Live from Steerage. Onboard Mardi Gras now. Ask us anything.

[mondello]

On 8/9/2021 at 12:40 PM, KmomChicago said:

By the way, Trivia is HARD on this ship and I’m not giving anything away.

And yet you still ended up winning a Ship on a Stick! Someone asking on another thread, can you request dining reservation/seating on the Hub App for 2 cabins, i.e.: number of guests, or need to link cabins or both?

[KmomChicago]

1 minute ago, mondello said:

And yet you still ended up winning a Ship on a Stick! Someone asking on another thread, can you request dining reservation/seating on the Hub App for 2 cabins, i.e.: number of guests, or need to link cabins or both?

It’s by name so you can only book for another cabin if you linked with them for your travel party. You select the names every time, i.e. if it’s only some of your cabin mates you only select their names.

[KmomChicago]

Street Eats.

[Terab85]

5 hours ago, KmomChicago said:

Limelight Lounge evil step in back row. 😡😬🤬

Who the hell thought THIS was a good idea??? 🤔

[KmomChicago]

15 minutes ago, mondello said:

And yet you still ended up winning a Ship on a Stick! Someone asking on another thread, can you request dining reservation/seating on the Hub App for 2 cabins, i.e.: number of guests, or need to link cabins or both?

If you buy a paid venue you can do it for as many people as you want, ie Mondello party of 11.

[Spif Barwunkel]

2 hours ago, KmomChicago said:

For my dad and my aunt’s husband. I will tell them both you all thank them for my service because I know you do.

 

I am a Vietnam war baby and Dad was in Danang when I was born August 12, 1966. Seriously if it weren’t for that conflict I wouldn’t be here, there, or anywhere. 

When your dad was in Danang, I was about 400 miles south down the coast in Phan Rang. Has your dad enjoyed the pleasure of an Honor Flight?

[KmomChicago]

Tides Bar Menu deck 16 aft. I assume this is the generic outdoor bar menu for the whole ship.

[Cruise Related]

Happy bday mom!!!! I’ll be enjoying my 40th on the Mardi Gras in September. 

[pc2425]

4 hours ago, VaTech8912 said:

Does the MDR decor feel "cafeteria" like in person.  The tables and chairs just remind me of that or maybe retro 50's?  Could just be me and it doesn't change the food options regardless.  

That is exactly what I thought when I first saw pictures of the dining room!  Cafeteria.  I am not a fancy person so I don’t care but I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one ha

[KmomChicago]

1 minute ago, pc2425 said:

That is exactly what I thought when I first saw pictures of the dining room!  Cafeteria.  I am not a fancy person so I don’t care but I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one ha

I think it’s a pretty room. The tabletops are a wood look textured plastic laminate but it’s quiet and the dishes don’t slam down hard on them. Obviously easy to clean between parties. I don’t think it feels like a cafeteria at all. Unless cafeterias have recently been way upgraded and I just don’t know it.

[pc2425]

Oh ok good.  I will see it for myself in 2 days.  Can’t wait!

[KmomChicago]

Okay backtracking slightly to brunch today. I’m not posting the whole menu because it’s on the Carnival website and easy to find. However here’s what was relevant today for DH and me. It was just the two of us. 

 

DH got steak and eggs as usual. It was a pretty substantial meal from the “Mains” section. I got the Mediterranean Salad from the same section. He got a side of cheese grits and I got brunch potatoes and was afraid it might be too much to order a side. 

 

My salad was like 5 bites, and when the server brought it and my (yummy) spuds, he actually asked, “is this all you want ma’am?” I told him he could go ahead and please bring my dessert layer cake right away and the salad was gone by the time he got back.

 

Not a complaint at all. But just FYI it’s an appetizer size dish on the Main dish menu. 
 

[obx_fintoo]

Happy Birthday @KmomChicago and thank you for taking us along with you!

[JaniceB]

Happy birthday!  Thanks for all the information you have shared.

[KmomChicago]

2 hours ago, mondello said:

And yet you still ended up winning a Ship on a Stick! 

A long time cruiser joined up on our team for a few games and he has literally hundreds of the things at home. We have one. This is our second. 

[KmomChicago]

Cucina tonight. Checked in around 6, table for 3 ready almost immediately. I got a birthday serenade and an extra tiramisu from the fine gentlemen serving our wonderful meal. Teen and I got the cured tuna app which looked like art and the farfalle with pistachio, i.e. the captain’s special for this ship. DH got Nonna’s meatball (just one meatball but phenomenal), chicken parm for main and everything was very good. We were out in maybe 40-45 minutes. Restaurant more than half empty. Service very very good. We got apple crostini, tiramisu and frozen lemon torte for dessert. All were nice.
 

I seriously recommend pre booking   Rudi’s and/or steakhouse from home for the first couple of nights if they are on your list, and then do Chibang, Cucina and the Smokehouse a bit later when the initial rush has settled down. We were in and out of all 3 quickly as well as Flamingo for YTD and enjoyed them all. We did not do Rudi’s and it sold out earlier in the cruise. You do have to prepay for your entire party. 
 

Probably Emeril’s tomorrow for an early supper last night of the cruise. 😢 LAST NIGHT??? Coming up tomorrow? We have neither funds nor time for all this B2B business I see others bragging about. We’ll be leaving the ship, or as Andy in the Punchliner says, buggering off, sometime Saturday morning unless an “unfortunate” tropical depression closes our home port for a day or so. 

[DanvilleCruiser]

Happy birthday Kmom.  I have been very much enjoying your post.

[KmomChicago]

Lot of Punchliner shows this week. 

[VaTech8912]

5 hours ago, pc2425 said:

That is exactly what I thought when I first saw pictures of the dining room!  Cafeteria.  I am not a fancy person so I don’t care but I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one ha

We went to Universal Studios in December and stayed at the Cabana Bay Hotel, reminds me of their dining room / cafeteria.  Agree, I do not need fancy, just seems so minimalist and bare.  I thought the same thing about the pool pictures.  I am used to umbrellas, trees, etc.  Loving the review and above will not change me sailing in Jan22.  

[stellarose]

no chia seed pudding on sea day brunch?????

[KmomChicago]

5 minutes ago, stellarose said:

no chia seed pudding on sea day brunch?????

Yes it’s on the menu but we haven’t tried it. I only posted 2 pages of the menu but there’s more. This is the same on all ships so I didn’t think anyone needed to see the whole menu here.

[kwokpot]

7 hours ago, KmomChicago said:

Street Eats.

The steamed sticky rice is as authentic Asian (many different Asian cuisines have steamed sticky rice with the ingredients differing) cuisine as you can get. I'm pretty amazed to see this on a Carnival ship. This is yet another example that the RARE FINDS section on the main dining room menu either needs to be retired or totally revamped.

[mondello]

4 hours ago, KmomChicago said:

 

Probably Emeril’s tomorrow for an early supper last night of the cruise. 😢 LAST NIGHT??? Coming up tomorrow? We have neither funds nor time for all this B2B business I see others bragging about. We’ll be leaving the ship, or as Andy in the Punchliner says, buggering off, sometime Saturday morning unless an “unfortunate” tropical depression closes our home port for a day or so. 

You have done a marvelous job sharing with us this week and I hope you had a wonderful birthday. I'm sure many of us would be happy to contribute so you could stay aboard another week. Don't ever sell yourself short. People may call us "fly over states" but, your mid-western values are a virtue.

[pc2425]

Thank you so much for sharing your birthday cruise with us!  We will be getting on when you leave so I was hanging on every word.  Thanks again!

[KmomChicago]

@mondello Thanks, that’s very kind. I’m actually needed back in my real life. I was called into a Teams meeting right in the middle of trivia yesterday which sort of jarred me out of vacation mode. (I have delegates in place and they took care of it). There’s a lot of work waiting at my day job and DH’s as well. 
 

Not really looking forward to the flight home or all the sweaty laundry but we have full, happy and busy lives to return to. It’s time and we’ll slide quickly into the usual groove.

 

And the teen starts sophomore year in a few days which is how we chose this particular week for the gamble of one single cruise reservation last November, on the dream and promise of a vaccine I believed in and the hope of time enough for it to prove successful, reach us and restore some normalcy to the world at large. I truly believe we may be the only people onboard who didn’t have a prior cruise booking canceled due to Covid. We are very lucky and still a little astonished it all worked out.

 

Will we ever pass this way again? We’re not really repeaters by nature. We have no further cruises booked or even under serious consideration. There are things we love about Carnival’s game changer and things we don’t, compared to prior cruises and to things we expect will be changed over the next year or so and on future Excel class ships. We are grateful to have been a part of this inaugural season. What a fun experience after the stress of the pandemic.

 

Our two favorite things about Carnival are the crew, who are so friendly and warm and encouraged to interact with the guests, and the casual atmosphere. You don’t have to be fancy to be welcome here. We have good jobs and good lives but we’re still the same people we always were and the Carnival vibe suits us and can be found on all their ships. 

We also like RCI and haven’t even tried NCL yet. We have nebulous ideas for our next two summer vacations and they are not cruises. So in all likelihood I will step off this truly incredible vessel for the last time about 24 hours from now with happy memories and then watch future passengers as they report their own experiences from these sparkling sunshine flooded decks, read about their joys and their complaints.

 

My favorites are the longtime cruisers who don’t actually recognize that they’ve reached the point of diminishing returns, where the novelty of this mode of vacation has worn off, little delights them anymore, and it’s all a big “never again” grumble about how it’s all gone to you know where in a handbasket.

 

Glad to occupy my little place here toward the front of the Mardi Gras veterans line. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️