Also known as "songbird and the pirate king take on the Caribbean", this is a musical review.
Cast of characters:
Yours truly, known in cyberspace as songbird, though my musical talents are best performed in the shower or behind the wheel of my car. Mother of two girls, ages 17 and 19, and desperately in need of a king-sized margarita or a straightjacket, not sure which one.
The pirate king, so named because he will shortly appear in the chorus of a community theater production of The Pirates of Penzance dressed as a swashbuckler. Also known as my former husband and current boyfriend – it’s a long story though not as good as a Meryl Streep movie.
Background music: "Lovely Cruise" by Jimmy Buffett.
First, some overall impressions. Later I will provide more details.
The weather did not cooperate. It was cold the day we left Miami. It was cloudy and overcast, with occasional periods of rain, throughout our cruise. The only really nice day, weatherwise, was debarkation day. We worked around the weather and managed to have a really nice time.
Our trip was not "perfect". There were a few glitches and bumps in the road, but for the most part Carnival tried to make things right whenever that happened. The get an A+ for effort.
Our cabin steward introduced himself the first day. And we never saw him again. But our cabin was always clean, towels replenished when appropriate, maintenance issues resolved promptly. No complaints.
the dining room staff was exemplary. and we loved the nightly dining room entertainment. the food was very good. our favorite meal, though was in the steak house. worth the extra money and then some.
the shows were great, too. in fact, the only performer we felt was lacking was Larry the piano player. heard him play once, and avoided him the rest of the cruise. loved our cruise director, Big Tex, and all three comedians we saw.
the ship was most definitely at capacity, 3400 guests, almost 1000 of them children. while we were never truly alone, we didn't feel "overcrowded" either.
I would have liked to have seen more shipboard activities. we had fun in the pool and hot tub, we enjoyed some of the games (like super trivia) and we were never bored. but the pirate king would have enjoyed a rock climbing wall and I would have enjoyed a cooking demonstration or something like that.
can't tell you about the casino, we're not big gamblers. thought we might play the slots, but never got around to it.
I loved our shore excursions, thought they were well planned. though I must say, every excusrion seems to bring you back to a place to shop. sometimes the sales approach can be a bit aggressive. but a firm "no thanks" usually solves that problem.
details and photos to follow.
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