Category Archives: Tivo Peeps

It was a dark and stormy…day. We arrived at the port terminal under rain and thunder storms, hoping against hope that it wasn’t a sign of weather to come. The check-in process could not have gone more smoothly (or quickly) and we were very impressed—we were on the ship within a half hour, wandering somewhat aimlessly in the general direction of our room, taking in all the sights.

The ship is actually decorated quite nicely—everything has a literary theme (Frankenstein’s Lab and Phantom of the Opera, for example). This ship is larger than the ship we were on the last time (Holland America’s Zuiderdam) but there are nice (if somewhat gaudy) color-changing “lite brite”-looking signs all over and it’s fairly easy to navigate…although I still get turned around very easily (it will probably be Monday before I know which way to turn once I get off the elevator!).

Our room is just a bit smaller than the last room we had, but the balcony is a bit more private. The bathroom is nice, albeit smaller than our previous one—and we have a tiny shower instead of a tub/shower combo…but it has a detachable shower head and great water pressure!

We also had two completely unexpected surprises waiting for us (well, yes, I guess surprises are generally unexpected, lol). A box of fresh cookies and a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries and fancy chocolates were gifted to us on debarkation from some of our Tivo friends! (Thanks Amy and Julie & Jason! You guys rock!)

Then it was off for more exploration—we wanted to hit the spa and internet café to take advantage of any debarkation specials they might be offering. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a private spa/hot tub offering like the Zuiderdam had that Tom was hoping for, but he was mildly impressed with the gym facilities (which was a big deal, now that he works out at least an hour a day). I had decided against any massages, since my previous one (a hot stone massage) was less than impressive in my opinion—so instead opted for the $99 Crazy for Hair (or some similarly-named) package that included color, cut, and style! Ironically, I just got my hair cut last week (who knew I would want to get my hair cut on the cruise?) but I desperately wanted the color, as I’ve wanted to get my hair colored for quite some time (I threatened to do it the entire time Tom was gone and never did). I scheduled it for 10am so I could sleep in!

A funny side story. Tom was out on the mezzanine while I was in making my spa appointment. It took forever (of course, when I decided to make my reservation, there were about six people in front of me who all wanted like four spa treatments) so he was out there for probably 20 minutes. When I finished, he said one of the spa girls had come up to him and asked what he did for a living. He replied that he was an officer in the Marine Corps and she pumped her hand and said “YES! I WIN!” and then went back to tell her friends that she had been correct. He was flattered.

Then it was off to the internet café where we about choked on the prices—although if you bought a package that day, you also got extra minutes, plus were entered into a contest to win 500 minutes…so we’re keeping our fingers crossed. I hated to spend the money, but that cost plus my salon visit totaled about the same as the stupid hot stone massage the last time so all is well.

Then it was time for the life boat muster—the only necessary evil of cruising. It’s not really that bad, but it just seems like such a fustercluck because people don’t really know where to go, people are freaked out they are in the wrong spot, they are worried they’re not doing something right, and many are late in arriving. Ugh. Here we are as disgruntled yet still happy muster attendees:

Of course, to top it all off, it’s hot and muggy and you look like an idiot in the live vest. But then again, everyone looks like an idiot, lol, so we’re all in good company. After that 45 minutes was over (the actual drill takes 15 minutes, but with all the waiting, it was near 45 minutes) we headed back to the room and unpacked a bit since our luggage had already arrived.

Then it was time for a quick freshening up before heading off to the bar for our first Meet & Greet with the folks from Cruise Critic (a cruising forum where there are forums for each ship, which is further broken down into threads for each cruise date, so people can post and meet others who will be on the same cruise). We have been chatting with them for a few months, and of course, internet forums and meeting people on them is nothing new for us…but I hadn’t refreshed my memory on who was who or what people looked like, so I didn’t recognize anyone. Everyone, however, pretty much recognized us, lol. It was only slightly overwhelming trying to meet and talk to everyone, but there were a few couples we hit it off with. The funniest part was taking the group picture—they wrangled some Japanese man to take it, but then everyone started putting their cameras down and he ended up with about 15 cameras he had to use! He was a very good sport about it.

We had to cut the meet short in order to go to dinner—since we have the early seating. (We were teased by our Atlanta friends about being old people eating so early, but both of us don’t want to eat a full meal that late—but if we did that, we’d both want to go to sleep right after dinner! With the early seating, we have time to go back to the room or wherever and relax before going out for the evening.) We had prearranged to sit with other Cruise Critic board members—we figured we might as well sit with less random strangers if at all possible! (I still would have enjoyed sitting at a table by ourselves a little bit more, however.) The food was quite good and we enjoyed everything…

We started with a 2006 Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling Spatlese—which looked to be a later version of the same Riesling we had back on our 2005 cruise (I’d have to check the pictures to confirm).

For starters, Tom had Hickory Smoked Alaskan Salmon, Garnished with Purple Onion Rings, Fresh Dill, and Baby Capers. I had Asparagus Veloute, an asparagus cream soup.

Tom had a lettuce wedge salad and I had the Caesar salad.

For our main courses, Tom had Grilled, Aged New York Sirloin Steak with Three Peppercorn Sauce, Broccoli Roses, and Roasted Red Bliss Potato Wedges. I had Pan Seared Fillet of Tilapia, Herb Butter Sauce with Tomato, Stewed Shallots, and Eggplant Mash.

For dessert, Tom had a Black Forest Gateau with Cherries (damn, I thought I got a photo of that menu but I didn’t!) and I had the highly-recommended-by-anyone-who-has-ever-been-on-a-Carnival-cruise Warm Chocolate Melting Cake served with Vanilla Ice Cream.

I do have pictures of everything, so stay tuned for all the photos when I get home.

After dinner we crashed in the room for a bit, and then went down for some alcohol tasting in the shops. The guy was putting on quite a show and it was a riot to stand there and drink a few of his inspired recipe shots (“How about pineapple and coconut rum plus Baileys! How about mango and pineapple and coconut rum? Any suggestions?”)—and the alcohol was SO cheap we ended up buying about 10 bottles of various yummy things. (Lest you think we are alcoholics, those 10 bottles will last us about a year.) We hoped to win the 10pm drawing—your day’s alcohol purchase paid—but we didn’t.

Then we were just walking around and stopped by the Phantom Theatre where we caught the Welcome Aboard show, which was entirely cheesy with singers and dancers and the Carnival mascot. The comedian wasn’t too bad, but we hope the shows get better.

Heading back to the room, we had to pass through the casino. It’s great because there is a non-smoking section and plenty of 5c and 1c machines. I just do it for the fun, not the hopes of some grand monetary winnings, so I have all the fun I need with nickels and pennies! Anyway, I managed to double my money! I turned my $2 worth of nickels into $4!! WOOHOO! I felt kinda bad because I wasted $1 on the quarter slots, but oh well—I still came out ahead and the 20 minutes I was there was plenty for the night.

Then it was back to the room where we crashed and were in bed by midnight—I had to be up early to get to the spa (they called to reschedule me for 8am in order to give me a free foot and ankle massage—YES, PLEASE!) and Tom always gets up early to work out!

Other than the rain storm upon arrival and the resulting humidity wreaking havoc on my just-straightened hair (I went from sleek and shiny to poufy and wavy by dinner), overall it was a great first day!!