Reflection 1/14/17 Sailing – Live Blog, Photo Blog, Cat Blog?

[conquesodor]

I'm loving your review! Would love to run into more folks like you on a future cruise, as you two seem like you'd be a blast to hang out with. Cheers! :cool:

[mvaughan]

Wondering if they did any top chef at sea competitions. Was on an eastern Carribean last year and It was a blast. They had people on the ship competing against each other.

 

 

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[sfken1977]

Come back! Don't abandon us now! You're our only hope.

[David Kane]

Annnnd we're back! Apologies for the brief absence on this thread; I took a few days away to scan in every scrap of Daily I hoarded, like Gollum with the ring, from our Cruise. They can be found here if you haven't seen them already:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2448178

 

Day 5 - "Golfing" Around

 

This was Jamaica and, yet again, we decide to stay on the ship. I know this is probably an unpopular view to many, but I *enjoy* the ship and its amenities. It's not that I don't like snorkeling and haggling with merchants over chocolate diamonds and native leather goods with NFL team logos on them but the ship, man, the ship!

 

--We get up late. Well, XZ gets up at 7am to grab us coffee and proceeds to make the run to Café Al Bacio without putting on a rather important article of clothing (her *shoes*, she obviously forgot to wear her shoes. Obviously). When she returns we enjoy a bit of a wake-me-up and discover that the doorbell to the room sounds almost totally (exactly) like the chime they play before the morning Captain's announcement...wasn't THAT an exciting way to meet the butler!

 

--Breakfast is in the Oceanview Buffet - the variety there is just so hard to beat. Various fruits and melons, eggs, several types of sausages. Luminae for the experience, hands down, but the Oceanview for the variety.

 

--While we're enjoying a fine repast, Little Ms. Kitty decides to chime in with another Cat Complaint. Let's see what she has to say:

 

--Ok Kitty, let's debunk this in two ways: One - go to the Carnival line reviews; just pick a ship and check out, say, the ten reviews that immediately come up. It's ok, I'll wait. Back? Good. Notice a recurring theme? "The Ship smells like sewage." "Smoking everywhere." "The MDR food is just fetched by servers from the Buffet." Yeah, Celebrity IS a much better line. And, secondly, I'm under 50, XZ is under 40, and check THIS day out!

 

--After breakfast we decided to hit the Atrium on Deck 3 with our hand-made rating signs (amazing what paper and a magic marker we found in the iLounge can do) and...RATE US SOME CHAIRS!

 

1. This...plastic bench thing. I don't know man, I think this was some flotsam they hauled onboard one day and accidentally left in the foyer...what is it doing here? 1/2 Star.

 

2. Kinda comfy, a little too big for XZ. 2 Stars.

 

3. Good padding, nice décor. 3 1/2 Stars.

 

4. Ouch. The Embarkation Bar Stool. 1 Star.

 

5. And Finally, this couch. You could fall asleep on it. 4 1/2 Stars!!!

 

--After the morning chair challenge (ok, ok, calm your whiskers cat. Technically this wasn't a "ship activity" but this is our blog and we make our OWN activities!) we hit up Café al Bacio and then Michael's Club.

 

--Sufficiently, uh, lubricated? It's Ping Pong time! The wily and clever XZ manages to take two games all the way to match point and then...defeat me. Ouch. 2-0. That totally erases the smashing I gave her in Bocce yesterday. *Sigh*

 

--We double back to the Oceanview for a light lunch and, again, the variety here is astounding. It's not that I don't like Luminae, the food and experience are obviously far superior, but sometimes you just want Pizza topped with Chicken Tikka Masala. Also, Luminae isn't open on port Days for Lunch. I guess we could have done the Mast Grill - certainly there wasn't anything resembling a line there, but the Oceanview just has so many choices!

 

--2pm and XZ lays down for a nap while I go to the iLounge to desperately attempt to update my "Live" blog. Here is what I have discovered - if you've at all successfully logged on to an iMac, 14 other people will wander by asking you for technical help and/or advice. At this point I have to blog with my headphones on blaring punk music just so I can pretend to politely ignore the person next to me getting extremely frustrated whilst attempting to log on...and then end up helping them in the end.

 

--3pm - GOLF! The activities committee has decided to have a Golf Putting challenge in the main foyer, off to one side. I was hoping it would be a Chipping Challenge on the lawn and I could just "accidentally" hit ball after ball into the Ocean but, alas, they are on to me and have confined us to indoors, using a miniature golf putter, on carpet. There are good half dozen couples here and we set up and men's and women's bracket. Being a rather experienced putt-putt golfer I volunteer to go first and I immediately drill my first shot down the entire atrium and shank it directly into the women's restroom! Whoops! I have to take a stroke coming out of the loo and, coming back up, I make it into a coffee cup taped length-wise to the floor that constitutes the hole in 7. XZ pots a respectable 4 and then the older, Florida-based folks go up and down in 2 and 1(!) and thusly win the prize, a bronze plastic Celebrity "X" lanyard.

 

--By 3:30 we are back in Michaels and our two favorite Norwegian cruisers drop by for afternoon Tea during which photos of back home are exchanged (they actually live on a Fjord and know honest-to-goodness Viking re-enactors).

 

--5pm sees us snoozing on the heated loungers in the Persian Garden and scampering back and forth from the Ice Room before dressing for Dinner and the evening's activities.

 

Next up: We meet the officers, discover the glory that is the World Class Bar, and have the first of several late night Casino adventures!

[Flafun888]

So glad you're back - this review is awesome. You guys would be so much fun to hang out with.

 

Good for you...staying on the ship. We're doing the same itinerary as you pretty soon and honestly, even though I have plans in every port, part of me would love to cancel it all and hang out onboard the entire time.

 

But it's our first trip to 3 of the 4 ports - so I promised myself I'd be the good little traveler, see something of each area, and take the obligatory selfies that will prove I did something besides drink on a deck chair for 7 full days. But next time: I'm chilling onboard guilt-free. :cool:

[tbmrt]

Loving your review...We won't be on the Reflection until December, but I love gathering all info, etc beforehand.

[David Kane]

Good Afternoon. Thanks for all the nice comments - quick answer for those who asked: I did not see a Celebrity Chef At Sea contest listed but I believe the Eastern Caribbean activities are different than the Western, so you might find it on that sailing? We also didn't have a Wife carrying competition which I SO totally could have won because XZ loves nothing more than being picked up and shaken...and you'll see, below, what happens when I do that. Onwards!

 

--Dinner was *the* night, aka, the Lobster night, aka the "drag me away from the table" night. That night when I mumbled my order for dinner embarrassingly into my napkin *cough* "two lobsters" *cough* "oh, I'm sorry? who said that? me? Why I would never...but since you offered, bring them anyways..." Fantastic meal.

 

--From there we went to Michael's Club and then dashed all the way to the front of the ship for the Captain's Club Officers Reception in the Sky Lounge. As noted before, it's interesting...while everyone else is glad-handing the Captain, XZ and I have button-holed the Food and Beverage Manager and the Logistics Guy and are busy heaping praise on their hard-working staff whilst asking obscure questions "so...how high are the pallets that get loaded onboard?" And, yet again, we had a great chat with the Chief Engineer or, as Captain Alex calls him, the "Voice...from Below."

 

--Once the Reception wrapped up we dropped by the World Class Bar to see what all the fuss was about. So. Here's the thing about the World Class...it is THE best bar on the Ship, hands down. And part of what you are paying for is the experience, from the ordering to the crafting to the presentation. The bartenders may appear a bit "posh" (as my friends from Norway would say) but it's all part of the show. Once you frequent it enough they warm up to you and it's all smiles and good graces and only then can you appreciate exactly their craft which is astonishing in both technique and value.

 

--After a few...too many? (never enough!) drinks at the World Class bar we caught up with Duo Allure in the Ensemble Lounge and then...attacked the photographers. So let's see how this went, shall we?

 

1. The picture you send to your parents:

 

2. Pillows you say? I wonder what one does with pillows...hrmmm...

 

3. Pillow Fight!

 

4. annnnd this is what comes of picking up one's wife against her wishes:

 

--After this we began the usual cycle of evening debauchery ranging from the Casino to Michael's Club and back again with our Norwegian friends in tow. Eventually XZ called it off at 12:30 whilst Eirik and I continued into the small hours. What passes between gentleman cannot be repeated but I will share one amazingly interesting anecdote - while I was away from the tables freshening up a dealer switch somewhat annoyed my companion. After we got another drink or two we returned to the Casino and, in the unfailingly polite way that only Europeans and Canadians can muster, he convinced them to re-open a table with his favorite dealer so we could get in a few more hands. We weren't playing for high stakes, it was more a 'chips and bitch' night and still the Casino host obliged his request. What incredible customer service!

 

--At the outset of that I, sadly, had to call it an evening, or rather morning, at 3am as all the drinks had been drunk, the bars had been closed, and XZ gets up at 6am (yikes!)

 

--Tomorrow: Labadee and the best Snorkeing Tour ever, XZ explores the cultural heritage of Haiti, we get to see our first Cast Show, meet Jeroen, and a series late night moves brings fortune, if not fame, to one of our early morning revelers!

[lilghallinsf]

Good Afternoon. Thanks for all the nice comments - quick answer for those who asked: I did not see a Celebrity Chef At Sea contest listed but I believe the Eastern Caribbean activities are different than the Western, so you might find it on that sailing? We also didn't have a Wife carrying competition which I SO totally could have won because XZ loves nothing more than being picked up and shaken...and you'll see, below, what happens when I do that. Onwards!

 

--Dinner was *the* night, aka, the Lobster night, aka the "drag me away from the table" night. That night when I mumbled my order for dinner embarrassingly into my napkin *cough* "two lobsters" *cough* "oh, I'm sorry? who said that? me? Why I would never...but since you offered, bring them anyways..." Fantastic meal.

 

--From there we went to Michael's Club and then dashed all the way to the front of the ship for the Captain's Club Officers Reception in the Sky Lounge. As noted before, it's interesting...while everyone else is glad-handing the Captain, XZ and I have button-holed the Food and Beverage Manager and the Logistics Guy and are busy heaping praise on their hard-working staff whilst asking obscure questions "so...how high are the pallets that get loaded onboard?" And, yet again, we had a great chat with the Chief Engineer or, as Captain Alex calls him, the "Voice...from Below."

 

--Once the Reception wrapped up we dropped by the World Class Bar to see what all the fuss was about. So. Here's the thing about the World Class...it is THE best bar on the Ship, hands down. And part of what you are paying for is the experience, from the ordering to the crafting to the presentation. The bartenders may appear a bit "posh" (as my friends from Norway would say) but it's all part of the show. Once you frequent it enough they warm up to you and it's all smiles and good graces and only then can you appreciate exactly their craft which is astonishing in both technique and value.

 

--After a few...too many? (never enough!) drinks at the World Class bar we caught up with Duo Allure in the Ensemble Lounge and then...attacked the photographers. So let's see how this went, shall we?

 

1. The picture you send to your parents:

 

2. Pillows you say? I wonder what one does with pillows...hrmmm...

 

3. Pillow Fight!

 

4. annnnd this is what comes of picking up one's wife against her wishes:

 

--After this we began the usual cycle of evening debauchery ranging from the Casino to Michael's Club and back again with our Norwegian friends in tow. Eventually XZ called it off at 12:30 whilst Eirik and I continued into the small hours. What passes between gentleman cannot be repeated but I will share one amazingly interesting anecdote - while I was away from the tables freshening up a dealer switch somewhat annoyed my companion. After we got another drink or two we returned to the Casino and, in the unfailingly polite way that only Europeans and Canadians can muster, he convinced them to re-open a table with his favorite dealer so we could get in a few more hands. We weren't playing for high stakes, it was more a 'chips and bitch' night and still the Casino host obliged his request. What incredible customer service!

 

--At the outset of that I, sadly, had to call it an evening, or rather morning, at 3am as all the drinks had been drunk, the bars had been closed, and XZ gets up at 6am (yikes!)

 

--Tomorrow: Labadee and the best Snorkeing Tour ever, XZ explores the cultural heritage of Haiti, we get to see our first Cast Show, meet Jeroen, and a series late night moves brings fortune, if not fame, to one of our early morning revelers!

 

these photos are awesome.

[Lois R]

David, you and your bride look awesome:)......looks like both of you are having a blast in all the photos. Thanks for sharing the experience with us.

[conquesodor]

You guys have raised the bar - WAY HIGH - for amazing cruise portraits!! :cool:

 

I guess these were taken by the ships photographers? I hope they are enjoying having you to shoot, since it sure beats the usual stuff they must do 1000 times a cruise!

 

 

4. annnnd this is what comes of picking up one's wife against her wishes:

 

[SharC]

You missed the best chairs on the cruise. I am still trying to smuggle the red leather wingback chairs in Cellar Masters off the ship.

[David Kane]

Good Evening.

 

Thanks for all the kind words. To respond as best I can:

 

--Yes, we LOVE the photo package and the photographers - trying to make them laugh is one of our "mini games." It's interesting - over the course of 3 cruises we've found them to be some of the most congenial people we've encountered. On the Summit in January we would get off the ship at a port simply to have our picture taken with the hastily-costumed pirate and/or sailor and then immediately get back onboard.

-It SO weird, aside from the initial CC Roll Call I *never* went back in to Cellar Masters and I have no idea why...I just kept missing it. Our chair rating endeavors got curtailed simply because there were so. many. chairs. We made it through Deck 3 and then despaired at the sheet variety on Deck 5 - in El Bacio alone. We'll reconvene on the Summit in August - hopefully the smaller ship will have less varieties?

 

Day 6 - Storming the Beaches

 

--My late night prowls have finally caught up with me, and I managed to make it out of bed for 9am. XZ has already returned with coffee from al Bacio and we enjoy a light breakfast at the Oceanview whilst the ship docks at Labadee.

 

--We had hit up the Destination Concierge the night before as we wanted to do some Snorkling. The basic trip was $60. However...for $64 you got the "High Speed Thrill Boat and Snorkling" package. We immediately signed up and then paused to consider our choice. A $4 upcharge? Like...what kind of boat is that? If it, were, say, a $100 upcharge - ok, you're obviously getting something way better. But $4? That's like...2 horsepower, right? Oh. Oh how wrong we were...but I digress.

 

--We disembark and...Her Furry Highness interrupts with yet another Cat Complain. Let's see what todays "alternative fact" is:

 

Ok, so this is total BS. I am uncertain what cruise line reviews she gets these things from...it was supposed to be Celebrity...but this is absolutely false. Our room was fastidiously up-kept and apparently cleaned by ninjas because we'd be gone for 23 minutes and when we got back everything would be straightened and buffed. No one on the ship looked miserable. The guy cleaning the men's room at 1am gave me a hearty welcome. The lady polishing the railings at 3am was all smiles. At every turn the staff was unfailingly welcoming...so go blow it out your furry, overly large eared cat.

 

--Back to disembarkation. Labadee is an interesting place. On our first visit, back in 2014, I was a touch concerned that it was, how best to say it, exploitative. Upon further research, the exact opposite is the case. The resort is the best place for employment on this end of the island (over the road-less mountain range) and while it doesn't allow for an "authentic" experience, actual Haiti can be a very challenging place for the average tourist. So, armed with that knowledge, we went down to the boat pier to meet our "High Speed" snorkel trip.

 

--There were three other excursions departing at the same time; the regular snorkel tour (on a cool catamaran-type boat) had about 30 people, the Parasailing (speed boat) about 10 people and the Haitian culture tour (on a tire-sided dinghy) had about 20 people. Shortly, we were left all alone.

 

--And then, the awesome starts to happen. First up, we meet Gary, the "local guide." Gary is from Labadee, grew up just in site of the resort, and will be our snorkeling tour guide. He chats with us for a few minutes and in that time we essentially get the abbreviated version of the Haitian cultural tour...Gary is awesome.

--Next up, the desk informs us we're 2 of 3 people to have signed up for the excursion and the other dude is MIA. So. PRIVATE TOUR. NICE!

--Finally, the boat arrives. Yeah. It's like...a Marine Landing Craft from the invasion of Grenada or something. It doesn't even have seats! Just mini-benches you sit on and grip with your legs and, as the operator Jojo reminds us, "Hang on to the bar or, when we go over a wave, your face hits it and you break your teeth." Never has a bar been gripped tighter before! Here is our snorkel tour/assault craft:

 

--And off we go. This boat just moves. It also banks. At one point they pulled it into a turn and, I swear to you, I was looking *down* at XZ at about a 80 degree angle. Unreal. We get to see a sandbar, and then a shipwreck, and then get into the water with Gary for the snorkeling part.

 

--Gary is awesome. The first thing he does is free-drive down and come back up with an Octopus! After that he leads us about (so effortless for him, I'm dying over here!) and shows us submerged cannon, a 50' long anchor, and then guides us through trenches upon trenches of corral reefs.

 

--Back on the boat, our attack craft roars away and takes us in and out of the coves of the island (with an amusingly truncated history of how *awesome* the child marrying, disease spreading, slave taking, murdering, world-navigating failure of a man Christopher Columbus was), culminating in driving us *under* the front deck of the Reflection, getting as close to the prow (?) of the ship as possible. From there we return to the shore and, as we disembark, we make certain to tip Gary - when you get a private tour you just have to pay a bit above and beyond.

 

--From there, we go to the Suite-only Beach, grab some loungers, and then hit the BBQ. The Labadee food service in this area is incredible because it's all the ship's servers from Luminae and the like that we know so well. In fact, I'd go so far as to rate this the best lunch I've had (aside from Sushi on 5).

 

--We go snorkeling in the swimming area where, of course, XZ immediately dives down and finds a dropped costume jewelry necklace and then spins that into a story of 'pirate treasure' to the delight of the grand daughter of some folks we had met the other day in Michael's club because this is what she does given 4 minutes of free time. NOTE: The snorkeling is *much* better on the leeward side of the island and not the secluded cove-side, FYI.

 

--About 2pm we conclude our day and re-embark, fully intending to relax in the Persian Garden and prepare for dinner. Little did we know what the night would have in store.

 

Next up: A sail away for the ages, our first big cast show, and a turn of tremendous fortune.

[DaisyFire]

Oh my goodness... I am so sad :(

 

I just ran out of entries to read after spending the last 2 hours (that I was supposed to be using to finish a paper for my technical writing class) reading post from #1 to #112. Thoroughly enjoyed every minute and am looking forward to finishing your cruise with you. We are sailing on the Silhouette in November - which I understand is much like the Reflection - so am definitely much more excited than I had been previously.

 

Thank you so much for sharing!

[abbydancer2003]

Now it's my turn to chime in and thank you for this. We'll be on the Reflection in September, in a Sky Suite. It's our first Celebrity cruise - DH wanted to branch out.

[lilghallinsf]

Good Evening.

 

Thanks for all the kind words. To respond as best I can:

 

--Yes, we LOVE the photo package and the photographers - trying to make them laugh is one of our "mini games." It's interesting - over the course of 3 cruises we've found them to be some of the most congenial people we've encountered. On the Summit in January we would get off the ship at a port simply to have our picture taken with the hastily-costumed pirate and/or sailor and then immediately get back onboard.

-It SO weird, aside from the initial CC Roll Call I *never* went back in to Cellar Masters and I have no idea why...I just kept missing it. Our chair rating endeavors got curtailed simply because there were so. many. chairs. We made it through Deck 3 and then despaired at the sheet variety on Deck 5 - in El Bacio alone. We'll reconvene on the Summit in August - hopefully the smaller ship will have less varieties?

 

Day 6 - Storming the Beaches

 

--My late night prowls have finally caught up with me, and I managed to make it out of bed for 9am. XZ has already returned with coffee from al Bacio and we enjoy a light breakfast at the Oceanview whilst the ship docks at Labadee.

 

--We had hit up the Destination Concierge the night before as we wanted to do some Snorkling. The basic trip was $60. However...for $64 you got the "High Speed Thrill Boat and Snorkling" package. We immediately signed up and then paused to consider our choice. A $4 upcharge? Like...what kind of boat is that? If it, were, say, a $100 upcharge - ok, you're obviously getting something way better. But $4? That's like...2 horsepower, right? Oh. Oh how wrong we were...but I digress.

 

--We disembark and...Her Furry Highness interrupts with yet another Cat Complain. Let's see what todays "alternative fact" is:

 

Ok, so this is total BS. I am uncertain what cruise line reviews she gets these things from...it was supposed to be Celebrity...but this is absolutely false. Our room was fastidiously up-kept and apparently cleaned by ninjas because we'd be gone for 23 minutes and when we got back everything would be straightened and buffed. No one on the ship looked miserable. The guy cleaning the men's room at 1am gave me a hearty welcome. The lady polishing the railings at 3am was all smiles. At every turn the staff was unfailingly welcoming...so go blow it out your furry, overly large eared cat.

 

--Back to disembarkation. Labadee is an interesting place. On our first visit, back in 2014, I was a touch concerned that it was, how best to say it, exploitative. Upon further research, the exact opposite is the case. The resort is the best place for employment on this end of the island (over the road-less mountain range) and while it doesn't allow for an "authentic" experience, actual Haiti can be a very challenging place for the average tourist. So, armed with that knowledge, we went down to the boat pier to meet our "High Speed" snorkel trip.

 

--There were three other excursions departing at the same time; the regular snorkel tour (on a cool catamaran-type boat) had about 30 people, the Parasailing (speed boat) about 10 people and the Haitian culture tour (on a tire-sided dinghy) had about 20 people. Shortly, we were left all alone.

 

--And then, the awesome starts to happen. First up, we meet Gary, the "local guide." Gary is from Labadee, grew up just in site of the resort, and will be our snorkeling tour guide. He chats with us for a few minutes and in that time we essentially get the abbreviated version of the Haitian cultural tour...Gary is awesome.

--Next up, the desk informs us we're 2 of 3 people to have signed up for the excursion and the other dude is MIA. So. PRIVATE TOUR. NICE!

--Finally, the boat arrives. Yeah. It's like...a Marine Landing Craft from the invasion of Grenada or something. It doesn't even have seats! Just mini-benches you sit on and grip with your legs and, as the operator Jojo reminds us, "Hang on to the bar or, when we go over a wave, your face hits it and you break your teeth." Never has a bar been gripped tighter before! Here is our snorkel tour/assault craft:

 

--And off we go. This boat just moves. It also banks. At one point they pulled it into a turn and, I swear to you, I was looking *down* at XZ at about a 80 degree angle. Unreal. We get to see a sandbar, and then a shipwreck, and then get into the water with Gary for the snorkeling part.

 

--Gary is awesome. The first thing he does is free-drive down and come back up with an Octopus! After that he leads us about (so effortless for him, I'm dying over here!) and shows us submerged cannon, a 50' long anchor, and then guides us through trenches upon trenches of corral reefs.

 

--Back on the boat, our attack craft roars away and takes us in and out of the coves of the island (with an amusingly truncated history of how *awesome* the child marrying, disease spreading, slave taking, murdering, world-navigating failure of a man Christopher Columbus was), culminating in driving us *under* the front deck of the Reflection, getting as close to the prow (?) of the ship as possible. From there we return to the shore and, as we disembark, we make certain to tip Gary - when you get a private tour you just have to pay a bit above and beyond.

 

--From there, we go to the Suite-only Beach, grab some loungers, and then hit the BBQ. The Labadee food service in this area is incredible because it's all the ship's servers from Luminae and the like that we know so well. In fact, I'd go so far as to rate this the best lunch I've had (aside from Sushi on 5).

 

--We go snorkeling in the swimming area where, of course, XZ immediately dives down and finds a dropped costume jewelry necklace and then spins that into a story of 'pirate treasure' to the delight of the grand daughter of some folks we had met the other day in Michael's club because this is what she does given 4 minutes of free time. NOTE: The snorkeling is *much* better on the leeward side of the island and not the secluded cove-side, FYI.

 

--About 2pm we conclude our day and re-embark, fully intending to relax in the Persian Garden and prepare for dinner. Little did we know what the night would have in store.

 

Next up: A sail away for the ages, our first big cast show, and a turn of tremendous fortune.

 

That you used "alternative fact" gives me hope in mankind!!!!

[tinaincc]

Thank you so much for this thread - make me so excited for our first ever Reflection cruise.

[Drysil]

Hm, thanks for the information about Labadee. I too have been concerned about the....uh....effects of the walled-off compound that is Celebrity's private 'island', and was wondering if we should disembark at all that day. Nice to hear that I should dive a bit deeper into it than I have (pun intended!).

 

Lovely review, keep it up!

Edited January 31, 2017 by Drysil

[wallie5446]

Hm, thanks for the information about Labadee. I too have been concerned about the....uh....effects of the walled-off compound that is Celebrity's private 'island', and was wondering if we should disembark at all that day. Nice to hear that I should dive a bit deeper into it than I have (pun intended!).

 

Lovely review, keep it up!

 

Labadee is a RCCL/Celebrity private enclosed members only country club.:D

[Drysil]

Labadee is a RCCL/Celebrity private enclosed members only country club.:D

 

Hence the source of my concern -- I'd rather interact with the culture than have it potentially exploited for private gain. As David mentions, however, it's a challenging area; I'm merely happy to see that it might be a net positive for the local community, even if it's rather unfair to wall them out and pretend everything is hunky-dory.

[wallie5446]

Hence the source of my concern -- I'd rather interact with the culture than have it potentially exploited for private gain. As David mentions, however, it's a challenging area; I'm merely happy to see that it might be a net positive for the local community, even if it's rather unfair to wall them out and pretend everything is hunky-dory.

 

Im exploited for private gain every day I clock in at work.

[David Kane]

As always, thanks for all the kind comments! Since it has been a topic, I'll also mention that, out of all the ports, I would suggest bringing about $20 to $40 in small bills to Labadee (you can get change at Guest Services). There are bands that play you both into and out of the port, as well as a dance troupe that performs during embarkation for about 4 solid hours. The servers/chair stewards who work on the resort (as opposed to the Ship Staff) also work for tips, and a few dollars can go a very long way in increasing your enjoyment of the day. There is a (slightly aggressive) artisan's marketplace as well, and cash goes far farther there than credit.

 

--Back on the Ship, we hit the Persian Garden and then were prepared to do the usual circuit of Michael's Club/Casino (the casino has extended hours in Labadee) until a very special invite arrived in our stateroom. Yes, for the first time ever, we got invited to a Sail-Away on the Helipad! This was the last item on our invite bucket list we had never achieved and were psyched to go! Also, the Butler & Michael's Club concierges conspired to have flowers delivered to XZ!

 

Flowers!

 

--About 60 guests in total were invited, along with a number of the officers and some of our favorite cast members! We go to spend some time hanging out with both the Chief Engineer from the Captain's Table the night before and Clint, the congenial Head of Food and Beverage. We really relish these opportunities, not for the "status" call out, but because it allows us to talk up the hard-working staff to the officers.

 

Bow Shot:

 

Bridge Shot:

 

--Sail Away concluded (note: there are several steps up to the Helipad, but unless you truly cannot walk anyone can make the journey - the rather sturdy security officers were on hand to assist anyone who needed to transfer from a mobility enhancing device to walking) we returned to dress for dinner, which, as usual, takes about an hour.

 

--From there, we went to Luminae for dinner, which takes about 2 hours. It's interesting, we kept having recurring discussions about "where did all the time go?" and then we discover, upon reflection (lol) dinner prep and eating is roughly 4:30pm until 8pm for us! Yikes!

 

--After dinner was one of the things we had been looking forward to since we booked the Cruise in September...the Cast Show Elysium! As mentioned earlier, we have been following one of the Cast (Jeroen Walraven) and his occasional Guest Vloggers (Isaac Matthews and Alex Codd) on their endeavors as they prepare for an execute the newest Cast show. With bated breath we grabbed a to-go drink at the World Class Bar and took our Seats and...Yeah.

 

--Ok. So. Elysium. The costumes. Amazing. The singing. Incredible. The choreography. Spectacular and Challenging. If you are a fan of dance, any kind of dance, you'll love the routines. The Special Effects (SNOW!) looked great. What in the grand googly-mooglies was actually going on?!? It's a Seasonal Fairy Tale about a Young Princess claiming the throne and transitioning through all the seasons. I never criticize but, let me tell you, this production could have used about 4 more minutes of exposition. Who is going Where, Why and What are they encountering. Often times I entirely lost track of what was going on. This isn't a fault of the Cast or the Crew - somewhere the Writing went sideways. Just to let you know, this is literally one of my hobbies! Want to see? This is me @ Fairy 'Con in Baltimore a few years ago, not to be self-indulgent, but I could 'fix' this show with 6 minutes of voice-over work:

 

--However, to Re-cap, I enjoyed Elysium because, directly afterwards...we got to meet the CAST!!

 

Next Up: iSnap, Photographers, and a twist of fortune!

[David Kane]

--Interesting Discovery - directly after the show, the actors hang out on Deck...4? I think? the lower deck, to receive the patrons. This is a great time to interact with the performers and give them their kudos for such a well executed production. This happens to also be where the iSnap photo-stand is located, so we got to get a picture with Jeroen in his full Elysium outfit!

 

 

--From here, it was Photographer time. For this evening I ended up wearing one of my Assassin's Creed (it's a video game) inspired Cosplay outfits. It was interesting to see which of the crew (generally the Indian and Eastern European staff) got the reference and which didn't. Along the way, we ran into a rather famous professional football player who was on the Cruise as part of an embroidery and sewing charter (!) - as to not violate anyone's privacy I won't mention names, but he is literally *the* sports hero in Rhode island...what an odd coincidence!

 

Bow Down!

 

Pointing:

 

A few friends of the late hours:

 

--We did a few more cycles between the World Class Bar and the Casino and then XZ called it a night. Luckily, my Norwegian/Viking friends has re-appeared! Normally we hang around the Sky Lounge until service stops. However, tonight, Eirik decided he wanted to try his hand at 3 Card Poker (after getting his Fourth Room Card accidentally deactivated) and with that proclamation, I will betray a small early morning story:

 

--It's about 1:20am and there are exactly 3 tables left open (Blackjack, Roulette, 3 Card Poker). We sit down for $10 hands ($20 total bet, $30 if you get good cards) to wile away the last hour of the night. We make fast friends with Trudy, a rather nice lady who has been running the ponies for quite some time (that's my Casino slang for gambling - I never ask how anyone is doing, I ask "how are the ponies running" - call it superstition) and we throw around some cards. I grab drinks from the Casino bar knowing that Tayfun is serving at this time of night, and we set out to play the last 4 hands of the evening. And on that 1st hand Eirik shows an Ace, King, Queen of Clubs. Such hands are never dealt and pay, what, 50-1? on the topline bet. An incredible turn of fortune. And then the Casino closes, guaranteeing the ponies have run well for one of my late night confidants without managing to take anything back. We take a celebratory drink in the Sky Lounge and talk the small hours away in fine fortune and friendship.

 

Tomorrow: Our last full day and our last sea day. XZ and I try to squeeze every moment of enjoyment we can from our vacation, we see what was surprisingly my favorite show of the trip, tour a theatre, have some Sushi, and someone cross-dresses (!).

[NCHPcruiser]

I'm loving your review and your writing. It's too bad you're almost to the end! We will be aboard the Reflection later this month and can't wait for drinks in the World Class Bar. We, too, thinks it's fantastic! My husband and another friend did a Cocktail Class there and the bartenders are so knowledgable, professional and personable.

[conquesodor]

The dress that XZ is wearing here is amazing. She looks like an art deco masterpiece!

 

Do you guys ever go to Steampunk World's Fair?

 

 

 

 

Pointing:

 

[easyboy]

Enjoying your review. Love your photos!