LIVE from the Carnival Mardi Gras April 6th-13th

[GothOnAShip]

2 hours ago, mamiamjo said:

Hopefully you won't be hearing them running up and down the halls while you're trying to sleep 😉

So far really well behaved kids this week! Maybe we got lucky! 

[GothOnAShip]

Wheeeee!!!!!

[GothOnAShip]

Cheers! Count for those of the People’s Republic of Cruise Critic who are interested:

1 fountain soda $3.25

2 canned sodas…$3.25 each

1 milk shake… $6.75

another fountain soda.. $3.25

bellini.. $10.75

6 seltzers… $7.75 each

 

Mr. Goth drank literally the same thing. 

[IntrepidFromDC]

16 hours ago, GothOnAShip said:

... unpopular opinion, but I love cruise ships filled with kids. They’re cute and you get to over hear the funniest things such as a couple trying to get a small child hyped for a magic show, but he was having none of it and just wanted to ride the elevator. 
 

😄😅😂🤣

 

Totally agree!  Seuss Parade with the kids chanting "Dr. Seuss is on the loose!" all seriously marching, etc. is always a highlight of my cruise!

[GothOnAShip]

After dinner last night, we went to go see M Theory. It was really cool. One trick didn’t work because the audience volunteer was WAY too drunk for it, lol. Ahh well, that’s part of the fun of live shows. 
 

Then we stopped my the Fortune Teller to listen to Morgan and her guitar. She’s incredible. She has a very unique voice and it’s incredible. I loved her performance. I’ll have to go check out more. 
 

When Morgan’s set ended, we migrated to the Piano Bar. We listened to Brad, who was as entertaining as ever, and drank like six Truly seltzers in about an hour. At about 12:45, we divided to leave the Piano Bar and go check out the late night snacks. I had chicken fingers, Black Forest cake and a cookie. I’m sure it wasn’t the most amazing food I ever ate, but the target audience for that has typically reached a certain level of inebriation, and for us it served its purpose. 
 

Then we went back to our room and drank water while we watched a show I downloaded to my iPad at the recommendation of one of my middle school students. I wasn’t really expecting to enjoy it, given the source of the recommendation, but it was actually really good. 
 

Now it’s almost noon. We’ve just been hanging out in the cabin this morning. It’s another sea day. We might go get some Big Chicken soon. There’s an animal trivia at 2, and Mr. Goth knows an amazing amount about animals, so we might go check that out. Then we might start the Mr. And Mrs Goth Olympics (best two out of three with games we find around the ship). I’ll keep you posted! 

[GothOnAShip]

6 minutes ago, IntrepidFromDC said:

😄😅😂🤣

 

Totally agree!  Seuss Parade with the kids chanting "Dr. Seuss is on the loose!" all seriously marching, etc. is always a highlight of my cruise!

I didn’t even know about that, but I’m going to have to find out when that’s happening and go watch. That sounds adorable!!!! 🥰 

[gatorchinsky]

23 hours ago, GothOnAShip said:

So we went to get tacos at Blue Iguana. The line was long, but moved quickly. The tacos were amazing. 

Then we went down to the Grand View bar to get a strawberry daiquiri. The blender wasn’t working, so we went to Java Blue and got black and white (chocolate and vanilla) milkshakes instead. They were delicious. Nice job Java Blue.

 

We brought our own straws, but wanted to try the candy ones just for fun. As candy they’re great, but I see how they may not be the most functional straw. With future milkshakes (of which there will likely be many), I’ll probably take the straw still wrapped and eat it separately. 
 

We went to watch family feud auditions, which was fun. All the families did a great job. It was also the first we had seen of cruise director, TJ, since we skipped the sail away party. He seems nice and very entertaining. He seems to take a little more of a backseat than our previous cruise director, Kendall Fire, but that lets some of the other fun squad members shine, which is also nice. 
 

Then we did super hero trivia. We got 18 out of 20, but they had the wrong answer for one question. Oh well, no biggie. It was still fun.

 

We came back to find this friend.

 

We’re going to get ready for dinner. It’s formal night. We’re going to try Cucina tonight. We definitely want to see the magic show tonight. Maybe we’ll catch part of Celestial Strings as well if the timing with dinner works out. 

Just wanted to know if people dress up for formal night when eating at Cucina? Haven’t sailed with Carnival in years and was curious.

[ninjacat123]

2 minutes ago, gatorchinsky said:

Just wanted to know if people dress up for formal night when eating at Cucina? Haven’t sailed with Carnival in years and was curious.

I usually dress up for Elegant Night so we can take pics before dinner. Then if we were going to Cucina, that's what I would wear. If we were going to comedy or a show after dinner, we would probably stop off at our room and change into casual clothes. If you're not doing pics then I guess you would wear whatever you would usually wear to a restaurant for dinner.  Have a great cruise!!

[gatorchinsky]

9 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

I usually dress up for Elegant Night so we can take pics before dinner. Then if we were going to Cucina, that's what I would wear. If we were going to comedy or a show after dinner, we would probably stop off at our room and change into casual clothes. If you're not doing pics then I guess you would wear whatever you would usually wear to a restaurant for dinner.  Have a great cruise!!

Thanks! I know people love to dress up and I love to see what others are wearing, but we just don’t want to bother anymore.

[GothOnAShip]

22 minutes ago, gatorchinsky said:

Just wanted to know if people dress up for formal night when eating at Cucina? Haven’t sailed with Carnival in years and was curious.

Some people were dressed up. We went with a little more dressed up (I wore a casual dress and leggings and Mr. Goth wore a collared shirt but not a button up). There were a few long gowns and tuxes there though, but not everyone was dressed up. There were shorts and t-shirts too. 

[GothOnAShip]

We went to Shaq’s for lunch. I got the Big Aristotle, which was amazing. Mr. Goth did the Shaq Attack, which he said was also amazing.

 

Then we wandered around for a while and decided to go to swirls because we didn’t want to commit to a whole milkshake. Swirls was a perfect happy medium. 
 

Animals trivia turned out to be 80’s trivia, even better! We got 20 out of 25 points, not bad for having been born in the last few months of the 80’s. 
 

We came back to the room and found a new friend.

 

 We don’t know what he is, but he’s saucy and we like it. We haven’t named him yet, so good people of the People’s Republic of Cruise Critic, if you have a name suggestion, we’d love to hear it. 
 

I had some work to finish up, so I did some of that. Now we’re thinking about dinner. The dining rooms are all crazy busy, so maybe we’ll go to Emeril’s. Then Loving Vegas and Family Feud. Should be a great night! 

[GothOnAShip]

Feel like I just found the biggest cruise hack! We went to Emeril’s for dinner. It was great! We both did the duck and andouille gumbo. It was fantastic. It came with a potato salad that I didn’t like, but I don’t really like potato salad anyways, so I’m sure it was fine. My not liking it was more of a user error than anything else. Mr. Goth liked it and happily ate mine. 

THEN…. We went to the main dining room and waited like 5 mins for a table because it was well after 8. We ordered dessert (and strawberry daiquiris). We each got the melting cake, which was so wonderful. We were in and out in 20 minutes and the service was great. 
 

Now for family feud! 

[haehaehaley]

31 minutes ago, GothOnAShip said:

Feel like I just found the biggest cruise hack! We went to Emeril’s for dinner. It was great! We both did the duck and andouille gumbo. It was fantastic. It came with a potato salad that I didn’t like, but I don’t really like potato salad anyways, so I’m sure it was fine. My not liking it was more of a user error than anything else. Mr. Goth liked it and happily ate mine. 

THEN…. We went to the main dining room and waited like 5 mins for a table because it was well after 8. We ordered dessert (and strawberry daiquiris). We each got the melting cake, which was so wonderful. We were in and out in 20 minutes and the service was great. 
 

Now for family feud! 

This is great to know! We will be in the Mardi Gras April 20 and the chocolate melting cake is my favorite dessert but I’m disappointed it’s not in any of the other restaurants. I’ll definitely be going to have one at the MDR after any specialty dining! 

[GothOnAShip]

1 hour ago, haehaehaley said:

This is great to know! We will be in the Mardi Gras April 20 and the chocolate melting cake is my favorite dessert but I’m disappointed it’s not in any of the other restaurants. I’ll definitely be going to have one at the MDR after any specialty dining! 

We also saw people carrying them out for later. I’m not sure how they would be several hours later, but it’s probably worth a try. 

[Elaine5715]

On 4/6/2024 at 2:49 PM, GothOnAShip said:

On the ship!!! Embarkation was so easy. I was going to live that process but we didn’t stop moving. Ray at check in table 32 was very personable and friendly! Went directly to the muster station on deck 8 in the Palm Dining Room and it took about 2 minutes. We walked up the stairs to deck 10. Elevators were empty, but we’re planning to eat a lot this cruise and hoping taking the stairs will offset some of that. Then we dropped things off in our room and picked up our sail and sign cards. Made it all the way to red card status, which I’m embarrassingly excited about. 
 

We went to Pig and Anchor for lunch. I got pulled pork, sausage and Mac and cheese with a blackberry homemade lemonade. All delicious. 

Returned to the room so I could call my parents and let them know we made it here.

 

Super fun surprise… we were on this ship for our first cruise about a year ago and we had a balcony room that we liked a lot. I booked in pretty much the same area of the boat, just a few doors down and the balcony is like triple the size. Did it grow? No judgement Mr. Balcony. If I were on this ship for a year, I’d triple in size too. 

 

We’re going to go explore the ship and maybe get a drink. We’re eating at teppanyaki tonight! So excited! 
 

Here’s a picture of our first look at the ship… not a great picture, but an exciting one!

I call those the bump balconies.  Had two so far and 3 more upcoming

[Elaine5715]

On 4/7/2024 at 12:39 PM, ninjacat123 said:

So you two don't gamble but you got this RU4 promo.  Nice!!

RU4 isn't a casino offer

[Elaine5715]

2 hours ago, GothOnAShip said:

Feel like I just found the biggest cruise hack! We went to Emeril’s for dinner. It was great! We both did the duck and andouille gumbo. It was fantastic. It came with a potato salad that I didn’t like, but I don’t really like potato salad anyways, so I’m sure it was fine. My not liking it was more of a user error than anything else. Mr. Goth liked it and happily ate mine. 

THEN…. We went to the main dining room and waited like 5 mins for a table because it was well after 8. We ordered dessert (and strawberry daiquiris). We each got the melting cake, which was so wonderful. We were in and out in 20 minutes and the service was great. 
 

Now for family feud! 

Emeril's is also great for coffees in the morning

[GothOnAShip]

Hi there People’s Republic of Cruise Critic,

 

I am, again, intoxicated, so here what I remember. We went to two Family Feuds. The PG-13 and the “spicy” one. The winning family in the “spicy” one won, and that was exciting! 
 

Between the shows and after we went to the piano bar. Brad was excellent. He always is. The bar staff was also amazing. They always are. 
 

Then we got pizza. A fight almost broke out in line between a mother and daughter. I teach middle school and I admire the patience that Carnival security staff brings with them to the job. Pizza was good though. 
 

Cheers! Count for those that are keeping track (A.K.A… me):

1 fountain soda.., $3.25

2 canned sodas… $3.25 each

3 strawberry daiquiris… $12.75 each

3 trulys…. $7.75 each

1 large water… $4.50

 

Mr. Goth:

1 fountain soda.. $3.25

2 canned soda…$3.25 each

2 strawberry daiquiris.. $12.75 each

3 trulys… $7.75 each

 

Tomorrow… San Juan. We’ll be staying on the boat and going to the virtually empty pools and pretty much enjoying the empty ship. 

[Robpuffdaddy]

Had several of those on my last cruise.  They are great.

[Knights on the Beach]

Your strawberry daquiris are taking me back to my younger days! I've had a couple Miami Vices over the course of our past several cruises but no strawberry daquiris in years. You've inspired me to change that in a few days! 🍹

[GothOnAShip]

We were in San Juan today. It was raining for about an hour this morning, but it's been cloudy and overcast all day. Our plan was not to get off the ship since we've been to San Juan may times as it's a quick flight from Orlando. 

 

We got breakfast. We both got veggie omelets with cheddar cheese. They were excellent, but I left my phone in the room, so no pictures. Then we walked around to find the most empty pool. Given that it was a port day and not sunny, it was all of them.  I grabbed a breakfast ice cream cone and we went to get ready for the pool. We chose the Serenity pool since there were a lot of chairs under covered areas in case it rained. The weather was perfect for those of us with a complexion that could get sunburnt watching the travel channel. 

 

We sat by the pool and read our books and drank strawberry daiquiris. I realized how much the candy straw adds to the drink when I tried to use my own straw and it wasn't as good. We stayed there for a few hours and then went to get changed. We went to street eats for lunch. They were doing bugloi beef at Mad Sizzle. It was really, really good. Then I went back to swirls for a lunch ice cream cone.

 

Now we're going to watch sail away from San Juan from the balcony. Love and Marriage is tonight. I'm sure we'll find our way to the piano bar. I see more strawberry daiquiris in my future. 

[EL Pitman]

Breakfast Ice Cream Cone!!!  HAHAHAHAHAHHAA  I told my hubby about this and he says you are a woman after his own heart!  He gets a cone every time we pass a Swirls.  Sometimes I think he purposely takes the long way around to pass one!  NOW I'll have to deal with breakfast cones!!!

[GothOnAShip]

Question for the People’s Republic of Cruise Critic,

 

I’m fairly new to cruising and I’m wondering if I missed something as far as etiquette is concerned. I have been approached three times tonight with people complaining about my “devil pants.” They cover everything, which doesn’t seem to be a requirement, but they do. It’s just the print that seems to be an issue for some. This is what they look like all over:

 

I don’t want to be the thing that makes anyone uncomfortable, but I have a hard time imagining that my pants are truly crossing that line, given what I’ve observed others wearing. Opinions? Are people just being ridiculous or am I breaking some sort of unwritten cruise rule? 

[Frank12]

11 minutes ago, GothOnAShip said:

Question for the People’s Republic of Cruise Critic,

 

I’m fairly new to cruising and I’m wondering if I missed something as far as etiquette is concerned. I have been approached three times tonight with people complaining about my “devil pants.” They cover everything, which doesn’t seem to be a requirement, but they do. It’s just the print that seems to be an issue for some. This is what they look like all over:

 

I don’t want to be the thing that makes anyone uncomfortable, but I have a hard time imagining that my pants are truly crossing that line, given what I’ve observed others wearing. Opinions? Are people just being ridiculous or am I breaking some sort of unwritten cruise rule? 

I can't believe 3 people said something about your pants.  Good grief!

[Camden72]

24 minutes ago, GothOnAShip said:

Question for the People’s Republic of Cruise Critic,

 

I’m fairly new to cruising and I’m wondering if I missed something as far as etiquette is concerned. I have been approached three times tonight with people complaining about my “devil pants.” They cover everything, which doesn’t seem to be a requirement, but they do. It’s just the print that seems to be an issue for some. This is what they look like all over:

 

I don’t want to be the thing that makes anyone uncomfortable, but I have a hard time imagining that my pants are truly crossing that line, given what I’ve observed others wearing. Opinions? Are people just being ridiculous or am I breaking some sort of unwritten cruise rule? 

I don’t see anything wrong with them.  As a matter of fact, they would fit in perfectly when they have Voodoo Moon show later in the week.