Review and Photos of Denali May 18-19 and Carnival Spirit Cruise SB, May 20-27, 2009

[bluejays29]

Okay Bimmermom, I have my margaritta poured and am anxiously waiting for more!!:rolleyes:

[bimmermom]

After our afternoon of adventure in Prince William Sound, we were sooooo ready to board the Carnival Spirit. As we were debarking the Klondike Express, we noticed that Whittier's local celebrity was sunning himself and lying on a pipe next to the ship. Yes, it was Wilbur, the big sea lion we had heard so much about that afternoon! Wilbur literally "hangs out" on the ship dock when the weather is warm and sunny. He had been there earlier in the day when we arrived around 1:00 pm and apparently had not moved a muscle (or flipper or whisker) for the past 4 1/2 hours. Don't forget to look for Wilbur at the end of the dock when you are in Whittier. Tell him my hubby is sorry (you'll understand why later).

 

Wilbur, Whittier's resident Sea Lion

 

 

We retrieved our small carry-ons from the Magic Bus (which was getting ready to take Anchorage-bound passengers back) and headed the few steps next door. Checking in at the cruise ship terminal was quick and easy at this time (it was around 5:30 pm) and we had just beat a bus full of arriving cruisers. Since we had booked a Category 11 suite for the 3 of us, we did have VIP check-in. Even without VIP, check-in would have been quick since were no lines anywhere at that time. We had to take a few moments to fill out a new form stating that we did not have any fever or flu-like symptoms, went through a quick check of our documents, and onto the ship we went. After getting our S&S cards made, we headed up to our cabin. Now I was really excited because I had booked our first aft wrap, Suite 8273, and I can't wait to see that balcony I had read so much about!

 

I guess this would be a good time to take a break from the daily stories to give you my impressions of the Spirit, the pros and cons, our likes and dislikes. Up to now, we had only cruised Carnival on the Conquest and Fantasy, so the Spirit was a new category for us. In terms of the layout and decor, the Spirit is by far my favorite. Her size at 88,000 or so tons is perfect, small enough so you don't feel completely lost yet big enough to feel very stable in choppy seas. I very much like the fact that most of the cabins have balconies and I really love the decor of the ship. Very nice muted colors yet the decor is lavish. And my favorite part of the ship's layout is that you can walk bow to stern all the way through on the decks. No having to go up and then down or all around like on the Conquest.

 

The atrium of the Spirit is simply beautiful and very high. Maybe I am wrong, but it appeared even higher than the Conquest's atrium to me. There is the usual rounded bar on the ground floor and the spiral staircases. You can tell that the Spirit has just been refurbished, because the entire ship appeared sparkling new. Carpets were plush and new, the big flat screen tvs in the aft bar, everything looked fresh and clean.

 

I noticed that the cabin tv was not new (no flat screen) and still had VHS instead of DVD. But that didn't matter to us, since we had so much touring to do, we wouldn't be in our cabin much during the upcoming days. And when we were in, we were going to be on that wrap around balcony (more about that in just a moment).

 

Atrium elevator

 

 

One huge plus for the Spirit's Alaskan cruise is that there is a full-time naturalist on board -- Dirk. He really knows his stuff. If the natural wonders surrounding you take priority on this cruise, be sure to go to his meetings and/or tune him in on your TV (Channel 15) when he is broadcasting. He made things so much more enjoyable and educational. He will point out wildlife along the shores as you are cruising and explain what you are looking at. He will also give you all kinds of recommendations and advice, depending on what your interests in Alaska are.

 

Food. Lots of food. Sushi was good (when you could find the sushi bar open), the pizza was excellent. But I must admit, the dining room cuisine and the lido grill (ie hamburgers/fries) were good, but not great when compared to our past Conquest and Fantasy cruises. I enjoyed the lido buffet's daily taste of nations food very much. While the dining staff we had was polite and capable, they were not as outstanding and fun-loving as on our past cruises. Of course, you can never go wrong with the Chocolate Melting Cake (it was the best of all)! But, again, we didn't come to Alaska foremost for the food or service, and with so many port days (5 of 7 days) we just weren't as actively involved in the ship life on this cruise as we normally are on Caribbean routes.

 

Dining Room

 

 

We did have dinner at the Nouveau Supper Club on Friday (May 22) night. The food was definitely out-of-this-world delicious, but oh my, it took us 3 hours to eat! I didn't realize that when I booked our reservation at 8:30 pm. Poor hubby (the early-to-bed, early-to rise person in our home) was eating his dessert with his eyes closed at around 11:00 pm. We did have a wonderful view up in the club (located at very top of the atrium area) and we saw lots of orcas swimming past during that time! Their was tons of them, just playfully swimming past us, going in the opposite direction. What a view! Did I have my camera? Of course not. The one time I was separated from it during the cruise. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR. I highly recommend the Supper Club -just be prepared for a LONG time. Savor each course...

 

We felt that, in general, the shows/entertainment weren't quite as good as on our Caribbean cruises. I only went to see the comedian once and he was pretty funny. But hubby and DD went to most all of the shows and the only one they thought was outstanding were the Blues Brothers. Otherwise, they were a little disappointed. Again, I didn't come to Alaska for the shows so this was fine with me.

 

While my family went to the shows, I kept busy either hanging out on the balcony watching for wildlife, reading up on the next day's planned excursion, or losing money at the casino on those very entertaining slot and video poker machines LOL.

 

We ended up spending quite a lot of time in the karaoke bar with our new CC friends (more about them later -- you guys reading this? -- we miss you), which was soooo much fun! Our little group got "shushed" more than once for being too rowdy and having too much fun. Hubby and DD and her friend Erin even performed a few times! The karaoke DJ is a hoot -- he seems very reserved at first, but just as soon as he sees that somebody needs a little help with their singing, he jumps in there with his feather boas, hats and glasses and sings at the top of his lungs! He has a really good voice and can belt 'em out like Donna Summer or Aretha when he wants to. Watch out for him to jump out when you least expect it.

 

Other ship highlights -- do wander around and explore this lovely ship. You will love the pools/whirlpools under the retractable roof. Great place to unwind, if you have the time and energy left after a full day ashore. DD was at first disappointed that the huge slide at the very back of the ship wasn't open during our cruise, but it would have been just a little too brisk for her to use in the evenings. Most days when the sun was shining, we weren't on the ship anyway.

 

One of the lower decks, the jungle hall is really cool, and a nice quiet place to read a book or just relax. There is a library that actually has books and the shops have all kinds of neat stuff. Do try to wait for the sales at the end of the cruise though. DD and I snatched a few nice things on the last sea day, including a nice fashion watch, green amethyst ring and perfume at real bargain prices. It was fun to jump in there with the masses of folks that jam the shop on that last sea day. Coupons are passed out when you buy items and a drawing for door prizes is made. Put on your hard hat! And across the hall, liquor prices in the duty free shop can't be beat if you feel like lugging some bottles home.

 

Jungle hall - the beast in the mirror is my hubby

 

 

Now that I've given you our overall impressions of the ship, I'm going back to my day-by-day narrative.

 

Let's see, when I left off, we were headed to our cabin for the first time. I simply loved our cabin! One of those aft wrap cabins, 8273 has 3 main rooms (bedroom, living room (couch made into single for DD), and dressing room. Plus a huge walk-in closet (you can even shut the door and dress in there if you want to) and a huge bathroom with dual sinks and whirlpool tub. The granite counters and trim are really nice. When we first arrived our big bags were there waiting for us.

 

As a group we all 3 rushed for the balcony door. It was hard to figure out at first which one was the door, since there are so many ceiling to floor windows and such fabulous views everywhere!

 

The balcony was definitely the piece-de-resistance! With an overwhelming 270 degree vista, what else could you want?

 

 

On our balcony were 2 regular chairs, 2 end tables and 2 lounge chairs yet there was still room for a huge party. We politely waited until the last sea night to have our big party out there under the stars with our CC roll call friends (you know who you are). But more about that later, too. Although this is the wrap cabin located right below the lido, we only notice chairs scraping on the deck about maybe twice during the whole trip, so that was not a big deal for us. Neither did we even notice any soot on the chairs. And yes, the overhanging roof is only partial across the back but I never had a problem with anybody staring over into our space and vice-versa. There was plenty of privacy, especially over on the short starboard part of the balcony which has a complete overhang.

 

Our cabin was the one with the top wrap balcony just below the lido deck, starboard (right) side.

 

[bimmermom]

 

 

 

Of course the 3 of us were glued to the balcony for a while. (I will post balcony pictures when I get to them). Hubby, looking way down below at the dock, notices that Wilbur is still sound asleep in the exact same spot where he has been all day. No longer able to act like an adult, my 57-year-old hubby began to make what he thinks are convincing sea lion noises, you know that aw-aw-aw sound that you hear at the zoo. Hubby is a loud man to begin with and his sea lion barks were more than magnified by echoing off the ship and the dock. Poor Wilbur was so startled he jumped up and then slithered quickly into the water. Needless to say, DD and I were not happy with hubby at all. We hoped that Wilbur would come back while we went to our first dinner.

 

Dinner is normally "open" seating on your first cruise night, so we didn't have to wait until our appointed dinner time of 8:15 pm. It is very casual, come-as-you-are, sit anywhere rules on that first night. I had broiled snapper, hubby had steak and daughter had some kind of pasta chicken. We all had appetizers and desserts (choco melting cake for us ladies). Food that first night I think was some of the best during the entire cruise. Anyway, full as ticks, we waddled back to the room briefly to see about Wilbur.

 

 

On the way we met our steward, Constantine, from Romania. Constantine is the nicest, funniest and most efficient steward we have ever had the honor to meet on a cruise ship. We hit it off with him immediately. We didn't get to see Constantine much (we were always on excursions and he and his magic elves always seemed to know when to clean so as not to run into us) we appreciated all he did. I hope he gets to go back home to his wife and 2 young daughters this summer and explore his own beautiful country for a while.

 

Hubby and dd next went to the show, but I decided to stay out on the fabulous balcony. While out there, I kept a look-out for Wilbur in the remaining few hours that we were docked at Whittier, but he never returned. I also watched the long trains that bring in much of Alaska's imports come and go. They continued to take turns with the cars through the famous tunnel. I watched the waterfalls that were formed from the melting snow on the big mountain just behind Whittier and saw the Klondike Express depart and return a few more times, I think it serves as a water ferry when it's not taking tourists to glaciers. As we pulled away from the dock around 10:00 pm, I sat down on the balcony to write some notes for this review. I watched the 14-story Begich Building that houses most of the town's 200 or so inhabitants float past. Pretty soon we were far out in Prince William Sound and heading for College Fjord. The sun didn't fully set until sometime after midnight. Good night, Whittier and take care, Wilbur!

 

[txskier]

this is excellent, the pictures are awesome.

We are looking at Alaska for next year and your review is going to help!!

I will have to finish your review when I get back home in a week

[bimmermom]

 

Begich Tower, home to most of Whittier's population of about 200

 

Sorry for this long and winding review, but I'm getting the hang of it now! If you have any questions, don't forget to ask. More later.

[bimmermom]

Thanks again, guys, for your encouragement. I really should be catching up more at work and home but I keep taking breaks to work on this review! It's almost as fun this go round :)

 

Ike201 - my hubby prefers the Zen-Ray Summit 10x and I kinda like the 8x a little better. Maybe it's because I get less shake with the 8x, although both seem stable in my grip. We just decided at the last minute before the cruise to add the 8x and I'm glad we did! Very nice product for the money.

 

Here's hoping you have a great, smooth cruise with lots of wildlife to view!

[lorilea]

Don't apologize for a long and winding review Bimmermom. I am thoroughly enjoying every bit of it! Can't wait for your next installment.

[bimmermom]

Jimbug -- Definitely pick Alaska for your anniversary! You can do the Caribbean later -- that would be my choice anyway. Just be aware that the Carnival Spirit will be changing her Alaskan itinerary next year. Instead of Vancouver roundtrips and north and southbound cruises out of Whittier and Vancouver, she will be sailing only out of Seattle.

 

Not sure, but I don't think Sitka will be on next year's schedule either. That is very sad because Sitka is absolutely charming. Also, if you decide you want to do a pre-cruise land tour like we did to Denali or elsewhere and then cruise out of either Whittier or Seward, you'll need to choose a different ship next year.

 

Well, you've got time to make these decisions and lots of CCer's to give you good advice.

 

Take care!

[bimmermom]

Hey, BlueJay! I know about your magaritas and I surely wish I had one in my hand right now. Think I'll settle for a gin and tonic. When are you coming down south to visit?

[bimmermom]

[vegs1]

bimmermom - I absolutely love reading your review. We will be sailing on the Spirit in July in an aft balcony wraparound cabin so I was very happy to see you had posted photos of your cabin. (we're on deck 7) Thank you!

 

A couple of questions if you don't mind:

 

I noticed you had the late dinner seating. How did you find that with your port times, shows, etc? Would you have preferred early or open dining?

Did you speak to anyone that had chosen the Open Dinner seating and if so, did they like it?

 

I've heard it is perfectly acceptable to wear jeans to dinner? Did you notice if anyone actually did?

 

With the VIP status (from having a suite) do you get any other perks like early tendering? We have a very early tour in Sitka and are a little worried about getting off the ship in time although I'm sure it will work out.

 

Thank you again. Can't wait to read the rest of your exceptional review. Your photos are amazing.

 

My daughter hopes Wilbur will be back when we pull into Whittier!!!!

[bimmermom]

Hello, Vegs1! Thank you very much. You are just going to love your 7th deck wrap around. I'll post balcony photos soon.

 

To answer your questions:

 

For us, the late dining time worked out the best. We liked staying onshore or had excursions that lasted until very late in the afternoon. Thus having a late dinner time gave us more than enough time to shower and relax a little before dinner. As you can see in the capers that I posted a link to earlier in this thread, there are late shows that are easy to get to after dinner.

 

Port times were perfect for us, a very long time (7am to 11pm) at Juneau allowed us to go on the Adventure Bound to Tracy Arm as well as a tram ride up to Mt. Roberts. A relatively long time at Skagway was perfect for the 7.5 hour White Pass and Yukon excursion with Chilkoot Tours. I think the port times vary between the SB and the NB; in fact, the longer port time at Juneau is one reason I chose the SB in the first place.

 

I'm not sure if we would have preferred open dining or not. The option was not available to us in May, but I believe I read that the Spirit will be starting it sometime this month. I'd probably like it if there are no long wait times.

 

Yes, we definitely saw a handful of folks wearing blue jeans at dinner, except on formal or "dressy" nights. For our SB cruise, "dressy" nights were our first full sea day night (Day 2) and on our Skagway evening (5th night). I believe these evenings also varies between NB and SB? I'm not sure about that.

 

There was not early tendering for VIP status that I know of, but in Sitka we had booked thru the ship (Allen Marine's Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest). Since this was a Carnival tour, we were put on the Allen Marine boat directly from the Spirit. The other ports aren't tender ports, so you shouldn't have any problem getting off just as soon as the ship docks. What tour are you signed up for in Sitka?

 

Please say hello to your daughter and tell her to let us know if she sees Wilbur in July!

[krogerlady]

Absolutely love your review...leave on Monday, and i am trying to take it all in!! What lens did you use to take pic of Begich Towers? One pic its far in the background, and another its like you are right in front of it. i am taking a 300 mm, and if thats what it can do, i am going to have fun!! BTW, great pics!!

[vegs1]

Hello, Vegs1! Thank you very much. You are just going to love your 7th deck wrap around. I'll post balcony photos soon.

 

To answer your questions:

 

For us, the late dining time worked out the best. We liked staying onshore or had excursions that lasted until very late in the afternoon. Thus having a late dinner time gave us more than enough time to shower and relax a little before dinner. As you can see in the capers that I posted a link to earlier in this thread, there are late shows that are easy to get to after dinner.

 

Port times were perfect for us, a very long time (7am to 11pm) at Juneau allowed us to go on the Adventure Bound to Tracy Arm as well as a tram ride up to Mt. Roberts. A relatively long time at Skagway was perfect for the 7.5 hour White Pass and Yukon excursion with Chilkoot Tours. I think the port times vary between the SB and the NB; in fact, the longer port time at Juneau is one reason I chose the SB in the first place.

 

I'm not sure if we would have preferred open dining or not. The option was not available to us in May, but I believe I read that the Spirit will be starting it sometime this month. I'd probably like it if there are no long wait times.

 

Yes, we definitely saw a handful of folks wearing blue jeans at dinner, except on formal or "dressy" nights. For our SB cruise, "dressy" nights were our first full sea day night (Day 2) and on our Skagway evening (5th night). I believe these evenings also varies between NB and SB? I'm not sure about that.

 

There was not early tendering for VIP status that I know of, but in Sitka we had booked thru the ship (Allen Marine's Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest). Since this was a Carnival tour, we were put on the Allen Marine boat directly from the Spirit. The other ports aren't tender ports, so you shouldn't have any problem getting off just as soon as the ship docks. What tour are you signed up for in Sitka?

 

Please say hello to your daughter and tell her to let us know if she sees Wilbur in July!

 

Thank you so much for responding so quickly. I think I'll be happy that we booked the late dining as well. I hate having to hurry to get to dinner and I guess if worse comes to worse, we'll go to the buffet.

 

In Sitka, we are scheduled to do a trip with Captain Davey to see Sea Otters and whales. It is a small boat...only takes 6 passengers so we're very excited. We have to meet him at 7:30 am though so I'm hoping they won't hold us up getting off. (We did book it privately - not through the ship). He said it works out fine though so I'm trusting that all will go well.

 

Is there any other tips or regrets that you can pass along to us? Anything you wish you would have brought? And by the way...your photos are amazing. You are quite the skilled photographer!

 

Did you enjoy the Chilkoot Tours 7.5 hour tour? We are also scheduled to do that and have included the 15 minute dog carting too (for my daughter!). Can't wait!

 

Thanks again!

[jrmende63]

Bimmermom,

Thanks for your review. Hubby and I went to Alaska on our very first cruise. We chose the serenity and beauty of Alaska for our 25th wedding anniversary. The Carnival Spirit hooked us on cruising! We love Alaska and will go back again! Thanks for the pics of Denali and your road trip. I think that is what we are going to do but I think we will take a week or two after our cruise and just see the land. ( yes we will cruise Alaska again!)

Julie

[bimmermom]

Vegs, thanks to all the great advice here on cc (I've been lurking for well over a year now), I really can't say there was anything I forgot to bring on the cruise. Had the usual must-haves (power strip, lots of camera memory cards, waterproof jacket and shoes, binoculars, layers of clothes, etc.)

 

Your trip with Capt Davey in Sitka sounds fantastic, especially with only 6 people. I'll bet he would wait for you even if you were just a bit late for some reason. You are certain to see lots of otters and whales. We saw them all over the place during our Sitka boat tour. Not only did we see otters, we saw a gray whale, a humpback whale and lots of eagles. Those pics are coming up in just a bit.

 

Oh, and I must admit the Chilkoot 7.5 tour plus dog cart ride was probably my favorite of all (by just a hair). We had the most amazing time. That is an excursion I would do over and over again and still be in awe. I think I took more photos on that one than anywhere else. :D

 

I'm going to try to post some more tonight so see ya a bit later.

[vegs1]

Vegs, thanks to all the great advice here on cc (I've been lurking for well over a year now), I really can't say there was anything I forgot to bring on the cruise. Had the usual must-haves (power strip, lots of camera memory cards, waterproof jacket and shoes, binoculars, layers of clothes, etc.)

 

Your trip with Capt Davey in Sitka sounds fantastic, especially with only 6 people. I'll bet he would wait for you even if you were just a bit late for some reason. You are certain to see lots of otters and whales. We saw them all over the place during our Sitka boat tour. Not only did we see otters, we saw a gray whale, a humpback whale and lots of eagles. Those pics are coming up in just a bit.

 

Oh, and I must admit the Chilkoot 7.5 tour plus dog cart ride was probably my favorite of all (by just a hair). We had the most amazing time. That is an excursion I would do over and over again and still be in awe. I think I took more photos on that one than anywhere else. :D

 

I'm going to try to post some more tonight so see ya a bit later.

 

I can't wait to see your train photos....I'm waiting with baited breath.

It's amazing how much you learn on these boards...and then when someone writes a review it makes you that much more excited. I can hardly wait.

[bimmermom]

krogerlady -- yeppers that 300 mm lens make a huge difference, doesn't it? You have an eagle eye to notice the Begich Tower in that first shot. Plus I believe that a 300mm digital lens is more equivalent to about a 400mm zoom lens on our old 35mm cameras. You're definitely gonna have fun with your lenses. I just wish I were faster at switching lenses! What camera do you have?

[bimmermom]

The next morning, our first day at sea, dawned a bit misty and overcast. Hubby and I woke around 6:30 am, bundled up in our warm coats and stepped out to see the glaciers of College Fjord from our balcony. Dirk was speaking on the ship's loud speakers and we had also tuned the tv into his talk. Unfortunately the ship was unable to get to very close to the glaciers on that morning, as the fjord had iced over since the captain had gone through it just the day before. Ah well, we were still able to get great wide angle shots of the 2 largest tidewater fjords in College Fjord, Yale and Harvard. We also got good views of the other glaciers, including Bryn Mawr, Smith, Radcliff, etc.

 

 

Below: Bryn Mawr, Smith, Baltimore Glaciers

 

Below: Harvard Glacier on left; Yale on the right

 

Just as beautiful, we got to see a small pod of Orca whales pass by the ship! Several eagles also soared past us and one even perched on an iceberg to watch us float by. The water was smooth as silk and shiny as a mirror and the Spirit just seemed to barely glide over the surface. We sat back listening and learning from Dirk and enjoying the silent, icy beauty of College Fjord. A couple of hours later, the captain slowly turned the ship back out to sea and we head up to the lido deck. DD was now fully awake and ready to eat.

 

Eagles were everywhere during our cruise. The guy below was as interested in watching us as we were in watching him.

 

 

 

Orca (killer whales) in College Fjord

[bimmermom]

The sun was beginning to break through by mid-morning.

At some point in the morning, we had a muster drill. I think it must have been around 9:30 or so. Afterwards, we took our life jackets back to the room and went up one short flight of steps for a warm mid-morning breakfast. I enjoyed the breakfast buffet of fluffy eggs, toast and fruit, while the family loaded up on oatmeal, pancakes, cookies and lots of other yummies. The icy air had made us all very hungry!

 

At 10:30, we were ready to meet up with our CC roll call group at the Fan Tail Bar. Now we were going to have some fun! It's always a blast to match up faces with screen names and personalities. Well, we had the best group ever and I have to admit, several of us bonded right away. I know I've made some friends for life in this wonderful group of folks.

[bimmermom]

Not only did our fearless roll call leaders, Terry and her hubby Carl, get us adults chatting and carrying on, my youngster daughter met her soon-to-be best friend from Canada, Erin! Yeppers, the gals would not be able to say they were stuck with just old people or their boring parents on this cruise. They hit it off quickly and even looked like sisters. We also loved Kellie, Erin's mom from Toronto.

 

And there was Ashley, a fellow southerner and her dad. Also included in our little group were Mr. and Mrs. Alaskagriz from Alaska. They took a lot of flack on the cruise since they actually live on the Kenai Peninsula, but they wanted to see a different part of their huge state . And we were so fortunate to have met them!

 

There were others in our group and we all had a blast chatting up there in front of the bar with our ship heading out into the open waters of the Gulf of Alaska. A day or 2 later during various excursions, we ran into even more folks from our roll call (Emily and Roger, Carol and Dewayne) and enjoyed getting to know them as well.

 

I would never have believed that we would have so much fun together -- so thanks a bunch Cruise Critic! My advice to you new cruisers, be sure to meet up with your roll call family, you may just make friends for life. A cruise is not the place to be shy!

 

After our meeting, we decided to explore the ship for a while. Again, the Spirit is an incredibly beautiful ship and we just enjoyed walking around the decks.

 

 

I decided to go take a nap at some point, so hubby and dd went to participate in the chicken olympics. Evidently they had a lot of fun, but only come in fourth place. Dang, no ship on a stick today!

 

 

 

 

Later that afternoon, after my refreshing little nap, I went with hubby to the karaoke bar. This is where we were amazed by the singing ability of the seemingly quiet DJ. HA! What a character and what a voice. :eek:

 

I double and triple dared hubby to sing something, cuz dd and I have always teased him about being tone deaf. He loves to sing though, poor man. Ok after a few drinks, he decided to take the plunge and got the huge book to pick a song from. He found the perfect one -- you'll never guess -- drum roll -- you've really got to be old to remember this one -- PURPLE PEOPLE EATER.

 

Even the DJ has a blank look on his face when hubby gave him the request. Ah, but the music was finally found and hubby performed his purple people eater magic. Not too shabby! Off key, but nobody cared at all. I was so proud!

 

That night was our first formal evening. I had brought simple black jersey slacks and a sparkly top to wear, dd had brought her little black cocktail dress and hubby just dressed in a nice shirt and tie with khakis. We had requested earlier in the day to be seated with our new Alaskan and Canadian buds, and we ended up with adjoining booths.

 

Dinner was good that evening, with entrees varying from shortribs to lobster to salmon. I should have made better notes about the food selections, but just plain forgot! Oh, well, as I noted before, we felt the food was certainly fresh and good, but just don't remember it being as outstanding as on our other cruises. That's ok, I always enjoy any meal I don't have to cook, especially if it's served to me in a beautiful dining hall, and I am surrounded by family, friends and singing waiters :)

[bimmermom]

Looking from our wrap balcony up toward lido deck, here is our CC group minus a few important members.

 

[bluejays29]

Looking from our wrap balcony up toward lido deck, here is our CC group minus a few important members.

 

LOL the video from this day is priceless!! Once I get a few minutes I will make copies for y'all!!

[rm4778]

What a wonderful review--thank you so much! DH and I are doing the same route at the end of July. I thought I was excited before reading your review!!

 

Was it your DD that I saw in the Auburn shirt? My husband is a professor at AU, so I couldn't help but notice.

 

Can't wait to read more...

Ramona

[RAVI360]

WOW....What a beautiful review ...thanks for taking me somewhere i probably never get to ...again thanks