Stinger-pr's fascinating honeymoon, Fascination cruise review- Oct. 16-23, 2016

[Stinger-pr]

Yep, sure do! :D We (OK, I) actually saw Liberty sail past that morning. It was about 4:45am but since she isn't a speedboat, she was still out there after my *attempt* at pictures when I went back to bed around 5. I didn't set my alarm to get up that morning though, just happened to wake up and decided to go and look. I did set the alarm for 5:30am on our Valor cruise to get up to see if I could see Valor out there from the hotel, but never did. I found out that she was already docked. Thanks for the photo tips. I started using RAW for our Liberty cruise but didn't anticipate how much space on a memory card it would take up, so after St. Thomas I adjusted back from RAW to the highest JPG quality (or whatever the technical term is). Next time I'll be better prepared. I'll also have to check out Lightroom, so thanks for mentioning it.

 

Felipe was supposed to be our CD on Liberty but the week we went is the week that they were in Miami, so we had a back-up, "Classy" Cassie. We thought she was OK, but it sounded like she "grated" nerves of some others we talked to. The guy who was assistant CD that week (never did get his name :o) was pretty decent. I've also heard of "Marshmallow" but don't believe we've ever experienced him. I can't tell you who our CD's were. But after seeing yours and Mitsugirly's reviews, I think Fascination would be a perfect fit. I like the idea of smaller crowd.

 

I am so glad that you're going to be adding a "tour" of San Juan...so I'll stay tuned!

 

We're also on the "supposed to get Felipe" boat, twice now! in 2015 we got Brian (I forget his last name) substituting for Felipe during his vacation during the first week of August. Brian was fun and energetic but sometimes seemed forced. But he was still very entertaining. in October 2016 we got Marcelo who again was in for Felipe while he was on vacation. Marcelo was a hoot!! He seemed more relaxed in his role and more fluid, natural. Being Latino (and bilingual) helped him fit right in with the local crowd and he was also very open to talk to people all the time. My close experience with him (during the Divas show and other random encounters during the week) was incredible. I do hope he's in for the long haul and that he's aboard when we take our Summer 2018 cruise.

 

I learned the hard way about buying large capacity memory cards when I started shooting RAW myself. I currently have a 64GB class 10 UHS1 sd card. These are getting so cheap lately that it's a waste NOT to upgrade. Get as fast a card as your camera supports. This helps with smooth videos and shorter wait between shots since the memory is written faster to the card.

 

I'm debating if doing San Juan as a casual stroll, a "debarkation day" kind of thing or a "port call" day with limited time. Any suggestions?

[Stinger-pr]

We will be aboard the MSC Divina making port in San Juan Wednesday, March 22 from 8 am - 4 pm. We have previously toured El Morro. Thanks again.

If you've done San Juan and the forts, I'd suggest either a beach day or a rain forest/Luquillo beach combo or just the rain forest. Luquillo beach is near the rain forest so that's why you might be able to pull both off in the same day. There are close by beaches near the ship (Escambron, Condado near the Marriott Stellaris and in Isla Verde). Some are bring-your-own-stuff type of beach, others you can find vendors for renting chair and umbrellas (but I can't comment on those, sorry). Also, you might try the San Juan board in the Ports of Call section on this forum.

 

 

I've seen the Divina docked at San Juan and she looks like a beautiful ship. She has done a few overnight stays here as well.

[sparks1093]

We're also on the "supposed to get Felipe" boat, twice now! in 2015 we got Brian (I forget his last name) substituting for Felipe during his vacation during the first week of August. Brian was fun and energetic but sometimes seemed forced. But he was still very entertaining. in October 2016 we got Marcelo who again was in for Felipe while he was on vacation. Marcelo was a hoot!! He seemed more relaxed in his role and more fluid, natural. Being Latino (and bilingual) helped him fit right in with the local crowd and he was also very open to talk to people all the time. My close experience with him (during the Divas show and other random encounters during the week) was incredible. I do hope he's in for the long haul and that he's aboard when we take our Summer 2018 cruise.

 

I learned the hard way about buying large capacity memory cards when I started shooting RAW myself. I currently have a 64GB class 10 UHS1 sd card. These are getting so cheap lately that it's a waste NOT to upgrade. Get as fast a card as your camera supports. This helps with smooth videos and shorter wait between shots since the memory is written faster to the card.

 

I'm debating if doing San Juan as a casual stroll, a "debarkation day" kind of thing or a "port call" day with limited time. Any suggestions?

 

Marcelo was a hoot but he was only filling in on Fascination and I believe he rejoined his regular ship after our cruise. He is definitely in my top 5 for CDs.

[NYHartChapp]

If you've done San Juan and the forts, I'd suggest either a beach day or a rain forest/Luquillo beach combo or just the rain forest. Luquillo beach is near the rain forest so that's why you might be able to pull both off in the same day. There are close by beaches near the ship (Escambron, Condado near the Marriott Stellaris and in Isla Verde). Some are bring-your-own-stuff type of beach, others you can find vendors for renting chair and umbrellas (but I can't comment on those, sorry). Also, you might try the San Juan board in the Ports of Call section on this forum.

 

 

I've seen the Divina docked at San Juan and she looks like a beautiful ship. She has done a few overnight stays here as well.

 

Thanks, Stinger. We've visited distilleries in Scotland and was wondering if the Bacardi tour is interesting (if you've done it). I think you said the ferry terminal is not far from the cruise pier.

[pghsteelerfan]

We're also on the "supposed to get Felipe" boat, twice now! in 2015 we got Brian (I forget his last name) substituting for Felipe during his vacation during the first week of August. Brian was fun and energetic but sometimes seemed forced. But he was still very entertaining. in October 2016 we got Marcelo who again was in for Felipe while he was on vacation. Marcelo was a hoot!! He seemed more relaxed in his role and more fluid, natural. Being Latino (and bilingual) helped him fit right in with the local crowd and he was also very open to talk to people all the time. My close experience with him (during the Divas show and other random encounters during the week) was incredible. I do hope he's in for the long haul and that he's aboard when we take our Summer 2018 cruise.

 

I learned the hard way about buying large capacity memory cards when I started shooting RAW myself. I currently have a 64GB class 10 UHS1 sd card. These are getting so cheap lately that it's a waste NOT to upgrade. Get as fast a card as your camera supports. This helps with smooth videos and shorter wait between shots since the memory is written faster to the card.

 

I'm debating if doing San Juan as a casual stroll, a "debarkation day" kind of thing or a "port call" day with limited time. Any suggestions?

 

I'm wondering now if it was Marcelo who was our assistant CD on our Liberty cruise (???). Classy Cassie was our CD, subbing for Felipe, but the assistant seemed to be more present with the activities. When poor hubby got "volunteered" for the "men's hairy chest" contest, the assistant CD did the contest. He was also in the Punchliner Comedy club to introduce the comedians. I looked up Marcelo and it looked like it could be him. I know our assistant CD on Liberty mentioned he was Latino. I just can't tell for sure since he had sunglasses on.

 

 

Thank you about the memory cards. That's actually the kind we've been getting now. I think it was a 16 or 32 that I had for our Liberty cruise, but had several of them. I picked up a few late last year and also got hubby several for Christmas.

 

 

Your additional San Juan section, either "debarkation day" or "port of call" suggestions...maybe a little of both? You know I love seeing your pictures, so the more the better. :)

 

Is this Marcelo? This is the best picture I have of our assistant CD from Liberty in September 2015 when he did the "men's hairy chest" contest. We both really liked him and he seemed to really enjoy what he was doing.

 

[avvdixon]

Loved reading this review and for all of the helpful information and pictures!! We'll be there in 2 weeks!

We are arriving on Friday at 6:00am and plan on spending the day in OSJ and at the forts/museums. Already have your restaurant suggestions in the itinerary! I know it will be a tiring day, but we're planning to have some long, lingering meals/drinks to relax and rest our feet throughout the day. Hoping we can last long enough to go to the Placita for a little dancing in the evening as we both love salsa.

Saturday morning we are renting a car and heading to El Yunque for some hiking and then Luquillo for beach in the afternoon. We have a hotel in Luquillo. Sunday morning we were going to do a really early hike at El Yunque and then head to Guavate for the lechoneras before heading back for the cruise ship (we signed up for late embarkation time).

 

Questions: Suggestions for a favorite lechonera in Guavate?

Also, we got a red eye flight back to U.S. at 1:00am on Monday after our cruise. This gives us all day on Sunday to relax and we were hoping for a beach day. Having a hard time finding a place where we can just use the beach and hopefully pool area while storing our luggage for the day. I called the Intercontinental & they said we'd have to call the day of for availability. I don't want to take a chance on being stuck for an entire day with luggage and no place to go! Any ideas?

[Stinger-pr]

Marcelo was a hoot but he was only filling in on Fascination and I believe he rejoined his regular ship after our cruise. He is definitely in my top 5 for CDs.

Yes, he was substituting for Felipe during our week and later rejoined the Victory, which has been "his ship" for the past three years. I follow him on the "book of faces" site and this past week he posted that he was saying goodbye to the Victory after three years and upon returning from his vacation, he will be joining the Fascination as it's CD.

[Stinger-pr]

Thanks, Stinger. We've visited distilleries in Scotland and was wondering if the Bacardi tour is interesting (if you've done it). I think you said the ferry terminal is not far from the cruise pier.

The ferry terminal is right alongside the terminals for the cruise ships. I have not done the Bacardi tour in (literally) decades! But don't get your expectations too high. You don't get to see "live" any of the production processes in the factory itself. You will get a tour of the grounds and of a museum about the history and explanation of how the rum is made. Then, depending on your package, you either do tastings or participate in a mixology class. sparks1093 took the tour at Bacardi, I think he can chime in with better details. I don't mind the relevant hijack...lol.

[Stinger-pr]

I'm wondering now if it was Marcelo who was our assistant CD on our Liberty cruise (???). Classy Cassie was our CD, subbing for Felipe, but the assistant seemed to be more present with the activities. When poor hubby got "volunteered" for the "men's hairy chest" contest, the assistant CD did the contest. He was also in the Punchliner Comedy club to introduce the comedians. I looked up Marcelo and it looked like it could be him. I know our assistant CD on Liberty mentioned he was Latino. I just can't tell for sure since he had sunglasses on.

 

 

Thank you about the memory cards. That's actually the kind we've been getting now. I think it was a 16 or 32 that I had for our Liberty cruise, but had several of them. I picked up a few late last year and also got hubby several for Christmas.

 

 

Your additional San Juan section, either "debarkation day" or "port of call" suggestions...maybe a little of both? You know I love seeing your pictures, so the more the better. :)

 

Is this Marcelo? This is the best picture I have of our assistant CD from Liberty in September 2015 when he did the "men's hairy chest" contest. We both really liked him and he seemed to really enjoy what he was doing.

 

Can't really tell if it's Marcelo or not. Was he Bilingual? Marcelo had the great ability to go back and forth between English and Spanish and sometimes a little bit of both a the same time. He was great!

[Stinger-pr]

Loved reading this review and for all of the helpful information and pictures!! We'll be there in 2 weeks!

We are arriving on Friday at 6:00am and plan on spending the day in OSJ and at the forts/museums. Already have your restaurant suggestions in the itinerary! I know it will be a tiring day, but we're planning to have some long, lingering meals/drinks to relax and rest our feet throughout the day. Hoping we can last long enough to go to the Placita for a little dancing in the evening as we both love salsa.

Saturday morning we are renting a car and heading to El Yunque for some hiking and then Luquillo for beach in the afternoon. We have a hotel in Luquillo. Sunday morning we were going to do a really early hike at El Yunque and then head to Guavate for the lechoneras before heading back for the cruise ship (we signed up for late embarkation time).

 

Questions: Suggestions for a favorite lechonera in Guavate?

Also, we got a red eye flight back to U.S. at 1:00am on Monday after our cruise. This gives us all day on Sunday to relax and we were hoping for a beach day. Having a hard time finding a place where we can just use the beach and hopefully pool area while storing our luggage for the day. I called the Intercontinental & they said we'd have to call the day of for availability. I don't want to take a chance on being stuck for an entire day with luggage and no place to go! Any ideas?

OSJ is a culinary hot zone. There are dozens of restaurants and bars of all kinds from the inexpensive to the break your wallet type and everything in between. Think of any type of world cuisine and more than likely there's a restaurant for that (except maybe Indian and Thai). You will definitely not go hungry in OSJ.

 

Ahhh...so you know of la Placita!! It doesn't get any better that that for a few drinks under the stars with great latin music and a festival-like atmosphere every weekend. For those who don't know, some people bring their own instruments and jam together for hours. Sometimes you actually find salsa artists jamming along. The vibe is good, the music is great and the drinks are mostly on the cheap side. Stay near "the market" in the center of all the action since the pubs with music more geared towards the younger crowd are located on the peripheral streets.

 

I don't know if they have luggage storage or not but the Marriott Stellaris in Condado have day passes where you can use the beach, loungers and pool facilities. That would be the closest to port. There's also a place in Isla Verde and/or Ocean Park that's a beach club type of place but I forgot the name. I do know it was on someone's review a few months back (one of Mitsugirly's maybe??).

 

It doesn't get any more grass-roots than Guavate. Excellent choice!! Guavate is littered with awesome places to eat. But not all of them are in the top part of the mountain. There's El Mojito which is almost a stone's throw away from the highway 52. Once you take the exit for road 184, turn left at the intersection and start up the mountain. The restaurant will be on your right in less than a quarter mile. Further up you will find the center of the "pork highway" where there are a bunch of restaurants almost side by side. Two of the oldest and most popular are El Rancho Original and Lechonera Los Pinos. If you go, get there before noon or else traffic will be a pain once you get near the lechoneras. As a hint, when ordering your pork, ask for meat from the ribs or "costillal". This is where the most tender and tastier meat is from. If you dare, ask for an ear. It is the most tasty, fried pork rind you will ever taste!!

[avvdixon]

OSJ is a culinary hot zone. There are dozens of restaurants and bars of all kinds from the inexpensive to the break your wallet type and everything in between. Think of any type of world cuisine and more than likely there's a restaurant for that (except maybe Indian and Thai). You will definitely not go hungry in OSJ.

 

Ahhh...so you know of la Placita!! It doesn't get any better that that for a few drinks under the stars with great latin music and a festival-like atmosphere every weekend. For those who don't know, some people bring their own instruments and jam together for hours. Sometimes you actually find salsa artists jamming along. The vibe is good, the music is great and the drinks are mostly on the cheap side. Stay near "the market" in the center of all the action since the pubs with music more geared towards the younger crowd are located on the peripheral streets.

 

I don't know if they have luggage storage or not but the Marriott Stellaris in Condado have day passes where you can use the beach, loungers and pool facilities. That would be the closest to port. There's also a place in Isla Verde and/or Ocean Park that's a beach club type of place but I forgot the name. I do know it was on someone's review a few months back (one of Mitsugirly's maybe??).

 

It doesn't get any more grass-roots than Guavate. Excellent choice!! Guavate is littered with awesome places to eat. But not all of them are in the top part of the mountain. There's El Mojito which is almost a stone's throw away from the highway 52. Once you take the exit for road 184, turn left at the intersection and start up the mountain. The restaurant will be on your right in less than a quarter mile. Further up you will find the center of the "pork highway" where there are a bunch of restaurants almost side by side. Two of the oldest and most popular are El Rancho Original and Lechonera Los Pinos. If you go, get there before noon or else traffic will be a pain once you get near the lechoneras. As a hint, when ordering your pork, ask for meat from the ribs or "costillal". This is where the most tender and tastier meat is from. If you dare, ask for an ear. It is the most tasty, fried pork rind you will ever taste!!

 

THANK YOU!! When we travel, our goal is always to learn about the culture, people, food, and music of our destinations. We do the museums and touristy things to learn as much as possible, but then we also like to get off the beaten path and try to get a local's "perspective". One of our favorite memories from our honeymoon in Cancun & Cozumel was after dinner in downtown Cancun ( we never ate at the resort, we always went in town for food and many times were the only tourists in the place) we were walking and happened upon a talent show of some type. We sat down in the park with the rest of the locals and enjoyed the singing and dancing & I tried to understand as much as possible with my rusty Spanish - it was magical.

 

I'm glad you like our ideas for La Placita and Guavate. I was hoping they would be the local flavor we are wanting. I appreciate the tips on ordering, too!! Hopefully, we will come again and I can pick your brain for exploring the Western side of the island. Wish we had more time this trip, but as you experienced already, it's going to be a busy itinerary as is!

[pghsteelerfan]

Can't really tell if it's Marcelo or not. Was he Bilingual? Marcelo had the great ability to go back and forth between English and Spanish and sometimes a little bit of both a the same time. He was great!

 

Got an answer...not Marcelo on our Liberty cruise. He has a page on that "social network" site and the pictures he posted during the week of our cruise were from Miami at the CD meeting. So this was definitely someone else, but he was pretty entertaining though and we enjoyed him.

[cruisemom67]

I couldn't tell from the fun times, but is there a meet for the 18-21 crowd? There has been on previous trips. I have a 17 y.o. Who will do the club o2, but my 19 y.o. Would like to meet people her age.

[Stinger-pr]

I couldn't tell from the fun times, but is there a meet for the 18-21 crowd? There has been on previous trips. I have a 17 y.o. Who will do the club o2, but my 19 y.o. Would like to meet people her age.

 

 

Sorry, As far as I could tell Carnival Club gatherings for this ship stop with the 17yr. olds. I re-read the Fun Times and found nothing for the 18-21 crowd other than spending a while at the disco which is 18+.

[Stinger-pr]

THANK YOU!! When we travel, our goal is always to learn about the culture, people, food, and music of our destinations. We do the museums and touristy things to learn as much as possible, but then we also like to get off the beaten path and try to get a local's "perspective". One of our favorite memories from our honeymoon in Cancun & Cozumel was after dinner in downtown Cancun ( we never ate at the resort, we always went in town for food and many times were the only tourists in the place) we were walking and happened upon a talent show of some type. We sat down in the park with the rest of the locals and enjoyed the singing and dancing & I tried to understand as much as possible with my rusty Spanish - it was magical.

 

I'm glad you like our ideas for La Placita and Guavate. I was hoping they would be the local flavor we are wanting. I appreciate the tips on ordering, too!! Hopefully, we will come again and I can pick your brain for exploring the Western side of the island. Wish we had more time this trip, but as you experienced already, it's going to be a busy itinerary as is!

 

 

Be my guest! The western side of the island is amazing. I'm a "sunset" kind of guy and you can get awesome views from so many places. If you're ever looking into areas to stay you have a lot of guest houses and small (as in less than 40 rooms) hotels in the Rincon, Joyuda and, Boqueron. Most of the ones in Rincon are on or close to a beach. You also have the option of staying in more conventional hotels which are located in Aguadilla (Marriott Courtyard) and Mayaguez (Mayaguez Resort and the Holliday Inn).

[Thrilled2012]

Thank you for this wonderful review! It makes me even more excited for my Fascination trip in August. With regard to St Maarten and your question about the fort. It is located in Marigot (capital of St Martin/French Side). It is very small and not even remotely close to the scale of the San Juan forts. IMO, it is not worth going there especially to just see the fort. I lived in St Maarten for a few years and never once went to the fort although I drove by it all of the time. I now take the kids on a land vacation there every year so I finally went there with them a couple of years ago so that they could see it. It is quite small but educational (reading the plaques) and if you are in Marigot then it is worth a stop there (lots of steps to climb) but, again, I wouldn't make a special trip there just for that. I would make a special trip there to eat at the lolos though...but that is just me.

 

And, good for you! A wheel of gouda is one of the things that we always bring home from SXM. At least where I live, there is no chance of finding real Dutch gouda, even in the specialty markets. I have 2 families of Dutch friends that always request a wheel plus my own so I, too, travel home with heavy cheese.

 

And this is very random, but I wanted to let you know that I am amazed that English is not your first language. I would never know if you didn't say that you were older by the time that you read your first English language book! I took 7 years of Spanish in school but I can barely ask someone where the bathroom is in Spanish lol.

[cruisemom67]

The cheese sounds wonderful! Is that a problem getting through customs and back to the states?

 

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

[Thrilled2012]

The cheese sounds wonderful! Is that a problem getting through customs and back to the states?

 

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

 

 

Do it! You won't be disappointed. You'll have a snack for several weeks that reminds you of your vacation. And a tip...authentic Dutch Gouda makes for some yummy omelettes 😁.

 

I do this every year and have never encountered a problem. Here are the US Customs regulations which clearly states that cheeses are ok as long as they are not spreadable cheeses (nothing softer than Brie). http://www.reidsguides.com/t_mo/t_mo_customs.html

[easyboy]

I do this every year and have never encountered a problem. Here are the US Customs regulations which clearly states that cheeses are ok as long as they are not spreadable cheeses (nothing softer than Brie). http://www.reidsguides.com/t_mo/t_mo_customs.html

 

 

Thanks for this info. Love cheese and never knew of this specific policy.

[Stinger-pr]

Thank you for this wonderful review! It makes me even more excited for my Fascination trip in August. With regard to St Maarten and your question about the fort. It is located in Marigot (capital of St Martin/French Side). It is very small and not even remotely close to the scale of the San Juan forts. IMO, it is not worth going there especially to just see the fort. I lived in St Maarten for a few years and never once went to the fort although I drove by it all of the time. I now take the kids on a land vacation there every year so I finally went there with them a couple of years ago so that they could see it. It is quite small but educational (reading the plaques) and if you are in Marigot then it is worth a stop there (lots of steps to climb) but, again, I wouldn't make a special trip there just for that. I would make a special trip there to eat at the lolos though...but that is just me.

 

And, good for you! A wheel of gouda is one of the things that we always bring home from SXM. At least where I live, there is no chance of finding real Dutch gouda, even in the specialty markets. I have 2 families of Dutch friends that always request a wheel plus my own so I, too, travel home with heavy cheese.

 

And this is very random, but I wanted to let you know that I am amazed that English is not your first language. I would never know if you didn't say that you were older by the time that you read your first English language book! I took 7 years of Spanish in school but I can barely ask someone where the bathroom is in Spanish lol.

 

 

Thank you for taking your time to read my review. I am glad you liked it and that it got you pumped up for you own trip.

 

About the fort: Could it me that there's a similar fort on Marigot? I did not go into that area of St. Maarten and basicaly stayed within Phillipsburg so I'm quite sure it's not the one in Marigot. This is the one across the bay to the cruise piers.

 

I love cheese and got hooked on Gouda a long time ago since my dad absolutely loves it! I always bring some for him too every time I visit SXM. We can get our hands on real Dutch Gouda here in PR (although not the same brand) but it's very expensive, going for well over $13 a POUND!! And the thing is that those wheels keep for a long time. As long as you wrap it good to preserve it once you start to cut it. I personally use clear cling wrap and change it every time I cut some. Even if time passes and you get a bit of mold on the outside, just cut off that part and take a piece from further inside.

 

About my English, I was fortunate enough of attending a great bilingual school here in PR and my favorite music, as influenced by my dad, has always been in English (some 70's, lots of 80's and rock of all ages, especially hard rock). I also lived about a year and a half in south Texas and about 8 months in south California. Now I've worked in the hotel/gaming industry for 23 years so as you can see my exposure to the English language has always been considerable. I still speak with a good Latino accent (waayyy less than Sofia Vergara, though....lol) but it's part of my day to day. Spanish is sometimes very hard to learn since, for instance, we mostly use one word for a single purpouse. For example "piedra" is Spanish for "rock". But unlike the multiple uses for the word "rock", "piedra" has just that one meaning (other places also say "roca").

[Thrilled2012]

Thank you for taking your time to read my review. I am glad you liked it and that it got you pumped up for you own trip.

 

About the fort: Could it me that there's a similar fort on Marigot? I did not go into that area of St. Maarten and basicaly stayed within Phillipsburg so I'm quite sure it's not the one in Marigot. This is the one across the bay to the cruise piers.

 

I love cheese and got hooked on Gouda a long time ago since my dad absolutely loves it! I always bring some for him too every time I visit SXM. We can get our hands on real Dutch Gouda here in PR (although not the same brand) but it's very expensive, going for well over $13 a POUND!! And the thing is that those wheels keep for a long time. As long as you wrap it good to preserve it once you start to cut it. I personally use clear cling wrap and change it every time I cut some. Even if time passes and you get a bit of mold on the outside, just cut off that part and take a piece from further inside.

 

About my English, I was fortunate enough of attending a great bilingual school here in PR and my favorite music, as influenced by my dad, has always been in English (some 70's, lots of 80's and rock of all ages, especially hard rock). I also lived about a year and a half in south Texas and about 8 months in south California. Now I've worked in the hotel/gaming industry for 23 years so as you can see my exposure to the English language has always been considerable. I still speak with a good Latino accent (waayyy less than Sofia Vergara, though....lol) but it's part of my day to day. Spanish is sometimes very hard to learn since, for instance, we mostly use one word for a single purpouse. For example "piedra" is Spanish for "rock". But unlike the multiple uses for the word "rock", "piedra" has just that one meaning (other places also say "roca").

 

Duh! YES, you are right. There are TWO forts on the island. I had to google it to refresh my memory. I was thinking that there was just the one in Marigot and that your picture was not of a fort. But, your picture does appear to be of Fort Amsterdam near Phillipsburg. Sorry about that. I am no help at all about this fort because I have never been there.

 

I love Sofia's accent. She cracks me up. I think it is also easier to learn another language as a child. I wish there were bilingual schools in my area for my kids. Although, a friend of mine started studying Japanese in his 30s and then moved to Japan for a couple of years when he was 35 and now is fluent. So I suppose anything is possible.

 

Yikes...$13/lb?! Well, if I could find it around here I suppose that I could be convinced to pay that. Its worth it :)

[skeletonsally1986]

Hi there, just a belated "thank you" for the detailed review and all the photos! I'm cruising the Fascination in January 2018 and I'm currently devouring any photos/details I can get of this ship and the ports of call :-) I haven't cruised in seven years, and this is my first time on Carnival so I really appreciate the photos of the Fun Times and dining room menus! I was really concerned about the lack of dining options on this ship, but the food sounds amazing. Looking forward to my first trip to PR!

[HappyCruiser383]

Stinger, Did they do a Quest game on this ship?

[bellaa]

What a great review!

We are taking this cruise in October.

Hey stinger-pr, somewhere in the review you mention working for the Marriott, I believe. We are coming to PR a few days early and want to use our Marriott points for our stay. Can you recommend at which Marriott property we should stay? Which is closer to the port, or is just a nicer property to stay for a few days?

[sparks1093]

Stinger, Did they do a Quest game on this ship?

 

I'm not Stinger but was on this sailing and they did have Quest, but that has more to do with the CD than the ship I believe.