Willdra’s Valiant Venezia Review

[willdra]

I got back up to join W and he left shortly after to get something from the cabin. When he got back he went to the pasta bar since it was his last opportunity on this voyage to do that. I stayed put and decided to search my eyelids for cracks. Today would be a big ole rest day. Travel day on Friday will require strength and stamina that I currently did not possess. I wonder if they sell strength and stamina on Amazon and can I have it delivered to me on the ship by 7am? Y’all put me on game if you find it.

 

I laid around until W got restless. There was water nearby and he needed to be in it. It was all good tho cuz I wanted to use that time to go and get the packing started. It feels less sad if I do it early in the day. That way I can still enjoy the rest of the last day and not have to rush back and pack to get our suitcases out.

 

I also wanted to figure out what we were going to do since we received different debark instructions. We got a letter from Guest Services with zone 1 tags attached. The letter also stated that we should meet at Marco Polo at 8am Friday morning. Then we got the general Digital Debark notifications in the app that said we needed to choose a debark time. I’d done that when we first got the notification cuz I didn’t know if I needed to or not. We also got the transportation back to LGA thru Carnival so there was that. Our tickets for that said 9am so we would go with the Diamond Debark. I guess. So far that hasn’t been the best or most reliable option but we will see. While I was packing, someone(the warden) slid an envelope under the door again like I was in solitary confinement. In the envelope were luggage tags from the digital debark that I did. It was for zone 9. No thanks, we will keep zone 1.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

I finished packing my big suitcase and it weighed in at 49.3 pounds. I knew W wouldn’t be comfortable with cutting it that close but he could change it when he got back. Once I was satisfied that I had actually accomplished something I decided to go ahead and shower.

 

QQ cousins, why does it sound like somebody is getting massacred outside while I’m in the shower? There’s all kinds of bumping, banging, loud clamoring, and ruckusing going on out there. I am always shocked that nobody was in the room tussling when I get out!

 

W arrived shortly after I was showered to pack and get ready for dinner. Just as I thought, he didn’t like the weight of my suitcase so he changed out some of my stuff for his. Now they both weighed 46 pounds. Sweet.

 

It was his turn to get ready for dinner next. My goal was to go early so we wouldn’t be there all night missing the activities. I checked us in at 6:40. We waited until right after 7 for our table. The wait time made us think the dining room was busy but when we got there, it wasn’t. Interesting.

 

 

[willdra]

We already knew what we wanted so we ordered right away. I told W I was giving them an hour. At 8 o’clock we were leaving. Now by this time the dining room had cleared out. Service was slow and I already knew we weren’t going to have all of our food in an hour. An hour y’all. Is that unreasonable? W had to ask for my water twice. The servers were busy readying tables for the imaginary guests that may or may not be coming to the dining room at some point. It seems like sometimes they spend more time doing that, than actually assisting the guests who are there. Tell me why.

 

I ordered the Parched Pig Ale and Cheddar Soup, Fried Tomatoes, Petto Di Manzo Brasato, and the Spumoni Cassata for dessert. It took 33 minutes for the appetizers to come out. Not a good sign. The food was good tho. W ate the rest of my soup cuz I couldn’t finish it. He was sad the he didn’t order it. I don't know why he didn't, there were no beans. We got our entrees at 7:50. Ok maybe if they put the pedal to the metal we can get outta here. I ate about half of mine. If was really good but I filled up fast. 8 o’clock came and went. No desserts. I gave them 6 bonus minutes. No desserts. At 8:06 we left. That was an hour and 6 minutes. I have no idea where they were in the process and I’m ok with it. They could have our desserts.

 

This bread looks like it's been thru some "not so good" things

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[princess76021]

love love love your photos!!  

you guys look great!

hugs from texas!!

[willdra]

When we left we went out to the main lobby. MarQ was hosting a Fun Farewell Music Trivia Party. We wanted to get a good spot cuz we know how these northerners like to get down when it comes to parties. We found two seats by the bar and even though we couldn’t see the “dance floor” we took a chance cuz normally the CD will jump up on the bar. When MarQ came out he jumped up on the bar. Awesome. They played good songs and it was basically a sing & dance a long.

 

I have another hypothetical question cruise cousins. When you have an oxygen unit mask thingy, are you supposed to disconnect it and start breakdancing? I’m no physician, but wouldn’t that be frowned upon? Or is there such thing as decorative oxygen as an accessory? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not here to judge  MC Hammer’s daddy. But if you are just gonna be taking your oxygen mask off and acting a fool all willy nilly, I’m gonna need you to fall out somewhere else. Thanks.

 

Back to the party. At one point I was singing and dancing on my chair. Minding the business that writes these reviews, and a young lady came over and said  “Come on, get up, you know all the songs”. Listen Polly Pocket, I’m good. I’m old enough to know what I want to do. Keep doing you and let me do me. That’s what I said in my head. From mouth, I politely declined, and carried on.

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

When that was almost over we went into the Teatro Rosso for the comedy showcase. Y’all know I’m cautious when it comes to these now. Even on the last night. The chances were good that we would have decent comedians tho so we went. I’m so glad we did. We saw Jeff Shaw and Macio.  Both were very funny and well worth the freezing theater they had us in.

 

After that we went back to the cabin, W set out the luggage and we got ready for the long task of going back to GA on Friday.

 

Before I fell asleep I said a prayer thanking God that I only had 1 floor to go when that person assaulted my whole life with their flatulence in the elevator earlier. It was one of those silent deadly bombs. The ones that are filled with rotting goat cheese and asbestos. It sticks to you. It follows you. You need to escape and you need everyone to know that it wasn’t YOU. I thought I was going to perish. I thought maybe they had perished. I didn’t know how long I could hold my breath(I was gonna find out). I wondered if anyone ever died from this smell. I wondered what they ate that smelled so foul. Just as my eyes started to water and I was feeling lightheaded, DING! The doors opened and I was free to breathe again. Whoo. Fresh air never smelled so good. Thank you Jesus for coming thru in the clutch. Yet again. Amen.

 

 

P.S. Maybe I need one of those oxygen mask thingys too. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

On 7/2/2024 at 5:04 PM, Drew B 58 said:

I’m tempted to ask why someone would take a snorkeling excursion and not snorkel, but I’m trying to #myob2024…. 😉

 

I do it all of the time, and I'm never alone on the catamaran. W loves to snorkel, I like to take pictures and I enjoy the boat ride. It's a win win for us. 🥰🥰🥰

[willdra]

On 7/3/2024 at 10:53 AM, Jeafl said:

 Especially if I gotta now glare at the back of somebody’s head that looked like an unborn baby porcupine that got tangled up in a rat's nest. Brush your hair before skipping me please. At least give me something good to look at. 

 

Now this part made me snort laugh at work again.  Apparently I did not learn my lesson to not read this review at work.  My coworker keeps asking me what is so funny.

 

Did you take all your pictures with your cell phone?  They are amazing!

 

 

Thank you! Some of them were taken with my phone, some were taken with the Canon Rebel T6. 🤗

[willdra]

On 7/3/2024 at 12:59 PM, dallasdan said:

@willdra Thanks for a great review.  Your writing style and sense of humor are the best.  You should write a book.  You could call it "Everyday Musings by Willdra"  I would be first in line to buy it.

 

LOL! My millennials have actually begged me to do this. They keep buying me journals every year too(I'm running out of places to hide them). Now I might just have to give it a go. 😉

[willdra]

On 7/3/2024 at 2:45 PM, CARIBPRINCESS said:

Hey Cousin!!!! It was so wonderful meeting a cruise "Legend"!!! There was no way I wouldnt have said hello! Hopefully we can meet on another cruise and take a pic!!!!

 

LOL! That's a deal! 🥰

[willdra]

On 7/3/2024 at 4:14 PM, bellamia1007 said:

Thank you soo much for this review! As you can see I'm just another one who just likes to read. I just want to say Thank you first for the review of NYC. I live in upstate NY and my family used to visit NYC all the time until that dreadful day we call 911. Since that day the visits to the Big Apple were very few, but your review and pics has opened up my eyes and heart again to the beautiful city it once was and still is. I will be sailing on the Venezia in a few weeks so thank you for the details and I Loved all your pics!! You had me laughing with tears in my eyes. Thanks for keeping it real. I am now a Willdra fan!!  

 

Yay🎉! Welcome to Willdra's World! I'm glad you found my review! We thoroughly enjoyed our time in NYC and on Venezia and we wouldn't hesitate to do either again! Bon Voyage! 🥰

[onlyano]

3 hours ago, willdra said:

I need to see if I can purchase something like it online to play with my team.

 

Look into an application called Kahoot. There's a free and a paid version. There is another one called Quizizz. Both let you answer questions using a device. 

[willdra]

On 7/4/2024 at 4:06 PM, KAmburn said:

Love, love the Grand Turk pictures!  Were the lounge chairs free or how much was the cost?  Great review!

 

The ones we were in were free. There are lots of free ones available. The shaded ones go fast tho. There are also cabanas and covered loungers available for a fee in the shore excursions for Grand Turk. Below are a few examples that I screenshot. 

 

 

 

 

[willdra]

On 7/5/2024 at 4:50 PM, mlshum said:

I love, love, love your reviews!  They are hysterical!  Your prayers are the best and I always have to share those with Ron.  Thanks for doing this !

 

Thank you for laughing with me!!!!! 😆

 

[willdra]

On 7/8/2024 at 9:39 PM, lazydayz said:

Love your review. Thanks for doing it! 

 

Thank you for reading it! 🤗

[willdra]

17 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

I was busy with my trip to Japan so it’s been a blast catching up with your review👍😁

 

Thank you!!! Welcome back! 😍😍

[pe4all]

6 hours ago, willdra said:

 

LOL! My millennials have actually begged me to do this. They keep buying me journals every year too(I'm running out of places to hide them). Now I might just have to give it a go. 😉

My dh keeps asking my why I am laughing sitting alone in a room at the computer.  I tell him that "Wildra is making me do it!"  You are definitely one of my favorite writers on this board.  Can't wait for your next cruise adventure.

[Stowaway LFC]

Not work safe! Don't read a Wildra review while on a work meeting, esp if you didn't mute your mic!  They will likely send me for a psych eval now....lol

[kpark895]

Thank you for the great review - I love your humorous style of writing!

[Indiansbaseball]

I too am a member of the Willdra and W fan club ! I second the memoir idea !! I would buy and read ! 

[CeleBrat]

On 7/7/2024 at 10:45 PM, willdra said:

We ordered and W started with the Lox and Bagel, then he asked for Steak and Eggs.

 

 

 

I am surprised you didn't add a hilariously sad descriptor to W Steak and Eggs, because they look...sad.  And what is with the cheap-looking Ore Ida fries?

 

CeleBrat

On 7/7/2024 at 10:45 PM, willdra said:

 

 

[Sadebud]

Still loving this review!  I, too, read while I am at work.  Boss definitely knows when I am doing something other than work when I mention a Willdra review!  😁🤣😂😲

[hapytobehr]

16 hours ago, willdra said:

When that was almost over we went into the Teatro Rosso for the comedy showcase. Y’all know I’m cautious when it comes to these now. Even on the last night. The chances were good that we would have decent comedians tho so we went. I’m so glad we did. We saw Jeff Shaw and Macio.  Both were very funny and well worth the freezing theater they had us in.

 

After that we went back to the cabin, W set out the luggage and we got ready for the long task of going back to GA on Friday.

 

Before I fell asleep I said a prayer thanking God that I only had 1 floor to go when that person assaulted my whole life with their flatulence in the elevator earlier. It was one of those silent deadly bombs. The ones that are filled with rotting goat cheese and asbestos. It sticks to you. It follows you. You need to escape and you need everyone to know that it wasn’t YOU. I thought I was going to perish. I thought maybe they had perished. I didn’t know how long I could hold my breath(I was gonna find out). I wondered if anyone ever died from this smell. I wondered what they ate that smelled so foul. Just as my eyes started to water and I was feeling lightheaded, DING! The doors opened and I was free to breathe again. Whoo. Fresh air never smelled so good. Thank you Jesus for coming thru in the clutch. Yet again. Amen.

 

 

P.S. Maybe I need one of those oxygen mask thingys too. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OMG Wildra!  I 'bout spit my tea out of my mouth on this one!!!
 

You are so entertaining!

Edited July 10 by hapytobehr

[Drazil65]

OMG, you are killing me with the elevator story, I cant even believe you lasted for the 1 floor ride up but thank god you did cuz it made for a great prayer that night!