Sea Dog's Harmony "As If Live" Review Pre & Post with Food, Whiskey & Key,, Oh My!

[NouCruzer]

Sea Dog,

 

So no sightings of Whistle Pig rye yet?  

[rhuntington3]

19 minutes ago, NouCruzer said:

 

Actually, your (and my) cruise makes its first port of call in St Maarten rather than St Thomas.  Our first time on Freedom.

 
Freedom is a great ship!

[Sea Dog]

"I'M THE KING OF THE WORLD" - Leonardo DiCaprio

 

I found the ever popular King of the World platform. Just off the solarium on the port side. The sun deck extends out top of the navigation bridge wings, and on one end, the floor juts out even farther forward for a Leonardo DiCaprio-like photo op. The floor is translucent to showcase the dramatic water deflection off the port side of the bow.

 

Now I'm the king of the world after finding this!

Found it!  I went to the duty free store on board and picked up some Blanton’s bourbon for $69.99. Considering the fact I can never find this where I live, this was a huge score. After buying, they will hold the bottle and then deliver it to me on the last night of the cruise in a travel cardboard box. I came prepared with bubble wrap to wrap my precious little baby so it would not break in my suitcase. If it does I will be sucking on my clothes for weeks to taste this fine bourbon. Isn’t that bottle great looking! It will look great in my collection and taste even better.

 

Let's Celebrate with some cocktails at the Mast bar

 

Toni at the Mast bar ( sorry I got his pic with his eyes closed) is from Romania and we talked about Dracula’s castle which he lives near by. Sixteen years on a cruise ship. Met his finance and they currently work and live together on Harmony. Plans to work one more contract and then retire from the cruise ship industry and go into business for himself possibly a B and B in Romania. Toni was a great guy and I enjoyed spending time with him all week.

More frozen goodness!

 

Here's my list for the best frozen cocktails to get (In no particular order)

1) Lava Flow ask to be made with Kraken Rum

2) MasterCard

3) Mudslide 

4) Miami Vice (1/2 Strawberry Daiquiri and 1/2 Pina Colada)

5) Love connection (Miami Vice with mango on top)

6) Mango tango

7) Frozen Mojito

😎 Mango lava flow

9) Baileys Banana Colada (for Linda)

10) Mango Melt-away( maybe called something different but is a combination mango and strawberry daiquiri)

11) Pirate Iced Tea -Captain Morgan, Peach Vodka, Lemon Juice and Coke

12)  Tropical Manhattan (not frozen) could be called Caribbean Manhattan

 

Some scenic pictures before we go to lunch.

 

Panoramic View with the new iPhone Pro Max

 

 

 

Lunch at Sabor. As many of you know the Guacamole is the star and it is really that great. So great Linda signed up for the Guacamole making class later in the week.

 

And Sabor's great Margarita

 

Some Shrimp Tacos

 

 

Now time to relax this evening is Formal Night in the Main Dining Room

[Sea Dog]

"IT'S FORMAL NIGHT SO WEAR YOUR BEST OR JUST WEAR WHAT EVER" - OVERHEARD AT THE BAR

 

SEA DOG GREG

 

LOVELY LINDA

 

Starters with Lobster Bisque Soup

 

Seafood Puffed Pastry

 

Roasted Beef Tenderloin

 

Carrot Cake for dessert

 

A Stroll Before the Ice Show

 

 

 

The Ice show,  1887 Journey In Time. As members of the Key we got premium seating for this show. In this case front row.

 

Panoramic with the 11 Pro Max

 

Great show very entertaining.

[suesnake2002]

I vote for the pirate tea. Yummy

[Sea Dog]

SCHOONER -A SAILING SHIP WITH TWO OR MORE MASTS, TYPICALLY WITH THE FOREMAST SMALLER THAN THE MAINMAST, AND HAVING GALF-RIGGED LOWER MASTS.

 

I love the Schooner bar. It's my favorite on all the Royal Caribbean ships I've sailed on. I love the decor and they have a great drink menu. I also love the fact they have a solo piano player. Ladies and gentlemen meet Peter Ritz

 

Schooner Bar has a very talented Peter Ritz (must be his stage name) who had a impressive catalog of songs. I have a degree in music and played professionally so I think I’m a pretty good judge of musical talent. I’m not a big fan of piano players using backing sequenced tracks . He did this mainly because as a piano player he was not that great. What he made up for was his voice. Great voice and range and he had to ability to imitate singers. He nailed Billy Joel and you could tell that Billy was a big influence on him. He did a Rat Pack show earlier in the evening that I missed but I asked him if he could repeat some of those songs. He played some Sinatra and Dean Martin which was great even though I wished he could of imitated Dean Martin which would of been hilarious. But as good as he is as a singer, he was even better at working the crowd and feeding off them. He reminded me of my best friend from High School David Kemmerly who plays and sings at the Salty Dog Cafe in Hilton Head Island for over 25 years. They know how to make fun of certain people without offending them. They know how to make subtle jokes to see if people are paying attention. At one point a large group came in. They were loud and boisterous. He keep looking out of his corner eye as he was playing more mellow songs because the room was older . Without a beat he went into Paul Simon’s “You can call me Al,” and the next thing you knew the large group started doing a Congo line around the whole bar and people started to join in. Then he went into supreme audience participation with Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline.” And had the whole bar singing. The whole Schooner Bar went from relaxed and mellow to a all out frat party. Needless to say the once barren tip jar was now filled up to the brim. Now that my friends is a outstanding entertainer! Well done Peter Ritz!!

 

It's been a blast today at sea, My dogs are tired I'm ready for bed. Big day tomorrow, we will be at St. Thomas. Goodnight all.
 

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, NouCruzer said:

So no sightings of Whistle Pig rye yet?

Not yet but I'm still looking!

[cruisegirl1]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

IT'S A SEA DAY FOR THE SEA DOG !

 

Even though I have the deluxe drink package it’s the ocean that is really intoxicating to me. I love sea days as it’s time to explore the ship, do some shopping and eat and drink merrily.

 

But first, we got invited to a top tier event. I don’t why because normally these events are for Platinum and above. Was it because we had the Key? Did they see something in us that they liked?  We signed up for meet and mingle but that’s not this event?  Anyone who might know why chime in but we are not going to pass this up. Complimentary Mimosas and Bloody Mary’s, Captain Johnny introducing the staff and handing out awards to the top point cruisers on the cruise and a sneak preview of Hide Away Heist. Fun!!

 

 

So glad you enjoyed the top tier party. Recently on Harmony,  the entire ship has been invited to join in. 
 

m

[dominicr]

Glad you were able to grab a couple bottles of blantons.  Did they limit you to two?  If they have ample on board ill be buying my max of 5 for me and 5 for the wife.  

[Ren1216]

You guys looked lovely on formal night!  Thanks for the drink list.  It's been a few years for us (with a Princess sailing in between) so we were having trouble remembering some of our favorite drink names.  My grandmother fell in love with the Wild Berry Lava Flow, hope they still have the wild berry mix so I can surprise her with one.  YUM!  Can't wait.

[Sea Dog]

3 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

the entire ship has been invited to join in. 

That is what I'm thinking now.

[Sea Dog]

2 hours ago, dominicr said:

Glad you were able to grab a couple bottles of blantons.  Did they limit you to two?  If they have ample on board ill be buying my max of 5 for me and 5 for the wife.  

I'm not sure if there is a limit but the sales lady said that someone before me bought 20 bottles but I think she was pulling my leg to get me to buy. I almost went with two but settled on one just for packing purposes. Fast forward to checkin on Southwest Airlines in Orlando who said my bag is now over the 50 pound limit. They said I should try and take stuff out. I knew it was over because of the Blanton's and how I packed it. Needless to say I paid the $75 overage fee. So in the end  my Blanton's cost me $145. I hope it tastes that good!

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, Ren1216 said:

YUM!  Can't wait.

I really enjoyed the frozen drinks. They are so good and I think you will enjoy them as well. It's all about having fun!

[dominicr]

9 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

I'm not sure if there is a limit but the sales lady said that someone before me bought 20 bottles but I think she was pulling my leg to get me to buy. I almost went with two but settled on one just for packing purposes. Fast forward to checkin on Southwest Airlines in Orlando who said my bag is now over the 50 pound limit. They said I should try and take stuff out. I knew it was over because of the Blanton's and how I packed it. Needless to say I paid the $75 overage fee. So in the end  my Blanton's cost me $145. I hope it tastes that good!

145 is a little steep for a bottle.  That’s about the marked up price you can find it for in St. Louis.  If you’ve never had it before it’s worth paying that much once but there are so many every day bottles you can get for half that price that are just as good if not better.  
 

you find any weller in the gift shop or on shore?

[CruisingCrewsers]

9 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

I'm not sure if there is a limit but the sales lady said that someone before me bought 20 bottles but I think she was pulling my leg to get me to buy. I almost went with two but settled on one just for packing purposes. Fast forward to checkin on Southwest Airlines in Orlando who said my bag is now over the 50 pound limit. They said I should try and take stuff out. I knew it was over because of the Blanton's and how I packed it. Needless to say I paid the $75 overage fee. So in the end  my Blanton's cost me $145. I hope it tastes that good!

I guess I should count myself lucky here in Ontario. When Blanton's is available, which it has been for almost 2 months straight now, we pay pay $65 for a bottle. There is even some Green label to be found at $65.  They do not limit us either. I have been able to get all 8 bottle toppers in a short period.  I am hoping to find some Blanton's Gold or SFTB at some of the islands we visit.

[Sea Dog]

ST. THOMAS

We will be arriving in St. Thomas around noon so we had the morning free. We got breakfast in the MDR where you could eat off the menu or they had a buffet. So much nicer and not as congested as the Windjammer.

 

We then hung out on our balcony to see the approach into St Thomas.

 

Time to play with my new iPhone 11 Pro Max. Let's play around with Slo-Mo.

 

How about a time lapse going into St. Thomas - Note the pilot boat crossing by and dropping off pilot then leaving.

 

Still you see the after effects of hurricane Maria.

 

 

The Key had a special disembark location in On Air. We gathered and went to different gangway than everyone else. We were one of the first ones off the ship. Another win for the Key.

 

Welcome to St. Thomas!

 

 

A look back at our beauty.

 

We had some time to kill before our excursion. So let's get a Mudslide

 

Iguanas were all over mugging for the camera. I think they liked the attention.

 

 

 

Megan’s Bay - Linda wanted to go to Meagan’s Bay, as it was her parents favorite beach in St. Thomas. Now that they are passed, Linda wanted to pay tribute. The open air bus ride over to the beach was a roller coaster ride in itself. No extra fee here. We were speeding up and down narrow winding switch backs. I thought to myself,  I hope this is a good driver and immediately saw my life flash before my eye’s. “Is this how it ends I thought to myself.” 

 

At one point at the top of a great overlook the driver stopped and let people take pictures. They had some locals selling beer 2 for $5 not a bad deal I’d say. 

 

Panorama

 

Megan's Bay

 

Thankfully we made it . The beach was great and the water so warm and clear.

 

 

 

The highlight was the pelican show. (I'm sorry I never got one on camera) Pelicans would dive bomb all around us and scoop up a mouthful of instant sushi. I wanted to get one on video but they were too fast. Literally one dive bombed about 3 feet from me. Scared the bejesus out of me. Linda wondered if I encountered jaws by high I jumped.i also saw some fish probably 3-4 feet in length swim by us. They didn’t bother us and I certainly wasn’t going to bother them. It’s their world and I’m just a bystander. 

 

Time for a big test. This made me nervous but I figured I needed to test the new iPhone 11 Pro water proof capabilities. The specs say you can have a maximum depth of 4 meters up to 30 minutes. I wasn’t going to push my luck but here’s a short video of how the new iPhone 11 Pro did.

 

 

 

After two and half hours of beach we boarded the bus back to the ship. This time it wasn’t a roller coaster but a snail pace. We were coming back to town at rush hour and traffic was at a standstill. I was only comforted in knowing we booked the excursion through RC so the ship would wait on us.

 

 

We finally made it. Time for some relaxing and get ready for dinner. Tonight I am really looking forward to 150 Central Park.

[Sea Dog]

29 minutes ago, dominicr said:

145 is a little steep for a bottle.  That’s about the marked up price you can find it for in St. Louis.  If you’ve never had it before it’s worth paying that much once but there are so many every day bottles you can get for half that price that are just as good if not better.  
 

you find any weller in the gift shop or on shore?

Earlier in the thread you will read that I purchased the Blanton's was $69.99. After I packed it my luggage, at the airport I got hit with a $75 over weight limit fee. That's how I ended up with a total price of $145 for me.

 

They did have the Weller Special Reserve (smaller bottle) but I can readily get that here in my hometown.

[Sea Dog]

11 minutes ago, CruisingCrewsers said:

I am hoping to find some Blanton's Gold or SFTB at some of the islands we visit.

I think I know where you will find some 😏

[37645]

Do you have to sit with other people for breakfast in the MDR? We would like to try that but we like to sit by ourselves. And the last time we tried doing lunch in there they sat us with other people. So just curious about if it has changed. Thanks. 

[dominicr]

23 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

I think I know where you will find some 😏

my next cruise is Cozumel, costa maya, and roatan so unfortunately I won’t be getting and stfb or gold.  Pretty sure those places don’t have it....or so I’ve been told.  
 

for the 145 price I was talking all in price....not just price of bottle.  If you were going to be over weight on the bags even without the bottles then I would count it as 70.  Blantons is worth 70 i think and I hope you enjoy it. 

[Sea Dog]

5 minutes ago, 37645 said:

Do you have to sit with other people for breakfast in the MDR?

We asked for a got a table for two every time we asked. Keep in mind that a lot of the tables are close together so you are in close proximity to another table but it's not bad.

[Ukigirl]

I remember feeling the same way about the ride up to Megan’s Bay, we were packed on that bus like sardines and I sure remember seeing my life flash by also! First thing we did was head for the bar.  Great pictures by the way, I’m way overdue for an upgrade as I have the iPhone 6, so you’ve convinced me. Have 3 weeks until our cruise, going to the store tomorrow!

[Sea Dog]

8 minutes ago, Ukigirl said:

iPhone 6, so you’ve convinced me.

I went from the 6s also so it was a great upgrade. The first thing you will notice is the battery power. Mine never got a low battery indication after using it all day and taking ton's of pictures. The only I don't like is that it is very thin and even with a case and where the 3 lens camera array is, it's easy to get your fingers in the way. I may need to invest in hand held Osmo.

[ilovetotravel1977]

On 10/24/2019 at 3:49 PM, island lady said:

 

I have seen pictures of them attached to a "portable" chair or lounger.   Ummm???    😮 

 

My friends loops the cable around TWO loungers. I think it would be a tad more obvious if someone was trying to drag two loungers versus one.

[island lady]

2 hours ago, ilovetotravel1977 said:

 

My friends loops the cable around TWO loungers. I think it would be a tad more obvious if someone was trying to drag two loungers versus one.

 

Hopefully.  Unless they are making it look like they are just dragging couple of loungers into the shade to "use".  😉 

Thieves are very inventive.  Me, I would take the tree...or like our OP does...involve the whole table set.