Althought ZVS says our Visa's will be delivered to us by Dec. 19th for our SA cruise I will be so glad and relieved when it finally gets here!

I'm supposed to pick ours up from the Brazilian Consulate on Monday. Fortunately, it is located half a block from my office here in DC and the process was relatively painless--and relatively cheap.

--------------

Eugene

Eugene,
You are so lucky to be near a Brazilian consulate! I am amazed at how much it is costing us for 2 days in Rio. Can't imagine how Brazil will handle all this for the Olympics if they don't change their requirements.

Sally

My understanding is that Brazil does this because we do it to Brazilian citizens visiting the United States. I haven't checked this out, but that's what I was told. Also, the visas are good for 5 years, so if you're going back within that period, you don't have to go through this all again.

--------------

Eugene

Dear friends - It is indeed an issue of reciprocity. Brazil charges the same fee for its visa as the U.S. does for Brazilians coming to the states. I am certainly not at all patient with the preposterous situation wherein the Brazilian consulates across the U.S. use different forms and have totally varying timetables for processing visas. However, we should bear in mind that it is far more onerous for a Brazilian to obtain a visa to visit the U.S. than it is for us to visit Brazil. All things considered, our few days in Rio prior to boarding Voyager were delightful and emphatically rendered any lingering annoyances we'd harbored concerning the Brazilian visa process as mere white noise. Rio is indeed "a cidade maravilhosa", the marvelous city!! Tchau, Fred

Thanks for the info - I had no idea.

I don't know about everyone else but things are really starting to come together on our Llama cruise for Ron and I. ZVS said we should have our passports/visas in hand this Saturday, Ker&Downey said they will be sending our detailed itinary for pre-cruise Machu Picchu trip in a week, our flights from Atlanta to Lima and return flight from Rio to Atlanta look to be only about half full all that is left is our cruise docs!

Got our cruise documents and visa's - don't know about everyone else, but we are really excited!

We are doing the doc dance - we got our documents today also. Yea

Carolyn and Don

:banana: :banana: :banana:

To all on this cruise, hope you will remember your friends back home when you are on the cruise! Since you don't have to deal with the boot room and excursions in Antarctica, I hope all will send along their pictures and tell us what you do aboard without Zodiacs!

Also send pics of the Chilean Fjords, my first cruise with Ngaire and Ken. I think you will have warmer weather than we did.

Enjoy the doc dancing. Can't wait to read about this cruise.

Are Dixiechick and us the only ones that have received our docs. I hope all of us on LLAMA are doing a doc dance tonight on New Years Eve.

Great picture, Carolyn :)

Paul and I have our docs, but no visa yet. :eek: Because Paul had a business trip where he needed his passport, we were only able to send ours in about 10 days ago. Supposedly we will have them back by 1/18--cutting it very close. I will be hyperventilating between now and then.

For you previewing pleasure, the LLAMA pin :)

Love, love, love it. I have a poncho that looks just like the one on the pin. From the 60's.

Carolyn

That is a great pin! The B&K folks get better and better with the pins!
Is it too late to sign up....I love the pin!!! LOL

Looks great. Can't wait to wear it. Starting to think about what to pack for this itinerary, including a pre-cruise to Machu Picchu.

In the Big Apple for New Years, which is always an experience. Seeing a couple plays and saw "Avatar" in Imax 3D--visually extraordinary.

Happy New Year everyone.

------------------

Eugene and Gail

We get on the Mariner January 10 along with Jan and Fred. Looking forward to seeing everyone. We'll warm up the ship and keep the light on for you. See you in Lima!

Olivia, we never wished you a Bon Voyage! Glad you made it safely to Rio. I know you'll have a great time cruising from Rio to FLL. I guess this is kind of a post Llama cruise ??

Send seamail if you have a chance. So happy you'll be with Peggy & Jerry too. Happy Cruising!! :bv:

Olivia,
I think Jan & Fred and Jan & Harry are still on the Mariner.
Jim

I guess we have to call it Post-Llama now since most of our fellow Llamas have abandoned ship. There are a few of us left (Jan and Harry, Rich and Ann, Linda and Chris and June) and the good news is, we've added Olivia to the group. We had a nice warm day in Rio yesterday--some would say it was hot. We met Olivia up on the pool deck and then went back there later to watch the spectacular sail away out of Rio.
The interesting new happening onboard is the two dance troups--one from Brazil and one from Argentina. They'll be turning Horizon Lounge into Club Copacabana at night as long as we're in Brazil. We had an eyepopping Samba show in there last night--girls with long hair and longer legs--not to mention other attributes! The Argentine Tango group will be performing at this segment's verson of Dinner and a Show in Signatures. Lots of fun to look forward to, but we already miss our Llama friends: Jan, Fred, Don, Carolyn, Ngaire, Ken, Susan B, Paul, Gail,Eugene, Mary Elaine, David, Sally, Ron, Susan W, John--hope you all had an easy trip home.

Boy can the Brazilians dance...I remember seeing them in the past and they sure put on a show. Thanks for reporting in Peggy.

There you are, Peggy! :bv: , Olivia - have a great cruise!

Kristin, the Fort Worth weather in January and February is the reason we're in South America :cool: We had a nice day in Salvador de Bahia today. Olivia, Jerry and I just walked around a bit and then came back to the ship. Now we have a couple sea days before an overnight in Fortaleza. The ship has a special event there--I'll let you know how it is. There's the big barbeque on deck tonight, so we'll probably have Compass Rose to ourselves. (I can do buffets at home--NOT!) We will go up on deck and watch the Brazilians after dinner though.

Peggy, you sound just like us - we avoid buffets like the plague. And love it when we have a nearly empty, quiet restaurant to dine in.

Enjoy those sea days - I am so envious!!!

Checking in now, very late at night, as I have a tour early tomorrow. Yes, Peggy and I avoid buffets like the plague! Others love them. Glad we have our choices on the ship. Nice to have Peggy on this ship....been on since 2/23 and haven't yet walked into Verandah until early dinner tonight before a ballet dance show off the ship.

Oh my, it has been HOT! I think weather makes such a difference in anyone's cruise experience if they take long excursions in ports when it is hot and have one thing or another physically that limits them. The day Peggy was talking about, I was on my way down on an elevator to get on the bus and some lady said she was going down for the "waitlist group". Pulled out my ticket and said "TAKE MINE!" She was happy, I was happy, and Regent was happy to have someone to fill that seat they paid for. I went with Peggy and Jerry and a couple of others, on the H.Stern shuttle. One lady bought a nice piece, so we didn't feel badly taking it down again!

Aside from my complaints about HOT (and that continues everyday, just like COLD on ICE) this has been a wonderful cruise on the first 5 days I've been here. Mariner is in TOP condition for me, from service to food....already know the ship itself. I got on thinking I only knew 2 people aboard, Peggy and Jerry, two of my favorite lct people from many cruises together.....the friendship went beyond that. Anyway, Peggy has introduced me to so many people,...she has a great "gals" team for trivia, they won again today! But none of us won at Bingo yesterday

I think I am the only lct person that just got on this cruise after LLAMA. Of course, Peggy and Jerry still aboard. I'm going to post more as we move along, but have to get up early tomorrow and it is late here

Great to hear from you, Olivia, and , just think, you could be freezing at home! I am SO sick of the cold, LONG winter, for here, that I've been tempted to go somewhere warm, and I don't like heat either, having grown up in Miami!

Hope you will enjoy the rest of the cruise!

Hi Olivia so nice to hear from you.

I found the Mariner to be really running well and enjoyed the food. I am in Lobster withdrawal right now.

Have fun with Jerry and Peggy - Bloody Marys before lunch I am sure.

Kathy, believe me, this is one happy camper. I have slept so much (hey, this is my first 21 day cruise, longest ever.) Who cares if they leave that thing on the door that you need to call for service ("We value your privacy") once the cabin stewards are on break.

Ngaire, honestly, I am going to bed now....but did you ever hear about those Brazilian "fanny ladies" that come onboard for this cruise? I swear, eyeballs dropping out of all the men. Then the Brazilian men come on, same thing for the ladies. These groups have absolutely filled the venues in Horizon and the whole pool deck. I am loving this cruise. No wonder Marcie puts the full SA cruise right up with her WC's as so special.

Hi Olivia,

Sounds great that you're relaxing so much!! But, DO tell more about the Brazilian "fanny ladies" and MORE about the men!! Having followed several "virtual" SA cruises, don't think I've heard those terms before!

Hi Olivia, Glad you're enjoying yourself.If you think it's hot now, just wait for the Amazon and Manaus.
We did this 2 years ago and really enjoyed it.
In Manaus I took the "Meeting of the Waters" tour and really enjoyed it. Those giant lily-pads are something else.
Poor Ray took the "Jungle Trek" and was very dissapointed in it. It teemed rain....he was covered in mud...the only animal he saw was when they "found" a cobra off the path.
So the next day he took a taxi to the local zoo.
Don't think we did anything in Fortaleza, been there before...too hot to do that much.
Continue to have a great time.

Kathy, the "fanny" ladies are the Brazilian ladies I talked about earlier who have long hair and longer legs (plus other attributes both high and low :D ) They perform in Carnival type costumes that include thongs and five inch platform shoes(you get the picture!). Both the Brazilians and the Argentines give dance lessons in the afternoon and sometimes before dinner (whatever latin dance you like... samba... tango...???). Tonight we go to the "Dinner and a Show" in Signatures. We'll have Samba dancing before dinner and Tango after dinner plus tomorrow is a sea day. Life is good!

Hi Olivia, Peggy and Jerry,

Glad you are having such a great cruise. Also, good to hear Mariner is in great shape.

I am putting the SA cruise on my to do list!

Enjoy!

Thanks. Peggy; that's quite a visual! :eek:

GREAT visual, but pictures would be even better! <img border="0" alt="[naughty]" title="" src="graemlins/naughty.gif" /> :D

Kristin, how I wish I had one or two pictures of those ladies to share :eek: , I have been worse about taking pictures on this cruise than ever before. Today we did Highlights of Fortelaza, and we visited a church, a theater (same one many went to last night for the ballet) and a crafts market. Grandbabies give you another new reason to shop when you have tired of it for yourself, especially girls! The little dresses in this craft market today, all hand made, were absolutely gorgeous, so much pretty embroidery and lace.

Tonight, we celebrated an anniversary for Peggy and Jerry in Signatures, with the Dinner and a Show night. Early dinner, then on to Horizons for a special Tango show with a group called the "Pampas Devils" from Argentina, two couples. They were wonderful, but good lord, I don't think lessons in this dance are in my future! Looked like choreographed advanced dance aerobics to me! Back to Peggy and Jerry, I asked him HOW MANY YEARS? Love to pose that ? to men. Well, he didn't know He said about 11 at his last count. They were married on Leap Day, I think 46 years ago! Anyway, dinner was great.....set menu with enough food to feel an army leading up to main course choice of halibut or filet mignon. I am still stuffed.

Tomorrow is a sea day. I have a massage at 11. The other day they had a $99 special for a facial if you came early or late, and I bit on that. At CRanch prices, once you have spent your cabin credit (goes quickly), it is easy to complain and wish for earlier times and spa prices. Hey, supply and demand and what the market will bear. But on this cruise for me, I had choices, nothing sold out on sea days when it is usually so busy.

Funny about those 100% single supps. Today, I booked a cruise, and said to Brian O'Brien, "do you think that awful 100% single supplement will go away for this one? He said, "no 100% on this one." He gave me a rather long list through the year of cruises with reduced ssups that when I left were not on the website, so I guess I missed the update. Who knows, maybe they just jacked it all up to make us singles feel grateful when in fact they raised our prices another 10% above what couples pay per person. I'm a grinch about this, but promise not to beat a dead horse.

Editing to add another comment about the excursions. All inclusive does not include tips for the tour guides, and I have watched people just get off and don't do it. Ngaire has been clear about this with her clients, but it is now noted on the in-cabin channel about excursions. I hope those guides aren't suffering a lot from this. New cruisers may be unaware. They do a good job, no different now from when we paid R for excursions! But their tips are NOT included in the fare.

Olivia, Good to have a newsy seamail for Llama-extension. Glad you are having a good cruise. That is an interesting part of the world.... and hot~hot~hot. Sad to hear that some passengers are short changing the tour guides. They do work hard. Thanks for posting.

WOO HOO Olivia good to hear from you!!!! Peggy and Jerry's night must have been special - congrats P&J!! Oh how Tony loved those dancers - keep enjoying, I think 21 nights is perfect - and I loved the $99 specials (facials for me) - we have yet to book a "free" excursion but always tipped on paid ones - can't imagine not tipping on free ones :rolleyes: :rolleyes: glad the non tippers are being educated ... ENJOY you lucky woman :hug: :hug:

Great to hear from you, Olivia and Peggy! Being on board the Mariner for a relaxing cruise sounds like heaven right now. I'm not a hot-weather person -- I know, I know, I live in the wrong place, at least in the summer -- but this itinerary sounds like it's worth overlooking the temps.

Peggy and Jerry, happy belated anniversary! What a great couple you are, and John and I join in the good wishes for you and look forward to seeing you back here in Texas, with stories galore! By the way, it's misty and chilly today, so go ahead and gloat over your warm and sunny weather. Actually, until today we had several days of glorious sunny weather with just the slightest of chill -- my favorite kind of day in all the year.

Looking forward to more seamail!

So wonderful to hear from you, Olivia!

Hey Peggy and Jerry-wanted to say hi! I can't believe you are still on board and I am on my 4th load of wash. I miss my cabin steward! Happy Anniversary.
Sally

A VERY Happy Anniversary to you, Peggy and Jerry! Seems you are celebrating in great style, compared to us (43rd,) as it's been TOO d--- cold to think about! Hope the remaining cruise is all you want it to be!!

We've started up the Amazon today. Right now we're sailing past an island that's the size of Switzerland, so we can actually see a shoreline. The water is very chocolately--kind of like sailing on a sea of hot chocolate. When we get further up the river past the island, the banks will be up to 30 miles apart, so it will be just like sailing on the ocean except for the chocolatey thing. We've started the pink dolphin lookout--hopefully we'll see some as we get further upriver.
Thanks for all the good wishes. One of the advantages of having an anniversary on leap day is that three out of four years we get to celebrate twice--once on 2/28 and again on 3/1. Last night we had dinner with Ray, the cruise director--always fun. I had Eggplant Parmesan--one of my favorite things. Tonight we go to Prime 7 with Olivia.

Happy Belated anniversary Peggy & Jerry!! I LOVED seeing the pink dolphins in the Amazon...you'll see a lot very soon!

No pink dolphin sightings for me yet, and I even got on the top of the tender coming and going to spot them. Today's port I just LOVED! A little village (I'm going to murder the spelling, I know) Boca de Valeria? Anyway, I had listened to all the info on the ports channel, so I knew what to expect. As reported, two little girls (probably 5 & 7) grabbed each of my hands and started just walking me up the path along the shore that was dotted with sights along the way....the church, some children "dressed" in costumes, small vendors, children with their "pets" (a couple of sloths and some green amphibian things) and at the end, the little girl on my right introduced me to her mother and baby sister! Then I think it was her house I went into (they are all on stilts). Some people onboard, more often the full SA people, have tired of going ashore for places like this...they've been aboard since January. But as a newbie to this part of the world, this is just my cup of tea. We weren't told to strip ourselves of jewelry and watches, and to hold our cash close, no dire warnings to watch out for unsavory ones. Here, it was like the "everything's a dollar" store. A dollar for a picture of the costumed child, dollar for a house tour, dollar for a string of beads, a dollar to each one who held your hand and walked you around. The really expensive "excursion" from the shore was a $5 canoe ride for an hour! This village only has about 75 residents. I think they came from all the neighboring "counties" today to greet us! We saw a big rain cloud that we were sure would hit us, so came back to the ship after about an hour ashore. Any professional or serious amateur photgrapher could have a hey day in this port.

Well back to the ship, I can't remember if I reported this before, but it seems that just before Rio, Steph Armengol (sp?) came aboard for a "listening" visit. It seems from people I have talked to who have been aboard the whole cruise, all suggestions have been addressed. So it is nice to know that there is more than "lip service" given to such comments. For the first time ever in my 25+ cruises on this line, I got a courtesy telephone call in my cabin from the General Manager, and each night I see officers out and about on this ship. Only one I haven't seen is the captain (but then I do sleep my time away most mornings if we are at sea!

Laundry service incredibly fast, unlike the Voyager! Room service prompt every time I've ordered. Special requests for in-cabin bar set up came on same night I requested, while on other cruises has not been delivered until the next day.

The only continuing complaint I have is nothing anyone can control, can't get my AOL email most days in the cabin!

Olivia, something I had to do once was open the door so it is just ajar. Somehow that allowed the wireless to work better. As the door is steal it acts as a barrier. Worth a try at any rate. Does not need to be open much, stick a spare shoe , I think you have a few of those, between the door and the jam.

Olivia, your port today sounds like a treasure! Experiencing a part of the world you are not used to, but letting the moments just "happen" without so much worry getting in the way like a lot of us do. Obviously you have to be cautious. But I do love experiences like you had today.
:hug:

Olivia, I loved your report of your day in port. What fun to enjoy the people and the way they live. Thanks.... Keep having fun!

What traveling is all about -those special moments -

Ralph, thanks for that suggestion, I tried it twice over two nights by propping open the cabin door with the bathroom door. Didn't work. Tonight I just kept tooling around trying different things. I have a MacBook, and went to Safari help, it suggested clearing the cache, or if that didn't work resetting Safari. After I cleared the cache, VOILA, my email came up! Most times I don't have a problem getting to CC or LCT, it is just the AOL email that's a problem.

Betty and others, you just can't help but share the fun of a day like this in a tiny little "port".

BTW, Peggy and her "A Team" are staying on top, and shared a first place finish in Trivia today. And then I didn't win the grand final Bingo pot of $420 (or any other of the 3 games that preceded it with $130-180 win)

Tomorrow, we are in Manaus, and have been given the usual warnings about no jewelry, even watches, and hold your cash close to you. I'm on the "Highlights" tour, only 3 hours, and we will visit the world famous Theatro Amazonas, the Indian Museum, and the Military Zoo. Nice variety.

I was so full from chocaholic tea today (best tea on any Regent cruise for my sweet tooth) and after staying out on Horizons through sunset, I was begging for "cabin time" after being out and about all day. Nice night tonight doing just that, with poached salmon and fresh asparagus.......and some sort of chocolate dessert!

Olivia,
You mentioned that you've seen a lot of officers around except the Captain. Did Stan take over from Felice? He isn't the social type.
Jim

Jim, I didn't mean to suggest that Felice has not been out and about, not at all. I just haven't seen him, but I remember him on DRAGON as being quite social. My point was that several of the full circle SA passengers have noticed a difference since Rio that officers in general have been a lot more visible, and that is a good thing since many passengers, especially the "long haul" ones really do take notice of this. I could go for a whole cruise and never see one of them, and it wouldn't affect my enjoyment whatsoever, so long as everything else goes smoothly! I will say that Ray the CD is everywhere. And his puppet show is fantastic!

Did you give Captain Felice the DRAGON pin Olivia? Sounds like you are having a wonderful time wish I was on the ship with you. Seems strange for you to be onboard without me. Love reading your posts and I can tell that that last stop was special for you. Keep them coming. I even like to know you are enjoying poached salmon and asparagus sounds wonderful to me.

Not yet, because I kept waiting to run into him personally. I know he was cooking up on the pool deck the other day (he loves to cook as I remember) But saw the general manager yesterday (in the evil smoking den), and he said I could just drop it off at reception. Of course when I told Anthony it was from Ngaire at BK, his face lit up. They all sure know you around here!

It was on and off rainy in Manaus today, and unfortunately the flightseeing tour wasn't able to go after getting all the people to the airport, because of threats of lightning. The jungle trekkers soldiered on through a bit of mud, but had fun. I think Peggy and Jerry's highlights tour was the best of all, they really liked it. I missed it because I wasn't feeling well this morning, but have been to the med center and all is well now. But I am dining "ensuite" again tonight. Tomorrow will be Veranda night after some show we will see in the early afternoon in Parintins called Boi Bumba Folk show. It is supposed to be really good! Verandah in just the time I've been here has been French, then Brazilian, and now Bella Pasta, with Mediterranean menu.

I do continue to enjoy the cruise, but it sure is strange being on a ship without Ngaire and Ken!

Room service is really busy tonight. Took me half an hour to not get a busy signal. I have just had the yummiest asparagus infused chicken veloute, and next will order some good comfort food, turkey and dressing with giblet gravy. Just what the doctor ordered!

Olivia,
I asked about captain change because typically in the past the captains switched during the SA cruise. Felice is normally visible and Stan (who replaced Phillipe) usually stays in the background. If Felice is still in charge, please tell him Ciao from Jim & Pat. I hope you're enjoying the cruise - I've done the full circumnavigation 3 times and it's always a great cruise.
Jim

We continue to enjoy the cruise and everything about it just like Olivia. We had a great day in Manaus yesterday. We went to the incredible Opera House and then to the area where they train Brazilian and other military forces for jungle warfare (no U.S. military there at this time, but they've been there). They keep a number of animals from the area there so the military can learn how they live and how to coexist with them. Anyway we got to see jaguars, monkeys, ocelots, parrots, anacondas, boa constrictors, etc. Very interesting. The weather was cloudy with rain off and on, but nobody minded because it stayed relatively cool. We haven't seen Felice for several days either, but we did have dinner with Anthony, the general manager the other night--we had a great time with him. I suspect Felice is spending most of his time with the Amazon pilot we have on. The currents in the river are really strong, so I'm sure it takes a lot of concentration on the bridge. Yesterday we were slightly late because we were sailing against the current. Today we're sailing with the current and arrived in the port of Parintins about three hours early.

We had a fun tour in Santarem on Sunday--we went Pirhana fishing in a beautiful lake connected to the Amazon. The boat was one of the typical Amazon river boats and our guide was a professor at the University in Santarem. Jerry caught a pirhana as did four others on our boat. They cooked them up for us and we all had a taste of prihana. Tastes like chicken ;) . Not really--but it is a nice tasting mild fish. The downside is there's lots of bones. We saw some Amazon fauna (sloths, iguanas, birds) and some of the farms and huts along the river. Standing on the bank along the way, in the Amazon jungle and next to a hut on stilts, there was a young girl taking a picture of us with her cell phone--go figure . We're out of the Amazon now and will anchor at Devil's Island this afternoon. We'll be doing our own thing there with Olivia and some other friends. Since we've been there once before, Jerry and I will be the "tour guides". It's a fascinating place.

Peggy, your trip sounds truly fabulous. So interesting and different! Keep the seamail coming. I love hearing what you are doing and seeing.

Peggy, thanks for keeping us posted. I'm really enjoying the updates and wish I was still on the Mariner!

Sally

I'm going to bed now, but will tell you that I walked the whole island, hill (gentle) and all...along with Jerry and George. We had a great dinner tonight in CR, and Peggy and I were absolutely stuffed! I was seasick last night (I'm a sissy) but tonight was fantastic! However, we have all been in our cabins for a couple of hours now. This is NOT the party ship it will be for TUT, and I'm sort of enjoying that!

Thanks Peggy and Olivia for checking in sounds like a wonderful trip!!!! Glad you are getting a good rest in preparation for TUT ;) ;) ;) kidding aside, it is nice to have a laid back chill cruise -

TUT is going to be a party cruise? :eek: Uh oh, we better rethink this! :D :D :D

Seriously, it is great hearing from you ladies - thanks for the seamail, and continue to enjoy! :cool:

I didn't take the time after my last post from the Mariner to keep up with seamail. Anyway, I really did hate to have to leave the ship after 21 days. Met a lot of nice new people, one couple we had dinner with are clients of BK and may be interested in ROAR 3 in time, if anything opens up. I hope they start posting on LCT!

Sometime during the cruise when we were still on the Amazon, I got an invitation for tea with Captain Felice in his quarters, so that was the perfect opportunity to present him with the DRAGON pins Ngaire sent with me to fill out his collection. It was really nice, there were just 5 guests, 3 of the solo travelers, and the parents of one of them. It was a delightful time, and I think the Captain is using this as an opportunity to meet and spend time (maybe more with solo guests) with more passengers where he can still be right next to the bridge. He was truly bound to the bridge for a great part of the cruise starting with the trip down to Antarctica, and continuing on the Amazon. Pilots aboard alot. He explained to us the diffulties of the Amazon, as the topography underwater is constantly shifting, so a Pilot and the latest set of charts and keen attention are a must. No buoy lights or visible navigational aids in the water here. Terry Breen was also there, and added some great Brazilian lore to the mix. She is truly a remarkable and knowlegable woman, and I enjoyed many of her lectures on TV late at night or in snippets during the day. Now she is off the ship for some time off, and will rejoin the Navigator when the Alaskan season starts. Back to the DRAGON pins, as it was time to leave,I went into my purse to take them out, and the darn thingc had attracted several safety pins and it was rather embarrassing to sit there picking them off! They even de-magnetized my room key! Felice said he likes those magnets because they are so strong! One of them went straight to the wall beside his desk, and the others he added to a box he keeps for his daughter, collecting them for her in all the ports he can get off the ship. She's eleven, truly the apple of his eye, and will be joining him later in the sumer season to spend some time with him on the ship. And she has told him clearly that she does NOT want to be known as the Captain's daughter!

I also really enjoyed Florian the F&B manager, what a charmer he is! He joined us after dinner in CR the last night for a glass of wine, and we just had a great time. He's off the ship now, or maybe after the charter, for some needed time off, and on his way to French Polynesia.

I'm sorry I didn't get to know Anthony the GM a bit more, but a couple of attempts for dinner just didn't work scheduling-wise for either of us. For the time I was on, Anthony was hosting a dinner with guests almost every night. I finally told him once in CC that I thought he needed a night off! He said "I took one, last night!"

Debarkation was slow, as it often is in FLL with the Longshoremen thing. I made it to the airport on a Regent transfer in plenty of time, but some people were a little more nervous than they needed to be. Curbside luggage check in for $2 a bag plus tip, and you are done, no lines. We had cleared customs in St. Thomas. Easy, easy.

The staff had been preparing for days for a big health inspection, as well as the charter coming on that promised a lot of partying people (younger demographic) from some company, can't remember which one. Frank del Rio was coming aboard with Mark Conroy and other suits, I don't know if just for a few hours, or whether they were staying for the 5 day charter.

Peggy and Jerry and I and another couple walked over to the Navigator while in St. Thomas and paid a visit. I have many great memories of my first cruises ever on her, and was impressed with the refurbishments everywhere there were changes made! Prime 7 is small, but handsomely appointed. I already knew the space it was occupying, so no surprises there. On the whole, the Navigator is just a more intimate ship, as it holds so many less passengers, and I look forward to getting back on someday in the future.

Of course, I can't comment on the vibration issue, as we were in port.

All in all, it was a fantastic cruise! Plenty of time to relax on sea days, or you could stay busy all day with all the activities aboard. Trivia competetion was pretty tight, but our LCT team triumphed more often than not!

Welcome home and thanks for such a great report!!

Peggy, Jerry and Olivia, I can't believe your cruise is already over. The time just flew by. Thanks for the reports, I enjoyed reading them. Once you get to know Capt. Felice, he is charming and extremely personable. We enjoyed his company.

OK, you three. Where are you off to next?

So glad you all had such a good cruise! Thanks Olivia and Peggy for your fine reports.