Cruise, Day 1...
It wasn't actually cold yesterday as we boarded the Carnival Conquest in Galveston, but the wind that was whipping across the deck made the temperature feed decidedly uncomfortable as Galina and I gathered at the railing to wave goodbye to the wharf. A few hardy souls were still there, looking toward the ship, but if Natalie had a head on her shoulders, she wasn't among them.
I had been wondering what kind of environment to expect on this, my first cruise that didn't involve saluting the fantail upon boarding. I expected something along the lines of a mid-to-low level casino in Vegas, with a well-lived in smell and so-so food.
I was wrong.
While our compartment is just a tad smaller than the room we rented at the Microtel in Clear Lake some time back, it's fairly cozy and ought to do the trick. We're located in the forward part of the ship, up on the 10th level (level 4 is, I suppose, the "main deck"; at least that's where the mustering stations are for lifeboats).
Our steward is a young lady from Croatia, Mariana. Very many of the service personnel aboard ship are young people from around the world; Galina and I ran into a couple of young women from Russia, one from Ukraine, and one from Tatarstan within a couple of hours. Indonesians are also well represented. (The maitre d' of our restaurant pointed out that his multinational staff spoke 35 languages, and knew how to curse in... 37!)
Speaking of the restaurant, while yesterday's lunch and today's breakfast were fairly average, yesterday's dinner was quite good. Galina and I arrived late and were shown to our table by an assistant maitre d', a young woman from Belarus. The caesar salad I ordered was crisp, and the rack of lamb was excellent. Our server, a young woman from Slovakia, made it clear that it would behoove us to take advantage of available items during dinner (the steak, she said, would be available every night, which would not be the case for the rack of lamb... or the butter pecan ice cream, for that matter).
The casino started up as soon as the ship cleared US territorial waters. Galina made a buck or so off of the nickel slots, while I tried my luck at the blackjack table and later, at the hold-em table. I managed to pay for the evening's drinks, at least.
I've signed up for 100 Internet minutes, for the sum of $55. Now, to save this post and do a burst-mode session (LJ, mail, and out!).
Cheers...
The sea is relatively calm, with occasional whitecaps that spew a fine salt mist into the air, owing to the strong wind. When I went out on deck this morning at about 5:30 am, it was moaning loudly through the railings on the bridge. Later, when I was eating breakfast, the wind kept scattering the deck chairs that the staff was setting up. I also noticed that the water in the "sun pool" near where I was eating was sloshing back and forth and doing a good imitation of a wave-generating pool.
I had been wondering what kind of environment to expect on this, my first cruise that didn't involve saluting the fantail upon boarding. I expected something along the lines of a mid-to-low level casino in Vegas, with a well-lived in smell and so-so food.
I was wrong.
While our compartment is just a tad smaller than the room we rented at the Microtel in Clear Lake some time back, it's fairly cozy and ought to do the trick. We're located in the forward part of the ship, up on the 10th level (level 4 is, I suppose, the "main deck"; at least that's where the mustering stations are for lifeboats).
Our steward is a young lady from Croatia, Mariana. Very many of the service personnel aboard ship are young people from around the world; Galina and I ran into a couple of young women from Russia, one from Ukraine, and one from Tatarstan within a couple of hours. Indonesians are also well represented. (The maitre d' of our restaurant pointed out that his multinational staff spoke 35 languages, and knew how to curse in... 37!)
Speaking of the restaurant, while yesterday's lunch and today's breakfast were fairly average, yesterday's dinner was quite good. Galina and I arrived late and were shown to our table by an assistant maitre d', a young woman from Belarus. The caesar salad I ordered was crisp, and the rack of lamb was excellent. Our server, a young woman from Slovakia, made it clear that it would behoove us to take advantage of available items during dinner (the steak, she said, would be available every night, which would not be the case for the rack of lamb... or the butter pecan ice cream, for that matter).
The casino started up as soon as the ship cleared US territorial waters. Galina made a buck or so off of the nickel slots, while I tried my luck at the blackjack table and later, at the hold-em table. I managed to pay for the evening's drinks, at least.
I've signed up for 100 Internet minutes, for the sum of $55. Now, to save this post and do a burst-mode session (LJ, mail, and out!).
Cheers...
The sea is relatively calm, with occasional whitecaps that spew a fine salt mist into the air, owing to the strong wind. When I went out on deck this morning at about 5:30 am, it was moaning loudly through the railings on the bridge. Later, when I was eating breakfast, the wind kept scattering the deck chairs that the staff was setting up. I also noticed that the water in the "sun pool" near where I was eating was sloshing back and forth and doing a good imitation of a wave-generating pool.