Summit 1-25-2020 Sailing – "Live" Blog, Cat Blog, Vlogs

[David Kane]

Day 5 - MISC (not MSC - totally different thing)

 

Before we go face first into Day 6 wherein we finally reconcile OUR one and only complaint with Celebrity in the most esoteric way possible it occurs to me there is a bunch of clean-up I need to do here. Firstly, as is tradition, let's hear from the patchwork lunatic:

 

 

(note catnip turtle in foreground - how can she be so angry??)

 

So, #1 - look how pissed she looks. It's so cute. And even at a scale-tipping 16 lbs. I get to pick her up and dance with her whenever she gives me that look. If only I could do the same with some of the passengers on this ship I think it would make a more congential cruise for us all but, alas, they tend to weigh more than a slice of bread (Fantastic Mr. Fox reference).

 

ANyhow, this response also requires a delicate answer. Luninae was partially designed to be an experience as well as a restaurant (if you are currently on the Eclipse, ask the GRM Danuta - she can tell you far more about it than I can). The point is everything from the plating of the food to how it is handled on delivery is essentially choreopgrahed. If you ever have a chance to sit here facing the whole of the dining room you can actually see the waitstaff move in synch with each other; bread, water, Somm, waiter, repeat. As it designed to be a fine dining experience service is slow on purpose, giving everyone a few moments away from a busy day to enjoy the presenatation of the food and allowing some palate-cleansing time between each course. So, on its face, this Cat Complaint is actually true. EXCEPT. The staff is totally accomadating of all your evening plans. If you want to take in a show at a specific time, simply let them know and they will arrange everything appropriately. So, i suppose to invalidate this most directly, the by-word of cruising should be 'just ask.' Be prepared for a polite 'no' but realize that you may get an incredible 'yes.'

 

Moving onward, here are the Captain's Club hours:

 

 

Here is a port-side buffet management prepared for the crew on Day 5:

 

 

Here's an ingenious bit of work from Zouhaier - the Maitre'd of Luminae; a printed 'receipt' of all the staff which helps in both filling out comment cards and tipping on the last day, a great piece of work if I must say so myself:

 

 

And here's the spread for Anatasiia's Club Breakfast. If you need to disembark quickly in the AM for a tour, the quick selection of a roll, fruit and sliced meats/cheese will easily suffice for a grab and go meal:

 

 

Finally, before moving on, I will address one topic that is likely to arise - the nature of cruising in Suites and the perceived exclusivity therein. Yes, Celebriry has invested heavily in a more upscale experience, with several private areas and directed staff. However, and not to be money-gross, XZ and I have found the price of the Sky Suites comparable, and even of more value, than a Disney World vacation (for the best and most direct comparison I can put together).  Now, don't get me wrong, if you're a big Tilt-a-Whirl Fan (and we were for any years), Cruising obviously cannot top theme parks. However, when all costs are considered, I would hazard a guess that an SS1 is on price with a moderate Disney resort. So, when you consider cruising and this blog, please realize we are not 'well heeled' customers - our heels are just like everyone else's. We take some flack for this on board from time to time, but, trust me, some of the best food I've had so far was found at the Buffet. Now, with that said, onward to Day 6!

[David Kane]

Day 6 - REVENGE!

 

Thankfully turning in early last night, we awoke at 6am to in-suite breakfast provided by Anu, the butler. Say what you will about being on Vacation - waking up early greatly extends the day. For future cruisers, the rumor is Anu attends to his morning affairs with Singh, the Luminae Chef, and then can conspire to provide whatever delicacies one would des...

 

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd as if on Q (not the Star Trek villian, but close) here's the Cat:

 

So, again, YMMV based on room (but we suspect not, considering how unfailingly polite everyone we meet in the hallway is and I just look like a random colorblind biker in a cheap panama hat 99% of the time) but we found the room service to be quite execellent. The carafe of coffee doesn't, you know, get cold because that's what an insulated carafe does and it's the same Lavazzza the ship over and its delicious. The toast and bagels might not be hot-out-of-the-panini-grill but one does realize they need to get walked the equivalent of 6 city blocks to the room, right? And as for the Orange Juice - tasted just fine at the buffet and therefore everywhere else as well. So. Let's bust this complaint right away. Sure, it's not Panera, but, trust me, when you're busy looking at your iWatch, or your iFoot or whatever, the disgruntled hipster behind the bar who just binge-read Nietzche is absolutely not stirring your creme-fresh with his coke-pinky. Ok, that got way more snarky than I thought, but this cat just winds me up, yo. Also, here's breakfast:

 

From there, it finally became time for...REVENGE! There are few things that I do well but one of them, and generally not worth bragging about in polite or any company, is Suffleboard. The Summit has been our preferred ship for years because it had the last remaining ShuffleBoard Court? Pitch? Play...mat? of any ship on the fleet and even sponsored Free Play and Tournaments a few years ago. Unfortunately, with the Revelation, the last shuffleboard court was decked over. Our solution? B.Y.O my friend. XZ hunted down the last supplier of professional travel suffleboard equipment for my birthday and, for the first time in 2 years, we were able to shuff on our own terms. Using Painter's Tape we marked out a somewhat accurate field up on the Retreat Sundeck and until overcome by the Sun, had at it. Guess which one of us one, and which one of us had to go back to the room to let the Butler and the Technician in to open the safe? Hint: Same answer as before:

 

 

[GeorgesGal]

You two are too funny!  Thoroughly enjoying reading your adventure/escapade!!!

 

Donna

[ASell]

You two are fantastic. I am having a blast reading along with you !!   Thanks for taking the time to do this.

[kenevenpar]

6 hours ago, David Kane said:

Day 5 - Master Rating

 

 

 

 

 

I love it; you bring your own rating signs!!!

[jcpc]

On 1/27/2020 at 4:11 PM, maggie.1008 said:

Can you ask Alexandria if she will be on the Summit at the end of August - Sept. ? She is a riot !

 

On 1/27/2020 at 6:00 PM, Schmoe38 said:

We sailed with Anastasia and Alexandra in Michael’s Club on Summit in April 2018. 
 

Alexandra made the best “Brandy Alexandra.” She also made a mean Sangria.
 

We too would be interested in knowing if Anastasia and Alexandra will be on Summit August 30/20. We would be absolutely thrilled to see them both again.

 

Randy and Connie

 

I'm not sure if Dave will be answering questions so I thought I'd let you know that I believe Alexandra told me she is leaving the Summit in June.  I sail in May so I will double check this info with her.

 

Hi Randy and Connie, I met you two on the Summit in Luminae one night a couple of years ago  (the night you two were sitting next to me and Cheryl joined my table and promptly "scolded" me for not attending parties in her suite.)  You also shared with me the "ins and outs" of transporting bottles of liquor in your suitcase (which has come in handy on several occasions!)  Not sure if you remember me, but I wanted to say hi and tell you to enjoy your next cruise. 

 

Janice

Edited January 30, 2020 by jcpc

[Schmoe38]

1 hour ago, jcpc said:

 

 

I'm not sure if Dave will be answering questions so I thought I'd let you know that I believe Alexandra told me she is leaving the Summit in June.  I sail in May so I will double check this info with her.

 

Hi Randy and Connie, I met you two on the Summit in Luminae one night a couple of years ago  (the night you two were sitting next to me and Cheryl joined my table and promptly "scolded" me for not attending parties in her suite.)  You also shared with me the "ins and outs" of transporting bottles of liquor in your suitcase (which has come in handy on several occasions!)  Not sure if you remember me, but I wanted to say hi and tell you to enjoy your next cruise. 

 

Janice

Hi Janice

 

So nice to hear from you...of course we remember you. The other part, we’re so embarrassed that took place. You didn’t deserve that.

 

Connie and I sincerely hope we get a chance to sail with you again. 

 

Thank you for the the update on Alexandra. We appreciate you taking the time to respond.

 

Till we meet again.

 

Randy

[David Kane]

Day 6 - The Final Word on the Retreat Sundeck

 

I must say, Hoppen Reflection, we are re-evaluating the Retreat Sundeck. We decided to re-double our efforts and spend as much time up there as we could and it turns out the sun is actually tolerable under the weird wood strip roof thingy and with a large enough hat. Like. A Sombrero would be perfect. The area is staffed continually throughout the day and since few people linger up here it's almost like have a 1-to-1 guest/staff ratio.

 

 

Here's a look at the drink menu:

 

And, because it's kind-of our thing, here is the chair review. We were rather pleasantly surprised by how comfortable the furniture actually was!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[hcat]

I too love the outfits, esp the last  one for xz .. very posh....but being a kitty person I would lose the dead fur...just me

[MEcruzr]

6 hours ago, hcat said:

I too love the outfits, esp the last  one for xz .. very posh....but being a kitty person I would lose the dead fur...just me

 

The fox stole???? That's my favorite so far! LOL

[MJSailors]

    This is a very interesting account of your cruise, Dave and XZ.

My DH and I have sailed on the Summit twice to Bermuda. I am not certain about the Hoppen  effect on the recent  refurbishment though. I think it is something we will need to experience for ourselves .

        As for the fur  piece, my mother had one and it always scared me silly when I saw it in the closet! It definitely was a fashion statement item!

 

[jmbklj]

On 1/23/2020 at 8:44 AM, dianedebuda said:

Could you pay for taxi with credit card?  I'm trying to figure out how much cash I'll have to take on my trip in a couple of weeks.

Even more cost effective....and using a credit card, take Uber.  We did so late Nov 2019.

Edited February 1, 2020 by jmbklj

[Queen_Tortitude]

Misty Knight - The Last Day

 

My permanent food givers come home today and I am rather excited! Alas, I will act indifferently towards them when they arrive home, in an effort to live up to my tortitude. 

 

As I was sad to say goodbye to the temporary food giver I made sure to hiss at her several times today. Then I made up for it by allowing her to take glamour shots of me (see below), booping her nose, and sitting on her lap for a good, long time. 

 

Til' next time, cat blog!

[hcat]

Great blog....til next time!

[saltycat]

David thanks for doing this wonderful blog! Way to represent the smallest state in a big way. It was a pleasure to meet and sail with you and XZ. So many awesome people on this cruise. ( Passengers and crew) Thanks again!

Kathy from RI....AKA  Carol from Florida 😎

[rthomasmke]

On 1/29/2020 at 9:01 AM, David Kane said:

Day 3 - White Knight -

 

After an enjoyable lunch at Sushi on 5 the deleterious effects of the morning Caribbean Sun finally caught up with poor XZ and she, like a fine Victorian woman, went down with the heat. However, this night had my favorite of all Cruise Ship Activities - Kareoke - and I dressed for a dinner which I never attended and instead based myself out a Anatasiia's Club:

 

 

Pro Tip: If you want to meet, well, everyone, in Suite Class just hang out at the Club starting around 5:00pm. They say if you stay in one place long enough the world will pass you by - well, all the guests will pass you by if you hang out by the Bar here from 5-9 as people queue up for a pre-dinner drink.The same gathering occurs at the Martini bar as well, but it's such an in demand space that getting a seat requires one to acquire it before the servers have even started setting out their garnish.

 

 

After a time, XZ managed to rouse herself for a brief hour and fox up, but soon quickly retreated to back to the room in preparation for the next day, which would find herself thoroughly energized and me somewhat...not.

 

 

Cruise Kareoke, if you are in to that sort of thing, is quite wonderful, as the audience is more supportive than one might suspect. In addition, the ever-present Team Cocktail has a professional Country Singer as part of their rolling party and they, in turn, support him with organized line dancing (!).

 

 

Following Kareoke there was a brief turn at the Casino, and then the remainder of evening spent in some fine company up in the Sky Lounge where, after 12:00am, the DJ will actually play music written after, let's just pull a number out of our butt here, oh, say, 1973. Put it this way, I only dance to Gaga so I thought I was rather safe to sit and enjoy and not get all sweaty but, alas, I actually danced.