Sail Away and Sabatinis

First I must apologize I don't have my keyboard for typing as it is in the cabin.  So I am using the on screen keyboard which can be a pain.  So ignore errors.

Second I am writing this Saturday morning at 5:57 am.  Woke up early and crawled out of bed and scurried down to International Cafe for my coffee and catch up with the blog.  And who do i run into but Juan, a waiter we have known since his first contract.  He was just as surprised to see me as I was him.  Big hugs and he is excited to share that it is his last sailing before going home.

Okay back to yesterday.

Muster was called at 4:15 on day 2.  Feels odd as normally it is day one, but we overnighted here in Quebec.  I don't think we have ever had this happen before.

Of course I was pretty sure our Muster was Princess theater but when Bernie met up with me he said no, we are in the Casino.  He checked the map on the back of the door and he was sure it was the casino.   

We sat there and then he started having doubts and I commented that normally it is the Princess Theatre.  So we proceeded to Princess Theatre, and yup that is our station.  

How often has that happened to you?  Of course when we had cruise cards it showed our muster station, now you really need to check your cabin door prior.

Once the drill was done we head to the cabin to done our coats as it is cold once we are out on the open waters.

But once up on the sky and lido deck we are disappointed that there is no sailaway party, just canned music.  Mind you there were maybe only a couple hundred people out there so it probably did not warrant a party.  

Again the second day sailaway does make it loose a bit of it's luster and excitement of boarding and having sailaway right away. 

Sailaway from Quebec is beautiful.  The land on both sides studded by a burst of colourful trees.  

Ils Orleans is in our way.  So we head to the south of it.  Thankfully we get to see Montmorency falls which is just 12 km east of downtown.  There are some great tours to both of these places that are well worth a visit, especially if you are in Quebec for a few days or are interested in nature.

Before dinner we head to the shops to see some friends.  Valaria from Italy and Kylle for South Africa are now Retail manager and assistant retail manager.  So proud of them.  We make sure to connect with them soon and maybe a meal.

Tonight we are dining at Sabatinis.  The Caribbean has the new menu, one of our favorites.

Sadly I left my camera in the cabin, so no pictures.  However, I have written about dining with the new menu numerous times and you can find them here.

The food was wonderful.  And dining with our friends Barb and Craig made it extra special.  There is nothing better than good friends and we are really blessed.

Sadly the server was a bit of an issue.  We asked for a wine list and he gave us a paper that had Sabatini featured wines.  The list was minimal with only a handful of wines.  We tried to order wine but was told they did not have it in stock.  Okay.  We had to ask for the full wine list.   We choose something and try to order it but he really wants us to try this other wine.  We finally agree to his wine just to please him.  And truthfully it was very very good and a good recommendation.

He provided us with his recommendations but was surprised he did not mention the salad/soup course.  But we did order the pear citrus salad, and when we did he said he would bring it as our second course.  Okay.  My salad tasted great, but many of the leaves of lettuce were not very appealing and should not have been served.  But my friend's salad seemed okay.

The antipasta of bread with the roasted pepper dip was delivered, but we were trying to clear up the whole wine issue and had not tasted the bread.  When our server came back he commented that we should eat the bread!  Was quite insistent.  Okay....

Our server saw we were enjoying the wine and he smartly suggested the wine tasting.  But we told him thanks but no.  He then suggested the Super Tuscan wine tasting which we agreed is lovely but we had a conflict on the day it was scheduled as it is the same time as the Most Travelled Guest luncheon.  But he was insistent about the date, explaining it is a sea day.  I finally got frustrated and told him to stop talking and listen, we already had plans at that time.

Now I will say the service improved and he did get the hint we were frustrated.  His recommendations were bang on.  The food was very good too.

The supervisor for Sabatinis was lovely and friendly and she gave us even more suggestions for wine.

However if we go back we will make sure to have a different waiter.

Shout out to Deb of Deb's Day blog.   If you don't follow her blogs make sure to check it out here.  She had sent me some coupon books via the mail and we used the coupon for two for one dining on embarkation day.   Although this morning I saw that we were charged two $25 fees, but believe one of the charges will come off later when it gets reconciled.  We have had this happen many times before, and will ensure it comes off later.   But again this should be charged initially correctly as it only causes confusion for the guests and i am sure many visits to the front desk with inquiries.

After a wonderful dinner and full bellies we are content and so happy to be back on board.

Comedian Scott Wyder performed but the shows were too early and by the time dinner was finished the show had already started.  We have seen him before.  He is quite funny.

We have been sailing Princess for 22 years now, 91 cruises and over 800 days and it feels great to be 'home'.  Especially when I run into crew I was not expecting to see.