Patricia August 21st, 2007

There are so many things to tell you about this ship and there will be photos in the gallery soon.  Let me see if I can go through the major requests and then I’ll share a bit more about the other things I’ve learned.

A Knitting Spot:

Yes, I found one — a good one, with bright windows and close to the coffee bar and not far from other bars.  I’m working on a request to reserve it for us for the whole cruise.  Cross your needles, folks, I mentioned this on board and got looks of “Ain’t no way” then I said, “Um, do you think they will do it when I tell you I’m bring 60+ knitters as of TODAY…and I know more will come?”  “Well, that’s a horse of a different color.”  Alas, I’m waiting for final approval.  If they don’t give it, we will perform “Munity on the Infinity” and take over.  We have pointy sticks, we win.

The food:

I’m not getting on a scale anytime soon, does that help?  First, the dining room service put Vision of the Seas to shame — and we all know how much I liked them, right?  The food was over the top good and the suggestions I got from my server were amazing.  There are other places to eat in addition to the main dining room.

• The Buffet.  This is typical buffet line food, though I have to say there were more options than I’ve seen before.  There is a waffle station in the mornings; a custom pizza place; a sushi bar in the afternoons; ice cream (which is not Ben & Jerry’s and is FREE); there’s a fast food type area with fries and burgers and such.
• The Casual Dining Alternative: In the evenings, you may take your casual self down to the back corner of the buffet and have waiter service.  Just an option for those of you allergic to cocktail dresses.
• The Alternative Dining Room - The SS United States: This has a $30 upcharge, but I was told it was amazingly good.  (I’ve asked if we can take over the room one evening — just saying — no promises.)

Please note, Celebrity would like you to ‘dress for dinner.’  I will say that while I saw them turn no one away from being more casual, you will look around and see lots of dressed up folks.  Formal nights were dressy, like cocktail dress dressy.  About half the men in tuxes and half in suits.  Informal night was hard to put my finger on.  I felt fairly fine in a skirt, but I saw lots in dressy slacks type outfits.  Casual nights were khakis (or country club casual).  Please note, dinner in the dining room is not the time for jeans or shorts.

For my vegetarian folks, there were tons of options.  Depending on what you are looking for there were currys, salads, pasta dishes, pizzas, and more that I’m sure I missed.

Yarn in Every Port:

There is a yarn store within walking distance of the ship at both Ketchikan and Juneau.  They both carry Quivit and some really neat Alaskan yarns.  I am currently speaking to both of them about the possibility of a cruise special.  In Victoria we will visit Beehive again.  I am going to warn you now — start a “yarn fund” now — it will be a stash enhancing experience.

Classrooms:

Sea Socks ‘07 people will remember dark rooms with walls that moved.  Oh, no more.  I’m working on rooms with a view and good light.  Trust me, you guys are giving me the power to be very demanding and I’m working on making our group get what we need.

Coffee:

There is a coffee bar mid-ship.  Yes, it is yummy.  And the coffee in the dining room is rather strong — which was good since I seemed to be in the disco late into the evenings.

Worried about Sea Sickness?

As most people who know me, I get sick standing on the pier looking at a ship.  I wear a patch for all cruises, even those smooth cruises that don’t tend to bother anyone.  I turn green at the mention of it all.  Ok, that said, I took my patch off during this cruise.  I took it off because the water was like glass.  All but two or three hours were in protected waters.  For so much of the cruise we saw land on both sides of the ship.

Exicited yet?

Want some homework?  Good.  I need you all to help me out here — we are REALLY close to beating last year’s group in size.  So, if each of you will work/push/beg just one of your friends to join us and book another cabin, we could do it.  I’m promised that the more knitters we bring, the more we get for you.  I’ve already gotten Value Booklets for on board savings.  So, let’s gather our friends.

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