Day 8 - all good things must come to an end

Alas, the cruise has come to an end.  We awoke already docked at Port Canaveral.  We headed up for a quick breakfast but were greeted with the second Ba-cation sign in a row.  We pivoted and headed to Shaq's Big Chicken for a breakfast chicken sandwich.

Back in the room, we awaited clearance and a call for luggage tag zone 5.  That came quickly and we headed off the ship.  If you haven't been through Customs lately, it is so much better than it used to be.  You smile for the camera, it recognizes you, and you're done.  It's great!

A quick ride to Park Port Canaveral on the shuttle and we were on our way home.  Getting home and being fully unpacked before 11:30 AM is a great thing.

Since our cruise is over, let me first say that it was a terrific week.  Did everything go perfectly?  No, but that didn't diminish the fun.  We enjoyed a great week with terrific friends and that makes for great memories.

Here are my thoughts on the Mardi Gras, Carnival's new direction for cruise ship design.

• Running on liquified natural gas (LNG) is a great thing.  No smoke, no soot.
• The expanded variety of eateries and watering holes is great.  Lots of variety.
• The division of the ship into neighborhoods is nice.  Each area has its own distinct feel and character.
• The rooms - while well-decorated and visually appealing, are small.  Narrow walkways, narrow doors, tiny, and I mean tiny, bathrooms all make for a cramped feel.  The larger shower was a nice touch, but I'd take a smaller shower and a larger, wider room.
• The elevators suck, and I mean really suck.  They are small and there simply aren't enough for a ship this size.  With 19 decks, you're going to use the elevator and when you do, you'll be waiting.  And waiting.  And, if it is a busy time, like port mornings, you'll wait even more.  Carnival really blew it on this one.
• Getting a table for my time dining worked through the Hub app, and it works well.  No standing in lines.  That's nice.
• I'm not sure they have enough pool and hot tub space.  There were days when the pools were shoulder to shoulder, and that's at 60% guest capacity.  I can't imagine the pools at 100% capacity, nor the elevators.
•  Using two venues as comedy clubs was great.  Still, most shows were completely full.  Get the message, Carnival, people like live comedy.  You need a bigger venue.
• The port (left) side is not a good side for a balcony if you're not a smoker. The smoking area is on deck 8 port side, and even on deck 14, we could smell it frequently.

Even with the complaints, the Mardi Gras is a beautiful ship.  The Grand Central space in the middle of the ship with the center stage was great. I'd be a little leary of cruising at 100%, though, as I think it will feel crowded.

That's a wrap for this trip.  Watch this space for the next adventure!

Day 7 - Nassau means no bacon

Say it ain't so, Cap'n!  

Carnival has been dealing with supply chain issues since their restart of sailing, and a shortage of bacon is one of the results.  These signs greeted diners in the buffet.  But, this wasn't the first bad thing to happen today.

We docked in Nassau early in the morning - before our planned 7:30am arrival.  That's why we got up and got breakfast - we planned to walk ashore for a little shopping before our exciting swim with sea turtle and four island zodiac boat adventure.  But...this little tidbit was left on our door...

Yup - our excursion was canceled with no explanation. But then...

We weren't allowed off the ship - at least not anytime soon after docking.  Clearance from the local authorities is usually quick and easy, but not so today.  We didn't get cleared until sometime between 9:30 AM and 10:00 AM.  So, earlier excursions got pushed back and later ones got canceled.  With a planned 3"00 PM sail time, there was no time for an excursion.

With nothing else on the agenda, given our canceled plans, we decided to walk ashore and stroll through the tourist shopping area.

We did our best to help out the local economy and then returned to the ship.  Along with the Mardi Gras (5,282 passenger capacity), we were joined in port by the Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas (5,400 passenger capacity) and the MSC Divina (4,363 passenger capacity).  All told, with about 15,000 passenger capacity, and assuming all are operating at about 60% like we are, that's still around 9,000 tourists in port today.  It is this kind of activity that is really going to help all the island's economies recover from the 12-18 month tourism hiatus.

Dropping off our stuff in the cabin, we found the traditional towel sculpture for the final day of the cruise.

After lunch, and listening to a little reggae by the pool, it was time to do the least pleasant activity of a cruise...pack.

Pre-dinner drinks tonight are at Brass Magnolia, a New Orleans-themed bar. Their signature look is lighting made from trombone bells.

Tonight, they featured a violin trio to provide the ambiance.

For dinner tonight, we returned to Cucina del Capitano for a little farewell Italian. That gave us an outside table and we enjoyed our last Caribbean sunset.

Before calling it a night, we stopped for a final round at the Alchemy Bar, or, with clever posing, My Bar.

It's been a wonderful cruise with wonderful friends. Tomorrow morning will come too early - eat a quick breakfast, grab the bags, catch the shuttle, and then drive home. I'll have one more post to wrap things up tomorrow.

Day 6 - Another sea day. Time to Bolt!

Day 6 finds us at sea en route to Nassau. We took the opportunity to reschedule a ride on the Bolt roller coaster.

Bolt is styled somewhat like a motorcycle.  Like a motorcycle, the driver controls the speed with a twist throttle on the right handlebar.  Bolt adds a "boost" button.  Over your 45-second or so ride consisting of two passes around the track, you get about 10-seconds of the boost to make your ride even more thrilling.

Here are Brian and Nancy making the first run. You can determine for yourself who was having more fun.

Arlona was next, riding solo.

I think Arlona is enjoying it!

Finally, here I am, bring up the rear.

I have to admit that we all were impressed. Bolt is quite fun, even if, at $15 for a 45-second ride, it is a little pricey.  That is especially true for tandem riders as they each pay $15.  We think $15 solo and $20 for dual riders would be fairer.

Arlona tried her hand at the high ropes course.

The course consists of about 13 different platforms, many with a choice of two courses to reach the next platform.

One of the courses includes a zipline that takes you over the water, 19 floors below you.

That didn't phase Arlona at all, as she made a second trip around.

After some chow at Guy's Pig and Anchor, we suited up and headed for the pool.  Arlona, Brian, and Nancy all took turns on some of the water slides.  Here's Arlona on the way down.

And here comes Brian.

Let's call Arlona's arrival semi-graceful.

Nancy opted for the yellow side slide.  Arlona headed back up and tried all three.  After the adventures, we spent time in the pool and hot tub before heading to the room for showers and to get dressed for the last elegant night.

Today's towel animal approved.

After dinner, we enjoyed live music at the center stage.

After that, we headed upstairs for some live comedy before calling it a night.  Happy trails!

Tomorrow is the final day of the cruise, and the final port, Nassau.

Day 5 - Republic - Dominican Republic

Wednesday found us pulling into Amber Cove, Dominican Republic.

Amber Cove lies within the amber coast of the Dominican Republic, along the north shore.

The Dominican Republic is not an island, but rather the eastern side of the island known as Hispaniola.  Haiti makes up the western side of the island.

Today's adventure took us to Sosúa for a catamaran ride and snorkeling. Here are Arlona and I, ready for adventure.

Here are Nancy and Brian, rocking the snorkels and required floatation vests.

We saw a great number of fish, partly due to the bread the crew was tossing in the water.  Still, we snorkeled away from the group and saw more interesting and colorful fish.

Here I am feeding the hungry locals.

Here is Arlona, searching for the next interesting thing.

At one point, I spotted a couple of $5 bills on the bottom.  Since the floatation vest prevented diving, I alerted one of the guides who retrieved them. It turns out one of the guests had money in their pocket and it floated out and sank.  The money was eventually returned to the owner and all was good.

Here we are wrapping up the swim.

After the swim, we were served lunch on the catamaran and then took a scenic sail along the shore before returning to our bus for the ride back to the ship.

Traffic in the Dominican Republic is, in a word, nuts.  Heavy traffic, scooters everywhere, weaving in and out of the lanes, horns - nuts.  We spent a fair amount of time just sitting in traffic.  If you visit the Dominican Republic and take a trip from a ship, expect that.

We spent a little time in the shopping area at the port and then returned to the ship.  The Carnival Magic docked after the Mardi Gras and both ships were there as we returned.

Here is today's towel animal that greeted us in the cabin.

Speaking of the cabin, here is ours - excuse the mess.

The plus - nice closets on the right with configurable shelves for long hanging items or additional shelf storage.  The safe is also in there.  The minus, the hallway is very narrow between there and the bathroom on the left. More on the bathroom in a minute.

The room itself is nicely furnished with a decidedly modern look and nice lighting.  But, like the hallway, the room feels quite small.  Out of our room on Viking, Celebrity, and this one - all similar balcony cabins, this one feels much smaller.  They do provide a couple of large drawers under the desk on the right, and that's nice.

Back to the bathroom - this has also gotten smaller - much smaller.  There isn't much room to move about in there.

But a positive is that the shower has gotten larger.  You can actually turn around without banging your elbows. But, the water pressure is nothing to write home about, so it is a combo of good and bad.

After showers, we met up with Brian and Nancy for a pre-dinner beverage at the Alchemy Bar and then dinner in the Palm main dining room.  We saw a comedian was about to start as we wrapped up dinner, so we hoofed it over to the Punchliner comedy club and enjoyed a few yuks.

The combo of a long day, a lot of swimming, and a lot of sun found us all ready to turn in for the night.

Tomorrow is our last sea day and we have rescheduled our time on the Bolt roller coaster.  Watch this space tomorrow and an update!