Unlike travel and cruise journalists, I do not get to stay at ritzy, champagne-drenched, Michelin-starred, exotic hotels in sun-kissed, faraway places. I’d love to eat a swan at Seabourn’s expense and spend my life licking the goose fat from the hand that feeds me, but I am a simple cruise Director. I like to think I am a journalist. I know that proper journalists will say “Bollocks, are you a proper journalist ” and that and explain that two years writing a blog and saying “bugger” a lot don’t make me a journalist, any more than the fact that I have an English accent gives me the right to play the part of Mr. Darcy in Pride and Thingy.
But be that as it may, I love journalism. And I crave the company of journalists. And this cruise I got to spend time with some of the nation’s best cruise journalists and this morning in a press panel environment they shared their love of cruising with all of us. They answered the questions that the bloggers posed with sincerity and great thought. We learned that the print media is in serious trouble and that newspapers quickly must adapt in order to survive. I love reading a newspaper, especially on a Sunday. However, it seems the writing is on the wall or in this case the writing is on the internet as that’s where everyone agreed the future lay. Every one of the press corps also agreed that this had been a wonderful cruise and the ship and her crew had been outstanding. I was going to report on what they had to say but, like a broken pencil……..that would be pointless. Here instead is a list of the press who were here with us and link thingies to their websites etc.
Anita Dunham Potter – www.expertcruiser.com
David Molyneaux – www.travelmaven.net
Paul Motter – www.cruisemates.com
Lynn and Cele Seldon – www.lynnseldon.com
Gene Sloan – www.cruises.usatoday.com
Alan Whitt – freelancer
Susan Young – www.southerncruising.com
The press panel was well attended as have been all the activities. Later today I will be hosting two more tea times, the Talent Show and a final farewell cocktail party. Last night we had a bloggers only show starring Al Ernst and Lewis Nixon. Al spoke about the hazards of flying these days and as always had the audience wiping tears of laughter away. Lewis………….well he spent 20 minutes telling the bloggers stories of the practical jokes we used to play on each other and these tales of my demise had the audience gasping for air as they howled with uncontrolable laughter. It was a great night.
Normally, these two chaps would do their show and then fly out of a port and onto another ship. However, I asked permission for them to stay with me the whole five days and they quite honestly have been invaluable. I am sure the bloggers will report back that they met Lewis and Al personally and that their being here has enhanced the cruise ………. I certainly thank them as I do Carnival’s Entertainment Director Chris Prideaux for being here with me……………….thanks guys.
It was mentioned by a blogger at the press conference this morning that the captain of the Carnival Fantasy, Captain Scala had been the most visible captain that they had seen …………….others agreed as they showed by their applause. Last night Captain Scala hosted a “cigars under the stars” gathering on the open deck and invited the guests to come and take a photo and meet him and the senior officers. This afternoon he will be hosting a Q and A. He certainly is a man of the people.
It was asked by someone why all captains don’t do this. I explained that while we encourage the masters to be out and about as much as possible with the guests that obviously the first priority in being a ship’s captain is the ability not to hit that big rock on the port side. However, there is no doubt that some captains are more comfortable speaking in public than others and that Captain Scala has taken the social side of being a Carnival Cruise Lines captain to a whole new level.
Here is part two of my interview with Captain Scala
What else has happened today……….well…………Kevin is as we speak holding a celebrity chef cooking class………….the bloggers are picking up their Bloggers T-Shirts and oh yes………….I am signing lots of my bobble heads.
Yep……………yesterday we gave everyone on this cruise a John Heald Bobblehead…………..here’s a photo.
I really don’t have any words to describe how I feel about seeing myself in bobble head form but I will say that the designer was very kind by trimming a few hundred pounds.
Yesterday and today have been difficult because I have hosted all the shows and events and spent time at a beach while being at death’s door. I have a runny nose, a sore throat, a nasty hacking cough and every few minutes my eyes fill with water: all the ingredients you need to make a convincing Nyquil commercial for the television. I also have a bit of a fever and it was suggested by some bloggers that I go and see the ship’s doctor.
However, I can’t because he will tell me I can’t work and if my cold does turn out to be the flu, then the US Coast Guard will land a helicopter on the aft of the ship, inject me with plasma and take samples of my blood to some biochemical warfare center in Atlanta. Then, men in nuclear spillage boiler suits will want to know if I have had any contact with Chinese chickens or Vietnamese swans or the French. It isn’t the flu though……it’s a cold…………..flu is nasty and claiming you have it when all you have is a cold makes you look ridiculous…………………which is why I am suffering in silence ……….well……………apart from complaining to thousands of readers of the blog of course.
I wonder where I got the cold from. For hundreds of years people thought the cold was caused by being cold. “You’ll catch your death out there,” people in 18th-century blizzards would say. It was in the 1920s that we understood the cold to be a viral infection, a nasty little bugger that invades your body, multiplies and then causes you to sneeze so that millions of its brothers can shoot up the noses and through the eyes of everyone within five feet.
Since then, we’ve been to the moon, invented the Eyepod, designed cruise ships with huge TV screens and water parks on them and created the Pop Tart. But still no one knows how to keep the cold virus at bay.
I started to feel ill at the beach yesterday…………….yes, I went to the beach where I was joined by 150 bloggers. It was a beautiful place and while everyone enjoyed the swimming, the food, relaxing in a hammock or taking part in the beach activities accompanied by a complimentary bar………….I sat in the shade, shivering and sneezing.
At first I thought I may have been allergic to going to the beach………or indeed that I was having an allergic reaction to seeing people who had no right to still be wearing a bikini at their age. However, as the day went on I found myself sneezing and blowing my nose every five minutes. The bloggers tour was a huge hit though and as we went traveled back to the ship I listened to so many people tell me what a brilliant time they had as had I despite feeling like crap. It was a chance to sit and chat with everyone in a different environment to that of the ship and despite the fact that I occasionally covered a bloggers or two in the green slimy snot that flew out of my nose during a violent sneezing session I had a great time.
OK, let’s take a break and check in with Jaime and the Carnival Splendor and her latest Dear John letter.
February 8, 2009
Dear John,
Welcome to our first Brazilian port of call – Fortaleza! According to the research I had conducted before taking part in this itinerary, I learned that when visiting this port of call it was important to visit “Mercado Central” because supposedly it is “interesting, stimulating and completely different from any other market you have ever visited.” I am well aware that many of the Splendor guests opted to get off the ship and take the courtesy shuttle to this market place. Many others chose to take part in the Fortaleza highlights tour and visit the lighthouse, the museum and other attractions. I on the other hand hear rumor that only 25 kilometers from the port was a massive water park which was home to the steepest, tallest water slide IN THE WORLD. With such a mighty claim 46 of us crew members organized ourselves and took a taxi ride over to “Beach Park.”
I teamed up with some of my friends from the “Elite Show band,” and headed to the park. Luckily, one of the band members, Joe from England, had been studying Portuguese for the past few months. I was quite impressed that he had learned enough of the language to negotiate a fair price with the taxi driver, get us to and from the water park, and most importantly find out how to translate the dirty words that are an important aspect of the rich culture of Brazil!
Since our taxi driver spoke VERY little English it was difficult to grasp any of the facts about this location, which is something I usually look forward to. I can however inform you that it was very hot and humid in Fortaleza. The approximately 2 million residents speak the primary language Portuguese. The money they use is called the Real, 1 Real equals about 2.2 dollars (or so they say!) Most importantly, this area is known of its beautiful beaches.
Once we arrived at the water park we had a fantastic day. The weather was ideal, the beach was perfect and the park was absolutely massive. We were fortunate enough to experienced a wave pool, a wet ‘n wild park and of course the steepest slide ever. When you slide down this you actually lose contact with the slide and free fall for what feels like almost 3 seconds. After climbing approximately 1000 stairs, I found myself standing at the top of the hugest water slide I had ever laid eyes upon. I stood at the top, with my hands on the rail, over looking the palm trees, the gorgeous architecture of the city and all sorts of people. All of these aspects led to the extreme enjoyment of my first time in Brazil. Once I came to the realization that it was finally my turn to make my way down the slide. After several deep breaths and words of prayer, I took off clenching my eyes closed as tightly as imaginable. I was so nervous that I simply forgot to scream because I was frightened that I would not make it to the bottom without splattering into smithereens! I think the possibility for annihilation is so high that the designers decided to put a considerably sized pool of water at the bottom of this huge drop – to clean all the guts away for the people that don’t make it.
Our huge group was also lucky to witness a very special day at this park. It was the grand opening of a series of 7 brand spanking new water slides. The celebration for this special event included the unveiling of these new twisting, thrill seeking, and potentially dangerous swirly slides. There was a VIP party, which, oddly enough, we discovered you are NOT supposed to sneak into! Well, I must admit we tried all the slides and it was truly a once in a lifetime event.
As far as the people that chose to undertake other adventures this day, I heard a wide range of comments from both guests and crew. Since we did arrive in Fortaleza on a Sunday it is expected that some stores and tourist locations may be closed. Luckily, those that were aware of this and decided to make it a beach day had beautiful sunshine and palm trees to enjoy.
Overall, this water park adventure turned out to be a spectacular day. I would definitely come back to visit this spot again. Being able to look the entire city from the top of the tallest slide was beautiful, and so different architecturally than any place I had ever visited. I know the gentlemen in our group were all extremely happy to extensively research the Brazilian culture as well – especially the customary swimming attire.
Another sea day tomorrow, and then Recife is coming next. Unfortunately, I will be working on board for our next two ports of call, but I will most certainly find pictures and stories from friends so that you can hear all about these wonderful ports.
Have a great day!
=) Jaime
Once again Jaime is proving to be a massive asset to the blog and I know we are all appreciating her daily looks at the Carnival Splendor’s South American journey …………. she still needs a boyfriend though.
So, tomorrow it’s all over and at noon I will be flying back to Miami. I will spend Friday in the office and Saturday doing bugger all and trying to get rid of this cold. Then it’s off to the Carnival Valor for one week of watching a young man called David Tancock be the CD and then on the 22nd I get to be the cruise director myself. I will enjoy sharing with you the stories about the people I meet and as always the wondrous comments they make…………..and those complaints that make you go…………………..wow.
I am sure you have been enjoying Tom’s highlight videos of the bloggers cruise. I want to thank Tom for all his hard work and that of Tony his colleague. I will talk about the Stephanies tomorrow. Here then, is the last Tom video…………hope you enjoy.
I know that the blogs have been a bit erratic and have been posted a little later than normal. Obviously this was due to how busy everyone here is and the fact that at times…………..the ship’s internet is slower than a tortoise wearing cement shoes and carrying Judge Judy on its back. We will get back to normal service next week.
Anyway, I have to run…………well ……………..walk. I have a lunch thingy to host and then the tea times, etc. I just had a violent sneezing attack which has meant that I also have to stop by the cabin to change my underwear as the last sneeze was so hard I had what is known as “blow through.”……………I know you wanted to know that.
And that’s a nice link into this.
Do you hate the fact that your Dr Pepper doesn’t actually have any peppers in it? Does your Pepsi lack pep? Is your Coke not the real thing? India’s Hindu nationalist movement apparently has the answer: a new soft drink made from cow urine …..yes ……………….you read that correctly………….cow urine.
It’s called “gau jal,” or “cow water” and as quoted in the BBC news today Om Prakash, the head of the department, said the drink – called “gau jal,” or “cow water” will be on sale by April across India.” Don’t worry,” he said, “it won’t smell like urine and will be tasty too. It’s going to be very healthy. It won’t be like carbonated drinks and would be devoid of any toxins.”
Hindus revere cows and slaughtering them is illegal in most of India. Cow dung is traditionally used as a fuel and disinfectant in villages, while cow urine and dung are often consumed in rituals to “purify” and that cow urine is being used to find a cure for ailments ranging from liver disease to obesity and even cancer……and I just learned is used to cure hemorrhoids.
I wonder if it will ever be exported. I wonder if we will ever be asked if we would like a can of cow urine at our local bar…………..I mean, we already have Red Bull. And maybe one day you will be able to ask for a large cow urine to accompany your Big Mac Meal at McDonalds…………….and maybe the server behind the counter will ask if you’re extra large cup of cow urine is for here or to go ………….which will enable you to say that you are………………….. “Taking the piss”
Goodnight
Your friends
John, Heidi and the Thingy.
Filed under: Bloggers Cruise, Caribbean, Destinations, South America, Tales from the Ship, Travel, Video | Tagged: Brazil, Captain Scala, Carnival Fantasy, Carnival Splendor, Carnival Valor, Fortaleza, Jaime's post, South America
Hi John,
Just wanted to let you know that I returned today from my very first cruise, along with you, the bloggers, and the 2,000+ other passengers on the Fantasy. I agree with you that Captain Scala was a remarkably visible and personable part of the voyage. Though I had nothing to compare him to, other than Capt. Steubing on “The Love Boat”, my 2 well-seasoned traveling companions made exactly the same comments regarding his high visibility and his warm, friendly demeanor. I wish him a wonderful vacation at home with his family, and all the best on his next ship.
As a first-time cruiser, I have to tell you what an amazing experience I had. The Fantasy was immaculately clean, the food was delicious, the bands were great, the comedy was funny, and the final night’s show was amazing! Music Manilla (in the bar, on the deck, and in their Sargeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band uniforms) were outstandingly great fun.
Carnival has won me over. I’ll definitely be cruising again, and I’ll be checking out your thingy for comments and suggestions for future cruises!
Robin
John,
I wanted to thank you, the two Stephanies and your entire staff for a wonderful cruise.
I have to mirror Host Mach comments that the post cruise depression has set in. How can you leave a cruise which was as amazing as this one was and not have post cruise depression. I met some wonderful people from all of the blogging groups, got a small look at what you and your folks go through every day and am amazed that you can keep it up, and got to meet and speak with the finest captain on the seas. Captain Scala was amazing! Which ever ship he is on will be charging to the top of the fleet!
Cudos also to Big Tex and his staff. He is the second best Cruise Director in the fleet. We all know you are the best.
Thanks for all that you did for us on this cruise. The Friday work with “Beacon of Hope” was an amazing chance to offer just a small amount of help to a City in need of so much help. For the wonderful entertainment that your brought in for the cruise. Your openness and the reflections of your career with your friends were great, touching and inspiring!
One last time thanks to you and your amazing staff for a wonderful cruise causing this post cruise depresssion!
A final thanks to all our wonderful old and new bluggers friends for making it a wonderful cruise!
Hope to see you soon!
Mike & Loretta Brown
Good evening John. I’m sorry hearing about your cold. Be careful it doesn’t change into something worse so drink a lot of liquids and rest. I know that many bloggers will probably ask you so I will also. When, will it be possible for the rest of us bloggers to find a way to get bubble you. I think it is adorable and I really want one. The videos have been great. Congratulations for those that are involved with creating them. Once again John, take good care of yourself.
Paul F. Pietrangelo
Hey John,
Thanks for taking us all along on this cruise. It’s cold and nasty in Michigan & you have made it all seem a little better. Seeing Big Ed was…ummm…something to remember lol, just kidding–he was just too funny.
Hope you are feeling better.
Jan
john,heidi and thingy,
please read and reply if possible.
the carnival sensation returned to service at port canaveral today complete with the evolutions of fun and balcony upgrades and a complete makeover and she looks absolutely brilliant. carvival passengers sailing on the carnival sensation will be instore for a great cruise vacation.
i was wondering if the blog will be getting dear john letters during the repositioning/ panama canal transit of the carnival pride?
i dont know if you were aware but port canaveral was voted carnivals number one port this year based on customer comment card ratings.
best wishes to you ,heidi and the thingy
john steers
ccl
port canaveral
Hi John (please reply),
Only 73 more days!
Nice interview with Capt. Scala! I sailed with my family on the Pride in 2003 with him and we had a chance to talk him at one of the cocktail parties. Very nice guy.
I commented on the blog on Feb. 4th with a question but it spent 4 days awaiting moderation and then just disappeared! Isn’t cyberspace fun! Anyways, just a quick question about the Spendor. My Fiancee & I are getting married on board on April 26th and we’ve booked a DJ for the reception. I have asked the girl that is in charge of weddings for the ship but she isn’t technologically inclined and hasn’t been able to answer. Can we bring our wedding/reception music on an iPod or does it have to be on CD? If it’s a CD can it be in MP3 format or does it have to be a regular audio format? I don’t know where the ceremony will be but the reception will be in the Red Carpet Dance Lounge, I don’t know if that info helps. Thanks so much for looking into this for me John! I really appreciate it.
All the best to you, Heidi and the Thingy!
~Andrea
How soon before we see a John Heald Bobblehead on Ebay??
Fetching 200 bucks!
Seriously… enjoyed living vicariously through all the bloggers on this terrific cruise….
Feel better John!
Catrin
John
We cruised with Captain Scala some years ago on the Carnival Spirit. His 45 minute Q and A session was, to use your term, “Brilliant.” Thx for the interview.
PS We are just back from the Spirit last Sunday where fly on singer Ned Rifken performed in the big room. Our third time to see him and he is just wonderful in the Frank Sinatra saloon singer tradition.
Roger T
Hey John
Had a great time! Thanks for having the media (myself included) onboard…. I enjoyed meeting many of your bloggers. I’m now at the airport in New Orleans blogging and writing copy for several magazines. Wish I were back onboard with you! It was too short! Take care. Susan
Hi John!
What a week. It was so nice being able to follow along with the bloggers.
Once again thanks to Mr. BillZydeco and many others who posted pics for those of us unable to attend.
I liked the pictures from Kevin’s cooking demonstration. Seemed like it had a great turnout and the signed bloggers hat gift to him was very sweet.
I’m sorry that you got ill on the back end of the journey. Hopefully you will get over the crud before you head off to the Valor in a few short days.
Thanks for posting and looking forward to hearing more.
Take care!
David
Hi John,
Just wanted to drop off a quick blog note to say what a wonderful time I had onboard the Fantasy with you and all the bloggers. Truly a memorable time and full of laughs courtesy of you, Lewis, Al and hey Kuki, too!
I agree Captain Scala is terrific — I wrote about him in my blog yesterday. http://www.expertcruiser.com/blog/carnival-bloggers-cruise-day-4-meet-the-captain/
He’s the total “Fun Ship” captain.
Best,
Anita
John,
I am so loving your blog. What you said in your latest entry really resonated with me … about how newspapers (the print version) are dying. That is so true. I work for a large Philadelphia daily newspaper (two of them actually) and they are suffering major financial problems … so much so that I worry that my job will not last through the end of the year.
I think the whole secret is that newspapers must adapt to these changing times. They must change their whole way of thinking and of doing things in order to take advantage of the new technologies that are available today. Yes, it is wonderful to sit down on a lazy Sunday morning and read our newspapers that were delivered to our door by the newsboy, but those days are all but gone. Today, large dealers deliver our papers and we are billed for them on our credit cards. Long gone are the days that the kid down the street brought our newspapers to the door, and came around on Friday night to collect from his customers. Long gone are the days when people have the time to sit down each morning and enjoy the paper with their morning coffee. Today we are so busy getting the family up and off to their day’s activities … jobs, school and whatnot … that settling in with a newspaper is a luxury we can no longer afford.
So we have to adapt … and bring the “newspaper” into the 21st century. We have to deliver it in a format people can use … electronic subscriptions delivered right to your wireless reader (such as a Kindle or a Blackberry) or to your computer terminal at the office. We need to make our newspapers more interactive, so that the reader becomes an active part of the process, through blogging or giving real time feedback to the stories he reads each day.
We need to take advantage of things like streaming video technology, blogs, and collaborative efforts to gather the news … utilizing every source available to keep that news fresh and informative.
I think it is so critical to save newspapers because I think they are in great part what keeps our politicians and business people honest. True, television news can cover stories and dig deep into the facts behind them, but it has always been the newspaper that has been the watchdog of our society. They were always in a unique position to to in-depth pieces that uncovered corruption and dishonesty and made those responsible accountable. Without newspapers I think we will have a lot more corruption in government and in industry. So, we can’t let newspapers die. Their death would hurt each and every one of us irrepairably.
There are minds far better than mine who can figure out all the innovative ways to revitalize the newspaper industry and get it back to its former “glory days.” I am certainly no newspaper expert and am ill-equipped to do this. I’m just a working slug employed on the business end of things … who, yes, wants to save my job … but more importantly wants to see the modern newspaper in a position to continue looking over the shoulders of politicians and corporate executives to keep them walking a reasonably straight line.
Your entry brought the urgency of the crisis faced by our newspapers today to the forefront of my mind, and I just wanted to drop you a line to thank you for that.
love the videaos and it looks like everyone has had a great time . we can almost feel the heat of the sun watching the videaos – nope that was the ceramic heater set up next to the computer .but the sun looks wonderful and the thoughts of having a few drinks under an umprella makes us want to cry cause we know we will not be heading south anytime soon .
The office at work is getting empty as many others are taking their trips . Good friends have just returned form their stay on the Liberty and they were not pleased that they could not get into one of their Island stops . They were ok with it , but she said many others did not like it because they really wanted to see the Island . What happens when you cannot get into a port of call . Do people get a refund on missing that Island – We have never had the problem . I am sure it happens and living on an Island we know that when the winds are high there just is nothing you can do but stay where it is safe. So John its getting closer and closer to that Due date and Thingy will finally be here, you must be getting very excited for the date.
have a rest , drink lots of fluids and we look forward to hearing about more of you adventures.
By the way have you checked out the gym yet ?
John, great blogs about this cruise! It almost felt like I was there…except I didn’t get any hugs, missed Kevin’s class and missed all my friends! Everyone have a safe trip home! Can’t wait to see all the pictures that I’m sure will be posted soon.
Hugs,
Princess Lori
aka Catmama
dude. reckon how they get that cow pee. do you just picture them standing around the field waiting to see a leg getting lifted and running over to that one really fast with a bucket?
hope you feel better and didn’t make all the bloggers sick too! that would suck.
looks like the cruise was a huge success…
smiles, bonnie and prince charlie
Thanks for the interview with Captain Scala. We sailed with him on the Ecstasy last year and were shocked at how accessable and funny he was. We have yet to sail with any captain as great, it was almost like having another cruise director. I hope he makes it back to Texas so we can sail with him again.
Good morning John and his loyal bloggers,
I want a John Heald Bobblehead – save some for the next bloggers’ cruise, please.
I am glad everyone is enjoying themselves so much. Too bad about your cold. You need Heidi’s tender loving care. You haven’t forgotten Valentine’s Day, have you?
Feel good and I can’t wait for your next blog thingy,
Carol
This is where I get insanely jealous of you John, you get to get off the ship and then shortly thereafter get on board another… great updates… looks like fun times… really hope to join in the fun in the future.
Hi John,Heidi and thingy,
Great blog again, me wanting beeing there with the bloggers.
Do you know today beeing Mr. Darwins 200 th birthday?
There is a Darwin Awards for the most stupid persons doing something resulting fatal for themselfes . Nothing to be lost on their genetics code. Just two of them:
No 1: Looking into a gas tank using a lighter.
No 2: A terrorist sending a “letter bomb”, but not using enough postage, getting his letter back and
opening the yery same letter uuups.
I did not see whale 1, John, inside the water on the video, but only Big Ed ,whale 2.
ralf
The voyage is over. The post cruise depression set in much earlier than ever before. I have an entire new family many of whom I won’t see for months and some whom I may never see again.
We sit here at the dock in New Orleans, where this adventure began just days ago, quiet in the dark of the early morning. Memories still fresh in my mind are dashing about with precision like a laser in a James Bond film.
I have to thank everyone who put their hearts and souls into this project. You have a permanent place in my heart.
To all my new friends from each of ‘The Three Families’ thank you. You were all necessary pieces of the puzzle that fell together to become a beautiful picture.
John, God bless you for your kind words and deeds. You have touched us all in ways that words can not describe.
For the moment, ciao…
Host Mach
How much fun did I miss ?
I know from everything that I have been reading and from my friends comments that the cruise has been wonderful. Good job! Now rest and take car ok?? I also think it’s good to see the captain around. On Costa is mostly like that and I like it. Capt Scala seems so nice! I would love to meet him. Having the captain around it’s a detail that we appreciate.
Next time you want to put together a press panel, John, drop us an email. We (bgtw.org) have some of the best cruise journos in the business. :}
It was great to watch your interview with Captain Scala he undoubtly is the best Captain in the Carnival fleet. The man is everywhere, I even saw him in the casino dealing blackjack. Congrats to him and his wife (she was hotel director on my Cruise) and the new baby!
John,
How could you forget the most important member of the Press? Me!
Bill Zydecocruiser: http://www.zydecocruiser.com/
Thanks for everything. I’ll tell Ken hello for you.
bill
Thanks John, great job !!! Unfortunately, the press links are not working for me !