Summit 042316

Summit 04.25.15 8 night repo plus SJU 1 day prior.
Cruise 65, 66. Cabin 6133 Royal Suite.

San Juan, Puerto Rico then St.M; St.T. NO Tortola, Bermuda overnight and ending in NJ.  Master: Captain Kate McCue, the 1st female Captain on Celebrity; Hotel Dir.: Mark McSorley, traveling with his wife and child and replacing Paul Kelly who moved to Viking cruises; GRM.: Roy Aidor; Cruise Dir.: John Grantham;` Capt Club Host.: Emma Rigby, Michael's Club Concierge: Sara Gouveia, Head Butler: Jose Fernandez, Room Steward: Princy; Asst: Gavin, Waiters in Luminae Boyan and Dominick; Rest Manager: Karol Swerdon x6509; MatreD- Luminae: Godze Orkun  m6586; Blu: Constantine; Select: Alfredo; Asst C.Housekeeper Adrijana Pesic x6425.

Day 0- We've done this cruise each of the last few springs because it is so convenient as it is a one way cruise back to NJ.  This time cousins Larry and Nancy joined us. The car picked us up at 3am, for a 7am flight. We flew Delta down at $200pp, JFK to SJU. We had breakfast at the airport while waiting to fly. We would have skipped that meal if we realized that we were served a breakfast sandwich on the plane. That's seemed to be something from out of the past. The flight was a breeze.

We arrived at El Convento around 1130am. The room rate this time was $250 plus tax. Nancy and Larry loved the hotel and boy, were they surprised to see their room. 
After dropping the luggage, we did the regular pub and restaurant crawl; starting at Marilyn's for drinks.

Tapas followed with more drinks at El Picoteo. Randi picked up some socks at Ralph Lauren for Andrea. Around 3pm we got our rooms. Ours was #311 and theirs was #319.

Their room turned out to be a mini-suite with a living room and a bedroom. This was an unexpected perk that they loved along with the rose petal turn down in the bedroom.

At 6 o'clock each evening, El Convento does a wine and cheese hour. We each had a couple glasses of wine and some nice cheeses, including a Boursin; a yummy goat herb cheese. The Borsao Garnacha Red was very nice too.

Next we headed to dinner at Messa Verde, but had our first incident on the way. It was raining in between the sunshine all day and the ground in some places remained wet. It was wet on the blue downslope from the sidewalk to the street. Randi lost her footing and slipped on her butt. Nothing but her pride was hurt so we continued on, a few blocks to dinner.

Messa Verde was the 2nd highest rated restaurant in Old San Juan according to Trip Advisor and we found out why. Although mostly vegetarian, it also had fish on the menu.

I had the tuna and there were two halibuts ordered along with a scallop over beans and veggies. All delish.

We were pretty much done after that, being up from 1 in the morning, so we strolled home through the cobblestone streets of Old San Juan, and back to El Convento to sleep.

Day 1- The next day we had breakfast at Mallorca, a half a dozen or so blocks away. A local place which was packed with people and offering some tasty breakfast sandwiches (Mallorcas) and platters.

Wearing our DeMartino Family reunion shirts, we asked a policeman to take our picture, then slowly strolled back to the hotel before our cab ride to the ship.


The driver was outgoing and a very quick driver; so much so that before long, we had a police car, pulling us over to issue him a present. After about a 10 minute wait we were back on our way to Summit.
  
We got to the pier about around 11:30 and boarded soon after. After the Champagne welcome, we figured we'd hang at the pool until the bags were ready in the room. While chillin' we had something from the grill for lunch. While we were strolling, Randi negotiated a 2 for 1 price for dinner in Qsine for Larry and Nancy, which would be our treat, since we were 'comped' in the Royal Suite.

When the rooms were ready we went to see how the newly remodeled Royal suite looked. All the old furniture had been changed out with new. The new couches and captain's chairs looked very comfy.

The dining area was redone with a oval table on grey tile and a bench seat surrounding the table.

The bathroom now had a double sink, a new jet tub, new shower with a rain head and a wand, and new grey tile. Soon our bags arrived, we unpacked them and only had to send two items to be pressed. Meanwhile, I set up the internet on the devices so Randi could work when she wanted to.

Diner was 815 in Qsine right after the 745 muster drill. Larry and Nancy enjoyed the multi-course presentation and unique dishes served. During dinner we sailed away from Puerto Rico to our new cruise adventure.

Day 2- The cruise itinerary this year was switched so St. Thomas became the first port rather then St. Martin. After breakfast in Blu we walked to Kmart because Nancy forgot a few items.

We split up on the way back so they could visit Magens Bay on the north side of the island. We picked up some mouse pads for Randi's co-workers and went back to the ship where it was nice and quiet. We ate lunch at Bistro on 5 and learned it will soon to be replace by a sushi restaurant. We both had potato soup and an entree each.

Later that day, we went to Michael's Club to have a cocktail and saw some of our old friends. Marilyn and Frank were there, as well as Albert, the Ambassador of the Summit. We told them Gail would not be on this cruise as she cancelled at the last minute to take care of a sick friend. We also met Jackie and George from CA and Gail and Vinny. The next night we met Kevin and Lori.

We eventually met up with Larry and Nancy and  went to the show to see Vox Audio. They were five performers who used no instruments other than their voices to create full instrumentation and vocals.

After this enjoyable and unique show we headed for dinner in BLU.

Day 3 -St Martin was the next port. We decided to take the water taxi with Larry and Nancy. Everyone was on a mission to find Interlude perfume for Nancy but it was not to be found. Randi found all the perfume that she wanted. I was able to get my liquor order filled and Randi had her ankle chain fixed at Sams, the ultimate jeweler. While she was waiting, she found a lovely, diamond teardrop pendant.

Back on board, we had chicken and egg salad sandwiches on ten aft then spent the afternoon at the pool. Dinner tonight will be in Blu.

Somewhere before dinner we headed again to see our friends in Michael's Club. While we were chatting, the Master walked in and sat down. Capt. Kate McCue was very down to earth and approachable. She was so sweet to answer many of our questions. She reminded me of Sandra Bullock. We got a chance to snap a picture with the first female Captain in the fleet!

This was not a good night. Randi wasn't feeling good since lunch. The onions in the salads did not agree with her. What did her in, I believe is when the first course was served in Blu. She got sick at the table. Although I tried to get her back to the room, she felt she would be more sick if she left. Finally we got back to the room and got her to bed but she was now ok. Everyone was concerned. Even the medical staff called the cabin to check on her. Tomorrow was a new day.

Day 4 Sea- Randi woke up being totally embarrassed about last night's sickness. She did not want to go back to Blu for the remainder of the cruise so we had breakfast in Luminae. All the managers must have known that we were in Luminae, since each came over and tried to make her feel more at ease.

After breakfast we spent most of the day outside, in the pool area soaking up the Caribbean sun.

It was such a nice day today, everyone seemed to be at the pool. There were mermaids keeping score at the pool volleyball game.

Even Captain Kate strolled poolside to check out all the activity.

Day 5 Sea- You could tell today we were heading north, as the temps were lower. There was a dash to the lounge chairs by the pool on deck 10 where it seemed warmer, but we didn't win the dash. Instead we ended up on the upper deck, 11.

Tonite we dined in separate restaurants. The short ribs in Luminae were very good. After that we stumbled into the casino where we saw Larry & Nancy winning roulette so Randi gave it a try too. She won a little but by midnight we called it quits.

 Day 6 Bermuda 1- Welcome to Bermuda! Welcome to rain! Although we had all intentions to go to St. George today, we missed the 930am ferry because the ship wasn't cleared in time. Instead, we made it only as far as the Clocktower Mall at King's Wharf. Randi said we should take the next ferry to St. George (she's a trouper) but after a walk around the mall and with it still raining, we headed back to the mother ship to enjoy.

Tonight's show was a comedian, Rich Aronovitch who was pretty hysterical. Afterwards we enjoyed wonderful steak dinners in the Tuscan Grill.

Day 7 Bermuda 2- Made the 915am ferry to St. George, which was maybe a 40 minute ride. On the way over, we traveled with a gentleman who wore a shirt with a saying on it that reminded us of cousin Gary, so we took his picture.

We walked around this quaint little town and stopped in the shops, churches and parks along the way. After visiting an art gallery, the owner suggested visiting the perfume factory a block down.

We got there just in time as the clouds once again opened up. We were shown a video and the vats where the mass perfume is created and stored. Both Randi and Nancy, found some nice Bermudian perfumes to take home with them.

Larry and Nancy were nice enough to treat us to a nice lunch at a wharf side restaurant. It was all good and we also enjoyed feeding the Parrot fish, alongside the restaurant.


We went back to the cabin around 530 and got a call from Sara, in Michael's club, sort of in a panic asking if we were joining the Guest Relations Manager, Roy for dinner. I told her that Randi responded 'no' yesterday because we were traveling with family. Although she said bring them, obviously, none of us could be ready in 20 minutes.

The show tonight was titled, 'December 63.' For those of you guessing, it was the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Although enjoyable entertainment, it was nothing like seeing the Jersey Boys on Broadway.

We had plans to eat separately tonight so we were in Luminae and cousins were in Blu dining on Lobster; ours were poached, theirs was broiled. We had plans to meet in the casino. Randi and I played until about 11 pm then figured that they hooked up with friends possibly in a bar so we called it a night.

 Day 8 - Sea. After breakfast, we decided to pack early and get that out of the way. We enjoyed brunch in Luminae, however I do miss the brunch they used to have in the main dining room. It was rocky this morning and this afternoon, but Randi is now a seasoned pro and didn't feel seasick.
 
Four o'clock was bingo but it was a "bingo bust" for the four of us. The grand prize was $1300 and they also gave away $1000 toward a cruise to another lucky winner.

We knew the last supper was soon to be upon us, so we all dined and enjoyed in Luminae.





Day 8- Morning came early but it went like clockwork. We had our bags on the pier set to disembark at 8 but we got off around 830 so finding the bags was easy, since they were the few remaining. After grabbing a Porter, we breezed past the lineup and through Customs and out the door. After a quick call to Air Brook, the driver pulled up, loaded, and we were home by 10 am. On the way home Randi found Interlude, the perfume Nancy wanted, on the internet. She quickly ordered four bottles.

 This was another great cruise, made only that much more fun, going with Larry and Nancy! See you in November aboard Reflection, which will be a first time on that vessel for us.

Infinity 112015

Infinity 11.20.15 -15 night Panama Canal,
cruise 62, 63, 64. Points: 2044; Cabin 6122 Sky Suite

San Diego, Sea, Cabo, Puerto Vallarta, Sea, Sea, Puerto Quezal Guatemala, Sea, (formal) Puntarenas Cost Rica, Sea, Panama Canal, Colon Panama, Cartagena Columbia, Sea, Sea, Ft. Lauderdale. Captain Michael Sympouras, Hotel Dir.: Jan Willem Kuipers, GRM.: Miguel Cunha, Cruise Dir. Sara Romera, Capt. Club: Elaine Richards Gan, Butler: I Made, Room Steward: Zeniao, Managers in Luminae: Carlos and Maria, Waiters in Luminae: Kaviraj and Chitra.

The alarm was set for 315 am but I was up before that. I figured I would jump in the shower before Randi. Gary and Joanie were over around 430 and by 5 we were on the road to JFK. It was a quick ride about 1 hour, 15 minutes, but we missed terminal 2 and had to roundabout back there. After having a nice breakfast, we found out that we really needed to be in terminal 4 and had to take the shuttle bus over. The flight on Delta was smooth almost the whole way. With a quick cab ride, we were at the ship in no time.

Because the Infinity needed extra cleaning due to a gastro problem on the last cruise, boarding was delayed and the lines became long. I guess after about an hour, we finally made it past security, and were able to check in. Once aboard we had a nice lunch in Bistro on five where the cover went up to $10 from $5, but suites paid zero. Alfred took good care of us. We then went to our neighboring sky suites, where we found all four of our bags but the Hert's were missing one. We were able to unpack before muster drill at 4:15.

By 6:30 or so we rolled into Luminae which is the new restaurant for suites, and excellent I must say. We dined there previously on Summit when it was first rolled out in April. Charles was in charge there and our first dinner was great, but by this time, the three hour time change caught up to us and I, for one, was falling asleep at the table. After espressos and dessert, we called it a night and slept like babies.

Day 2 Sea- Got up to a beautiful day on our way to Cabo and a nice breakfast in Blu. I hooked up Randi's I-pad to the internet and she cleared her work email. "My mind is clear when I clear my email," she said.

 

We found out from Elaine, the Captains Club Hostess that we had the most cruises among the cruisers so we will be honored at the Captains Celebration. She also wanted us to dine with Captain Michael on first formal night but she could not accommodate Joan and Gary so we will all be at the 2nd formal dinner. She also generously comped all of us a dinner at Tuscan Grill for later in the cruise.

We stopped by the grill for a burger or a dog and relaxed the rest of the day until we went to Tuscan Grill for dinner. It was excellent! I don't usually order filet, but this was the most delicious, ever.

BTW The Tuscan Grill is the newly installed restaurant on board recently, in the space where the old SS United States restaurant was. The SS US memorabilia was moved in the formerly unused hallway space outside the casino and before Michael's club entrance.

The other change on the ship is the new outdoor theater and lounge chairs, which at this time is still being constructed on 12 aft deck. The screen is working (I thought it would be bigger) and the lounges are on deck. There will be more to come I am sure. Tonight the entertainment was the Broadway show.

Day 3 Cabo- We had breakfast in Luminae. I ordered the musilli. It was good but it wasn't prepared table side as in Blu. The waiter swapped out Randi's French toast when the original came with too much sugar sauce on it.

We finally got to the Celebrity Theater to disembark on excursion called, 'lands’ end.' The excursion was weak. We boarded a catamaran for a 45 minute trip to the rock formations including the arch and back. It was hot and here was where Joan whipped out the fan that I got her to keep her cool.

All was good until Randi told me she got her hair stuck in it. I got it out but wait.... there's more. I looked back and she whacked herself with the blade. She must have thought she was shaving! LOL.

Then we went on a bus ride (with air conditioning for Joan) to end up at a restaurant I believe called, El Puerto. We got a free drink but no food. It was a nice vista with three cruise ships in the harbor; two princess ships and the Infinity.

After returning to the pier and before the tender back, we strolled along the shops along the water. Here I just happened to find this little guy having his lunch. A burger, fries and a beer! It doesn't get better then this! ;)

 Once back we grabbed a sandwich and some pizza on 10 and chilled in the new lounge area on 12 aft. Randi and I were able to catch a snooze there.

At around 7, we decide on the Rendezvous Lounge for a pre-dinner drink, listening to some nice folk guitar. By 8, we headed for Luminae which is right down the corridor from the Rendezvous.

Maria from Russia met us once again, always with a pleasant smile. The crab cake and sea bass I had was very good. Randi said her lamb was 'just alright.'

Day 4 Puerto Vallarta- Missed the restaurant breakfast since the guys slept in a bit. We wound up in the Oceanview Cafe where there were lines but everyone seemed to enjoy what they got to eat. We will dock in Puerto Vallarta at noon time so we decided to enjoy the ship with no crowds and some quiet time round the pool.

Later we decided to get off and we went to the little market right off the ship. Every shop seemed to have the same souvenirs as the last shop. We took a small walk to find nothing much around. It was so hot; we went back on board to have lunch in Bistro on 5. Alfred was there but he was overseeing a new server, so things were slower than normal slow. Here's where Joanie had another incident. Her hair got somehow stuck in her glasses; thankfully it wasn't permanent.

Pool recreation was next, with intense games of 'resting' and 'relaxing,' until the Captains Club party.

The cruise director, Sara hosted the party along with the captain. BTW this CD has nonstop energy and is always visible all over the ship.

Now it was time for Elaine, the Captain's Club hostess to introduce us to the rest of the guests.

Randi was a knockout in her new dress, which I happened to pick out. We posed for a picture with Captain Michael. Afterwards, we went to the Rendezvous lounge again,

then strolled into Blu for dinner. Niels Duinker was the comedian juggler tonight; not too bad.

Day 5 Sea- Life is good at sea. Gary mentioned that Luminae seemed to be the better restaurant. I am glad they are enjoying the meals. Today, the 1st of these 2 sea days, Randi and I walked deck 11, six times which is equivalent to 5/8 of a mile. Then went back to Luminae on to have eggs Benedict and Randi had eggs Benedict Florentine.

Afterwards, we attended first speaker lecture in the Celebrity Theater about the Panama Canal. We had no other cares on this day except the Breezes Grill for lunch and Luminae for dinner.

Day 6 Sea- It was just another day of perfect weather. Tonight’s show was the Russian acrobatic act Alan and Yulia Reva. They were quite good and the girls liked his muscles!

Day 7 Guatemala- Today is Thanksgiving. We woke up docked in Guatemala. Gary and Joanie met us for a Luminae breakfast. Then we took our time as we strolled off the ship to a tree lined area within walking distance.

The tree canopy surely reduced the hot temps to a very comfortable level. We saw a nice local fashion show and heard some lovely Guatemalan music. We walked around the huts, full of local wares. I got a shirt and Randi bought some scarves. By noontime or so we had enough, so back to the ship and into the pool.

We grabbed a bite at the Oasis Cafe and I brought 2 dogs back for the Hurt's for lunch. At the 7pm show we saw the piano player backed by the orchestra.

Later we celebrated Thanksgiving in style with Turkey dinners in Luminae, without the cleanup!

Day 8 Sea- Another wonderful sea day rejuvenated us even more. Nothing to do and nowhere to go--- except maybe forward--- wonderful!

Tonight we met Elaine, the Captain's club host in the Wine Cellar. She was serving Champagne to us, the Hert's and two other couples; all to attend the Captain's dinner, hosted by the Chief Engineer, Andreas Zofos and his first officer, Marios Gafos.

They proved to be wonderful and comfortable hosts. We spoke of Celebrity; the new 'edge class' ships; the purple stripe on their uniform which respects and represents the Titanic; and family.

The CE is currently engaged and his number one, is on board with his wife, son and daughter. Today happens to be his son's birthday which they celebrated earlier. Randi had the Escargots and Chicken and I had the Steak Tartar and the Chateaubriand. The Escargots won for top prize.

Day 9 Costa Rica- We booked the Train, Boat, Bus Adventure excursion. While we were waiting by the pool to depart we viewed a great airshow with single and double wing prop planes doing acrobatic stunts and leaving vapor trails where they've just been.

At 130 pm we boarded a bus from the pier which took us to the river. Flat bottom boats with canopies were waiting for us. As we motored on the river we saw many bird species, some crocks.

It was a more comfortable ride then we thought temperature wise with a breeze in our face. When no one else could, Randi spotted a pair of Scarlet Macaw Parrots in the treetops.

Back on board the bus to the train. It was a rickety old train that went about 1 mile an hour passing poverty riddled huts. We could have done without that and could have easily spent more time on the water and avoided this.

We decided to pass on the show tonight and Randi, after many tries hit on the deuces wild slot machine. We had another wonderful dinner in Luminae.

Trigg Watson as the magician tonight and although his magic was good, his presentation needed some work.


Day 10 sea- We opted for Blu restaurant for a dinner change and were not disappointed other than the noise level seemed higher than Luminae.

Day 11 Panama Canal- We had sunrise coffee on our deck, where we saw Panama City in the distance,

and proceeded under the bridge, but it quickly got too hot to remain out there.

So we went to pool deck and then to the Constellation lounge on deck 11 to view the Mira Flores 1st and 2nd lock.

We stopped in Luminae for breakfast then saw the 3rd lock from outside on deck 4. Here you can see how close you fit within the Canal.

While we were waiting, we met with Santa as he strolled the lifeboat deck, taking pictures with passengers. Then we were off to the pool, a lunch bite,

then to deck 14 forward for passage through locks 4, 5 and 6 and onward into Caribbean.

While some of us found this fascinating, obviously some couldn't care less!

During dinner at Luminae, we told Maria that we didn't come to her restaurant last night, since we were looking through all the restaurant venues to find her co-worker boyfriend. Tonight we played it up that we finally found the most handsome man, that had to be him. We covertly photographed him.

Although we were tipped off, when she saw the picture, she was astounded and asked in amazement, "how did you know?"

Day 11 Colon, Panama- Joanie and Gary surprised us and were up when we were going to breakfast at the Oasis, deck 10. We then got off the ship and realized that we were not docked at the same pier as last time.

We walked through an embarkation terminal which only had a few stores and followed the sidewalk to the main pier and square full of stores. We stopped for iced coffees and waters at the local coffee shop. Randi got me a couple of shirts and a few mugs for her coworkers.

We came back to lunch again at the Oasis. Afterwards, we played and won music trivia. Anita, the future cruise manager we know from previous cruises, secured a us Celebrity Suite for the Summit repo, in Spring 2017.

We went to the show and afterwards, enjoyed an 'always funky' dinner at Qsine where you always have too much food. Joanie enjoyed the Lava crab.

We also saw Herve, from a previous cruise, there. He was also with the Hert's when they were on Summit, Bermuda.

Day 12 Cartagena- This city has an old town and a new modern, Miami Beach like, section. We wound up taking the medieval horse and buggy excursion. It was the best excursion we booked.

Starting in air conditioned coaches, we motored, through traffic through town toward the fort where we stopped for photos.

Next we went to the center of the old town where we boarded the horse and carriages for a half hour very hot ride through almost every street.

It reminded us of Old San Juan with many painted buildings and balconies of flowers.

Back on the ship we enjoyed Carl Banks, a funny comedian in the theater tonight.

Day 13 Sea- This was a lazy day doing some shopping, lounging, casino and cocktails. We also were able to tour the engine room control center, courtesy of our host at the captain’s table, the Chief Engineer and his first officer. We got some pictures with them.

Later, and after the Boogie town show, we enjoyed an extra dinner in Tuscan Grill, courtesy of Elaine, the Captains Club hostess.

While dinner again was wonderful, the icing on the cake was when I spotted Danuta, a former waitress we had in the early 2000's. Now she is in charge of all the restaurants, fleet wide. So happy for her in her position as she is well deserving since she is a wonderful person. She says there are many other changes on the horizon. Stay tuned.

Day 14 Sea- Last day at sea meant packing, hanging at the pool and tying up some odds and ends, including the craziest outbound air reservation ever. I spent hours trying to find the seats via the confirmation number on United.com, but to no avail. I decided to wait till morning and call, choice air to find out what was going on.

We enjoyed Luminae for the first time for lunch. Gary and Joanie decided on the grill. Joanie had a hot dog and a finger. What I mean by that is while she was eating her hot dog she mistakenly bit her finger. I'm sure you can see how that can easily happen.

We decided to try our luck at Bingo. Randi had 2 cards that were only one number away for the $900 jackpot. But she did win an instant $25 scratch off. They also raffled away a 4/5 night cruise won by a fellow passenger. After that, we picked up our prizes for winning the music trivia, which were two new hanging id/seapass holders.
We saw the 'holiday show' in the theater, which was a first for us. It was nice but missed the mark on the staging side and the songs were from the 'unpopular' category.

Our last diner was next in Luminae where we thanked everyone who served us with a little something extra and left them our unused coffee creamers. We went back to the stateroom, put the last of our things in the suitcases and put them in the hall.

Day 15 FLL- I was up at 4, thinking I was responsible if everything wasn't going to work out for the flight home. After showering I was on the phone with Choice Air for over an hour, with Randi double teaming United. We found the flight changed to 320pm from 130 and I got upgraded, via points to 1st class. At least we got seats.

After saying our goodbyes, we got our luggage, grabbed a Porter and headed to the head of the long customs line, out the door and to the taxis. After the quick ride to the airport, we found out we had one too many carry-ons. The Porter must have picked up one too many. I tried calling the three numbers on the name tag- no answer. Randi was on hold with Captains club as I was trying to contact the emergency number with no results on either. I decided to go down to the Celebrity arrivals desk. They were very helpful and put the bag on the bus back to the pier. The owner called Randi back later.

When we got to the airport around 930, Myrna and Jerry met us and stayed a while with us. We had to wait til 12:20 to check bags for our 320 flight.

I got some carts and we stowed our luggage til around noon when I asked if Randi got upgraded. She did not but the lovely lady behind the desk checked us in at that time.

After a longer than normal TSA security, assuming due to recent events, everyone was having Celebrity lunch withdrawals, so we seated ourselves in Chili's and chowed down before the flight.
1st class was pretty nice and comfy with those layback bed chairs. I only wish Randi took me up and switched out the seat with me. She is back in row 32.

We made it to Ravello’s for dinner around 8 which officially ended this vacation with some great memories.