Good Afternoon Everyone
It’s 6 pm on Monday, May 21 and Carnival Freedom has just left Katakolon, Greece. The Mediterranean Sea is calm and the sun is shining. The guests were all dancing up a storm at our sail away party and talking of Greece you should have seen the lobby last night. The Wave Duo who perform there every evening hosted a GREEK NIGHT and we had a Greek crew member teach the Zorba the Greek dance as they played their Greek bazooka instruments. There were 300 people packed into the lobby and the same amount on the decks above all trying to learn the dance, it was a great night and wonderful to see.
It led me to think that maybe I need to introduce more “ethnic” entertainment into the mix and will be proposing to my mate Roger Blum back in Miami that we hire a Turkish Belly Dancer to perform in the lobby. Now, I know what you are thinking, but you are wrong, this is not some personal fetish of mine…………..OK, maybe just a little bit. But I think it would be a fantastic thing to see as we sail between Izmir and Istanbul………………what do you bloggers think? Let me know, and maybe we can add this to our program. I remember on the Carnival Leg End in 2002 we hired a traditional Scottish pipe and dance show during our trip to Glasgow and we even piped in the Haggis!
What else has happened in the last 24 hours? Ah yes, Mr. and Mrs. Salter were part of the Marriage Show. They have been married an amazing 67 years. Mr. Salter is 95 and his wife Olive is 88. Bill Salter is a veteran of WWI and WWII and he proudly wore all his medals on formal night. I had a lot of fun with them on stage and when I asked if there was any advice he could give to all the honeymooners on surviving a long marriage he said “sex, whisky and poker.” Of course, that brought the house down and they have become quite the stars since then. Afterwards, I went back to the cabin and thought about what he said that sex, whisky and poker were the secrets to a long marriage. This has me worried because I only get to do one of the three….. I love a good game of poker.
Here they are:
I am looking forward to my long vacation of one-and-one-half days days and Heidi will be the boss when I am away………actually she is the boss when I am here, as well. I fly from Pisa Airport on Wednesday and back into Rome on May 25 and straight back to work. I am really looking forward to seeing the family especially as its my Mum’s birthday. I have hired a car from Stanstead Airport and the word “compact” is worrying me a little bit! I will also have breakfast on May 24 with my mate Alan Adkins. We always go to a little café called The Arches. There we will have a traditional English breakfast. I know I shouldn’t but it’s a special treat once a year. Here it is:
A full breakfast with scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, black pudding, mushrooms, baked beans, fried potato, fried bread and half of a tomato.
Alan will no doubt fill me in on his exploits as a commander of our local rescue boat. The organization he works for is called the RNLI. This is a volunteer service that spans the length of Britain’s coastline and they are a wonderful group of men and women who give up their free time to save lives. Here is a link for you to read about. When Alan is not saving lives he can be found cruising at The Cliff Pub………what a life. Here is a photo of Alan.
So, all in all I shall look forward to a relaxing 48 hours ………….but………….I will miss Heidi very much 
Time for today’s, Q & A.
RACHAEL LOESCH – Welcome back home and thank you for letting me and all the bloggers know how much you enjoyed your Carnival Freedom cruise. I am glad you liked the gift I sent you and also the shows that made you laugh. I have passed your e-mail to Joe your wonderful waiter and he was excited to receive it and will be e mailing you shortly. I hope we get to sail again soon and until then please keep reading the blog thingy.
DORTHE CALIMBAS – This is one addiction that I am happy to hear that someone is suffering from. As long as you need your addiction fed, I will keep blogging. The cruise director you mentioned for Princess who works on the QE2 now “Brian something” sounds like he is right at the top of our profession so to be mentioned in the same paragraph is indeed an honour (spelled correctly ). You mentioned the Royal Princess, I will have to ask my PA if she is still part of the fleet so I will get back to you soon. You mentioned the book, I have had dozens and dozens of requests from the blog and from guests onboard to have these stories put into one book and I am really pursuing the idea with the office………..bloggers, would you buy it? I don’t want to be left with a thousand books and just my Mum reading it! Please let me know if you think its worth doing and, of course, adding more true stories from the ocean wave. Thanks again for cruising with us and I hope to hear from you very soon.
ZSOLT – I have done as you requested and passed on your e-mail address. How is your Mum doing? We have all been thinking of her and I hope she likes the photos that I will mail from Livorno. Best wishes from all of us here.
ASHLEY BLAIR – Thanks for telling your brothers to start reading the blogs, are you their BIG sister? How fantastic that you are all cruising together on June 6. There are a lot of bloggers sailing and I Heidi and I are excited to meet you all. See you soon.
BOB MEANS – Thanks mate for your loyal support to Carnival. I must admit that the comment where the travel agent said, “Only cruise with carnival if you have tattoos” really pi%$ed me off, and anyway, what’s wrong with tattoos? I have one of Angelina Jolie ! Now, as to your question if Carnival will ever cruise to Australia or South America. The answer is YES! Now, I know of no details as to when this will happen but I know that this forward-thinking company will one day fly the flag in every corner of the world and I am sure that will include the places you mentioned. Who would have thought I would be on a Carnival ship blogging to you between Greece and Italy. As soon as I get any information I will let you know………..watch this space. Thanks again for your words of support and if the travel agent is in question is reading this blog, I challenge you to come onboard and see what Today’s Carnival is all about.
BILL ZYDECO CRUISER – Yep, name the spa on the Carnival Splendor is here. Bill, any suggestions?
VERNON – The Trevor you are referring to is Trevor Block now on the Fascination. I see you got a kiss on the cheek, I am now very jealous. Please keep working on Dean and if you need further assistance let me know and I will “send the boys round”Thanks for your sincere words and keep reading the blog.
CROWN GOLFER – Have you won a crown playing golf? I love golf, just shot my first 79. I would have shot a 78 but on the last hole the clowns arm came down and blocked my ball! How wonderful to celebrate your silver anniversary on one of our ships. Which ship are you cruising on? I will as requested keep blooging and hope to hear from you soon.
STINGRAY 310 – Wee Jimmy, Karl with a K, Risa Barnes and Mark Price…….all mentioned by you and all very important parts of the best entertainment department in the business. I know them all well except Karl with a K who I have not met but I hear great things about him. I will pass your praise on to them and Chris and Roger in our head office. Thank you also for your kind words about myself and I too hope that we can cruise together again very soon. I am also happy that the blog allows you to take a “cruise in your mind” and, hopefully, this will keep you going until you walk up one of our gangways again and I send you and your family my best wishes until then.
GACRUISER – As the song says, “It’s A Small World.” Fancy meeting people who lived from your hometown just like that. I may have said this before on another blog thingy but its only on cruise ships where people take the time to meet and talk to new friends, you don’t get that with hotels. I hope you can cruise again soon so you get another chance to meet people who live just down the street.
DAISY – Ducks, lions, tigers, oh my! We do (if requested) have unsupervised meetings for Rotarians and Lion’s Club members and, of course, I will be happy to arrange this once you are here. I will place this in the Carnival Capers on the last sea day and provide a lounge for you to meet in. See you on May 25 and have a safe flight.
MARCO CALDAS – Thank you for your e-mail regarding employment. I have passed this on to the people who are coming to Brazil and they will in turn contact you very soon. I wish you much luck.
KATHY – You see, she touched my knee and I turned into a parking lot. And now a love song entitled – She Sits Among The Cabbages And Peas. You can kiss a nun once, you can kiss a nun twice but you mustn’t get into the habit.
These were just a few of Malcolm Kennedy’s catch lines that made him a true legend………we all miss him very much and thank you for allowing me a chance to pay tribute to him.
CJ – I feel very privileged that your first cruise ever will be with me here on the Carnival Freedom. I promise to that myself and all of the excellent Carnival crew will do our very best to make sure you have the most fabulous vacation ever and after this you feel that cruising will be the only way to go. See you very soon.
MISSINGTHESMOKEFREEPARADISE – Depends are now standard issue to all cruise directors as some of the things guests say and do will always ensure laughter beyond belief
PAM – How happy I am that you are coming on the bloggers cruise. You asked about the Jamaican tours and I will be planning something special for that one cruise and I will let you know all about it very soon. Heidi loves vanilla by the way and she says a HUGE thank you for thinking about her. 237 days and counting…………….until I get my roller ball!
STINA – You asked about how often I get to go home. Carnival is very good to me and I can go home whenever I feel I need a break and usually every four to five months, I take a couple of months off. This year however is a very busy European season and rather than take a large block of time off, I will have a few days here and there and a longer vacation in the winter. Hope this answers your question and if you have anymore I am standing by to answer them. Hope to hear from you soon.
KAY DUCKWORTH – I am glad you choose the Carnival Freedom next year for its return to Europe. This is a wonderful ship and you will enjoy the historic and beautiful ports of call. You asked if I will be onboard in May next year. I will certainly try to be as the plan is to do the first few European cruises before I go to the Carnival Splendor. I have heard great things about the ice show you mentioned on RCI however you wait until you see our Big Easy and Ticket To Ride shows which once again have taken cruise ship entertainment to a new level. As for Heidi and I “Dancing on Ice”…………….I think we have once again entered the realms of fantasy. I want to say a big thank you for your sincere words about Carnival and Heidi and I will see you next year.
JONATHAN HALL – So, your question, when do I have time to relax………….answer……………November. Seriously, it is not an easy thing to do especially now with the blog being so important. However, I do make sure that Heidi and I find some time each day, even if for just 30 minutes to switch off and talk about us. The hardest specific about this job is that you can never “not be the cruise director.” If Heidi and I decide to go for a drink (Diet Coke for me) and listen to some music and a guest sees me and wants a chat, I can never say “Sorry, I am off duty.” That part is sometimes hard. I also make sure that before going to bed I read, even if it is just a few pages. Doing this helps me sleep and not think about the next day’s project. So, there you go, its hard but I love the job and Heidi and I are privileged indeed.
BLES1045 – So no pressure then. If I am not the cruise director you say you will cancel your Carnival Splendor cruise. God willing, I will be there to once again share the fun with you as we sail the Baltic.
ALAN and CHRIS – The final payment has been I see for your September cruise. You asked about which night to eat in the supper club. If I had my way it would be every night but if I personally had to choose one it would be the night after we sail from Venice, there is something special about that particular night. If you want to contact me via this blog thingy I will be happy to make reservations for you a few days before the start of the cruise. Thanks for writing and see you in September.
JO MYERLY – Thanks for the Princess link concerning their rewards. I have again passed this up the ladder as it seems to be something that many guests feel strongly about with the counting of days cruised rather than the number of cruises. Thanks again and I will be looking into this further.
SUSAN B – Hello to you, a white-legged, red-haired faithful Carnival Cruiser. Your Ghost Lady story was very funny. Heidi is missing her sun bathing time which is limited at best here with her busy work schedule. Personally, I hate lying in the sun. I find it so boring, I would much rather be doing something that gets me close to the history and culture of the place I am visiting………and………………..I do not look good in Speedos. I am so happy to hear you have booked the bloggers cruise and I will see you in January.
CARRIE AND IAN – Greetings to you both in Germany and thank you for your wonderful service you are currently giving the U.S. Army. You asked about dress code on the Carnival Freedom for your June cruise. Well, we have two formal nights and I must be honest that over the last few years I have seen more men shying away from the traditional tuxedo in favor of a business suit. Both will be fine here and if you wear a tuxedo your husband will not “stick out” as you mentioned………..unless his fly is open of course
RUTH AND JOY CAMERON – Sorry for the lack of postings over the weekend. Its hard for me to post something on a Saturday or Sunday but I will try harder, promise as I know people expect a blog thingy every day. I wish the reason had as you mentioned been Angelina Jolie and I meeting for drinks in Cannes but for some strange reason she favors that man Brad. What does he have that I don’t? See you on Friday and travel safe.
JONATHAN HALL – Thank you for the link to the Cruise Gal web site. I have never heard of this site before and you are correct indeed it is very interesting and very useful as well. I am glad you have been enjoying the Web cam on the ship and just think in a few days you will be here for real. See you in a few days.
MISSINGTHESMOKEFREEPARADISE – What a great idea you had about holding a Veterans Day party onboard using the Big Band and playing music from that era. I am definitely going to do this using some of the ideas that you took the time to suggest and share with us all. I just spoke to Charlie our musical director and we certainly have enough tunes to have the big band play. Hopefully this will be a great salute to those brave men and ladies. Thaks again for taking the time to write such a detailed posting.
KATHY – It sounds to me that you are going to be on the front row at every show. If you are laughing as hard as you are now just by reading the blog thingy I cannot wait for you to see the shows in person. We will continue the Greek Night as requested even if it is a cruise when we do not even go to Greece. See you soon and keep laughing.
DEBBIE MANG – Hello Debbie and congratulations on choosing the Carnival Freedom for your sixth Carnival cruise. The number 13 is often associated with being unlucky, but I promise you, that this, your 13th wedding anniversary will be the best anniversary you ever had. Heidi and I look forward to seeing you soon.
BIG ED – Thank you Big Ed and your son Chad for the pictures of your train layout. My dad is loving the attention and the train information. You continue to be a BIG help to me and this blog thingy. How is Mrs. Big Ed? I am ready to put operation A-Team into effect and drug her milk, so when she wakes up, she is on board the Carnival Splendor in Europe.
GRACE – Thank you for your kind words and YES the weather has really warmed up, it’s going to be 90 degrees tomorrow in Livorno. You asked about taking a tour upon arrival in Rome. I personally would only do this, if you do not have time at the end of the cruise as jetlag is something that could hinder your enjoyment. I am very excited to hear that your six-year-old loves historical sites, when I was six, I loved Scooby Doo. I definetely think your six-year-old will enjoy Pompeii and I am sure, if he has a love of history already that Pompeii will give him everlasting memories. See you in June, have a safe flight.
MELISSA – While beer is not one of my strong subjects, I will pass you to Heidi. Hello Melissa, I am sorry to report that we do not have BUSCH LIGHT beer on the vessel. However, as well as the normal light beers I am proud to say that we offer the best light beer in the world, HEINEKEN LIGHT. Brewed in my home country Holland. I will buy you one and you could tell me what you think. Proost!
It’s a sea day today and we just finished our passage through Stromboli. Here is a photo of how the island looked today.
Not much lava activity but plenty of smoke. So, this afternoon, after my TV show, I will pack a suitcase for my long vacation. Somebody had posted that my mother was 80 years old, which I have been told by my mother that I am to correct immediately by informing you all of her correct age which is “30 something.” Here unfortunately, is a photo of my mum and the unfortunate aspect is that she is holding a photo of me taken when I was just a wee lad.
I feel very proud that I can leave Heidi in charge of this ship while I am away. She has come a long way from being a part of the youth department on her first ship, the Carnival Destiny, in 1996. I will miss her very much but the ship is in great hands.
I fly tomorrow at 10 am from Pisa to London Stanstead and I have to say, I hate flying. I hate the concept of being at 30,000 feet. Why do they give us oxygen in those little masks, they should give us helium, I want to become a human hot air balloon if anything should happen and if it does, I bequeath all my underwear to Angelina Jolie……something for her to know that I cared.
I once did a 10-hour trans-Atlantic flight from London to Miami with the most annoying woman next to me. She didn’t mean to be annoying, in fact, she never said a word the entire flight, she just sat there……………….from take off…………..to landing……………………and just knitted………….and even with the headphones on I could hear the click….click……click of her needles and I found myself becoming hypnotized by watching whatever the hell it was she was knitting growing in front of me. That was on Virgin Airlines, I like Virgin Airlines but I am worried that they won’t go all the way
Next week I will be releasing some of the gifts that we will give away in our bloggers cruise mystery bag and I think you will like them. I will also send a blog home on Friday and tell you a little something about what I have been up to during my vacation.
In 2004 Heidi and I were vacationing in Jamaica at a villa called Silent Waters near Montego Bay. It was paradise for us, quiet, nobody bothering us and most importantly it was eight days where I could rest my voice and enjoy just being “the grey man.” On returning to Miami, Heidi and I stood in line for Immigration. As cruise ship crew we have learned to expect the various questions and finger printing that is part of the job and understandably so. Having had such a relaxing vacation we were not worried about anything and being a cruise director was far from my mind as I approached the Immigration Desk.
We stood there as the Immigration Officer looked me up and down with a quizzical look on his face. He said nothing for a few moments and just fixed me with an icy stare. I started to think that maybe my passport was not in order or that I had suddenly become Americas Most Wanted. A bead of sweat started its path from my neck down my spine. Officer Hernandez as his name tag told me continued to look at me and at my passport and then he leaned forward and said……………You don’t recognize me do you. My voice trembled, “No, sir.” Officer Hernandez said, “My wife and I were in your Marriage Show and you made me kneel down and sing to my new wife.” ………..He paused….and I had visions of a latex glove and I getting to know each other on a very personal level………….he continued…………”It was the best time we have ever had and thank you for making our honeymoon cruise.”
And then he stamped our passports and waved us off with a huge smile and as we walked away my cheeks unpuckered themselves !
I will write from home.
Goodnight
Your Friends
John and Heidi
Look, friends — there are a few things you should remember before you comment. The space below is for you to post your comments about the post I've just written above. If it is something that's unrelated, please use the Ask John tab above. Now, while I may not be able to reply to your comment below, I do sit in my underpants almost every morning and read everything that is here. So feel free to comment on the comments and then if someone wants to comment on the comment to the comment then go ahead as well. Please be courteous unless the poster is French...........then you can say whatever you want.
John, we BOTH have made it “BIG” time. I back checked one of the referrals to my site and it took me to a Japanese cruise site. Link here; ttp://www.interq.or.jp/white/ishiyama/index.htm
This is link to it in English; http://www.interq.or.jp/white/ishiyama/e-index.htm
Then go to, Links to ship lovers’ sites
Then go to, Sites on cruise ships
Scroll down till you find us
Or to go direct to, Sites on cruise ships click this one.
http://www.interq.or.jp/white/ishiyama/fanatic3.htm
HA HA I get top billing on this one. Oh! Pat just pointed out that’s because it’s alphabetical.
“BIG” HEAD ED
We have a large group (16) booked on the 6/18 sailing of the Freedom. My question involves the dinner arrangements. How big are the tables, etc?? I’ve read in some places the largest tables are for 8 and in others 10 or 12. Any information you could provide would be MOST helpful. If I say that angelina Jolie will be a guest at our table, does that make things easier?? Thanks!
I would be very interested in buying and reading the book. There is something about being at sea that is hard to define. All I know is that I love it, and hope to do more, as budget and job allow. My Carnival Freedom cruise was my 12th, and I hope to have many more before I “pop my clogs”…I have friends from the UK, bless their hearts. Last I heard, the Royal Princess had been sold, and sails under another brand. I was sure I had spotted her in an ad, the aft part of that ship is so pretty. Not sure though. I entered the “Name the Spa” contest for the Carnival Splendor, here’s hoping I win! Enjoy your vacation, and I’m sure Heidi will miss you as much as you miss her.
Howdy John (and a big hello to Heidi),
First, about the book – as soon as you tell me how, I will order three copies. A lady at my work and another lady who is one of my favorite bartenders have both recently become cruisers and I am going to give your book to them. (The bartender is hooked on RCL for the present – maybe your book will help straighten her out).
About the ethnic dances and stuff – I think you are in a unique position to help the world, John. Americans are far too xenophobic and insular, such as the guy who wanted only U. S. TV programs and the blond lady who was afraid of getting kidnapped. I urge you, John to do as much as you can to show us Americans that people in other countries are in fact, PEOPLE. The ethnic dances are a great idea. Also, maybe you could steer your guests to small family-owned restaurants and tell them the names of the owners so that maybe they will actually converse with them.
John, Happy trip home.
Just a quick note – you mentioned the Royal Princess and whether it was still sailing. This morning I received a cruise newsletter with an article that said on June 14th the new Royal Princess will be named in Italy (Portofino I think) by its Godmother – a woman who has the most time spent cruising with Princess (4000 days at sea). She practically lives on the ship. Now that’s an idea for the Splendor’s Godmother, besides Angelina of course.
Anyway, have a great mini-vacation.
Carol
Well John I did it-with your help, of course-WE ARE BOOKED on the Carnival Splendor for the Jul. 13, 2008 sailing! I am so EXCITED!!!!! We decided to take my granddaughter, who will be turning 16 a month prior to us leaving, and she is beyond excited. She wants to make sure there will be plenty of kids her age who will also be cruising(preferably boys). I told her this was a historical trip and she replied with a “yeah, yeah, yeah”. I guess Poppa will be up late each evening learning his way around the ship!
I just returned from my travel agency and thought I would pass this along-
“Carnival Cruise Lines names ALL ABOUT CRUISES, their travel agency of the year, and Burlington, NC names May the official “All About Cruises month”. Wow was I impressed. I got to see all the beautiful pictures of the Carnival executives and the beautiful, magnificent Grandfather clock that was awarded to them. WOW!
Thank You again for this wonderful blog thingy and helping me to convince Dean.
Enjoy your time off and a Happy Birthday to your MUM.
Safe flight.
Inez & Dean
Hi John, Have a good short vacation. It’s good to get away from work for a short time. Happy birthday to your mum, hope she has a good one.Your breakfast with your mate Alan looks very good. What’s your mailing address, we’ll send you some sugar free goodies See you next July Carl & Barb the Bears
John
So glad that you are getting some R&R. Being from New Orleans and the mass devastation we had here. I have learned to accept the fact that things can be “All about Me” That is why I will be on the Freedom later this week. Have a good time home with your Mum and Dad. Drink and be merry. Slam a few back and put your feet up. I have been reading your blog daily and looking forward to meeting you on the 25th
Guizell from the Big Easy
John,
I really enjoy reading your blog thingy and that has made me book another Carnival Cruise. This time my wife and I are joining you in January on the “Bloggers Cruise”. We sailed with you in 2006 on the Carnival Liberty, which was the infamous “Willie Banger” and “Carl from Tampa” cruise. I also was very lucky to win the”Game Show” compitition. But what really sold the Carnival Freedom cruise in January was the sail date. January 19, 2008. That is my wife’s birthday. Now how could I pass up a date like that! We are really looking forward to our trip. Keep the blogs coming and have a nice safe vacation!! See you in January!!!
John from Arkansas
Happy vacation, John! You certainly deserve one. I too, look forward to the blog every day. I can hear your soothing voice reading it. I’m sorry that we never had the chance to meet on the last cruise, but hope to book again on a ship that you are Cruise Director on. Wish I was there!
Cindy Bruce
John,
First let say from a married man of 40 years Heidi is always right.
I will be the first in line to buy 10 copies of your book, I think that is a great idea.
I have read every one of these bloggy things and really enjoy it all.
Will you be on the Freedom next Feb 23
Ed
John,
Carnival Freedom April 5th, 2008 is a Carnival Past Guest Reunion Cruise. Are you going to be on board Carnival Freedom then?
John -
Thanks for the praise on the Veterans’ Day suggestion, but it is the Mrs. who deserves those kudos. Her comment about the Troops and Train event is spot on – unfortunately, we will probably miss it because we will be in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. What burdens we must bear.
As for Big Band music, maybe you can prevail upon John to join the band for a clarinet tune or two. What would Big Band music be without some Benny Goodman? I absolutely love to hear the clarinet – I can remember his pulling it out on the Paradise and my wanting to sit in front of the stage crosslegged to listen to him.
158 days to go. Enjoy your visit with your Mum. The Freedom is in good hands with Heidi (of course, so are you).
Jon
Hi John & Heidi,
Hope all is well with you. I have had a great weekend. My daughter graduated from college on Sunday. My dad was very proud of her as she achieved high honors. Today I had a message letting me know my cruise documents has arrived. Vacation is coming quickly. I have had an interesting couple of weeks. Almost two weeks ago I was in the ER diagnosed with a very bad gall bladder and it was removed. Fortunately, it was done lathroscopically and only slowed me down abit. I was not about to miss my daughter’s graduation so the timing was good. Because my gall bladder problem was something that was going to happen. It also happened between cruises. I know I would have been taken very good care of had I had a problem on the cruise, but it would not have been very much fun. So, all in all, the surgery was a good thing.
Today, I also got an email from the Vatican approving our request to tour the necropolis. If you know of anyone interested in touring the necropolis, direct them to the Vatican website and click on information. Scroll down the necropolis and it will have information on requesting a tour.
Our tour will be at 3:15 on debarkation day. Do you have any suggestion of a tour that we could take before? Also, on excrusion site noted that there will be carnival reps at the hotels able to arrange tours. Do you have a list of available tours? If we booked our hotel through Carnival, how do we get to our hotel and what time would they get us there?
Again, thank you so much for the help you have already give. Enjoy you visit with your mom. I am so looking forward to meeting you both. It will be fun to see what the exclusive Heidi blog thing will be like. Watch out John. Sheree
Hello John & Hedi
I’ve been watching your blog…….. where do you find the time?
We’ll be leaving on Sunday on the Valor / wish we were traveling with you guys again!
Roatan, Belize, Costa Maya…. any tours you recommend?
John, there isn’t a better cruise director than you, the only that came close and you cloned was Corey!
Look forward to cruising with you again soon.
Kevin & Sue Hoffman / Florida
P.S. I sent an e-mail to your freedom address, but don’t know that you received it.
Mum, Pat and I would like to wish you a HAPPY BIRTHDAY and may you have many many more. I hope you have a nice visit with your little Johnny. Tell him it’s your birthday and he can cook his own breakfast. Mum if you have one of those pictures like most mothers have of their dear babies, you know the kind I’m talking about send it to me. I will add it to John’s album on my site.
PAT and ED KONEFE
Hope you have a wonderful time with your Mum and Dad. Tell your Mum to have the best year ever! Ethnic dances would be great–when we went on the Carnival cruise in Hawaii, they had hula lessons and then we performed on the last evening–it was great fun and we learned a lot about the people and the culture. See you soon!
haha your OBESSION with Angelina Jolie cracks me up. I’ll be 20 in about a month, so im the oldest, but not by much. My brothers are twins, they just turned 18 and are graduating high school, so this is their graduation trip before heading to UT!
re: Name the Splendor Spa – I’ve already submitted the winning entry, so they might as well end the contest now. Nobody else need bother entering.
I am delighted to see that Angelina is taking the next year off in order to be my cabin mate on the Splendor. Of course, she came up with a convincing cover story to tell the press.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Movies/05/22/people.cannes.jolie.ap/index.html
hi john and heidi,
just checking in to say hello and keep up the blog as i follow it daily. Best wishes to your mom on her 30 something birthday, tell her she doesn’t look a day over 29 and i hope you enjoy your time together.
a couple of quick questions for you, what is the differrence between an “outside”cabin and a cat 6E
“outside family cabin”??
as i’ve told you before we are avid cruisers, part of a family of avid cruisers( my parents moved to switzerland from canada when i was three (1960) and we used to go back to north america for the summer always by ship, usually on the michelangelo or the raffaello and occasionaly on the queen mary. I’ve never had the pleasure of sailling on carnival and am very curious to see how the food and service compare to other lines i have sailled in the past, as i’m sure the ship will be great as it is so much bigger then the ships i’m used to sail on, the largest of which was the silver shadow.
regarding your idea of ethnic entertainment, i really hope you will have the belly dancers when we sail from Izmir to Istanbul on july 16th.
have a great R&R at home and fly safely( hope your seat neighbour doesn’t knit!! and maybe it’ll be Angelina!! bye for now, mitch
oh boy the bloggers cruise presents! can’t wait! and don’t forget to take a photo of mum’s cooking!
hold down the fort heidi, just think, the lid will stay put! ha ha
smiles, bonnie and prince charlie
HEIDI, Ok it’s just you and us here in the thingy. Tell us all. Your the boss now no John to delete what you say or pictures you post. Make him sorry for every time he has mentioned that AJ woman (wanted to use a different word but better not save that for you to do). Did he take all his dirty underware home for Mum to wash? Now for us in the blog thingy you go up to the SPA have a super makeover, put on your sexiest dress then go have the photo staff take a great picture of you to post in HEIDI’S ALBUM on my site. You ROCK girl, go knock our socks off.
“BIG” ED
Hi John and Heidi!
We haven’t been writing, but we’ve been reading the blog since March, and needless to say … we love it!
About your question on a previous blog entry … well, I (Thais) remember other than you another cruise director. His name is Franco LoFaro, who was on the late Eugenio C, from Costa Cruises, for many years as cruise director on the Brazilian coast. I was small and cruised with my family and remember him saying on the loud speaker “oggi/hoje” a mix of Portuguese and Italian meaning “today”, while he announced the entertainment of the day.
I can tell you though, that we never forget your jokes, your bright sense of humour, your friendliness towards everyone and your smile. On many cruises that I was on (over 30, and I am 33) I remember reading the cruise director’s name somewhere but never saw or had any contact with the person during the cruise! You’re the best mate!
We might be coming in June, so … hopelijk tot Juni!
Veel liefs,
Thais&Fabian
ps1. John, are we not allowed to participate in the spa-naming contest of the Spledor because we live outside of the US?
ps2. the idea of the belly-dancer is super!
ps3. I also hate flying (Thais) and the helium idea is quite a good one! I wish that it would be like the crew on Enterprise (Star Trek), who receive
a painless shot and just sleep, and then another shot to wake up again (upon arrival of course!).
When I fly to Brazil, once per year (any other vacation is done via car/train/bus/ship!), I always
call/write to friends so they all make a positive thought for me! There’s even one friend who places a 7-day candle at the beach and another one
who says “PLA” at the time of take-off (his good luck word). Don’t worry, you’ll be there and back before you even notice!
Enjoy your trip John. Your Mum looks lovely. But please lay off the black pudding – yuk!
Thanks so much for your response on the tours. Our group met on Sunday and we’re all set. Another question we have is what time do you recommend arriving on Sat., June 30th? Is there a particular”rush” time? Would it be possible for you to send a copy of the “Capers” for the embarkation day and evening so we get there early enough to not miss anything? We are getting so excited!!
Enjoy the time with your mom. Still enjoying the blog every day!
John,
My wife and I sailed on TRIUMPH or LEGEND with you as our Cruise Director. It was absolutely marvelous. Thank you.
Since then, we have cruised on PRIDE (Jeff Brosaaaaaaaaaaaan) in December 2006 & we just finished a cruise on LEGEND (Chris) 2 weeks ago.
We are going on MIRACLE in December 2007 and wanted to know if you could tell us who the Cruise Director will be and what kind of an experience we will have with this person.
We keep going on Carnival cruises because of people like you. Our last cruise on LEGEND I actually was part of the Welcome Aboard Show. I had a great time on stage (wearing an afro wig lip-synching to Tutti-Fruiti and dancing). Each and every day of the cruise there was someone (some days more than one) that said something like, “Weren’t you the one. . . . . . . .” So I took on the name of “Tutti-Fruiti Tom”. Of course this reminded my wife and I of you getting a man to bow down to his wife throughout the cruise and tell her I LOVE YOUUUUUUU along with other things every time you mentioned their city on the PA system or even ashore.
Thanks for your time!
Tom & Peggy Potter
bongiorno john & heidi!
visiting your mum for her birthday is the best present you could give her! have a safe trip! we can’t wait for our june 6th cruise with you, we hope that we get to meet you both…my husbands family will also be cruising with us…we would like to treat them to the supper club, you have suggested the nite we leave venice, is there another nite you would recommend? and is there an age requirement? we have an almost 14 yr. old who would like to join us …when is the best time to book our reservation? counting the days…see you soon….thanks for this blog thingy we look forward to reading it daily!
ciao for now, lynn and franco
I love the idea of a belly dancer! And no that is not sarcasm. There are a lot of woman who would love to learn how to dance like that.
The ideas of teaching ethnic dances is great. It would be a great follow-up after leaving each port. Maybe you can get that setup for the splendor next summer when were on it *huge grin* Carla
I’m a belly dancer and I think having a belly dancer on board would be absolutely wonderful! The dance is a beautiful celebration of culture and I’m sure that the guests would enjoy it.
Hi John,
What is with the new design on your home page? Now it says “John Heald’s Blog, Carnival Cruise Lines’ Senior Cruise Director” at the top of every page. This takes up a lot of space and looks a bit awkward if you ask me… Not that you did of course
…
I hope you enjoy your vacation, and your mom has a very happy birthday!
Doug
Heidi, It’s safe you can rush into that little room and safely sit down knowing the seat will be down today. You don’t even have to worry about tripping over John’s boxers on the way there. Now your the BOSS (but we know your the real BOSS anyway) so go out there and let FREEDOM ring today.
MRS. BIG ED
John, have a great mini-vacation – and happy birthday to your Mum. Put me on the list! I would be delighted to buy your book! Heidi, hang in there. I’m sure you will do a great job while he is away. And, he’ll be back before you know it! 233 days and counting.
Another question for you….like you don’t get bunches of those every day….Is Master Card credit card as readily accepted in Europe as the VISA? There has been some discussion that it may not be. What about ability to get cash in port areas using an ATM card? As always, thanks for your time.
Mrs. Here.
Questions on my Wish List Transatlantic Crossing.
I don’t breathe around tobacco smoke. Not pretty. 1. What happens on shore excursions?
2. And if I could get on a bus and breathe, what happens with airport to ship transfers?
With Carnival booked Fly Aweigh, does that lock the utilitarian transfer, or does it apply to the scenic trip, like Via Appia, or the Vatican, or the Coliseum? So could a couple say, we want the airport to ship by way of the Vatican excursion, and pay the difference in price? provided we meet clearing customs time frames, of course.
Check it out please, I don’t want to miss a chance, but I’ll have a miserable two weeks if I start off suffocated and my husband will have a worse time.
Thank you kindly for the info.
Mr here -
I have seen her after she has been attacked by second-hand smoke. It is one of my big concerns about booking any sort of an European vacation, given the propensity for smoking on the Continent.
Thanks for all your feedback.
Jon
THANKS JOHN!
By the time my wife(Regina) and I had sailed on the Imagination in 1997, we had already taken about 6 cruises and were about to call it quits. But, the entertainment that year was definitely gut-busting because YOU were the cruise director. I vividly remember the ‘welcome aboard show’, and the ‘bedtime story’. Now my wife and I are PLATINUM members of Carnival with 10+ cruises, and I am a home-based travel agent. The majority of my clients sail with Carnival.
Again thanks,
Timbecruisin
Dear John,
I hope you’ve enjoyed your extremely short vacation. I was on a conference in Croatia, but back home now. Fortunately my Mom gets better, but her sugar level is still very high. Probably she needs to exchange her medicine to insuline.
Next Thursday I’ll take her to the hospital for control. Last weekend I showed her all the photos I took on the cruise. She enjoyed it very much. This weekend there will be a small party in my home and my parents will come and my friends and them we together will see the pictures agin.
I do have a programme and I put music under the pictures it is a big fun and it is so good to see the pictures again and again. She always says it was her best vacation in her life.
Many thanks for the photos hope it will arrive in safe. It is so good to read what is going on the Freedom. Sometimes I used to see the webcam, but it is only a picture not a live cam, but it brings me golden memories.
I wish you all the best for the next cruise and I’ll write to feedback you. Many many thanks for everything you did for us.
Regards,
Zsolt
We unfortunately had to get off the Freedom last Friday. We had a wonderful time on the cruise. Our first cruise was on the Destiny in 1996 the next Large scale ship was the Conquest in its first Cruise out of New Orleans. Then we get on the Freedom. It seems that we are sailing with family. It is almost surreal the familiar faces that were on the Freedom when we got onboard in Civitavecchia. The social hosts and the assistant cruise directors made this cruise for us they already have standing invitations to stay with us if when ever they get to New Orleans. You made my wife laugh so hard she was crying on Guest talent night. That is one thing I did not see in any of your blogs about the wardrobe malfunction during the skit. The camera angle on the skit did not give you a full impact on what was going on. From the 2nd row on the right you could see the Full Moon come out.
Please thank your entire staff for there friendship.