Woke up this morning a little before my alarm and decided to get up and start my day on Quantum of the Seas. It's amazing how easy it is to get out of bed when you're on vacation compared to just another day back home.
I went to the gym around 8:30am and it wasn't overly crowded. Unlike yesterday, I decided to do my own workout instead of a class and had no trouble finding machines that I wanted to use. The gym wasn't empty but there was usually one or two treadmills or elipticals available.
A few minutes into my workout the ship's captain made an announcement that we would be able to dock in San Juan earlier than expected. Thanks to a combination of great weather and good time, we will be docking around 12-12:30pm tomorrow instead of 4pm. So we will end up with roughly 12 hours in San Juan, which is great news!
Now I just need to figure out what I want to do in San Juan. I was previously planning on just walking around and then having dinner but now we have much more time so I'll need to research some ideas for things to do in Old San Juan. Any suggestions?
For breakfast I went to Two70 and found a nice bagel bar, where you can have your bagel toasted and then pick from a good array of choices. There's various fish, cheese and other toppings for your bagels and it's a neat little option. Plus it's great to take your breakfast and enjoy it in Two70, which has a wonderful view.
After breakfast, I essentialy wandered the ship to see what was going on. In the Royal Theater, they were showing Penguins of Madagascar in 3D, in Two70 there was a cooking demonstration and on the Royal Esplanade there were a few sales. I stopped by each to get a little taste of each and it's fun to find so many activities to choose from.
Given the fact the sun is out and the temperatures are rising, today the pool deck was packed. It's not really a surprise but if you roll out to the pool deck at 11am, don't expect ample seating.
I was able to find seats inside the indoor pool, which had their retractable roof open and there was a wonderful breeze. As long as I have somewhere to lay back and enjoy a few boat drinks, I'm good with it.
Lunch today was at the Windjammer. In fact, it's the first time since embarkation day I've eaten at the Windjammer so it felt odd not to have been there more often. I sampled a little of everything but the highlight for me was eating in the rear of the Windjammer outside. WIth the weather warming up, it was a great spot to enjoy lunch.
A little after lunch we had our next Royal Caribean Blog group cruise meet, which was the Most Civilized Bar Crawl. We began in the Schooner Bar and slowly started picking people up that we ran into.
The idea behind the bar crawl was to sample drinks from a few different bars and enjoy it without it becoming a booze fest (also we insisted on pinkies up when we drank). I think we accomplished our goal and it was fun checking out the various bars.
We ended up drinking at Schooner Bar, Bionic Bar, Michael's Genuine Pub and Two70. We liked the prices and deals at Michael's but the atmosphere of Two70 won for its great layout and view.
Around this time, the ship's captain made an announcement that the gastronomic virus known as Norovirus was aboard the ship and advised everyone to be a extra vigilant about washing your hands to protect yourself.
I'll be honest, the news was a bit jarring for everyone. It's definitely not something you want to hear on any cruise. But the more I thought about it, the more I felt like there wasn't a lot we can do and to just make the best of the situation. Washing your hands is onboard a cruise is always a good idea but with something like this, you just have to be extra careful and opt for washing instead of maybe just using the hand sanitzer.
Following our bar crawl, I went up to the Solarium to enjoy the sunset. There were too many clouds to get a really good sunset view but the sky was quite beautiful and I am such a sucker for sunsets in general. So when you combine the sun going down, a warm breeze and the colors of the ocean at this latitude, it all makes for a great moment.
Dinner tonight was at the specialty restaurant Wonderland. We invited everyone that booked into our group cruise room package to be the guest of our partner MEI-Travel and enjoy this fun restaurant.
I had eaten at Wonderland on my 2-nighter in November but I think it was even better this time around. The show aspect is always wonderful but the food, especially the entrees were really good. I think we all found something we particulary enjoyed (the beef for me is amazing). It's still worth noting the menu at Wonderland favors someone who is fairly adventurous in their eating or is at least willing to try new foods.
After diner I went back to the casino for redemption but sadly did not find any. I did stay afloat longer than any other time and had a good time but in the end, I walked away a poorer man. I've said this everytime I've left the casino but I think I mean it this time, I'm going to to stay away.
At 10:30 was the Love and Marriage game show, which is a Royal Caribbean entertainment staple and it's something I try not to miss. It's always the same questions but it never ceases to entertain me and I really enjoyed it. It always helps when the contestants are good sports and we had a good group this time.
Tomorrow, we'll be in San Juan, Puerto Rico!
Observations
- The indoor pool seems to be the last refuge of open lounge chairs on busy sea days.
- In terms of motion, I've barely felt movement. Around 10pm or so we started getting our first good swayings but it's still nothing I wouldn't sign up for. Plus, ,I like a little ship movement when I'm going to bed.
- In terms of Norovirus prevention, not a terrible amount has changed. There are more hand sanitzers, crew members are using gloves more and in the casino, you have to go sanitize your hands before cashing in money.
- Ever wondered where service dogs do their business? Deck 5 all the way forward is this little area
- Not sure I've mentioned this before but in terms of alcohol prices, beer is fairly priced, with most about $5-7. Mixed drinks, however, are signifigantly more expensive. I had a bloody mary at the North Star bar this moring that cost me $12.
- I don't have any firm plans for San Juan. I think I'll just wing it and wander!
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