LIVE FROM THE STAR! We TILTED!

[Bennett'sCruise]

I won't be on the Star in March. In fact in a few weeks I will not be with Norwegian Cruise Line anymore. No I'm not going to another cruise line with a better offer. New management at NCL has decided to change the way I am treated on the vessel and the new "rules" they will enforce are not how I can live so I'm headed down a different path.

 

I have had the most amazing time meeting and entertaining the hundreds of thousands of passengers over these years. Meeting folks from CruiseCritic has been a special joy and being able to read peoples reviews of my work, good and bad, have made me a better performer and person.

 

It's a small world and I'm sure our paths will cross again.

 

Hannah's Dad ...

www.magiChampion.com

 

 

"it's my job!"

 

WOW, that's too bad! I'll have to follow your website and see where you perform. Can't get on the NV/Seas, huh? ;)

 

Good luck to you, Shawn .. hopefully this move will give you more family time ... :D That's always a good thing!

~d

[Jeepgirl42]

...I won't be on the Star in March. In fact in a few weeks I will not be with Norwegian Cruise Line anymore. No I'm not going to another cruise line with a better offer. New management at NCL has decided to change the way I am treated on the vessel and the new "rules" they will enforce are not how I can live so I'm headed down a different path.

 

Will you be on the Nov 24 sailing? I have read some great reviews about you here on CC and was looking forward to seeing you perform! :)

[hannahsdad]

Sorry Jeepgirl42,

 

That's the day I leave. You'll have an awesome time. The crew of the Star are the best and the run really is great....

 

Shawn Farquhar

aka Hannah's Dad ...

www.magiChampion.com

 

 

"it's my job!"

[Hobbsey]

What new cost cutting initiative has caused you to move on?

[Skighee]

We had the same thing happen in a wind storm off of Huatulco Mexico, we were in a wind storm and the boat listed, I wnet sliding across the room, and everything was smashed on the boat. There were people injured and the infirmary charged people. I guess it was human error, over-corrected. We also missed our port in Costa Rica b/c we had to go back to Huatulco for someone who was sick.

[ATLJFL]

Hannah's Dad

 

We are looking forward to taking in your show. We will be on the Star with a large group on Nov 8th. Glad we get to see your act before you leave. You will still be there, right? 100 + Shriners are dpennding on you. ;o)

[Susie51]

How has the rest of the cruise been?

[hannahsdad]

Wow 100+ Shriners..we are going to have some fun. I will be on the Star until Nov 24th ...

 

You are going to love this cruise. We have had some incredible weather and Cabo was just such a perfect day this week. Acapulco is always nice but best to do as a tour since the port area sucks unless you know it well.

 

Hobbsey,

 

It has nothing do with cost cutting. In fact NCL believes they are trying to increase passenger value by having me restricted from access to the crew. I love hanging out with the guests but also like hanging out with the crew as I have known many of them for upwards of nearly a decade. New rules will not allow me to associate with the crew and I need friends who stay more than just a cruise ...

[Hobbsey]

Interest experiment in social engineering. Does that mean officers as well as those below decks? I can see how that would be isolating. I get the idea that guests and entertainers should mingle, it gives the guest a feeling of being let "inside". However, I really feel that the cruise line should do more to encourage the same between officers and guests. I have seen less and less of this over the years and with the loss of formal nights, officers tables and captains parties it was nearly non-existant on my recent Crown cruise.

 

It seems that they are trying use you and the other performers as the face of the cruise line.

 

I also feel that we all need some "down" time from our jobs. Basically they are telling you that you have to be constantly "on" or out of sight.

 

Well, I am sorry we won't meet you on our Feb. cruise. Here's hopes for continued success and safe travels.

[mbisson]

It has nothing do with cost cutting. In fact NCL believes they are trying to increase passenger value by having me restricted from access to the crew. I love hanging out with the guests but also like hanging out with the crew as I have known many of them for upwards of nearly a decade. New rules will not allow me to associate with the crew and I need friends who stay more than just a cruise ...

 

I see what they're trying to do, but I think they're WRONG! For our sakes (cruisers that is) I hope that you are back on a ship soon, even if not NCL.

 

good luck

-Monte

[ATLJFL]

Wow 100+ Shriners..we are going to have some fun. I will be on the Star until Nov 24th ...

 

You are going to love this cruise. We have had some incredible weather and Cabo was just such a perfect day this week. Acapulco is always nice but best to do as a tour since the port area sucks unless you know it well.

...

 

Hannah's Dad,

I agree it will be fun. This group cruises together twice a year (Spring and Fall) and we always have a blast. It's an over 55 group but active and well seasoned travelers; and from what I have heard of your performance it will be perfect for this group. Glad you will be onboard for our cruise.

 

Since there are so many of us we usually split up in smaller groups. I and DH and some of our friends have not been to Acapulco in over 20 years. We have been on other Mexican Riviera cruises more recently than that but those cruises did not include Acapulco as a part of the itinerary.

 

Personally I wish that the 12 hour stay in port was in P.V. instead of Acapulco. We love that town and used to time share there.

 

In any event, we already booked the Acapulco beach day so we could just chill out on the beach and enjoy resort facilities. I think it is in *****. Never been there but I assume it will be nice since it is an NCL shore excursion. At night in Acapulco we plan to see the illumination show with cliff divers. They are pretty much back to back tours to keep us busy during our long stay in Acapulco.

 

Zih we just plan to cab over to whereever (perhaps that should be a buzz word to compliment NCL's "Whatever" term. :D

 

P.V. will be fun and I just wish we had more time to have dinner there, so will do lunch at the Marina instead, then cab over to the Malecon and down town to shop and drink, (not necessarily in that order). :p

 

We have never done the Lands End tour in Cabo so we booked that with NCL. We have been there many times but ships never stay there long enough.

 

I am thrilled to hear the weather will be nice. Some posters from a few cruises earlier this month said they had a lot of rain. We are coming from FL and so heat and humidity is not something that bothers us since it is a way of life here.

 

What time and day/s is your show? We have a traditional dining set up for the group because of the size and it is early so NCL can acomodate other guests in the Aqua.

 

Also, our group loves to meet the entertainers so if you are not otherwise busy, we have a group cocktail party scheduled in the Carousel Lounge at 5 to 6 p.m. on Sat Nov. 10th. Perhaps you can stop by. I'm leading the group so consider this an invitation. It is a great group and we have been traveling together for quite a while.

 

Sorry about the changes that have made you decide to leave. Friendship is important, and with living on a ship for such a long time your closest friends are bound to be those that also live on the ship for such long period of time. It would be extremily hard to not be able to interact with your friends.

 

It's only a little over a week away now so time to start thinking about packing.

 

See you onboard.

 

Jeanne :)

[Hobbsey]

ATLJFL,

 

We agree that Puerto Vallarta is the best of the stops on the Mexican itineary, althought we haven't been to Acapulco nor Ixtapa before. For a late night stay though PV can't be beat.

 

So, will your shriners bring along their little cars? J/K of course, but it's be neat to see them all drive up to the ship and drop off their luggage - then later have races around the Prom. Deck.

 

Have a blast on the cruise and bring us back some great tips.

[ATLJFL]

ATLJFL,

 

We agree that Puerto Vallarta is the best of the stops on the Mexican itineary, althought we haven't been to Acapulco nor Ixtapa before. For a late night stay though PV can't be beat.

 

So, will your shriners bring along their little cars? J/K of course, but it's be neat to see them all drive up to the ship and drop off their luggage - then later have races around the Prom. Deck.

 

Have a blast on the cruise and bring us back some great tips.

 

OMG that is too funny! I will have to pass that along to our group. That would bring some smiles.

 

Unfortunately those little cars would not make the long trip from Florida but it's a great idea! :D We are flying into LAX and then using NCL's transfers to get to the pier.

 

I can just envision my DH and all the Shriners racing in the cars on the Promenade. :p None the less it will likely be a fun cruise. Most cruises are and they are usually what we make them to be.

 

Jeanne :)

[AussieKathy]

 

It has nothing do with cost cutting. In fact NCL believes they are trying to increase passenger value by having me restricted from access to the crew. I love hanging out with the guests but also like hanging out with the crew as I have known many of them for upwards of nearly a decade. New rules will not allow me to associate with the crew and I need friends who stay more than just a cruise ...

 

That's sad that you can't associate with who you want. We saw you out with some of the crew on the Bar Hopping Excursion and thought it was good that to see the crew out enjoying themselves as well. I bet they are going to be sorry loosing you!

[crew mom]

Originally Posted by hannahsdad

New rules will not allow me to associate with the crew and I need friends who stay more than just a cruise

And you always do a great job of mingling with both passengers and crew equally.

 

I would think that as a performer it could be easy to begin to hide from the public eye if the most in-depth conversation you have on a weekly basis was "How long have you been doing blah, blah, blah? What made you get started etc etc etc." After 3 weeks of that type of conversation one would want to hide in their room until their showtime and not mingle at all.

 

We saw you out with some of the crew on the Bar Hopping Excursion and thought it was good that to see the crew out enjoying themselves as well

So that's where all the Shawns were at! Was that before or after the Play Station incident? :D

 

And regarding the shriners on board :

be neat to see them all drive up to the ship and drop off their luggage - then later have races around the Prom

LOL!:D Funny!

[jkloni]

A couple of pictures from the list the Carnival Conquest had in Feb 2003. It happened about 2am in the morning. They said the wind just slightly pushed the ship over a little. (Yeah, ok....) My dad was in his balcony cabin sleeping and when it happened he looked out from his balcony and saw lots of fog and another vessel not 100 yards from the ship. He still says, 'they can say what they want, but I saw the ship they were trying to avoid'.

 

 

 

Most of the rest of us from our group were in the piano bar and didn't freak out too bad (alcohol?)... But some of the guys had to hold the piano because it was sliding towards the floor to ceiling glass windows....

 

Kathy

[DocJohnB]

This is a list, albeit a scheduled one. The USS Ronald Reagan during trials.

 

[krystall]

I hope everyone had as great a time as we did on the

NCL Star. What a beauty she truly is and the crew has

to be one of the best of the NCL fleet. Everyone was

warm, smiling, welcoming and accommodating.

 

Even though we had the "incident" of a compassionate

captain and bridge crew who titled us a bit to avoid

killing a whale, his explanation was quick and the

next day he apologized for any inconvenience it may have

caused any cruising guests. Had he not done what he

did to avoid hitting the whale and probably killed the

whale, animal rights groups and the media would have

been all over Norwegian Cruise Lines. I didn't hear of any

passengers getting hurt or any other claims of damages

other that what was reported here on this website. I am

not saying that it didn't happen. I wasn't all over the

ship, it's possible there was some damage and passengers hurt. I do know it would have been the talk

of the ship and it wasn't.

 

Even when disembarking the ship we had a long wait as

everyone who was getting off of the ship knows because

customs computer were not cooperating there was still

no talk of the "tilting incident".

 

Everyone was talking about how they had a wonderful

time. How clean the ship was. How great the entertainment and cruise director (Ricky Matthews) was.

They couldn't stop talking about the food and the variety

of places to eat. I heard nothing but good things even

on the way to the airport in the shuttle. One gentlemen

was talking about buying property in one of the ports.

 

Overall my husband and I think this was one of our

best cruises. We look forward to cruising on the Star

again and I hope you all enjoyed your cruise just as

much.

 

"My favorite cruise is my next cruise."

-Author Krystall©

[Tam123]

We were on the Star as well when it tilted. We were on deck 12 eating when it happened. Food and dishes went crashing to the floor and everyone was holding on. It was scary at first but by the next day everyone seemed to be enjoying their cruise once again. The only damage I saw was a 30 miniute delay getting into Accupulco( no big deal). I did hear that the pool water went into the elevators on deck 12 and people were in it but only got wet.I as well hope there was no serious injuries. We had perfect weather and the ports were great as was the crew.

Hannahs dad just wanted to let you know how amazing both your shows were. My husband is Skipper, he drew a card from you on the second show you did ( you may not remember).Sorry your leaving NCL you were our favorite act on the ship. I know with your talent you will suceed in what ever is next for you.

we really enjoyed our cruise and cant wait till the next one.

Tam123

[Toothfairy754]

1968 Lurline (Matson)

 

Hobbsey

We had a friend who worked on the Lurline about that time. I believe she was sailing between SF and Hawaii. (although I do know she did the Orient also as she brought me a jewerly box) I had not thought of that ship in years. Thanks for the reminder :)

[Hobbsey]

Hi Toothfairy,

 

I was 10 at the time and it was a wonderful adventure. We left SF in fog and rain, and once out past the bridge things got choppy. This ship was just 20 something grt and with a deep hull so lots of rocking.

 

Back then guests could come on board before the ship left (all ashore who's going ashore!). So, the safty drill was done the next morning at sea - in those tossing seas. Also, I can still remember sitting in a lounge watching a movie and hearing all the glass wear and bottles fall and break as we hit a particularly big wave.

 

 

14 months later we did it again (in calmer weather) coming back on the Mariposa, her somewhat newer, but not much bigger, sister ship.

[theshireshihtzu]

I hope everyone had as great a time as we did on the

NCL Star. What a beauty she truly is and the crew has

to be one of the best of the NCL fleet. Everyone was

warm, smiling, welcoming and accommodating.

 

Even though we had the "incident" of a compassionate

captain and bridge crew who titled us a bit to avoid

killing a whale, his explanation was quick and the

next day he apologized for any inconvenience it may have

caused any cruising guests. Had he not done what he

did to avoid hitting the whale and probably killed the

whale, animal rights groups and the media would have

been all over Norwegian Cruise Lines. I didn't hear of any

passengers getting hurt or any other claims of damages

other that what was reported here on this website. I am

not saying that it didn't happen. I wasn't all over the

ship, it's possible there was some damage and passengers hurt. I do know it would have been the talk

of the ship and it wasn't.

 

Even when disembarking the ship we had a long wait as

everyone who was getting off of the ship knows because

customs computer were not cooperating there was still

no talk of the "tilting incident".

 

Everyone was talking about how they had a wonderful

time. How clean the ship was. How great the entertainment and cruise director (Ricky Matthews) was.

They couldn't stop talking about the food and the variety

of places to eat. I heard nothing but good things even

on the way to the airport in the shuttle. One gentlemen

was talking about buying property in one of the ports.

 

Overall my husband and I think this was one of our

best cruises. We look forward to cruising on the Star

again and I hope you all enjoyed your cruise just as

much.

 

"My favorite cruise is my next cruise."

-Author Krystall©

 

 

We had a wonderful time and have already rebooked.

We tryed all of the specalties...reviews later.

There was one elder man with a black eye and stiches. And a few with less minor injuries. One lady on deck 11 (our deck) was rolled out of bed.

dunring her nap:eek: Several people with bumps and one lady with a black and blue arm.

I don't think it ruined anyones cruise.

I was told by casino employees that bar bottles and glassware was broken there as in several of the Dining rooms!

The room stewards told the cabin next to us the upper florrs had more issues.

The weather was wonderful and we had a blast!

I purchaced cruise rewards certificates onboard and booked an 8 day eastern on the Spirit for next year!:D

[JediAmy]

We, too, were on the Star when it listed. We were in the Spinniker lounge (all the way forward with surrounding windows) walking and seeing the sights. All (it seemed like anyway) the liquor bottles, glasses, and yes- even the bingo table- went flying and smashing (not the bingo) to the floor. The smell of alcohol was STRONG! We went back to our room and passed the flooding staircase and elevators... LOTS and LOTS of water! I would have hated to have been in that pool when it emptied! I wonder, does anyone have any pictures? I had my video camera, but in the shock of it all, failed to turn it on! I could kick myself!

 

Shawn, I am so glad we were able to see you on this trip! My mother signed your first show card (don't know if you remember- Jeanette). You have inspired my son to play in magic. Thank you for talking and including him in your show, that meant a lot to me. I don't remember what you said about loving the people on the ship, but I did get a sense of something (sadness maybe) when you were talking about it. Now I know. I wish you and your family happiness where ever you go.

 

Smooth sailing,

Amy and Hayden

[JediAmy]

P.S. Shawn,

 

Remember passing by through the Blue Lagoon and singing American Pie? I taped it and will always remember that time. Hope that is a good memory for you too.

[okbeader]

I thought it was a great cruise--the weather was perfect. The seas were the calmest I've ever seen. The only wind was the last sea day--but it really wasn't that bad. I hardly ever even felt the ship move--it was easy to forget you were actually on a ship. I was actually wishing for a little "rock me to sleep" motion but never had it.

 

I was walking on 13 when the tilt occurred. I'd just said, "I can't believe there is not even a ripple in the sea." So I couldn't imagine what was happening. But it was over very quickly. I was away from the pool so I didn't see anything that happened there.

 

A passenger told me he'd heard (lot's of hear-say) that the tilt was abound 23-25 degrees. He also said that it was caused because one of the engines quit abruptly. Who knows.....

 

I would have stayed for a few more weeks if I could have. The crew was great. The Beef Wellington out of this world--order two!