It was heavily attended. I don’t know of anyone winning a prize. We are now outside Cape Liberty waiting to be given permission to enter (11 pm). We are staying in NYC for several days before returning home. Then it will be time to plan for our 2016 cruises. The end.

 

Summary:

While the tree color was disappointing, the ports were nice and enjoyable. Some were very small so excursions need to be arranged ahead of time. Ship excursions sold out weeks before we boarded the ship so plan ahead. The CB is in good shape and the crew is as friendly as always. The food, subjective of course, was all good although we only went to the HC for one breakfast and one lunch. Usually we returned to the ship late and had a snack upon reboarding. We made it to Skywalker for the elite/platinum party only a few times. Temperatures were in the 50’s with clear blue sky in most ports and little wind – excluding Quebec which was very windy.

[satxdiver]

Thanks for all your posts, we will be on board tomorrow.

Lovely blue skies in Newark today, hope that follows us as we cruise north.

Safe journey home,

Libby x

 

We will leave the CB in good shape for your arrival. Hopefully the trees will put on a better show for you. Good luck on your cruise.

[The Big Booper]

Cape Liberty is usually for RCI/=X= ships. Princess usually uses Red Hook in Brooklyn. Why the change?

[caribill]

Cape Liberty is usually for RCI/=X= ships. Princess usually uses Red Hook in Brooklyn. Why the change?

 

Other ships were already booked into both Manhattan and Red Hook.

[aca911]

Pax?