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LIVE!!!: Eclipse — 9/1 to 9/8 — Alaska


What A Market
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Sorry to hear the issues in Luminae...that’s certainly not the norm.

 

Having one “wine person” serving all of Luminae is certainly a stretch and should not be like that. It is not fair to the diners and it is not fair to the personnel serving in the restaurant. The environment being created is one of “get them served and move on.” Now in fairness, we have had some wonderful wine servers in the past and I don’t want to paint everyone with the same brush, but it is possible for good service eventhough they may be stretched.

 

We board Eclipse on Sep 22/19. Do you recall the name of the wine server? 

 

Randy

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tcmagnum:  Thank you for the comment.  Here’s where that Joy springs from:

 

As I noted earlier, this trip was booked as a celebration for a life event for the family, but really it’s all about DD, Shannon.  I’ve posted some other “Live” threads from previous cruises.  Mostly on Oceania.  On these other cruises, I had the joy and fulfillment of having Shannon with us to “celebrate” other “milestones” in her young life. (I suspect with many of you, as it is with me, traveling with your adult children is one of life’s greatest pleasures.)

 

Just over ten years ago at the age of 20, Shannon was diagnosed with Stage 3C melanoma cancer.  She had been attending university at George Washington Univ. and had just returned from a six month program in Oman, Jordan studying Arabic and Farsi.  (Like many 9/11 kids of her generation, she had a strong calling to service. She has some crazy linguistics skills, which she knew she could use with various federal agencies.)

 

Needless to say, that diagnosis changed her life path.  Ours too.  She returned home to live with us while she pursued treatments.  Her life over the next twelve months was wrapped up in surgeries, immunotherapy, and radiation. Being 20 and strong definitely had its advantages over that period.

 

Roll clock forward a couple of years and Shannon is diagnosed with thyroid cancer.  This was definitely a ***** moment.  More surgery. More radiation.  More constant monitoring and scanning.  Despite all the treatments, she could never get an “all clear” report from her testing.  Roll clock forward to this past November and the thyroid cancer is detected again. This time in her lymph nodes in her neck, which is where her doctors believed it would get detected eventually.

 

So surgery right away and then radiation again this past February.  Here’s a photo of Shannon waiting for this most recent radiation treatment at Mayo.  No, she’s not flipping me off.  That’s her hashtag (along with a lot over people doing battle with the Big C.), which I can’t spell here:  #F@$kCancer.

 

Follow up testing in July, and for the first time in just over ten years her blood work comes back ALL CLEAR.  We’re all still in shock.  For ten years I’ve been traveling with Shannon. Enjoying life. Savoring every moment of these shared experiences.  Many of them cruising.  So I booked this cruise to celebrate. Every other trip was to celebrate recovering from some shitty, life sucking treatment.  Needless to say, this one is a bit more special.

 

Gottes Liebe

2C7BE5C6-18F2-43FF-B986-59B59E316E91.jpeg

Edited by What A Market
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46 minutes ago, What A Market said:

Follow up testing in July, and for the first time in just over ten years her blood work comes back ALL CLEAR.  We’re all still in shock.  For ten years I’ve been traveling with Shannon. Enjoying life. Savoring every moment of these shared experiences.  Many of them cruising.  So I booked this cruise to celebrate. Every other trip was to celebrate recovering from some shitty, life sucking treatment.  Needless to say, this one is a bit more special.

 

Gottes Liebe

2C7BE5C6-18F2-43FF-B986-59B59E316E91.jpeg

 

LOVE this picture and LOVE the reason for this celebration cruise. Thank you for sharing the story with us, and I hope for a lifetime of All Clear for Shannon. 

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3 hours ago, What A Market said:

tcmagnum:  Thank you for the comment.  Here’s where that Joy springs from:

 

As I noted earlier, this trip was booked as a celebration for a life event for the family, but really it’s all about DD, Shannon.  I’ve posted some other “Live” threads from previous cruises.  Mostly on Oceania.  On these other cruises, I had the joy and fulfillment of having Shannon with us to “celebrate” other “milestones” in her young life. (I suspect with many of you, as it is with me, traveling with your adult children is one of life’s greatest pleasures.)

 

Just over ten years ago at the age of 20, Shannon was diagnosed with Stage 3C melanoma cancer.  She had been attending university at George Washington Univ. and had just returned from a six month program in Oman, Jordan studying Arabic and Farsi.  (Like many 9/11 kids of her generation, she had a strong calling to service. She has some crazy linguistics skills, which she knew she could use with various federal agencies.)

 

Needless to say, that diagnosis changed her life path.  Ours too.  She returned home to live with us while she pursued treatments.  Her life over the next twelve months was wrapped up in surgeries, immunotherapy, and radiation. Being 20 and strong definitely had its advantages over that period.

 

Roll clock forward a couple of years and Shannon is diagnosed with thyroid cancer.  This was definitely a ***** moment.  More surgery. More radiation.  More constant monitoring and scanning.  Despite all the treatments, she could never get an “all clear” report from her testing.  Roll clock forward to this past November and the thyroid cancer is detected again. This time in her lymph nodes in her neck, which is where her doctors believed it would get detected eventually.

 

So surgery right away and then radiation again this past February.  Here’s a photo of Shannon waiting for this most recent radiation treatment at Mayo.  No, she’s not flipping me off.  That’s her hashtag (along with a lot over people doing battle with the Big C.), which I can’t spell here:  #F@$kCancer.

 

Follow up testing in July, and for the first time in just over ten years her blood work comes back ALL CLEAR.  We’re all still in shock.  For ten years I’ve been traveling with Shannon. Enjoying life. Savoring every moment of these shared experiences.  Many of them cruising.  So I booked this cruise to celebrate. Every other trip was to celebrate recovering from some shitty, life sucking treatment.  Needless to say, this one is a bit more special.

 

Gottes Liebe

2C7BE5C6-18F2-43FF-B986-59B59E316E91.jpeg

Been following your cruise. We board Eclipse 9/22 for our first cruise!  Just wanted to thank you for your story. Our daughter had stage 4 rhandomayo sarcoma at 4. Beat it against all odds. Got metastatic thyroid cancer at 15 and fought it until 24. All clear for 2 years and gave us our first grandchild (drs said it was impossible 2 years ago).  Miracles happen!! 

CDFDFD72-A623-4703-9680-56527856268F.jpeg

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4 hours ago, What A Market said:

tcmagnum:  Thank you for the comment.  Here’s where that Joy springs from:

 

As I noted earlier, this trip was booked as a celebration for a life event for the family, but really it’s all about DD, Shannon.  I’ve posted some other “Live” threads from previous cruises.  Mostly on Oceania.  On these other cruises, I had the joy and fulfillment of having Shannon with us to “celebrate” other “milestones” in her young life. (I suspect with many of you, as it is with me, traveling with your adult children is one of life’s greatest pleasures.)

 

Just over ten years ago at the age of 20, Shannon was diagnosed with Stage 3C melanoma cancer.  She had been attending university at George Washington Univ. and had just returned from a six month program in Oman, Jordan studying Arabic and Farsi.  (Like many 9/11 kids of her generation, she had a strong calling to service. She has some crazy linguistics skills, which she knew she could use with various federal agencies.)

 

Needless to say, that diagnosis changed her life path.  Ours too.  She returned home to live with us while she pursued treatments.  Her life over the next twelve months was wrapped up in surgeries, immunotherapy, and radiation. Being 20 and strong definitely had its advantages over that period.

 

Roll clock forward a couple of years and Shannon is diagnosed with thyroid cancer.  This was definitely a ***** moment.  More surgery. More radiation.  More constant monitoring and scanning.  Despite all the treatments, she could never get an “all clear” report from her testing.  Roll clock forward to this past November and the thyroid cancer is detected again. This time in her lymph nodes in her neck, which is where her doctors believed it would get detected eventually.

 

So surgery right away and then radiation again this past February.  Here’s a photo of Shannon waiting for this most recent radiation treatment at Mayo.  No, she’s not flipping me off.  That’s her hashtag (along with a lot over people doing battle with the Big C.), which I can’t spell here:  #F@$kCancer.

 

Follow up testing in July, and for the first time in just over ten years her blood work comes back ALL CLEAR.  We’re all still in shock.  For ten years I’ve been traveling with Shannon. Enjoying life. Savoring every moment of these shared experiences.  Many of them cruising.  So I booked this cruise to celebrate. Every other trip was to celebrate recovering from some shitty, life sucking treatment.  Needless to say, this one is a bit more special.

 

Gottes Liebe

2C7BE5C6-18F2-43FF-B986-59B59E316E91.jpeg

 

What a FANTASTIC reason to celebrate! I hope your cruise is full of wonderful, happy memories.

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Now back to regular program........Ha!

 

Quick comment on one of the other bars on the ship:  World Class Bar

Went there for a cocktail before dinner at Murano’s.  There is a menu of some unique cocktails.  All four of us were up to trying one of these cocktails. Blaine and I, of course, gravitated to a gin concoction.  Way too sweet!  I finished most of it, and asked the bartender for a Tanqueray No. 10 and tonic.  (I first asked the bartender if he had Rangpur, but wasn’t really surprised when he said “no.”)  Here was the surprise:  They didn’t have tonic.  What!!!???  What part of “world class” am I missing.  That’s when I realized the bar was really just a place to push Celebrity’s cocktail concoctions.

 

The setting for the bar is attractive.  There is a hysterically silly (I was going to say “stupid,” but that sounded a bit harsh) video playing in a constant loop behind the bar of a bunch of beautiful 20 and 30 year old hipsters enjoying the World Class Bar.  You have to see it to appreciate the silliness.

 

The bartender otherwise seemed pretty skilled at his craft.  Not sure what would happen if he had to make other cocktails not on his menu.  People more experienced at the booming craft cocktail culture than me probably could put him to the test by coming up with other cocktails from reviewing all the ingredients at hand from the menu.  I will say though that the bartender may have been having an off day.  Practically ZERO interaction with any of his patrons at the bar.  Also not very “world class.”  Unless you’re trying to pull of the pretentiousness we experienced at Prohibition in Vancouver.  😆

 

 

 

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4 hours ago, What A Market said:

tcmagnum:  Thank you for the comment.  Here’s where that Joy springs from:

 

As I noted earlier, this trip was booked as a celebration for a life event for the family, but really it’s all about DD, Shannon.  I’ve posted some other “Live” threads from previous cruises.  Mostly on Oceania.  On these other cruises, I had the joy and fulfillment of having Shannon with us to “celebrate” other “milestones” in her young life. (I suspect with many of you, as it is with me, traveling with your adult children is one of life’s greatest pleasures.)

 

Just over ten years ago at the age of 20, Shannon was diagnosed with Stage 3C melanoma cancer.  She had been attending university at George Washington Univ. and had just returned from a six month program in Oman, Jordan studying Arabic and Farsi.  (Like many 9/11 kids of her generation, she had a strong calling to service. She has some crazy linguistics skills, which she knew she could use with various federal agencies.)

 

Needless to say, that diagnosis changed her life path.  Ours too.  She returned home to live with us while she pursued treatments.  Her life over the next twelve months was wrapped up in surgeries, immunotherapy, and radiation. Being 20 and strong definitely had its advantages over that period.

 

Roll clock forward a couple of years and Shannon is diagnosed with thyroid cancer.  This was definitely a ***** moment.  More surgery. More radiation.  More constant monitoring and scanning.  Despite all the treatments, she could never get an “all clear” report from her testing.  Roll clock forward to this past November and the thyroid cancer is detected again. This time in her lymph nodes in her neck, which is where her doctors believed it would get detected eventually.

 

So surgery right away and then radiation again this past February.  Here’s a photo of Shannon waiting for this most recent radiation treatment at Mayo.  No, she’s not flipping me off.  That’s her hashtag (along with a lot over people doing battle with the Big C.), which I can’t spell here:  #F@$kCancer.

 

Follow up testing in July, and for the first time in just over ten years her blood work comes back ALL CLEAR.  We’re all still in shock.  For ten years I’ve been traveling with Shannon. Enjoying life. Savoring every moment of these shared experiences.  Many of them cruising.  So I booked this cruise to celebrate. Every other trip was to celebrate recovering from some shitty, life sucking treatment.  Needless to say, this one is a bit more special.

 

Gottes Liebe

2C7BE5C6-18F2-43FF-B986-59B59E316E91.jpeg

We will be on the eclipse in a few weeks and I am so happy I found this thread.  Thank you for sharing your story...such fun to be on a cruise with your family  and celebrating your daughter.  

I am also celiac, so I am eager to read about your dinning experiences on board. I am so looking forward to reading more about your cruising adventure. Safe travels and warm wishes to you and your family! - J

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1 hour ago, What A Market said:

Now back to regular program........Ha!

 

Quick comment on one of the other bars on the ship:  World Class Bar

Went there for a cocktail before dinner at Murano’s.  There is a menu of some unique cocktails.  All four of us were up to trying one of these cocktails. Blaine and I, of course, gravitated to a gin concoction.  Way too sweet!  I finished most of it, and asked the bartender for a Tanqueray No. 10 and tonic.  (I first asked the bartender if he had Rangpur, but wasn’t really surprised when he said “no.”)  Here was the surprise:  They didn’t have tonic.  What!!!???  What part of “world class” am I missing.  That’s when I realized the bar was really just a place to push Celebrity’s cocktail concoctions.

 

The setting for the bar is attractive.  There is a hysterically silly (I was going to say “stupid,” but that sounded a bit harsh) video playing in a constant loop behind the bar of a bunch of beautiful 20 and 30 year old hipsters enjoying the World Class Bar.  You have to see it to appreciate the silliness.

 

The bartender otherwise seemed pretty skilled at his craft.  Not sure what would happen if he had to make other cocktails not on his menu.  People more experienced at the booming craft cocktail culture than me probably could put him to the test by coming up with other cocktails from reviewing all the ingredients at hand from the menu.  I will say though that the bartender may have been having an off day.  Practically ZERO interaction with any of his patrons at the bar.  Also not very “world class.”  Unless you’re trying to pull of the pretentiousness we experienced at Prohibition in Vancouver.  😆

 

 

 

The bartenders are only allowed to mix the drinks in the menu. Not their rule but Celebrity’s rule. I have seen people who want a beer, a glass of wine or a simple cocktail being told I am sorry, they usually refer them to another bar. I have always had great bartenders at the WCB, it’s a shame when you don’t have a good interaction with them.

Not to change the subject but how about a photo of the Martini bar staff (my favorite place)

Norma

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9 hours ago, What A Market said:

calicakes:  You’ll be happy to know we didn’t brave the buffet this morning.  🤣

 

We ate in Luminae.  Very, very nice. And civilized.

The maitre d’ was curious why we were even trying the buffet — for breakfast or lunch.

We will be back!

 

 

I’m curious too. We have yet to sail in a suite(our first next year). We sail AQ. The breakfast in Blu is awesome. It’s slow though. When I’ve braved the buffet, I’m always sorry.

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Good morning everyone 

 

As usual I’m falling behind in posting.  Yesterday was Icy Strait Point. Suite guests were invited to watch the sail in from the ship’s Helipad.  Seems like everyone wanted to participate in this event.  The weather — Bracing!  Windy and spitting rain.  We didn’t brave it for long opting quickly to go up to the large enclosed bar/lounge at the front of the ship (name escapes me).  Two other ship were in port already.  A Seaborne ship and the Radiance of the Seas.  Turns out the Radiance was “parked” exactly where we needed to be. (It looks like ISP can only accommodate one ship at a time at its dock.)  As we inched closer it was clear that the Radiance was inching away from the dock. They may have been a tad late getting away because we ended being about 30 minutes late before the all clear was given for passengers to go ashore.

 

The great news about this stop was the weather cleared.  No wind and partly sunny.  The natural beauty of this place is striking.  Coming from Arizona, it is always amazing standing in dense forested landscapes. We didn’t plan anything for this port, but it was great to get off the boat and hike around.

 

Today is Hubbard Glacier.  Looks like we are going to be really lucky with the weather.  The fog has already lifted.  Every other day we’ve been socked in with fog and clouds until late in the day.  Should make for great viewing of the glacier if this weather holds. We have the ship’s excursion booked for today where we board a smaller boat for up close viewing of the glacier.

 

 

 

Edited by What A Market
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18 hours ago, What A Market said:

Now back to regular program........Ha!

 

Quick comment on one of the other bars on the ship:  World Class Bar

Went there for a cocktail before dinner at Murano’s.  There is a menu of some unique cocktails.  All four of us were up to trying one of these cocktails. Blaine and I, of course, gravitated to a gin concoction.  Way too sweet!  I finished most of it, and asked the bartender for a Tanqueray No. 10 and tonic.  (I first asked the bartender if he had Rangpur, but wasn’t really surprised when he said “no.”)  Here was the surprise:  They didn’t have tonic.  What!!!???  What part of “world class” am I missing.  That’s when I realized the bar was really just a place to push Celebrity’s cocktail concoctions.

 

The setting for the bar is attractive.  There is a hysterically silly (I was going to say “stupid,” but that sounded a bit harsh) video playing in a constant loop behind the bar of a bunch of beautiful 20 and 30 year old hipsters enjoying the World Class Bar.  You have to see it to appreciate the silliness.

 

The bartender otherwise seemed pretty skilled at his craft.  Not sure what would happen if he had to make other cocktails not on his menu.  People more experienced at the booming craft cocktail culture than me probably could put him to the test by coming up with other cocktails from reviewing all the ingredients at hand from the menu.  I will say though that the bartender may have been having an off day.  Practically ZERO interaction with any of his patrons at the bar.  Also not very “world class.”  Unless you’re trying to pull of the pretentiousness we experienced at Prohibition in Vancouver.  😆

 

 

 

I had to laugh when I read this...I had the exact same reaction while on my sailing in August.  I left the theater to get a couple of drinks and stopped there for a gin and tonic...nope!🍸

 

I trust you enjoyed dinner at Murano's?    Was certainly our favorite meal of the trip! 

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