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

[willdra]

There was a guy giving out free beer samples and providing some instructions at the entrance. We had no idea what he said. It was hard to hear and we were further in the back. We ended up just following everyone else in. From what I could tell, we could choose the beach or pool area to lounge in. We chose the beach. There were only a few chairs left out there. This is why we needed to be in the first group. By the time we got there, many of the best seats were taken. We found one lounge chair, then dragged it over to another single one that we found. Then we asked the guy setting up umbrellas to bring us one. He looked stressed when he asked how many we needed. I told him just one, and he said "ok I only have one left". Outstanding. He brought the umbrella over after he setup a few more that were before us. He had a drill that he used to dig the hole in the sand with and it was quite efficient. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that done before. Smart.

 

 Anywho, we got situated then W went to get in the water per usual. We ordered drinks right after 12 and one of the hosts came to tell us that the buffet was ready at about 12:13. Buffet? That must've been one of the announcements that we couldn’t hear. Even tho breakfast was 2 hours prior, I felt like I just ate, so I didn’t go to the buffet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

The mojito that I had was delicious. No cap, it was one of the best that I’ve ever had. No surprises there, since the House of Bacardi is right down the road. After I swallowed it all, I went to take some pictures of the area. I was glad I did because I discovered these little hot tubs (that were not hot) with couches around them, that were right behind us. Each section had a hot tub so there were maybe 4 or 5 of those. After I made my rounds I took some of my stuff over and got in one of the room temperature tubs. I sent my team my pics of the day, then quickly realized that I forgot that one of them was celebrating a birthday. I felt bad cuz I didn’t wish him a happy birthday before I started sending them my “look where I am and you’re not” pictures. I try to make all of their birthdays special, so I would have to take him something to make up for it.

 

I heard some commotion while I was texting my peeps. I looked up and a lady with a backpack and a suitcase rolled in, sat on one of the couches not too far from me, and started talking to someone on her phone. No big deal. She wasn't disturbing my peace. The only reason I noticed her was cuz I heard her suitcase rolling on the concrete walkway. Unusual at the beach. I returned to what I was doing, then a few minutes later, a guard came over and told her she had to leave. Apparently she snuck in without paying. He told her that she could only go to the restaurant or the brewery for free. I chuckled to myself when she gave him this confused look like she didn’t know she couldn’t be over there. His demeanor and tone told me that maybe he'd already told her this before. She looked like she was waiting her him to walk away and "trust" that she would go on her own. However, he had time that day, cuz he didn't budge. He waited for her to gather her life and roll on out of there. I didn't want any smoke with either of them, so I was just silently entertained while this unfolded in front of me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

W found me a little later and brought me a rum punch which was exactly what I needed. I stayed there until my alarm went off at 2:15. W alternated between there and the beach. Right when that rum punch kicked in, it was time to go. I loved the beach club, I was sad that we were leaving so early, and I would absolutely go back. W went exploring the Ocean Lab Brewery that was there as well. He had some beer and he bought a T-shirt which means he thoroughly enjoyed it. He’s not spending money on souvenirs unless it’s spectacular!

 

Pickup time was 2:30, but we still didn’t know anything else. When we got to the entrance there was just one big jumbled line. The big buses can’t fit in there, so they were loading up shuttles. We weren’t sure if we were in the right line but there really wasn’t anywhere else to go. I asked the tour guide from our bus, and she said it didn’t matter which bus/shuttle we chose. They were all going to the same place. Good to know. We waited our turn, then got in the line. We ended up on the same bus that brought us in.

 

 

 

[willdra]

When we got back to the port W wanted to check the price of Bacardi in the little Dufry shop in the terminal building. They had everything BUT Bacardi. That was one of the fastest shopping trips ever. We got right on the ship afterwards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

We dropped off bags then went to eat. I wanted Big Chicken, while W went to the deli. We agreed to meet in the Lido Marketplace seating area after we got the food. I got mine fast. There wasn’t a line, I just walked right up. There was only one other person there getting food. It took W a long time and I started to wonder what happened to him. He eventually made it up there, and I asked him what took him so long. He said it was extra peopley down there. I was glad I didn’t go. Especially when he looked at his sandwiches and realized they were wrong. He tried to eat some of it, but he quickly aborted that mission and went to get chicken strips from Big Chicken. While we were chewing, T and K sent a message saying they were going to Guy’s Pig and Anchor for early dinner, so they could catch that Most Magnificent Circus later. W and I weren’t pressed to see it, but we really wanted to take that opportunity to go to the steakhouse. The MDR menu was not one that we liked so this worked out perfectly. The only slightly bad part was that we could only get reservations for 9pm. Not the end of the world. We could get a snack if we got too hungry later.

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

Our next move was to check out Serenity. We did the pass thru and saw a couple of good options and 100 bad ones. I couldn’t help but wonder why there were so many sunny options but very few shady ones. We almost grabbed a seat, but a lady popped up and was like “Oh I was about to sit there, you can have this one tho”. First of all, you’re not sitting there until you have cheeks in the seat. And B. nobody wants your sweaty, leftover seat. We didn’t fight it, we just rolled our eyes and kept walking. There really wasn’t a breeze blowing over there, so she could keep that oven roasted area.

 

From there we just went back to our cabin. It was nice and cool in there. W was bored so he laid down. I needed to iron my dress for the evening, so I got it, and another dress and went down to the ironing room on Deck 15.

 

I lucked out and got an iron when I got there. There are 2 ironing boards, and one was occupied. The guy who was in there ironing,  didn’t hear me come in, and he jumped when he looked up and suddenly I was there. When his heartrate returned to normal, he started saying a lot of words. He began telling me how nice his suite was and how it was the best cabin he’s ever had. He’s in one of those suites that are on the corner of each side of our balcony. He said it was exceptional. I would have to take his word for it. One cruise in that suite prolly cost the same as 2 cruises in our balcony cabin. Nope. That math ain’t mathing for me.

 

I was done ironing in a couple of minutes, but the guy was still talking, so I passed the iron over my already ironed dress a few more times. They didn’t need pressing, just a little heat, that’s why I brought them. As soon as he paused, I bid him fare thee well and went back up to our cabin. There I found W in a coma. He was wiped all the way out. It didn’t take me anytime to join him. I yanked the curtain closed, snatched up my pillow blankey, then went in. I was asleep before my head hit the pillow. Whatever I did to deserve this, I must continue to do it as much as I can.

 

[willdra]

We woke up at 7, right as we were about to sail away. We sat out on our balcony to watch it because we would sail right by the fort on our side. We don’t ever get to spend enough time in San Juan, which is one of our favorite ports. Right then and there we decided that we will take the cruise that leaves from there again next year, if it’s on a good ship. A and Z said they wanted to do that trip again too so prayerfully we will all be able to redo it together.

 

8 o’clock pulled up before we knew it. W went in to shower while I sat out and caught up on my notes. This was a good time for that, it was very nice out still. It’s hard sometimes to balance my note taking with having fun and enjoying the moments of my vacay, but I do ok at both. The times when it’s just W and I are easy, when we are with another couple it’s way more difficult cuz we talk and hang out so much more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

So remember how at first I was all "Oh no, dinner isn’t until 9pm"?  Welp that rapidly morphed into "Sweet! Dinner isn’t until 9, so we don’t have to rush". After we washed the day off, W and I got to the  steakhouse a few minutes before 9. When we walked up, the host asked for our cabin number then he looked at W and said "oh never mind I got you, right this way". I don't know what that meant. I guess we stand out everywhere?

 

True to our norm, W and I already knew what we wanted. We wasted no time ordering. I got the Seven Seas Cocktail to start. If you go, get it, it’s great. For the food I ordered the Lobster Bisque, Filet Mignon, and Chocolate Sphere. As always it did not disappoint. We felt like we needed to be put on a cart and rolled out of there at the end.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

After that terrific meal we went back to the cabin to change a little. We were going to the Mega Deck Party out on the Lido so we had to get comfy. It started at 10:45, which didn’t give us a lot of time. When we got out there it was just beginning. About 10 minutes in, it started sprinkling. The rain was over quick so we stayed out. We danced to a few songs, then the bottom fell out of the sky. Those big, fat, huge raindrops started to fall. We ran back thru Serenity, and right down to our cabin. T and K had sent a message that they were going to the Comedy Showcase at 11.30, so we joined them. This show featured two new comedians that we hadn’t seen yet. They were both good. It only lasted 30 minutes and it was over quick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

I wanted hot water for tea, and since we were right on Deck 7, we went down to 6 to see if Java Café was an option. It was not. They’d turned off the coffee and hot water down there. Deck 8 was our next destination. I try not to go up there cuz it makes me want pizza. When we arrived, the line wasn’t even that long, but I stayed focused and just got my water and left. Yay me.

 

We stopped by the Havana Bar on the way back to get W a soda. After that we went back to the cabin and turned in.

 

Before I fell asleep I said a prayer thanking God for beaches. I thanked him that someone (maybe pirates?) decided that it would be ideal to sit out on the shore watching the waves. When that wasn’t enough, they said "let's do stuff in and on the water". Then as a flex, they decided to add chairs, umbrellas, drinks, and food to the mix. That was a boss move for real. Beaches are the best. God bless the (maybe) pirates. Arrgggh

 

 

Here are some random pictures and screenshots that I took cuz I don't know why:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pirate4me2]

Oh sheesh.....reading your experience at Cucina had my PTSD from our Cucina experience on Celebration in February pop up! It was a nightmare. We actually had someone fall asleep at our table because service took so long, and Chris (my DH) had to refill our waters. It was a total, epic failure.

 

I love Cornelius at Alchemy! We were not sure about him at first, but as we got to know him throughout the week I really started to like him. 

[mamiamjo]

I order the same exact thing as you did at the steakhouse 🙂

Now I'm hungry 😉

[Crusin Karen]

6 hours ago, mamiamjo said:

I order the same exact thing as you did at the steakhouse 🙂

Now I'm hungry 😉

I did too!!! That chocolate sphere….omg….

[Crusin Karen]

Yes!! Thank God for pirates. And Chris Columbus too! What a gorgeous ship.  I wish she’d come up to my home port of NY. The seven seas cocktail: is it available at any

of the other bars ? 

[willdra]

Sorry I didn't post today, but I will continue on tomorrow y'all. A and I went to see Beyonce on Monday, then W and I went to the Bengals/Falcons pre-season game tonight, so I am slightly behind schedule. Here are some of the pics from this week tho. 

 

 

This is the regular everyday (not on a cruise) me 😃

 

 

 

 

 

[rwest898]

I heard Queen Bee put on a fantastic show,  how did you like it?

[willdra]

Just now, rwest898 said:

I heard Queen Bee put on a fantastic show,  how did you like it?

 

She did!!! I loved it so much, I am looking at tickets to her NOLA show now to see if A and I can go see it again before it's done. It was sensational! 10 out of 10. Highly recommend! 🤗🤗😍

[starstruck05]

1 hour ago, willdra said:

 

She did!!! I loved it so much, I am looking at tickets to her NOLA show now to see if A and I can go see it again before it's done. It was sensational! 10 out of 10. Highly recommend! 🤗🤗😍

I'm waiting until the day of to try and grab cheap seats for Bey here in NOLA. I'm seeing Drake, a few days before here too. I'm normally silent on reviews but I had to pop in for this. 😉

[Indiansbaseball]

Oh Yay! Willdra is back! We are headed out soon for a B2B on Celebration ! Just enough to be even more excited but not so much to spoil the surprise! 
As usual, love your story telling style ! 
Jen 

[Rulers Mom]

Just caught up, great review so far! Looking forward to the rest. Love your look for Beyonce.