Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Pearl Transatlantic - Shoreguy Blog - 2 December 2006

shoreguy

By shoreguy,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

Recommended Posts

whatawonderfulworld

whatawonderfulworld

Posted
Posted
I have been gathering some bits and pieces here and there about the ship. No word on webcam, but will try to find out today. There are still quite a few issues to be resolved on the ship and there are going to be several containers in Miami in the ship to be fixed.

 

However, of unfinshed things, the ship sailed out of the yard with only 44 items uncomplete. Not bad. Most ships sail with 150+.

 

Also, I was told the ship got a nick name in the yard as the Black Pearl, due to the blackout. Guess that makes the Captain, Sparrow and Claus as Will Turner.

 

The sun is just now rising on the Port side for another beautiful day. The winds have been howling all night long at Force 8. Tried to go in the hot tub last night ( I don't have one at home) and find a sweet spot where the wind was not driving the water, but could not, so it was short lived. Had a wonderful dinner in Mambos. It will defintely be in my trip report. For an intimate venue and outstanding food at no sur charge, I was happy.

 

Ahhhh...the proverbial punch list. Having experienced that on land...where all that is needed to fix whatever is readily available, I can only imagine how it's done (as if my magic don't you think) at sea. I recall the videos that the CD on the Dawn (Jimmie K) did wherein he showed us exactly who was doing what. DH and I were amazed at all the folks, whom you never see, that keep the ship shape.

 

Mambos is new to me. Is that like Aqua or Impressions on the Dawn?

 

Thanks again for taking the time to update us and I think we are all looking foward to the trip report.

 

One more thing...it's freezing here in NY...your "sun is now rising on the Port side..." took me away from the cold freeze if just for a moment. Thank you!

 

Continued bon voyaging,

 

W A W W

Link to comment
Share on other sites
shoreguy

shoreguy

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Sat. 12/09 10 am ships time. 30 16.62 N 057 47.32 W Temp 66F – 3007 NM from Southampton. 408 miles southeast of Bermuda. Winds from the NW – 50 knots again but the seas remain moderate at 4-7 feet so far. Port side outside decks 7 and 13 closed. Should be at the Miami Pilot station 4 am on the 12th .

CNN returned sometime after midnight – you were right nothing going on but it looks like the shuttle may not go tonight or tomorrow night. Monday night would be perfect.

Surprise another sea day. Last night was the second GAR production show. Garden of the Geisha described as a celebration of the timeless beauty and allure of the world of Geisha. I missed it but I will poll some folks today for feedback.

I am beginning to think 7 sea days in a row is about my limit especially with the outside areas unusable on 5 of those days. I did talk to a number of folks on the ship yeaterday that had enough. Surprised at how many first time cruisers I have meet but keep in mind they were just about giving this cruise away in the UK and last minute in the US. Total price for the cruise and return air was less then round trip airfare.

Dinner was interesting – we had a whole grill for just the two of us. The only other table in use was full of NCL information technology staff across from us. Great conversation about the fascinating topics of Unix and Linux..lol. I just love shop talk at sea.

Made the mistake of visiting the casino again – gave back some money to appease the casino at sea gods.

Bliss was rocking again. We ran into the usual CC night owls and headed aft. Music was blasting and even better then last time we were the only folks in the place. Man what a party it lasted about 5 minutes.

Yesterday was the one day so far that the passengers could really enjoy the pool area. The pearl will introduce a whole new breed of passengers. One generation advanced from the chair hog will be the sofa savers.

Stay tuned for the story of Skippy the magic worm ..lol

465551486_pearl2poolsofa.JPG.f00d1f4d2b3b2e0ca418b4f6af1df726.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites
zbench

zbench

Posted
Posted

Shoreguy,

 

If you can't get to this, I understand. Since you are real time on the Pearl, I wondered if you could give me your thoughts on the two A2 cabins on deck 15. A friend and I are contemplating booking one of these for an upcoming cruise, and info is very sketchy.

 

Specifically, it appears that there is a private sundeck just for those two cabins that only you can access. Is that right? Is there a hot tub out there as well?

 

Can you see inside? Does the bed face out with a view of the sea? Anything else you can add?

 

Thanks in advance. Happy sailing.

 

Zbench

Link to comment
Share on other sites
whatawonderfulworld

whatawonderfulworld

Posted
Posted

Thanks SG for the ongoing posts...terrific each and every one of them.

 

In the casino...how many Craps tables have they set up? Only one on the Dawn and when it went cold, there was no place else to go...although I guess that's true for everything when you're out in the middle of the sea! :D!

 

Continued bon voyage!

 

Ciao,

 

W A W W

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jetski217

jetski217

Posted
Posted

Think the boat will still be in good shape for Xmas? I cant wait. I check back here every few hours to see what's going on. My family and I leave the 22nd of Dec.

 

On that note, the last cruise I had was a Carnival and well....it $(*(@*#. Ya, not good. I prefer RCCL or Celebrity and have never cruised NCL. How does it compare?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Snoopyto

Snoopyto

Posted
Posted
Shoreguy,

 

If you can't get to this, I understand. Since you are real time on the Pearl, I wondered if you could give me your thoughts on the two A2 cabins on deck 15. A friend and I are contemplating booking one of these for an upcoming cruise, and info is very sketchy.

 

Specifically, it appears that there is a private sundeck just for those two cabins that only you can access. Is that right? Is there a hot tub out there as well?

 

Can you see inside? Does the bed face out with a view of the sea? Anything else you can add?

 

Thanks in advance. Happy sailing.

 

Zbench

 

We went up there today. It is a steep on flight stair climb to deck 15. No Elevator. The Room is fairly comfy and there is a hot tub and chairs on the balcony. We took some pictures. For two people, it will be nice and comfortable. The Bed faces diagnogally across the cabin, towards the outside, so the person laying in it on the Right side gets the best view out. Not a whole lot of room as far as floor space. But a better view forward than the GV.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
shoreguy

shoreguy

Posted
  • Author
Posted

As posted earlier the Master of the Vessel – Captain Trond Kildar from Norway - I very visible and personable man.

The cruise director is Matt Baker.

Casino – only new (old) table game is automated roulette. Picture attached. $.25 minimum bet . Real wheel and individual touch screens to place your bets.

Sneakerstud – not to worry Barb and I had a conversation day one with Ruthie and Klaus. I now know who your are…lol

Dolphins you are correct again. In fact I had a conversation with snoopyto about it over lunch. I think they have a better balance of smoking/no smoking then any other ship. You can travel stem to stern on deck 7 smoke free. Bliss to the Atrium to the retail space to Stardust all smoke free. Clearly more public space smoke free then any of the other ships. Deck 6 is smokers alley with Bar City and the casino.

Sunrise – port side- must have a better view on deck 14…lol All I saw was fog and clouds this morning.

712350958_pearl2roulette.JPG.e08a1013fd64c677e31cec95ef567571.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites
shoreguy

shoreguy

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Oh I almost forgot about Skippy. The worm that tried to get to America but I fear ended up buried at sea. CC dinner in Tepanyki, Freah pea pods to start, out jumps a worm from one of the pods on my sons plate. He had only eaten half a pea needing the rest to get to the end of the cruise.

We all really like the worm and decided to rescue this magical traveler. We even named him Skippy. We kept the plate so Skippy could enjoy dinner with us. The waiter tried to take Skippy but we all said no problem please let him stay. By the time Skippy had with us for 10 minutes there was a group of restaurant staff huddling in the corner plotting to worm nap him.

When the staff started into what looked like a pending panic attack we decided it was time to let him go. ( I know I was a meanie again) but everyone including the staff had a great laugh . As we gave up Skippy to certain burial at sea we were saddened but the staff thankful.

A moment of silence please for Skippy.

1740360128_pearl2Skippy.JPG.724b0e946ce38778dfe4637060b5c3e2.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites
smeyer418

smeyer418

Posted
Posted
Oh I almost forgot about Skippy. The worm that tried to get to America but I fear ended up buried at sea. CC dinner in Tepanyki, Freah pea pods to start, out jumps a worm from one of the pods on my sons plate. He had only eaten half a pea needing the rest to get to the end of the cruise.

 

We all really like the worm and decided to rescue this magical traveler. We even named him Skippy. We kept the plate so Skippy could enjoy dinner with us. The waiter tried to take Skippy but we all said no problem please let him stay. By the time Skippy had with us for 10 minutes there was a group of restaurant staff huddling in the corner plotting to worm nap him.

 

When the staff started into what looked like a pending panic attack we decided it was time to let him go. ( I know I was a meanie again) but everyone including the staff had a great laugh . As we gave up Skippy to certain burial at sea we were saddened but the staff thankful.

 

A moment of silence please for Skippy.

 

Not only is the food fresh but it can be insulting(its a joke)....but it was fresh...they might have thought you wanted to keep it so you could sue....

cute worm...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DragonflyCruiser

DragonflyCruiser

Posted
Posted

Shoreguy...my condolences to Skippy. Funny story! I wanted to let you know the Discovery launch was delayed. So, no need to watch for it tonight!

But,

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Dec. 9) -- Stargazers will get a rare triple planetary treat this weekend with Jupiter, Mercury and Mars appearing to nestle together in the predawn skies. About 45 minutes before dawn on Sunday those three planets will be so close that the average person's thumb can obscure all three from view.

 

I figured you'd be up anyway...Enjoy!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
mbisson

mbisson

Posted
Posted

I see (watching the NASA channel) that they are now under T-minus 20 minutes. They just said that if they hold, it will happen at about the 30 second mark. That makes the potential launch time a bit different than what Bridge said above.

 

Now under 15 minutes

 

-Monte

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • ANNOUNCEMENT: Set Sail on Sun Princess®
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...