Sunday Evening

When we come back to the room there is a bottle of Korbel on ice and a gift bag with a lovely crystal rectangle paper weight with an etched Golden Gate Bridge with the words Pacific Coastal.  We are number three on this voyage and this is the first time we have gotten a gift like this.  Very pretty but boy does it ever weigh a lot.  Thankfully we are doing carry on bags for our flight.

We have arranged to meet up with Victor in Alfredos for pizza tonight for 8 when he is on his dinner break. 

Tonight I want to try a different pizza and get the Grand Princess Pizza and a glass of wine and sparkling water.  Have to say I love the fact that with the All Inclusive Drink Package we don’t hesitate to get what we like. 

The pizzas arrive and they look lovely, but sadly again the pizza in the middle section is soggy and needs more cooking (I am guessing) but certainly not as good as we have had on other ships.  Or as good as we had on this ship last Fall.

For dessert we let the waiter know that the chef has prepared something for us.  He comes back with a tray and four dishes of halo halo!  Wow what a lovely gesture.  I am shocked that they got the ingredients.  Victor has never had halo halo before and I think he liked it.

We catch up with Victor and how he has been since our last time together in November last year.  He has been in his relationship now for almost a year!  He seems so very happy and I am so glad we were able to reconnect with him.

We still haven’t seen Paul the Deputy Cruise Director and since the Vista Lounge is his lounge we head back there where he should be and see that comedian Steve White is performing.  The place is busy and we take two seats off to the far right.  I forgot how bad this lounge is for site view cause of the huge pillars.  But it is a comedian so it isn’t like we really have to see him.  We have seen Steve before but his jokes still make us laugh.  And heck it isn’t like we had to pay for a ticket.

Paul does come on stage at the end and discusses the events happening around the ship now.  He is so funny and you can really see how he has grown as a Deputy.  He seems more confident and put together.  His humour is subtle but right on the mark.  I love that he is approachable (although we seem to keep missing him) and helpful.

Majority Rules is still happening in Explorers.  It looks very well attended and we see Melissa from the cruise staff walking by.  We spend some time catching up with her.  We sailed with her a few times a long time ago and then we had not seen her for quite a while and she fills us in on what she has been up to.  Again another lovely person who is very dedicated to her job and making sure everyone is having a good time. 

The piano bar in Crooners is featuring Liam Ryder and the place is packed.  But neither of us really want to sit and my foot is throbbing from all the walking today.

So we are back in the cabin around 10:30 and again as soon as my head hits the pillow I am out.

Reflections on last night:

-          The production show British Invasion was on only twice 8 and 9:45 (hmm are they back to only two shows?)

-          Events seem to be very well attended

-          A balancing act called La Paire performed.  Now I love these things normally and he and his assistant were very good.  But what is really strange he takes his shirt off near the end (and yes he is very well built) but really what is the purpose of this?  At the end he loves to pose with people for pictures.  I just think this guy is really full of himself, and could leave his shirt on.

-          An excellent singer and guitar player Terry Conlon performed in the Atrium twice and he was excellent.  I can see this guy making it big.

-          The seas are rough.  A lot of people are commenting.  For us it is okay and yes there is some movement but it is really nothing compared to what we have seen.  The shops have Bonine and Dramamine – heck even the tables around the atrium have a supply of these – just in case.  But I am happy to report around 9 pm the seas/winds calm down considerably.

-          The drink package does have its downfall too.  We have discussed it with many crew and their comments are it is great to see people enjoying themselves.  But there is a lot of abuse of the package with people sharing one package.  More people are over indulging and are getting intoxicated.  In fact last night there was a fight on board, although I can’t confirm if it was from people who had the drink package.  But liquor and attitude don’t mix.  The other thing the crew are saying is they are a lot more busy because of it.  They are doing twice the normal work but are certainly not making the tips they normally would.  I have been told that the tips from the drink package go right into the general pool for all the crew.  Whereas if you don’t have the package and you buy a drink at a bar that tip goes to that venue’s staff.

Sunday Newport, Rhode Island

Today is a tender port at we drop anchor early around 7 am but what really awakens us is the announcement in the hall way that tenders are now available.  We slept like babies, the great thing about being in an inside cabin is it is very quiet (at least this one is) and dark.  

We don’t have anything big planned today just head ashore and check things out.

Things happening today:  Dr. Bob & Bill W Meeting, Solo Travellers gathering, Pin Pong Tournament, Introduction to Acupuncture, Trivia, Mah-Jong, Taboo game, Golf Chipping Challenge, Princess Pop Choir Rehearsal, Afternoon Tea, Lighting Photography seminar, Pain Management Seminar, Veterans Get Together, NFL Football on MUTS, Bingo, Princess Book Club, Art Auction, Zumba Fitness, GLBT Get Together.  
Tonight is formal night and the Princess Theater is showing Comedian Steve White at 7, 8:15 and 10:15 pm.  It is also the Captain’s Welcome Aboard Champagne Waterfall Party in the Atrium at 7:15.

Well off to enjoy the day.

We are back after a lovely day in Newport.  Key to remember it is a tender port and the harbor today is very very busy with lots of boats of all types.  In fact there is a boat show going on we later realize.  Because of this the tender process is very slow as the tenders manoeuver in and around all the traffic.  The ride on the tender was at least a half hour.  Because of this waits to get a tender from the ship were long.  We were lucky as with elite you get priority tendering and so we just walked down to deck 4 midship and boarded the next tender by showing our priority tickets.

But if you don’t have priority tickets remember you need to follow the directions in the Patter on where you need to go to get tender tickets.  For us today people had to go to the dining room mid ship on deck 5 and wait there for their tender number to be called.  Of course if you have a Princess tour booked meet with the group as per the directions on the ticket.

Once ashore we first tried to rent some bikes.  We had read on line that there was a rental place just a block from the pier and we went there but all the bikes were taken.  They directed us to a place a few blocks further and we went there and they didn’t open until noon and that was still 1.5 hours away.  So with our map we picked up at the Visitor’s Center we started walking.  We walked along streets with beautiful older buildings and then back towards the center of town along Spring Street.  

Stopped for a coffee and a treat and a rest then we were back out towards the downtown and old mansions.  

The mansions are huge, stunning, huge, oh and did I say huge.  In fact we like the walking cause all along the way there are signs explaining a lot about the history of the area and the facts about many of the buildings, including many mansions.  

We stop and look at the Elms mansion and we are blown away to think that this wasn’t even their main house but their summer house.  Seriously, just so much wealth.  You can tour these homes and we are not really interested in that.  I am sure they are beautiful but we are happier seeing more how the “normal” hard working people live.

We walk back towards the water and the crowds are getting heavier.  Again that boat show has brought a lot of people into Newport.  By now we have been walking around for four hours and the last tender is 3:15 so with not much time left we decide to head back on board.  

The line to get back on is long, but don’t worry the line moved rather quickly and in total we maybe waited five minutes.

Once back on board Bernie decides to head to the trivia and I head to Vines to find a quiet place and get a glass of wine and read.  Mark the bar staff at Vines is very helpful and I order a bottle of Santa Margarita and he recommends buying a bottle because a glass is $9.50 and a bottle is $47 so I would get a lot more wine for a better price.  That sounds great and so that is what I do and he has tagged the bottle for me and will keep it in the cooler there for whenever I come back.  Aren’t the crew great!

We then head up to the Lido deck at the grill to grab a burger and I fill up on a big salad from Horizon Court.  

My observations so far about this trip are the ship is full.  The age group is rather young in fact it seems the average age is around late 40’s early 50’s and very few kids.  I can count on my hand how many kids I have seen.

A lot of new cruisers – and many first time cruisers.  So a lot of people asking question about where to go and how to find something and learning about cruise travel.  But by the end of the second day a lot are more knowledgeable and we see people finding their grove.

Tonight is formal night and we head back to the cabin to shower and get ready to head to Skywalkers for a cocktail for the Platinum/Elite Lounge.  It is not very busy up there, again a reflection on the ship.  We enjoy a Cosmopolitan that is the drink of the day for $5 each and the food is shrimp cocktail and also there are chesses, olives, vegetables and a nice snack.  We meet up with Barb and Gordon from Wisconsin who are on the roll call and we have a lovely chat with them sharing our passion of travel with each other.

Dinner again is in the Palm Dining room second seating.   I start with the quiche appetizer, then the French Onion Soup then I had the beef entre which was okay.  Definitely not one of our favorite menus but we certainly didn’t go hungry.

We head out to take a few pictures, this is not a normal thing for us to pose for formal pics but I forgot to mention that yesterday I won a free formal picture from the sail away party.  First time I have won anything from the sail away party.  

We head to see the comedian Steve White in the Princess Theater for the 10:15 show.  We enjoyed him again, and thought his material was very current and funny.  Of course he has to make fun of all the people coming in late which again made us laugh but really people if you are going to come in late why would you come in and sit right near the front?  You are just asking for it.

After dinner we head over to say hi to Delmarie in Facets for a while and then it is up to Skywalkers for some dancing.  We must of danced for an hour straight and then bamm we hit a wall and my feet are killing me and it is midnight so back to the cabin we go.

Our laundry is already there, that was fast, just put it in yesterday and we got it back the next day.  Now remember this is not what is promised but it is nice when we get it.

Other comments about the voyage.

The ship is in great shape.  This is the first time we are on the Caribbean Princess and she is beautiful. Constant upkeep is being done, today we saw work being done on some tiles in the Atrium.  

Morning show is being shown at 10 pm the night prior which is something we experienced on the Emerald last Jan/Feb and actually works out well.  We watch just before we go to sleep and Neil today explained a lot of great info about coming into Boston and some details of where some sights are.   Well done!
Switching out our mini bar was an experience.  We wanted to trade out all our hard liquor for vodka and then replace the two beers and two tonic waters for Perrier.  On the first call the person we were talking to was all confused and said we can’t trade the beers for water which we know can be done and  of course is much cheaper than beer.  We think she understands and when we come back from being ashore, nothing has been replaced.  Okay we call again and this time we are talking to someone different and they seem to understand completely.  A few minutes later a knock at the door and everything is correct but they only have three Vodkas instead of the six.  He says he will come back and he does.  We giggle never realized how difficult a mini bar change could be.

This is a port intensive voyage with five ports in a row then one sea day and after one day in port we are exhausted and when going to bed tonight we both commented we need to make sure to take some time to relax more.  We are so glad we are doing a back to back.

Oh and we saw Klaus the Executive Chef from the Island Princess a few years ago.  He is now Chef de Cuisine but he is still cooking and loving it.  And is so personable.

Saturday Evening

We head to the early show at 7 pm tonight.  Again for those that know us attending the shows is not something we normally do but we love Alberto and the Princess Singers and Dancers will be doing one number.  The show starts with them and of course we are dancing in our seats, just wish they would of done more than one show.  Then Neil Roberts comes out and introduces the Caribbean Princess to all of us and shows a great video.  We even see people in the video we know!   Then Corey Moir gets introduced as the Deputy Cruise Director and he introduces the Cruise Staff.  

The show continues with the featured comedian Steve White and we have to say we haven’t seen him before!  This is great cause we usually see the same comedians time and time again.  We laugh our head off with Steve and look forward to his show tomorrow.

Dinner tonight is at 8 pm for second seating in the Palm Dining room.  We are sat at a table for two and our waiter – sorry forgot his name but will post later took very good care of us.  We started with the standard egg rolls, then I had a salad with the balsamic vinegar dressing, then the sea basa fish dish for my entrée.  All were amazing as usual, very hot and tasty.  Bernie had mushroom soup and salad and then for his entrée he had the leek and ricotta cheese tart.  Neither of us had any dessert but I did enjoy a cheese plate with the rest of my wine which was the Jack London. 

Douw took such great care of us all night and we were so happy to see so many familiar faces, it is like coming home week on board.  Mario the Maitre d’ hotel came out and said hi and a hug and we commented on what a great crew he had.  We agreed to try and sit down and catch up some time.

We were one of the last to leave the dining room and we made our way to Facets Jewelry Store to say hi to Delmarie.  She caught us up on what has been happening in her life and we chatted till the stores closed. 

Heading back to the cabin we stop and listen to AJ Clarke in Crooners, he is playing piano and singing and sounds great!   We will definitely have to try and make some time to see him.

A final note of the entertainment.  The band Retrospect plays in Explorers, there is a juggler Aaron Bonk in the Piazza.