You would have thought it was a day at sea…………….whereas for the last three years I have been cocooned in the bosom of Europe where on embarkation day the ship is like a library here on the new Carnival Imagination it was fun all the way. The pools were busy, people were sunbathing and some obviously had not seen the sun for some times as there lily-white thighs glistened with the glow of Hawaiian Tropic sun. A group of guests all wearing the same T-shirt that proudly stated they were here for “Leroy and Jo – Jo’s 50th Anniversary” were dancing to the calypso band and those happy Caribbean days I had enjoyed on this ship came flooding back.
Heidi and I did a quick tour of the ship and the “Evolutions of Fun” have transformed this vessel from a 15-year-old ship with a future out of the limelight to a born again Fun Ship who deserves to be in the spotlight and this week with all the press and little old me ……..OK……big old me….
Tomorrow I will be writing about some of the new features that are simply stunning but for now I need to get ready for the press party. Oh, before I do let me tell you about earlier today. We boarded the ship around 2 pm and the reception we received has been so wonderful from the Captain and all the old faces I remember and some whom, to be honest, that I do not.
Anyway, Heidi and I decided it was coffee time and so we went to the new cafe on promenade deck. This has been done so well and has an open feeling about it with soft furnishings in which to watch the world go by. As I was buying my skinny coffee thingy with a extra shot of coffee with no chocolate and something else ……………whatever happened to just plain coffee?….a pair of hands suddenly covered my eyes and a female voice said “Guess who?”………….now at this point I knew it was not Heidi and as I had no clue I said “Jessica Simpson” ………………….”No, guess again?”………………….now I was in a real predicament as I didn’t want to guess again and get it wrong because I felt that this lady whose hands covered my eyes really expected me to know……………….time to call her bluff……………..I said “No, it can’t be……………..is it you!”…………….”Yes,” she proclaimed and realized me from her death grip and I turned around and there she stood……………….it was…………………………I had no bloody clue…………..but I could not let on because she obviously felt that I had known it was Mrs. X all along………………….
I therefore turned into Michael Caine and delivered an Oscar winning performance. She hugged me like we had once got very friendly behind the bike sheds at school ……………… she kissed me on the cheek and kept hugging me for what seemed like a year.
As she did, I looked across at Heidi for help but she just shrugged her shoulders as if to say “I have no clue, you are on your own.” The hug was now over and she asked me if I was surprised to see her and of course me being in full actor mode I said I was and how excited I was to see her.
She told me she had read that I would be sailing here on the blog and her and her sister had booked just so they could be with me. I tried fishing for more clues but she was so excited to see me that all she kept doing was hugging me and telling me what a treat this was……………..luckily the Hotel Director Miles walked by and that was my excuse to break of this rendezvous and I said I would see her later…….she hugged me one more time and walked away as though she had just met George Hamilton.
This episode has been playing on my mind ever since and if Mrs. X is reading this I want to apologize. I am sure we have met many times and I am honoured that you chose to cruise here with me but for the life of me I cannot remember your name or when we sailed with each other. I will spend tomorrow searching the ship to try and find her and hopefully find out who this mysterious lady is. maybe, we have never sailed before, maybe she was one of my ex-girlfriends…………………don’t be silly………………she was pretty and the fact that fact alone means we never dated……………….I wonder who she is?
This evening we went to dinner and the welcome aboard show. The atmosphere on the vessel is so different to European cruising with the decks vibrant late into the night. Guests who sail to the Caribbean are our bread and butter and are what has made us the World’s Most Popular Cruise Line and now they have a rejuvenated fantasy class of ships with the Carnival Imagination and Carnival Imagination leading the way and their sisters will soon follow.
There are various plasma televisions on the public decks and it was interesting that as President Bush spoke about the State of the Union nobody on here paid all that much attention…………they were dancing, enjoying the shows, flocking to the casino and having a wonderful time. The State of the Imagination was first class fun. Our new motto is “Let The Fun Begin”……………well I can tell you that here on the Carnival Imagination …………it already has.
I will post two or three blogs tomorrow.
Until then,
Goodnight
Your friends
John and Heidi
Filed under: Tales from the Ship | Tagged: Evolutions of Fun
Some guys have all the luck, so did you ever learn who the lady was. The ship looks very nice, maybe the Empress Bee will book us a ride on it……
I’m going to have to stop reading your blogs at work. People are looking at me funny when I am laughing out loud. I know you have pulled the Mrs. X routine with me, while you were slyly checking out my name tag. It’s okay – I really don’t expect you to remember anything other than that I probably look familiar. Are you going to be on the Freedom on February 23rd? I’ll be sailing then with some of family, and I promised them great fun. Thanks!
I was just told you were not on board and now I read that you are here. Boy, am I confused! Maybe we will see you sometime this week and No I am not the mystery lady! Jeri
The Imagination looks Great! The transformation makes the ship look like an outdoor waterpark which will be well acceppted by young families. This is a nice change since I had sailed on her
Nov. 1997 with the CD being of someone called Heald.
Just to let you know John that my two young daughters and my Wife had a wounderful time on your Canival family ship the Costa Fortuna the last week of Nov. 2007. We ran into an old former friend/CD now shopping specialist Eddy Richardson on the Fortuna. The cruise was a total surprise to my daughters, not knowing about it until we had drove to the ship and they were under the impression that we were just going to a waterslide for the day. The Capt. and hotel Mgr. loved the surprise theme for my daughters that they also got into the act which was way more beyound anyones expectations. All in all a wounderful first cruise for my daughters that they will never forget.
Best regards to the both of you
Myron and Cindy Sawras
John and Heidi,
It sounds like you are having a blast! Oh, how I wish we were with you. We are going to have to take a look at the Caribbean after the Splendor. I think it is time to return to the islands.
I am looking forward to seeing pictures and hearing lots about the renovated ship this week.
Enjoy yourselves!
Ruth
Hey Mr. England, I can’t wait to travel with you again. I am reading all the blogs between coughing my brain loose. I am sick with a bad bad cold. I want you to wish me a HAPPY BIRTHDAY tomorrow. I will be turning 38 on the January 30th, 2008. Yea baby. Peace. Tell Hiedi I said hello.
John,
Are you sure she isn’t angelina’s sister ? Or maybe Heidi is just setting you up again. Looking forward to reading the next set of blogs.
Kevin
john great to see that you are having fun imagination, we might have to sneak a peak at this old new baby in the fall. Wow miles as the hotel director that is a name of the past, tell him that robert and suzann schneider from new jersey said hello. Tough date otherwise for me and suzann mate, thanks for the support
John – did you trying looking through the guest list to see if a name “rang a bell” By now I’m sure you know who it is. Heck I sailed with you twice before and I’m sure you’d have no idea who I am – but we all know you. Doesn’t seem fair does it. Haha. Jan J.
Dear John and Heidi,
Thank you so much for the great time that myself, husband and mother-in-law had while on the Blogger’s Cruise this past week. I’ve just spent the morning reading your blog and comments for the past days while on our Freedom ship cruise and just wanted to say a few things about our vacation. I’ve never written to a blog nor have ever been on a cruise so my opinions may be slanted. I first started reading your blog after we booked our cruise in October and saw the link from the Carnival website as we tried to familiarize ourselves with the ships layout.
Our vacation did not start out well because I found a cockroach running out from under the bed in the Miami hotel (killed it and returned it to the desk clerk), then one of our bags had been squished between the cockroach hotel and the ship so that the inside supports were all broken. Not sure that the bag would have held up for the return trip home. The Pursers got us a new bag and we are so grateful that we were able to get our stuff home. I didn’t expect to get a new bag so I was not only very thankful but also appreciative of the professionalism of the Purser staff and kindness of Carnival to make our vacation wonderful.
We loved the entertainment with guest participation; I cried seeing the men profess their love for their new brides and those that have been married longer than I’ve been alive. You are a true professional in your ability to get people to do and say things they won’t do in the privacy of their own homes. We enjoyed Cody professing his love to Cathy from Michigan. We loved Al Ernst’s comedy routine and Gronway Thom’s entertainment (to juggle on a unicycle on a moving ship – that takes talent). We loved the guests singing and loved that they had costumes to fit the entertainer. No the dress did not make you look fat. I actually thought you looked thinner in the dress. Black is slimming. The other shows were great as well.
We went ashore at Cozumel and didn’t mind the rain because it was still warm. Our submarine tour was cancelled due to the weather but we were able to take the sub later and just loved it. We did the city tour in Grand Cayman and enjoyed your advice to send a postcard from Hell. I was sorry I hadn’t brought my address book. We participated in the Jamaica bash (loved the dolphin swim but skipped the shark swim) and I hope I didn’t offend you because I just asked for a photo with Heidi and my mother-in-law when we were heading back to the ship. It was the rum talking. I think you are cute too but you have to admit that Heidi is beautiful and takes a great photo.
I think the Cancer T-shirt on Lido deck was a brilliant idea and my husband was able to squeeze into an XL shirt for the photo. I’m sorry that anyone would feel slighted that money wasn’t raised for “their disease”. We are near the front to the left on the deck on the bottom of the photo. My husband is the guy with the beard. I hope that Carnival plans to continue raising money for cancer regardless of which organization is chosen. Maybe a “cancer survivor” tour would be of interest to future guests.
All the food was great and the food service excellent. Jason the Shopping Specialist was very helpful for the best spots and having maps for the stops really helped for getting around while off of the ship. I bought a nice ammolite pendent. I even attended an art auction, my first ever. Great deals and I would advise people to attend one even if they currently can not afford a piece. If they have any art appreciation just to see the art was great. Wow!
We all are looking forward to taking another cruise. Best wishes to you and Heidi.
auf Wiedersehen (hopefully I spelled that right, my German is rusty too)
Nancy from NW Ontario
Hi John/Heidi:
Great pics of the Lido redesign. Thank you for posting them. It does make the vessel look a little newer.
I hope you figured out who Mrs. X was. I will remember that the next time I see you aboard so that i don’t do the same thing
Great hearing from you today.
Take care!
David
Good Afternoon John and Heidi,
The LADY looks wonderful! We had such a good time when we cruised with the family. So many good memories. Lori and I have been talking about that cruise quite a bit the last few days. Now everyone is in the planning mode for the 2nd Annual Bloggers Cruise Feb 09. Timing for that was perfect! Lori’s daughter, Nicole, will celebrate her 10th Birthday on this cruise.
Have a wonderful time, relax and enjoy being a “guest” for a change (LOL) and make lots of great memories.
Take care
Joan
Prince Charles, Empress Bee would look good under the palm tree, don’t ya think?
So what you’re saying John, is that if I do make it onto the Blogger’s Cruise next year, I shouldn’t coming running up behind you, cover your eyes and expect you to know it was that silly girl from last year’s cruise who had a bad habit of babbling on at you and Roger Blum about the piano bar in the Cigar Bar late at night? LOL!
Okay but I’ll make sure to wear my tiara, perhaps that will jog your memory.
I had an absolute blast on the cruise. You sir, know how to host a party. I’m still on the fence about Blogger Cruise v.2. (but you know what the deciding factor will be right? LOL!) But if I can be there I will be. Thanks again to you and Heidi and Roberto and Stephanie and the rest for all the hard work.
To anybody thinking about Bloggers v.2, I’d say go for it!
Cheerios,
Laura
PS – when will my office stop rocking?
I’m glad Carnival decided to breathe some new vitality into this generation and mega-successful core class of ships.
For those passengers taking the shorter 3, 4, and 5 day cruises the renovation and renewal of these vessels will be greatly appreciated and will ensure that these ships will continue to be a successful line in the Carnival fleet…..not to mention one will be the home of Bloggers Cruise 2009
John can you tell me what the order of ships is for the evolution of fun make overs? We are about to book the next cruise and were wondering when the Carnival Imagination was going to be done.
Just read in the newspaper today John that after the Fantasy the Sensation will get a makeover. Wonder what ship will replace it while it is being refurbished? I wish they would bring another 7 day cruise out of Port Canaveral, I love the Glory but have been on it 3 times already and ready for something new! Would be great to have a bloggers cruise out of Port Canaveral some year. You mentioned awhile back that there might be 2 bloggers cruises in 2009, any chance of that still happening? If so, I hope the 2nd one will be out of Florida. There are so many of us bloggers who can’t go to New Orleans on the next bloggers cruise but would still love to meet all the bloggers and see you again. See what you can do! Must be nice to just be a guest on the Imagination this week rather than working as CD. Have fun! Linda
Hi John,
Enjoyed reading the blogs from the blogger cruise. Next year’s cruise will be great and I will again enjoy reading about it. I work for a school and just can’t take a week off in February to cruise. I would love to, but can’t. The Fantasy is a great ship. We cruised on her in July of 2007.
This year we are cruising on the Imagination in July. So, I am really enjoying the blog and pictures this week. Actually, I enjoy all of them. I get to travel to places I haven’t been and decide where I would like to go on future cruises.
I need some help. Like I said, we cruise on the Imaginaton in July. We are flying in and out of Fort Lauderdale. We return to Miami on Saturday and our flight does not leave Fort Lauderdale until 7:40. I have looked at shore excursions for Miami and the excursion to the Everglades only shows a transfer to the Miami airport. Does Carnival offer this tour on debarkation with transfer to FLL? Can you please check this week while you are on the Imagination? The shore excursions do show a South Beach/Art Deco tour with transfers to FLL, but we would really like to go to the Everglades if that is an option.
Thanks for your help and thanks for taking the time to keep us all informed. Do you know who the CD will be in July on the Imagination?
Have a great week.
I have to confess, John… it was me… I’m Mrs. X. I thought my disguise was totally masterful, in particular the way I covered up my moustache… If you see me again just nod, or wave. I promise not to hug you again…
The pictures of the Imagination are lovely. The lettering of ‘Carnival Imagination’ above the Lido Deck looks great! Obviously it wasn’t done by the same folks that did the scrawl on the Inspiration…
More, more… give us more!!!
Thanks so much.
Regards,
Greg
Are you telling me that I have to wear my ship costume in order to be remembered? HMMMPH
Seriously, I know from where you come. Years ago (too many, I might add), I attended my 10th high school reunion and spend 1 1/2 hours talking to a man who recognized me, we spoke about some many things we had done as kids – and I had absolutely NO IDEA who he was. Finally, he went another way and I instantly found someone I knew to tell me who he was.
John Tomko – if you are reading this blog, I apologize, but I did love talking with you.
Now, on to more important issues – last night I was watching Top Gear on BBC America and they highlighted a Bugatti Veyron. Now, other than the fact that the car originally started out as a creation of a Frenchman, any car that can go 253 mph is my kind of car.
Got a spare $850K I can borrow?
Jon
Hey John,
Great shots from the Imagination. Wish the Fascination was done for my cruise in April….oh well….soon I’m sure.
I was just looking at the webcams from the Liberty and noticed that the ship had made a severe change in direction and that there was a helicopter taking off from the back of the ship. What’s up with that? Any idea? They were headed away from Key West and then made a dramatic right turn and looked like they were headed back to Florida…???
Hope all is OK.
A little hint about Mrs. Mystery X…….ask her what her BLOG name is and then you might get a clue as to who she is…..might work. All else fails have Heidi introduce herself again and then she’ll tell Heidi her name…..good luck.
Smooth sailing to all and give us an update on Alan OK?
B&D from Canada.
Hey , John
The Imaginations evolutions of fun look FABOULOUSE!
(cant spell nothing )
I will probably sail on her during the summer.
from, Jake
divetrash/laura come on it wouldnt be the same without you at the piano bar each night, you know john will have a great piano bar player for his bloggers cruise #2, maybe we can get ron to play just for that cruise, are you reading this john lol
Linda and I cruised on the Imagination as our first cruise on Carnival. The pictures look wonderful. We’ll have to try the brand new Carnival Imagination.
We enjoyed the blogger’s cruise, don’t know if we can make the 2nd one. We would love to get back to New Orleans though.
Enjoy and let us in on some of the overheard on deck.
Cheers to all.
i’m still wearing my tiara. i can’t believe it still lights up too! great chinese batteries i guess. what fun!
smiles, bonnie and prince charlie
aka the empress bee (of the high sea)
John,
“Oh, it’s you. Good to see you it has been so long. how is your family? Have you been reading the blog? That Big Ed is a something crazy. Well go to go we’ll catch up later” Just some hints for your next conversation.
_BigMike
Here’s a though for you.
What if she got the wrong person but had to keep up with the pretence because she thought you knew her….lol
Keep up the good work
DM
I love the Imagination , it was my first cruise, and I have been hooked every since. I can’t wait for the bloggers cruise in Feb 2009.
Lori
John,
When we’re on board a CARNIVAL FunShip, it isn’t the State of the Union that matters, it’s the State of the FUN!!! We know the news will summarize it all for us in the morning… We know the world still goes on without us… This is VACATION… Fun!!! (Hey I’m quite a civic minded gal, but on a cruise, I try not to listen to reality… This is pure, unadulterated pleasure, fantasy, and spoiling!!! And it’s all for me!! Y’all do it so well!!!
You introducing the Evolutions of Fun to all of us in such a wonderful blog!! Can’t wait to hear more!!
I send hugs and kisses to you, Heidi, and Roberto (grab some before you send this message on), and Alan. John, next time I see you (which will be the first time) and I come up from behind… You’ll know who I am… A Bitten, Smitten, Cruisin’ Blogger!!!
My best to you,
Kirsten
This is for CruisinGrandma: The Imagination HAS already had it’s makeover, and also the Inspiration, next up is the Fantasy, then the Sensation, it was in yesterdays newspaper.
Nancy, I tried finding you in the pic….. is he wearing sunglasses also? My husband and I were on the left on the hot tub deck. He is the second from the left and I the third in my hat and braids
This was our first cruise as well and we had a WONDERFUL time. I am trying to talk him into an Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Triumph next Jan or Feb. We also went on the Island tour to Hell. Maybe we were on the same bus! The bash was a blast and we even crawled up Dunn’s falls. We skipped the sharks as well. How is the weather up by you? We are currently enjoying -8 F with wind chills of -20 to -30 brrrrrrrr. Makes me wish I was back on the Freedom basking in the 80 degree sun.
Deanna – WI
John,
Hope you figure out mystery lady. I wonder if when you figure it out it will be one of those “OMG, its you” like a total makeover of some sort.
Deanna
Hi Cruisingeagle,
Currently we do not offer Everglades Tour with FLL transfer at this time. You can book the excursion (onboard) and afterwards make your own way to FLL from either MIA or from the port. Shuttle buses and taxis are always available.
And Jorge Solano; the current Cruise Director onboard the Imagination is scheduled to be on in July as well.
Hope this information helps.
“she was pretty and the fact that fact alone means we never dated”
OHHH! You are in SO much trouble with Heidi right about now!
BRILLIANT about the “is it YOU?” Comment. You are really something.
On an entirely different subject, since you are the GO TO GUY, WHY does my carnival excursion information list that I return at 12:00 AM. PLEASE inform the POWERS THAT BE that 12:00 AM is midnight and I will not only miss the ship, I will be grumpy because it’s past my bedtime. 12:00 PM is noon and I’m sure that’s what they mean.
This is an excursion on the Holiday March 3 and they probably just don’t have quite the PANACHE that the nicer ships have, so aren’t alloted enough “PM”s to go around.
Love from picky ole me.
Hi John,
My husband and I have cruised with you twice before and now we are booked on the 2/09 blogger’s cruise. We are usually quiet and mostly keep to ourselves so you wouldn’t remember us. We are really excited to be sailing with you and hope to join in the activities you will have planned.