First Evening on Board Ruby

Start with Wine in Vines

After a busy day and afternoon full of many activities we quickly wash up and dress for dinner for 7:45 in Da Vinci dining room.  We know that this dining room has traditional first seating at 5:30 and then it opens up to Anytime Dining at 7:30.  

We pop by the dining room on deck 5 and it is almost a riot type atmosphere.  With a combination of a few large groups (lots of families), some very large groups (the head honchos from Carnival Corp. Including Jan Schwartz - a group of around 300) and a lot of newer cruisers this is the first encounter of unhappy travellers.

The hostess announces that Da Vinci has just opened to Anytime Diners.  And after a few minutes the line dissipates.  

We are directed to our table in Daniel Guevara's section right in the back... I am crouched down behind the Head Waiter leading us and when I appear in front of Daniel he is totally shocked. Totally Shocked!  

He is almost speachless.  We get to meet his wonderful assistant Alla, and right away we embrace her as part of our Princess Family.

It is perfect timing for Daniel as he had a really hard last cruise, he had even posted on Facebook how much he was missing his family too.  So we are glad we were able to be there for him.  We loved that he introduced us to around ten other waiters near him as his Canadian Family.  Even his other two tables who were obviously wondering "who the heck are these people" Daniel told them about us and how many times we have sailed together.

my pork dish

seafood stew

we shared the dessert but only a few bites

For dinner we kept it simple.  I had the pork dish, which was just okay, but Bernie had the Curtis Stone offering of Seafood Stew which Bernie raved about.  Note:  On the Royal there were three Curtis Stone dishes each night.  The same three dishes every day.  On the Ruby it changed nightly and only one dish was offered. 

played a trick on Alla

We gave Daniel a Canadian t-shirt and card and he got all emotional.  Ahhh we love him. 

After dinner we went to bed.  We were tired and it was a long day.

We are number four most travelled passengers on this voyage.  Because of the shorter itinerary we are given a letter stating that in lieu of a Most Travelled Luncheon/Cocktail Party we can have a free dinner for two at either the Crown Grill, Crab Shack or Salty Dog. However when we call the reservation line we are told all the specialty restaurants have been prebooked because of the large Corporate group.  The only time we can take is 9 pm which we decline.  We considered bringing this issue up with the Captain Circle Host and or Customer Service Director but we figured we would just ignore as we are disappointed but we will survive.


My observations so far on the Ruby Princess.

• Crown Grill has gone up in price from $25 to $29
• Crab Shack has gone up for $20 to $29
• The Ruby has the new bedding, and so far I have to say it sure looks comfortable and we no longer have to ask for a top sheet as there is one there already then the duvet duvet then the duvet cover.
• This four day voyage is not offering the buy one get one for a dollar.
• All Captain Circle members got a free drink coupon in lieu of a Captain Circle Party.
• Great demographics on the ship.  Lots of younger couples, families of multi generations, children, and lots of newer cruisers too.
• The Captain is Craig Street.  We have sailed with him a few times and remember when he had gotten moved up to Captain on the Star.  Our friends Bruce and Sharon know him well.
• Maitre D'Hotel is Silvio Zampleri.  We ran into Silvio on deck 5 as we made our way to the dining room.  Hugs, kisses and then taken by the had to our dining room.  Oh what a joy to see him again.  We of course had some Purdy's chocolates for him.  But he is from Abbotsford British Columbia so he knows Purdy's very well.  Trust me he was run off his feet this voyage with all the Corporate Executives on board.
• Dana Ionescu is the Food and Beverage Director.  We hope to catch up with her too.  We originally met her on the Caribbean Princess a few years ago.  She was Customer Services Director then.  I am proud to see she is F&B now and being put in charge of another department.  I am sure her next step will be Hotel General Manager.
• The 4 day is doing the Voice of the Ocean.  I am surprised and not sure if they will do the actual end show or not.
• Production shows this trip are:  Colours of the World, Magic to Do.  Comedian Steve Caouette.
• Team Rootberry, a great duo that I have enjoyed many times and even have a video on my Youtube channel.  Click her to view. 

Well we certainly got our monies worth with the drink package today.  We are not drunk, but we are feeling good. We are trying to drink lots of water too.  Oh and it helped me crash after a long day.