Live From Crystal Serenity – A New Adventure – Vancouver to Los Angeles

[USCAdventurer]

So glad you and anne marie are enjoying san francisco.  i lived in san mateo for 9 years so i'm very familiar with the "city", the sights and the great restaurants like scomas.  thanks for the wonderful pictures.  yes, the waterside menu looked fabulous for last night.  keep enjoying the cruise.

[Keith1010]

David, many times I would cross the San Mateo bridge on the way to and from the airport and my assistant at the time lived there. We were in Danville.

 

Keith

[juicyjuju]

I got off Serenity in Vancouver the day you got on Keith. We had such a great time in Alaska. I hadn't been there for twenty years, on the Harmony. The scenery was spectacular! I actually work in Walnut Creek. Not going to the city today though because I would be too sad to see Serenity sailing away without me 🙂 We will be back on in December so not too long to wait thankfully. 

[Keith1010]

Julie so sorry we missed you by one cruise.

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

Greetings from Crystal Serenity.

 

I want to digress for a moment. We love overnights and there are some cities which make it even more special. San Francisco is one of these cities. Why? In addition to being a lovely city, it is very easy to visit nearby places by foot and for those who prefer a vehicle they can taxi or take uber or arrange for a private vehicle. With two full days here, there is no need to rush back to the ship and there is time to do as much or as little as one wants. At the same time, it is great for the crew. It provides an opportunity for crew to go ashore, and this is very important for them, and this city makes it easy to do just that. There is no 45-minute shuttle or tender. We are right here. I am reminded that a happy crew makes for a happy cruise. Same goes for guests. Happy guests make for a happy cruise. LOL.

 

Before dinner we saw dear friends Ashley and Kelly.

 

We had an amazing time at dinner last evening at Waterside. We enjoyed lots of great service, cuisine, the beautiful dining venue and lots of great laughs.  Marcin will be going home tomorrow for a well-deserved holiday. We look forward to seeing him on our next Crystal Serenity cruise.

I will digress for a moment once again. We each had Wiener Schnitzel for our entrée. For many years we never had this dish. Growing up we had veal cutlets. On our visit to Vienna, Austria before boarding Crystal Mozart in 2019, we had Wiener Schnitzel at a local restaurant and enjoyed it and had it at a different Vienna Restaurant. On-board Mozart we had it again on one evening. In each case, its preparation was slightly different, and we enjoyed each one. In 2021, on one of the infamous Bahama Cruises, when we mentioned to the Butler, we were thinking of having it that evening he suggested an egg on top and I said I would try it. The butler arranged this with the Head Waiter. I did enjoy the combination so on most sailings on one of the evenings when it is featured on the menu, we will order it as I did last evening and all you have to do is ask the Senior Waiter about this and just let them know what type of egg(s) you would like on top. In my case, one egg is great.

 

Last evening featured the Crystal White Party.  For those of you who have not sailed Crystal or not sailed since the White Night was introduced in February of 2017 when both Symphony and Serenity were in Sydney think of it as a mixer with a theme. In this case the theme is white with white decorations and some of the drinks with a white theme along with dancing to the Crystal Showband accompanied with a violinist, a vocalist and a dance due hosted by Cruise Director Rick.  JD Emotion also follows this playing music that guests can listen or dance to.

 

We enjoyed a stroll of the city in the morning. It was a beautiful day with the sun out. Not too hot. Not too cold. Just right.  We stopped of at Pier 39. While we know it is a tourist site it brings back many memories of the times we would visit when our children were young and we would go to certain shops, they would ride the merry-go-round and we would look at the sea lions.  While here we took my parents there for when they visited us.  As we walked other nearby areas, we reminisced about our time living in the Bay Area.

 

Be sure to turn up the volume to hear those sea lions. The sign gives some background about when they temporarily left the area. We lived in the Bay Area when the 1989 earthquake struck and that is a memory which we will carry with us for the rest of our lives. We saw some crew and guests as we headed back to the ship.  Upon our arrival to the terminal, we saw Svenja, once again and chatted for a while. She is a lovely person inside and out and we were so happy to see her each of the past two days.

 

And the good news. I got in a couple of hours of non-stop Paddle Tennis with picture perfect weather and lots of good exercise and a lot of laughs. Life is good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers

[goldengatecruisers]

Until next time, Crystal Serenity. We wish you calm seas and safe travels. 

Edited August 26 by goldengatecruisers

[oakridger]

@goldengatecruisers I love this video!  Thank you!

 

~Nancy

[goldengatecruisers]

Thanks Nancy! I am glad it uploaded as it was quite a big file and I was not sure of the limitations of Cruise Critic attachments.  So I am pleased the video posted.  I have to give video credit to my husband.  I had gone on a run toward Fort Point to get a closer look at Serenity as she departed.  He found a good vantage point and started to record and take photos.   What a great evening for the sailaway for those on board.  I hope it's not too long before we see a Crystal ship at the Port of San Francisco again. 

 

Ashley

Edited August 26 by goldengatecruisers

[Keith1010]

Thank you for the video and the photos.

 

The sail away was one of the best we have experienced in our many years of cruising.  Great weather. Great views. I'll post some photos and video later.

 

Today's Daily Reflections and Waterside Dinner menu.

 

Keith

 

August 26 Waterside.pdf

 

August 26 Daily Reflections.pdf

 

 

[crickette]

10 hours ago, goldengatecruisers said:

Until next time, Crystal Serenity. We wish you calm seas and safe travels. 

I think Symphony could have benefitted from those well wishes!

[goldengatecruisers]

I must have missed something in the chatter... has Symphony been encountering rough seas??

[Keith1010]

2 hours ago, goldengatecruisers said:

I must have missed something in the chatter... has Symphony been encountering rough seas??

A few days ago.

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

Greetings from Crystal Serenity.

 

I am posting early today as we will be busy later between the sea day and getting organized to debark tomorrow morning.

 

We enjoyed an amazing sail away as we left the port of San Francisco. We heard Louis Armstrong sing What A Wonderful World and sailed by Alcatraz Island. This was a wonderful visit for us and for everyone on board whom we spoke with. I have included photos and video we took and a photo.

 

We enjoyed a wonderful and relaxed dinner in our room organized by our butler.

 

All the cuisine we enjoyed for dinner was on the Waterside menu.  The food was delicious.

 

While eating dinner we saw a magical sunset.

 

Today marks the last full day of this cruise before we debark tomorrow from the Port of Los Angeles.

 

The program includes three lectures: one on Los Angeles, one about West Point and one about the geography of food.  As usual, lots of classes including fitness, golf, bridge, health, and art along with an array of many other activities.

 

Today we are enjoying the final day of this cruise.

 

I will post again tomorrow morning before we debark with another adventure coming shortly.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned.

 

Cheers

 

Keith

[wearesiamese]

WE HAD SALZBURGER  NOCKERL for dessert tonight and it was delicious  now as it was the last time I had it,at least 8 years ago I think😀

Edited August 27 by wearesiamese

[Keith1010]

A very good morning.

 

The short version of today's Daily Refections for those of us debarking today.

 

Aug 27 Reflections.pdf

 

Waterside breakfast menu as I have not posted that one on this cruise.

 

Waterside Breakfast Menu.pdf

 

Waterside lunch menu for today

 

Aug 27 Waterside Lunch.pdf

 

Waterside dinner menu for this evening

 

August 27 Waterside Dinner.pdf

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

 

[Keith1010]

We enjoyed the wonderful cuisine of Umi Uma for our last dinner of this cruise.

 

This has been another great cruising adventure sailing on-board Crystal Serenity.  The on-board team has been amazing in all facets between their professionalism, warmth, friendliness, and attention to detail.  This includes those we have known for years, a shorter time frame and who we first sailed with on these two voyages.  

Likewise, we have also enjoyed sailing with guests we have known years and years, some we met more recently and several guests who we are sailing with for the very first time.  

We have created new memories which will last a lifetime and we have enjoyed every minute of this cruise.

Depending on how we and you might look at it our adventure is not quite over.  After a stay at home, please look for new posts coming your way relatively soon.

 

 

 

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

 

[ryndam]

Thank you Keith for taking us along with you and Anne Marie on this journey. And for posting today’s lunch and dinner menus. Safe travels home. I will try and continue the commentary on the way to NYC. All our best, Rob & Jim.

[Keith1010]

Bon Voyage Rob and Jim.  enjoy every minute.

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

We have debarked San Pedro many times, but I have to say today was the most orderly and organized debarkation I have ever experienced in this port and for that matter at all USA ports. We arrived on schedule and ship cleared ahead of schedule.  Since we cleared USA customs in Canada that eliminated that step after we arrived at the terminal building and claimed our luggage.

 

In our case we did have a suite which included a private airport transfer. With that said with the Crystal private transfer the concierge two-member team always assists the guests who book this transfer.

 

Our butler met us at our room and took our carry-on luggage and escorted us to meet up with the concierge.  Our butler and Concierge Etienne escorted us off the ship and via the ramp to the point where most of the crew cannot go any further due to local shoreside union regulations.  We were greeted by Chief Concierge Ariella who asked if we needed and when we said yes, she brought a porter over to us. We went into a small room I believe with just our color-coded Crystal Luggage Tags. Ariella along with the porter escorted us to the waiting SUV and we met the driver.  Ariella opened the passenger doors, suitcases loaded, and we said our goodbyes to Ariella and to the friendly porter.  

 

Just had about 10 seconds of turbulence where you go side by side and if you were standing you needed to get in your seat immediately.They good news is the airline doesn’t charge you more for this experience but I bet they would if they could.  

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

Stay tuned.  The adventure begins shortly. Different ship.  Still Crystal.

 

Can’t wait.  Bags are packed. Ready to go.

 

Keith 

[Cruiselover51]

7 minutes ago, Keith1010 said:

Stay tuned.  The adventure begins shortly. Different ship.  Still Crystal.

 

Can’t wait.  Bags are packed. Ready to go.

 

Keith 

Hello Keith, let me guess…you will be boarding in Iceland, go around the island and cruise up to Dover! Isn’t it?  Enjoy your cruise! I am looking forward to be on Symphony next October 14!

[Keith1010]

7 hours ago, Cruiselover51 said:

Hello Keith, let me guess…you will be boarding in Iceland, go around the island and cruise up to Dover! Isn’t it?  Enjoy your cruise! I am looking forward to be on Symphony next October 14!

A very good evening. Close but stay tuned. I very much like the itinerary you are on Symphony for and the time of year is perfect.  

 

Keith

[Keith1010]

Greeting from Chicago O'Hare where we are waiting for our flight over to Iceland.

 

We are at the Club Lounge.

 

It's been many years since we were at O'Hare.  

 

Check In was a breeze and a very friendly agent.

TSA pre-check was fast and efficient.

 

Walk over to the Concourse was easy as was getting to the lounge.

 

Lounge is fine

 

When we sailed out of Iceland in 2021 on Endeavor we flew from home city to JFK and later onto Iceland.  At least in 2021 I was shocked at how crowded JFK was and the airline lounge was a zoo.  

 

From another thread I was thinking of change including technology.

 

How nice at the hotel that we could use our iPhones to know when the room was ready and to unlock the door and to check out and to get our bill via e-mail.

 

And the airline App has such good information. 

 

Yes, flying itself is not like it used to be.  I am glad I did all the business travel when it was easier and on board amenities nicer.  But it is so nice to see the continued enhancements of technology.

 

Do you remember when you had to book your air travel through a travel agency?

 

Do you remember when you might visit your local hotel to have them make a reservation for you at a sister property so as not to make a long distance call. Now I was young for that but I remember going with my father and how they used a teletype to confirm the reservation.

 

And do you remember when on cruise ships there was no internet?  In fact, that is why we started cruising because unlike al land vacation when I would tell Anne Marie you and the kids enjoy and I'll meet you in an hour but the hour turned into hours because of e-mail and phone calls on the cruises I could disconnect.

 

As they say, we've come along way baby.

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

[nancygp]

1 hour ago, Keith1010 said:

Greeting from Chicago O'Hare where we are waiting for our flight over to Iceland.

 

We are at the Club Lounge.

 

It's been many years since we were at O'Hare.  

 

Check In was a breeze and a very friendly agent.

TSA pre-check was fast and efficient.

 

Walk over to the Concourse was easy as was getting to the lounge.

 

Lounge is fine

 

When we sailed out of Iceland in 2021 on Endeavor we flew from home city to JFK and later onto Iceland.  At least in 2021 I was shocked at how crowded JFK was and the airline lounge was a zoo.  

 

From another thread I was thinking of change including technology.

 

How nice at the hotel that we could use our iPhones to know when the room was ready and to unlock the door and to check out and to get our bill via e-mail.

 

And the airline App has such good information. 

 

Yes, flying itself is not like it used to be.  I am glad I did all the business travel when it was easier and on board amenities nicer.  But it is so nice to see the continued enhancements of technology.

 

Do you remember when you had to book your air travel through a travel agency?

 

Do you remember when you might visit your local hotel to have them make a reservation for you at a sister property so as not to make a long distance call. Now I was young for that but I remember going with my father and how they used a teletype to confirm the reservation.

 

And do you remember when on cruise ships there was no internet?  In fact, that is why we started cruising because unlike al land vacation when I would tell Anne Marie you and the kids enjoy and I'll meet you in an hour but the hour turned into hours because of e-mail and phone calls on the cruises I could disconnect.

 

As they say, we've come along way baby.

 

Cheers,

 

Keith

you might want to copy and paste this to your current live report! 😀

 

Nancy

[Keith1010]

16 minutes ago, nancygp said:

you might want to copy and paste this to your current live report! 😀

 

Nancy

Oops. Thank you Nancy.

 

The other day I posted one that belonged here on Rob's and then asked CC to remove it.

 

LOL.

 

Keith