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Wednesday, January 4th – Los Angeles, CA, USA – Embark Crystal sERENITY – Depart 5:00 PM Thursday, January 5th - Cruising the Pacific Ocean Friday, January 6th – Cabo San Lucas, Mexico – Arrive 11:00 AM – Depart 6:00 PM Saturday, January 7th - Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Arrive 9:00 AM - Depart 8:00 PM Sunday, January 8th – Cruising the Pacific Ocean Monday, January 9th – cruising the pacific ocean Tuesday, January 10th - Los Angeles, CA, USA - Arrive 7:00 AM - Depart 5:00 PM Wednesday, January 11th - Cruising the Pacific Ocean Thursday, January 12th - Cabo San Lucas, Mexico - Arrive 11:00 AM - Depart 8:00 PM Friday, January 13TH - Mazatlán, Mexico – Arrive 8:00 AM – Depart 6:00 PM Saturday, January 14TH – Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – Arrive 8:00 AM – Depart 6:00 PM Sunday, January 15TH – Cruising the Pacific Ocean Monday, January 16TH - Cruising the PACIFIC OCEAN Tuesday, January 17TH - Los Angeles, ca, usa - Arrive 7:00 am - Disembark Crystal Serenity
Our plan for this year was to concentrate on land-based travel with no cruises booked. However, that changed when Crystal withdrew a substantial portion of their Crystal Society benefits. Rather than lose over $5,600 in fare discounts for our 40th Milestone, we were virtually forced to book and pay for a cruise in 2005 to be taken in 2006. The only alternative was to do nothing and lose it completely. We'll leave the discussion of these changes to those on public forums. The rules for using benefits under the 2005 plan were straightforward enough even before Crystal had to backpedal slightly after receiving many complaints. Basically, a Milestone earned in 2005 could be used under the old program as long as the future cruise was booked and paid for during 2005. Sounds simple enough, doesn't it? It was explained quite coherently to us on board by the cruise consultant as well as in a printed brochure, and later in a letter. One would think it would be a simple matter to redeem the credits, but that proved to be a false hope. We booked on board an earlier cruise and the cruise consultant wrote on the form that we would be using our 40th Milestone for this cruise and would qualify for the old program's benefits. However, when our travel agent quoted the price for this combination of two cruises, the fare for two people was over $9,000! This is for a standard stateroom, not a penthouse. With other cruise lines charging less than $1,000 for this same cruise, we began to rethink our booking. Then it dawned on us that the milestone discount of $5,600 hadn't been deducted yet. A call to our travel agent confirmed that Crystal would not deduct the discount unless we paid in full first. Then, they would return it later. We informed her that was not acceptable and to call Crystal again and force the issue. After speaking with several agents in the reservations department, she finally had to insist on talking to someone in charge of the Crystal Society department. In the meantime, we also wanted to use a credit we had received for missing a port during a previous cruise of $250 total. We were informed that we had to mail the letters to Crystal's office and then they would refund that amount. At this point, our travel agent was finally able to speak to someone at Crystal who had a clue and we were immediately refunded $5,600. With the onboard booking discount, Crystal Society discount, the missed port credit, and the huge milestone discount, the total fare was down to $4,006 for two for thirteen days. That's not bad and is equivalent to getting one of the segments for free. That was fine with us at this point. When we sent the forms to Crystal for the missed port discounts, we included a brief letter complaining about all of the hassles with redeeming our milestone. Essentially, we find it extremely annoying that we have to scrutinize every bill on and off the ship to be sure we receive what we are due. How many guests either don't know or can't figure out what they are owed? It happens so often that we find it difficult to believe it is always a mistake. After a few days, our travel agent called back to inform us that Crystal had received the forms for the missed ports and could they give us a shipboard credit instead of a refund. "Hell, no," was the answer. Are they kidding or what? The form from the office clearly stated this was for a fare discount and we already will have hundreds of dollars in shipboard credit we don't need. Another few days went by and another call came from the travel agent saying that Crystal sent a refund check of $330 for an "over billing" and that they are also refunding the missed port discount of $250. So, that's another $580 off of the fare. We have no clue what the $330 is for and we think they had already deducted the credit for the missed port before they charged us originally. At this point, it is so convoluted that we can't figure it out ourselves anymore. All we can do now is wait and see what happens in the way of discounts over the next few months (this set of cruises was already on sale for 10% off). By the way, someone from Crystal told our travel agent they were going to call us and apologize for all of this. No one from Crystal ever contacted us. Lucky for all of us the customer service on board the ships is far more conscientious that that from the Crystal office. When we mentioned this in passing during a dinner with the cruise consultant on our previous cruise, he was appalled. So are we. If guests with as many cruises racked up as we have can't get a response to a written complaint, how is the average Crystal guest going to be treated under similar circumstances? A few weeks passed since our convoluted efforts to get Crystal to honor their discounts and such. After much wrangling by our travel agent, the total fare for this combination of cruises ended up being $3,770. That's the total fare, not per person. That is quite a comedown from the $16,000 brochure fare and even quite a reduction from the $10,000+ "discount" price. Not to mention the $9,900 that was originally charged to our credit card when final payment was due. The point is, be persistent when dealing with Crystal if you believe you are owed something. They do not volunteer anything for obvious reasons. You have to ask and you have to know what you are due from the Crystal Society program. Don't rely on the reservation agents to have a clue because they most certainly do not. If all else fails, call the Crystal Society department yourself. Don't wait to complain to the Crystal Society hostess on board as there is little she can do after the fact. Wednesday, January 4TH – Los Angeles, CA, USA – Embark Crystal sERENITY – Depart 5:00 PM Mexican Riviera Getaway As usual, we chose to drive to the port and park there for the duration. There was no traffic at all, so we arrived at around 3:00 PM, having left the house after 1:00 PM. Although there were quite a few arrivals at the same time as we entered the terminal, the only line we encountered was to get through the first layer of security. There, a guard was comparing tickets to passports, and names to a list of embarking passengers. At least we could actually see the point of checking passports at the terminal entrance for once. While Dave was waiting outside the terminal for Bill to park the car, he chatted with Max, one of the deck stewards, who was on door duty in his formal top hat getup. It never ceases to amaze us that these guys remember every detail about us even when we haven't seen them in at least a year or more. The really sick part of our constant departures from Los Angeles is that the supervisor of the ground staff knows us. She always runs over to greet us and/or make fun of us for being back so soon. At the check-in counter, where there was no wait whatsoever, we went through the customary procedures. Then, the agent took our picture with a camera attached to her computer. That was a first, but it could be that it simply hadn't been implemented on Crystal Harmony. We assume our photo will pop up on the gangway computer when our cards are scanned, also assuming we ever leave the ship during this cruise to find out. As we boarded the ship we immediately saw headwaiter Augusto who began waving at us even before we reached the doorway. He became so engrossed in chatting with us that he almost forgot to have someone take us to our room. The poor waiter who had to escort us constantly had to stop because Augusto followed us all the way to the elevator, talking the entire time. Let's just say we have a lot to catch up on. We also ran into a world cruiser who came over to greet us, as well. Our escort then said, "Well, I guess you have been here a few times!" No kidding. We were so blasé about this cruise that we didn't even know what our stateroom number was until this morning. Not that it hadn't been assigned, but neither of us had bothered to check it until last night. Anyway, we are on deck nine, roughly amidships, in a verandah stateroom. Our stewardess came by just as we were getting ready to leave. She seems relatively pleasant, but we weren't thrilled when she suggested that if we didn't get out of the room by 11:00 AM that it wouldn't be cleaned until turndown service. She did ask if that was acceptable, which it most definitely is not. She also started to tell us that it wasn't possible to exchange the duvet for a blanket because they don't have blankets. That is pure B.S., by the way, especially since our bed had already been made up that way by whoever prepared the room (we didn't know that at the time we asked her). We didn't show any annoyance, but she didn't start off on the right foot with us. This will be the last time we receive the lavish benefits from Crystal Society because the most valuable perks have been eliminated. However, we start off rather well this cruise with the following gifts:
We will have to investigate what to do about the double prepaid gratuity gifts since we don't need to pay anyone double at this point. Not that we begrudge doing that occasionally, but only if it is deserved. We will do almost anything to avoid the chaotic open seating in the dining room on the first evening, so we made a bee line to Prego to make reservations for tonight. There was a very short line of guests doing the same thing, but they had both the maitre d' and the headwaiter taking reservations on computers, so it moved quickly. We were appalled by several people who attempted to barge in without regard for the line of waiting guests. We will give the doorman credit for stopping them, however. Antonio, the maitre d', saw us standing in line and acknowledged us before we even got in to see him. Willy, the Silk Road headwaiter, also knows us quite well and is the king of fawning over us. Both of them appeared glad to see us and we were able to make a reservation in Silk Road for tonight at 8:00 PM and another for the last formal night. Ordinarily guests may make only one reservation in each restaurant at this time, but since we weren't interested in Prego he let us make the second one for Silk Road. That won't work for everyone, by the way, and we are always expecting to be turned down, too. On the other hand, if you don't ask, you won't get it. On the way back up to wait for the lifeboat drill, we ran into Simon, a butler we had on our first cruise on this ship. He always seems overjoyed to see us, although we don't quite know why. We don't think we are particularly memorable, but from some of the stories we hear it does appear that perhaps we are nicer than most guests to the crew, butlers in particular. We asked if Danzyl, our butler from the previous Harmony cruise, had made it on board. He said he had and he would let him know we were here. Before Simon had a chance to talk to Danzyl, he called us on the phone after tracking us down through Ronnie at the switchboard. We had told him to look for Ronnie when he arrived because we knew he would at least be friendly to him. Shortly after calling, Danzyl showed up at our door, so we invited him in to get the lowdown on his transfer. He said that at first he wanted to pack up and go home, but he quickly got used to the ship and has decided he quite likes it now. More and more Harmony crew are returning from vacation and coming here, so that is diluting the unfriendly attitude that was embedded among some of the crew. That can only be a good thing in our book. As far as we know, most of the crew here came from the Symphony and we have never encountered anything other than gracious service, but apparently that did not extend to behind the scenes interactions. As we said, that has begun to change with the arrival of friendly Harmony crew. By this time it was almost time to sail and we were starving, so we went up to the Trident Grill for burgers and grilled ham and cheese. The pool area was nearly deserted, although the weather was near perfection. When the ship sailed, we had just finished eating, so we went to the upper deck to watch the sail away. During this time we were greeted by several familiar deck hands and the grill cook, all of whom knew who we were and what we like. After sailing, we meandered down to wander along deck six just for the heck of it. Outside the Galaxy Lounge we were fawned over in the extreme by several deck stewards we have known for probably ten years. One of them even ran over to be sure we still like iced tea, one diluted. Amazing. They were standing outside the lounge where the Rose Bowl game was being shown. Tables were set up with popcorn and other appropriate foods, including hot things we didn't sample. That was a nice touch. Back at the room we unpacked in mere seconds, then set out to wander around a bit more. Outside of Palm Court, where a big private party had taken over the entire room, we ran into Gary, the Cruise Director. He got so caught up chatting with us about the ultra-successful holiday cruise that he almost missed his cue to make a speech at the party. He told us that although that cruise was jam packed, it received the highest ratings in history for a holiday cruise. The only issue was with some unruly children who did not behave well enough to participate properly in the supervised programs, but that didn't affect the guests particularly. We took the computer to the Computer University to be set up for in-room use. Jessie, the "dean", has known us forever, so he knew exactly what we wanted before we even reached the door. He quickly set everything up for us, including email that does not incur the usual ridiculous per message charge (this is available to anyone, by the way, who brings their own laptop). On Crystal Serenity the internet connection from the rooms is via a network connection, which is a huge improvement over the snails pace of dial up on the other ships. The flat rate charge for using the internet for up to three hours per day was $150 for this six-day cruise. There was no charge for setting up the laptop as far as we know. Usually it costs around $15, a fee we find outrageous for doing next to nothing. Let's hope that Crystal has finally eliminated this charge altogether. Our dinner tonight is in Silk Road, so we don't have a menu from the main dining room. That may be an issue since we are not in a penthouse and our request for advance copies of the dinner menus was met with a blank stare followed by absolute horror when we asked our stewardess. Tonight's dress code is Casual. By the way, the dress code information that came with our tickets listed only two formal nights, and four casual. However, the shipboard schedule lists an informal evening on a port day. Luckily, we didn't believe the advance information and brought along jackets anyway, but we definitely find it unacceptable that this information isn't accurate. Most guests would not be familiar enough with Crystal's dress code formula to know that they always have an informal night even on the shortest of cruises, in spite of what we were told previously by an executive from the office. We are curious to see what happens on Informal evening since nobody was informed about it in advance. As always, the items we ordered are highlighted and reviewed at the end of the menu. SILK ROAD MENU A P P E T I Z E R S S O U P S D E S S E R T S We were greeted by Willy, the headwaiter, who fawned over us during our entire meal. Ordinarily this isn't a big issue for us, but the constant attention was a bit over the top tonight. The service was fine, but even waiters who weren't serving us came over and asked if things were fine. Enough already! That aside, we were decidedly under whelmed by our meal. In the past, most of the dishes in Silk Road have been absolutely incredible, but tonight's dinner wasn't anywhere near as good as in the past. The lobster spring roll, while beautifully presented in a champagne glass, tasted mostly of oil and not much else. The rock shrimp tempura was outstanding for the first serving, but when ordered again later in the meal it was slimy. Both salads looked nice, but that's all that can be said for them. The tomato salad was very disappointing with a very harsh, peppery dressing that overwhelmed the tomatoes. The noodle dish was satisfactory and the accompanying shrimp and vegetable tempura was excellent, although a bit too oily. We were very disappointed in the beef entree because it used to be good enough on its own to warrant a visit to Silk Road. The three unusual sauces that accompany the meat were the same, and outstanding, but the meat itself was extremely fatty and lacked any flavor of its own. In the past this beef was touted as "Kobe beef", but that is no longer mentioned. We found out later that it may still be available, but the guest has to request it. The chicken was very ordinary. It consisted of a plain grilled chicken breast with a saucer of gelatinous teriyaki sauce on the side. As we recall, the previous incarnation of this dish had the chicken glazed with the sauce, which was outstanding. This time it was barely edible. The dessert option was the only real standout. The sesame ice cream is unusual and much better than it sounds. All in all, the hysterical fawning, boring food, and extraordinarily uncomfortable chairs made for a lackluster experience. Although we didn't mention the chairs being a problem, Willy said that they are anxiously awaiting new chairs "any day now". Apparently we aren't the only ones who find them nearly unbearable. Just looking at them they seem perfectly fine, but after sitting in them we both had backaches. After thinking about them a bit we figured out that they are so high that a normal person cannot rest his feet on the floor without cutting off circulation to his legs. We can only imagine what a petite woman would do. We doubt an average woman's feet would even touch the floor comfortably. Another drawback to this restaurant is the stark decor. It isn't repulsive, just rather bland and too brightly lit. We had about an hour to kill before tonight's welcome aboard show at 10:30 PM. We almost didn't make it because we were so tired, for no apparent reason. However, we did manage to drag ourselves to the Galaxy Lounge eventually. The welcome show on this ship is only 30 minutes long and consists of an opening number from "Chorus Line", a video tour of the ship narrated by the Cruise Director, and another number by the ensemble from "Grand Hotel". The performances were just fine and the material entertaining enough for its purpose. It is definitely a better introduction to Crystal's production shows that the dreadful "Pirates to Pinafore" that was offered on the Harmony. Back in the room, we took showers in what can only be described as a less than spotless bathroom. When we removed the rubber non-skid mat from the edge of the tub and turned it over we discovered the underside was covered with mildew. Upon further examination we found the metal shampoo shelves to be similarly infested, as well as the corners of the tub where it meets the tile. The floor tile isn't quite as clean as it should be either. Also, the tub filled with water and took several minutes to completely drain after a shower was finished. This is extremely unusual and certainly unacceptable on a ship of this caliber, but we do understand to a point that it was quite busy during the previous cruise. We'll see if a casual mention can remedy any of this before actually complaining about it. By the way, we are not clean freaks by any means, so it has to be pretty bad for us to even take notice of it. While the previous cruise was nearly sold out, this one has only about 750 guests on board, if that. It appears that most are part of a large group of some sort rather than impendent travelers, although there are a number of world cruisers already on board. We move an hour forward on the clock tonight. Thursday, January 5th - Cruising the Pacific Ocean As usual, we didn't emerge from the room until just before noon, although we were awake off and on before that. We were a bit paranoid that there would be noise from the hallway because the door to the stewardess' pantry is across from ours. Although we did hear it a couple of times, it was not enough to awaken us, so not a problem. We found Tatiana, our stewardess, waiting in the hallway when we came out, so we brought her in to smell and look at the bathroom. She was suitably appalled by the condition of the rubber tub mat that had grown significantly moldier since last night. She agreed the room smelled like mildew and pledged to take care of it. By the way, she was not the one who prepared the room for our arrival, so she isn't to blame for the initial condition of the room. There was a Nuevo Latino theme buffet upstairs today, so we opted for the dining room instead. The buffets are far easier to negotiate on this ship because it was designed for them, but we just weren't in the mood today. Augusto was at the entrance to the dining room and we chatted all the way to the table. We asked if Jerry is on board and were informed that he will be our waiter. We consider Jerry one of our best friends among the crew, so it is always nice to see him. He was our waiter for both world cruises and always refers to us as "his guests". We were seated at a window table on the left side of the room where our regular table is located. Karol, our waiter on a recent Harmony cruise, was there and came over to greet us. We were served by a very pleasant waitress who was not familiar to us. The sommelier was Georgina who is always a lot of fun and quite personable. Lunch was satisfactory, but nothing stood out as extraordinary. Our main courses were a Monte Cristo sandwich that was a bit on the dry side, but edible, and the BBQ Sliced Flank Steak that was tasty, but too fatty for the type of meat it is. Dessert was a bland Boston cream pie with chocolate ice cream. The ice cream was the best part. After lunch we stopped by the front desk to sort out the issue with double pre-paid gratuities. There was a male concierges, a shore excursion guy and a female desk attendant standing nearby. They feigned fighting over who would serve us, then one of the guys said something about the beautiful woman always being chosen first. We didn't say anything, so one of the other guys nearby by said, "They didn't choose yet!" You had to be there, but it was quite amusing. Anyway, we ended up discussing the gratuity issue with Diego, the concierge. He said he had never seen that happen before, so he would check it out with the chief accountant and get back to us. He had already left us a voice mail message when we returned to the room saying they had converted the extra tips into shipboard credits, which is what we wanted. We will probably give it all away in tips anyway, but this way we can pick and choose who gets the extra dollars. On the way to the elevator, we stopped to chat with Augusto outside the dining room until we were interrupted by Herbert, the Hotel Director, who has known us forever. We haven't seen him in several years, so he was happy to see us. He has always been quite chatty with us, much to the surprise of other crew members who say he is never that talkative. After finishing up with Herbert, Leo, the maitre d', came out of his office and talked to us for a few minutes, as well. To everyone here, most of whom had come from the Symphony where we were regulars, we have not been cruising much. That is only because we have been mostly on Crystal Harmony this year, however. We decided to go up to the pool to sit outside since the weather today is about as perfect as it can get. It is sunny, but only in the mid 70's, so very pleasant outside. The buffet had been nearly cleaned up by this time, although a few waiters were still collecting tables and such to take to storage. As we were sitting there, Jerry came up and stood behind Bill until he finally noticed him. He was overjoyed to see us and said he had been waiting for us to come back "forever". For some reason he thought we were coming on the holiday cruise, but he probably misunderstood that we weren't coming until after that. In any case, he was thrilled we came back, probably more so than we are. We caught up a bit on various things with him until he had to return to work. Linda, an old friend from Crystal and now an independent travel agent who lives near us, came over to chat. We talked about a variety of things, especially other cruise lines we have been vaguely considering. Although we don't think Crystal is perfect, it does appear that we aren't going to find anything else more suitable for us in the ultra-luxury end of the business. Linda was looking for someone to play paddle tennis with, to no avail. She eventually went up to see if anyone new had arrived at the courts, while we stayed where we were for another half hour or so. Eventually we decided we might fall asleep if we sat there much longer. That didn't stop several people who were snoring loudly nearby, but we didn't want to make a spectacle of ourselves. So, we wandered off to look at Palm Court, which was set up for afternoon tea service. After that we returned to the room and napped until just before dinner time. Our stewardess had diligently scrubbed all of the mildew out of the tub enclosure, but she said she didn't have another rubber mat, but would get one later. That was fine with us, except she left the disgusting one there. Later on when we saw her we made her take it away. She did bring a new one later in the evening. Tatiana didn't tell us this, but we have figured out that there is another layer of bureaucracy on this ship that the others didn't have. It appears that something as simple as obtaining a new rubber mat requires considerable effort and special requests to various people. Even with all of the extra cleaning in the bathroom, the mildew smell persisted and even became stronger as the day went on. As far as we can figure out, something under the cabinets is mildewed, which makes sense since the tub routinely floods the bathroom floor. By the way, the answer to the slow-draining tub was, "They are all like that." We knew that the plumbing had issues when the ship was new, but had hoped that had been corrected by now. No such luck. Tonight's dress code is Formal for the Captain's Gala Welcome Party in the Palm Court. The Reflections program must have explained at least five times that tonight is formal attire, so there must be some resistance to it brewing. On every cruise in the past, the party for late seating guests starteds at 7:45 PM, but tonight the program said 7:30 PM. We arrived at the specified time to find the room not yet open, so we stood in the short line for the captain. Ordinarily we skip the reception line, but we know this captain quite well, so we thought we should make an appearance. He is always very nice to us and has something appropriate to say, which was the case tonight. We tried to move along so as not to hold up the line, but he kept asking us questions. We sat in the Sunset Bar area where we could see, but not necessarily be seen. Eventually, Nikki spotted us and rushed over to greet us. We have many favorites among the staff and crew, but Nikki is something special. We have known her from day one and always enjoy our conversations with her. She insisted on arranging a dinner with us for the next cruise, which is fine with us. On the way out we ran into Stephen, the front office manager, and Lena, the head housekeeper, both of whom know us quite well from world cruises. Bill talked to Stephen about the Harmony dry dock (he didn't know much more than we already did), while Dave was cornered into telling Lena about the mildew problem. We don't like to complain about anything at parties, but when she pointedly asked if everything in the room was fine, there wasn't much of a way to get around telling her. We had a similar problem on a world cruise, so we didn't want to sound like the mildew kings, but this is a significant problem that should be addressed. The scary part was that Lena knew our stateroom number without asking us! Talk about flabbergasted. She casually replied, "Oh, there are only 550 staterooms to remember." We were careful to tell her that our stewardess had been making quite an effort to remedy the problem and that it wasn't her fault the room was in that condition when we arrived. CAPTAIN'S GALA MENU APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD SHERBET PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES Upon your request, these Traditional Main
Fares are also available: VEGETARIAN SELECTION DESSERT Even before we could be escorted to our table, Jerry was waiting proudly by our table, menus in hand. He said he had been waiting so long for us to come back that he was really nervous about taking our first order. Now that's dedication. We're always glad to see him and we're happy to have him serve us again. We have had many meaningful conversations with him that have been mutually fulfilling. Jerry informed us that he is now referred to as a "Senior Waiter" and his assistant is a "Waiter". OK, fine, if that makes everyone happy. Our "waiter's" name is Zdenko from Slovakia. Jerry said they have worked together for a long time now and he is very good. He seemed fine to us, as well. We have been aware for quite some time now of the major cutbacks in the size of the portions, so we ordered a double serving of the chateaubriand. Jerry told us the regular serving was two slices, so he would bring us four each. When it arrived, it was indeed four slices, but they were four HALF slices. So, we got exactly the same amount as if we had the regular portion. The kitchen was fooling no one, including Jerry, into believing this was a larger portion, so he went back and brought out several more normal servings and added them to our plates. It is one thing to cut back on the initial portion to avoid waste, but when guests ask for more they should get it with having to make a scene. In this case, Jerry made the scene on his own, which was appropriate. Once we got a respectable plate of food, it was quite tasty. The array of fruit in the appetizer was attractive, but, again, the portion was half what it used to be. The salad was edible, but nothing out of the ordinary. We were satisfied with the pasta, as well. The lemon tart was nondescript and a completely different incarnation than what was served under the identical name on the Harmony where it was outstanding. After dinner we had a pleasant conversation with Jerry, something we have missed. We just haven't had the time or inclination to make a real connection with our waiters recently. They have all been pleasant and friendly, but taking shorter cruises doesn't often lead to anything more than a working relationship, as is to be expected. By the way, our headwaiter is Franz, who had served us recently on the Harmony. Augusto said he would rotate to our station for the next cruise, which would be nice. We barely had time to make it to the show, which is the lavish production "Million Dollar Musicals". The performance was fine and in some cases better than usual, but we have seen this show way too often. It also seems a bit sparse on the larger Serenity stage, but the average person probably wouldn't notice it. For a production show the audience was a bit less than we expected, although it certainly wasn't empty either. The show was very well received by the audience. The weather continues to be near perfection with smooth sailing into the night. Friday, January 6th – Cabo San Lucas, Mexico – Arrive 11:00 AM – Depart 6:00 PM Cabo San Lucas is nestled on the southernmost tip of the
Baja Peninsula, where the cool currents of the Pacific Ocean meet the warm
waters of the Sea of Cortez. Commanding rock formations, timeless desert and a
translucent sea provide a compelling introduction to this tranquil resort town.
This morning's weather was again perfection. There were a few high clouds and the temperature was about 77 degrees. Not bad at all. In any case, we didn't venture out of the room until time for lunch, when we went up to the Lido Cafe. We were surprised to find both lines open on a port day, but it was busy enough to seem that many guests opted to stay on board. However, since the ship didn't arrive until 10:00 AM, it could be that people were waiting until later in the afternoon to go out. The food in this ship's Lido buffet is usually much better than the others, although the menu is the same. It is served in small ceramic dishes rather than large batches, so it is fresher. The line itself could be arranged more efficiently, but it is satisfactory. Everything we chose was very good. We were fawned over in the extreme by the deck stewards, all of whom made an effort to come over to greet us by name at one time or another. Ruel automatically fetched two iced teas and set them at the same table where we sat the last time we were here. However, the service from all of the deck crew here is exemplary. While they do fawn over us, they are quite attentive to everyone else, as well. There were also plenty of waiters at the end of the line to carry trays, but they didn't force the issue at all, which was nice. Someone has finally perfected the training on board. After lunch we wandered up to the Sun Deck for a stroll around the upper deck. The only other ship in port today is the Carnival Pride. Even so, there were so many jet skis out and about that there was little room for errors in judgment. In contrast to the tiny rowboat with two military men guarding three ships last time, there is now a full sized patrol boat that is obviously heavily armed and constantly on the move around the two ships. With nothing better to do, we went down to the reception desk to inquire whether Ronnie was on duty. The woman at the desk said he had a birthday a few days ago and he was probably out, "Doing what, we can only imagine." We'll come back later when he has returned. We passed by the dining room where Augusto was standing and ended up chatting with him for quite a while. Since we know him so well, there is always a lot to catch up on. Honestly, the only reason we come on this particular ship at all is that all of our long-time friends among the crew are here. Otherwise, we aren't particularly enamored of Crystal Serenity. There isn't anything glaringly wrong with it, but there are enough small annoyances and design flaws that put us off a bit. Not to mention the high fares charged for this ship compared to the others. In our opinion, there is nothing to justify that compared to Crystal Symphony that has all of the same amenities and facilities. Around 2:00 PM we arrived back at the room where we decided to stay for the afternoon. Since it was shady on the verandah, it was a pleasant place to sit assuming we could stay awake long enough to do so. By the way, the mildew smell in the bathroom is unchanged, so whatever attempt was made to fix it accomplished next to nothing. We're sort of getting used to it, but the point is that we shouldn't have to get used to something unpleasant at these prices. Tonight's dress code is Informal for God-only-knows what reason. This being a port day with no Crystal Society party scheduled that we know of, there is no excuse for adding this requirement. In our opinion, two formal nights and the rest casual on a six day cruise is plenty dressy enough. Why add an informal evening? At least casual dining is offered by the pool tonight for those who didn't know to second guess Crystal and bring a jacket. We went up to the Sun Deck to watch the sailing. The weather continued to be perfect into the night, but it did get slightly chilly out on the open deck after the ship started to move. On the way back to the room we ran across Tatiana outside of our room. She is still concerned about the mildew odor in our bathroom, although there isn't anything that can be done about it that we know of. She has scrubbed everything visible by now and it appears clean, but the smell remains. She said she would let "them" know that we aren't happy about it, although that was entirely her idea, not ours. The main entertainment is being presented at 7:00 PM tonight. It is billed as an "Adage Duo with the Magic of Illusions, Mysteriaque". At least it sounds different. The best we can describe it is a modern dance act with some magic thrown in. Frankly, they are very talented dancers and some of the scenes were very impressive, but the elaborate lighting effects the Serenity's stage is capable of were the real show stoppers. Most of the illusions were the same lady-in-a-box stuff we have all seen a million times, although it was done relatively well. The finale where a guest's jacket was exchanged with the tied-up model while under a cover was very well done. We probably wouldn't go see it again, but it was worth viewing at least once and we will give them lots of credit for being different. We were amused by the guests seated near us who were taking inventory of the number of men wearing jackets tonight. We would estimate less than half were attired according to the informal dress code and none at all were wearing the optional tie. In our opinion, it is way past time to eliminate informal attire and stick with casual or formal only. After the show we had about 45 minutes to kill, so we went to sit in Palm Court. Jun brought us some hot and cold snacks that were actually quite good. One was the miniature hamburgers served on 50's night in the past. Those always get a rise out of the guests. And yes, they are just too cute. On the way down the stairs after cocktails we ran into the Captain. He told us that during dry dock they had to rip out almost all of the public bathrooms because they had been designed so poorly to begin with. We have forgotten until he mentioned it that the men's room stalls were so narrow that our shoulders touched the sides while standing there. We're not kidding, you really had to squeeze yourself in. Apparently the ladies' room was even worse with stall doors banging together in quite a chaotic scene. We're glad they fixed that glaringly poor choice at least. He said they also added some wood paneling to the deck 11 hallways so they would look less institutional, but we don't recall how they looked previously. No menus were delivered to us tonight and we forgot to ask for them after dinner, so we don't have the complete selection for you. The theme was "California Dinner", but nothing on the menu was even remotely associated with the California we know. Our first appetizer was the lobster enchiladas, which were outstanding. The fruit was as usual. The "Crunchy Salad Greens" were the same as they are every night, fresh but boring. The roasted vegetable soup was very good. It is a puree of roasted vegetables that tastes mostly of tomatoes and carrots, but it is very good. The pasta dish was cheese ravioli with spinach in a saffron sauce. It was satisfactory, but nothing special. Bill had the foresight to ask for a double serving of the Mahi Mahi entree. It looked rather disgusting with a brown goo piled on top, but he claims it was quite good. The garlic grilled jumbo prawns were outstanding, but the serving consisted of only three prawns on about one-half cup of pasta, three slices of zucchini and maybe two tablespoons of tomato sauce. Jerry wanted to bring more, but with everything else it was a substantial enough meal. After dinner we had a very lengthy conversation with Jerry that was enjoyable. He is finally seriously considering staying home because he misses his family so much. We knew years ago how much they mean to him, so we're surprised he has lasted this long. He may want to start a business on his own or get a job somewhere in Europe where he can still go back to Poland to visit easily. Whatever, any hotel or restaurant should kill to get someone as dedicated as he is. After dinner there was another show scheduled, a Crystal Comedy Cabaret, featuring ventriloquist Gary Hunter (also the cruise director) and comedian Mike Goddard. This show was presented in the Stardust Club at 10:30 PM. We didn't finish talking to Jerry until well after 11:30 PM, so we were not able to attend the comedy show. In fact, we were so late leaving that the waiters were afraid to eat their dinner in the back of the dining room for fear of getting in trouble. Obviously, they aren't allowed to eat while guests are still there, but we assured them that at this point it is OK to go ahead and if there was a problem we would smooth it over for them. We stopped by the desk to check if Ronnie was still working, but he had left about an hour earlier. We'll catch him another time, no problem. Back at the room we finally received invitations for the Crystal Society party to be held on the final formal night. That's a first. We're sure it was meant to be held tonight, hence the informal dress code, but the entertainment schedule overrode it. Also, there is a production show tomorrow night that wasn't on the schedule. We have seen it before and it isn't anything to get excited about unless some dramatic changes have been made. Gary referred to it as new, but it is just a rework of the flop, "Some Enchanted Evening". We also got letters from the captain admonishing us for not attending the lifeboat muster. That would be fine except we did attend the muster and answered when our room number was called. Lucky for Crystal the letter didn't say anything too huffy. It simply said that we should familiarize ourselves with the location of our muster station and then listed what that was. We move an hour forward on the clock tonight. Saturday, January 7th, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – Arrive 9:00 am – Depart 8:00 PM Embraced by rugged tropical mountains on one side and
the beautiful Banderas Bay on the other, Puerto Vallarta is second only to
Acapulco when it comes to the Mexican Riviera's leading resort cities.
As usual, we did not emerge from the room until noon and went directly to the Lido for lunch. We were again satisfied with everything we selected. That included beef goulash, rotisserie chicken, an Asian duck dish, and tacos that actually resembled the real thing. However, serving pre-assembled tacos from a buffet dish isn't the wisest choice. Once again, our iced tea was set out for us before we even sat down, but since we didn't know that, we seated ourselves outside, much to the horror of Jun and Ruel. Today's weather is again near perfection. It is neither too hot, nor too cold, and the humidity is acceptable. Not that we are at all tempted to go ashore, of course. Linda told us she is doing some sort of rain forest canopy excursion involving ropes and such. That sounds fun...for her. After lunch we wandered down to reception to pick up a gratuity form, then back up toward the room. Since our stewardess was still in the process of cleaning, we went up to sit by the pool for a few hours where we chatted with a fellow guest, had some ice cream, and filled out the gratuity form. Exciting, isn't it? We can only sit around for so long before requiring another nap, so off we went to the room to vegetate for most of the afternoon. On the way, we stopped to make haircut appointments at the salon for tomorrow afternoon. When we were here last month, they had just begun tearing up the area around the pier to build what appears to be a marina. We figured it would look like that for 30 years considering the location, but they have made significant progress in the construction. Most of the effort went into making huge concrete beams that are now being embedded in the expanded shoreline. They have also begun pushing out the shoreline at the end of the existing pier. As far as we can tell, there are no other ships in port today. Midnight tonight is the deadline to turn in the gratuity form to be charged to our shipboard account. We dropped it off at reception on the way to dinner. Since our gratuities were prepaid, twice, we gave extra money to all of the usual people, plus tips for the Lido deck stewards and the lounge waiters. We always prefer to distribute our shipboard credit in tips rather than buy a bunch of stuff in the shops we don't need anyway. By the way, the shops are now run by an outside concession. One benefit of this is that the prices have come down, but that is mostly because the merchandise is now pretty much the same as one would find on any cruise ship rather than Crystal's previous designer labels and unique jewelry creations. We do think it wise to make more of the merchandise accessible to a wider demographic. In the past the prices were too high for most guests to even consider unless they had ridiculous amounts of shipboard credit to spend. Tonight's dress code is Casual, thank God. We decided not to take any chances about getting dinner menus and asked at the dining room this afternoon for a copy. When you are in the cheap seats you can't expect to get such things delivered apparently. Casual dining at Tastes by the Neptune Pool is also available tonight. We went up on deck for the 8:00 PM sailing, then back by the room to pick up some paperwork we wanted to turn in at the front desk. Tatiana asked how the bathroom was, so we told her it was about the same, but that she didn't have to worry about it anymore. There isn't anything left to do about it. She said they changed all of the pipes under the sink yesterday and poured a bunch of chemicals down all of the drains. She also admitted that she can smell the odor when she walks into the room, so it isn't our imagination. We have stopped caring about it at this point and it is somewhat better than it was to begin with. She also apologized for forgetting to bring us dinner menus. She wrote herself a note, then neglected to read it, so she forgot. DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Traditional
Main Fares are also available: DESSERT We had sent a birthday card to Augusto through the front desk before dinner and he had received it already. So, he was at the door waiting for us when we arrived. His intention was to keep his birthday a secret from the crew, but we blew his cover. Since they routinely do that to us, it is about time we could return the favor. He came by the table and chatted for quite a while, something we have missed since he hasn't been our headwaiter lately. One great bit of news he told us is that the Baked Alaska Parade on the last formal night is history. Word came down from on high that it was to be stopped as of last week. So, the final formal menu is now the French Dinner. We're not huge fans of that particular menu, but it is certainly better than sitting through another flambé parade. The official reason for discontinuing the practice is that it presents a fire hazard. Whatever the reason, we're glad to see it go. This was probably the best overall meal we have had during the cruise. The lobster spring roll was outstanding on its own, although the sauce with it was extremely salty. Both soups were excellent, as was the salad. The pasta was also very good. Both entrees were outstanding, as well. The fish portion was actually quite reasonable and had a tasty, slightly sweet crust, but the filet was very small with almost nothing on the plate with it. It tasted good, however. We had considered the crab cakes, but decided against them after discussing the options with Jerry. We're so glad to have a waiter who doesn't tell us that everything is wonderful whether it is or not. Everyone knows that every single item can't be the best thing on the planet, so we can't fathom the point of pretending they are. The dining room was sparsely populated tonight, so we had plenty of opportunities to chat with Jerry, Zdenko, Augusto, and even Franz. We had forgotten how long our dinners last when we have people to talk to. We didn't leave the dining room until 10:45 PM and we weren't having an involved conversation or anything like we were last night. Mostly the conversations were sprinkled throughout the evening so time passed between courses. We didn't notice it at all because we were busy talking, but we're sure Jerry was waiting to deliver the food while someone or other was standing at the table talking to us. As they say, time flies when you're having fun. Tonight's entertainment is a substitute for the previously scheduled "That's Dancin'", which is an incredible show. However, we now get what Gary described as a "new" production of "Some Enchanted Evening". We saw this revamped flop of a show on the Harmony and although it is better than it was when it debuted several years ago, there are still some very annoying numbers in it. At least now it is usually somewhat tolerable. The first fifteen minutes are quite a bore, but we were late and only had to sit through five minutes of it. There is also a very annoying number from South Pacific set to a jazz beat, during which we actually heard snickers from the audience. The next ending is spectacular and somewhat makes up for the boring aspects of the show. There are some inspired moments throughout and this revised version is much better than it was originally. This ensemble cast is very talented and they do the absolute best with the material that is possible. We stopped by the front desk for change after the show and were told that Ronnie was beside himself over the belated birthday card we sent him earlier. We were also told about Augusto's birthday being uncovered by the delivery of our card, which the front desk woman thought was the greatest thing ever. Back at the room, we found a lovely note from Nikki welcoming us back, along with a gift of Sees chocolates. She is always very gracious and we can't say enough about how wonderful we think she is. She has to be the epitome of what Crystal is all about. We move an hour back on the clock tonight. It was slightly rocky over night and into the day, although we have no idea why. The sea appeared perfectly calm all day and it wasn't terribly windy that we were aware of. There was a Sunday Jazz Brunch in the Crystal Plaza from 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM in place of the usual Gala Luncheon Buffet. We did wander down to look at it and the food selection was much more interesting than the Gala Buffet, but we went up to the Lido for lunch anyway. We were happy to find Eggs Benedict on the buffet there, also, so we didn't miss anything important. The Lido had only one line open and it wasn't crowded, but it wasn't deserted either. The only disappointment among the offering was a very dry chicken breast. Otherwise, everything we chose was very good to outstanding. The poolside entertainment was extended today due to the pleasant weather, so we sat outside in the shade until 2:30 PM. The pool water was sloshing violently, so it was closed to swimmers and covered with a net. That didn't keep kids and adults out of the two Jacuzzis though. Some of the kids kept pushing a beach ball out of the spa and then called out to guests to hand it back. Much to the credit of their mother, she came over and took the balls away when they went too far and asked a stranger to fetch it for them. We had haircut appointments at 3:30 PM, but it had become a bit chilly outside by 3:00 PM, so we wandered down to look at the welcome aboard party photos, then went down to say hello to Andrew at his desk in the lobby. That nicety over, we went up to the salon for our haircuts, which were find and cheaper than at home. The salon on this ship appears to have been decorated on the cheap and is nowhere near as attractive as those on Symphony. There's nothing wrong with it, it just isn't quite as well done. After our haircuts, we went outside for some ice cream and chatted more with Linda about the appalling service from Crystal's office. She said she had a lengthy conversation with one of the executives about it and he was suitably appalled. She didn't tell us what she complained about, but when we told her what happened when we tried to cash in this milestone, she wasn't at all surprised. Lucky for everyone, the service on the ships is near perfection or they'd really be in trouble. There was a classical piano concert at 5:30 PM in the Palm Court featuring Avner Arad. He is on just about every cruise we take, so your chances of seeing him on any given Crystal cruise are pretty good. We did not attend the performance. There were constant, gentle reminders from the cruise director that tonight is formal attire and everyone should dress accordingly for the concert even though it is at 5:30 PM (the dress code applies after 6:00 PM). Tonight's dress code is Formal. There was a Crystal Society party at 7:45 PM in lieu of a Captain's Farewell party, which is a first for us. We ran into Thomas Mazloum, a Crystal executive from the Los Angeles office, and ended up talking to him in the lobby and at the party for quite a while. We wanted to make an effort to praise the crew of the Harmony on the farewell voyage, something he was pleased to hear. Otherwise, we chatted about the nightmare of remodeling since we both are going through it. At least we know we aren't alone! We have a very high opinion of Thomas because he always appears to be very interested in improving the ships. He has always treated the crew with respect, as well. He listens when guests talk and doesn't offer lame excuses. He's a winner in our book. Thomas told us that all of the changes to the Harmony were made during the Victoria dry dock because NYK felt that Crystal was more familiar with the intricacies of the ship than they would be in Japan. He said it was an incredible feat to complete all of that in such a short time, but that it was all done. Today was the day it was to officially transfer to the Japanese. The rest of the time out of service has more to do with re-registering the ship in Japan and a never-ending bureaucracy than anything else. We also had a pleasant conversation with Nikki and Andrew. Nikki had to wend her way through an obstacle course of guests and chairs to get to our location, but we felt it was worth it. We had already told Thomas that Nikki is who we think of when we think of Crystal Cruises. That seemed to please and/or astonish him. We also feel that Andrew does an extraordinary job as the Crystal Society Host. He speaks well at the parties and is very well organized, in addition to being personable. The farewell dinner is the French Menu rather than the previous formal menu featuring the Baked Alaska Parade. As mentioned previously, that tradition has been discontinued. Our dinner was in Silk Road again, but here is the French menu anyway. CAPTAIN'S GALA DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES Upon your request, these Traditional Main
Fares are also available: DESSERT SILK ROAD MENU A P P E T I Z E R S S O U P S D E S S E R T S Dinner in Silk Road tonight was much more pleasant than it was the first night, but it still isn't quite up to what it was when the ship first started. The rock shrimp tempura, usually a highlight, was lukewarm and slimy tonight, both as an appetizer and in the Nobu Box entree. The lobster spring roll is a total bore. It tastes of nothing other than hot oil, besides which we only got one tiny roll rather than the usual two. The Nobo Box contained the lobster, cod and the previously mentioned rock shrimp tempura. Everything was excellent except the tempura. The black cod entree was outstanding, but the only thing on the plate was the small serving of fish, one berry sort of fruit thing (maybe a small Lichee?) and a sprig of lemongrass. The beef was much better tonight, but still way too fatty for real kobe beef. As always, the dessert cake with the sesame ice cream was unusual and extraordinary. Service wasn't as over the top tonight, a definite improvement. We were asked the appropriate number of times if everything was fine and were groveled over only in a reasonable way. Now if they can replace the incredibly uncomfortable chairs we'll be happy. Our food wasn't rushed to us at a dizzying pace either, so we had plenty of time to digest between courses without it taking too long to get out of there. In fact, we had just the right amount of time to allow for a pitstop at our room on the way to the Galaxy Lounge for tonight's show. Tonight's production show is "Curtain Call". We are probably the only people in the world who don't adore this show, although we didn't find it as tedious tonight as we usually do. The cast on this voyage is particularly talented, so that alone improves every show we have seen. We have figured out the main reason we don't care for this production is because it follows such an obvious formula to garner excitement from the audience. Besides which, the shows they have chosen to represent aren't exactly the most current. The newest being "Mama Mia", which wasn't exactly a smash hit on Broadway to begin with. The best part was when the pyrotechnics at the end set the stage on fire and nearly a dancer as well when he attempted to put it out by stomping on it. It was actually a very tiny fire and it did go out on its own before Gary got up to make the closing announcements, but it was enough to fill the corridors with a light haze and summon a security officer from the bridge to investigate. There is a bit of movement tonight as the evening gets later. It isn't anything unusual at all, but noticeable because it has been absolutely smooth sailing until late last night. Something unusual to note is that we have not received any disembarkation information as of tonight and nothing has been mentioned in the Reflections about it. We think that is nice because it doesn't appear that the cruise is ending quite as quickly. Tomorrow is certainly soon enough to give out that information and to announce the inevitable crack-of-dawn call for the immigration inspection. We move an hour back on the clock tonight. Monday, January 9th – cruising the pacific ocean Today's weather is much cooler than it has been, chilly actually. The sky is as clear as it has been, except for occasional patches of fog now and then. The sea is a bit wavy, so there is a bit of movement, but nothing out of the ordinary. There was an American Classic theme buffet around the Neptune pool today, so we went to the dining room for lunch. The chilled banana soup with chocolate foam was very good. The BLT with melted cheddar sandwich of the day was good, but nothing special. After lunch we went up to listen to the band by the Seahorse pool until they finished at 2:30 PM. It was definitely time to go inside by then. It was freezing outside with the wind chill factor. Our intention was to look for the photo taken last night, but the photo shop was closed until this evening, so we went back to the room, watched old movies on TV and filled out our QAP forms. Tonight's entertainment is a farewell show featuring vocalist Michel Bell and a closing number by the Crystal ensemble. It was presented at 7:00 PM, before dinner. They do this on the last night so guests can get to bed early. Michel is a gifted vocalist, but we have seen him on at least 80% of the Crystal cruises we have been on. However, he does vary his musical selections sufficiently to make it worthwhile to see him again. The ensemble's portion was the tail end of the usual closing show and was less than five minutes long. This leads to them walking out of the lounge and then standing along the exits wishing farewell to the departing guests. They do as good a job at that as is possible, but it is rather unnecessary and causes a traffic jam. We finally received information about immigration procedures for Los Angeles tomorrow. It seems the ship has lucked out and will be at the main terminal where immigration takes place off the ship. That means we don't have to be ready to go ashore for that chore until 9:15 AM. The letter warns that we may not be allowed back on board for up to an hour, however. We doubt it will be that long, but it doesn't make much difference to us one way or the other. After the show we had about 30 minutes to kill, so we went up and sat in Palm Court after dropping off our QAP forms at the front desk. It is so foggy tonight that the ship's foghorn blows every few minutes. We're glad we don't have to navigate in this weather, especially when arriving in as busy a port as San Pedro. Tonight's dress code is Casual. The dining room was less than half full tonight and we were Jerry's only table. DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Traditional
Main Fares are also available: DESSERT We were quite satisfied with our entire meal tonight. The only boring aspect of it was the salad, which was fresh, but nothing unusual. We wisely substituted balsamic vinaigrette for the watery Bella Vista dressing that usually comes with it on this menu. The watermelon gazpacho was the best interpretation yet. It was thick and tasty with quite a variety of fresh fruit flavors. That addition of a tiny scoop of sorbet was a nice touch. The pasta was tasty, too. The sweet and sour pork was substantially better than it was on the Harmony, but it could still use some improvement. Even so, it was good enough. We both had ice cream for dessert much to Jerry's disappointment. Linda came over and joined us to chat for a while around dessert time, then we stopped on the way out to chat with she and Laura, her traveling companion on this trip who also lives nearby. We had a jovial conversation with them, then stopped to chat with Augusto at the dining room entrance. He still hasn't recovered from the birthday commotion we caused. In general, we talked about food outside of the ship and other personal things we always talk about with him. However, that all resulted in us killing enough time that we could go up to the room and get ready for bed. Prior to stopping for a chat we had no clue what we would to until we weren't too stuffed to go to bed. We confirmed with Leo that we will keep Jerry and Zdenko for the next cruise. Also, we were told that embarkation night with not be the usual open seating and that everyone will be seated at their assigned table. That's a first and definitely a welcome improvement, assuming it lasts. We have always felt that starting off with chaotic open seating wasn't the best way to start a luxury cruise experience. Almost everyone has a table assignment upon arrival, so we never under the point of open seating for just the first night. Our call time for immigration tomorrow morning is to meet in the Hollywood Theater at 9:15 AM. Once all of the in-transit guests have gathered, we will be herded into the terminal to pass through immigration. We have been warned that there may be a delay of up to an hour before we can return to the ship, but if the departures go as scheduled we expect the wait will be minimal. In any case, we are so glad we are not among those departing tomorrow. Six days isn't even worth leaving the house for as far as we're concerned. Internet service was disconnected completely tonight, so we could not update the diary tonight. The last time we were on back-to-back cruises we never had an interruption between cruise segments. It isn't that big of a deal since the service has been quite reliable and speedy on this ship so far. It is definitely faster than the snails pace of dial-up service offered previously. Tuesday, January 10th – Los Angeles, CA, USA – Arrive 7:00 AM – Depart 5:00 PM Spectacular natural surroundings combined with the
vitality of a creative and artistic community make Los Angeles one-of-a-kind.
Sunshine, majestic palm trees and the sandy beaches of the Pacific share the
spotlight with L.A.'s glamorous movie industry and its world-famous celebrities. We heard the fog horn on the breakwater around 5:00 AM, so we knew the ship was arriving on time. There were absolutely no announcements of any kind this morning, so we assumed our meeting time for immigration was still set for 9:15 AM in the Hollywood Theater. Our first breakfast on board this trip was in the Lido. Everything was fresh and tasty, although we find it odd that Crystal's newest ship doesn't offer the made-to-order waffles the others have always had. The ones from the buffet are sufficient though. There are omelets and eggs cooked to order. After breakfast we had a bit of time to kill, so we stopped by the room, then wandered down to wait to be taken ashore. We had to wait until after 9:30 AM because some of the in-transit guests didn't arrive on time, most of whom were lecturers and not guests. As usual, we were shocked at how dippy people can be. All of the papers given to us yesterday clearly explain what we will be doing, but nonetheless, almost all of the arrivals had to ask the same questions over and over again. We're mostly amazed that the staff member in charge had enough patience not to scream. Once everyone was gathered, about twenty five people, we were herded into the terminal and left in the lines for the immigration officers. After the usual pointless questions, "What country are you a citizen of?", "Do you have any liquor with you?", etc., we were guided down the escalators to the street level, outside, along the sidewalk and back in to the terminal at the opposite end. From there is was back up another set of escalators where we were told to have a seat to await clearance for the ship when we could go back aboard. While we were waiting, Linda and Laura came back to wait to get back aboard to meet some clients, so we chatted with them while we waited. Eventually, a large group of travel agents arrived and were given gift bags while they waited. We finally decided that guests shouldn't be kept waiting behind the travel agents, so we decided to use our power for evil and make our way back on board. It would have been nice if someone had announced to the guests waiting to board that the ship had been cleared, but at least we got back on before the crowd of tour groups made it. ESCAPE TO SURF AND SAND Back on board, we chatted with Danzyl in the stairwell for a few minutes, then went up to sit out by the pool until lunchtime. After making a couple of phone calls, we went in to the Trident Grill for a cheeseburger and grilled ham and cheese sandwiches. We could have gone to the dining room, but we figured it would be full of all of the travel agent groups touring the ship at the moment. At noon, new guests began to arrive, several of them disgruntled because there was not a "sit down" lunch served, "Like they have on all the other ships." We can only surmise that they were too busy complaining to realize that the dining room was open for lunch until 1:30 PM. We start off this cruise with about $750 remaining in shipboard spending credit carried over from the previous segment, plus the following:
Note that we received absolutely nothing from Crystal Society. No wine, no flowers, no credits, nothing. That will be the norm from now on. After lunch we needed naps to make up for lost sleep this morning, so we went back to the room and rested for a couple of hours. We decided that because we hadn't been counted at the first lifeboat muster that we should show up for this one also. It was held at the usual 4:15 PM. When we arrived and checked in, the staff member there said that since we were in-transit that we didn't have to be there, so we left. But, only after making sure he counted us this time. It was time for a snack of ice cream, so we went up to get some while waiting for the sailing at 5:00 PM. The Seven Seas Voyager left promptly at 5:00 PM, but we had a few late arrivals and didn't depart until about fifteen minutes later. Other than that, the departure was as usual. Today's weather is perfection, but it immediately because too cold to stay outside once the ship was underway. At that point we moved to our verandah until the ship left the breakwater. Outside of our door, we met our new stewardess, also named Tatiana, who seems pleasant. After that we were done until we had to emerge for dinner in the dining room. There was a stewardess party going on outside of our door when we opened it, but we couldn't hear them at all with the door shut. Well, party is an exaggeration. There were two besides Tatiana, but she wasn't participating, just standing there looking very sleepy. The other two were rollicking over some photos they had just received. That killed enough time that we didn't have to bother finding a place to go before dinner, so we just went down and wandered around the lobby area until the dining room opened. A huge crowd of Japanese guests was waiting outside of the entrance, but they didn't move when the doors opened. Everyone eventually made there way around them to get into the dining room. Since we have the same table for this cruise, we did not need an escort to our table. Tonight's dress code is Casual. We were pleased to see that they really were using the seating assignment, as promised. It certainly does eliminate a lot of confusion on the first night. BON VOYAGE DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Tradition Main
Fares are also available: Grilled Filet Steak Served with DESSERT Once again, we had an excellent meal overall. There was nothing below average tonight and several items were outstanding, particularly the chicken entree and the strawberry soup. The shrimp appetizer was imaginative and very good, as well. We have no clue what made the cheesecake "Creole", but it was good in general. Franz vowed to find out why they call it that, since he didn't have a clue either. We had conversations with just about everyone we know in the dining room tonight, Augusto, Franz, Leo, Jerry, you-name-it. All of that was entertaining for us and it took enough time that we didn't mind not having a show to attend after dinner. Today's immigration procedures was the topic of conversation. We discussed the hassles for crew members and heard a few amusing stories about unfortunate staff who didn't quite follow the rules. Jerry was very gracious about the extra gratuity we added for him. He is one of the few who make an effort to acknowledge receiving anything and it is very much appreciated. Tonight's entertainment, which was presented before dinner, is the usual Welcome Aboard Show with a scene from "A Chorus Line" and "Grand Hotel", interspersed with a video tour of the ship narrated by the cruise director. We did not attend the show. We received an invitation for a Crystal Society dinner tomorrow night in Silk Road with Nikki and Andrew. We move an hour forward on the clock tonight. Today's weather is very pleasant with smooth sailing and cool temperatures the order of the day. It is sunny, but still a bit on the chilly side, somewhat below 70. There is a Nuevo Latino buffet around the Neptune Pool this afternoon, so, as usual, we skipped it and went to the dining room. We were served by Nada, a waitress who came over from the Harmony. We were aware of her, but had never actually been served by her. She was thrilled when we told her that everyone was always raving about her. She said, "I thought everyone felt I was pushy and a tyrant." She may be, but she does it with a smile and has a style all her own. Her assistant was also very personable. Everything we ordered for lunch was very good. The creamy tortilla soup, billed as "spicy", isn't spicy at all, but it is nonetheless a very good soup. Nada told us we should at least sample the lasagna, so we ordered it as an appetizer portion and it was quite nice. Both entrees were very good, also, the Monte Cristo sandwich and Chicken Enchiladas. The Boston Cream Pie for dessert was the same as during the last cruise, "fresh" from the refrigerator and somewhat dry. After lunch we went up to sit in the shade by the Seahorse Pool where the band was playing. There were quite a few guests out and about by the pool, but they quickly dissipated once the music ended at 1:30 PM and the buffet was over. By 2:30 PM it was too chilly to stay outside, so we moved to the room for the afternoon. While we were outside we were constantly greeted by the friendly deck stewards. We asked Benjamin who was left on Symphony and he told us that only two of them came here, so everyone else is still there. He mentioned Norman, Allen, and Carmelo, all of whom we know very well. At least there will be some familiar faces still there if we get back to that ship next year as we intend. We have never figured out where all of the guests disappear to on this ship. The pool area during the buffet was reasonably populated, but as soon as everyone left, they vanished. We rarely run across anyone in the stairwells or anywhere else except right before lunch or dinner. This cruise is nearly full, so we know there are a lot of people around somewhere. Back in the room we found a Bon Voyage gift, a box of See's Truffles from Crystal Society. Tonight's dress code is Formal for the Captain's Welcome Gala. There is the usual cocktail party for all guests in the Palm Court at 7:30 PM. We were invited to a Crystal Society dinner by Nikki and Andrew tonight in Silk Road, so that's where we will be after the party. We have printed that menu several times during the previous segment of this journey, so if you are interested in viewing it again, go back a few days. The dining room menu is reprinted below. CAPTAIN'S GALA MENU APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD SHERBET PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES Upon your request, these Traditional Main
Fares are also available: VEGETARIAN SELECTION DESSERT The Captain's Welcome Party was as usual and well attended, as always. Nikki came to get us when the party was over and we joined Andrew as we walked to Silk Road from the party. When we sat down, Willy proudly announced that they finally received their new chairs. Thank God! They are not the most comfortable still, but at least we could sit there without getting a backache. To say dinner with Nikki and Andrew was delightful would be an understatement. Nikki ordered a nice array of sushi and sashimi to start with, but the conversation was the highlight of the evening. We barely noticed the food. Both Andrew and Nikki do a great job at their respective assignments, but beyond that they are very nice people, as well. Since we have known Nikki forever, we are always excited to catch up on things. Tonight's after dinner entertainment is the production show, "Million Dollar Musicals". We arrived at the show just as it was ready to start. As mentioned previously, this is still the best show overall, but we have seen it too many times. The choreography is very imaginative in this production and the costumes are a sight to behold. Nothing stands out as awful as in so many of their other shows and it flows nicely to a bouncy finale. This ensemble and both lead singers are the best we have seen in years. After the show we stopped by the front desk to find out why a birthday card we had sent to a crew member was not delivered. That is very unusual, so we assume something when wrong along the line. The woman at the desk was mortified and said she would look into it in the morning when everyone was there. She was very concerned about the whole thing, as was appropriate. We ended up chatting with her for a few minutes as she reminisced about various antics of Ronnie, the telephone operator and former librarian. Everyone who has been on board any of the ships for a while knows Ronnie. Thursday, January 12th – Cabo San Lucas, Mexico – Arrive 11:00 AM – Depart 8:00 PM Cabo San Lucas is nestled on the southernmost tip of
the Baja Peninsula, where the cool currents of the Pacific Ocean meet the warm
waters of the Sea of Cortez. Commanding rock formations, timeless desert and a
translucent sea provide a compelling introduction to this tranquil resort town.
There was a very loud party going on last night in a stateroom that continued until at least 5:00 AM that we know of. At 2:00 AM it was loud enough that we thought it might be next door, so we opened the verandah door to check. It was below and far aft of us, so it was pretty loud. It didn't bother us particularly, but we're sure the guests in closer proximity were annoyed. We can't remember ever experiencing something like that on a Crystal ship that wasn't quickly stopped. Of course, it could be that no one complained about it, although we find that hard to believe. We have forgotten to mention over the past couple of days a few items of note. The first is that every time we have visited Silk Road it has been full. That is very unusual, especially because we always go on formal nights when the alternatives have traditionally been empty. Part of that has to do with the ability of guests to make reservations online before arrival, but mostly because the ships are much more full than they have been for the past few years. Although we have never been denied a reservation, that is mostly because we always say we will take whatever day and time is available. Guests who have a lot of rules about such things may be disappointed. It has nothing to do with a decline in service, just the logistics of accommodating far more demand from more guests. The fact is that it is first come, first served, so get there early if you want a reservation. Speaking of service, as you know, we are not ones to overlook a decline in much of anything. However, in our opinion, service levels are actually better than they have been in the past and they are certainly more consistent. Any disappointment in seating arrangements or whatever are again a matter of supply and demand. When the ships are full it is harder for the maitre d' to give everyone what they want. That said, we have never seen a maitre d' on any cruise line try harder than Crystal does to accommodate the requests of everyone as much as possible. Unfortunately, space is limited and occasionally someone will be disappointed. To expect you will get what you want 100% of the time is very naive. There are other people here, too, you know, and many of them have way more cruises under your belt than you do. For example, with the arrival of some world cruisers, we have dropped way down the totem pole. That's life! Someone will always be ahead of you at some point. Remember our slow-draining bathtub from last cruise? We were told then that there was nothing to be done about it because all of the rooms are like that. So, we never asked anyone to do anything about it. Well, after mentioning on last cruise's QAP form, our bathroom was miraculously repaired and it drains just fine now. The mildew odor is also much less than it was to the point we wouldn't have complained at all had it not been worse at the beginning. Now, back today. The weather is absolutely perfect. It isn't too hot or too cold and the sun is shining. The temperature shown on TV was 62, but it had to be at least 70 when we were sitting outside the Lido at lunch. Speaking of lunch, it was quite tasty again. Everything we selected was above average. From the population by the pool and elsewhere, we are not the only guests who stay on board in most of these ports. Although the ship wasn't cleared until 11:00 AM, guests were already returning from shore by 1:00 PM. There is nothing wrong with Cabo San Lucas, but unless you are into fishing or sailing, what's the point? Besides, once you have been here twenty times there isn't much novelty left. During lunch, Zdenko stood around talking to us for lack of anything better to do. Then we moved out by the pool where the deck stewards formed a line around us and started fanning us with their trays. Now that was just too much service! They were joking, by the way. We stayed there until it started to get stuffy, so we moved to our verandah where there was a pleasant breeze. The Sapphire Princess was in the bay with us, but only until 2:00 PM when she sailed away. Nonetheless, the bay is full of people riding jet skis and every manner of watercraft one can think of. The armed navy patrol boat is again circling the ship and keeping boaters at a safe distance. Later in the afternoon we went up for ice cream and sat by the deserted Seahorse pool until it got dark. Casual dining is available tonight and for the next following two evenings, by the Neptune pool. Tonight's dress code is Casual. Note that there are no informal nights during this cruise, which is a first. There was one during the previous 6-day cruise, however, so there is no reliable way to know if the ship will follow the preliminary information sent with your documents. By the way, we were told that the headwaiters and maitre d' will now definitely stop anyone arriving at the dining room on a formal night who is not dressed at least minimally appropriately. That would mean a jacket for men, at the very least, in order to dine in public on formal evenings. We have never witnessed this, however, and we have definitely seen men without jackets on those nights in the past, so how strict they really are remains to be seen. We went up to Palm Court before dinner. There was a singles party hosted by the cruise director taking place in half of the room, but it didn't spill over to our area. It's a reasonable idea to have those events. Gary announced that the point was to give single travelers a chance to meet others for shore excursions, dancing, etc., which seems like a good idea to us. The ship left Cabo San Lucas about fifteen minutes earlier than the scheduled departure time of 8:00 PM. For those of you who fret over the amount of time we spend preparing menus for the site, rest assured it takes us only a few minutes each day to do so. These menus have been almost the same for years, so it is a matter of cutting and pasting from a past cruise and changing one or two items, at the most. You needn't worry that we are typing our fingers to the bone. CALIFORNIA DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Traditional
Main Fares are also available: Grilled Black Angus Sirloin, Served with Several menu items tonight were truly outstanding. The lobster enchiladas were to die for. Even the fruit had a great flavor enhanced by whatever was poured over it. The soup was a bit different than it was last week, but nonetheless tasty. The big miss was the pasta course that was way too heavy on the salt and the saffron. Saying the sauce was light was way off the mark. It was dark yellow, sticky and bad enough that we told our headwaiter about it. Last week it was great. Both entrees were excellent, but the prawns were by far the best. The only issue with the sword fish is that it was slightly overcooked. The sauce and everything that came with it complimented the fish nicely. We did not see a dessert menu because Augusto asked us when we came in if it was OK for him to make the caramelized pineapple dessert we taught him during the world cruise. Needless to say, of course it was OK! When he brought it, he made it look at though the pastry chef had sent it out of the kitchen rather than himself because he didn't want to hurt Franz's feelings. That was thoughtful of him. He re-created the dish perfectly and we were quite happy. Jerry was amused at the beginning of the meal. He finally came over to take our order and said we were, "Like movie stars with all those people around you all the time." That is too funny because we have virtually nothing to do with it. We're just sitting there and various crew members come over and talk to us. Tonight it was two headwaiters, the maitre d', and two wine stewards, before Jerry could finally break through to get our order. Jerry had asked us to bring pictures of our house so he could see the progress since the last time we saw him. We brought them tonight and he was so excited he was literally jumping up and down. No kidding, he really was, and Jerry is generally not the type one would expect to do that. Once all of his other guests left, he rushed over to see the pictures. We had to start over three times. First because Augusto came to join in, then Leo, the maitre d', and someone else we have forgotten now. After we were finished, Leo said, "Now I know why you don't want to come on any more world cruises. Who would want to leave that place!" He's quite right, too. After the photo display, Jerry wanted to talk a bit more about some personal things we won't repeat. We're glad he wants to discuss things with us because we do believe he's a good guy and we'd like to help him with whatever advice he asks for. We were again so late that the other waiters were standing around waiting to eat their dinner until Augusto assured them it was OK to eat in our presence. We also told them again that if they got in any trouble that we would fix it for them, so they finally went ahead with their meal while Jerry continued his conversation with us. We wanted to stop by the front desk to thank them for making the effort to find the missing birthday card we had sent a few days ago (it was found and delivered promptly when they looked into it). One of the women said how nice it was of us to make an effort to talk to our waiter, etc. We assured her it was our pleasure to do that and how Jerry had asked for the photos, etc. That prompted her to ask if she could see them, so we went through the whole thing again with the two women at the counter who were beyond thrilled to be included. She told us how meaningful it was when guests make the effort to ask for certain crew members or when they remember details about their lives, etc. We don't do it for any sort of recognition, but only because we genuinely feel that so many of the crew are now friends of ours. Quite frankly, we see most of them more often than we do our family and friends at home. Tonight's entertainment is the "Mysteriaque" presentation we saw last cruise. We did not attend tonight. Even if we wanted to, we were not finished with our various crew conversations until well after the show had ended. Friday, January 13th - Mazatlán, Mexico – Arrive 8:00 AM – Depart 6:00 PM The massive lighthouse of El Faro welcomes you to the
thriving seaport of Mazatlán. Located on a peninsula just south of the Tropic of
Cancer, this fast-developing resort is a fishing and sportsperson's paradise.
Supposedly there are as many fishing boats as tennis courts here! Offshore,
scores of sailfish and marlin frolic in the temperate waters while para-sailors
drift lazily overhead.
There was a weekly crew fire drill this morning at 10:00 AM, so we were awakened fifteen minutes prior by the announcements reminding us not to be alarmed. A few more announcements and alarms continued until about 10:15 AM, but it wasn't terribly disruptive. This is the first day so far that hasn't been sunny. The sky is lightly overcast, so the temperature is quite pleasant. It was a bit too windy to sit on the aft Lido deck this afternoon during lunch, so as soon as we finished eating we moved to the protected pool area. The food in the Lido today was somewhat uninspired, but everything was edible. We stayed out in the shady section of the pool deck for most of the afternoon. Judging by the number of people by the pool and later in the bridge lounge and elsewhere, they either didn't go ashore at all or returned quickly. All we did this afternoon was take a lap around the promenade deck just to say we had been out there at least once. Without the clutter of lifeboats, that area on this ship is quite expansive and really should have some deck chairs. There would still be plenty of width for walking and jogging. We have always thought it odd that Crystal touts its wrap-around promenade, but none of the ships have lounges or chairs on them, except a few at the very back. We received our invitations for the Crystal Society party on the final formal night. So, again, there will be no Captain's Farewell party on the final formal evening. That makes no difference to us, but it is a tradition we believe most guests expect and enjoy. Both the welcome aboard and farewell parties have been eliminated for the Mediterranean season, according to Crystal's website. Along with the revised schedule for dinner and shows before instead of after dinner, we're not so sure it will go over very well with the passengers we know. If we were booked during that time, we would likely cancel. The sailing was at 6:00 PM tonight. Actually, the ship sailed early again, at 5:55 PM. Other than that, it was business as usual. We received a voice mail message informing us that internet service will be down for five hours tomorrow due to maintenance at the office. Tonight's dress code is Casual. We sat in Palm Court for a while before dinner, but other than that we pretty much just got dressed and went to dinner. DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Traditional
Main Fares are also available: DESSERT Once again, we were very pleased overall with our meal choices. The lobster spring rolls were outstanding and far superior in every way to those served in Silk Road. They were also twice the size. Both soups were excellent, as was the spinach salad. The beef entree wasn't cooked medium as ordered, but was otherwise perfect. The crab cakes were much better than expected with a fresh, slightly spicy flavor. However, the portion was microscopic and accompanied by a single red skinned potato and a few very thin triangles of carrots. The bread pudding dessert was very good, but the presentation was rather sloppy for this ship. We discussed the upcoming dining changes with Jerry. He was aware of the time change, but he was appalled by the show being scheduled before dinner for late seating guests. That alone would be enough to keep us off of those cruises, so anyone who wishes to avoid running into us should rush to book now. Jerry doesn't openly criticize Crystal, but he did say he knows many of his regular guests who won't like the changes. We'd say that is an understatement. After dinner we again chatted with Jerry about general family matters we don't feel it would be appropriate to repeat. He was mostly talking about growing up in Poland, his mother, etc. Nothing of interest to the general population, but fascinating for us. The best part of the conversation was that it entertained us long enough that we didn't feel compelled to attend tonight's show. Jerry was very complimentary of his assistant, Zdenko. Well, now he is referred to as his "waiter" and Jerry is the "senior waiter". We have no clue what the point of the title change was and neither does anyone else on board. It is especially exciting trying to figure out the tipping since the changes haven't carried through to all of the printed literature yet. However, with the new titles come slightly higher recommended tipping guidelines for the "waiter", although the actual job description remains the same. We always tip more than the recommended amount anyway, so it isn't of any concern to us what the guidelines are. Tonight's after dinner entertainment is the production show, "Some Enchanted Evening". We were already late leaving the dining room and we stopped by the front desk to get a printout of our bill, as well. So, the show was well underway before we made it to that end of the ship. We did vaguely consider going in, but this show is so boring we thought staring at the wall in the stateroom would be more interesting. We move an hour forward on the clock tonight. Saturday, January 14th - Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – Arrive 8:00 AM – Depart 6:00 PM Embraced by rugged tropical mountains on one side and
the beautiful Banderas Bay on the other, Puerto Vallarta is second only to
Acapulco when it comes to the Mexican Riviera's leading resort cities.
There isn't much to report about today, except that it is hazy and a bit overcast compared to last week. Otherwise, it is pretty much the same as usual. There are no other ships in port with us today. We started with lunch in the Lido again, but didn't have as much luck choosing our food as we have before today. Everything was just OK, nothing special. Last week the tacos were pre-made and sitting in a tray on the buffet. This week they were being made at the salad station, but even so they were inedible. We have no idea why Crystal's chefs can't make something as simple as a taco, but such is the way it has always been. After lunch we chatted for a while with Danzyl, then went back outside for some ship photos to make up a complete tour of the ship. Once we were finished with that, we stopped for an ice cream and cookie snack, turned in our gratuity form at the front desk, and other mundane chores that come along at the end of a cruise. Since we had some shipboard credits left over after tipping all of the usual people, we asked if it was acceptable to tip the front desk, much to the delight of the person serving us there. By the way, yes it is acceptable. That still leaves us with a few dollars to buy something cheap in the shops, assuming there is anything so ridiculous. We watched the sailing from our verandah as the loads of drunken revelers aboard various party boats returned to the pier. The weather was so hazy by evening that it was almost foggy and everything outside was wet with dew. Before dinner we went up to sit in Palm Court for a while, then made our way down to the dining room. Tonight's dress code is Casual. You may recognize tonight's menu as the 50's Dinner, which it is right down to the meatloaf. All that has changed is the name. DINNER APPETIZERS SOUPS AND SALADS PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Traditional
Main Fares are also available: DESSERT Tonight's meal started out well enough, but finished rather poorly. The shrimp cocktail was fresh and tasty, not to mention a rather hefty portion. The fruit appetizer was very attractive with a great variety of fruits served in a martini glass. Both soups were below average, but the corn bisque was by far the worst of the two. We have never understood why they insist on adding the "crisp" leeks that are more like wet grass clipping in taste and consistency. The cold soup was OK, but lacked much flavor. We knew not to expect much from the prime rib and we got what we expected. The meat was very average, the baked potato undercooked, and the vegetable flan was ghastly and inedible. We opted for the frozen yogurt and the pina colada sherbet for dessert, both of which were very good. We spent a lot of time during dinner chatting with Jerry because he had only one other partially filled table besides us. The rest of the dining room was also rather empty, so we were visited several times by Daniel, our sommelier, as well as Franz and Leo. We talked longer with Leo than we ever have at a stretch, although he is always very friendly to us. Since we were already late for tonight's show, we decided to continue our conversation with Jerry. This evening we were not the last guests to leave, however, so we didn't hold up any waiter meals. Even so, we do not initiate these conversations and we're quite willing to leave on time, but we do enjoy talking with Jerry, so if he wants to stay and talk, fine with us. Augusto also stopped by for a minute or so before going off to a crew party. Jerry said he wasn't going to go because it was a weird theme and he thought the men were supposed to dress as women and vice versa. We told him he should at least go by and look at it, but he just wanted to eat dinner and go to bed. Tonight's entertainment was a Crystal Comedy Cabaret featuring ventriloquist (and cruise director) Gary Hunter and comedian Mike Goddard. While we would have liked to see the show, we are always more entertained with Jerry's conversation, so we didn't make it. We move an hour back on the clock tonight. Sunday, January 15th – Cruising the Pacific Ocean Cooler, somewhat blustery weather has descended upon us, as usual for the return to Los Angeles. It's too bad for guests who expected to lay out in the sun on the last two days, but such is life at sea. There was a Sunday Brunch served in the Crystal Plaza this afternoon in lieu of the Grand Gala Buffet. This is a big improvement in our book because there is a far greater variety of food served at the brunch buffet. Even so, we went up to the nearly deserted Lido for lunch. On the gala afternoons, many of the same items are offered in the Lido with far fewer guests around, so it is more pleasant for us. As long as we can get eggs Benedict, we're happy. After lunch we went out and sat by the pool while the band was playing. It was quite windy and cool outside, but not unbearable until we had been sitting there for about an hour. The band was playing to a total of about ten guests who were bundled up in blankets on a few lounges. We chatted with some fellow guests for a few minutes before we decided it was too cold to stay outside any longer. Back at the room we found our disembarkation information along with our preliminary statement. We thought we had spent more of our shipboard credit than we had, so we have to find something to buy to use it up. Our disembarkation time is set for 8:50 AM. We expect that to be reasonably accurate because immigration will take place in the terminal and not on board. That is far more efficient than waiting for everything to be organized on board. At the end of the previous segment, the last guest was disembarked by 9:30 AM. By this time, we were ready to wander down to wait for Nikki's desk hours at 3:00 PM. We stopped by the shops to try to spend the remaining $493 in shipboard credit, but only managed to use up $296. This was after scouring all three shops and finding nothing worth buying. We hadn't inspected the merchandise selection since the shops were turned over to an outside vendor and they did look fine on the surface. However, we found the merchandise to be of substantially less quality and variety than when Crystal managed the shops. The logo wear in Captain's Choice was a very poor selection of overpriced clothing is sizes way too small for most guests. The only items available in XL or larger were leftovers from Crystal's old stock. Let's hope a new batch of merchandise arrives in Los Angeles. We made our bookings for 2007 with Nikki, all of which are tentative while we await confirmation of prices and such. She said it would be a few more weeks for that information and no additional deposits would be due until then. We also voiced our displeasure with the scheduling of shows before dinner with the later dining hours. Apparently we aren't the only ones to mention it because Nikki was quite aware of the guests' opinion of this change already. We were back in the room by 3:30 PM when the captain made an announcement to inform everyone that the ship would be doing some maneuvers in the next hour or so. This is to certify the ship for sailing in tight channels in Scandinavia. He expects to turn 360 degrees, slow down, speed up, etc., so he wanted everyone to be aware of it rather than starting up the rumor mill about what was happening. Since it is slightly rough it could have been an interesting hour. As it turned out, the turning around stuff was practically nothing. The ship nearly stopped once or twice, then sailed in a circle. Here is a photo of the wake as that was going on. Exciting, huh? That was the big thrill for our afternoon. Tonight's dress code is Formal. There is no Captain's Farewell party tonight. Instead, the Crystal Society party will be held at 7:45 PM. The same schedule was used for the previous cruise. We assume this is only because of the short duration of these segments. We did remember to ask Andrew if this was a permanent change, but he didn't know yet. The party was quite crowded and was fine, as usual. With so many world cruisers already on board, the total cruises taken is very high. The highest is 159 or something close to that, and she is here now. FRENCH DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES Upon your request, these Traditional Main
Fares are also available: DESSERT Tonight's dinner was like any other formal French Dinner menu, which is a good thing as far as we're concerned. Not so much for the menu itself, but because there weren't any chef introductions, clapping, marching, or anything else disruptive. The new formal waiter's uniforms are quite classy, also. Gone are the French style aprons on this night. As far as the food goes, it was just fine with some adjustments during ordering. The fruit appetizer was an extravaganza including a paper umbrella and lots of fussy napkin folding, but it did look nice. The portion had to be less than half of the ordinary fruit quantity, however. The onion soup was good, but no more than average. The salad looked nice, but wasn't particularly inspired. The pasta course was outstanding and we would have had it as a main course had we known beforehand. We both had the "traditional" main courses, except instead of the sirloin we requested a fillet, which we got with no problems. Both the fillet and the salmon were good, but the fillet was outstanding and a sizeable portion, too. Dessert was good as always, but not spectacular as it sometimes has been in the past. Tonight's entertainment is the production show, "Curtain Call". We were talking to Jerry again, so we missed the first fifteen minutes of the show. That's not a big loss for us, although this is generally a very good show. We were a bit surprised at how many guests left before the end though. At least the stage didn't catch fire this time. As we have mentioned already, this cast is one of the best we have ever seen on Crystal. It started to get somewhat rocky during the show and even more so after it ended. Still, it isn't as bad as we have experienced in this part of the cruise in the past. Mostly it is the strong wind that is causing the ship to rock. The sky was clear last time we checked, so it isn't particularly stormy. We move an hour back on the clock tonight. Rough seas are the order of the day. Overnight it was sloshy enough to disrupt our sleep a few times, but not enough to cause things to fall from shelves or anything like that. The sky is clear, but it is very windy and cold outside. The American Classic Buffet was scheduled for this afternoon around the Neptune Pool. With the rough weather we expected it to be modified or cancelled, but it went on as usual. However, judging by the crowd in the dining room, many people decided on dining rather than buffet. We stopped by the pool area just to check on things and it was quite chilly. After lunch we returned to the room to find our luggage laid out for packing, as always for this day. So, we took the hint and scraped things into our bags. We did visit with butler Sasa for a few minutes before doing that, but that was our only entertainment for this afternoon. Tonight's dress code is Casual. The Farewell Show is scheduled at 7:00 PM for late seating guests, which, as you certainly know by now, we find very inconvenient. The show will include an act by "Mysteriaque" and comedian Mike Goddard. The "Mysteriaque" duo should stick to their dance routines and drop the illusions. The first "magic" illusion was so poor that it received not a single applause or reaction of any kind. The remaining two illusions were typical tricks with obvious solutions. That said, the dance that accompanied the magic was quite impressive and it is obvious these two are gifted in that regard. Mike did his "Tune the Stewardess" routine we have seen several times, but it was a bit longer this time. He does a good job with the material. The next bit, a supposed mind reader, fell a bit flat. His final routine as himself was hysterical even if we had heard the primary joke several times before. His delivery is outstanding. The ensemble's part of the show was the usual "Time to Say Goodbye" song where they end up outside the lounge to greet guests as they leave. This creates a slight bottleneck in the narrow hallway, but it isn't offensive at all. The show was over about 30 minutes before dinner began, so we went to try one last time to find Ronnie. We thought to call him from the hallway, so he came out and was waiting for us when we arrived at the front desk. Ronnie is, well, Ronnie, so we were very happy to see him and were quite amused, as well. Ronnie knows everything about everyone, so it is impossible to get the best gossip in so short a time. It would take an entire world cruise to catch up with all the dish Ronnie has to offer. Unfortunately, we didn't have that much time because dinner was calling. As it was, we were fifteen minutes late. DINNER APPETIZERS SOUP AND SALAD PASTA SPECIAL SALAD ENTREE MAIN FARES VEGETARIAN SELECTION Upon your request, these Traditional
Main Fares are also available: DESSERT Our meal tonight was quite good and a pleasant way to end the dining experience. Everything we ordered was above average, at least. The sweet and sour pork was outstanding and even better than it was last week. The rhubarb pie was adequate, but that's about all we can say for it. However, one of the cookies in the selection delivered tonight was very good. We spoke at length with Jerry, Zdenko, Daniel, and Georgina, as well as Franz. Jerry swore he would call us when he gets home in February, which we know he will. He did the same thing the last time we saw him, so we believe him when he tells us things like that. He said he would fill us in on how the world cruise gala goes. Crystal usually does a great job with special events, so we expect it will be quite an extravaganza. The dining room was already in a frenzy as the waiters rushed to rearrange the tables for tomorrow's world cruise gala bon voyage dinner. Nobody we have spoken to knows any details except for the general plan of events for the evening. The basics we do know are these. The full world cruisers will embark the ship beginning at noon tomorrow and will go to their rooms. The lobby area will be sealed off so no guests can see any part of it until the gala begins. It will have some sort of theme, but we don't know anything about that. When the evening begins, each guest will be escorted from their stateroom to the Galaxy Lounge for a welcome show. Then they will move en masse to the dining room and see the lobby decor for the first time. There will be dancing in the lobby and Crystal Cove area, as well. After the guests are in the dining room, the entire decor of the lobby will be changed to a different theme, and again dancing will take place. We wonder if it has occurred to anyone among the staff that some guests may have to use the restrooms during dinner. Since they are located by the reception desk, that presents a problem if no one is supposed to see the decor changes. Other than that, we don't have any other information about it. As per usual with these world cruise events, the details are top secret. We recall one world cruise we were on when they didn't even tell us that there was a special dinner for the world cruisers until the day of the event. Although there was still a bit of movement with the ship tonight, it had calmed down considerably from what it was earlier this afternoon and last night. Unless the ship arrives late for some unforeseen reason, we expect to stick to our disembarkation time of 8:50 AM. The last guest to disembark should be around 9:30 AM. Then the mad dash to transform the ship for the world cruise events will begin in earnest. Crystal has both embarkation and disembarkation down to a science. It would be pretty much impossible for it to be any more convenient for the guests. We were up and at breakfast by 8:00 AM in the Lido. Since there isn't a mad rush for everyone to vacate their room at once, there are no crowds or lines anywhere. Ruel and Jun fawned over us, as usual, with Ruel asking if we could say hello to his friends on the Symphony when we go there. We said we would, and we will. Breakfast was fine except that the pastries were on the stale side, as they have been all along. They're not inedible, just not as fresh as they should be. Back at the room, we called Danzyl as he requested us to do, and he rushed down to say goodbye and chat. He was hoping to go ashore today, but he was dreaming when he came up with that plan. Although the crew didn't have any information about the boarding world cruisers, we know from experience that there is no way anyone on board will have a day off today or tomorrow. We had told him that before, but he didn't believe us. Now he does! By the time we finished chatting with Danzyl, our meeting time for disembarkation was past, so we just walked right off the ship, through immigration in the terminal, and out to the parking lot. We were home within two hours of leaving the ship. Who could ask for an easier disembarkation that that? Overall, we were very satisfied with this combination of cruises. Service was outstanding and we have no major complaints that affected our experience particularly. We're not sure this cruise would be worth the cost had we paid full price, but for what we did pay there isn't anything to complain about. We saw no decline in service levels. In fact, the service on this ship seemed even more friendly and attentive than what Crystal is already famous for. That said, all is not perfection, however. Only a few of the current issues affect our travel plans, but they are on our mind when planning for the future. Cutbacks and penny-pinching are quite obvious on board these days. The portions served in the dining room are one-third the size they used to be. Of course, one may always ask for more, but it used to be much easier to get larger sizes without always having to beg for them. We have never been turned down for anything in the dining room, but we are aware that there is now a limit on how much lobster or caviar one may order and it may not be available unless it is on the menu already or preordered. What that limit is or whether it applies to everyone, we do not know, but we are aware of it. Long gone are the days when your headwaiter would come around with extra servings of crab legs or lobster without being asked. None of this would be apparent to anyone new to Crystal, so it probably isn't a terrible decline. But, all of that coupled with the extreme cutbacks to the Crystal Society benefits is a slap in the face to any frequent Crystal guest. We still believe Crystal is the best available, but it wouldn't take much more of a slide to change that opinion. Some of the issues on this ship in particular have to do with an extra layer of bureaucracy. Rather than your stewardess having direct access to something as simple as a rubber shower mat, she must request it from someone else or at the very least get approval for it. That leads to the first answer being, "I'll try," or, "Maybe tomorrow," rather than, "Of course." Often times, we have found that they will say something is impossible when in fact they just don't want to go through the hassle of getting it. We found that out with the mildew issue and the slow shower drain. Those things were "impossible" to fix until we wrote them in the QAP form and they were miraculously repaired the next morning. Had we been the type to complain to the Hotel Director, of course, it probably would have been repaired quickly enough, but we don't think it should be necessary to do that on a ship of this ranking. We believe the entertainment department needs to be totally revamped from top to bottom. The only good thing about it was that the ensemble and lead singers were outstanding. However, there hasn't been a totally new production show in two years. The one show they tout as new is just a compilation of bits and pieces from Crystal's old shows and "Some Enchanted Evening" is a modified version of a previous flop. We have seen the same headline acts, lecturers, etc., on almost every cruise we have taken in the past three years at least. Some of the lecturers have been here as long as we can remember. Many of them have topical subjects that change often enough, but many of them say essentially the same thing every single cruise. We also believe that if Crystal wants to attract a new and younger demographic that they need to get more dynamic speakers in addition to the usual suspects. As far as the headliners, for the most part they are very talented performers. But, how many times can you hear the exact same repertoire without getting tired of it? We're not exaggerating when we say we have seen some of these acts verbatim perhaps ten times already. If we stayed on board for cruise after cruise, that might be fine, but we have gaps of several months or more between cruises. Guess what? When we come back they have the same acts on board. Even though we weren't thrilled with "Mysteriaque", at least it was something different. Besides the tiny portions in the dining room, the menus are getting very tired. Some of them haven't changed much in the ten years we have been cruising with Crystal. How about just mixing them up a bit so we can't tell the day of the week by the menu? Crystal's claim that the menus never repeat is ridiculous. We can't imagine how anyone can even say it with a straight face. Well, technically they may not be exactly the same. A couple of times the fruit appetizer was different from week to week, topped with orange segments one time, and bananas another. But, in our book at least, that isn't enough of a change to count as a new menu. We were most amused by the final formal dinner that was called a Gala Farewell menu during the first segment and the French Dinner on the second. The only change was in the description of some items was changed to French, such as "haricots verts" instead of "sautéed green beans". On both days, the items served were identical. It has occurred to us that perhaps the real problem at the moment is that too many changes were implemented all at once. When they cut back the Crystal Society benefits, that was one thing, but to penny-pinch at the same time makes it all the more obvious. While soft drinks and bottled water are now complimentary, the price of alcoholic beverages and wine has risen. Not to mention that the fares have crept up with Crystal Harmony's value fares out of the picture. From our perspective, there aren't enough improvements to justify a big fare increase and certainly not the disparity between Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity. Our solution to that is to go back to Crystal Symphony for next year and forget about Serenity for a while.
Unfortunately for us, most of our longtime Crystal
friends are assigned to Crystal Serenity. We will miss them for the time
being, but we'll be back someday, as always, but we'll rekindle the friendships
we had among the crew Crystal Symphony in the meantime. Crystal Serenity Photo Tour- Click Here
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