Willdra's Heavenly Carnival Horizon Apr. 29-May 7 Cruise Review

[willdra]

12 hours ago, pcvtmom said:

Interesting...I guess the Diamond event must depend on the number of Diamond guests onboard.  We were on the Horizon June 10-18, and just had small bites and drinks, instead of the meal (which we had on the Miracle in January). I thought perhaps it varied by ships, but your Horizon luncheon disproves that theory! Oh well, we enjoyed it, nonetheless. ☺️ 

 

Fantastic review, as always!

 

Thank you! 😘 We had a completely different Diamond event experience on the Celebration after this one, so I was also wondering how they determined the menu and venue. We loved both parties tho, and we thanked Sweet Baby Jesus for allowing us to attend. 🤣

[willdra]

1 hour ago, Beagleluv6107 said:

Hooray Willdra is BACK!!!  I see you girl. You and W looking Fantastic! When I say my prayers tonight I'm gonna thank God ya'll survived the seedy Walmart and the shady gas station to bring us another great review!!! 😎

 

LOL! 🤣 Please and thank you! 🙏🏽

[willdra]

6 hours ago, Megan_Strick said:

OMG I literally just made a post saying I haven't seen you in a long time!

 

For reals???? That's so precious. Now I gotta go and find it! 🎉🎉🎉

[willdra]

2 hours ago, mistycruiser said:

It was a recent change, like the last couple of weeks or so, that the Diamond lunch is on hiatus and cocktail and appetizer parties are in except for Journeys cruises and European cruises.  Hope it's short lived and the luncheons return.

 

Ahhhh, this makes sense! That's why it was so different on the Celebration. Thanks for the 411. 😁

[willdra]

2nd Sea Day 

 

On Sea Day number 2 (brace yourselves, there are 4 Sea Days), W set his alarm for 10, and he woke me up around 10:08. He had gone to get coffee and returned to the cabin and I didn’t even know he’d left. I was worn slap out. Vacation is hard.

 

I got up and quickly got ready. Our wait time for Sea Day Brunch said 10 minutes. We’ve learned that 10 minutes could mean 15 or 20. Maybe the algorithm estimates that it should take only 10 minutes, but it’s possible that they could be short staffed or having issues, which the system can't account for. So what should take less than 10 really takes double that. I don’t know really. This is just something that I tell myself so I won’t get impatient and hangry.  Sometimes it works. Sometimes not so much.

 

About 20 minutes after we checked in, we got the notification. It said that our table was 2308. Unless something changed overnight there were no 4 digit table numbers in the dining room. We went anyway. We knew they would sort it out. They did. When we got there the hostess said it was table 308. Cool.

 

We sat down, our orders were taken quickly, and we got coffee right away. We also noticed that there was no more Equal on the table. Just Splenda and Sweet N Low. Way back when I was on Atkins, I read that if you use equal packets of different sweeteners it would taste just like sugar. Atkins was correct. W and I have been doing it for years (yes I know that every other year some new study says that artificial sweeteners will cause your head to spontaneously combust, but it hasn’t happened yet, and if it does, Jesus please be a fire extinguisher, and burn cream).

 

We have found that Equal and Sweet N Low work well together. As soon as we emptied the packets into our cups, we realized we didn’t have spoons. I know I've said this before, but why are there still no spoons on the table at breakfast or brunch? I get why there are no spoons at dinner. Unless there is soup or ice cream, one most likely will not need a spoon. But during brunch I looked around at all of the occupied tables near us, and at least 1 person was drinking coffee at every table. Also when they bring coffee, why doesn’t it also equal “They’re gonna need a spoon”? There's a disconnect there, and I need to know why. Nevertheless, we sat there stirring our coffee with a knife, looking like we need to lean on the everlasting arms, while nobody batted an eye. Maybe that's the new normal.

[willdra]

Back to brunch. I ordered the Skillet Cake, Scrambled Eggs with Cheddar, and soft Bacon(wishful thinking). W ordered Lox (no bagel), Toast, Bacon, and Eggs over easy. My Skillet Cake was good, the Bacon was crunchy but edible, and my Eggs were "what in the world is this?". They were just Scrambled Eggs (like the ones on the Lido buffet) with some microscopic cheese sprinkled on top. Uh no sir, and no ma’am. I don’t know about y’all, but when I say Scrambled Eggs with cheese, I want to be able to see and taste the cheese. I need to be able to see the high cholesterol. These eggs were filled with nothing but regret, remorse, and shame. Not cheese. I ate the Skillet Cake, then picked out the cheese-ish Egg parts and softer Bacon. Then I looked on the bright side. Maybe this was the universe's way of helping me lose a pound by not eating everything on my plate. Good plan universe. This was a much better theory. The universe knows. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

W and I chewed and talked about stuff. Having another couple along was wonderful for many reasons, even tho we weren’t together all of the time. After spending so much time talking to others, W and I had more to talk about when it was just the two of us again. We sat around so long after our meal, it was just awkward to keep sitting there, so we left to go find AG and BG. They’d sent a message earlier telling us that they were back on Deck 11. We strolled around up there, but didn’t see anywhere promising to sit, so we went up to Serenity. It was full full. Plus most of the seats up there were in the sun. I had no intentions of sitting around boiling like spaghetti water. Yucky.

 

Reluctantly, we walked back down to 11 cuz we saw a few possibles when we first passed thru. We got 2 chairs in the shade our second time around (thanks to my BFF Jesus). I went back to the cabin to utilize the facilities while W got us settled in. A word to the wise: don’t wait to go potty if you are in the "bladder danger zone", and using the elevators to get there is involved. I almost didn’t make it y’all. I had to sing "I'm a little teapot" in my head over and over to get me thru it. This body is 53 years old, and it couldn’t care less what else I have going on. It’s gonna do what it’s got to do when it has to do it. Enough said. Moving on. With the swiftness.

 

 

[willdra]

Once I got in, I took my time in the cabin cuz y’all know I relish those few minutes of solitude. After I was done, I sent W a message to see if he wanted anything. He didn’t, so I slid back out. I waited a long time (about 10 minutes) for an elevator again. When I got back to Deck 11, W had 4 chairs in the shade for all of us. AG and BG went to lunch, and they came to sit with us afterwards. We talked for awhile and caught up on each other’s current events. At 1:30, W’s food alarm rang to indicate that he needed to go to Mongolian Wok, which was located in Ji Ji’s Asian Kitchen during lunch time. I asked him to bring me back a bowl after he ate. I wasn't that hungry, and I definitely didn’t feel like going, so it was no rush. W likes to eat up there at the table like a civilized human. Deviant. 

 

We sat out for awhile enjoying the vibe, while people were being people. A group close to us was making random noise and annoying each other. BG was trying to sleep at that time, and when somebody made a really loud noise, he looked at me and said “can you please go fight them?” Beg your pardon sir? Uh uh. I'm not getting involved in that. Get somebody else to do it.

 

W returned later without my stir fry bowl. He brought me some lasagna from Cucina Del Capitano instead. For why? He said they have the bowls pre-made with the ingredients, and he didn’t care for any of them. He ended up eating at GBJ (going hungry was not an option), and he stopped to get me lasagna on his way back. Good thing I wasn't married to that Mongolian Wok idea, or I would've been disappointed. He was gone so long, I actually forgot about it. I appreciated that lasagna tho. It's one of my faves, cuz you know. The cheese. 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

Napping was futile, so BG got up and started listening to his AirPods. Until they died. I told him that he should use one at a time to prolong his listening time. Blank stare. He said "But when I take one out, the other one goes off". I told him not to put both of them in his ears together. If you leave one in the case, and put one in your ear, it will work. When that one dies, put it back in the case, and use the other one. He blinked rapidly a few times and said “why didn’t you tell me this earlier?” I just shook my head, and handed him my solar charger so that he could charge them back up. They charge pretty fast, so he was back up and running in no time. Balance was restored to the force. Temporarily.

 

Sitting out in the same place all day makes me really notice things that I wouldn’t normally even see. Take for instance the service doors on Deck 11. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them on any ship before, but since we were sitting out there we saw workers coming in and out the whole day. What were they doing? Was it serious? Should we be concerned? Later in the day, when the crowd thinned out, we saw them bring out a tarp, put it down on the ground, then paint a pole. Oh ok, they just do regular chores, but they wait until they are not in the guest's way. Carry on.

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

5 o’clock was the magic hour for AG and BG to go get ready for dinner. I went back to 7291 for more me time, and W went and got in the water, since it was still early for us. Back in the cabin I sat on the balcony for a little while finishing my notes. Then I decided to lay my baby hairs down with some edge gel and wrap them up. I read and drank wine until 6:30, when Fadil knocked on the door to bring W his ice bucket. Seriously? Why is it always me who has to be there to get it? And why do I always look like a deranged Easter Bunny when he knocks on the door? This has to change.

 

Conveniently, W came in a short while later (barely missing his ice bucket challenge), and we watched a free movie until it was time to get ready for the steakhouse at 9. That was very late to go to dinner, but we made it work. When W looked at all of the menus, he decided that Monday and Thursday nights would be our free steakhouse dinners. I didn’t even bother to look for myself. I trust W implicitly with food choices. No questions asked. 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

We showered and dressed. Then we left out, and got there right on time. Since it was so late, they were ready for us.  We placed our orders almost immediately after arrival. I had the Pork Belly, Surf and Turf, and Cheesecake. It was all great, and I highly recommend that steakhouse. The ambiance was ambiance-ing.

 

Halfway thru the meal, we got messages from AG and BG asking how we were doing. It was sweet that they were checking on us, and we appreciated it. W and I vowed that we would have to cruise with them again in the near future. We actually had this same cruise booked with them back in 2020, but it was canceled twice, and you know the rest. Even after all of that, I don't know why it took us this long to finally reschedule it. But I'm glad that we did.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

It was late after we ate, so when we were done, we went back to 7291. W contemplated going to the casino briefly, but he was tired and he just wanted to chillax in the cabin. That’s exactly what we did. It's hard work laying out all day eating, drinking, sleeping, and napping. Not for the weak.

 

Before I fell asleep, I said a prayer thanking God for the inventor of ebooks. To whomever it was who said " Yo, carrying 3 or 4 heavy books to read on vacation is not the gig. My back is angry. There has to be a better way", thank you from the bottom of my heart. Words cannot express how appreciative I am that we can read literally anywhere, and on almost any computer, phone, or tablet. I hope they have a special place in heaven with the softest pillows, no waiting for anything ever, and the best seats at the sporting events of their choice. Amen.

 

Random pics that we took on our way back to the cabin:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

Shut the front door and go out the back. This made my whole entire week!!! 🤣😂 😘

[willdra]

Steakhouse Menus

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[crazy4themouse]

12 hours ago, willdra said:

As soon as we emptied the packets into our cups, we realized we didn’t have spoons. I know I've said this before, but why are there still no spoons on the table at breakfast or brunch? I get why there are no spoons at dinner. Unless there is soup or ice cream, one most likely will not need a spoon. But during brunch I looked around at all of the occupied tables near us, and at least 1 person was drinking coffee at every table. Also when they bring coffee, why doesn’t it also equal “They’re gonna need a spoon”? There's a disconnect there, and I need to know why. Nevertheless, we sat there stirring our coffee with a knife, looking like we need to lean on the everlasting arms, while nobody batted an eye. Maybe that's the new normal.

 

This is why I love you, Willdra -- You ask the questions THAT NEED TO BE ASKED!!! 😄 Serious, why do they make me stare at my life-giving coffee longingly, but give me no spoon to stir it with?? 

 

[KP@Sea]

Yahooo!!!  Another vacay with Wildra and W!  I love your writing and your pics ⚓️

[purpleally]

Before I went to sleep I thanked God for creating Willdra and sending her on cruises

[willdra]

11 hours ago, crazy4themouse said:

 

This is why I love you, Willdra -- You ask the questions THAT NEED TO BE ASKED!!! 😄 Serious, why do they make me stare at my life-giving coffee longingly, but give me no spoon to stir it with?? 

 

 

I know right! This is pure agony! 🤣

[willdra]

4 hours ago, purpleally said:

Before I went to sleep I thanked God for creating Willdra and sending her on cruises

 

Thank you! I'm going to add this to my list of prayers! 🙏🏽

[willdra]

8 hours ago, KP@Sea said:

 

Yahooo!!!  Another vacay with Wildra and W!  I love your writing and your pics ⚓️

 

Thank you for hanging out with us! 😘

[willdra]

Aruba, Jamaica, ooh, I wanna take you to

Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty mama

Key Largo, Montego

Baby, why don't we go? (Ooh, I wanna take you down to Kokomo)

We'll get there fast

And then we'll take it slow

That's where we wanna go

Way down in Kokomo

 

 

If that song isn’t playing in your head when you get to Aruba, maybe we aren't cousins after all. JK everybody’s internal monologue isn’t as fabulous as mine.

 

W and I were doing the Kukoo Kunuku Open Air Bus and Beach Break excursion in Aruba. I picked the 10:30 slot, so we didn’t have to get up until 8:30. Upon waking, the first thing that I noticed was that W was gone, and Grumpy Snuffleupagus had replaced him sometime in the night. When GS is in the building, I just let him do his thing and eventually he will go away.

 

Since we got up early, we took our time getting ready. GS punished the restroom for a long time(I had to hold my breath to grab something outta there). He was about 50% back to himself after that. I still had to leave him alone a little while longer tho. Trust the process.

 

Story Time.  Before our cruise, I got some Chacos sandals cuz A and Z swear they’re better than the Tevas that I always wear. A also loves Tevas, but she says the Chacos are better. I’m not so sure of that yet. The Chacos are not really all that soft, and they have these curves in the back, I guess to keep your foot in place. So far I’m not a fan. Maybe they need to be broken in. I hate that they aren’t perfect right now cuz they weren’t cheap and I got 2 pairs of them. I’ll let y’all know later on if they get better. Right now, I a'int feeling it. Well actually I am feeling it, but it don’t feel good. 

 

[willdra]

GS and I went up to the Lido for breakfast around 9. In the hallway we saw a lady trying to find a way to swipe her Sail and Sign card to open her cabin door. It wasn’t working. She was also talking to the door saying “I’m going to figure this out”. No. No you're not. This is not Kroger. There's no swiper, and there isn’t a slot to put it in. I felt bad for her, but since I was back to minding the business that pays me(dealing with Grumpy Snuffleupagus), and I low (and high) key didn’t even know if that was her cabin, I kept walking, and said nothing. I think whomever was in the cabin eventually opened it and let her in. Poor lady.

 

 

The marketplace was not too busy. Grumpy got in the omelet line while I went up to Blue Iguana. I got my usual Huevos Rancheros (no huevos). The servers back there always look at me weird when I say “no huevos”. Then they say “are you sure?”. Yes. I’m positive. They were out of arepas, and they needed 10 minutes to make more. No problem I will come back. Tomorrow.

 

 

 

[tradewinds traveler]

I really enjoy your reviews, they are so entertaining. Thank you so much!

[willdra]

We actually sat up there eating and resting until about 10. That’s also when GS evaporated, and W returned. He wanted to go back to the cabin before we debarked, so we did that. We left the cabin, got down to security, and he realized that he left his wallet in the safe. This is the same person who gets annoyed when I ask if he has his wallet, keys, and phone before we go anywhere. Bless his heart. We went back up, got his stuff, then back down to exit the ship. Insert huge, almost painful, eye roll.

 

When we got outside, we looked for Carnival Excursion signs. We didn’t see any at first. There was a Carnival Rep standing by the door so we asked him and he pointed to the line we needed to be in. Once we got over there, we saw the excursion sign on the ground. Helpful. We got our wristbands, and tried not to melt while we were waiting to leave. That Caribbean sun was sunning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[bunnyette]

23 hours ago, willdra said:

It was late after we ate, so when we were done, we went back to 7291. W contemplated going to the casino briefly, but he was tired and he just wanted to chillax in the cabin. That’s exactly what we did. It's hard work laying out all day eating, drinking, sleeping, and napping. Not for the weak.

It’s your body catching up after working so hard, you get on a relaxing cruise and all you want to do is chillax!