Day by Day Dawn NYE Review LIVE

[ChrisConnolly]

Ok everyone.. Play nice, besides this is my thread and I think you've gone pretty off topic...

 

Today was Sunday in St. Thomas.. We arrived late, the ship cleared around 1:45.... Our tour as I stated before, the screaming eagle jetboat was cancelled so to make lemonade out of lemons we decided to take a little island tour. 20 bucks each.. 3 1/2 hour tour and we hit all the hot spots Saphire beach, Bluebeards castle, Meghans Bay... A great time was had by all.. I can't stress enough that these taxis tours in my mind beat the shore excursions 9 times out of 10... We didn't do the beach thing because as my last name might indicate I burn in daylight, so I'm saving the third degree burns for Tortola.

 

We had an early dinner in Cagney's which was great again. Followed by a dip in one of the hot tubs where we met a very nice english couple who said they would read this review when they crossed back over the pond. Then we headed to weakest link where fellow cc poster Laura's boyfriend Doug came in a respectable second. There is a group of 200 germans on board which made for some interesting if not comprehendable kareoke after the game show. Tonight was 70 night which is always a good time and there was definitely a great turn out.

 

It's 12:13 shiptime and we are headed to bed to make for an early day tommorow at antigua which is pronounced ant te ga .. not ant te gwa..

 

Ship has been rocking and rolling a little bit.. 10 foot seas tonight.. Nothing a few Sam Adams can't cure.....

 

 

Chris Connolly<=== sending his internet bill to Laura Sterling.

[WaldosPepper]

Hi Chris! Are you two still on cloud nine?

 

I'm glad you're having such a great time, and really glad to hear you're saving the burns for Tortola - it'll be worth it, but take along the 459SPF just in case! :p

 

Keep up the fabulous review, and remember ...

 

Samuel Adams - Always a good choice!

 

Happy New Year.

[lvstocruise]

Glad to hear things went well in st. thomas. Why such rough seas was the weather bad? How warm has it been in the caribbean? Have a good night i have 2 1/2 weeks to go!!! Started to pack already!!

bye

felicia

[sbcs5390]

Regarding the IT stuff- I spoke with the IT guy extesnively on Wind, and asked about some downtime on the cam, and he said the issue was with Miami (like most things!) not updating the images on the server. He was an extremely qualified man, very competent. Those guys work very hard. I'm actually considering working aboard in IT after college.

 

Enjoy!

 

-Brian

[greenie]

I have a techie-dummy question for you, so be patient with me, OK? :rolleyes: I'm still trying to figure out if my BF and I will be able to use the internet onboard using his laptop. We are in a suite and his laptop does not have the card (or whatever it is) to make it work via wireless. I know you said the suites have a "wired ethernet port." WHat does that mean (in dummy laywoman terms :) )? Does that mean we will be able to use his laptop for sending/receiving e-mail?

 

 

 

Can anyone out there answer this question for me? :cool: Thanks in advance!

[travelgurl]

Chris,

 

Any word as to why the Dawn was late getting into St Thomas? I realize it was just by almost 3 hours but... I'm curious. Once again thanks for your daily postings I'm just relishing them in anticipation of our 1/30 cruise!!

 

Greenie,

"wired ethernet" would mean you connect the laptop with a cord. It is not wireless. I believe you need a portable ethernet cord. Others can confirm this. From what I have read on these boards there are only one or two places where you can go wireless on the ship. I know one is by the oasis pool. Thats all that sticks out in my mind. Best of luck and Enjoy!

 

Mary

[greenie]

There's a light at the end of the tunnel, thanks to the info you gave me! :-) It's starting to look like we may be able to get something set up ... now I will look into getting a portable ethernet cord!

 

Kewl. Just makes me more excited every time I talk about it (BF is starting to think I'm a nut). Hee.

[Mar y Sol]

Chris, can't thank you enough for your postings! My family and I will be on the Dawn next Sunday and we read this thread daily to see what you and the crew are up to! Can't get enough info! Congratulations on your future nups and keep the info coming!:)

[ChrisConnolly]

I'll make this quick because I'm on my way to lunch...

 

If you have any laptop that has an ethernet port (looks like a big phone jack) you can an ethernet cable (10 bucks at radio shack) into the computer and the other end into the wall...

 

Weather has been great, but a high pressure system was pushing the wind twoards us the whole way down as well as elevating the waves, I think thast what slowed us down.

 

Currently its 80 degrees and sunny hear in antigua.. Visited the english dockyard today as well as some other points of interests... I'll post more later..

 

Other than the wind the weather has been great, people were in the pools and sunning on the second day.

 

 

Chris Connolly <== just finished reading Night Fall by Demmille.. Didn't like it .. reading State of Fear by Chrichton now.

[sbcs5390]

I just made a similar post in another thread. The cheapest place to get them is at http://www.cat5ecableguy.com

They can be had at radioshack for $10, but you'll only get a 7 or 10 foot cable. That website above has a 100 foot one for $8. :)

If you're not comfortable ordering online, a tech store like BestBuy or Fry's or CompUSA will probably be a better deal than Radio Shack.

 

It looks a tad wider than a modem telephone port kind but is very different. Most modern laptops have the port built in now. Below is a picture of the two. On the right is the ethernet, also known as a RJ-45. On the left is the regular phone kind most people are used to, also known as an RJ-11.

The image is here: http://www.cableuniverse.co.uk/catalog/images/rj45-rj11.gif

 

If you were thinking of the wireless- wireless cards are very cheap, I remember thinking how it'd be cheaper to buy one than rent one for the cruise from the ship!

[ChrisConnolly]

Antigua 85degrees Sunny

 

Another great day was spent in Antigua where we did an island tour with a stop at the historic Nelson’s Dockyard, Yesterday was a holiday in Antigua, so traffic was light and we were able to get a great tour. We visited many sights including the bluffs over Eric Clapton’s house as well as the future of Site of the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

 

Kristin spent the afternoon sunning while I spent the afternoon reading. At 5:00pm we went down to the stardust to start our murder mystery evening. I won’t give you too much information about the murder mystery evening to avoid ruining the surprise for future cruisers, but it was extremely fun and is a great way to meet other guests. It is nice to see Paul and Mike working hard to add new activities to keep things fresh for seasoned cruisers.. BTW catfish in the venetian was great

 

So after dinner I had to make my daily deposit at the casino, but surprise-surprise luck was on my side and I hit for nearly 700 on two machines double diamond deluxe and then the bigger one on wheel of fortune. So yes there really are winners. I decided to deposit the money towards my onboard account which I’m sure I’ll be happy about when we get the final bill.

 

We missed Dave Heenan’s second act but heard from others that he was funny. I guess he just isn’t my type of comedian. To cap off the evening we listened to some karaoke and then retired to our suite with a bottle of champagne…

 

Right now its 9:30 and slightly overcast in Barbados. I was told last night we would be docked next to the QM2 so I’m going to head to deck 13 and snap a few pictures. After that we are headed for the beach.

[lvstocruise]

Glad to hear about your big casino win. Last year i won the jackpot bingo and it was great. $4,000.00 was a nice prize to go home with!!! Glad to hear your having as good time.

bye for now.

Felicia

Counting down the days till Jan 20th cruise.

[tracyfin2]

Chris, thanks for the updates that you have been sending out,and congrates to you and your fiance. We met up with you last year on the Dawn, jan 25th, and at the end of the cruise we all had our picture taken. Glad that they have som new things to do,offer this time around. We are all going Feb 10th, the same bunch from last year. Keep the updates coming, and have a safe rest of your trip.

[debjo]

For ChrisConnolly...

Haven't yet had time to read through all three pages on this thread...hope you are having a terrific time...can't wait until our April DAWN cruise.

 

A couple questions...hopefully this isn't a repeat from a previous posting...

1. What is the status of the SOFT SERVE ICE CREAM MACHINE at TOPSIDER'S BAR on Deck 12...is it working or does it still have the "out of order" sign on it? :eek: Is there FREE ice cream available if the soft serve machine still isn't operating?

 

2. Have the SHIP LOGO ITEMS improved in the gift shop...when we first sailed on the DAWN in April '04, my husband (who is a collector of ship memorabilia) was greatly disappointed with the "offerings" in the DAWN's gift shop. :( He noted that the gift shop on NCL's MAJESTY was the absolute best as far as trinkets with the ship on them. :D

 

Until later...

Debjo

[yiayiamz]

Hi Chris;glad to see you're having a great time. Congratulations on your engagement. Iwish you both the very best. I will be boarding as you disembark, I am curious as to how everyone was dressed on the first morning. Shorts? I am following this thread daily thanks for all the info. Thanks , Mary

[ukbecky]

A couple questions...hopefully this isn't a repeat from a previous posting...

1. What is the status of the SOFT SERVE ICE CREAM MACHINE at TOPSIDER'S BAR on Deck 12...is it working or does it still have the "out of order" sign on it? :eek: Is there FREE ice cream available if the soft serve machine still isn't operating?

 

 

 

On our Dec 9 trip, the soft serve machine was still out of order but hard ice cream was available, for free, everyday from 12-6.

[rossbabsy]

HI Chris, Thanks for all your updates and Congratulations. I will be boarding on Sunday when you get back and can hardly wait. The computer is staying home. No internet, or work. This is a vacation. Don't want to hear from anyone until I get back.

Did you have a cruise critic party? I arranged one for Monday, I hope its not a bust.

What' the clothing situation? Haven't started packing but hope to take as little as possible.

We're touring with Lawrence of Antiqua. Did you use him or get any feedback?

Happy New Year.

Why is everyone so hooked on the ice cream machine? Royal Caribbean's machine didn't work when we were on and on RCCL, the machines worked but

everytime we went to use any of them, they were always being cleaned.

 

Enjoy the rest of your trip.

 

Barbara

[ChrisConnolly]

We woke up yesterday early because Kristin was very excited about Barbados, unfortunately it was not meant to be as the day was overcast and rained at times. We took a quick walk around the cruise terminal and then headed back towards the ship.

 

I can’t stress enough, if you are going to buy something expensive on your vacation then do your research ahead of time. The watch I have been looking to buy is a better deal on the internet then can be negotiated at any of the stores I visited.

 

So we spent the afternoon in the hot tub and reading, making the best of the weather. We had dinner in Le Bistro which was excellent.. Ivan was our waiter he is the best I’ve dealt with on any ship. Ask for him.

 

Our team of 6 friends won the final round of family feud at 8:30 which was great and I plan on trying my luck at Millionaire tonight. We caught 20 minutes of South Beach Rave which apparently now has rapping in it. I didn’t remember that from last year.

 

So around 10 we headed up to the garden villa for Chris and Terry’s (Boston Banker) cruise critic party. This party was simply the most memorable time I’ve ever had on a cruise ship (minus getting engaged a few days earlier). They were such wonderful hosts and provided us with an open bar and great food. I had lots of nice conversations with my fellow cruise critic friends. The theme of the night was the Redsox so terry gave us all red socks as a party favor and our cruise director Paul actually came dressed as Johnny Damon. Bruce Tilden the piano player on board manned the grand piano located in the garden villa and had a great sing along for a number of hours. Paul stayed the entire time and really added to festivities. Ruth the concierge was also their for most of the night and we had some great conversations about NCL past and future.

 

Kristin and I agreed to call it a night around 1:00am to arrive in St. Thomas today at 11:00.. We spent the afternoon at downtown beach and shopping and will be headed to Salsa in an hour or so.

 

 

Chris Connolly ?= trying hard not to get sunburned.

 

Answers to questions

 

1. No softserve but they still serve three choices of hard ice cream everday with cones and dishes for sundaes as well as numerous toppings. The ships store is still lacking although the new ceramic model of the dawn is excellent and I'll be bringing home one for my father and one for me.

 

2. First morning I was in shorts.. It was about 62 when we woke up.. My girlfriend was in pants.

 

 

3. Read the above post and my first posts about cruisecritic parties.. Never heard of Lawrence and I haven't gotten any feedback.

[shoreguy]

Looks like a postcard sail away from St. Maartin

[debjo]

For ChrisConnolly...

Well, I finally got time to read through all three pages of posts on this message board...kudos to you for taking time out of your wondrous cruise to keep us all informed of "life" on the DAWN. Let me also extend my congratulations to you and your fiance...sorry I didn't realize that this cruise was the one where you "asked the big question" before when I made my inquirys. Please forgive my tardiness in expressing my congratulations to you both.

 

Glad to learn that there will be some "new" things to experience on the DAWN with our upcoming cruise. As much as we liked our April '04 cruise, it will be nice to find our April '05 cruise to not be such a carbon copy.

 

My husband is glad to learn of the ceramic DAWN model's availability in the gift shop. Could you let us know how much it is. There was one available through the Port & Cruise Consultant last year that was in the $200 range. While on the MAJESTY, we purchased a MAJESTY model of similar design & constuction for just $25. We wondered why such a price difference for a resin replica of either ship.

 

Looking forward to reading more of your trip. Are you going to eat in Teppenaki?

 

Debjo

[logant]

:D CHris,

Congrates on your engagement! How romantic!

We will be going in February and celebrating our 36th anniversary, Valentines day and my birthday all in those 10 days. Wow,

Do you know if the daily activities are the same on all of the 10 days out of NY? If so, could you share them with us on your return. I would love to be up on what to expect ahead of time, and make better plans that my last cruise. This will be only our second, so we are novice.

So happy for you both,

How was Tortola? We are booked for the Baths.

Thanks, Please wait till yo get home to answer, don't waste a precious minute on this until then.

[Dolphins]

debjo- when we were aboard the Dawn last month they had a ceramic model of the Dawn for $25. in the Galleria.

[debjo]

For Dolphins...

Many thanks for the pricing info on the DAWN model...we'll definitely be adding that expense to our "budget".

 

Less than 3 months to go!

Debjo

[ChrisConnolly]

So Salsa was just so-so.. My fiance said this was the only bad part of the vacation so far.. It just happened that we got bad waitstaff and we weren't used to the extreme amount of vegetables in the dishes..

 

That night we headed up and watched millionaire, I entered but wasn't picked to play. We then hit the deck party for a little bit but called it a night since we had to wake up early for tortola..

 

 

At tortola we visited the virgin gorda and the baths. This is a do not miss shore excursion and you should book it ahead of time as it sold out quickly on our sailing. The baths have been explained in detail in other posts but they are certainly spectacular. I reccomend doing the cave walk and going to the devil ray beach (or some name like that) as it is less crowded.

 

We ended up going to the garden cafe for dinner as nothing impressed us in the main restaurants and we couldn't get a reservation at La Tratoria (now the only restaurant I haven't been to). Garden buffet had theire "gala buffet" which included shrimp cocktail and caviar. If you are ever going to eat dinner at the buffet this would be the night.

 

After dinner there was a forgetable juggling act, but after that Mike the ACD did his version of Jeapoardy with a fully computerized screen. You haven't seen jeapoardy played on board like this before and it is not to be missed.

At 10:30 their was the obligatory cruise staff revue in the spinnaker lounge which is always a great time...

 

There were some pretty could size seas last night but all is calm today. We are headed over to the chcoholic's buffet as Kristin wants to take pictures..

 

 

Chris Connolly <==== on his way back to NY

 

 

Heres a quick list...

Highlights..

Mike and Paul as Cruise Staff- the best I have scene on board

Chris and Terry's Garden Villa Party--- best party I have been to on board

Virgin Gorda Bath's -- best excursion I have taken

Ruth--- a great concierge and incredibly helpfull

Ivan and Lebistro---excellent waiter who really compliments the restaurant

Casino--- finally took something home from the casino

7 Seas Massage-- apparently this massage changed my girlfriends life.

 

No so Highlights

Butler Corina-- although she is very nice, the breakfasts have arrived late, she has occasionaly forgotten to clear the old food for a day or two and could not keep up with my request to keep the fridge stocked with sprites and just leave the bill for me to sign.

Garnet Suite--- if you are booking an AB do not book room 11060. The automatic turning function of the tv is broken. The portable phone was broken when we checked in and a child drew crayon all over the painting above the bed.Remote was missing for the bathroom tv. Don't get me wrong, I love this room type, I would just avoid this room.

Salsa--- we probably just had a bad waiter this time but we weren't impressed and they didn't bring tapas out automatically as previously posted.

[Tomct]

So Salsa was just so-so.. My fiance said this was the only bad part of the vacation so far.. It just happened that we got bad waitstaff and we weren't used to the extreme amount of vegetables in the dishes . . . .

 

 

Too bad you did not speak with Laura, the Maitre D'. The night we went, my brother's meal came luke warm. Laura was making the rounds, checking on everyone, and though we may not have said anything had she not come over, she took the plate, and returned shortly with an entire new plate of food, very hot.

 

She is a super nice young lady, very attractive as well, and we noticed that she made at least two entire "tours" of the fairly large restaurant while we were there.