Star Princess North to Alaska! Sept 10 2016

[jlf1]

Next to the table..

.

 

My lobster bisque which had some delicious sweet chunks of lobster hiding under the surface. My face did fit this bowl.

 

 

Carol's Austrian Ravioli with spinach and ricotta

 

 

Terry had a salad of spring greens

 

 

I did a happy dance when my entree arrived...

 

Veal tenderloins wrapped in pancetta with lobster, tiny potatoes, sweetbreads and mushrooms.

 

 

This was an out-of-body experience.

 

WAIT! THERE'S MORE...

 

Just so I can order this meal. Looks fantastic.

[Bimmer09]

The sun is doing his best to warm up the decks

 

 

 

I'm lucky to get any appearance by the sun but it's Alaska or in this case the wilds of British Columbia, not the Caribbean where I am pretty much guaranteed vivid and spectacular shows of color at dawn or dusk. I keep the imperfect photos thinking they might be the only sunrises I'll get.

 

Oh!Canada!

 

 

 

 

Here the ship apparently sails uphill...

 

[Bimmer09]

It's Sunday morning and it's September 11. The Captain makes a very moving speech of Remembrance over the PA around 8 a.m.

 

I go down to deck 7, aft. This is where the Vista Lounge is-replaced on later ships by Club Fusion. It was the scene of our Muster Drill yesterday.

 

 

 

I love the art

 

 

 

 

The Vista has windows along the side and looking over the stern and I see a boat following us....

 

[Bimmer09]

 

Seen through a window

 

 

It turns out to be a Pilot boat. Not sure why it's joining us out here unless the Pilot was on during the night as we sailed through the fog? I didn't see the drop-off or pickup as I had to be somewhere.

 

 

With the sun over the yardarm it was time to go to breakfast in the MDR as we had arranged to meet there at 8.45 before they close the doors at 9 a.m....

[Bimmer09]

I can't believe that I had missed this review. Guess what I'll be doing today.

 

Your reviews are the best.

 

Off to check all your pix......especially the food. Yummy!

 

Judy

 

Judy! You're here! Never too late!

 

Norris

[Jasperdo]

 

 

The chairs in the Vista Lounge have been re-upholstered since I was on the Star in 2014. They look good.

 

[mamaw58]

Following

 

 

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[kimcht]

Thanks for another great review so glad to be following along. We did this Cruise in 2008 on the coral and we were lucky enough to do 5 days on our own before the cruise so it still counts as one of our most favorite vacations.

[kimcht]

Quick question. You mentioned Carol bought the kids soda / milkshake package. My husband usually buys the soda card however they seem to have phased that out on our next princess voyage in favor of a more expensive soda / juice / mocktail card and he's never going to drink any of that besides the soda but milkshakes would be a definite yes for him. Do they have a problem selling this to adults and letting them use this kids card? I will have to check the price compared to the other card but I know he would get more use out of the milkshakes then the mocktails!

[hollon]

The chairs in the Vista Lounge have been re-upholstered since I was on the Star in 2014. They look good.

 

 

What do they do in the vista lounge? Do they have shows, etc

[IECalCruiser]

What do they do in the vista lounge? Do they have shows, etc

If the ship still has the show Motor City it will be in the Vista Lounge. Otherwise there will be singers, comics and the sort.

 

 

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[Bimmer09]

Following

 

Short and to the point! Welcome aboard.

 

Norris

 

[Bimmer09]

If the ship still has the show Motor City it will be in the Vista Lounge. Otherwise there will be singers, comics and the sort.

 

Indeed Motor City played there-it was SRO. The Captain stopped in just as I got there. Both of us stayed about 2 minutes. Carol saw the whole show, having seen it in the Princess Theater on the Ruby and her verdict and mine from a cursory glance is that the ceiling is way too low for a show where dancers are leaping around. I think it's ideal-intimate- for a comic or magician or a Love and Marriage type show. Carol also said the sight lines weren't good from some seats and she must have had one of them.

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

Quick question. You mentioned Carol bought the kids soda / milkshake package. My husband usually buys the soda card however they seem to have phased that out on our next princess voyage in favor of a more expensive soda / juice / mocktail card and he's never going to drink any of that besides the soda but milkshakes would be a definite yes for him. Do they have a problem selling this to adults and letting them use this kids card? I will have to check the price compared to the other card but I know he would get more use out of the milkshakes then the mocktails!

 

She has asked for the UKP on every cruise and this was no different. It was $56 I believe and I don't think she asked for a milkshake on this trip-we both love them so tsk tsk on us. She also loves the pizza on board and never had a slice.

We are forever saying-next time! Neither of us has ever had an ice cream from Swirls and it's there for the taking....and we always have Ice cream in the fridge at home.

 

We always have reasons to take another cruise...it's possible we will indulge in all the free treats on the Celebrity Reflection just to make up lost ground.

 

At some point I hope Deck Chair Queen will chime in if she has time. She's in Florida as I type, for a business meeting and hasn't read any of this report to date.

 

Norris

[IECalCruiser]

Indeed Motor City played there-it was SRO. The Captain stopped in just as I got there. Both of us stayed about 2 minutes. Carol saw the whole show, having seen it in the Princess Theater on the Ruby and her verdict and mine from a cursory glance is that the ceiling is way too low for a show where dancers are leaping around. I think it's ideal-intimate- for a comic or magician or a Love and Marriage type show. Carol also said the sight lines weren't good from some seats and she must have had one of them.

 

Norris

There are a number of columns, primarily of the port side of the Vista Lounge that do mess up the sight lines there.

 

Enjoying your review and wonderful photos.

Edited September 26, 2016 by IECalCruiser

[Bimmer09]

Off to breakfast means a walk to Midships where lies the Piazza, the hub of the ship on decks 5, 6 and 7. We loved the Alaskan Gold Rush banners they had hanging.

 

 

Down a flight of stairs to deck 6 is my destination where I will meet Carol at 08:00.

 

 

A quick dab of Purell and " a table for two only please" as we like to eat alone.

 

We are sat near the entrance and have a waiter station a few feet away.

One of Carol's favorite things on a ship is the "laying of the lap napkin" by a welcoming waiter. Friendly greetings and smiles, happy diners all around as I scan the room. Camera bag at my feet.

 

Cappuccinos, each with an extra shot are paid for with my coffee card from the Diamond Princess in 2012 (as we eschew the offer of regular coffee) are brought forth after we have ordered our first vittles of the day.

 

 

Meanwhile the sticky pastries and croissants are presented by another smiling face. Cinnamon roll for Carol and just a croissant for me, to which I apply a generous amount of butter. Carol eats more healthy than me but that might be said of all the other passengers on the ship.

 

Carol's melon plate arrives and we are bemused at how little, in terms of quantity it is. Tasty and palate-awakening though.

 

 

I really don't need the menu to order as I often order the same thing which is this...

 

 

Carol just had the pancakes without the ham and bacon and therefore the camera wasn't used. I need protein fuel for all the sitting around I will do today.

 

A nice start to the day and we were off on our separate paths: Carol to a lecture by the onboard Alaska expert Sandra Schemp who drew a large crowd to the Princess Theater at 9.30 a.m while I went up on the windy decks to take photos.

 

I love this art piece above deck 15

 

[Bimmer09]

The fog is long gone, the sun is shining but there is a cool breeze a' blowin'

 

 

M.U.T.S (Movies Under The Stars) is running a slideshow of beautiful places (photos taken by passengers for a competition) with the sound turned off which would be the case during the day for the whole cruise.

 

 

Not many people on deck yet

 

 

I decide to go indoors and work on the photos I have already taken. I have to return to our cabin to get my Macbook. There's a phone message. It's the Maitre 'D- Daniele Saredi -welcoming us aboard and thanking us for being loyal Princess customers.

 

We've never had that call before, even when sailing in Suites. A very nice gesture. I play it for Carol later. She thinks maybe he knows who I am-Bimmer 09 who can make or break Princess with a stroke of the pen/keyboard. There was a certain trepidation in his voice and he did refer to me as "your Highness" at one point so she may have something there.

 

I need somewhere quiet with a view and so I head back out after giving my dress shoes to our room steward Decilone for polishing. He will have them back this afternoon as tonight is Formal Night (first of two).

 

Up to Skywalkers go I. Once I step from the elevator there is a group of maybe 20 Japanese folks at the foot of the inclined moving walkway, heading up there too. They all crowd into the port corner and are very quiet.

 

I head to my usual starboard corner (where smoking is allowed after 10 at night but not during the daytime) I see a good seat by the window with two people nearby. As I go to sit they tell me they are waiting for 8 relatives for a family reunion so I chose another seat out of their way. When assembled they seemed a nice bunch as each spoke in turn, reminiscing about their mom and dad and their childhood on a farm out East and I was struck by how when each spoke the others listened and no one was texting or taking selfies. My kind of people!

 

I checked out the wake from this lofty perch

.

 

 

SKYWALKERS

 

 

[Bimmer09]

There's a staircase to safety in the event of a fire in Skywalkers

 

 

The view forward is special

 

 

 

After an hour of LightRooming I follow the Japanese folks down the long ramp. I have 150 free minutes of Internet but don't need it for LightRoom and have no desire to read email at this time as I have left the world of work and the daily barrage of Cruise Line offers behind. I can afford to set aside the offers of vast Nigerian fortunes bequeathed to me for a few days. I've never been to Nigeria and checking my bucket list just now find that it's not on there. However the people seem very generous and seem to have heard of me.

 

[Bimmer09]

Being Sunday there was NFL Football on MUTS and to correct something I said earlier there was sound for the commentary-the only time I heard sound from the screen but I never went to the night time movies. I'll list the movies sometime later for anyone sailing on her soon.

 

I ordered a Guinness and watched for a while as the NY Jets were playing and I used to have tickets for the Jet games in the Meadowlands many years ago when Ken O'Brien, Al Toon and Wesley Walker were playing (well, Ken was on the field, anyway)

 

J-E-S-T!! ( I was never good at spelinng)

 

 

The JETS were playing, um, some other team and there were studio men with headphones and shiny suits with big shoulders talking about "match-ups" and "a game of inches" and "he bench-presses UPS trucks in the off-season" and "the team that puts the most points on the board will win the game" and similar insights.

 

A crowd gathers at the railing to watch the game

 

 

I can't watch the entire game as it is streaming live and that means commercials which I manage to avoid at home so I take my leave and head up to the Sanctuary to meet Carol as we have a booking there today...

[Italy52]

Thank you for taking the time to post your journal and pictures --- DH and I are enjoying the posts very much.

 

We will be on the Star next July for our B2B cruise to Alaska. Will you be posting any pictures of the Horizon Court?

 

Looking forward to the next installments.

[Bimmer09]

Thank you for taking the time to post your journal and pictures --- DH and I are enjoying the posts very much.

 

We will be on the Star next July for our B2B cruise to Alaska. Will you be posting any pictures of the Horizon Court?

 

Looking forward to the next installments.

 

Hi and thanks for the compliments! Yes I took some HC pics of the rooms and the food on my plate-not the food in the buffet as I'd hate to hold folks up in the line. It was identical to the other HCs I've been in except for the Coral and the Ocean.

 

Cheers!

 

Norris

[senior lady]

I love the Star. Will be back on her in 6 wks for a 10 day Mexican cruise..:cool:

[Bimmer09]

I love the Star. Will be back on her in 6 wks for a 10 day Mexican cruise..:cool:

 

Karen, thanks for stopping by- glad to have you aboard!

 

Those 6 weeks will soon start to fly by!

 

Norris

[Bimmer09]

The Sanctuary roof is made of stretched canvas with gaps in it and gaps in the windows so the wind can whip through there with ease and it was doing so when I joined Carol before our pub lunch. We both love it for the peace and quiet but as one of my middle names is "Mr. Toasty" I didn't plan to stay for long. There are only 2 bookings today....

 

 

 

Carol's mode of dress might clue you in....

 

 

The smile says it all though- she is happy to be here. No cell-phone yackers up here, no kids.No one except this fellow who is heading my way after procuring my hot chocolate, requested as I came through the gate.

 

 

 

It's Francisco from India who was our waiter last night in Sabatini's! The hot chocolate hits the spot but once enjoyed I'll be off to find somewhere toasty.

 

We arrange to meet at the Crown Grill at 1pm. The lunch starts at 11.30 and runs until 2 p.m and draws a big crowd. We will miss a long line by eating at 1.

[deliver42]

Norris, what a pleasure to see you again. Your reviews are the best, and am looking forward to the rest of your trip. You and Carol be safe and bon voyage.