earendel was a mariner - day 1

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earendel
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earendel was a mariner - day 1

#1 Post by earendel » Tue May 27, 2008 2:19 pm

I posted a precis of our weekend cruise and said there would be an expanded version coming later. Well, it's later, so here goes.

Day 1:
elwing and I get out of bed at 0430 ("What's the '0' stand for? Oh, my God, it's early!") because our flight leaves Louisville at 6AM. As should not be surprising, I've left all the details to elwing; she loves it, and she's very good at it (packing, etc.). She goes over her mental checklist one more time (cameras, check; batteries, check; swimwear, check; etc.). The luggage is already in the car, so it's a good thing we didn't forget anything. I had my carryon bag, a briefcase with pen, paper, some crossword puzzles I had saved from the previous week, and four books to read, figuring that I'd be pretty bored most of the time aboard ship because elwing will be hanging with her friends from work. She has already told me that there are two "meet and greet" sessions on board, one the first night, the other the second.

The plane (Delta) lifts off on time and in short order we are landing in Atlanta to change planes. Surprisingly the plane to Miami will be at the next gate, so it's a brief walk to get there. We hadn't had any time for breakfast, so since the flight to Miami was an hour away elwing went and found something for us to nosh on. Then we boarded the plane to Miami. The flight was about 2 hours long, but all we were offered were peanuts and beverages.

We landed in Miami and secured our luggage. There was someone from Royal Caribbean waiting for us at baggage claim, and she led us through the terminal to a waiting area where the bus from the cruise line would come and get us. The wait was almost two hours; I worked several of the crosswords and started on one of the books. The bus finally arrived and we boarded. The driver took us to the dock - this may have possibly been the most exciting part of the whole trip since the driver didn't seem to obey lane dividers, ran at least one light, and made one illegal left turn, all the time giving us a running commentary about the sights outside the bus windows. We passed the former site of the Orange Bowl, now just an open area with construction equipment scattered across it. I remembered watching the Sooners play in Orange Bowls in my youth (back when the Big XII was the Big 8 and had a post-season tie-in with the Orange Bowl).

On our last cruise the line to check in was very lengthy; this one was hardly so. We had to show our IDs, our travel documents, and fill out a form indicating whether we had experienced any symptoms of illness in the past 48 hours (cruise lines are very worried about the Norwalk virus and other communicable diseases - last year we had to wash our hands every time we boarded or exited the vessel). It was here we hit our first glitch, albeit a minor one. The cruise line employee scanned my passport and something beeped, so she scanned it again, and then a third time, with the same result (she didn't tell me what it was). So she had to call her supervisor over; the supervisor pushed a couple of keys and scanned the passport again. Fortunately it scanned properly, and I was cleared to board.

We got to the ship around 1PM and were advised that the rooms weren't ready for occupancy yet. We were invited to go to the buffet and have lunch while we waited, which we did. We also purchased a refillable mug for me (soft drink refills - on the transatlantic cruise with Holland America we had to buy a card that only allowed so many drinks for the entire voyage).

The best part of lunch was the fresh pineapple that was available - I do believe I ate it at every meal (save for the dinners). Afterward we went to our stateroom. I can tell you this - elwing's boss, who sprang for the cruise, was no piker. Our stateroom had a balcony so we could step out and watch the ocean or whatever. Each room had a flat-screen TV (though the program selections were somewhat limited). elwing looked at the daily program and found a trivia contest was scheduled for 4:30, so after napping for about an hour I set off for the bar where it would be held; the company "meet and greet" was scheduled for 5:30 and dinner was at 6.

I've already mentioned that I won all of the trivia contests I entered, aggrevating three women who let me know that they were in the habit of winning such contests. Unlike Holland America, however, the prizes were no great shakes - no free drinks or anything of the sort. I won a Royal Caribbean pen this time. With few minutes to spare, I headed off for the meet and greet, the part of the cruise that I dreaded most (not being the sociable type). I'd have not gone had elwing not made it clear that attendance (for me) was mandatory. And, in fairness to the company CEO, the least I could do is show up for these sessions considering that he was footing the bill for the cruise. It turned out not to be as bad as I thought - everyone introduced himself or herself (there were employees from offices around the country) and the CEO gave a brief speech. Then it was time for dinner.

One of the things that I dread about cruises is the evening meal. I have difficulty eating in the presence of strangers (it's not a matter of manners, it's an intimacy issue); fortunately on the Holland-America cruise there were three of us and we were seated at a 4-person table with no one else added; this time, however, we would be with strangers. It turned out not so bad since all of the employees were seated in one area and the couple we sat with worked in the same office as elwing. Still, it seemed somewhat awkward from my perspective.

After dinner we attended the show, which was a "comedy magician" who did tricks, juggled and contorted and the like. I've found that the entertainment on cruise ships is pretty good, and this guy was no exception. After the show we chanced upon a "name that tune" contest focusing on disco music. I didn't play (the game had already started) but I stopped to watch and listen. I might have won had I played, although there are a lot of disco tunes that sound very much alike. And finally, it was off to bed, but not before taking the opportunity to admire the moon as it shone on the ocean.
"Elen sila lumenn omentielvo...A star shines on the hour of our meeting."

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MarleysGh0st
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Re: earendel was a mariner - day 1

#2 Post by MarleysGh0st » Tue May 27, 2008 2:30 pm

earendel wrote: I've already mentioned that I won all of the trivia contests I entered, aggrevating three women who let me know that they were in the habit of winning such contests. Unlike Holland America, however, the prizes were no great shakes - no free drinks or anything of the sort. I won a Royal Caribbean pen this time.
Oh, boy! And I bet those three ladies considered that their pen! :lol:
earendel wrote:One of the things that I dread about cruises is the evening meal. I have difficulty eating in the presence of strangers (it's not a matter of manners, it's an intimacy issue)
An intimacy issue? Do you mean with actually eating in front of strangers, rather than with making dinner conversation with them?

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Re: earendel was a mariner - day 1

#3 Post by peacock2121 » Tue May 27, 2008 3:07 pm

MarleysGh0st wrote:
earendel wrote: I've already mentioned that I won all of the trivia contests I entered, aggrevating three women who let me know that they were in the habit of winning such contests. Unlike Holland America, however, the prizes were no great shakes - no free drinks or anything of the sort. I won a Royal Caribbean pen this time.
Oh, boy! And I bet those three ladies considered that their pen! :lol:
earendel wrote:One of the things that I dread about cruises is the evening meal. I have difficulty eating in the presence of strangers (it's not a matter of manners, it's an intimacy issue)
An intimacy issue? Do you mean with actually eating in front of strangers, rather than with making dinner conversation with them?
Is it similar to but different from not being able to pee when someone can hear you?

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Re: earendel was a mariner - day 1

#4 Post by KillerTomato » Tue May 27, 2008 3:53 pm

earendel wrote: I've already mentioned that I won all of the trivia contests I entered, aggrevating three women who let me know that they were in the habit of winning such contests. Unlike Holland America, however, the prizes were no great shakes - no free drinks or anything of the sort. I won a Royal Caribbean pen this time.

I won both of the trivia contests I "entered"...one for a plastic "Ship on a Stick" and one for a lovely Carnival medallion (not half of the gorgeousity of the Big Honkin' Medallion I got for winning a million points at Play It!....).

I promise I'll get back to my Cruise Odyssey soon...Real Life has a habit of getting in the way.
There is something wrong in a government where they who do the most have the least. There is something wrong when honesty wears a rag, and rascality a robe; when the loving, the tender, eat a crust while the infamous sit at banquets.
-- Robert G. Ingersoll

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#5 Post by ne1410s » Tue May 27, 2008 7:51 pm

ear, thanks for the report. I am constantly amazed at how people can tell these stories so well and how I totally suck at it. :roll:

Taping my watch for more...
"When you argue with a fool, there are two fools in the argument."

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Re: earendel was a mariner - day 1

#6 Post by ulysses5019 » Tue May 27, 2008 7:58 pm

earendel wrote:I posted a precis of our weekend cruise and said there would be an expanded version coming later. Well, it's later, so here goes.

Day 1:
elwing and I get out of bed at 0430 ("What's the '0' stand for? Oh, my God, it's early!") because our flight leaves Louisville at 6AM. As should not be surprising, I've left all the details to elwing; she loves it, and she's very good at it (packing, etc.). She goes over her mental checklist one more time (cameras, check; batteries, check; swimwear, check; etc.). The luggage is already in the car, so it's a good thing we didn't forget anything. I had my carryon bag, a briefcase with pen, paper, some crossword puzzles I had saved from the previous week, and four books to read, figuring that I'd be pretty bored most of the time aboard ship because elwing will be hanging with her friends from work. She has already told me that there are two "meet and greet" sessions on board, one the first night, the other the second.

The plane (Delta) lifts off on time and in short order we are landing in Atlanta to change planes. Surprisingly the plane to Miami will be at the next gate, so it's a brief walk to get there. We hadn't had any time for breakfast, so since the flight to Miami was an hour away elwing went and found something for us to nosh on. Then we boarded the plane to Miami. The flight was about 2 hours long, but all we were offered were peanuts and beverages.

We landed in Miami and secured our luggage. There was someone from Royal Caribbean waiting for us at baggage claim, and she led us through the terminal to a waiting area where the bus from the cruise line would come and get us. The wait was almost two hours; I worked several of the crosswords and started on one of the books. The bus finally arrived and we boarded. The driver took us to the dock - this may have possibly been the most exciting part of the whole trip since the driver didn't seem to obey lane dividers, ran at least one light, and made one illegal left turn, all the time giving us a running commentary about the sights outside the bus windows. We passed the former site of the Orange Bowl, now just an open area with construction equipment scattered across it. I remembered watching the Sooners play in Orange Bowls in my youth (back when the Big XII was the Big 8 and had a post-season tie-in with the Orange Bowl).

On our last cruise the line to check in was very lengthy; this one was hardly so. We had to show our IDs, our travel documents, and fill out a form indicating whether we had experienced any symptoms of illness in the past 48 hours (cruise lines are very worried about the Norwalk virus and other communicable diseases - last year we had to wash our hands every time we boarded or exited the vessel). It was here we hit our first glitch, albeit a minor one. The cruise line employee scanned my passport and something beeped, so she scanned it again, and then a third time, with the same result (she didn't tell me what it was). So she had to call her supervisor over; the supervisor pushed a couple of keys and scanned the passport again. Fortunately it scanned properly, and I was cleared to board.

We got to the ship around 1PM and were advised that the rooms weren't ready for occupancy yet. We were invited to go to the buffet and have lunch while we waited, which we did. We also purchased a refillable mug for me (soft drink refills - on the transatlantic cruise with Holland America we had to buy a card that only allowed so many drinks for the entire voyage).

The best part of lunch was the fresh pineapple that was available - I do believe I ate it at every meal (save for the dinners). Afterward we went to our stateroom. I can tell you this - elwing's boss, who sprang for the cruise, was no piker. Our stateroom had a balcony so we could step out and watch the ocean or whatever. Each room had a flat-screen TV (though the program selections were somewhat limited). elwing looked at the daily program and found a trivia contest was scheduled for 4:30, so after napping for about an hour I set off for the bar where it would be held; the company "meet and greet" was scheduled for 5:30 and dinner was at 6.

I've already mentioned that I won all of the trivia contests I entered, aggrevating three women who let me know that they were in the habit of winning such contests. Unlike Holland America, however, the prizes were no great shakes - no free drinks or anything of the sort. I won a Royal Caribbean pen this time. With few minutes to spare, I headed off for the meet and greet, the part of the cruise that I dreaded most (not being the sociable type). I'd have not gone had elwing not made it clear that attendance (for me) was mandatory. And, in fairness to the company CEO, the least I could do is show up for these sessions considering that he was footing the bill for the cruise. It turned out not to be as bad as I thought - everyone introduced himself or herself (there were employees from offices around the country) and the CEO gave a brief speech. Then it was time for dinner.

One of the things that I dread about cruises is the evening meal. I have difficulty eating in the presence of strangers (it's not a matter of manners, it's an intimacy issue); fortunately on the Holland-America cruise there were three of us and we were seated at a 4-person table with no one else added; this time, however, we would be with strangers. It turned out not so bad since all of the employees were seated in one area and the couple we sat with worked in the same office as elwing. Still, it seemed somewhat awkward from my perspective.

After dinner we attended the show, which was a "comedy magician" who did tricks, juggled and contorted and the like. I've found that the entertainment on cruise ships is pretty good, and this guy was no exception. After the show we chanced upon a "name that tune" contest focusing on disco music. I didn't play (the game had already started) but I stopped to watch and listen. I might have won had I played, although there are a lot of disco tunes that sound very much alike. And finally, it was off to bed, but not before taking the opportunity to admire the moon as it shone on the ocean.
Is Seattle that desperate for players?
I believe in the usefulness of useless information.

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earendel
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Re: earendel was a mariner - day 1

#7 Post by earendel » Wed May 28, 2008 6:05 am

MarleysGh0st wrote:
earendel wrote:One of the things that I dread about cruises is the evening meal. I have difficulty eating in the presence of strangers (it's not a matter of manners, it's an intimacy issue)
An intimacy issue? Do you mean with actually eating in front of strangers, rather than with making dinner conversation with them?
Both, actually, but more the latter than the former. I'm not a great conversationalist in person.
"Elen sila lumenn omentielvo...A star shines on the hour of our meeting."

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