Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[bobmacliberty]

13 hours ago, Luckynana said:

Onto the next wonderful project tomorrow.  Our pool has been loosing water, and the pool guy told us what we have to do starting tomorrow.  Mark the water level.  Wait 12 hours, then mark the water level and measure how much we've lost.  Wait another 12 hours, then turn on the filter and mark the water level, keep the filter on for another 12 hours, and mark the water.......

 

We went through this with our pool in Cincinnati.  My nightmare scenario was that there was a leak in a pipe going to/from the filter, which were all underground beneath the concrete around the pool.  The pool company looked for leaks around the underwater lights, all of the penetrations into the pool, all of the filter and heater connections.  They used a small amount of dye in the pool to see if it was being drawn where it shouldn't be...kinda like a smoke test for water.  They isolated it to one of the 2 return lines, but also decided that it was largely evaporation from the heat.  The pool level dropped very slowly when it wasn't hot but faster when it was.  Worst case was that we had to toss the hose in the pool for a little bit to add water every couple of weeks.  We'd have to do that maybe 4 or 5 times throughout the summer.  We decided that was a better solution than ripping up concrete to get to the pipes. 

 

Hopefully, they find something more specific to fix for your pool, but don't be surprised if it's at least partly due to evaporation.

[sgmn]

22 hours ago, grapau27 said:

 

Thank you friends for your lovely anniversary wishes.

Very many Best Wishes for your anniversary.  Congratulations Graham and Pauline 

[h20skibum]

23 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

Hopefully, they find something more specific to fix for your pool, but don't be surprised if it's at least partly due to evaporation.

There are probably a lot of factors related to how much evaporation a pool may experience.  How hot the pool temperature is, the air temperature, if it is covered part of the time or uncovered.

 

While we only have a hot tub, and not a pool, it evaporates about 2% a week.  That is with it being uncovered to use only about 2-3 hours a day.  I know we have had to add water to pools at some of the houses we rented in Florida, due to the noticeable drop during a week.

 

Found this on pool evaporation.

 

[sgmn]

21 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

Happy Birthday to Brian.  Wish him the best and welcome to the 50 club.🙂

From me too, Happy Birthday to Brian @TravelGirlinDallas

[Luckynana]

10 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Good thing you noticed the spots.    My neighbors noticed the fish looked lethargic and when her daughter bent down to look closer she noticed a foul smell,  ammonia. 

 

They moved in this past winter and acquired the pond with the home. 

 

They went into panic mode thinking they were going to kill all the fish.  They all survived after doing the same thing you are doing.  

Our pond was acquired also when we bought the house!  It is good that I saw the spots, because I never smelled anything, and I have a"sniffer" that smells everything..lol!  I hope your neighbors get as much enjoyment from their koi as I do.  So relaxing just sitting there.  Good Zen!😉

[firefly333]

My friends in san antonio turned their swimming pool into a koi pond. She has the most gorgeous flowers there. They been there 28 years and been developing things so beautiful. 

 

 

[Luckynana]

 

 

@bobmacliberty and @h20skibum  Thank you Bob and Mark.  We do throw the hose into the pool when it looks like it needs it, but this time I saw the top step in the pool had no water sitting on it.  There are 3 wide steps in our pool.  Jim thinks the worst, like you said, Bob, that you worried it was the pipes, big job, concrete, etc.  My feeling is that it could be the plugs that were installed when we moved in and found the pool kept losing vast amounts of water through the returns by the steps, so the returns were plugged.    A slab of concrete next to the pool has been lifting.  The man at the pool store told me that has nothing to do with water leakage.  So the measuring has begun!  😉

[Luckynana]

 

 

After the eruption of the volcano in Rekjavik, many of us were quite worried about John, Laura, Pat, and others that we know who are cruising on the World Cruise, since that is where they were docked yesterday.  I heard from Laura that everyone is on board and safe.  The eruption happened at night.  Thank you God!🙏

[Luckynana]

10 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

My friends in san antonio turned their swimming pool into a koi pond. She has the most gorgeous flowers there. They been there 28 years and been developing things so beautiful. 

 

 

That's beautiful, Jane!

[George C]

1 hour ago, Luckynana said:

 

 

@bobmacliberty and @h20skibum  Thank you Bob and Mark.  We do throw the hose into the pool when it looks like it needs it, but this time I saw the top step in the pool had no water sitting on it.  There are 3 wide steps in our pool.  Jim thinks the worst, like you said, Bob, that you worried it was the pipes, big job, concrete, etc.  My feeling is that it could be the plugs that were installed when we moved in and found the pool kept losing vast amounts of water through the returns by the steps, so the returns were plugged.    A slab of concrete next to the pool has been lifting.  The man at the pool store told me that has nothing to do with water leakage.  So the measuring has begun!  😉

When it gets over a hundred , we definitely need to add water a couple of times a week . We had 107 earlier this week today is supposed to be 101. Never need to add water in winter. 

[brillohead]

On 8/22/2024 at 9:01 AM, akcruz said:

What a great thing to do.  We have a neighbor who works in the school system and creates a wishlist of books in Amazon each year to provide books to the less fortunate.  

 

I recommended that my friend post her Amazon wishlist in January, when all the crayons are broken and the markers are drying up.... 

[reallyitsmema]

1 hour ago, Luckynana said:

 

 

After the eruption of the volcano in Rekjavik, many of us were quite worried about John, Laura, Pat, and others that we know who are cruising on the World Cruise, since that is where they were docked yesterday.  I heard from Laura that everyone is on board and safe.  The eruption happened at night.  Thank you God!🙏

 

I have been following some of the reviews on a different site.  One couple said they did a 10 hour excursion including 2 hours at Blue Lagoon.  They left there at 8:30pm and the volcano erupted 6 km away at 9:26pm.

 

They made an interesting comment in response to a comment about the recent eruption:

 

Wild! When we left Taiwan there was an earthquake, Japan, had an earthquake Sicily, MT. Etna erupted .. might be our ship? 🤷‍♀️

 

[George C]

14 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

I don't see the toy hanging anymore😁

They are still trying to get the toy, 

[Husky1987]

So I actually have a cruising-related question for everyone here, and it doesn't involve bourbon at all 🤣

 

Our Freedom cruise in December stops at St. Kitts.  We've been there a few times, have done the Thenford Gray tour and Carambola, etc.  We've never done Nevis.  The ship offers a couple different excursions but we usually find we like the private ones better.  Has anyone done an excursion to Nevis that wasn't through the ship?  

[Biker19]

53 minutes ago, Husky1987 said:

Has anyone done an excursion to Nevis that wasn't through the ship?  

The ports of call section may have some info.

[reallyitsmema]

1 hour ago, Husky1987 said:

So I actually have a cruising-related question for everyone here, and it doesn't involve bourbon at all 🤣

 

Our Freedom cruise in December stops at St. Kitts.  We've been there a few times, have done the Thenford Gray tour and Carambola, etc.  We've never done Nevis.  The ship offers a couple different excursions but we usually find we like the private ones better.  Has anyone done an excursion to Nevis that wasn't through the ship?  

 

We did a cruise line excursion to Nevis that was just okay.  We would try to find a private excursion if we went to that port again.

[jmh2006]

2 hours ago, Husky1987 said:

So I actually have a cruising-related question for everyone here, and it doesn't involve bourbon at all 🤣

 

Our Freedom cruise in December stops at St. Kitts.  We've been there a few times, have done the Thenford Gray tour and Carambola, etc.  We've never done Nevis.  The ship offers a couple different excursions but we usually find we like the private ones better.  Has anyone done an excursion to Nevis that wasn't through the ship?  

Larry, we did a ship tour to Nevis and I wouldn't waste my time.  Our best excursion on St Kitts was riding on ATV's followed by some time at a beach.  

[lenquixote66]

2 hours ago, Husky1987 said:

So I actually have a cruising-related question for everyone here, and it doesn't involve bourbon at all 🤣

 

Our Freedom cruise in December stops at St. Kitts.  We've been there a few times, have done the Thenford Gray tour and Carambola, etc.  We've never done Nevis.  The ship offers a couple different excursions but we usually find we like the private ones better.  Has anyone done an excursion to Nevis that wasn't through the ship?  

My youngest daughter and her then Boy Friend went on a private excursion to a Plantation in Nevis and liked it so much that decided to get married there on the spur of the moment.

[firefly333]

Sometimes the ports of call on cc dont have much. I'm leaving from San Diego for the Panama transit and there was nothing on San Diego as a port. Good luck on Nevis. Cc doesnt have good info sometimes. 

 

I have been looking around for restaurants and things to do when I have guests all of whom are waiting for it to cool off. Kayaks and paddle boards advertise for $45. Idk if thats pp or for a kayak for 2. I googled and found a kayak for $89 to buy online, half price from $170 that looked good to me, though i have no place to store one. My cousin said she thought $45 pp was kinda high. 3 or more places have them for $45 i have seen. So I could buy a new one for double what it costs to rent one?

 

I these these 2 people standing on paddlebosrds this morning go by. Clearly rented I'd bet as the front person was having trouble standing up and back and forth almost turning it over. Idk I'd even want to be on a paddle board in alligator infested water. I'm kinda iffy but obviously she can't go out alone. 

 

Cant hardly see them but they could hardly keep their balance. Didnt look safe at all to me.

 

[bobmacliberty]

@firefly333 - Could you do a quick test to satisfy my curiosity?  Take a picture of the view outside of your window while holding your phone literally against your window screen.  You'll probably need to open the window to get close enough to the screen.  Since regular cameras can't focus that close to the lens, the screen could end up being "invisible".  Here are two pictures through one of our windows.  The first is holding the camera a couple of inches away from the window, and you can obviously see the screen.  The second is with the window open and the camera right against the screen.  As you can see, the screen "disappears".  As I got the camera lens closer to the window screen, I could see on the phone screen when the window screen disappears.  This might work for you also.

 

 

[reallyitsmema]

20 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Sometimes the ports of call on cc dont have much. I'm leaving from San Diego for the Panama transit and there was nothing on San Diego as a port. Good luck on Nevis. Cc doesnt have good info sometimes. 

 

I have been looking around for restaurants and things to do when I have guests all of whom are waiting for it to cool off. Kayaks and paddle boards advertise for $45. Idk if thats pp or for a kayak for 2. I googled and found a kayak for $89 to buy online, half price from $170 that looked good to me, though i have no place to store one. My cousin said she thought $45 pp was kinda high. 3 or more places have them for $45 i have seen. So I could buy a new one for double what it costs to rent one?

 

I these these 2 people standing on paddlebosrds this morning go by. Clearly rented I'd bet as the front person was having trouble standing up and back and forth almost turning it over. Idk I'd even want to be on a paddle board in alligator infested water. I'm kinda iffy but obviously she can't go out alone. 

 

Cant hardly see them but they could hardly keep their balance. Didnt look safe at all to me.

 

 

I would definitely recommend renting a kayak at least once before buying to make sure it is something you actually like to do.  The rental kayak will come with paddles and life vests to use.  Was the $89 online just the kayak or was it kayak, paddles and life vests?  All that can add up.  I am surprised your building doesn't have somewhere for people to stuff like that.  Many places have storage included or for a small monthly fee.

[firefly333]

42 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

@firefly333 - Could you do a quick test to satisfy my curiosity?  Take a picture of the view outside of your window while holding your phone literally against your window screen.  You'll probably need to open the window to get close enough to the screen.  Since regular cameras can't focus that close to the lens, the screen could end up being "invisible".  Here are two pictures through one of our windows.  The first is holding the camera a couple of inches away from the window, and you can obviously see the screen.  The second is with the window open and the camera right against the screen.  As you can see, the screen "disappears".  As I got the camera lens closer to the window screen, I could see on the phone screen when the window screen disappears.  This might work for you also.

 

 

 

38 minutes ago, reallyitsmema said:

 

I would definitely recommend renting a kayak at least once before buying to make sure it is something you actually like to do.  The rental kayak will come with paddles and life vests to use.  Was the $89 online just the kayak or was it kayak, paddles and life vests?  All that can add up.  I am surprised your building doesn't have somewhere for people to stuff like that.  Many places have storage included or for a small monthly fee.

Thanks, I cant tilt my tablet but straight against the screen I can actually see the picture a lot better. That was a excellent ideal.

 

Reallyitsmama I agree with you totally that I wouldn't buy one. I was just checking when my cousin thought it was expensive especially per person. That's $90 for the 2 of us, one location. The zoo sounds like a excellent place to kayak thru, right behind the veterans museum another as it's close, the kiwinis island is $90 ($45 x 2) I agree with her too, that's a lot. They have kayaks at home so no cost to rent. I expect we will walk around the lakes and not rent. The zoo rental is on top of the zoo fee to go in.  I'm just playing and seeing what's to do. Yea its true some places have outdoor storage.  

 

Here is a picture with my tablet against the screen. Cant tilt toward stuff but flat it sure is better. Thanks. Awesome. A bit of a gray cloudy day here.

[Tree_skier]

1 hour ago, firefly333 said:

Sometimes the ports of call on cc dont have much. I'm leaving from San Diego for the Panama transit and there was nothing on San Diego as a port. Good luck on Nevis. Cc doesnt have good info sometimes. 

 

I have been looking around for restaurants and things to do when I have guests all of whom are waiting for it to cool off. Kayaks and paddle boards advertise for $45. Idk if thats pp or for a kayak for 2. I googled and found a kayak for $89 to buy online, half price from $170 that looked good to me, though i have no place to store one. My cousin said she thought $45 pp was kinda high. 3 or more places have them for $45 i have seen. So I could buy a new one for double what it costs to rent one?

 

I these these 2 people standing on paddlebosrds this morning go by. Clearly rented I'd bet as the front person was having trouble standing up and back and forth almost turning it over. Idk I'd even want to be on a paddle board in alligator infested water. I'm kinda iffy but obviously she can't go out alone. 

 

Cant hardly see them but they could hardly keep their balance. Didnt look safe at all to me.

 

While I'm not a kayaker my DW is an avid Kayaker.  She thought any kayak you could buy for $89 was probably going to be pretty disappointing. She says that $45 is pretty common for rental prices.  She has always preferred the sit on top versions the most.  She finds them easiest to get in and out of.  Ocean Kayak is a good brand if you are looking for a quality kayak.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/stores/OceanKayak/page/25FCFDB1-4D23-4177-9D4D-8FDC6A123914?ref_=ast_bln&store_ref=bl_ast_dp_brandLogo_sto

 

If you are looking for inexpensive but decent quality and also convenient to store Sharron recommends this one...

 

https://www.amazon.com/Sevylor-Quikpak-K1-1-Person-Kayak/dp/B00EVII3BK/ref=sr_1_3_pp?crid=3945Q4GYAWUNZ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.XfQlHJC1Um5JYBizOmWFUOEva1nxkNJM0Jpcj7p3gCevBuRCuBcv8ablgNjHa7IYaPPgPh0AwShGWpkmEe9BeQbPJiBX_Pq5r7gzqZDKHz_HLcNUk0yvgXiGfNKHrg4ynNbmtFI7b37tFvd2sukysBsx_lpoBpAAlDgwxQGDxRjtcMu-99dwbML49dSuac0SdE9DXXoFwGppx1OoeTgROLnioST5iR4VRsN7u0hfBcg.MfH0wb1Wx2b7f1SX4gCo6na_ZyGpqFvCuqZ90IYADLg&dib_tag=se&keywords=inflatable+kayak&qid=1724446592&sprefix=infla%2Caps%2C138&sr=8-3

 

People assume that an inflatable one is not going to perform as well and is typically written off as a Childs toy but that is far from true in this case.

 

She has two and we take them everywhere we go just about.  It comes with a hand pump but she recommends you pitch that away and purchase a small electric one.  Pumps are available at Walmart or on Amazon for usually less than $20.  They are much easier to use and you can get one that plugs into your 12v port in your car and inflate it anywhere you go...  

 

Here is a little video of her in one of the inflatable types at the lake from a couple of years ago.  Sorry the video is in Benny Hill Mode..

 

 

 

[reallyitsmema]

6 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Reallyitsmama I agree with you totally that I wouldn't buy one. I was just checking when my cousin thought it was expensive especially per person. That's $90 for the 2 of us, one location. The zoo sounds like a excellent place to kayak thru, right behind the veterans museum another as it's close, the kiwinis island is $90 ($45 x 2) I agree with her too, that's a lot. They have kayaks at home so no cost to rent. I expect we will walk around the lakes and not rent. The zoo rental is on top of the zoo fee to go in.  I'm just playing and seeing what's to do. Yea its true some places have outdoor storage.  

 

I have heard good things about that zoo.  We never went to it though.  I just looked at the website, kayaking through it could be really neat, even for an additional cost.

[firefly333]

11 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

While I'm not a kayaker my DW is an avid Kayaker.  She thought any kayak you could buy for $89 was probably going to be pretty disappointing. She says that $45 is pretty common for rental prices.  She has always preferred the sit on top versions the most.  She finds them easiest to get in and out of.  Ocean Kayak is a good brand if you are looking for a quality kayak.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/stores/OceanKayak/page/25FCFDB1-4D23-4177-9D4D-8FDC6A123914?ref_=ast_bln&store_ref=bl_ast_dp_brandLogo_sto

 

If you are looking for inexpensive but decent quality and also convenient to store Sharron recommends this one...

 

https://www.amazon.com/Sevylor-Quikpak-K1-1-Person-Kayak/dp/B00EVII3BK/ref=sr_1_3_pp?crid=3945Q4GYAWUNZ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.XfQlHJC1Um5JYBizOmWFUOEva1nxkNJM0Jpcj7p3gCevBuRCuBcv8ablgNjHa7IYaPPgPh0AwShGWpkmEe9BeQbPJiBX_Pq5r7gzqZDKHz_HLcNUk0yvgXiGfNKHrg4ynNbmtFI7b37tFvd2sukysBsx_lpoBpAAlDgwxQGDxRjtcMu-99dwbML49dSuac0SdE9DXXoFwGppx1OoeTgROLnioST5iR4VRsN7u0hfBcg.MfH0wb1Wx2b7f1SX4gCo6na_ZyGpqFvCuqZ90IYADLg&dib_tag=se&keywords=inflatable+kayak&qid=1724446592&sprefix=infla%2Caps%2C138&sr=8-3

 

People assume that an inflatable one is not going to perform as well and is typically written off as a Childs toy but that is far from true in this case.

 

She has two and we take them everywhere we go just about.  It comes with a hand pump but she recommends you pitch that away and purchase a small electric one.  Pumps are available at Walmart or on Amazon for usually less than $20.  They are much easier to use and you can get one that plugs into your 12v port in your car and inflate it anywhere you go...  

 

Here is a little video of her in one of the inflatable types at the lake from a couple of years ago.  Sorry the video is in Benny Hill Mode..

 

 

IMG_2844.MOV 12.19 MB · 0 downloads  

 

Again I have no outside storage, no place to keep one, was just looking out of curiosuty. For sure i am NOT buying a kayak and carting it up our passenger elevator. It might even be too long to fit. Can't bring a sofa up in our elevator. If a sofa length wouldnt fit a kayak probably doesnt and would make a mess. But thanks. Again I was curious ... we will probably walk around. Maybe one rental. ..not 3. I dont ever plan on going into that water solo, by myself and wouldnt have anyone here to go out with me. I appreciate your wife's input. Idk what we will do. She is the birder. We dont even have a elevator to bring up furniture, just the 2 pax elevators. My sofa was carried up 8 flights. Ain't going to happen and I wouldn't feel safe going out later on my own solo. Not safe alone imo. Alligators scare me.

Edited August 23 by firefly333