Escape From Miami - Kinda, Sorta "Live From" - October 7-14, 2017

[zigpar]

Did you pack properly?

 

And BTW 60 is the new 45!

 

 

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[Suna]

Fantastic report so far ... love it

 

 

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[mbruck]

Following! Great review so far! I hear Howl at the Moon gets raunchy after 11- be sure to request "Lucille" if you're there!

 

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[AlexandNessa]

Poohby Joe is definitely tagging along. He’s a little upset he won’t have a cabana this time around but is excited about the prospect of a “Glow Party”

 

 

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Sorry that he will only have a cabana for one day only. Poohby Joe be slumming it!

 

 

And thank you to all who said 45 is clearly mid 40s. Cleary. Definitely not late 40s.*

 

And, please, we all know our pony this time is named Steve. Honestly. You can request the pony you'd like from shoreside concierge in advance. I have so much to teach you this trip. So, so much. I'm going to Yoda all over you.

 

 

We're currently stirring. I'm going to get my fat bum out of bed to see the Escape. Here's is pic of her from our hotel room.

 

 

 

 

 

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[keeponcruising]

I was going to wish you good, good, good, good vibrations, but you're not going there;p I am looking forward to your review. Enjoy the Escape.

[ger_77]

The Institute's Department of Corrections, which is in no way affiliated with the prison system, would like to apologize for the incorrect syntax of Gerry's home town. It should have read, "Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada." The province was inadvertently omitted. The offending employee has been sentenced to mandatory Canada appreciation training. He will be force fed Saskatoon berry pie until he can properly pronounce "about." We regret any inconvenience this may have caused to our friends north of the 49th Parallel.

You're forgiven, but you won't be getting any Saskatoon berry pie this weekend - we're saving it for our Thanksgiving dinner and I'm pretty sure there won't be any leftovers! Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

Gerry

[declansdad]

Rumor has it that O'Sheehans has it. I'll definitely keep an eye out for it. For those of you unfamiliar with it, poutine is Quebec's contribution to the science of the hangover prevention. It's French fries topped with cheese curds and brown gravy. As my wife would say, Yum!

 

For future reference, many other Provinces have done great things with poutine or as some of the English areas call it, fries with gravy and cheese. ;)

 

Have a great trip.

[Sea42]

This is a great way to start my morning! Thank you and safe travels!

[josumello]

Just finished the Harmony live thread with the 4 headed monster. Now this. God is good!! Thanks. Great read.

 

 

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[POA1]

Through security and waiting to board. DFIL had to go to the penalty box because he brought an iron. He hasn't cruised since December, so he might be a little rusty. ;)

 

Who needs a drink?

 

This guy!

[POA1]

We live in a high rise at the southernmost end of Fort Lauderdale beach, right at the intersection of the Atlantic Ocean and the exit channel for Port Everglades. (The Stranahan River for you geography buffs.) We get to see Royal Caribbean's Enormousness and Giganticness of the Seas sail out every Saturday and Sunday. (Okay, it's really the Harmony and the Allure, but I like my names better.) As such, I wasn't expecting to be impressed by the size of the Escape, but I will say that the hull, bedazzled in a giant Guy Harvey print, does impress.

 

 

 

 

The terminals don't quite do the ship justice, but I imagine once the new terminal B, replacing the current B & C is complete, it will be impressive - as will Royal's new terminal A, being built for its Oasis class ships. My chest swells with civic pride as I think of Port Everglades' Terminal 18, the world's largest. (Home to the Harmony and the Allure at the moment.)

[POA1]

We're waiting to be called.

 

[POA1]

On board, waiting for the rest of our party.

 

[anonmom]

What time did the arrive at the terminal and how long was the wait?

 

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[POA1]

What time did the arrive at the terminal and how long was the wait?

 

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Around 10. Onboard by 11:45 AM. We were in boarding group 4. We would have been earlier but my father-in-law, an international iron smuggler, go sent to the naughty counter.

[POA1]

Our plan is to have lunch at Margaritaville so we can avoid the crowds at the Garden Café. We don’t mind looking at crowds, we just don’t want to be in one at lunch, right after boarding the ship. There was plenty of crowd-experiencing opportunity already this morning.*

 

 

There have been posts on CruiseCritic that have said that Haven Guests get Margaritaville dining for free on the Escape on the first day. There have also been posts that say that it’s free for Haven guests before 3:00 PM. And there have been posts that say that it’s absolutely not free for anyone.

 

 

That’s what we love about CruiseCritic: Definitive Answers!

 

 

No matter what the outcome, we’ll report it here. We have two Havens and three Haven-nots. (Feel free to use that. We have a staff of writers cranking out this quality material, so there's plenty to go around.)

 

 

To those people who are going to suggest that we go to the MDR because it's less crowded: Yes. We know. Nevertheless, we've done our fair bit of standing in line this morning and felt that something that was "more bar" and "less restaurant" was called for.

 

*Also, it gives us a chance to give more money to Norwegian. I'm sure that they'll appreciate that.

[POA1]

Day 1 - Miami

 

 

The Drink of the Day is the Daydreamer's Daiquiri: Crusoe Organic Silver Rum, Lime Juice, and Simple Syrup.

 

 

The classic daiquiri is the flat, mint-free mojito of the cocktail world. (Seriously. Have them add a splash of soda to your*daiquiri and crumble in a mint leaf, or drink it while you're chewing some Wrigley's Doublemint gum. It's pretty much a mojito taste.)

 

 

Crusoe Organic Rum. Makes you think of Robinson Crusoe on some remote tropical island, doesn't it? *Well... It's from the tropical paradise of Los Angeles, California. *But I guess it's made from pesticide free molasses. I may volunteer for this one.* I'm not wild about sweet drinks and I can go light on the simple syrup. I'm hedging my bets and hoping somebody else gets saddled with the sugary dessert drinks later*in the*week. (I'm assuming that there will be sugary drinks later this week because we're headed to the Caribbean. *I could be wrong and it might be Old Fashioneds, Manhattans, Martinis, and Gimlets. I kinda doubt it though.)

 

 

[sailandcruise]

We have about a 45 minute drive from where we live to the port of Miami. If we're sailing out of Port Everglades, it's only a 10 minute cab ride. So, while 45 minutes seems short to most people, it's 450% longer than our usual cruise commute. (I'm sure that sounds whiny, because it is.)

 

 

POA, only because you're such a stickler for detail -- and everyone here relies on you for accurate information :), I am pointing out that 45 minutes is only 350% longer than 10 minutes. ;) I hope this fact made your commute feel 100% shorter so you could begin enjoying the ship earlier :D

[POA1]

POA, only because you're such a stickler for detail -- and everyone here relies on you for accurate information :), I am pointing out that 45 minutes is only 350% longer than 10 minutes. ;) I hope this fact made your commute feel 100% shorter so you could begin enjoying the ship earlier :D

I calculated it as 4.5x our normal drive. If I'm wrong about the percentage, then this whole thing is RUINED. And I had such high hopes... :(

[POA1]

We have our first reader question!**It comes from reader Alison Wunderland of Intercourse, Pennsylvania. Alison writes:**"You mentioned going to Margaritaville for lunch on embarkation day. Was it crowded?"

 

 

Excellent question, Alison!

 

 

No, it wasn't really that crowded, but it was full. While Margaritaville is complementary for Haven guests at lunch on the first day, everyone else has to pay.*

[whogo]

Aside from our arrival at the port and boarding the Escape, our big concern is how are we going to keep track of the Nebraska vs. Wisconsin game tonight.

Huskerchick's corn hat is in danger of revocation. A true Nebraska fan would never consider a cruise during football season. She can listen to the game on KXSP-AM, Omaha, 590. Reception may be spotty. Might also try KCSR-AM, 610 from Chadron.

[sid_9169]

Great review, so far!... Another question, if I may. There have been rumors that, with the UBP increase to $89/day, that the new "included" drink maximum has been raised to $18... Inquiring minds want to know? Thanks, and have a great cruise.

[ScottElkaBowl]

Aside from our arrival at the port and boarding the Escape, our big concern is how are we going to keep track of the Nebraska vs. Wisconsin game tonight. (And by "our concern," I mean Huskerchick's. Her screen name comes from the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers.

 

GBR!!! Now I'm a huge Nebraska but I think you chose wisely to miss this game. Sad to say but I'll be happy if we don't lose by more than 20... Kinda sad cause they are celebrating our last National Championship team too from way back in 97, way too long to have been our last. [emoji26] You'll find a surprisingly amount of Husker stuff at the Western Caribbean ports and if you make the same mistake I did by wearing my Nebraska hat they will holla at you (Hey Husker, Hey Nebraska, etc...) to get you to come buy something, my hat was official Adidas one and they knew it and were trying to get me to trade my hat for something they were selling... LOL

[dpws]

Can you please elaborate on the iron smuggling saga, as my DW always packs one is it allowed /not allowed in hand luggage or porters luggage, many thanks enjoying your review

[albingirl]

I love it when you do your funny reviews. Thanks for the fun!