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#81
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
"Nonny" wrote in message ... "Cruise Crazy" wrote in message ... I prefer smaller ships and yet there were many things I did not like about our recent cruise on Seven Seas Navigator. So much depends on the captain and how the ship is run. Even going back on the same ship can make for a very different experience. Once we had a change of captains in the middle of a cruise. It DID make a difference. . . .hence, my comments about "management" of the ships. You're right on target. I find it surprising, if not amazing, how much latitude the lines give their individual crews when it comes to management. It would make sense to me if they'd have corporate folk continually taking cruises and reporting back to the home office about deviations from a corporate standard. For instance, no competent hotel manager/captain would permit the elevators to be taken down for cleaning at 8:00a or would schedule an emergency generator test that disables the elevators at Noon. My impression of the Ryndam was that the management of the ship was running it as much for the convenience of the crew as for the passengers. By comparison, we had no similar "hitches" in the preceding Carnival cruise and many of us were commenting about what a "happy" ship and crew we sensed. My bet is that you could switch captains/hotel managers and senior officers on the two ships and within a month that would be reversed. Since it's raining here and I can't go out to play, let me make another observation. Jean commented on what a good communicator the captain of the Ryndam was. I agree entirely. He'd get on the horn to explain what was happening whenever something would go wrong or break. Let me give my interpretation of that by citing briefly a fictional business model we used to teach, called, "The Canon" . . . long ago, England wanted to send Cornwallis a huge canon he could use to settle the little dispute with the Colonists. The Admiralty assigned a young officer to one of its best warships to be certain that the huge canon was safely lashed down and would make the trip to the Colonies without endangering the ship or rolling overboard. If it came loose and began rolling, it could sink the ship, so this was critical. During the transit, a large storm came up and the warship began to roll and pitch in the waves. Despite being checked regularly by the young officer, the lashings of the canon got loosened and suddenly it began to roll about the deck of the ship. The ship itself was in dire danger from the rolling canon and there was the obvious risk that the canon could roll off the deck and be lost. The young officer dashed out onto the rain swept deck and at the risk of his life and limb, used more rope to first snag and then lash the huge canon back securely onto the deck. He was bruised and bloodied by the effort, but saved both the ship and the canon through this extraordinary, monumental, personal effort. The following morning, the sun came out, the ocean calmed and the Captain of the ship called all the crew to the deck. He praised what the young officer had done, then had him hanged. You see, the canon should never have come loose in the first place. While the Ryndam's captain was excellent in telling us about the ship's problems during the cruise, his management should have prevented them from ever happening, IMHO. Sounds kinda like the new CEO of Toyota becoming rather good at apologizing... He does a DAMN good apology! 'specially after the feds shut him down over what's apparently years of ignored safety problems over multiple car lines, with at least 19 deaths (per the NY Times)... --Tom |
#82
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010..CHARLES
YES, Charles, they have "shrunk" the smoking areas....as an ex-smoker
who quit just 11 months ago, and we cruise Carnival exclusively, I can tell you the smoking areas shrink every year. |
#83
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
Nonny consulted a Magic 8 Ball and declared On 2/1/2010 1:40 PM:
After Christmas and New Year's holidays, we enjoy taking a cruise, and that's enhanced when the cruise is with family members. During the fall, we knew that our daughter couldn't join us because she was expecting her first child, but our son and his two girls were happy to join us. Then, in conversation with a former grade school classmate, we invited her to join us as well. George Leppla handled the reservations, and it was done perfectly, as always. The plan initially had been to go to Tampa for a few days at Busch Gardens before the cruise, with our son and the girls joining us the evening before embarkation. As luck would have it, on the 4th, I had a fall down our stairs and broke my collar bone in a few places. The resulting X-rays, tests, consultations etc. wasted the better part of the rest of the week, so we dropped the Busch Gardens part, traveling straight to the Embassy Suites Downtown in Tampa for the night before embarkation. Our plans were enhanced a bit by the fact that when we returned, we planned to disembark the Legend and embark HAL's Ryndam for another 2-weeks of cruising. There were two BIG surprises on that segment of the plans, but I'll save that for the Ryndam report. The Embassy Suites Downtown is a $25 cab ride from TIA, but well worth the price compared to the hassles of a shuttle. In addition, with one arm in a sling, tied to my waist, I needed all the help we could muster. The hotel itself was pleasant and as expected. We always try to stay at Embassy Suites, and this was a good way to begin our trip. Our son, Chris, had arrived earlier with the girls, so we met him in the coffee shop for a sandwich that evening. Our last arrival didn't get to Tampa until 10:30p, so she just headed for the room and we saw her in the morning. Embarkation for the Legend was smooth. The only hassle was the home printed luggage tags. This was the first experience with them and while I'd brought tape, we found that a stapler is now a needed addition to the luggage. The porter had one, thank goodness, and when the bags arrived in the cabin, all still had the tags on them. Our friend was at the Purser's Desk, however, that evening and said she spotted over 25 "untagged" suitcases waiting to be identified and claimed. Our cabin consisted of two typical beds, separated by a night stand, a couch with mattress on it for a third person and a fold-down bunk for the 4th. While there were 4 adults in our cabin, it was not crowded and nobody got in anyone's way. Our son's cabin was also comfortable. Both were very clean, tidy and well maintained. TOWEL ANIMALS were in evidence every night, which we enjoyed. The overall cleanliness, maintenance and appearance of the Legend was terrific. It felt like a new ship. All the elevators were working, there was virtually no wait to get one and our rear quarter cabin was perfect to go right up to the Lido deck or down to the dining room. All decks were accessible without having to go "up and over" some feature like we had on the old Westerdam and now on the Ryndam. Our cabin steward was invisible, but the cabin was always made up perfectly while we were at breakfast and freshened up again in the afternoon and turned down at bedtime. There were plenty of toiletries in the bath and plenty of towels. The shower was always cleaned and wiped down each day. One of the important things, to us, is the food on a cruise. After the Legend, I worry that other cruises will be able to live up to the wonderful food we had. Despite what we ordered from the menu, it was always perfectly prepared, sauces were appropriate and flavorful, service was rapid and accurate, desserts were great, portions were perfect for us, food was available for the grandkids and served promptly while the adult dining was more leisurely and there was entertainment almost every night. Everything was tastefully done, fun and the dining room folk seemed to actually enjoy the songs or dances, compared to the horrible "God blezz Amelica" cigarette lighter routines from the past. At the risk of overstating our satisfaction with the dining room, it was undoubtedly the best food, service and entertainment we'd encountered in our cruising history, and perhaps the opposite of what was to come on the Ryndam. An annoyance on most cruises is the photographers forcing people to wait in line to be admitted to a function , embarking or going ashore. On the Legend, photographers were everywhere, but we were never forced into a line to get our "welcome aboard," "welcome to Tampa" or similar photos taken. During the formal nights in particular, there were perhaps a dozen different photographers and backdrops, but they were peripheral to the flow of the people and were not obtrusive. Something I've commented upon in the past is the sincerity and attitude of the crew on a cruise line. There are happy ships, indifferent ships and unhappy, mismanaged, ships. The Legend was a Happy Ship in the fullest implication of the term. From the young person wiping the railings of salt spray to the head waiter, to the bus boy to the cabin steward, the people seemed to be genuinely happy and appreciative of our business. The ship arrived in ports on time, access for handicapped people to tenders or gangways was terrific and there was never a sense of being rushed. Everything worked as it should. Our Legend cruise ended back in Tampa on schedule, but since we planned to just transfer to the Ryndam, we disembarked very late to give other passengers more time and knowing that we'd just be waiting for the Ryndam to begin embarkation. We asked our porter if he'd take the luggage to the other terminal: just around the other side of the Aquarium, which he did. It sure saved having to drag the cases ourselves, and particularly since I had the broken, strapped-down shoulder. As it was, the transfer was just a short, enjoyable walk and we soon were in the other terminal. I'll continue with a separate Ryndam post later on. Thanks for your cruise report. Sorry to hear of your injury. We stayed at one of those Extended Stay hotels in what's called the Airport area. It was a nice hotel. Our embarkation was on a Sunday. Most of Tampa is like a ghost town on a Sunday. We opted to take a cab to the port, since there wasn't any traffic to speak of, we were at the port in under 20 minutes. As opposed to a stay downtown, the savings was considerable. For any embarkation on a Sunday, a stay in this part of town doesn't take away from travel time to port. -- ________ To email me, Edit "blog" from my email address. Brian M. Kochera "The poor dog is the firmest of friends, the first to welcome the foremost to defend" - Lord Byron View My Web Pages: http://home.earthlink.net/~brian1951 My Shutterfly Page http://photosbybrianmk.shutterfly.com/ |
#84
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
"Becca" wrote in message ... : Stu wrote: : Well since you asked Ray, I live in a large block with a great deal of : seniors. About 90% cruise, they mostly use Cunard, Holland, Oceania , : Norwegian, and quite a few take Princess because they cater to the : older population. I'm apprised weekly of how great they treat seniors, : I mention Carnival and they say it's for family's with kids. Like you : said, it's our preference after all we pay the bill. : : : The average age on Princess is probably younger than you think. IMO, : the cruise line for people with children of all ages is Royal : Caribbean. They have more activities for young folks. : : : Becca If I liked the climate of Florida year-round, we'd probably make the Space Coast our retirement home. As it is, I LOVE snow... a northern clime's typical winter. Hubby despises it... Even throughout the ordeal of driving upon treacherous roadways, we still drive the 2M mile round-trip trek to Floridian ports for some of our favorite cruises. Not disregarding any other line, Royal Caribbean happens to have a product we both relish. Why drive? For the best company, my husband wins, hands down. Regarding Royal Caribbean, the children, toddler-to-teen, on RCCL sailings have a total immersion of the cruising experience with Adventure Ocean, from both fantasy and a nature habitat point of view. They become Royal Promenade entertainers and guardians, swashbuckling pirates and mermaids, interested in sea adventure and a fresh perspective toward safeguarding natural resources. By their curiosity of how a ship operates, they can become aware of their own personal impact of a ship's decorum. I gleaned much more from a 12-yr-old at our dining table than from any steward on the ship. Their eyes and ears seemed to reflect the capabilities of a cruise line's responsibility to its youngest and future adult travelers. |
#85
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
"*muz*" wrote in message news "Becca" wrote in message ... : Stu wrote: : Well since you asked Ray, I live in a large block with a great deal of : seniors. About 90% cruise, they mostly use Cunard, Holland, Oceania , : Norwegian, and quite a few take Princess because they cater to the : older population. I'm apprised weekly of how great they treat seniors, : I mention Carnival and they say it's for family's with kids. Like you : said, it's our preference after all we pay the bill. : : : The average age on Princess is probably younger than you think. IMO, : the cruise line for people with children of all ages is Royal : Caribbean. They have more activities for young folks. : : : Becca If I liked the climate of Florida year-round, we'd probably make the Space Coast our retirement home. As it is, I LOVE snow... a northern clime's typical winter. Hubby despises it... Even throughout the ordeal of driving upon treacherous roadways, we still drive the 2M mile round-trip trek to Floridian ports for some of our favorite cruises. Not disregarding any other line, Royal Caribbean happens to have a product we both relish. Why drive? For the best company, my husband wins, hands down. Regarding Royal Caribbean, the children, toddler-to-teen, on RCCL sailings have a total immersion of the cruising experience with Adventure Ocean, from both fantasy and a nature habitat point of view. They become Royal Promenade entertainers and guardians, swashbuckling pirates and mermaids, interested in sea adventure and a fresh perspective toward safeguarding natural resources. By their curiosity of how a ship operates, they can become aware of their own personal impact of a ship's decorum. I gleaned much more from a 12-yr-old at our dining table than from any steward on the ship. Their eyes and ears seemed to reflect the capabilities of a cruise line's responsibility to its youngest and future adult travelers. Ha- we're in agreement. The Nonny family keeps it simple: George Leppla does the picking and choosing and we're happy as clams. However, the times he's put us on RCCL, we've had a great time, as with Carnival. -- Nonny ELOQUIDIOT (n) A highly educated, sophisticated, and articulate person who has absolutely no clue concerning what they are talking about. The person is typically a media commentator or politician. |
#86
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
"Nonny" wrote in message ... : : "*muz*" wrote in message : news : : "Becca" wrote in message : ... : : Stu wrote: : : Well since you asked Ray, I live in a large block with a : great deal of : : seniors. About 90% cruise, they mostly use Cunard, Holland, : Oceania , : : Norwegian, and quite a few take Princess because they cater : to the : : older population. I'm apprised weekly of how great they : treat seniors, : : I mention Carnival and they say it's for family's with kids. : Like you : : said, it's our preference after all we pay the bill. : : : : : : The average age on Princess is probably younger than you : think. IMO, : : the cruise line for people with children of all ages is Royal : : Caribbean. They have more activities for young folks. : : : : : : Becca : : If I liked the climate of Florida year-round, we'd probably make : the Space : Coast our retirement home. As it is, I LOVE snow... a northern : clime's : typical winter. Hubby despises it... Even throughout the : ordeal of driving : upon treacherous roadways, we still drive the 2M mile round-trip : trek to : Floridian ports for some of our favorite cruises. Not : disregarding any : other line, Royal Caribbean happens to have a product we both : relish. Why : drive? For the best company, my husband wins, hands down. : : Regarding Royal Caribbean, the children, toddler-to-teen, on : RCCL sailings : have a total immersion of the cruising experience with Adventure : Ocean, from : both fantasy and a nature habitat point of view. They become : Royal : Promenade entertainers and guardians, swashbuckling pirates and : mermaids, : interested in sea adventure and a fresh perspective toward : safeguarding : natural resources. By their curiosity of how a ship operates, : they can : become aware of their own personal impact of a ship's decorum. : : I gleaned much more from a 12-yr-old at our dining table than : from any : steward on the ship. Their eyes and ears seemed to reflect the : capabilities : of a cruise line's : responsibility to its youngest and future adult travelers. : : : Ha- we're in agreement. The Nonny family keeps it simple: George : Leppla does the picking and choosing and we're happy as clams. : However, the times he's put us on RCCL, we've had a great time, as : with Carnival. : : -- : Nonny : : ELOQUIDIOT (n) A highly educated, sophisticated, : and articulate person who has absolutely no clue : concerning what they are talking about. : The person is typically a media commentator or politician. For the past 20 years, we've sailed on cruises as our mainstay vacations. Being landlocked in PA, aside from dreadful Philly yet giving due the captivating Great Lakes region (and its wine country), a cruise vacation seems "exotic and expensive" to some PA landlubbers. Although we love the Royal Caribbean "super"-Voyager class and the Space Coast, we are not determined to remain solely with one cruise line. Over the years, beginning with our honeymoon cruise on the Carnival ***vale ships (I seem to recall Festivale), we have been relaxing and breathing in that sea air with robust enjoyment. We have not had one cruise of which to bitterly complain, as others have been known to rant. Carnival, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity... all offered a reprieve for us. Airline foibles aside, there has been little to speak ill. We leave our worries behind; they'll catch back up with us when we return. We are platinum C&A Society members now. Heck, I get a kick out of simply having a white bathrobe in my stateroom for use.g I'll leave discerning loyalties to others. We lucked out, on waitlist, with a promenade interior family stateroom this last cruise. The cabin was immense (300 sq ft), the stewards were unobtrusive and the FREEDOM OTS was our stop point prior to the STS-130 Endeavour shuttle launch Super Bowl Sunday. Our captain, a reclusive sort, was very apologetic on the PA system at 4:30AM Sunday, Feb 7th by alerting early risers of the intrusion to report the rescheduling of the liftoff. The clouds would not clear for a clean liftoff and we were left standing on the cold (41 degrees Fahrenheit) deck in Port Canaveral, sipping our Seattle's Best. I think it's time to place a call to George Leppla for our next adventure...Oct 16, 2010 RCCL OASIS is out for us because we are considerate Red Cross blood donors. Labadee, Haiti puts the kibosh on that one, as we learned from our first FREEDOM OTS cruise. A year seems a very long time to wait to donate blood. Perhaps Bermuda, again? My husband insists on nixing the New York City port terminals. I still am working on him accepting "across-the-river" Cape Liberty and NJ as separate entities! I'll keep trying! |
#87
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
"*muz*" wrote in message abs... We have not had one cruise of which to bitterly complain, as others have been known to rant. We're like you, in that during our cruising careers, we've NEVER been on a single ship or cruise that has "ruined" our vacation. There have been incidents where we've felt there was room for improvement, times when the passenger mix wasn't what we preferred, times when things have broken, times when we've had unhappy waiters and times when we felt that we could do some improvements to the cabin. However, it's never, ever, been to the extent that we would not consider the same ship or cruise line again, if George found us the right deal or the timing was to our advantage. We now live in Las Vegas and every single day something happens that I don't enjoy, wish hadn't happened or was a disappointment. Every. . . single. . .day. However, on every single day there are many things I DO enjoy, am glad that happened and am elated to have experienced. In my life, I've found that the good has always outweighed the bad. That doesn't mean I wouldn't like to eliminate the bad, but I'm a realist and understand that nothing (outside of Mrs. Nonny) is perfect. I'm fascinated by the folk who can take a cruise and from that isolated experience can make such sweeping comments about their future cruises. I think it's time to place a call to George Leppla for our next adventure...Oct 16, 2010 RCCL OASIS is out for us because we are considerate Red Cross blood donors. Labadee, Haiti puts the kibosh on that one, as we learned from our first FREEDOM OTS cruise. A year seems a very long time to wait to donate blood. Perhaps Bermuda, again? My husband insists on nixing the New York City port terminals. I still am working on him accepting "across-the-river" Cape Liberty and NJ as separate entities! I'll keep trying! Could you just stay aboard the ship in those ports? -- Nonny ELOQUIDIOT (n) A highly educated, sophisticated, and articulate person who has absolutely no clue concerning what they are talking about. The person is typically a media commentator or politician. |
#88
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
"Nonny" wrote in message ... : : "*muz*" wrote in message : abs... : : : We have not had one cruise of which to bitterly complain, as : others have : been known to rant. : : We're like you, in that during our cruising careers, we've NEVER : been on a single ship or cruise that has "ruined" our vacation. : There have been incidents where we've felt there was room for : improvement, times when the passenger mix wasn't what we : preferred, times when things have broken, times when we've had : unhappy waiters and times when we felt that we could do some : improvements to the cabin. However, it's never, ever, been to the : extent that we would not consider the same ship or cruise line : again, if George found us the right deal or the timing was to our : advantage. : : We now live in Las Vegas and every single day something happens : that I don't enjoy, wish hadn't happened or was a disappointment. : Every. . . single. . .day. However, on every single day there are : many things I DO enjoy, am glad that happened and am elated to : have experienced. In my life, I've found that the good has : always outweighed the bad. That doesn't mean I wouldn't like to : eliminate the bad, but I'm a realist and understand that nothing : (outside of Mrs. Nonny) is perfect. : : I'm fascinated by the folk who can take a cruise and from that : isolated experience can make such sweeping comments about their : future cruises. : : : I think it's time to place a call to George Leppla for our next : adventure...Oct 16, 2010 RCCL OASIS is out for us because we are : considerate : Red Cross blood donors. Labadee, Haiti puts the kibosh on that : one, as we : learned from our first FREEDOM OTS cruise. A year seems a very : long time to : wait to donate blood. : : Perhaps Bermuda, again? My husband insists on nixing the New : York City port : terminals. I still am working on him accepting : "across-the-river" Cape : Liberty and NJ as separate entities! I'll keep trying! : : Could you just stay aboard the ship in those ports? : : -- : Nonny : : ELOQUIDIOT (n) A highly educated, sophisticated, : and articulate person who has absolutely no clue : concerning what they are talking about. : The person is typically a media commentator or politician. That was the first rebuttal question we had asked of the Red Cross. If beforehand, we knew there was a "block" on visiting such nations, could we simply stay onboard without any interaction with inhabitants, their plant life, the water, prevailing illnesses, what have you. The American Red Cross stated that it has more sweeping regulations (and they restrict travel destinations based upon CDC recommendations). No matter what precautions we had taken, the mere visitation to listed restricted areas foregoes our desire to donate blood for one year. I'm certain there are those who ~have~ donated blood without thinking of the destinations they've traveled prior to donation. But, foretold the consequences, we choose not to compromise their standards. Why are we insistent upon donating regularly to the Red Cross? It's traditional, for us. Paying it forward, so to speak. My father died of coronary heart disease at a young age, but not before having donated more than nine gallons of blood, via his employment as a local firefighter. Blood saves lives. It doesn't hurt much and the reward for having done so little is great. |
#89
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Carnival Legand 1/10-1/17/2010
On Wed, 3 Feb 2010 23:26:32 -0600, Jean O'Boyle wrote:
The Ryndam goes into dry dock next week so hopefully she will come back smelling like my rose! --Jean Smell mine! http://tr.im/1f7g http://tr.im/1f7i |
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