Crossing the Globe (Kind of) - A Pr1ma (Hopefully) Live'ish Adventure, 11/20 - 12/1

[mking8288]

Ooops - post, deleted 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 8, 2023 by mking8288

[cruiseny4life]

Almost done, y'all. I swear! I know everyone is sick of my cruise that ended ten days ago. Why do I go on and on? Well, because I promised you Tee Time content! So, here's Tee Time. We did, in fact have to pay $10 per person to golf nine holes. It was a very cool and windy evening as Pr1ma was just a few hours from docking in Manhattan. My husband had been asking when we were going to play the entire cruise. I wanted to, because I love mini golf, but I wasn't a fan of $10 per person. This trip cost a lot more than $10 per person, so who was I kidding. Of course we would play!

 

And Nov. 30th was the night. Here's what I did not like - it doesn't keep score the normal way. They use points and superhero shots and batman and avatar and all sorts of other fancy stuff. Ok, no batmans or avatar, but a lot of points that made no sense to me. Can't we just have a non-fancified mini golf? But, more upscale than Joy? We walked up to Joy's mini golf back in March and immediately turned around because of how pathetic it is. A happy medium please. Pr1ma ain't it, but it was still fun.

 

Here's a pictorial review as what can I really say about mini golf? 

 

Hole 1 - we both hit -10 on our strokes. In this case, a negative number is NOT good which was super confusing. 

 

 

I thought I took photos of every hole, but in reviewing these photos, I don't think I did. This was hole two, three, or four. We got both trivia questions wrong and again received negative points.

 

 

 

I guess old gays would call us bad gays since we got the Cher question wrong. But it's 2023. Who exactly is she? 

 

Hole three or four - MINI GOLF PLINKO. HECK YEA!!!! Except it didn't work out well for us. No extra points for us.

 

 

Hole five - you don't actually sing Karaoke. I'm ok with that, but it was kind of disappointed to have so much glitz and glamour and no music!

 

 

Moving on, I noticed a few pink ladies. I'm thinking they were a wee bit cold given the coastal NJ night we were having.

 

 

Hole 7 - nothing special here

 

 

Despite the breeze and cold weather, we maintained our dress code. And yes, this is how we entered the Haven Restaurant for din din on the last evening. Crocs and all!

 

 

Hole 8 - we ignored the photo part. Not sure where you get your picture. We just shared a kiss and moved on.

 

 

And Hole 9....not sure how, but if you do something that has to do with the blue screen, you get extra points. Neither of us did.

 

 

And the score. I came out on top! Still not really sure how as my husband definitely played a much better game of golf than I did. 

 

 

Tee Time was a nice one time thing. Definitely one and done. We won't be playing again. It will take up about 15 - 20 minutes of your day. With kids, longer. On a pleasant sea day where it's not 40 degrees and windy, maybe more. I'm glad we played. I'm glad I won. But, I'm doubtful we'd ever play it again. 

[ellenw]

6 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

And Nov. 30th was the night. Here's what I did not like - it doesn't keep score the normal way. They use points and superhero shots and batman and avatar and all sorts of other fancy stuff. Ok, no batmans or avatar, but a lot of points that made no sense to me. Can't we just have a non-fancified mini golf? But, more upscale than Joy? We walked up to Joy's mini golf back in March and immediately turned around because of how pathetic it is. A happy medium please. Pr1ma ain't it, but it was still fun.

Glad you had fun, but I'll take the boring Joy mini golf! Got creative on some of the holes.

[cruiseny4life]

10 hours ago, ellenw said:

Glad you had fun, but I'll take the boring Joy mini golf! Got creative on some of the holes.

Honestly, we probably should have golfed Joy's course. When we went up there were at least six or seven parties with little kids there. Given the size of the area and number of people, we chose to leave. If there hadn't been a lot of people around, I bet we would have had a good time on that top deck too! 

[cruiseny4life]

It's possible I'm bored at work and looking up cruises. I thought about making this a new post about the NCL website, but then realized no one really cares. So, to those that read this, two interesting tidbits:

 

1. The "Finish booking your cruise" email comes much quicker than it used to. A couple months ago, I'd get the email from NCL in the evening. Now, I receive it almost as soon as I close out of the browser.

2. Apparently NCL has abandoned the cruise detail pages when you add filters. If I just click on a random cruise from the main search page, I get the cruise details. If I click "View Cruise & Offers" after editing the filters to include the destination, Haven, etc. I get this lovely page:

 

 

Never fear though, I'm still able to access the "View Dates & Prices" section. I just can't see the description of the itinerary or ports. Oh well, I'm not serious about booking right now anyway. All the recent Alaska talk on Cruise Critic got me thinking about Alaska. Also, there are two affordable 10/11 day cruises on Joy as she leaves for, and returns from her dry dock. Alas, I think January and February are too soon to cruise again. That stupid real world!!

[laudergayle]

13 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

All the recent Alaska talk on Cruise Critic got me thinking about Alaska

YES!!  Consider Jewel May 13 Vancouver to Seward.  We can meet😊

[cruiseny4life]

17 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

YES!!  Consider Jewel May 13 Vancouver to Seward.  We can meet😊

We will definitely watch that one! Just looked at an aft-facing suite (not Haven, as no point on Jewel). $9,000, including airfare...we are planning a May vacation, BUT it's supposed to be a staycation where we do a bunch of work around the old estate.:-) A cruise sounds like more fun.

[Sugar Magnolia]

36 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

YES!!  Consider Jewel May 13 Vancouver to Seward.  We can meet😊

 

You will have a great time!

 

I was on the Jewel B2B this past May/June and very much enjoyed it. I opted for the B2B to cover all the ports and the glaciers, and also to avoid the very long flight back from Anchorage. 
 

[laudergayle]

33 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

We will definitely watch that one! Just looked at an aft-facing suite (not Haven, as no point on Jewel). $9,000, including airfare...we are planning a May vacation, BUT it's supposed to be a staycation where we do a bunch of work around the old estate.:-) A cruise sounds like more fun.

Well one can hope!!  Somehow, I think your staycation will get in the way of cruise fun.  $9000 can go a long way on the homestead.

[cruiseny4life]

Earlier, way earlier, I mentioned I would talk about our second day in Barcelona. I'm going to do a quick recap as this live really needs to have the dirt shoveled on it so that it takes its' irreverent place in the annals of Cruise Critic history. 

 

First, a walk through the art world of our hotel, Iberostar Selection Passeig de Gracia. Each level of the hotel had different artwork in the stairwells, all featuring beautiful animals painted on the walls. And, in the lobby, a 3D sculpture of an ostrich. Super cool and we never would have noticed this if we weren't stair people. If you're able, take the stairs. Sometimes they tell a cool story. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you did take the elevator, you would be able to view some sort of insect. Is it a scarab beetle? 

 

 

Enough of that! On to Barcelona! On this day, our first stop was the Barcelona History Museum to see the ancient Roman ruins. The museum has other exhibits, but frankly I didn't care. I was there for Roman Ruins! Ever since I saw someone's YouTube video about Barcelona I had wanted to stop by to see these. But, a treat before getting there. The Gothic Quarter is from the medieval era and is the oldest part of Barcelona. Plus, it has super narrow streets which make me happy. My arms were fluttering, I was making stupid joyous sounds, and my husband knew to leave me alone for a minute as I took in the magnificence of being in such a cool place! Who walked the streets before me? How much horse dung carpeted the streets when they were the primary mode? Who's chamber pots were emptied in the streets? What events happened here? Gosh! So many questions and I got to revel in all this. I'm a freaking lucky person to travel so broadly! 

 

 

 

 

I'm thinking we weren't totally welcomed by ALL the locals. 

 

 

Then we went in the museum. We did take a look at the exhibits which showed a comparison of modern day Barcelona to Barcelona through the ages. But, I really had to pee so this broke up the tour as bathrooms were near the ticket counter. Then, coming out of the bathroom, I saw a rock wall in the darkness. The pathway led to the Roman ruins. Yep, I was there! The rest of the museum didn't really matter to me now. I was here. In the Roman times. What?!?! Yes, I might have been excited. I'm even excited a few weeks later relaying this to you. So, without more text...here's some photos of the ruins!

 

This map shows what the Roman Barcelona looked like. The top right area is shaded in red. That is the area we would be seeing far beneath the City Museum. And, obviously, the red diamond is where I stood when taking the photo. 

 

 

 

 

 

Partly original stonework mosaic from the thermal baths.

 

 

Notice the base of these columns has the fancy stonework. Apparently this is how Romans built their pillars so they would be stronger than our "modern" ones with the fancy stonework on the top. 

 

 

 

Baptismal fount as we made our way into the church. 

 

 

After leaving the City Museum, my husband was dismayed to find that we had to walk through another protest. I guess I have a way of finding folks that are upset and/or rallying. My mom would have been upset and scared. She told my husband to keep me away from unsafe rallies. Well, y'all already know I watched one from Catalunya Plaza the night before and now we're just marching through a rally to get to the other side. Ooooopsie! We made it through unscathed. Just like the night before, they looked pretty safe to me. 

 

 

Really fancy hotel that we will never stay at as we're not wealthy. El Palace Hotel - it's only $400'ish a night. 

 

 

Close up of the fancy planters underneath the hotel's windows.

 

 

Just a random statue as we made our way to Barcelona's most hideous tourist trap.

 

 

And, there it is! 

 

 

As we walked back to our hotel from Sagrada Familia, we stopped by five places so I could try paella. One was closing shortly, two were closed, one was cash only. Finally we found Casa Amalia! 

 

 

Our neighbors had their little cherub with them.

 

 

An amuse bouche. The only thing I understood was that it is some type of tartare. It was really great! 

 

 

Here's the paella. It was good, but the rice was not quite cooked all the way. It wasn't crunchy, but was very chewy! 

 

 

A random building with a cool statue. I appreciate the greenery of the leaves and lovely little decorations, with such a fun sunsetting sky backdrop.

 

 

Well, that's a wrap on our time in Barcelona. It's a fabulously clean city, standing in stark contrast to any American city I've been in. There is so much history, culture, and green spaces to enjoy. Prior to this cruise, Barcelona wasn't on my list of European cities to visit. I have a few other places to get to, but can certainly imagine myself coming back to spend a week or two exploring all the neighborhoods of Barcelona. And, of course the mountains of Cruises are such a great introduction to beautiful places, but they're not my idea of a slow vacation. I very much appreciate being able to sit, stare, and just enjoy where I am. When cruising you have to move a lot quicker through ports, even if you're starting there. Oh, to be retired and have the luxury of time (kind of). 

[cruiseny4life]

On 12/8/2023 at 1:36 PM, vacation44 said:

Thank you for sharing more pictures and your commentary!

 

I noticed the chocolate covered pineapple and do not remember ever seeing those before.   

 

Also, if I was a betting person, I would bet you will be on another cruise sooner rather than later.    After all, you are now platinum.

We do specifically request the chocolate covered pineapples. I'm not sure how "special" a request it is, but do enjoy getting them once or twice per cruise.

[vacation44]

2 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

It's possible I'm bored at work and looking up cruises. I thought about making this a new post about the NCL website, but then realized no one really cares. So, to those that read this, two interesting tidbits:

 

1. The "Finish booking your cruise" email comes much quicker than it used to. A couple months ago, I'd get the email from NCL in the evening. Now, I receive it almost as soon as I close out of the browser.

2. Apparently NCL has abandoned the cruise detail pages when you add filters. If I just click on a random cruise from the main search page, I get the cruise details. If I click "View Cruise & Offers" after editing the filters to include the destination, Haven, etc. I get this lovely page:

 

 

Never fear though, I'm still able to access the "View Dates & Prices" section. I just can't see the description of the itinerary or ports. Oh well, I'm not serious about booking right now anyway. All the recent Alaska talk on Cruise Critic got me thinking about Alaska. Also, there are two affordable 10/11 day cruises on Joy as she leaves for, and returns from her dry dock. Alas, I think January and February are too soon to cruise again. That stupid real world!!

I have been finding the website more annoying than usual lately.    For me, I now have to log in and pretend I am going to book just to get the final price that includes the port charges.     I did clear my cache and that did not solve it.   

[cruiseny4life]

"Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are

the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom."

~Marcel Proust

 

My vacation would not have been nearly so rewarding, relaxing, and re-energizing if it had not been for the crew onboard Norwegian Pr1ma. The crew work tirelessly to ensure the best possible vacation for all onboard. And so, I must stop and say thank you to those that allowed my husband and I a great respite from the real world. 

 

Edy - a Haven Restaurant server who knew exactly what type of drink to get for us (I change my drinks up often, but he always was ready to suggest something new). He finally ensured the 13 shrimp came to my husband, that we had pretzel rolls. It was fun to talk to him about his time onboard and away from the ship. I'll spare the personal details, but we really enjoyed getting to know this guy. Away from work, I bet he's a real character (and I mean that in a fun way). Quick to smile and so joyful. Thank you!

 

Stefan - the Haven concierge made sure we had everything we needed and that the drain in our room worked properly. He helped us get all the perks of the Haven. Appreciate you, Stefan!

 

Rommel - one of the two Haven bartenders. His son and I share the same name. His daughter and son are looking forward to him coming home. He's supposed to leave Pr1ma this week. I hope he's able to make it for his 48 hour flight home. Thank you for taking a handwritten mocktail recipe and making several for my husband. Also, appreciate you making that smoky old fashioned for me. Yea, I was that customer! But at least the bar was somewhat quiet when I did it. 

 

Maria - what a great bartender. A great smile and made some phenomenal drinks I had never tried. I love that you can just tell Maria you want coconut and get something so yummy you wish you had tried it years ago. 

 

Jefferson - best butler we've had in the Haven. He made sure we had everything we needed. He was scheduled to fly home when we got to Bermuda. Obviously he didn't. He was quickly called back in to work. Never complaining, even though he should have been on his way home, he kept our vacation going. Everything we requested, we had and within minutes. Even a late night order of the beef tostada appetizer from the main dining room. I'm so happy Jefferson was there on Price is Right night. He found us two seats together in a packed theater. He also noticed we did not have nametags. Instead of telling us where to go, he jumped into action and got the nametags for us. 

 

Haven Restaurant Hostesses - I don't recall their names. I'm terrible. I bet they would still be able to call me by name if they saw me today. And I can't remember them. They knew to seat us with Edy, every single time. And, such a kind, graceful presence. 

 

Hudson's hostess - without complaining she spent five minutes securing the dinner menu for me. She was busy and I didn't realize she wouldn't have it right there. I told her it was ok that I would come back. Laiza/Liazo (I don't recall her spelling) made sure I was given the menu to make a decision for dinner. I know she got a lot of flack from customers on this sailing, but she was delightful to me! 

 

Sahil - restaurant manager in Food Republic and Indulge during the day. This guy works! He's a talented manager that can deal with grumpy passengers well. He also makes sure all his staff know what they should be doing and have what they need to do their job. He really made our meals in Food Republic memorable. 

 

I can't name her, but the PCC we use - thanks for booking us. Thanks for the call to see how the cruise was. I hope you're enjoying your cruise that you're on now! 

 

I'm sure I've forgotten some crew that made our adventure a joyous occasion. I'm sorry I've forgotten you. 

 

EDIT: And of course, a special thank you to all of you that followed along for one post or many. I know I'm opinionated, write very sloppily (see), and share irrelevant information. I appreciate all of you! 

 

Of course I'll still be here. You aren't able to get rid of me so quickly, but here is my final post from Norwegian Pr1ma's Transatlantic. A moonshot with lights visible from the east coast of North America as we sailed close to the New Jersey coast. 

 

Edited December 12, 2023 by cruiseny4life

[vacation44]

19 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

We do specifically request the chocolate covered pineapples. I'm not sure how "special" a request it is, but do enjoy getting them once or twice per cruise.

Have to remember that if and when we are in the Haven again with our young adult children as my son would love them.   

[quillwercruisers]

3 hours ago, laudergayle said:

YES!!  Consider Jewel May 13 Vancouver to Seward.  We can meet😊

We're on that one as well!!

[Sand and Seas]

1 hour ago, vacation44 said:

Have to remember that if and when we are in the Haven again with our young adult children as my son would love them.   

Yes, we first got chocolate covered pineapple from the Casino host.  Since then we have requested from our Haven butler.  It's delicious 😋

[laudergayle]

3 hours ago, quillwercruisers said:

We're on that one as well!!

Awesome!  I haven’t checked lately…but I hope someone is coordinating a M&G.  Looking forward to seeing you onboard!

Edited December 12, 2023 by laudergayle

[laudergayle]

 

All glorious moments much eventually end.  But, so does every good book.  Thank goodness for journals, diaries and, most importantly, photos.  Our memories only hold so much.  I was reminded of that after seeing your Roman aquaduct photos.  We were there…but I had totally forgotten.  Thank you for the memory.

 

Good books do eventually end, but it’s the Author you admire and follow.  Please don’t wait too long for your next Adventure Novelette.

 

Till then…Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones🥰

[Von & John]

Thanks for a fabulous review & finish!!!

It's been a few years since we've been to Barcelona & we truly enjoyed reliving through your eyes...

The cruise was amazing - during our transatlantic in 2019 we missed the Azores due to weather, we circled a couple of times & then continued across the ocean.
You are a great story teller you intermingle the facts & photos w/ the side notes, snarkiness, jokes & sarcasm...
Love it!

Happy Holidays from Talkeetna!

Cheers  --  Von & John

Edited December 25, 2023 by Von & John