Live on Board Azamara Quest - 10/31 - 11/12

[lala1]

HI, Thank you so much for your wonderful report. We sail on Dec 22nd and will be stopping at most of the same ports. Your comments are very helpful.

 

One thing my DH would like to know is if it is worthwhile bringing a birding scope on board? We wonder if you have seen a lot of wild life from the ship.

 

Thanks,

 

Laurie

[Cruisers1975]

Saw only 2 birds from the ship at sea. But, copious quantities at Tortuguero Canals in Costa Rica!

 

Bring a sweater but ship is very comfortable. The library is especially cool but I like it colder.

 

More to come...

[Cruisers1975]

November 9. At Sea

 

 

A light breakfast this morning, on time and complete. This, it appears, they finally have down perfectly. We meet our friends later however, and find they’ve had an entirely different experience in the Discoveries restaurant for their breakfast. Despite having enjoyed rather nice experiences there each morning in the past, everything went wrong for them today. Oatmeal muffins that were still raw in the centre. Sunny side eggs that were rubber. And coffee that was entirely undrinkable. Poor Restaurant Manager, alas, happened on them to ask casually how everything was, and found out.

 

On my part, however, it was a day of happy discovery: Tacos! While the staff is universally friendly and helpful, if I had to pick one area of the ship where that enthusiasm is less obvious, it would be at the Pool Grill. The hamburger flippers here have been consistent (at least) in their lack of humour or visible personality. The clear fact that their cheeseburgers are the best a-sea has entirely escaped them.

 

Today, while I’m in line for one, the passenger ahead of me orders a taco. Taco!? The complete lack of menus in the area have meant that for over a week we’ve all been missing one of the ship’s great secrets. I order two. And I return for a third.

 

Add a margarita, a lounge chair in the shade, and life is perfect. I even take a hour to attend a Spanish Class to brush up on my mejors and peors.

 

Perfect, that is, until Super Trivia. The group of contestants is growing and crew are recruited to drag in chairs from other areas of the ship to accommodate the crowds who, while milling around before the start, exchange polite barbs with us, the acknowledged Champions Trivia Twins. And then all hubris breaks loose. We even miss the three Biblical virtues (Faith, Hope and Charity). We put Shakespeare’s most famous shipwreck into the wrong play. We blank out the fact that Babylonian temples are called ziggurats. It is total embarrassment.

 

We’ll be back!

 

Tonight we enjoy a wonderful dinner in the Prime C specialty restaurant. On the same deck as Aqualina and (I would believe) served by the same kitchen, it is entirely different in feel and menu, but identical in quality and service levels. A lone passenger in a table beside us eats here every evening, and for good reason. We enjoy the Kobe-style steak; and the lamb. The French onion soup that precedes it is fantastic. The desserts that follow, equally wonderful and beautifully presented.

 

Maitre D visits each table and chats with us at length, and then the Captain appears. I finally remember to ask him a question that I assume only he can answer with authority: How far is the horizon. He tells me that from the navigation bridge at 70 feet in the air, in perfectly clear conditions, it is 32 miles away. But how far, I wonder, is it when one is at sea level. He is unsure, but grabs is cell phone and calls the bridge. “Look it up, Google it if you have to!” he commands, and then says, “I will get back to you. You are in Stateroom -----, correct?” quoting our room number correctly. We confirm that, and then wonder what we have done to deserve such a reputation that even our stateroom number is known to the ship’s Captain.

 

Captain moves onto the next table where we see his conversation disturbed by his cell phone ringing. Concluding that conversation and then the one at that table, he returns to us, to report that at eye level, for six feet, the visible horizon is about 2.5 miles. And then it occurs to us that at sea level it would be of course, zero.

 

Just in case you ever see that on a Super Trivia contest.

 

November 10. Playa del Carmen, Mexico

 

 

It’s been about 9 years since we’ve been here, and we are eager to see the changes and visit five of the Mayan Riviera’s best hotels, ones that he has frequently sent clients and always glowing successes. It’s a tendering day, we’ve made another of the, what is it, four maybe so far?, clock adjustments forward or backward an hour so we’re really not sure what time it is, but we have a breakfast appointment at the Tides Riviera Maya Hotel, and a driver waiting on the pier at 9:00 a.m. so we disembark early just to take a walk around the sleepy little pueblo of Playa del Carmen for an hour or so before our appointment.

 

What a pleasant surprise awaits! We could be in California, well almost. A mix of high-end, name brands are mixed with sombreros and serapes, as the still-closed store fronts range from corrugated steel to chrome and glass beauties. A stop at Starbucks is a taste of home, and a sip of hot chocolate explodes all down my white shirtfront.

 

I was never so happy to have tucked a Tide Stick into my pocket as a beat a hasty retreat to the bathroom, stripped, washed, and dried it on the hand-dryer, emerging fresh for a day of business meetings.

 

The appointed car never appears at the appointed hour (this is Mexico, after all), so we hail a cab who insists, after lengthy consultations with his colleagues both at the beginning of the trip and then a few blocks father along, that the Tides is located on the Cancun side of Playa del Carmen, rather than our contrary impression. The refresher course in Spanish on board yesterday is going to come in very handy today, as we negotiate our driver’s services for the full day for $100.

 

We visit the five top hotels, each a unique experience in their own ways, and always with a most hospitable sales manager or associate. Among them are some of the most exclusive and private, including Maroma.

 

After a long day of hotel site inspections, Sñr Frog’s in Playa del Carmen serves their famous 22-oz Mother Margaritas here as well. Four of them and a platter of nachos and all is well.

 

Dinner this evening is with friends in Aqualina, which continues to impress us with quality of food and service. It is becoming increasingly difficult to comprehend how the food quality can vary so considerably between the Discoveries and the Specialty restaurants. Our previous experience with Celebrity was quite different: we found the food so excellent in the “regular” restaurant that it was barely worth the supplement charged for the extraordinary specialty experience.

 

The supplement is another curious inconsistency on the Quest. One experience per voyage is included. We reserved Prime C, first, but actually ate at Aqualina first. Therefore when we dined at Prime C, there was a supplement of $25 per person (including, it assures us on the bill, an 18% gratuity). When we dine this evening at Aqualina again, the supplement (with 18% included) is only $20. This means, that had we eaten at Prime C first, we would have saved $10. Curious. (Prime C also has an additional $8 surcharge for the Kobe-style beef, and all restaurants charge extra for soft drinks and bar.)

 

It’s been a long day, however. Too long for the mysteries of math at sea, so it’s off to bed. Arriving in our room, a special treat: a message on the phone from E-Communications informs us that in consideration of the slow Internet service, an additional credit of 200 minutes has been applied to our account.

 

Nice gesture!

 

November 11. Last day at sea.

 

 

Clocks adjusted again, our bodies don’t know what time it is. We’re both up well before the requested breakfast delivery at 9:00 a.m., and we've even had oatmeal in the restaurant and coffee back in the cabin. When breakfast does arrive, I down some orange juice and set down to continue the log. We have an important engagement this morning that we are asked not to reveal till after the fact, so I don’t dare mention it yet, but it involves a special invitation from the Captain to visit the bridge in an hour.

 

Damn! I never was any good with secrets!

[luv2cruisemore]

Your travel log is delightful to read; I only hope the services do begin to improve!:o:o

 

Cheryl

[JADEGIRL]

We have relatives cruising with you. It thrills me to read your wonderful

descriptions of life onboard. I know, through you, they must be having a great time.

 

Thank you,

Sharyn

[NotChoppedLiver]

Cruiser1975:

 

You're not the only one who blabs secrets.

 

My secret is that I've been hoping one of your CC shipmates

will write more info about the ports, and with a tad less emphasis on

food minutae.

 

Otherwise, your writing style is very cute.

 

Laura

[Ragnar Danneskjold]

We have had great ones in Bellagio (Vegas) but quite complicated, and also McCormick and Shmick in San Diego.

 

Ours is the best, in our opinion!

 

1.5oz Vodka

1.5oz Lemoncello with a splash of Triple Sec in this measure

1.5oz Grapefruit Juice

.5oz Lemon Juice

 

Rim glass with crunchy sugar and a lemon wedge.

Shake vigorously in a martini shaker with ice, and serve very cold.

 

------------------------

 

After having prepared this recipe several times, varying the ingredients experimentally, I have to declare it to be off the mark. The grapfruit juice should be reduced to 1.0 oz. to make it the best we've had :D

[Cruisers1975]

Cruiser1975:

 

You're not the only one who blabs secrets.

 

My secret is that I've been hoping one of your CC shipmates

will write more info about the ports, and with a tad less emphasis on

food minutae.

 

Otherwise, your writing style is very cute.

 

Laura

 

Never been called cute but we'll take it.

 

Ports decidedly blah except for Cartagena, Colon, and Playa del Carmen. Wish we'd skipped San Andres.

[Cruisers1975]

------------------------

 

After having prepared this recipe several times, varying the ingredients experimentally, I have to declare it to be off the mark. The grapfruit juice should be reduced to 1.0 oz. to make it the best we've had :D

 

To each their own.

[Cruisers1975]

We have relatives cruising with you. It thrills me to read your wonderful

descriptions of life onboard. I know, through you, they must be having a great time.

 

Thank you,

Sharyn

 

Summary review later but overall it was a wonderful experience with a crew that contained some of the best people we've ever met.

[Susan-M]

Summary review later but overall it was a wonderful experience with a crew that contained some of the best people we've ever met.

 

Thanks Cruisers1975 for taking the time to post your informative and entertaining reviews. Glad to hear that despite some 'speed bumps' along the way, it was a wonderful experience!:)

[Cruisers1975]

November 11. Last day at sea.

 

 

We have an important engagement this morning that we are asked not to reveal till after the fact, so I don’t dare mention it yet, but it involves a special invitation from the Captain to visit the bridge in an hour.

 

Damn! I never was any good with secrets!

 

What a nice visit it is, too. We are ushered past one of the many doors marked Crew Only, down a hallway of bridge officers’ staterooms, the hallway walls filled with walnut plaques commending and commemorating the many achievements of the ship and its crew. Looked a lot like a Rotary Club. Then into the bridge itself, seventy feet above the water, surrounded on three sides with panoramic views, with two long rows of instruments and computer screens extending nearly from one side of the ship to the other. Some measure everything within the ship, from smoke detectors to stabilizers to damage control valves. Others reveal everything around us. On one screen, a click on a dot representing a ship about five miles away and a popup screen gives the freighter’s name, origin, location, destination, critical details. Our guide points out the speakers and the cameras in the ceiling: every noise and action on the bridge is recorded and stored in the “black box.” The Captain laughs and reminds us that the cameras are “everywhere” on the ship. He puts his arm around my shoulder and winks, “… and you were very entertaining in the shower this morning!”

 

Half an hour later we are out again to make room for another group extended the same privilege by virtue of their Captain’s Club status.

 

Swearing I won’t eat at all today does absolutely no good. I eat. Lightly, but still eating, a couple of sandwiches in the Mosaic coffee shop while waiting for the Spanish class to resume. The class has been squeezed out of the announced location, in the Discoveries Lounge, because Cruise Director's enrichment series lecture on Quantum Mathematics in Nature or the like has filled the lounge and run overtime. Can you believe that? A lecture on mathematics attracting a standing-room only audience of sixty-plus geriatrics? It’s a tribute to the versatility and popularity of Cruise Director, certainly the finest one we’ve ever encountered.

 

After Spanish, it’s time for Super Trivia, another of CD's projects, and again, overflowing with participants. It is particularly entertaining to watch ancient relics who, seeing them anywhere else on ship, one would wonder if they would survive the trip at all, now lugging chairs from distant decks to squeeze around the Mosaic Café tables.

 

We lose again but it’s been great fun, and it’s a half hour or more after the game before the crowd has stopped congratulating each other and disperses. It’s going to be hard to leave this group!

 

We enjoy dinner at the buffet with other friends. I notice that either someone is finally thinking independently, or their reading over my shoulder? Both the stir-fry and the pasta stations are now using both burners, and, as a result, serving twice as many guests at once. We compare notes on how it seems that all restaurants except the main one, Discoveries, are finally up to speed. Discoveries is still pretty hit and miss, with friend still laughing over his “twice baked potato” that could not be penetrated by his fork. Restaurant Manager drops by our table to make sure everything is fine, offering to refill our iced teas, bring us a dessert … he is so very eager to please we haven’t the heart to tell him that Discoveries is still hit-and-miss.

 

After dinner, a last walk about. We stop in Mosaic to hear some more of Dan Daly’s piano. We had missed his special performances in the Cabaret but friends are still raving about how wonderful it was, how he really came alive under the lights, with full-house crowds for two performances. John joins us as we wish Dan many more encounters with us on cruises in the future. He was the first to greet us sincerely and spontaneously as we came aboard; it’s only appropriate that we spend our last evening leaning on his piano and exchanging stories of a wonderful cruise experience.

 

Retiring for the last time to the Discoveries Lounge, our favourite cocktail waitress there already knows our drink, and which of us wants a sugar rim. We’re almost taking for granted the special relationship we’ve built with so many people in such a short while.

Shortcomings? There are always going to be a few. We are almost used to seeing the lips move several seconds before the voice on our television now; it may seem unusual to watch at home in normal sync! The Internet remains a frustration of slowness on one computer and inability to access it at all on mine. It’s taken five visits to the Front Desk to ensure we are not charged for about $200 worth of time we never got. The last visit, young desk clerk there gave such a tongue-lashing on the phone to Computer Guy in E-Connections that I suspect we are not the first to have this complaint. I walked past the Pool Grill again today to notice a short line-up for burgers, and a menu board on the wall that remains completely blank; tacos and nachos will remain a secret of the Quest. The welcome book in our room invites us to “simply contact your Butler” if we would like to purchase any of the “carefully selected … array of items” in our stateroom, but the little pillows with the Azamara embroidery are not available for sale at any price. And the rose is gone again.

 

But do any of these take away anything at all from this wonderful experience? Not one bit.

 

Now to bed one last night, bags all packed and in the hall, and my little Azamara pillow under my head for the last time.

 

November 12. Disembarkation Free-for-All

 

 

Early alarm this morning as we have been “invited” to clear US Customs at 7:15 AM, and there is no room service for breakfast. We’re just gliding into the Port of Miami as we awake. What a beautiful port area, so unlike any we’ve seen on this voyage! Quick shower and off we trundle to the Cabaret Theatre for the brief formalities. All non-US citizens are cleared on the ship; US citizens are cleared on the dock, apparently. And, we read, all non-US citizens except Canadians have to complete an I-94 form in addition to the other documents.

 

Arriving at the Cabaret, we find the place nearly full, the entire non-US citizen component. Sliding around toward the stage we find two seats, very near the coffee pots and trays of Danishes … but the plastic is still on the Danishes and no one is taking any coffee, so I consider that perhaps it’s a welcome gesture exclusively for the boarding Customs Agents and I content myself to look at it longingly. We’ll get coffee as soon as this exercise is completed, I’m sure.

 

Shortly Assistant Cruise Director tells us that there will be seven agents, occupying he single long table on the stage. It will all go very quickly, he assures us. Shore Excursions guy tells everyone to get in line, indicating an aisle between seats around the stage.

 

As the hoard begins to assemble, the hue and cry comes up. My goodness, the Brits think by sitting in the lounge they have been "queing" and you know what Brits do to queue jumpers! All stereotype of British Reserve and politeness evaporates as those at the rear call out, “ ’Ey, we were here first! We’ve been waiting for 45 minutes! Why should they be first in line!?” and begin pushing. The front of the line (into which we were serendipitously located despite our later arrival) holds firm as those in the middle are compacted in the press and take up the call for justice. Assistant Cruise Director grabs the microphone again and barks “Nobody is getting anything until everyone sits back down! Who told you to get in line?” Poor Shore Excursions guy sidles into anonymity, but no one resumes their seats.

 

We stand firm, as the seven Agents march onto the stage and assume their positions behind the table. Then three more Somebodies in Important Uniforms enter and engage Assistant Cruise Director in animated conversation, as we all wonder what the delay is. We find out soon enough:

 

“Okay, you filled out the I-94 form we gave you but it’s the old version. Since you have been to Colombia you have to fill out the new version. Please step out of line until you have filled out the proper documents…” and before he was finished the cry is heard “And where the bloody hell do we get the new documents!?” Apparently, Assistant Cruise Director has an answer for that, too, but it still involves stepping out of the jealously secured place in the melee.

 

We hold our passports high, pointing to the magic word “CANADA” on the face of each, and are allowed to approach the table without the I-94, old or revised. I am the first to reach an agent whose opening comment is, “Does the expression ‘deer in the headlights’ mean anything to you? I just discovered another good reason for wearing bulletproof vests.”

 

 

A rubber stamp whomps down on my Immigration Card and we’re off. Truth be told, the whole process, once begun, must have lasted no more than 15 minutes, at the conclusion of which the assault on the breakfast buffet could begin.

 

This is the first morning we’ve eaten in the buffet area and frankly wish we’d done so a little more often. Breakfast on the verandah is delightful, but then so are warm and crispy Belgian waffles.

 

By now it’s supposed to be time to assemble to claim our luggage, but another US Customs delay holds that process up another hour or so, but gives us a chance to have one last chat with friends and that’s always a nice thing.

 

And then, almost before we know it, we’re off the boat, luggage in hand, hailing a cab, in a plane, and home.

 

It’s all over.

 

I want to go back!

 

 

Summary on another post.