Note: I wanted to post what will be happening the next few days. Starting tomorrow (Tuesday), we'll be in St Maarten followed by St Thomas, and then Grand Turk on Thursday. We also have snorkeling/beach excursions planned. Full days with a lot of activities. So pardon me if I go silent for a day or two.
After this 1st sea day, I'm kind of anxious to be back in the water with the beautiful fish. I'm feeling a bit lazy today along with wanting to take several naps.
Back to today's events....
Cruise Life: After lunch, I dropped Hubby off at the cabin. I made my rounds on decks #7, #6, and #5 and where the main Piazza (center venue) is located. There's a lot going on...especially people watching. Deck 5, you will find me looking for peanut butter cookies at the International Cafe (IC). On this same deck is where I get my specialty coffee also at the IC. Across the way, is the Future Cruise Sales desk where I patiently wait for Angela, the Princess Rep to appear. If I wanted to, I could head over to the Internet Cafe next door and burn more Internet minutes.
Deck 6 is where is the Purser's desk and Princess kiosk is located and where I pause for station identification. There are also shops/boutiques located on this level. Deck 7 has the sales tables where I pause for the second station identification. More shops and boutiques are here. Nearby, is the library where I find my daily dose of Sudoku and other brain teasers available for us to take with us.
I was able to sit and chat with Angela about future cruises. Looks like Hubby and I will be on the brand new ship Regal Princess next year. Well, by then it will be less than two years old.
It's 4pm and time to get ready for formal night. More later....
Monday, January 5, 2015
Monday (01/05): Day @Sea
@Sea
Temperature: 81 degrees
Formal Night
Princess Patter-Today's Activities: Bible Study/Card & Board games/Welcome to Princess Presentation/Zumba Fitness Dance Class/Knitters & Natters/Carpet Bowls/Holiday Store at Sea/Morning Trivia/$500 Treasure Hunt/Princess Book Club/Digital Photography Seminar: Art of Light/Fruit & Vegetable Carving/HandsOnly CPR/Golf Putting/Casino Introduction/Pop Choir Sign Up and rehearsal/Jackpot Bingo/Basketball Shoot-out/British-style Pub Lunch/Poolside Music Trivia/Ballroom Blitz: Merengue beginners class/Martini Demonstration/Quiet Room (Skywalker's-upper deck)/International Hair and Nails show/Card & Bridge players get-together/Line Dancing @Sea/Texas Hold'em/Champagne Art Auction/$20 Slot Tournament/Wet 'n Wacky Pool Games/Want to Learn to Play the Steel Drums?/Gemstones Around the World/Water Volleyball/BOGO Happy Hour/Maitre d'Wine Club/Singles & Solos Get-together/Jackpot Bingo/Arts & Crafts @Sea: Journal Making/Afternoon Tea/Paddle Tennis/Trivia/Veterans Get-together/Formal Night Portaits/Casino Night-No smoking/Ballroom Melodies/Piano Melodies/Champagne Waterfall/Music & Dancing/Movie Poster Trivia/Club 18-20 Dance Party/Karaoke Power Hour
Cruise Life: Once again we are up early. At least I am. I try again to get online and I think I've found the trick. One is to get up early before most of the fellow passengers. Second is to keep the Princess web page up and running. No this doesn't go against my minutes, but kind of like keeps me as an active user.
Princess has developed an application/site called Princess@Sea where I can get the latest weather information, itinerary, dining information, events on the ship, and also track the charges to our onboard account. This is by far the best benefit I've seen on Princess so far. I can see them doing away with the daily Princess Patters (paper product) that contains the same information (e.g. events/shows, dining venues, and ads). So, all I need to carry around with me is my iPad or iPhone. Of course both gadgets are in Airplane mode. No need to unexpectedly incur international charges in the middle of the Caribbean. I do have WiFi turned on when I need to get the latest Princess information.
As for the Internet connection in our cabin, it is actually very fast after I login. I don't need to sit by the cabin door. I can be anywhere inside our cabin including balcony and still keep a good connection. All is good!
I do have issues with uploading pictures. So, I have to post the text portion of my blog and then go back at a later time to add the pictures back in. I have to save a few minutes this week as I'm in email contact with my immediate family. No worries...it's all good!
Hubby and I are sitting on deck #7 in a nice sunny lounge area outside of the Explorer's Lounge. Hubby is reading a book called "Not Too Busy to Pray" while I am knitting the fingerless glove for my right hand. A few ladies have stopped by to see what I was knitting. No it's not socks, just a glove.
I am looking outside the window at the ocean and I think the swells are around 5-6 feet. I'm listening to the Princess personnel and he said the seas are rough this week. The previous weeks the seas were very calm.
The last two days, I've been receiving notifications for our turnaround. Really? That's way too early to be thinking of the end of this week's cruise. Hubby and I are not planning on doing any excursions while in Ft Lauderdale. Keep it simple...just get off, go through Immigration and then get back on the ship.
So, I guess I can't be knitting if I'm sitting here typing this post. Yes, I'm one of the few who has a laptop with them. Yes, I already know I'm a gadget gal. What can I say?
Tonight is the first Formal night. We do plan on getting glamorous for this occasion. Hubby had disappeared to visit one of the dining rooms and found a menu. Dessert is not to be missed this evening. All I heard was mousse and creme brûlée. What is on the menu for dinner? I have no idea.
I do know that there's an English pub lunch at the Wheelhouse Bar/Lounge and there's Oriental and Sushi in the Horizon buffet for lunch. Hmmmm...English or Oriental? I hear the sushi calling us....
Temperature: 81 degrees
Formal Night
Princess Patter-Today's Activities: Bible Study/Card & Board games/Welcome to Princess Presentation/Zumba Fitness Dance Class/Knitters & Natters/Carpet Bowls/Holiday Store at Sea/Morning Trivia/$500 Treasure Hunt/Princess Book Club/Digital Photography Seminar: Art of Light/Fruit & Vegetable Carving/HandsOnly CPR/Golf Putting/Casino Introduction/Pop Choir Sign Up and rehearsal/Jackpot Bingo/Basketball Shoot-out/British-style Pub Lunch/Poolside Music Trivia/Ballroom Blitz: Merengue beginners class/Martini Demonstration/Quiet Room (Skywalker's-upper deck)/International Hair and Nails show/Card & Bridge players get-together/Line Dancing @Sea/Texas Hold'em/Champagne Art Auction/$20 Slot Tournament/Wet 'n Wacky Pool Games/Want to Learn to Play the Steel Drums?/Gemstones Around the World/Water Volleyball/BOGO Happy Hour/Maitre d'Wine Club/Singles & Solos Get-together/Jackpot Bingo/Arts & Crafts @Sea: Journal Making/Afternoon Tea/Paddle Tennis/Trivia/Veterans Get-together/Formal Night Portaits/Casino Night-No smoking/Ballroom Melodies/Piano Melodies/Champagne Waterfall/Music & Dancing/Movie Poster Trivia/Club 18-20 Dance Party/Karaoke Power Hour
Cruise Life: Once again we are up early. At least I am. I try again to get online and I think I've found the trick. One is to get up early before most of the fellow passengers. Second is to keep the Princess web page up and running. No this doesn't go against my minutes, but kind of like keeps me as an active user.
Princess has developed an application/site called Princess@Sea where I can get the latest weather information, itinerary, dining information, events on the ship, and also track the charges to our onboard account. This is by far the best benefit I've seen on Princess so far. I can see them doing away with the daily Princess Patters (paper product) that contains the same information (e.g. events/shows, dining venues, and ads). So, all I need to carry around with me is my iPad or iPhone. Of course both gadgets are in Airplane mode. No need to unexpectedly incur international charges in the middle of the Caribbean. I do have WiFi turned on when I need to get the latest Princess information.
 |
| Princess@Sea screenshot |
 |
| Events listed on Princess@Sea site |
As for the Internet connection in our cabin, it is actually very fast after I login. I don't need to sit by the cabin door. I can be anywhere inside our cabin including balcony and still keep a good connection. All is good!
I do have issues with uploading pictures. So, I have to post the text portion of my blog and then go back at a later time to add the pictures back in. I have to save a few minutes this week as I'm in email contact with my immediate family. No worries...it's all good!
Hubby and I are sitting on deck #7 in a nice sunny lounge area outside of the Explorer's Lounge. Hubby is reading a book called "Not Too Busy to Pray" while I am knitting the fingerless glove for my right hand. A few ladies have stopped by to see what I was knitting. No it's not socks, just a glove.
 |
| Lounge area outside of Explorer's lounge. The sofas are quite comfy here |
I am looking outside the window at the ocean and I think the swells are around 5-6 feet. I'm listening to the Princess personnel and he said the seas are rough this week. The previous weeks the seas were very calm.
The last two days, I've been receiving notifications for our turnaround. Really? That's way too early to be thinking of the end of this week's cruise. Hubby and I are not planning on doing any excursions while in Ft Lauderdale. Keep it simple...just get off, go through Immigration and then get back on the ship.
So, I guess I can't be knitting if I'm sitting here typing this post. Yes, I'm one of the few who has a laptop with them. Yes, I already know I'm a gadget gal. What can I say?
Tonight is the first Formal night. We do plan on getting glamorous for this occasion. Hubby had disappeared to visit one of the dining rooms and found a menu. Dessert is not to be missed this evening. All I heard was mousse and creme brûlée. What is on the menu for dinner? I have no idea.
I do know that there's an English pub lunch at the Wheelhouse Bar/Lounge and there's Oriental and Sushi in the Horizon buffet for lunch. Hmmmm...English or Oriental? I hear the sushi calling us....
Sunday (01/04): Princess Cay!
Princess Cays (anchor/tender): 9am-4pm
Temperature: 84 degrees
Princess Patter-Today's Activities: Bible Study/Card & Board Games/Singles & Solos Get-together/Backgammon Players Get-together/Knitters & Natters/Quiet Room (Skywalker's)/Digital Photography Seminar/Basketball Shoot-out/Morning Trivia/Carpet Bowls/Scattegories/Party Bridge Play/Darts competition/NFL Football Cincinnati versus Indianapolis/Ping Pong competition/Caribbean melodies/BOGO Happy Hour/Afternoon Trivia/Pop Choir Sign up and rehearsal/Afternoon Tea/Water Volleyball/Aviator (paper plane) challenge/Rum Tasting Event/Paddle Tennis/Art 101: Insider Secrets to Art Collecting/Golf Chipping Challenge/$500 Treasure Hunt/Fun Facial Bar/Guitar Melodies/Piano Melodies/NFL Football Detroit versus Dallas/Caribbean Melodies/Casino Introduction/Country & Western Warmup with Atomic Party Band/Wii Challenge/Majority Rules gameshow/Ballroom Dance Date/Texas Hold'em/Country and Western Nights/Princess Pop Star/Dance the Night Away
Cruise Life: Okay, so I mentioned that we are way forward on the ship and looking forward to feeling the movement on the ship. Well, we've felt it all night long. Now, that's not a bad thing. That meant we slept soundly until about 5am when we woke up to hear the hangers clanging around in our closet.
We tried to go back to sleep, but we were kind of anxious as we had a port day today. Today, we were tendering to Princess Cay, Princess' private beach. It's located in the Eleuthera Islands. We arrived and dropped anchor around 9am. The ship's tenders were lowered into the water to take food and supplies to the island. Later, Princess will host a lunch on their island for us.
I had planned a snorkeling excursion where a small boat would take us to the northern part of the island and basically drop us into the water. Little did we know that we were in for a nice surprise.
We met in the Wheelhouse Lounge around 9:20am and given a green sticker. Folks on excursions are given priority to go ashore. The rest of the folks have to get in line to get tender ticks and then wait for an available tender. We boarded a tender with two other groups. The water was very choppy and made the little tenders bounce around the water. Sweet! Yeah, I know call me crazy. I do enjoy the feeling.
Once on Princess Cays, we are directed to a small boat that will take us out to the snorkeling site. Upon entering the water, it was noticeably chilly but warmed up nicely. We had an hour to snorkel and we're allowed to go some distance swimming in and out of the reef. This was the first time I've seen so many schools of fish in the Bahamas. There was a lot of beautiful fan coral in beautiful purple colors.
After an hour or so, we are back on the boat. Ricky, the captain, is entertaining us with his guitar and singing gospel songs. What a treat! Ricky came from another island and bought a house on the Eleuthera Islands. He has six children and 3 of them work for Carnival Cruise Lines.
We are taken back to Princess Cays for a BBQ lunch. There was hamburgers, hotdogs, grilled chicken, salads, corn, fruits, and desserts. Oh my! The chicken was delicious as well as the salad.
We had a beautiful day in Princess Cays!
Tonight's Movie at MUTS: Edge of Tomorrow
Temperature: 84 degrees
Princess Patter-Today's Activities: Bible Study/Card & Board Games/Singles & Solos Get-together/Backgammon Players Get-together/Knitters & Natters/Quiet Room (Skywalker's)/Digital Photography Seminar/Basketball Shoot-out/Morning Trivia/Carpet Bowls/Scattegories/Party Bridge Play/Darts competition/NFL Football Cincinnati versus Indianapolis/Ping Pong competition/Caribbean melodies/BOGO Happy Hour/Afternoon Trivia/Pop Choir Sign up and rehearsal/Afternoon Tea/Water Volleyball/Aviator (paper plane) challenge/Rum Tasting Event/Paddle Tennis/Art 101: Insider Secrets to Art Collecting/Golf Chipping Challenge/$500 Treasure Hunt/Fun Facial Bar/Guitar Melodies/Piano Melodies/NFL Football Detroit versus Dallas/Caribbean Melodies/Casino Introduction/Country & Western Warmup with Atomic Party Band/Wii Challenge/Majority Rules gameshow/Ballroom Dance Date/Texas Hold'em/Country and Western Nights/Princess Pop Star/Dance the Night Away
Cruise Life: Okay, so I mentioned that we are way forward on the ship and looking forward to feeling the movement on the ship. Well, we've felt it all night long. Now, that's not a bad thing. That meant we slept soundly until about 5am when we woke up to hear the hangers clanging around in our closet.
We tried to go back to sleep, but we were kind of anxious as we had a port day today. Today, we were tendering to Princess Cay, Princess' private beach. It's located in the Eleuthera Islands. We arrived and dropped anchor around 9am. The ship's tenders were lowered into the water to take food and supplies to the island. Later, Princess will host a lunch on their island for us.
I had planned a snorkeling excursion where a small boat would take us to the northern part of the island and basically drop us into the water. Little did we know that we were in for a nice surprise.
We met in the Wheelhouse Lounge around 9:20am and given a green sticker. Folks on excursions are given priority to go ashore. The rest of the folks have to get in line to get tender ticks and then wait for an available tender. We boarded a tender with two other groups. The water was very choppy and made the little tenders bounce around the water. Sweet! Yeah, I know call me crazy. I do enjoy the feeling.
 |
| The Princess tenders dropping off fellow cruisers at Princess Cays |
 |
| Leaving Princess Cays beach area and heading to our snorkeling site |
 |
| Our snorkeling site |
 |
| Hubby in the water.... |
After an hour or so, we are back on the boat. Ricky, the captain, is entertaining us with his guitar and singing gospel songs. What a treat! Ricky came from another island and bought a house on the Eleuthera Islands. He has six children and 3 of them work for Carnival Cruise Lines.
We are taken back to Princess Cays for a BBQ lunch. There was hamburgers, hotdogs, grilled chicken, salads, corn, fruits, and desserts. Oh my! The chicken was delicious as well as the salad.
We had a beautiful day in Princess Cays!
 |
| It was a beautiful warm day! |
Tonight's Movie at MUTS: Edge of Tomorrow
Sunday (01/04): A Marriage Proposal...Live!
I wanted to post this before I forget. Hubby and I watched the end of the Dallas/Detroit football game on Movies Under the Stars (MUTS) on the Lido deck #15. Basically, MUTS is a huge/gigantic LED screen where we can watch football, concerts, and movies here. There was a short intermission between the end of the football game and the start of the movie. A Princess rep came on and mentioned an important announcement was about to be made. Camera switches over to a guy who is talking about his girlfriend. After 5 minutes of talking to the camera, the LED screen goes blank. An intercom turns on and the guy continues to talk and proposes to his girlfriend...live! We are sitting a few feet away. How cool is that?!!! The Princess photographers and camera guy continues to film and take pictures of their happy event. What a treat to be a part of this wonderful surprise and a first for us to experience on the ship.
Saturday (01/03): Onboard!
Ruby Princess
Temperature: Warm and Delightful!
Cruise Life: After getting our cruise card scanned, we headed up to the Dolphin deck #9 to check out our cabin. Again, we are in a mini-suite all the way forward on the ship. I was looking at the cabin map and we are the 14th cabin balcony from the front on the port side. Here's a hint...being this close to the front of the ship we're hoping to feel a lot more movement.
We left our cabin around 1pm to grab some lunch up in the Horizon buffet on Lido deck #15. For some reason the ship doesn't feel crowded. We decided to eat healthy on this cruise and watch our portions. Salads, veggies, fish, and watch the carbs. I made sure I left my plate exposed meaning not fill my plate that I couldn't see it anymore.
After lunch, we headed back to our cabin. We found our luggage waiting outside our door. Yes, all three made it onto the ship! I dropped Hubby off and went about the ship to take care of a few items. First stop was the Internet Cafe to sign on for free Internet minutes. Hubby and I get 150 minutes each for free since we are Platinum members. That may sound like a lot of minutes, but when you take into account how slow the Internet is on the ship...well, the minutes go by fast.
Next on my list was to get a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) form so we can purchase more FCCs for future cruises. We can use an FCC as a downpayment towards another cruise. Along with that Princess provides us with an certain amount for OnBoard Credit (OBC) depending on the length of cruise. I also picked up a brochure for future Caribbean cruise in 2016. Might as well start planning for the next trip.
I also picked up two glasses to keep in our room so we can enjoy our Chardonnay on our balcony.
I got back to our room around 2pm and found Hubby had started to unpack. Sweet! After an hour of unpacking and hanging out on our balcony we waited for the muster to start. Promptly at 3:30pm, we heard seven short blast and one long blast to signal it was time to head down to the Princess Theater with our life vest. Each cabin has two to three life vests. We are required on the Ruby Princess to take one the muster. We head down two decks to deck #7 and have our cruise card scanned before taking our seats. The muster takes about 30 minutes. We wait for everyone to file in and take their seats and then we listen to cruise director or captain to explain the muster signal and process. We watch the crewmen/crewomen demonstrate how to put on the life vest. Then we proceed to do the same with our own life vest.
Once the muster is finished Hubby and I head back to our cabin to watch the sail away. We've had gorgeous weather in Fort Lauderdale and I can believe how clear the day is with white puffy clouds in the sky. We watch as the Caribbean Princess is the first to leave. We listen to her horn blow. I always enjoy that sound from the Princess ship. As she enters the channel, I notice we are moving as well. I quickly take pictures and try to post pictures/status on Facebook (FB) as I know many of you are following our adventure.
Cruise ships docked in Port Everyglades:
Beautiful homes located along the port:
Sail-a-way:
We follow the Caribbean Princess out of Fort Lauderdale. Behind us is the Coral Princess who will be heading down to the Panama Canal. I had mentioned the weather was clear. It really was. This was the first time we could see the Florida coast as we sail away.
The Caribbean Princess is the first to leave:
Here's a nice perspective picture. The buildings on the left are condos:
Here we see beautiful homes along the way out of the channel:
Yes, that is Flow Rider on the right side of the house:
The USCG escorting us out the channel. You won't believe how many small boats/vessels try to come close to the cruise ships. The USCG does a great job moving them out of the way:
The coast of Florida:
There's not much on the agenda for this evening. Meaning...we're pretty tired and thinking about getting to bed early. I'm hoping to get all these posts published along with some pictures. It will either happen at 3am when everyone should be sleeping or sometime during the day when I can get a decent connection somewhere on this ship. Thanks for being patient!
Tonight's movie at MUTS (Movies Under the Stars-large outdoor screen): NFL Football-Baltimore versus Pittsburgh
Temperature: Warm and Delightful!
Cruise Life: After getting our cruise card scanned, we headed up to the Dolphin deck #9 to check out our cabin. Again, we are in a mini-suite all the way forward on the ship. I was looking at the cabin map and we are the 14th cabin balcony from the front on the port side. Here's a hint...being this close to the front of the ship we're hoping to feel a lot more movement.
We left our cabin around 1pm to grab some lunch up in the Horizon buffet on Lido deck #15. For some reason the ship doesn't feel crowded. We decided to eat healthy on this cruise and watch our portions. Salads, veggies, fish, and watch the carbs. I made sure I left my plate exposed meaning not fill my plate that I couldn't see it anymore.
After lunch, we headed back to our cabin. We found our luggage waiting outside our door. Yes, all three made it onto the ship! I dropped Hubby off and went about the ship to take care of a few items. First stop was the Internet Cafe to sign on for free Internet minutes. Hubby and I get 150 minutes each for free since we are Platinum members. That may sound like a lot of minutes, but when you take into account how slow the Internet is on the ship...well, the minutes go by fast.
Next on my list was to get a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) form so we can purchase more FCCs for future cruises. We can use an FCC as a downpayment towards another cruise. Along with that Princess provides us with an certain amount for OnBoard Credit (OBC) depending on the length of cruise. I also picked up a brochure for future Caribbean cruise in 2016. Might as well start planning for the next trip.
I also picked up two glasses to keep in our room so we can enjoy our Chardonnay on our balcony.
I got back to our room around 2pm and found Hubby had started to unpack. Sweet! After an hour of unpacking and hanging out on our balcony we waited for the muster to start. Promptly at 3:30pm, we heard seven short blast and one long blast to signal it was time to head down to the Princess Theater with our life vest. Each cabin has two to three life vests. We are required on the Ruby Princess to take one the muster. We head down two decks to deck #7 and have our cruise card scanned before taking our seats. The muster takes about 30 minutes. We wait for everyone to file in and take their seats and then we listen to cruise director or captain to explain the muster signal and process. We watch the crewmen/crewomen demonstrate how to put on the life vest. Then we proceed to do the same with our own life vest.
Once the muster is finished Hubby and I head back to our cabin to watch the sail away. We've had gorgeous weather in Fort Lauderdale and I can believe how clear the day is with white puffy clouds in the sky. We watch as the Caribbean Princess is the first to leave. We listen to her horn blow. I always enjoy that sound from the Princess ship. As she enters the channel, I notice we are moving as well. I quickly take pictures and try to post pictures/status on Facebook (FB) as I know many of you are following our adventure.
Cruise ships docked in Port Everyglades:
Beautiful homes located along the port:
Sail-a-way:
We follow the Caribbean Princess out of Fort Lauderdale. Behind us is the Coral Princess who will be heading down to the Panama Canal. I had mentioned the weather was clear. It really was. This was the first time we could see the Florida coast as we sail away.
The Caribbean Princess is the first to leave:
Here's a nice perspective picture. The buildings on the left are condos:
Here we see beautiful homes along the way out of the channel:
Yes, that is Flow Rider on the right side of the house:
The USCG escorting us out the channel. You won't believe how many small boats/vessels try to come close to the cruise ships. The USCG does a great job moving them out of the way:
The coast of Florida:
There's not much on the agenda for this evening. Meaning...we're pretty tired and thinking about getting to bed early. I'm hoping to get all these posts published along with some pictures. It will either happen at 3am when everyone should be sleeping or sometime during the day when I can get a decent connection somewhere on this ship. Thanks for being patient!
Tonight's movie at MUTS (Movies Under the Stars-large outdoor screen): NFL Football-Baltimore versus Pittsburgh
Sunday, January 4, 2015
Saturday (01/03): Embarkation Day!
Ft Lauderdale: Embarkation
Temperature: 75 degrees
Side note: I hope these blog entries are being posted in the correct order. I decided to put in the day of the week in my blog titles to help you along.
We wake up to find the Ruby Princess docked at Port Everglades. I look out our balcony and see both the Ruby and Coral Princess in the distance.
Hubby has been keeping an eye on me and well, carbs that just want to leap onto my plate for breakfast. The breakfast I'm talking about is the Embassy Suites breakfast buffet. I've been doing really well with just eating some protein and veggies. My fave at this hotel is the tomato and spinach omelet. Next, is the hot oatmeal. Wished they had blueberries instead of raisins. Yum!
After our 7am breakfast, we headed back to the room to clean up and to do a final pack and tag with the luggage.
Before we left for our trip, I printed out our Princess luggage tags. There are really two ways to attach the luggage tags to the luggage handle. I normally staple the ends of the tag together. That meant I had to pack a tiny staple gun. Late last year, I found a tag holder on Amazon. I thought I would give it a try. Not really trusting the new tag holder, I ended up using the stapled tag on the side handle and the new tag holder on the top handle of the suitcase. This became a test to see if the new tag holder would get ripped off the handle during it's travel from the hotel to the pier and then onto the ship.
All three pieces of luggage were placed inside our room door at 8:45am. We waited in the room until 10:15am when the bellman appeared and picked them up. Hubby was anxious to leave and head over to the dive shop. I did a time check with hubby as we had 45 minutes to look/shop and be back at the hotel to meet with the Princess rep.
We got back to the hotel in time to check in with our Princess rep and proceeded to one of the ballrooms to validate our luggage was there. A few minutes later I see two of our luggage wheeled to the 1st tour bus. We board the first bus at 12noon and I see our third luggage which has our formalwear and my all my rechargers for my gadgets sitting with some other luggage on the curb. The Princess rep assures us the luggage will be put on the second bus (along with the other luggage going to the Coral Princess and the Caribbean Princess). Hmmmm....
We were less than 1/4 mile from the hotel when we run into a huge traffic jam. It appeared that everyone else was using the 17th Street Causeway to get to the beach or get to the port. It was amazing! Our bus driver dropped us off at the entrance of Terminal 2 and drove around the corner to drop off our luggage with the porters. That was one of the nicest and easiest "drop-off" we've ever experienced with Princess. It appears Princess does read our comments/suggestions we submit at the end of each cruise. Kudos!
We find and join the Preferred line for Platinum, Elite, and Suites. Our papers are checked and we head into security. At this point I forgot that Hubby had the bottle of wine in his backpack. We are told to head to another short line with a Princess rep. He looks over our papers, looks at our bottle and jots down some information. We are free to go along with our Chardonnay.
The next line we get into is for checking in and to receive our cruise card. We hear "welcome back" and we know we are home again.
The next two quick stops are for cruise embarkation photo op and then onto the ship to get a quick card scan and picture taken.
Temperature: 75 degrees
Side note: I hope these blog entries are being posted in the correct order. I decided to put in the day of the week in my blog titles to help you along.
We wake up to find the Ruby Princess docked at Port Everglades. I look out our balcony and see both the Ruby and Coral Princess in the distance.
Hubby has been keeping an eye on me and well, carbs that just want to leap onto my plate for breakfast. The breakfast I'm talking about is the Embassy Suites breakfast buffet. I've been doing really well with just eating some protein and veggies. My fave at this hotel is the tomato and spinach omelet. Next, is the hot oatmeal. Wished they had blueberries instead of raisins. Yum!
After our 7am breakfast, we headed back to the room to clean up and to do a final pack and tag with the luggage.
Before we left for our trip, I printed out our Princess luggage tags. There are really two ways to attach the luggage tags to the luggage handle. I normally staple the ends of the tag together. That meant I had to pack a tiny staple gun. Late last year, I found a tag holder on Amazon. I thought I would give it a try. Not really trusting the new tag holder, I ended up using the stapled tag on the side handle and the new tag holder on the top handle of the suitcase. This became a test to see if the new tag holder would get ripped off the handle during it's travel from the hotel to the pier and then onto the ship.
All three pieces of luggage were placed inside our room door at 8:45am. We waited in the room until 10:15am when the bellman appeared and picked them up. Hubby was anxious to leave and head over to the dive shop. I did a time check with hubby as we had 45 minutes to look/shop and be back at the hotel to meet with the Princess rep.
We got back to the hotel in time to check in with our Princess rep and proceeded to one of the ballrooms to validate our luggage was there. A few minutes later I see two of our luggage wheeled to the 1st tour bus. We board the first bus at 12noon and I see our third luggage which has our formalwear and my all my rechargers for my gadgets sitting with some other luggage on the curb. The Princess rep assures us the luggage will be put on the second bus (along with the other luggage going to the Coral Princess and the Caribbean Princess). Hmmmm....
We were less than 1/4 mile from the hotel when we run into a huge traffic jam. It appeared that everyone else was using the 17th Street Causeway to get to the beach or get to the port. It was amazing! Our bus driver dropped us off at the entrance of Terminal 2 and drove around the corner to drop off our luggage with the porters. That was one of the nicest and easiest "drop-off" we've ever experienced with Princess. It appears Princess does read our comments/suggestions we submit at the end of each cruise. Kudos!
We find and join the Preferred line for Platinum, Elite, and Suites. Our papers are checked and we head into security. At this point I forgot that Hubby had the bottle of wine in his backpack. We are told to head to another short line with a Princess rep. He looks over our papers, looks at our bottle and jots down some information. We are free to go along with our Chardonnay.
The next line we get into is for checking in and to receive our cruise card. We hear "welcome back" and we know we are home again.
The next two quick stops are for cruise embarkation photo op and then onto the ship to get a quick card scan and picture taken.
Friday (01/02): Fort Lauderdale Area
Today turned out to be a beautiful day! Hubby and I headed out in the late morning to do some last minute cruise shopping. We walked to the shopping center behind the hotel to pick up the Sun Trolley. This particular trolley's route took us along the beach front and ended up at the Galleria Mall. Perfect! We paid for an all day pass ($3/pp) and got stamped on our arm.
It took us a good 40 minutes with all the pick-ups and drop-offs to get to the mall. Wow! We were dropped off in front of PF Changes and Seasons 52 restaurants. Now, this is one beautiful mall.
Within an hour, we were able to find what we needed and decided to head back towards the 17th Street Causeway for lunch. We were bummed out yesterday that our favorite sushi place was closed for the New Year's. That was all hubby could think about as we were approaching the lunch hour. We arrived at Tokyo Sushi after 1pm. The last time we were here, two years ago, the restaurant was only open for dinner and it was busy. The restaurant was quiet with a few customers. We thoroughly enjoyed our meal of sashimi tuna, fried rice, asian salad, and an order of tuna rolls wrapped in cucumber. Yum!
After lunch we went back to Lauderdale Dive shop to find them closed for the second day. Hubby mentioned we could stop in before we leave for our cruise on Saturday morning. Hmmmm...that will require some thought and planning.
Next on our list was to visit Nature's Remedy shop. There, I was able to find a natural/organic bug spray to help deter any mosquitos we might encounter in the Caribbean. Better to be safe.
After all this shopping, a nap was in order. So, I thought. The weather was just doggone too beautiful to stay inside. We headed back out thinking we'd go back to the beach area. We waited at the trolley stop. We waited and waited. No trolley. We took off and walked along the 17th Street Causeway towards the draw bridge.
We spent some time watching all the yachts and small boats passing underneath the bridge. At one point, we were luck enough to see the draw bridge open to allow the tall sails to pass through.
We stayed out as long as we could and then headed back to the hotel. I had to do some repacking of the three suitcases as well as pack our winter travel clothes. From here on out, it's t-shirts, shorts, and flip-flops.
Friday, January 2, 2015
Friday: I know I'm Tired....
This morning, I hear a knock at our door and didn't think of anything. The I heard our door open and shut. Strange! I ran to the the front of our suite to peek out the window and saw a bellman. I answered the door to find him collecting luggage. I almost panicked...now, thinking that today we're suppose to be leaving for the ship. He apologized and mentioned there was a mistake. Still....
I pulled out our travel documents and gave them to hubby to verify/validate when we're suppose to be on the ship. Saturday. Whew! Hmmmm...now I wonder if the front desk thinks we're suppose to be checking out today. I better make a quick phone call.
I think we're still recuperating from the holidays, the frantic packing, and lack of sleep. It's all good.
Please be patient with me as I continue to post and work out my blogging issues.
I pulled out our travel documents and gave them to hubby to verify/validate when we're suppose to be on the ship. Saturday. Whew! Hmmmm...now I wonder if the front desk thinks we're suppose to be checking out today. I better make a quick phone call.
I think we're still recuperating from the holidays, the frantic packing, and lack of sleep. It's all good.
Please be patient with me as I continue to post and work out my blogging issues.
Thursday: Fort Lauderdale
Hubby and I spent a lot of time walking around yesterday afternoon. We visited our favorite shops only to find them closed for New Year's. A minor setback as we'd have to spend our Friday running around Fort Lauderdale to get our last minute items.
We were able to shop at Publix grocery store located behind the hotel. I whipped out my iPhone and started to the collect the items from the list I had started on my iPhone while on the plane. Woolite, contact lens solution, extra large bottle of water, toothpaste, batteries, hair bands. Just the basics. The rest of the items we'll get on Friday.
I wanted to add that a TJ Maxx is now located in the same shopping center. Some of the smaller shops have closed permanently and some have moved to a new location. Our biggest disappointment was our favorite restaurant Fort Lauderdale Grill had closed. I will miss their ahi tuna meals.
We had a late lunch at Gilbert's which consisted of Ahi Tuna with Asian Slaw. Can I say awesome?! It was delish! Presentation was beautiful! Ate everything with my chopsticks. Practice, practice, practice. Due to technical difficulties, I will back later to post a picture.
Our internal clocks were messed up by the lack of sleep and traveling before the crack of dawn. One would have thought that we traveled across several time zones yet we only traveled two hours by plane. To coincide with a late lunch, we ended up having an early dinner. Geeeeeez! We went to Carlos & Pepe's and had lots of chips and salsa and fish tacos.
I spent much of the evening redistributing/reorganizing the three suitcases to accommodate our additional purchases. At this point the suitcase weight doesn't matter when it gets loaded onto the ship. I also pulled out items we needed for the next day and a half.
By 9am, we were exhausted. Lights out!
We were able to shop at Publix grocery store located behind the hotel. I whipped out my iPhone and started to the collect the items from the list I had started on my iPhone while on the plane. Woolite, contact lens solution, extra large bottle of water, toothpaste, batteries, hair bands. Just the basics. The rest of the items we'll get on Friday.
I wanted to add that a TJ Maxx is now located in the same shopping center. Some of the smaller shops have closed permanently and some have moved to a new location. Our biggest disappointment was our favorite restaurant Fort Lauderdale Grill had closed. I will miss their ahi tuna meals.
We had a late lunch at Gilbert's which consisted of Ahi Tuna with Asian Slaw. Can I say awesome?! It was delish! Presentation was beautiful! Ate everything with my chopsticks. Practice, practice, practice. Due to technical difficulties, I will back later to post a picture.
Our internal clocks were messed up by the lack of sleep and traveling before the crack of dawn. One would have thought that we traveled across several time zones yet we only traveled two hours by plane. To coincide with a late lunch, we ended up having an early dinner. Geeeeeez! We went to Carlos & Pepe's and had lots of chips and salsa and fish tacos.
I spent much of the evening redistributing/reorganizing the three suitcases to accommodate our additional purchases. At this point the suitcase weight doesn't matter when it gets loaded onto the ship. I also pulled out items we needed for the next day and a half.
By 9am, we were exhausted. Lights out!
Thursday, January 1, 2015
Traveling to Fort Lauderdale
We brought in the New Year by staying at a hotel near the airport. I set the alarm for 3:30am. I really didn't need to as I could not sleep.
We checked out of the hotel by 4:10am and sat and waited and sat some more and waited for our cab. Our cab was 30 minutes late. Yes, I was a bit agitated as I knew the JetBlue counter opened at 4:30am.
Now, I'm the type of person who does not mind getting to the airport two hours before boarding time. I don't do well with rushing and worrying.
Our cab arrived at 4:40am and we were off to the airport. We reached the JetBlue counter to find two very long lines, snaking back and forth. By that time, my head had sprouted two more white hairs. It was a good thing I checked in the night before, but I couldn't pay for the extra luggage online. So hubby and I waited. After 5:10am, the lines were moving at an extraordinary pace. Ten minutes later, we were going through security.
We decided to eat a very early breakfast at 5:30am: egg and cheese on a bagel.
We boarded the plane at 5:40am. While I don't like the rushed feeling of this morning, it turned out to be a blessing as I was soooo tired and just wanted to get on the plane and catch a few ZZZZZs.
Hubby and I landed in Ft Lauderdale two hours later. We met our Princess rep near baggage claim. Always a beautiful sight to see unlike our bad experience in Houston last year. Once we gathered our luggage, she directed us outside to wait for transportation. Now, at this point we never know what we'll get. We've been in several limos and buses and about 90% of the time we have it to ourselves.
This morning was no different. A tour bus stopped to pick us up. We were the only ones on the bus. Sweet!
So, we are now in the Embassy Suites. We could not check in right away. I grabbed one of the luggage and went to the ladies room to change into a short sleeved top. We stored our luggage and the bellman suggested we enjoy the complementary breakfast. Second breakfast here we come!
We decided to stretch our legs and do some walking. We didn't get too far and ended up Starbuck's for most of the morning. I took the opportunity to recharge all of our gadgets.
Around 11am, I received a call from the Embassy Suites that our room was available to check in. Sweet! I was getting tired of carry my heavy camera/gadget backpack. We packed our stuff and headed back to the hotel.
We have a beautiful suite with a decent size balcony that looks out towards the Port Everglades. Saturday morning we should be able to see the Ruby Princess in port.
Hubby is now napping a bit. In a few minutes, we're heading out to do some shopping for necessities. Behind our hotel is a Publix grocery store, a Total Wines shop, a Nature's Remedy Shop and a Trolley stop (which will takes us to the beach later).
Be back soon....
We checked out of the hotel by 4:10am and sat and waited and sat some more and waited for our cab. Our cab was 30 minutes late. Yes, I was a bit agitated as I knew the JetBlue counter opened at 4:30am.
Now, I'm the type of person who does not mind getting to the airport two hours before boarding time. I don't do well with rushing and worrying.
Our cab arrived at 4:40am and we were off to the airport. We reached the JetBlue counter to find two very long lines, snaking back and forth. By that time, my head had sprouted two more white hairs. It was a good thing I checked in the night before, but I couldn't pay for the extra luggage online. So hubby and I waited. After 5:10am, the lines were moving at an extraordinary pace. Ten minutes later, we were going through security.
We decided to eat a very early breakfast at 5:30am: egg and cheese on a bagel.
We boarded the plane at 5:40am. While I don't like the rushed feeling of this morning, it turned out to be a blessing as I was soooo tired and just wanted to get on the plane and catch a few ZZZZZs.
Hubby and I landed in Ft Lauderdale two hours later. We met our Princess rep near baggage claim. Always a beautiful sight to see unlike our bad experience in Houston last year. Once we gathered our luggage, she directed us outside to wait for transportation. Now, at this point we never know what we'll get. We've been in several limos and buses and about 90% of the time we have it to ourselves.
This morning was no different. A tour bus stopped to pick us up. We were the only ones on the bus. Sweet!
So, we are now in the Embassy Suites. We could not check in right away. I grabbed one of the luggage and went to the ladies room to change into a short sleeved top. We stored our luggage and the bellman suggested we enjoy the complementary breakfast. Second breakfast here we come!
We decided to stretch our legs and do some walking. We didn't get too far and ended up Starbuck's for most of the morning. I took the opportunity to recharge all of our gadgets.
Around 11am, I received a call from the Embassy Suites that our room was available to check in. Sweet! I was getting tired of carry my heavy camera/gadget backpack. We packed our stuff and headed back to the hotel.
We have a beautiful suite with a decent size balcony that looks out towards the Port Everglades. Saturday morning we should be able to see the Ruby Princess in port.
Hubby is now napping a bit. In a few minutes, we're heading out to do some shopping for necessities. Behind our hotel is a Publix grocery store, a Total Wines shop, a Nature's Remedy Shop and a Trolley stop (which will takes us to the beach later).
Be back soon....
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
