LIVE from the Ruby - 20 day B2B Pacific Coastal + Hawaii, Sept. 26 - Oct. 15, 2024

[theliterateleprechaun]

2 hours ago, RNCheryl said:

f you haven’t read this touching story about a widowed night-shift janitor and a Giant Pacific Octopus, you must put it on your reading list! 

 

I will try this book.  I am still in awe of the species octopus from My Octopus Teacher on Netflix.  Please look for this fantastic documentary.

 

You are the second person to tell me that today! I will definitely check that out. Thank you! 🐙

[theliterateleprechaun]

3 hours ago, rheathslc said:

I don't see any movies under the stars listings on the Patter. Are they showing anything on this leg?

 

 

I could only find it on the app! Weird. Elvis is playing right now. 

[theliterateleprechaun]

2 hours ago, Cdncruisecpl said:

I was looking at that too.  I was on Ruby at the beginning of the year, and will be again in February.  I am hoping they are different!

Elvis is playing right now on Movies Under The Stars. 

[theliterateleprechaun]

2 hours ago, 1950aeiou said:

 

 

Just started following you and some "Live" threads. I am confused as to the "Live" part. You are almost a month out and are writing "Live" and now about past cruises? At what point is it" Live"? I thought that is when you were on the ship or the plane flying to the place where you get on the ship . I see you have a badge and 5 points. What do you use the points for?

I set up the post before we left on the Sapphire as I knew we had lots on our plate for the 10 days in between sailings. I have been posting LIVE since we embarked the Ruby yesterday. With regards to the badge, I believe that's awarded with each LIVE thread you set up. I don't know what the points mean. I'm new to this, perhaps someone else can answer.

[rheathslc]

@theliterateleprechaunthere is much consternation in various quarters about some language about the packages that people have noticed in the last day or so.

Since your next leg is out of San Francisco would you mind checking on this and reporting back?

People want to know (me, I'm people) if we really are going to have to pay for drinks while the ship is in San Francisco. 

[Host Kat]

3 hours ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

... With regards to the badge, I believe that's awarded with each LIVE thread you set up. I don't know what the points mean. I'm new to this, perhaps someone else can answer.

 

From the Need Help Using the Forums? Check Here! forum, click here: FAQ: Badges!

[theliterateleprechaun]

As of 5pm tonight, Ruby Princess has BOTH stabilizers deployed!!!!! Whew. 

 

 

 

Spicy! Poached egg was perfectly runny. I'd order this again. 

 

 

When I order the curried noodles I always ask for the szechuan shrimp on top. This is often my most favorite meal of the cruise. Tonight the flavours were bold and this made me happy! 

 

 

 

 

I loved the vanilla vegan ice cream so much last night and was happy to see it on the menu again tonight. 

 

One of my husband’s cousins enjoys gluten and dairy free meals and Alicia (restaurant manager) comes every night with the following night's menu and discusses how it can be altered to her needs. 

[rheathslc]

50 minutes ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

As of 5pm tonight, Ruby Princess has BOTH stabilizers deployed!!!!! Whew. 

Hooray!

[theliterateleprechaun]

Good morning! I love it when my latte is perfectly made and there are still granola pucks available in the International Cafe.  

 

 

 

 

“No one chooses to be alone. Maybe that’s why I relate to Friday.”

 

Have any of my animal-loving friends seen ‘Free Willy’ or ‘BlackFish’? 

 

If so, you might be interested in this story about a small zoo in Oregon that gives a killer whale named Friday a second chance at health and happiness. 

 

Worried that it might be too preachy or lecture-like? It isn’t. The author remains neutral despite being Free Willy’s (Keiko’s) press secretary for two years. She presents facts and leaves it up to the reader to formulate their own opinions. It’s a gentle story about love, hope and redemption.

 

The star of the story is a 21-foot-long nineteen-year-old North Atlantic-caught killer whale named Viernes (Friday in English). Before the story opens we read about how Friday’s health has suffered due to his captivity in a zoo in Bogota, Colombia. He was 2000 lbs underweight and refusing to perform when wealthy philanthropist and San Juan Island resident Ivy Levy visits him. Ivy uses her position as a longtime board member of the Whale Museum in Friday Harbor, Washington and her son’s position as executive director of the Max L. Biedelman Zoo in Bladenham, WA to give Friday a second chance. 

 

There’s a quirky cast of eclectic characters, too. I loved the Chihuahua named Julio Iglesias, the potbellied pig named Miles and the quiet and reserved animal communicator, Libertine Adagio. 

 

We have a fabulous lecturer on board who filled a theatre and kept us spellbound learning about whales. 

 

Did you know that: 

🐋 Killer whales don’t hear out of the water so communication must be done with hand/body signals or with a dog whistle rather than words?

🐋 Killer whales, also called Orcas, are the largest of the dolphin species? They aren’t whales at all! 

 

Off to the lecture!

 

Edited 6 hours ago by theliterateleprechaun

[theliterateleprechaun]

16 hours ago, rheathslc said:

@theliterateleprechaunthere is much consternation in various quarters about some language about the packages that people have noticed in the last day or so.

Since your next leg is out of San Francisco would you mind checking on this and reporting back?

People want to know (me, I'm people) if we really are going to have to pay for drinks while the ship is in San Francisco. 

According to the Passenger Services desk, we will pay the local taxes on ANY drink ordered from docking in SF until sailaway. Regardless of package. I hope that answers your question. 

[startedwithamouse]

19 minutes ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

According to the Passenger Services desk, we will pay the local taxes on ANY drink ordered from docking in SF until sailaway. Regardless of package. I hope that answers your question. 

This is so murky!

 

How does Princess tax each individual drink a guest has already paid for in a drink package?

[rheathslc]

25 minutes ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

According to the Passenger Services desk, we will pay the local taxes on ANY drink ordered from docking in SF until sailaway. Regardless of package. I hope that answers your question. 

Thank you! I am totally fine paying for tax. I HOPE that's how it ends up working.

[theliterateleprechaun]

4 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

This is so murky!

 

How does Princess tax each individual drink a guest has already paid for in a drink package?

 

I've been told it's not Princess, but the state we sail out from that collects the tax. It's applied when we use our Medallion to order the drink. The drink will still be 'no charge', but the tax will be added to our account for any alcoholic drink ordered prior to sail away. 

[startedwithamouse]

16 minutes ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

 

I've been told it's not Princess, but the state we sail out from that collects the tax. It's applied when we use our Medallion to order the drink. The drink will still be 'no charge', but the tax will be added to our account for any alcoholic drink ordered prior to sail away. 

That's crazy. When we sailed without packages, we'd pay sales tax and understood the reason. But, say you purchased the bundle or package in advance, it makes no sense to tax you, as they are only fulfilling a previously purchased item. Charging a local tax on something they didn't sell to you in that jurisdiction seems off. 

Edited 5 hours ago by startedwithamouse

[kstaffen]

On 8/28/2024 at 11:22 AM, theliterateleprechaun said:

ALOHA! 🌺

 

This cruise will complete my 55th birthday present - 55 nights at sea for this circle around the sun! 

 

We embark in our home port of Vancouver and will be with my husband’s three cousins for the first part of our B2B Pacific Coastal + Hawaii. We fly home from San Francisco. 

 

I’m looking forward to being on the Ruby Princess again. We met so many wonderful staff members on our April cruise; some of whom have already become great friends. In fact, two of them got engaged in July and they sent us a video of the proposal in the atrium! I wish Leo and Daniella all the best as they navigate planning a wedding and working at sea. 

 

 

When you book a cruise (couples who are reading), do you make the decision together? One of you find a deal and present it to the other? How far out do you book? Has your significant other ever surprised you with a cruise?

 

We’ve been married 30 years and we always discuss big purchases together. My husband usually finds a great deal and we discuss it before calling our travel agent. THIS time, however, my husband surprised me on my birthday. The first clue was the Hawaiian flip-flop in my coffee cup. 
 

 

 

 

….then when I went to have breakfast I looked over at my case packed for Alaska with Stanley in his plaid…and saw that my husband had decked Stanley out Hawaiian style. 

 

 

I loved the surprise! 

 

We checked in with Rowena and Brian Vasquez and they will be the Hawaiian ambassadors on this sailing. This makes me so happy as they bring such ‘Aloha’ to the piazza. 

 

I’d love to have you along for my second ‘live from’ and, as with our Alaska 'live from' on August 31st, I’d love any feedback and am happy to answer questions. Are the photos too small? Someone suggested I make them smaller to accommodate people using cell phones to access the feed. What about the font? This is size 14. 

 

I'm an avid reader (a book a day) and always choose location reads. I'll be reading books set in Hawaii and posting book reviews for this cruise. Since this was a short-notice cruise (LOL), I will be choosing books from Kindle Unlimited. If you are following my 'live from' Alaska cruise, I'll be reading books set in Alaska, posting reviews on them, and will have some to give away on board and/or place in the ship's library after I finish reading. I'm an eclectic reader so you'll see a variety.

 

We usually include my parents and Steve's auntie in our travel plans as they are in their eighties, but this time we are on our own. After more than 500 sea days together over the years, this will sure feel different. 
 

 

You were on my Hawaii cruise in April! 

 

I find and plan and book the cruises. My husband says, "Okay." In Nov we are doing a B2B2B and in the middle will be out 44th anniversary. I guess it works to just do it and tell him 😉 lol I actually DO talk with him before booking, though. 

 

That's great that you got surprised! How fun!

 

Do you fly home after you return from Hawaii? or do you have more legs to go?

 

Happy 55th birthday!

 

[kstaffen]

3 hours ago, rheathslc said:

Thank you! I am totally fine paying for tax. I HOPE that's how it ends up working.

Me too! That would be so much better, for sure 🙂

 

[startedwithamouse]

1 hour ago, kstaffen said:

Me too! That would be so much better, for sure 🙂

 

It has to be the issue for people only with the Premier bundle (contains Premier Unlimited beverage package) or the stand alone Premier Unlimited beverage package) and how it violates ABC laws in California. 

 

The Plus bundle and Plus beverage package are unaffected by this. 

 

They can't collect taxes on items already purchased. Standard fare ordering any type of drink, yes, they can collect taxes. It's not a state tax, it's a county and if applicable a city tax too. 

 

On sailings that begin in ports in the United States of California, Massachusetts, New York, Texas, Virginia and Washington, the alcoholic beverages portion of a Package will not take effect until the ship on which the guest is sailing is in international waters, as determined by Princess Cruises, and therefore any alcoholic beverages purchased by a guest before a ship is in international waters will be charged to a guest’s onboard account; no discounts will be provided to the Package price or refunds as a result of this. 

Edited 1 hour ago by startedwithamouse

[startedwithamouse]

5 hours ago, theliterateleprechaun said:

According to the Passenger Services desk, we will pay the local taxes on ANY drink ordered from docking in SF until sailaway. Regardless of package. I hope that answers your question. 

If you happen to see the HGM, run this by them. 

 

We have Premier on two of our upcoming sailings, and will be changing to Plus if we can't drink in port.

[kstaffen]

8 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

It has to be the issue for people only with the Premier bundle (contains Premier Unlimited beverage package) or the stand alone Premier Unlimited beverage package) and how it violates ABC laws in California. 

 

The Plus bundle and Plus beverage package are unaffected by this. 

 

They can't collect taxes on items already purchased. Standard fare ordering any type of drink, yes, they can collect taxes. It's not a state tax, it's a county and if applicable a city tax too. 

 

On sailings that begin in ports in the United States of California, Massachusetts, New York, Texas, Virginia and Washington, the alcoholic beverages portion of a Package will not take effect until the ship on which the guest is sailing is in international waters, as determined by Princess Cruises, and therefore any alcoholic beverages purchased by a guest before a ship is in international waters will be charged to a guest’s onboard account; no discounts will be provided to the Package price or refunds as a result of this. 

I saw that Plus was unaffected. Also, the Premier beverage package is unaffected by this. It is all very curious. I'm not sure how it will play out. 

[startedwithamouse]

17 minutes ago, kstaffen said:

I saw that Plus was unaffected. Also, the Premier beverage package is unaffected by this. It is all very curious. I'm not sure how it will play out. 

It will be interesting. Ships have barely touched CA ports since this new unlimited alcohol offering went into effect. ABC will catch up with them and either make Princess ships comply with the law or fines will be coming.