Live Blog Equinox Southern Carribean(ABC's) Sept 13th-23rd

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Mast Grill has not been closed on port days on any cruise we've been on.

[calicakes]

2 minutes ago, CHEZMARYLOU said:

Mast Grill has not been closed on port days on any cruise we've been on.

Its closed. I'm assuming they diverted the staff to the island to cook for the bbq we've all been invited too. They are making burgers in the buffet.

[CHEZMARYLOU]

1 hour ago, calicakes said:

Its closed. I'm assuming they diverted the staff to the island to cook for the bbq we've all been invited too. They are making burgers in the buffet.

That makes sense. It's been a long time since we've been on a cruise that included the private island. They were always a nice stop and I understand there have been a lot of improvements.

[cltnccruisers]

1 hour ago, CHEZMARYLOU said:

Mast Grill has not been closed on port days on any cruise we've been on.

It was open when we got back from Gibraltar around 1:00.  But I seem to recall them cooking your order on the spot - this time the burger patties were in a tin and a bit dry.

[chamima]

4 hours ago, calicakes said:

Is Mast Grill usually closed on port days?

 

 

No. We don't always get off on port days anymore and the Mast Grill has always (up until now) been open.

I wonder if that's a new cut back.

 

Speaking of cutbacks - did you happen to ask Paul (the Head of Housekeeping) if they also ordered the larger dining room size tables that used to be on the Aqua balconies . (They were eliminated along with the footstools)

Edited September 21, 2019 by chamima

[calicakes]

6 minutes ago, chamima said:

 

 

No. We don't always get off on port days anymore and the Mast Grill has always (up until now) been open.

I wonder if that's a new cut back.

 

Speaking of cutbacks - did you happen to ask Paul (the Head of Housekeeping) if they also ordered the larger dining room size tables that used to be on the Aqua balconies . (They were eliminated along with the footstools)

I didn't ask him, I was in shock thinking I was in trouble for the clothes on the balcony.  I'll ask our room attendant to ask him. 

[calicakes]

Labadee....

 

I did not enjoy this port.  Call me negative Nelly, it doesn't bother me.  We ate breakfast at Blu.  Julie ordered french toast and it was raw inside( sad).  She really wanted the french toast since someone else had it the other day and it looked good.  She ended up with oatmeal instead.  I had a very small egg white omelette with smoked salmon and onions.  I also had half an english muffin and grits.   

 

We decided to go ashore first thing, I wanted to check out the artisan market.  We took the tram there and began walking around.  We were harassed by numerous people, both men and women.  I purchased a small painting of 2 dogs( they look like my poodles) for 7.00.  The  seller started at 20.00.  I handed over a 10.00 and he refused to give me my change.  He was insisting I buy other items.  I had to ask 5 times for my change back.  After that, I was pretty much ready to go back to the ship.  Once I saw a stray dog walking around, hovering around the entrance to the "restaurant" waiting for food, my heart was broken and I was done.    The Hatian workers driving the trams looked really sad to me. 

 

We went back on board and hung out at the very empty pool.  We had lunch at the....... where else....... Oceanview cafe. 

 

Oh another thing that turned me off, was observing massive amounts of food from the ship being brought onto the island( really a peninsula).  I observed big containers of salad and other items sitting on carts with no refrigeration.  Yeah, no thanks.  I'll eat onboard. 

[Luckynana]

Total bummer about Labadee.....😣

 

Now, getting back to the bagels at Key West.  I know they have to be worth the trip, since you are originally from New York, where bagels are the best! Just like their pizza...it's the NY water, as all New Yorker's  know!😉 we moved from NYC 3 years ago.

 

 

[hcat]

Have not found  really great bagels or pizza in Fla...Some are very good but not great.  Fortunately,  we are not there  full time and can  still enjoy NY bagels and pizza. I feel your pain!

 

As for Labadee, we disliked the outdoor stalls at the flea market.  But we found some nice locally crafted items in the enclosed air conditioned store.  At least it didn't rain there today!

 

 

Edited September 21, 2019 by hcat

[calicakes]

8 minutes ago, Luckynana said:

Total bummer about Labadee.....😣

 

Now, getting back to the bagels at Key West.  I know they have to be worth the trip, since you are originally from New York, where bagels are the best! Just like their pizza...it's the NY water, as all New Yorker's  know!😉 we moved from NYC 3 years ago.

 

 

My parents are from NY, I was born there, but moved to FL when I was 3.  I never had the bagels in Key West before. I looked for a bagel shop, the deli has been there for 20years so I thought it was worth a try.  I usually get my bagels in Hallandale, FL when I'm there but since we don't have a rental car and head straight to the airport, my great idea was Key West.  

 

There is a bagel shop that opened in Naples that I want to try.  We visit Marco once or twice a year. 

[calicakes]

2 minutes ago, hcat said:

Have not found  really great bagels or pizza in Fla...Some are very good but not great.  Fortunately,  we are not there  full time and can  still enjoy NY bagels and pizza. I feel your pain!

 

As for Labadee, we disliked the outdoor stalls at the flea market.  But we found some nice locally crafted items in the enclosed air conditioned store.  At least it didn't rain there today!

 

 

The bagels @ Sage in Hallandale Beach are amazing.  I'd put them right up there with NY bagels.  

 

Anyway, the enclosed air conditioned store was not air conditioned today. The sales people were more interested in their phones than actually helping me today.  No biggie. 

[calicakes]

Someone just posted this in the FB group for our cruise.   Its interesting because my seapass card was deactivated somehow.  I tried to buy a water before getting back onboard and they told me I need to see guest service.  I told Julie it was probably from someone with a scanner for credit cards.  Now I have to check my credit card. 

 

Keep a close eye on your bank accounts people! At the exact moment our ship left labradee, Bank of America notifying me of three suspicious transactions made today which I have not made. I walked through the Haitian market on the far end of labradee, I did not purchase anything or use my card on the island. I believe one of the “salesman” had a proximity scanner and stole my card information while it was still in my pocket. I will not be coming back here, or carrying a credit card off a ship from here on. Lesson learned....

Edited September 21, 2019 by calicakes

[takemewithyou]

1 hour ago, calicakes said:

Someone just posted this in the FB group for our cruise.   Its interesting because my seapass card was deactivated somehow.  I tried to buy a water before getting back onboard and they told me I need to see guest service.  I told Julie it was probably from someone with a scanner for credit cards.  Now I have to check my credit card. 

 

Keep a close eye on your bank accounts people! At the exact moment our ship left labradee, Bank of America notifying me of three suspicious transactions made today which I have not made. I walked through the Haitian market on the far end of labradee, I did not purchase anything or use my card on the island. I believe one of the “salesman” had a proximity scanner and stole my card information while it was still in my pocket. I will not be coming back here, or carrying a credit card off a ship from here on. Lesson learned....

Yikes!  Thanks for the “heads up”!!

[mayleeman]

Nice review. I was wondering why you booked Aqua, if food isn't a biggie for you, since Blu is often said to be the only benefit. We enjoyed Aqua and Blu last April on Reflection, but will be in MDR in Nov 2020 on the Equinox. Have you been similarly disappointed with MDR fare in the past? (Or perhaps Aqua was the only accessible?)

 

FWIW, we first started downsizing 13 years ago! Your plan to do it in 4 yrs might be a better one--we just kept replacing old junk with new junk over the years. Another yard sale in 2 weeks....

Edited September 22, 2019 by mayleeman

[calicakes]

Dinner last night was very good. Well except for the weird crispy boursin. Not what I was expecting. We both had pork tenderloin.  I've never had the cream brulee at blu. It was good.  I didn't care for the pear crumble. It was made with star anise and I despise black licorice.

[DeltaOne]

12 hours ago, calicakes said:

 I believe one of the “salesman” had a proximity scanner and stole my card information while it was still in my pocket.

 

We bought sleeves for our credit cards and passports on Amazon that block RFID scanning.

 

But mostly we leave them on the ship or in the hotel room.  Last time we ventured off the ship in Nassau the only thing we took with us was about $60 cash, our state photo ID and our ship ID card.  We even left our iPhones and Apple watches on the ship.

[chamima]

On 9/15/2019 at 8:01 PM, calicakes said:

Dinner in Blu. Visod is our server. Emilia is his assistant. Hes very nice. He brings much more food than we order. I hate wasting food, so this bothers me.  I had the fish cake. It was tasty. I ordered the risotto. Unfortunately, it was way undercooked. I guess it was good I had a second entree, boullubaise. Julie ordered the classic chicken breast. He also brought her the meatloaf. @chicagopaul said it was terrible so julie wasn't going to order it. She tasted it. She said it was ok. The potatoes were cold.

 

 

Quick question - is your server Visod or Vinod?

If it's Vinod say hi from Allan and Karen from last year's Silhouette. We have sailed with him for many years - first on the Eclipse and then the Silhouette. We're his friend Agung's people.

[calicakes]

18 minutes ago, chamima said:

 

Quick question - is your server Visod or Vinod?

If it's Vinod say hi from Allan and Karen from last year's Silhouette. We have sailed with him for many years - first on the Eclipse and then the Silhouette. We're his friend Agung's people.

Its Vinod. He remembers you and says Hi.

[bigbeergut]

15 hours ago, calicakes said:

Someone just posted this in the FB group for our cruise.   Its interesting because my seapass card was deactivated somehow.  I tried to buy a water before getting back onboard and they told me I need to see guest service.  I told Julie it was probably from someone with a scanner for credit cards.  Now I have to check my credit card. 

 

Keep a close eye on your bank accounts people! At the exact moment our ship left labradee, Bank of America notifying me of three suspicious transactions made today which I have not made. I walked through the Haitian market on the far end of labradee, I did not purchase anything or use my card on the island. I believe one of the “salesman” had a proximity scanner and stole my card information while it was still in my pocket. I will not be coming back here, or carrying a credit card off a ship from here on. Lesson learned....

 

I understand that you didn't enjoy Labadee, but I think you are likely blaming the wrong people.  Sure, once you went to the Artisan market some of the vendors may have been too aggressive for your tastes, but I don't think I ever saw anything that suggests the level of sophistication that you're suggesting.  It's probably more likely that it occurred on the hometown streets, than Labadee.  There have been plenty of times I had suspicious transactions on a CC that I haven't used for a while.  The CC data is out there on the dark web, it was more likely that it was just a coincidence that it occurred when you were leaving Labadee.  It's always good policy to monitor all of your CC transactions.  

 

Have a safe trip home

Edited September 22, 2019 by bigbeergut

[calicakes]

@bigbeergut it’s not very sophisticated actually. It happens everywhere. It even happed to Julie at a cafe in her work building. A cafe where cops eat everyday. 

 

You know every vendor told me they hand made the wares in their stall. I don’t buy it, everyone was selling the exact same things.

[PTC DAWG]

15 hours ago, calicakes said:

Someone just posted this in the FB group for our cruise.   Its interesting because my seapass card was deactivated somehow.  I tried to buy a water before getting back onboard and they told me I need to see guest service.  I told Julie it was probably from someone with a scanner for credit cards.  Now I have to check my credit card. 

 

Keep a close eye on your bank accounts people! At the exact moment our ship left labradee, Bank of America notifying me of three suspicious transactions made today which I have not made. I walked through the Haitian market on the far end of labradee, I did not purchase anything or use my card on the island. I believe one of the “salesman” had a proximity scanner and stole my card information while it was still in my pocket. I will not be coming back here, or carrying a credit card off a ship from here on. Lesson learned....

CASH is King

[poffles]

3 hours ago, calicakes said:

......I didn't care for the pear crumble. It was made with star anise and I despise black licorice.

 

Sounds like me ... black licorice tastes disgusting to me  ... to each their own 🙂

[Jim_Iain]

I'm another of those that are not fond of Laberdee.   Last time we were there we stayed on the ship.   It turned out that it was a wise decision because on that day the temperatures were above 100F and the passengers and crew came back complaining of the heat and lack of shade.

 

I've really enjoyed your posts.

[h20cruzer]

Enjoying your review. I like that you are honest about what you like and don't like. People don't have to agree with you, but it's your opinion and I appreciate that.  Jim_lian also do a great job on their live reviews. Keep it up.

Norma

[calicakes]

5 minutes ago, h20cruzer said:

Enjoying your review. I like that you are honest about what you like and don't like. People don't have to agree with you, but it's your opinion and I appreciate that.  Jim_lian also do a great job on their live reviews. Keep it up.

Norma

Thank you so much for saying this.  I am opinionated and I'm ok with it.  I was telling Julie last night that I really do think a lot of people have been having issues with some of the food in Blu, but they keep it to themselves.  The table to the left of me also ordered the crispy boursin and when the wife saw it, she said " What is that".  Its not what we were expecting.  There was probably 1/4 tsp of boursin in the little triangles.   Funnily enough, the lunch buffet today featured a HUGE boursin display, along with Camembert and other fancier cheeses.   They also had a chocolate fountain, a station with peel and eat shrimp and a roast turkey.  I did hear someone say " why everything at once, why couldn't they spread it out".  

 

The turkey stuffing looked like slices of meatloaf.  I wasn't the only person who said that outloud. LOL.  

 

 

Our last cruise on X was in 2015.  We enjoy AQ for the Persian Garden, priority boarding( although that is now over with) and the other amenities they used to offer.   I don't think I should be criticized because I've been critiquing the food.   There have been some winners and some losers.  This morning, Julie's french toast was perfectly cooked.  The ship has run out of strawberries as well.    

 

I am a touch upset that we didn't go to Key West.  The port is open.  I watched the webcam for Key West and it looked fine.  You should hear some of the wild conspiracy theories I've heard today at the pool.   Its 1pm now, it was thundering and lightening and then pouring rain for awhile.   We're going to hang out in the room and get our tips and other gifts together to pass out tonight.