Additional 10/31 Quest Notes

[LIQUIDS]

It's impossible to summarize or otherwise report on Quest's Halloween cruise any better than Cruisers1975, but I'll like to add our experiences and observations.

 

STATEROOM

Beginning in the standard veranda stateroom, I believe it feels smaller than Celebrity's version. The closets (cupboards?) are two double-door and one single-door, the latter with four drawers taking up the bottom half. I think I remember Celebrity being two double-doors, but I could be mistaken.

 

The shower is ridiculous. It starts out 2 ft wide at the wall with the shower head, but it angles narrower from there. At my standing position I would have one shoulder touching the wall and one touching the shower curtain. the toilet points in an odd direction towards the door. Otherwise the bathroom fixtures and cleanliness were excellent.

 

Room carpet was obviously not replaced in drydock. In the right light, handprints and old wipe marks could be seen in the wall covering. We also had the bed-side Azamara foot mats appear halfway through the cruise, but I figured it was because the port (Panama?) that day was the point of origin.

 

The flat-screen TV picture turns into ghost images if viewed from below perpendicular, but fortunately you can swivel the bottom end back into the cabinet to point the screen downwards to eye level on the bed. We also had a TV with "Japanese movie" sound (voices not in synch with picture). The TV's receiver for the remote is in the lower right corner of the TV face, so you might have to position the TV with its swing-arm to make sure that point is "visible" to the remote.

 

Our telephone did not access the voicemail system with the posted "41" dial sequence; it was "55". After guessing correctly at a password (stateroom number), and recording our name and greeting, I was able to retrieve our messages ... except they were for the cruise(s) before us. They did not reset the system between cruises. Hopefully they'll learn to do this because I changed the password. ; )

 

Veranda chairs were spartan but actually quite comfortable. Throughout the cruise, I never felt more "on vacation" than while sitting on the veranda at sea.

 

PORTS

In both Grand Cayman and San Andres Island we anchored away from the main town and tendered in to a useless location for anything but getting transportation from there. In Grand Cayman they stated it was due to swells in Georgetown's harbor, and in San Andres I suspect it was that also, though they didn't tell us that. With Azamara having smaller ships, you might find this to be the case often in future sailings.

 

Santa Marta, Colombia is NOT ready to entertain cruise passengers. The city was VERY litter-strewn and dirty. Walking down 10 or 11 Calle a half mile or so back towards the port we smelled sewage the whole way, and also while stepping over the little foot bridge at the edge of the ship terminal. This is not to say that Santa Marta is not a hard-working and safe city for Colombians. On every street we walked down (a lot), there was brisk commerce and shopping being done between Colombians. They don't know what to do with dollars, however.

 

The old walled city in Cartagena was safer than my wife remembered from 25 years ago. A much larger area was open for tourists to wander without being redirected by soldiers. The entire walled city actually, I would say. Good shopping there. A shipboard presentation on emeralds (waste of time) said that the old city had just as good selection as the Boca Grande, but I had a sense that I could not trust the emerald shops in the old city. Call me paranoid. Go to where the action is (Boca Grande) if you want that.

 

Colon, Panama has to be the most aptly named port I've ever been to. If you want to find bargains in the Zona Libre, and they are there, find a guide who knows the stores well. It's a very large zone and is not laid out by product type. There are no useful maps. That said, people who found stuff said there were truly good deals there.

 

We left a memento of Puerto Limon, Costa Rica on the ship. It was a "wery special geeft". Can anyone spot it?

 

San Andres Island is another working "Colombian" city, but this one can handle dollars. This would be a decent island on which to rent scooters, but be careful riding in the city traffic on the north end. The soldiers here are always on alert, guns a-ready and eyes scanning for potential threats. We heard this was due to Nicaragua's recent claims on the island.

 

Playa del Carmen is 10-20 times the size it was when we were last there 10-12 years ago. But even with that growth, it seems like it is keeping the "feel" of a small, unique shopping port, even though the main drag goes on forever. Our favorite stop of the cruise.

 

THE SHIP, ETC.

Being smaller, you feel the waves and the swells more, and we loved that. Perfect size for a ship. Maybe it was due to the average passenger age (old), but there was no competition for deck chairs, ever. I never even had trouble finding an outdoor table in the aft area of the cafeteria.

 

Unfortunately there were no deck chairs on the outdoor areas on deck 5, like I remember on Century-class ships. The forward area on 9, through the spa or fitness area, was only accessible through the spa. The door to there through the fitness area was always locked.

 

The fitness area needs fans near the cardio-type machines (bikes, treadmills, elliptical). Otherwise the room was very well equipped.

 

The library was always too cold.

 

THE FOOD

We did not have the negative experiences in Discoveries that Cruisers1975 did. I thought in general that the food was the equivalent of that on other Celebrity ships ... maybe just a thin hair lower in quality, but I attributed that to the newness of the crew. Timing was a problem. One dinner for eight ran 3 hrs 20 mins.

 

We ate dinner half the time in Discoveries, 3-4 times in Windows Cafe, and once each in Aqualina and Prime C. Windows Cafe for dinner was just fine for us.

 

Aqualina was flawless and delicious. Prime C had too small of a steak selection, but otherwise was also flawless.

 

Wifey thought that breakfast and lunch in Windows was the best she's had on a cruise. I hadn't really noticed until she said it, but I can't say I've had better anywhere.

 

SUMMARY

Yes, we'd cruise these ships again without question.

 

And I wish I'd known what the hell the Friends of Dorothy was before the cruise; we would have had a LOT more fun.

[wtrmdr]

THE SHIP, ETC.

Being smaller, you feel the waves and the swells more, and we loved that. Perfect size for a ship. Maybe it was due to the average passenger age (old), .....

 

And I wish I'd known what the hell the Friends of Dorothy was before the cruise; we would have had a LOT more fun.

 

I think I resemble that comment about average passenger age!!!! ;) We don't use that "O" word ... we are mature! :D

 

Just what IS Friends of Dorothy?? :confused:

 

Marti

[Susan-M]

Just what IS Friends of Dorothy?? :confused:

 

Marti

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/cruisestyles/articles.cfm?ID=188

[LIQUIDS]

Sorry to pop this topic to the top of the list, but I wanted to possibly correct (or add confusion to?) the origin of the term "Friends of Dorothy" with this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friend_of_Dorothy .

[JonandNancy]

Thanks for the great reports.

What emerald dealers did you find? I am looking for my wife.

 

Also...

Is there a great place (dark) with lounge chairs to see the stars? (not hollywood type but the one's in the sky)...;

 

Thanks again for the great reporting.

[houstontx]

Thanks for the great reports.

What emerald dealers did you find? I am looking for my wife.

 

Oh MY!! You wife is lost?

 

 

:D :D :D