Our Carnival Venezia B2B - 21 days of "Fun Italian Style" (with pics) - 9/23/23

[Jamman54]

The two finalists perform…..

 

 

 

 

 

By applause, the lady was declared the winner……

 

 

 

I went over to the Pergola Bar and got us some drinks. The next event is Horse Racing. The horses and their owners take the stage…..

 

 

 

 

This guy “lost” his horse so this bundle of garbage will fill in…..

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I’m in line to get our tickets. We bet $10 on the # 2 Horse…..

 

 

The track is six lanes wide and about fifteen spaces long to reach the finish line. They advance on the roll of the dice, which are in a cage which CD Joey will spin. He’ll then call out the numbers and the owners will move their horses accordingly…..

 

 

 

And they’re off! This is the view from Patti’s perch…..

 

 

The winner is # 6, the bundle of garbage!

 

 

 

  

I went and got our tickets for the second race. This time we bet $10 on the # 4 horse…..

 

 

On the way back I stopped at the Pergola Bar again and got us some more drinks……

 

 

This race Entertainment Director Gordon will be manning the dice….

 

 

 

The winner is Horse # 2!  It figures……

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Next up is the Ping Pong Ball Bathing Suit Challenge. The object is to stuff as many ping pong balls into your bathing suit in thirty seconds….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Here are some more of the Ping Pong Ball Bathing Suit Challenge. The guy in the t-shirt won by a wide margin. I wonder why…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next up was the Aqua Frog racing. This was like watching paint dry so we left before the end…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Patti was going to go back to the cabin, but I was hungry so I went to get some Asian food at the Seafood Shack. I took my plate over to the Burano Bar and ordered a Thirsty Frog Wheat to wash it down…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before heading back to the cabin, Patti stopped at the Gondola Lounge to watch Dance Instructors Tom and Jo teach the Foxtrot…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[pe4all]

Ah - those were the good old throwback days!  Loved seeing the horse racing brought back -my kids used to be the "jockeys" back then- and the bingo with the ball cage- again my kids used to be called up to check the balls and got rewarded with a ship on a stick. 

[TravelGirlinDallas]

13 hours ago, Jamman54 said:

Today we’ll go back to 1987 to participate in and watch activities that are no longer done on today’s cruises. I would be more impressed if they rolled back the bar prices back to 1987. Just saying.

No kidding!! 😂

[White123]

Such a wonderful review.  Enjoying it immensely

 

[Jamman54]

1 hour ago, White123 said:

Such a wonderful review.  Enjoying it immensely

 

Thanks for reading, glad to have you aboard! 😊

[fair-winds39]

Loved the horse races. We always bought/bid on a horse when they had the races. Our last horse, “Buddy Weiser” was the KentuckyDerby winner on one of our cruises. It was a lot of fun.

[natefish95]

I just got off the Venezia today after 12 incredible days and have finally caught up with your review. 

 

First things first, Zora is AMAZING. The Amari bar was always so much fun with lots of laughs and people watching. Alejandro and Jelena were also great alchemists! Andrea at Frizzante was another great bartender as well! 

 

Bonsai Teppenyaki was delicious and more entertaining than my experience on NCL. Regarding the MDR, I went about 7 of the 12 nights between 5:30-6:00 for Any Time Dining in the Canal Grande restaurant and only had superrrrrr slow service once. Overall the food was good, nothing was amazing but nothing was terrible. 

 

We had about 12 different comedians on our sailing. Alex Elkin was in the first batch and seemed to be the most well-liked. Mark Simmons was one of the last ones and he was AWFUL. He pitched a fit at Frizzante because he couldn't get a drink when it was too early. I saw him a few times around and he was always in a bad mood and complaining. 

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

[Jamman54]

2 hours ago, natefish95 said:

I just got off the Venezia today after 12 incredible days and have finally caught up with your review. 

 

First things first, Zora is AMAZING. The Amari bar was always so much fun with lots of laughs and people watching. Alejandro and Jelena were also great alchemists! Andrea at Frizzante was another great bartender as well! 

 

Bonsai Teppenyaki was delicious and more entertaining than my experience on NCL. Regarding the MDR, I went about 7 of the 12 nights between 5:30-6:00 for Any Time Dining in the Canal Grande restaurant and only had superrrrrr slow service once. Overall the food was good, nothing was amazing but nothing was terrible. 

 

We had about 12 different comedians on our sailing. Alex Elkin was in the first batch and seemed to be the most well-liked. Mark Simmons was one of the last ones and he was AWFUL. He pitched a fit at Frizzante because he couldn't get a drink when it was too early. I saw him a few times around and he was always in a bad mood and complaining. 

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

It seems like you had a great cruise. She is a beautiful ship, and the crew are amazing! 

[Jamman54]

Patti has made it back to the cabin and I joined her a short time later. Here is today’s towel animal…..

 

 

We flip to the Map Channel so we can see where we’ve been and where we’re going…..

 

 

 

 

We hang out in the cabin relaxing until it is time to head to the Teatro Rosso for the Captain’s Cocktail Party. This party is for everyone on the ship, and the drinks were flowing. The Venezia Show Band and singers entertained us…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Cruise Director Joey introduces Captain Crescenzo or Captain Enzo as he likes to be called, and he addresses the gathering……

 

 

 

 

 

 

Captain Crescenzo introduces the Senior Staff and Officers……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Captain Enzo makes Joey strut his stuff......

 

 

 

The whole party lasted about forty-five minutes.

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Tonight is the Captain’s Gala Dinner, and even though the menu is awesome, it’s not enough to entice us back to the MDR. We decide to head back to Bonsai Sushi, and because it is a slow night here, the Chefs are happy to see us……

 

 

Patti had her usual meal of green salad, edamame, and California roll…..

 

 

 

 

 

I had my sake sangria, miso soup, bang-bang rolls, and chicken & beef skewers…….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a wonderful meal with great service as usual!

 

To be continued……..

[Jamman54]

Afterward, we went across the aisle to the Amari Bar where Zora set Patti up with a choclatini, and a raspberry martini for me…..

 

 

 

 

We then went to the Teatro Rosso to see the juggling of Charles Peachock. He is known for being the only juggler in Americas Got Talent history to make it to the quarterfinals before being eliminated. We really enjoyed his show. Here are some views……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Here are some more views of Charles Peachock’s show……

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Afterwards, we went back to the cabin for the night. Goodnight!

 

Coming up next: It’s the first of four straight port days. A beautiful day in Barbados!  

[Princess Cruiser27]

Dang, I must be getting old if I remember the Horse Racing and the Ping Pong Balls. 😱 I don't remeber the frogs though. Did they do the Hairy Chest Contest?

[Jamman54]

16 minutes ago, Princess Cruiser27 said:

Dang, I must be getting old if I remember the Horse Racing and the Ping Pong Balls. 😱 I don't remeber the frogs though. Did they do the Hairy Chest Contest?

Nope, no hairy chest contest, no male nightgown contest, no pillow fighting, no beer drinking contest, in other words, none of the good stuff! 

[Indiansbaseball]

Still loving your review ! I love the jugglers ! Have you ever seen Manny Zuniga ? He was amazing in 2017 on Fascination. Ship was really rocking and he nailed it all…even the swords 😳 Looking forward to Barbados, one of my very favorite ports ! 
Jen 

[TxTeach79]

1 hour ago, Indiansbaseball said:

Still loving your review ! I love the jugglers ! Have you ever seen Manny Zuniga ? He was amazing in 2017 on Fascination. Ship was really rocking and he nailed it all…even the swords 😳 Looking forward to Barbados, one of my very favorite ports ! 
Jen 

 

Holy cow. I saw Manny Zuniga on Ecstasy in 1993. What a career!

[Jamman54]

1 hour ago, Indiansbaseball said:

Still loving your review ! I love the jugglers ! Have you ever seen Manny Zuniga ? He was amazing in 2017 on Fascination. Ship was really rocking and he nailed it all…even the swords 😳 Looking forward to Barbados, one of my very favorite ports ! 
Jen 

 

22 minutes ago, TxTeach79 said:

 

Holy cow. I saw Manny Zuniga on Ecstasy in 1993. What a career!

We saw Manny Zuniga many many times over a lot of years. Great performer! Going to start posting our day in Barbados Now! 

[Jamman54]

Day # 15  -  10/07/23  -  Bridgetown, Barbados  (8am – 4pm).

 

We were up to hot and sunny day as the Carnival Venezia approached Bridgetown, Barbados…..

 

 

 

 

 

We are excited about our visit to Barbados today. Patti has never been here, and the last time and only time I was here was 36 years ago……

 

 

The people of Bridgetown, Barbados are also happy that we are here since this is the first ship call since April. The season here runs from November through April, and there will only one more ship call here in October. The Venezia will be back here in November.

 

That explains why Carnival’s shore excursions for Barbados weren’t added to the website until just weeks before this cruise sailed, none of which interested us. Even the independent shore excursion sites had limited excursions, and again, nothing intrigued us. Checking out the Port of Call boards it seemed that the Boatyard would be a good place to go, so that’s where we are headed today.

 

The cost of the Boatyard is $35 /pp and includes a welcome drink, two loungers and an umbrella, and the ride back to the ship. All other food and drinks is extra. Sounds good to us!

 

Here are today’s Fun Times…….

 

 

 

 

Patti and I head up to the Lido to have some breakfast and pick up our beach towels, since Edy never replaced the ones we used in Grand Turk. Looks like the morning stretch is taking place……

 

 

I grab my coffee from the Java Blue Café, and we hang out with the gang for a little bit. Thanks to CC member Gail for taking this picture…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

We head over to the Lido Marketplace for a little breakfast. Here are my and Patti’s plates…..

 

 

 

We head back to the cabin to pack our beach bags and wait for the ship to be cleared to debark. Here’s where the Map Channel says we are…..

 

 

 

 

Here are a few views from our balcony…..

 

 

 

 

We are off the ship at 8:15am. There is a steel drum band playing on the pier….

 

 

We have to walk through the terminal to get to the taxi stand…..

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

There are a ton of taxis available and ready to go. The taxi rates are very reasonable…..

 

 

 

 

We are the first in our taxi. Of course they will fill it up before we leave, but at least I have some leg room…..

 

 

 

You would think that they would load each taxi with people going to the same destination, but no, we wound up with a half hour tour of the town before we finally reached the Boatyard…..

 

 

 

 

Immediately I knew that this was my kind of place……

 

 

 

 

To be continued…..