Caribbean Cruise 2020 (page 3 of 10)

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Greta's blog:

Day 3 - Cruise Day! - February 23, 2020

Mike got up again and used the running machine in the fitness room. He'd done it the first day as well - the rest of us are not that ambitious. We'd already secured a noon check-out time (versus 10 am) so we had some extra time to wander. We'd thought to eat at the buffet at the hotel but when we got there, it was a 30-minute wait, so off we went to wander the streets. We'd found a couple places that only had coffee/pastries, but then found "Carthage Express". It was a small diner that had regular & Tunisian-influenced food. The neat part was that there was a small model train running through the middle of the cafe, and the chef would deliver the food there! If you sat at the counter, you just pulled your food off the train when it stopped. We sat at a table but even then, the food came out on the train, and a waiter delivered it for us. So fun!

Trina got a Western Omelet, Jim had eggs & meat, Mike had Nutella French Toast with fruit (sweet!!!!) and Greta got "Spicy Chakchouka Merguez" which was two fried eggs topping a tomato/veggie sauce with merguez (Lamb) sausage. That was Greta's favorite meal so far!

We went back to the hotel, packed up all our stuff, relaxed a bit, and then headed down to check out. We were able to leave our bags at the hotel for a bit, so wandered over to La Casita for a drink in the sun on land, one last time.

Then we headed back to the hotel (Joshua was a great bell boy before and after dropping off of our bags). We got our stuff and trekked the few blocks to the cruise ship. We had the option of contacting our transit staff that Costco had hired to bring us from the airport, but it was so close, it was not necessary. Mike & Greta had a much later check-in time than Jim & Trina, but they welcomed us all in with open arms. There were a lot of check points and spots to pass through but there was not much of a line and we got through everything rather quickly. We checked our big luggage at one point - they would deliver it outside our rooms. When we actually got on the boat (just a little ramp of 20 feet or so - not a staircase like you see on TV), our rooms were already ready (which apparently is not always the case). So we dropped off our carry-on stuff from the airport, which included the expensive camera bag), unpacked a few things and then headed off to wander the ship. We are on the Riveria Deck, which is the bottom floor for passengers (crew is below us) and at the very back of the boat. That makes it very handy when getting on/off the boat.

We stopped and had a cocktail or two at the bar near our rooms and wandered a bit more. At one point, we did stop and get something to eat at the Lido deck (salads, etc). We did not stand outside and wave as the boat pulled away as it was raining rather heavily. We were lucky the rain didn't come sooner, as we were waiting to board. We did some more wandering and the boat left a bit after 6 pm and our dinner reservations were not until 8:15 pm.

We met and had the same table as Jim & Trina (we think she booked originally to get us together as we didn't book together). We stood in line for a short time and then were ushered in. We were seated near the back of the dining room, just the 4 of us at one table. Jim was not feeling good, so left after we'd ordered but before the food came. Trina had a Ceasar salad and Roast chicken. Mike and Greta both had Vietnamese spring rolls for the appetizer and a cheese plate for the dessert. For the entree, Mike had sweet & sour shrimp off of the regular menu, and Greta the Puerto Rican "fish of the day" which may have been sea bass over a starchy- rice dish. All the food was very good. We met Kraig and Stephanie at our table. They were about our age, and had gone on cruises before. What they didn't know was that when they booked a room that noted "upper and lower" in the room - that mean they got BUNK BEDS!!!! So for their first trip in over 10 years without any of their 4 children, they were bunk bedding-it for the week. They tried to change their rooms but it sounds like the ship was quite full, so a move doesn't sound very promising. Trina left after the main course and then Greta & Mike wandered the boat a bit before heading back to their room to go to sleep after a very long day.

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