Allure of the Seas transatlantic from Rome, October 22 to November 6, 2015

[Setting sail for fun]

The certificate is very cool. Showed it to DH hoping to inspire his interest in a TA!

[internetwhiz]

The certificate is very cool. Showed it to DH hoping to inspire his interest in a TA!

 

 

We did not get one on last year's westbound TA on Oasis. Feel privileged.

 

People on Eastbound Oasis got a nice certificate that said Westbound, and they never corrected it for them.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited November 4, 2015 by internetwhiz

[rafinmd]

As we have been gaining an hour most days and moving westward the net effect has been that sunrise usually gets about a half hour earlier each day. Today it came before I finished my walk and I headed up to deck 6 (the Aqua Theater) at the end of lap 11 for a very nice sunrise.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/dawn1103.jpg

 

Breakfast was pancakes today at Johnny Rockets. I did not think they were that great, I much prefer the french toast there. As I left Johnny Rockets the crew was drilling in the Aqua pool with a life raft. David Kirpatrick’s topic was “New Technology and What to do About It”

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/raftdrill.jpg

 

Captain Johnny admitted a bit of monotony in his noon report. Still favorable conditions, the only thing that changed was our distance to land. Bermuda is now 350 miles off our starboard bow. The pool decks midday were quite busy with a temperature of 81 as was the sundeck up on top of the bridge.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/midpool.jpg

 

I think this is becoming my “I’m glad I did it once but it won’t happen again” cruise. Just past lunch time I registered for the Zip Line, soaring 8 decks above Broadwalk. I was a bit annoyed that I had come unprepared to do it carrying nothing, and was a little nervous about leaving my watch and camera back at the boarding station. My glasses also raised a concern. They have straps for them but just ran out. They took my glasses. My vision is pretty bad but the test was “can you see the colors at the landing zone”. I barely did and got harness and helmet on when another strap was located and off came the helmet to put the glasses back on. I was rather nervous (terrified) as the moment came but once started the ride above Boardwalk was quite nice, the landing less so. It seems like there is a fraction of a second to step on the yellow zone and slow down; I did so barely if at all and had quite an abrupt stop at the end of the line, but with no damage done.

 

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My other afternoon first was Karaoke, or perhaps knocking Karaoke on it’s ear. I was first inspired by Hector’s magic show on October 29 and how young Charlie reacted to being on stage. After seeing Karaoke a couple days ago I started on a little project. Today’s session was “Karaoke Superstar Round 3" and I assumed prior wins were needed to even enter but I decided to stop by and see if my plans would even be allowed. In a moment I was signed up as singer number 4. I introduced my selection with “The screen will say ‘in the style of Louis Armstrong’ but mine will be more ‘in the style of Weird Al Yankovic’”. I flubbed a few words but was still quite well received but was not selected for the finals. More later.

 

The final formal night was also the night of the “Top Tier Party” and I was underwhelmed. Of course ‘Top Tier” is a big group on this crossing, about 60% of the 5,100 passengers. At my pervious parties on Vision and Radiance class ships there has been a receiving line of officers with time for a brief chat (I have specific memories of exchanges on 3 of my 4 previous parties) and a nice lounge with lots of bar waiters. Here it was a massive crush of people waiting to get into the ice rink with a few waiters around the top isles and none in the packed seating area. There were some high points, the orchestra was good and Benn Mills sang. Bobby Brown wore his Kilt and he, the loyalty ambassador and Captain Johnny gave welcoming speeches, and 4 top cruisers were given awards including RCI’s top cruiser who goes by “Super Mario”,

 

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The usual 3 enjoyed a nice dinner with evening entertainment following, the production show Blue Planet, featuring both the singers and dancers as well as the acrobats from Oceanaria.

 

Today’s parting shot will be my song as prepared for Karaoke:

I see trees of green,

Central Park view.

Beautifully trimmed,

for me and you.

And I think to myself,

what a wonderful world.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/cpview.jpg

 

I see seas of blue,

And caps of white.

The bright blessed day,

The dark sacred night.

And I think...

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/choppy.jpg

 

The moon above Malaga,

So pretty in the sky.

The night lights of Gibralter,

Morocco gliding by,

I see friends making friends.

Saying, "How do you do?"

Some for a lifetime, Allure thank you".

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/moonoverallure.jpg

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/gibralter.jpg

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/morocco.jpg

 

A boy’s wide eyes shine,

In a magic show,

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/charlie.jpg

 

He'll learn much more,

Than I'll ever know.

And I think...

Oh yeah.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

The certificate is very cool. Showed it to DH hoping to inspire his interest in a TA!

 

We did not get one on last year's westbound TA on Oasis. Feel privileged.

 

People on Eastbound Oasis got a nice certificate that said Westbound, and they never corrected it for them.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

As Karen has suggested, I wouldn't count on getting a certificate. This is about my 21st transatlantic on 5 cruise lines plus a freighter and I don't remember ever getting a certificate before. Yes for crossing the equator or the Arctic Circle but not for crossing the pond. If you get a certificate (especially with the right information), it's a bonus.

 

Roy

[Setting sail for fun]

Great job on your song!

 

So that is where Super Mario is. He was on Independence of the Seas in Sept. and was on for a few months (I believe).

[Setting sail for fun]

As Karen has suggested, I wouldn't count on getting a certificate. This is about my 21st transatlantic on 5 cruise lines plus a freighter and I don't remember ever getting a certificate before. Yes for crossing the equator or the Arctic Circle but not for crossing the pond. If you get a certificate (especially with the right information), it's a bonus.

 

Roy

 

Just my excuse for another cruise!

[swwake]

I love your karaoke song. Again, thanks for bringing us along. This has been fun! We leave tomorrow for Florida and board Allure Friday. Thanks for helping get her safely here :)

[rafinmd]

Very good Setting sail for fun. Susan, we're both hoping for a smooth disembarkation.

 

I started the day off with a shortened 10-lap walk and finished about 40 minutes before sunrise giving me time to go up by the flowriders to watch. I arrived at the viewing spot close to dawn but clouds on the horizon delayed the sun’s actual appearance for another 5-10 minutes.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/dawn1104.jpg

 

There were a lot of activities today with much of it involving the Aqua Theater. David Kirkpatrick’s final presentation “Why Movies Matter” in the Amber Theater. I watched almost the first half hour before heading back to the Aqua Theater for the 10:30 Captain’s Corner.

 

Captain Johnny was joined by the Chief Engineer and Hotel Director with Bobby Brown for a full hour of Q&A. Among the tidbits uncovered was a question about fuel consumption. The Allure gets about 40 feet per gallon which works out to be somewhat comparable to a car with 4 passengers in terms of passenger miles per gallon. Reference was also made to a structure high on the front of the ship which Captain Johnny claims is a spoiler to reduce air turbulence in Central Park. In response to a question about the lifeboats not having regular seats the panel did a demonstration of how people would be placed. The crew drills regularly with the lifeboats and they know it’s possible but I would not want to leave the ship that way.. After the session Captain Johnny posed for pictures with his motorcycle.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/capncrnr3.jpg

 

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The Aqua Theater continued to be a focal point much of the rest of the day. The men’s belly-flop competition was held there at 1. I watched a dive or 2 from my balcony. The sexiest man competition followed at 1:30 along with an hour sale of Walk For Wishes merchandise on Boardwalk.

 

The walk itself started from the Aqua stage at 2:30. About 25 of us walked up through Boardwalk, down through the Royal Promenade and around the jogging track. It was significantly less than a mile but it’s the thought that counts. I did walk another lap afterwards to get to my 5-mile goal.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/wishes2.jpg

 

There was a Guest Talent Show in the Amber Theater at 3. I missed it having just completed my walk and then going up to look around the top deck (and get ice cream), but I heard it was pretty good.

 

We had the usual 3 at table 937. The evening show was a Beatles Celebration. I swear I had booked it but the ticket scanner claimed I did not. A lot of people seem to have been rejected, and I suspect there was a problem. It’s unfortunate that we do not get a reliable confirmation of what is reserved. I did watch a fountain show in the Aqua Theater from my balcony and also stopped for a while in the Schooner Bar where Derek Conlon was playing.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/fountain1.jpg

 

I had hoped today’s parting shot would be more positive than it is. I am pleased to see that the Walk for Wishes did happen on this cruise. However, I find it hard to believe that the largest cruise ship in the world can only get 25 people to participate. I estimate that each of my walks on the much smaller Enchantment and Grandeur attracted a minimum of 100 people and I can’t remember ever seeing such a small turnout for “On Deck for a Cause” on the 800-passenger Prinsendam. Allure, you can do better.

 

Roy

[SteelMagnolia9]

Thank you for taking all of us along with you. I've really enjoyed reading your blog, and reviewing the Compasses and menus. I'm looking forward to the mini-cruise tomorrow and your postings helped me decide what I'd like to experience in the short amount of time that I will have onboard. Have a good trip home and thanks again!

[rafinmd]

Thank you for taking all of us along with you. I've really enjoyed reading your blog, and reviewing the Compasses and menus. I'm looking forward to the mini-cruise tomorrow and your postings helped me decide what I'd like to experience in the short amount of time that I will have onboard. Have a good trip home and thanks again!

 

Have a great mini-cruise. Will you do me one favor. I've said on this thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2158014

 

that Hugo will be Activities Manager for another month. If by chance I've misunderstood his accent and he actually leaves tomorrow, will you post a correction. If you did it when you got back that would be fine.

 

TIA

 

Roy

[SteelMagnolia9]

Have a great mini-cruise. Will you do me one favor. I've said on this thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2158014

 

that Hugo will be Activities Manager for another month. If by chance I've misunderstood his accent and he actually leaves tomorrow, will you post a correction. If you did it when you got back that would be fine.

 

TIA

 

Roy

 

Yes, I will be happy to do so. I have an event to attend Sunday evening when I return home, so I will post the update here Monday morning.

[Setting sail for fun]

Thanks so much for all the information and photos you have posted. I have truly enjoyed it!

 

I agree the Walk for Wishes is usually a huge success. I know on several of the cruises I have been on, guests could donate or purchase T-shirts without walking. Hope they would have done that.

 

Safe travels home!

[internetwhiz]

Thank you for your blog on the cruise. Although I have sailed on her and her sister ship five times, I saw the journey through new eyes.

 

I'm very sad that only 25 went on the walk for wishes. I didn't read if Capt. Johnny or another officer did the walk. Lots of people usually go and buy a shirt, a towel, or a bracelet (I love my bracelet from Quantum) and may not have walked. Having a grandchild who received a Wish, it's sad to me that participation was low. It's a great organization.

 

We hope someday to sail with you and meet you! Karen and Bill

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[dancourt]

Hi Roy I'm still following you on your adventures and enjoying every minute.

 

It's good of you to take the time and give us so much information.

 

Love the photo's too.

 

I'm off on the Queen Victoria next week to grab a bit of sunshine and escape this awful British weather.

 

Susan

[rafinmd]

Karen, we did not have officers on the walk. My recollection on past walks was that we sometimes we did but I can't remember ever seeing advance publicity that "the Captain will be on the walk".

 

Susan, take good care of Queen Victoria for me. I'm barely over 2 months from boarding her.

 

Roy

[Cruisin' Again 86]

Karen, we did not have officers on the walk. My recollection on past walks was that we sometimes we did but I can't remember ever seeing advance publicity that "the Captain will be on the walk".

 

Susan, take good care of Queen Victoria for me. I'm barely over 2 months from boarding her.

 

Roy

 

Loved traveling with you on your TA, cannot wait until December to cruise with Captain Johnny for his Birthday, and our first Med cruise and TA next October !!

[rafinmd]

Loved traveling with you on your TA' date=' cannot wait until December to cruise with Captain Johnny for his Birthday, and our first Med cruise and TA next October !![/quote']

 

Thank you. BTW, my absolute favorite RCI Captain is Gus Andersson so, unless there is a change in the assignments, you are assured of a great Captain next year whichever one you get.

 

I’ve fallen into a pattern where I fall asleep in the evening much earlier than planned and am unable to get back to sleep in the half hour or so before the alarm goes off. I had to wait for 5AM to turn off my IPAD alarm and started my walk. At the end of my 5 miles there was about 15 minutes to go before sunrise. I had hoped to watch it from my balcony one last time but as the moment approached I wasn’t seeing much effort. Wondering if the angle was still right I went up to deck 15 and saw a little sliver of sun in about the right place but it was still obscured by clouds. Back on my balcony, the sun fully emerged a few minutes later.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/dawn1105.jpg

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/dawnbalcony.jpg

 

I didn’t really have a lot of activities on my plate today, but David Kirkpatrick had a Q&A at 10 in the Amber Theater. I did some packing and photo organizing for the rest of the morning.

 

At noon Captain Johnny reported we should have our first land sighting about 6PM as we pass through the Bahamas. We have slowed our speed a bit to avoid arriving in Ft. Lauderdale before our 3AM appointment with the pilot.

 

The afternoon was mostly in my room but I went out about 4:40 and attended the final Beatles Celebration concert. They were quite good and the concert ended about 5:50. I walked around the jogging track on the way to the dining room and there was a strange green mass off our starboard stern, some outer islands of the Bahamas.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/beatles.jpg

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/landahoy.jpg

 

There were just 2 of us tonight at table 937 and we enjoyed a pleasant but quick dinner and said our goodbyes to Carol and Slaven, who have taken great care of us for the last 10 or 12 days.

 

There was a Dreamworks Parade on the Royal Promenade led by Captain Johnny on his motorcycle and I watched for the first few minutes. I returned to my room through Central Park. A few people were watching down on the parade through the Central Park skylights. I spent the rest of the evening organizing and packing and had my bags in the hallway about 10, I have luggage tag 1, one of the first groups off, and must meet in the Blaze nightclub for my tour departure at 7:45. I hope being one of the earlier groups off will make disembarkation a little easier.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/parade1.jpg

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/parade2.jpg

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/parade3.jpg

 

As today’s parting shot I am fascinated by the news that the Empress of the Seas is returning to the Royal Caribbean fleet after a 7-year absence. This is certainly not consistent with cruise industry trends and I’m very curious to see how it will be deployed.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

Arrived in port about 4 and am about to shut down my computer and head to the departure lounge. I'll post about departure later today.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

I woke up about 4:30, well ahead of my alarm. After a quick shower and meds it was time for a quick shower and a short walk. My 3 laps around the jogging track detoured through the Royal Promenade where the track was closed for gangway operations. I returned to my cabin for about an hour before heading up to deck 15 about 6:30. The sun came up this morning over the forward port side of the ship and would definitely not have been visible from my balcony. I watched the arrival of the MS Oosterdam and went into the WJ for a little breakfast.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/dawn1106.jpg

 

Last year’s disembarkation from the Oasis of the Seas transatlantic was for most people a disaster with exceeding long lines both to leave the ship and at immigration. I figured I might be a little better cared for if I remained a customer until I was clear of the ship and booked a tour which eventually took me to Miami Airport. I left my cabin about 7:25 and headed down to Blaze night club (the tour meeting point) and waited for the planned 8AM tour departure.

 

The tour was called pretty much as advertised at 8AM although the line stopped for about 10 minutes at the door of Blaze. I was in the terminal by 8:15, had some difficulty finding my luggage but then had a short line at immigration, and was in my coach about 8:40. We pulled away at 9 for a drive around Ft. Lauderdale starting with several miles of beaches before heading into the business district. A major boat show is held this week and traffic was quite heavy.

 

Ft. Lauderdale is sometimes called “the Venice of America” and we saw a lot of canals, waterfront mansions, and massive yachts. We got off for a walk along the Riverwalk Park. The New River was supposedly named by native Americans because it sprang into existence suddenly after an earthquake.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/riverwalk.jpg

 

After another short drive we boarded the tour boat CarrieB, for a view of the town from the water, getting close to some almost unbelievable mansions (a 40,000 square foot ‘bachelor pad” and even more unbelievable yachts. We continued into the port area where most of the Allure’s lifeboats were in the water for what I think is a monthly test. After our 90-minute water tour we reboarded the bus and were at Ft. Lauderdale airport at 1PM where about 2/3 of our passengers headed for their flights. We dropped our guide back at the port and then continued on to Miami Airport.

 

https://getawaysfrom21044.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/boatsout.jpg

 

I did not have the best of experiences at the airport. The dropoff point for tour buses was a parking lot at the very end of the terminal with obstacles on the way to the door. Once inside I had to go up a level to the hotel shuttle “area”. The area was simply a sign pointing out the door to 3 unmarked roadways where there were no signs but I was left to guess that the shuttles used the center one. There was little place to stand with luggage and no place to sit in the half hour I waited for the shuttle.

 

I was dropped off at the Best Western airport hotel at just about checkin time. I pretty much relaxed in the hotel with a trip to the grocery store and a walk across the street for dinner. Bed should be relatively early as I need to leave the hotel about 6:30 to catch my train home. I will not have wifi there.

 

Today’s parting shot is another sad one. I was surprised to learn of the person falling overboard on Allure’s sister ship, the Oasis OTS. The circumstances seem really puzzling, but my condolences to the family of what sounds like a troubled young man.

 

Roy

[dancourt]

I hope you have a safe journey home.

 

The Queen Victoria is in safe hands. This will be our first time on her, we have only travelled on the QM2 with Cunard so very excited, only a few more days to wait.

 

Susan

[Andrew89]

Does Allure still have Boardwalk Donuts out of curiosity?

[KiwiFunCruiser]

Thank you for your informative review.

[papcx]

Does Allure still have Boardwalk Donuts out of curiosity?

 

 

Yes but only in the morning.

 

Very nice they are too!

[rafinmd]

Just have a few minutes after disembarking my train.

 

I was up about 4:30 and left my room about 6:30. A multi-modal station has been built near the airport combining facilities for Amtrak, Tri-rail, metro, the city bus system and easy access to the airport but getting it open seems to be hostage to an interagency squabble, and the current station is about 3 miles north of the airport with no easy connection. As my taxi arrived at 6:45 the sun was just showing through trees in front of the hotel. I was in the station at 7AM for my 8:10 train and soon had my big bag checked. My carryon bag now weighs about 30 pounds so the walk I took near the station felt almost like backpacking, and the humidity seemed to be building up. At about 8:45 an employee called for sleeping car passengers, first in general and then by name. We were seated in a golf cart and driven to the front of the train. There are 3 sleeping cars with me in the middle one, we disembarked the cart one by one as it reached our car.

 

What followed became a long wait. Apparently one of the southbound trains hit a pedestrean Friday causing a several hour delay, with the second train stuck behind the first. I haven’t heard anything official but surmise the engineer and conductor were on one of those trains and hadn’t had sufficient rest time to take our train, and we sat for about 80 minutes until a replacement crew arrived. We left Miami at 9:30, delaying breakfast until almost 10. I was definitely ready for my pancakes and sausage.

 

Sometimes a late train will make up time, but more often missing a scheduled slot on the tracks causes cascading delays. As we approach Jacksonville, neither of these extremes has materialized and we remain about 75 minutes behind schedule. The Silver Meteor is the “faster” of the 2 Florida trains, and bypasses some of the cities the Silver Star serves, especially Lakeland and Tampa. During her retirement my mother lived in Lakeland and Kissimmee and I enjoy passing through those towns, but somehow dozed off as we stopped in Kissimmee. We had opportunist to step off and stretch our legs in Orlando and Jacksonville. I expected delays would be due to traffic but instead our service in Jacksonville was extended and ran into dinner time, a lovely steak dinner for all 3 of us at my table. I retired fairly soon after dinner and my attendant, Walter, thought we would be at least 2 hours late in Baltimore.

 

I slept pretty well and when I woke about 5 we were near Petersburg VA, not nearly as far behind as I expected. Our service stop in Richmond was quick, and we had made up the time lost in Jacksonville. When I went for coffee the lounge did not open until 6, but on the way back to my car the dining car manager asked what I wanted and she got me coffee.

 

I went for breakfast (scrambled eggs and grits) about 6:30. It was cloudy and I didn’t actually see the sun come up but there was some nice color just before dawn and a nice view as we crossed a river and had an unobstructed view.

 

We made good time coming into Washington with a nice view of the Washington Monument. Washington is a longer stop where we lose our diesel locomotive and it is replaced by an electric one. We were parked next to an exhibit train. There was a bit of a chill in the air and I had to return to the car and get my jacket. The ride to Baltimore was the high speed part of the run reaching speeds just over 100 mph. We arrived in Baltimore about 45 minutes behind schedule. My checked bag came quickly, but just as I was heading out the door the Airport Shuttle called. The train was late enough that they had to adjust their schedule, and my van will pick me up about 10:15, an hour or so from now.

 

I should be home before 11. So close but yet not there

 

As a parting shot, it looks like the train that while it was still pretty much summer when I left, we have vaulted into fall.

 

Roy

[SteelMagnolia9]

Have a great mini-cruise. Will you do me one favor. I've said on this thread:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2158014

 

that Hugo will be Activities Manager for another month. If by chance I've misunderstood his accent and he actually leaves tomorrow, will you post a correction. If you did it when you got back that would be fine.

 

TIA

 

Roy

 

Hugo was the Activities Manager on the 2 night cruise.

 

I enjoyed the 2 night cruise to Nassau and back, there were alot of Florida weekenders aboard, including families with school age children. I liked being able to 'sample' the Allure on a short cruise.

 

Safe travels as you complete your journey home.