Willdra’s Celestial Carnival Celebration May 28-June 4 Cruise Review

[willdra]

22 hours ago, josieallen said:

Imagine just imagine how excited I was to hop on CC and find my favorite story teller had started her review. Just got back from our cruise a couple of weeks ago and here I am riding along with you. Thank you for this. I’m in Heaven!!!

 

Thanks for riding with me! 😆

[HolySpearit]

Must be doing something right if we have been blessed with another wildra review! Following along, we’ll be in this cruise in about 2.5 months! 🤩

[willdra]

11 hours ago, matt082600 said:

Hi Willdra, I'm along for the ride!  Thanks for writing this review, its great so far!!!

 

Thank you so much for joining me! 😊

[willdra]

7 hours ago, wardwhitty said:

I love your reviews.  We have sailed the Celebration before and are sailing her again on September 17th.  I am so excited and your review is desperately needed to get in the Celebration spirit.

 

Welcome aboard! I wish we were sailing on her again next month! She's an outstanding ship! ❤️

[willdra]

6 hours ago, Sadebud said:

Loving another Willdra review!!  Great writings!!  Thank you for sharing your vakay with us!

 

Thanks for reading along! 😀

[willdra]

6 hours ago, notscb said:

Thank you for bringing us along 🙂

I honestly was a bit confused about that overhang covering your balcony, but once you posted photos underway it seems like a really great place to be on the ship. Did you like having the extra shade or would you have preferred a different location?

 

6 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

I was wondering the same thing😃

 

It's funny that you noticed that, because when I first walked out there, I couldn't figure out why that overhang was there. Then when we got off of the ship, I was able to see it from that pov, and it made sense. I actually loved it. It was very shady, dry, and it offered privacy from the deck above. All wins in my book. 

[willdra]

14 minutes ago, HolySpearit said:

Must be doing something right if we have been blessed with another wildra review! Following along, we’ll be in this cruise in about 2.5 months! 🤩

 

I'm jealous! You are gonna have an excellent time on her! 🤗

[willdra]

1st Sea Day

 

 

I’d set my alarm for 7am. You read that right. 7am. Back in our earlier cruising years, I would get up, go to the gym, then find a spot in Serenity to wait for W. No stress, and no stalking people to get a clamshell. Just get up and go with the flow. For this cruise, I planned to get up early, secure our seats, then have some me time, while I waited for my folks. That was the plan.

 

I initially woke up at 6:33. Didn’t love it. I fell asleep again until my alarm sounded. I turned it off then fell asleep yet again. Not a deep sleep, but more of a snooze. Listen to your body. Mine was saying "you’re old, and you need to rest your eyes". Welp my eyes were rested at 7:25. Not too bad. I was so proud of them. But now I had to set a new goal. This time it was "be out of the cabin by 8". I’d gotten my stuff ready before bed, which makes it easy to gather myself together in the morning. If I gotta search, then dig thru something, and/or make decisions in the morning, it takes 3 times as long for me to get ready. It’s such a process. It really shouldn’t be tho. Blah.

 

Anywho I got up and cleaned the parts of my body that mattered, and I was out of the cabin at 8:01. Right when I got to the overhang on the port side, I saw 4 loungers in the shade. There were lots of people out putting down towels, and there were already unattended towels on loungers. I'd made it just in time. Look at God. I setup the spot then sent a message to my peeps. W replied that he was on the way. Nothing yet from T and K. We all have iPhones so we can text each other in Airplane mode using Carnival WiFi while we are on the ship for no charge. Excuses for not replying were thus eliminated. However, still no answer. 

[willdra]

W came up around 8:30. We sat there a few minutes, then went down to Emeril's to eat. I set the timer on my phone, so we weren’t gone too long. We didn’t want to be rude by keeping chairs that we weren’t sitting in.

 

Emeril’s wasn’t busy at all. We walked right up and ordered our food. It's easier to stay out of the flow of traffic at Emeril's on Celebration. I also liked some of the other changes that they made, like where Alchemy was positioned. It's more spacious, and it really makes sense. Kinda like me. Ha! 

 

I ordered the Shrimp and Grits, Beignets, and a Latte. W got the Breakfast Po Boy and Americano.

 

Our food arrived almost as soon as we sat down. The Shrimp and Grits were out of this world good. I swear a single tear fell from my eye when I took that first bite. To add to the fabulousness, the food was piping hot and fresh. That made it a little harder to eat fast, but we managed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[momof3cruisers]

I am so excited that I finally figured out that this was a NEW review from you! And the timing is perfect. I’m at the Mayo Clinic this week with a friend whi is having a bunch of testing done. This is just what I needed for distraction and entertainment.

[willdra]

After inhaling our food, we went back to our seats. T and K were there when we got back. They had reservations to ride Bolt at 10. They were going early so K couldn’t chicken out. They left when we got back, and it seemed like they were only gone a few minutes. K said she was terrified the whole time (which is a big ole 2-3 minutes), and she was warning strangers by telling them not to ride if they have any fear of roller coasters. Strangers, don’t listen to her (unless of course there's a medical reason to avoid it).  She was happy that she overcame her fear for a few minutes to ride it (it's over in a flash).

 

We laid out a while, then W went to go run errands (ironing, reserving something or other, being W, and getting ice for his cup) and the rest of us stayed put. K gets restless when she’s not talking to new strangers, so she went and found people to talk to. We love that for her. A cruise is one of the best places to meet and talk to randoms. She was in her element. The rest of us were good where we were. Socializing takes effort and energy that none of the rest of us were in possession of.

 

 

Sometime during that day W and I realized our cabin was in a great spot, since we spend lots of time in Serenity. To get there, I walked down 1 flight of stairs, then turned left and walked straight into the cabin. What it wasn't good for was the fact that it was right there in that open space by the elevators and stairs. When we opened the cabin door, anyone waiting for an elevator, walking by, or hanging out by the stairs could see straight in. There’s no wall in front of it blocking the view. More than a few times we walked out, and people waiting for the elevator were staring dead at us or into the cabin. If it was 1 spot over to the left or right, it would be perfect. It wasn't a deal breaker, we just couldn't open the door before checking to see if we were potentially flashing someone (we cared about the retinas of our fellow cruisers). You're welcome.

 

[willdra]

We all took turns going to get foods as we got hungry. Life is difficult. When it was my turn, I went down to Street Eats. They had Philly Cheesesteak Fries, Pad Thai, and Spiced Beef Bao. I got the Philly Cheesesteak Fries which were wonderful.

 

 

 

 

When I got back and sat down, I noticed a lady laying in the sun on her stomach. Her shoulder was cooked. My first thought was "Ma'am you’re done." Well done. K wanted to go wake up the lady and tell her, but we urged her to mind the business that pays her. That lady was at the very least, 3 times grown (grown equals 18 years old), so when you do the math, this ain’t her first rodeo (or 2nd or 3rd). It took a couple minutes of convincing K but she did eventually drop it. Thankfully. If that lady wanted to live the life of a rotisserie chicken, who were we to deny her?

 

All of that talking K down made us hungry. Again. We got salads in Serenity at that Fresh Creations Bar before they closed. There’s usually a line but since we were close to it, we could tell when it was good to go. I love salads at home, but I sometimes forget to get them on the ship. I need to get my life together. I thought I did, but apparently it was indeed not together.

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

T and K left to take naps at 1:30. W went to find some water to submerge himself in. I read my book and checked the backs of my eyelids for cracks. I was so good at it, I didn’t even notice when someone came and took away the pile of dishes that W and I amassed. It was a pretty peaceful day (until it wasn’t) as I alternated between snoozing and reading.

 

Sometime around 3, a large family moved into the area. As expected, they were loud. Very loud. They were also intent on claiming every chair in the area for the invisible members of their party, who may or may not show up to sit there. This commotion had me instantly alert. I still can’t understand how Serenity means yell at each other back and forth over 8, yes 8, lounge chairs. This is the enemy of Serenity. People can literally talk loud in almost every other outside area on the ship. Why must they do it in Serenity? Lots of people who were in that area when it was quiet, got up and left. Good idea. 

[willdra]

We left around 3:45 to go to the Diamond event at 4, and I was even happier about it. We dropped off our bags and towels, cleaned up a little, then went down to meet T and K. Since W and I each could bring a guest, we brought them. Yes, I learned after the first one, that actually reading the invitation could be beneficial. They were there when we arrived.

 

The event was held in the Punchliner Club. We were greeted by Lee and other Senior Officers. When Lee saw me, he said “I like your hair. No, I really really love your hair”! Ok let me find out Lee is now my new BFF. I had to mentally take back everything unfavorable that I thought about him before. I’m so easy. The smallest compliment, and I'm suddenly goo. Ugghhh. Tell no one.

 

The club was not empty when we walked in. I couldn’t believe how many Diamond cruisers there were. People were still coming in too. It started off a little slow, then picked up. On the Celebration, it wasn’t a luncheon. It was basically the Diamond/Platinum VIFP Party. Servers brought by trays of hors d'oeuvres. Then we flagged down a server to bring us drinks. Well we actually waived down several servers, cuz the first one had all of the charisma of a wet paper towel. Just no. We quickly got another server's attention, and once we started tipping them, we had more drinks than hands. They just kept coming. Money talks. It says "all this can be yours, if you keep the beverages coming". 

 

Lee came over to where we were sitting again, and told me how much he liked my hair. He said every time he saw me on the cruise, he was going to tell me. Now he was about to have my head swelling up and thinking I was cute. Is that a bad thing? We chatted with him and several other crew members for a little bit. It was fun and again we thoroughly enjoyed it. Since the suits were really mingling, we were able to ask lots of questions, and get insight on upcoming projects. K had so much fun, T had to hold her hand and lead her back to their cabin afterwards. He was afraid that she would wander off and get lost, which was a strong possibility. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

W and I went back to the cabin to start getting ready for dinner after that. As soon as we walked in, I was instantly thrust into makeup decision mode. Will I wear makeup? Full beat or baby beat? How long do I have? How long do I need? Why is this so complicated?

 

I decided to go halfway, and do just enough to not look like a wildebeest. I put on my playlist, which also helps me keep track of time, then got to it. W was wrestling with his shirt and tie while I tried to fix this mug. At 6:40 I asked him to check us in to dinner. The wait time was 40-50 min. It stayed that way for about 20 minutes. We had to keep refreshing the app to get it to countdown. All in all it took around 45 minutes. Nobody died of hunger.

 

We walked downstairs and it was loco. People were in every available space in front of the Festivale Restaurant. We kept walking as far back as we could until we could see some sort of line. We asked the hostess if we were in the right place, and she said we were. That was the line for people with a table. As if on cue, the lady behind me said “I need a table number? I didn’t know that I needed a table number”. Girl. It’s literally printed on your Sail and Sign Card. This behavior makes me so sleepy. I am unable to can, therefor I can't.

 

We stood there trying not to listen to the confusion, while we waited for a hostess to show us to our table. W sent a message to T and K while we waited. They were seated already. I told him to see if they would come show us where the table was, cuz at this rate debarkation would be starting soon.

 

Eventually, we were escorted into the restaurant. The first elegant evening menu didn’t have the lobster tail. All of us ordered the Crab Cake and Filet Mignon. We had different desserts tho. I got Butter Pecan Ice Cream. Everything was top notch. That dinner didn't owe us a thing. However, I did owe the people at our surrounding tables an apology. We all laughed out loud a few times at our table. We had a great time, which may (or may not) have something to do with all of those drinks that we had early at the Diamond Gathering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

When dinner concluded, we ran back to our cabins to change. We were meeting back up for the Love and Marriage Show. W and I got to the theater before K and T, but not by much. As we were sitting, we saw a lot of kids in the theater, which was mildly concerning. Was there no Circle C or O2 event happening? Or nothing else for them to do on the whole ship?? Interesting. 

 

After Love and Marriage, W and I went to the 80’s Rock N Glow Party. T and K turned in. The lido was packed, and since Lee had just left the Love and Marriage the show, the party hadn’t started when we got there. We found a spot up on 17, then sang (screamed) our lungs out after it began. I was just getting over laryngitis from the Horizon cruise (don't judge me, I had a ball) but something told me that I was prolly not going to have a voice on Tuesday. Worth it. During the party DJ Cue came down again and break danced, and I lived.  

 

When the party was over, we just needed to walk forward on Deck 18, then go down 1 flight of stairs to the cabin. I laughed at W when he went to press the button for the elevator. He said that he forgot where we were for a sec. This isn't news, but W is my GPS. If he’s lost, then I’m lost lost and hopeless. Hugely. After the laughter, I got him collected and we made it back to the room.

 

Before I fell asleep, I said a prayer thanking God that I didn’t find any cracks in my eyelids when I was checking earlier. I don't know what I would do if I did find some. Is there some sort of surgery that fixes it, or can I just take a pill? I honestly don't know. I'm glad I don't have cracked eyelids. Just to be sure, I’m gonna check again. Many times. Many many times. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

37 minutes ago, momof3cruisers said:

I am so excited that I finally figured out that this was a NEW review from you! And the timing is perfect. I’m at the Mayo Clinic this week with a friend whi is having a bunch of testing done. This is just what I needed for distraction and entertainment.

 

I'm glad that you found me! Hopefully your friend's results are favorable! 🥰

[purpleally]

“Socializing takes effort and energy”. Nailed it!  Lol

[pirate4me2]

I agree with the socializing takes effort and energy....I am very much an introvert, and I always say that on my cruises I will be more social, and DH just laughs. It's hard!!

 

And I love those salads on Serenity!!! Yum. I can't wait to sail MG in a few weeks and have a few! 

[ninjacat123]

2 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

I agree with the socializing takes effort and energy....I am very much an introvert, and I always say that on my cruises I will be more social, and DH just laughs. It's hard!!

 

And I love those salads on Serenity!!! Yum. I can't wait to sail MG in a few weeks and have a few! 

I've heard of people being an "extroverted introvert" and I think I might fit there.  I can chit chat with anyone (whether they want me to or not😉) but I do enjoy a table for two with DH where I can chill while I eat dinner.

[willdra]

10 hours ago, purpleally said:

“Socializing takes effort and energy”. Nailed it!  Lol

LOL thanks! 😂 

[willdra]

2 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

I've heard of people being an "extroverted introvert" and I think I might fit there.  I can chit chat with anyone (whether they want me to or not😉) but I do enjoy a table for two with DH where I can chill while I eat dinner.

I’m pretty similar. I’m about 55% introverted and 45% extroverted. For me on a cruise, that typically means that I don’t mind talking to people, I’m just prolly not going to initiate conversations unless I have something really interesting to say. I also relish quiet time with W since I have to talk so much at work every day. 😊😊😊

[willdra]

5 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

I agree with the socializing takes effort and energy....I am very much an introvert, and I always say that on my cruises I will be more social, and DH just laughs. It's hard!!

 

And I love those salads on Serenity!!! Yum. I can't wait to sail MG in a few weeks and have a few! 

Yes those salads are delicious, and I’m more of a social butterfly in training! 😃😃🦋🦋😃😃

[mamiamjo]

Hello Willdra,

Just caught up on your trip report. Looks like a great time so far. I'm looking forward to reading about the rest of your cruise. 😊

[willdra]

3 hours ago, mamiamjo said:

Hello Willdra,

Just caught up on your trip report. Looks like a great time so far. I'm looking forward to reading about the rest of your cruise. 😊

 

Welcome aboard! 😁