Wednesday, July 1st, 2009...9:37 pm
Discussing Dreams
My geography teacher’s name was Mr. Alistair…….or Glass Eye as we would cruelly call him out of ear shot…. due to the fact that he only had one eye. I also sat next close to a girl called Louise whose breasts were the size of the Alps and thus my interest in old Glass Eye’s lessons amounted to bugger all. Therefore I never had any idea of the location of the Cayman Islands until some 20 years ago when I first sailed there on the Holiday. It turned out that these islands were not where I had imagined them to be — somewhere in the Pacific — but were tucked away in the Caribbean, just below Cuba and not all that far from Jamaica.
I suspect that my ignorance was shared by many. But, these days, the Cayman Islands have become much better known thanks to the only film apart from Top Gun that the dwarfish and slightly strange Tom Cruise starred in……..The Firm. Thanks to books by people like John Grisham and others the Caymans have become very well known as an offshore financial. Most people now know that the islands are associated with international finance. Indeed, say the word banks and I imagine that quite a number of people would say “Cayman Islands” just as quickly as they might say “Switzerland” ………or “bastards that lost all my money.”
So if you have a great deal of legitimately earned money from inventing a swimming pool poop a scoop and you were looking for somewhere to put it, you might find yourself in George Town, Grand Cayman, the island’s capital. And you would certainly have a good choice of banks at your disposal. Grand Cayman, which is only about 20 miles long and in some places less than a mile wide, has about 600 registered banks. Given that the population of the islands is not much more than 40,000 (of which 37,000 all have the last surname…Bodden)… that makes one bank for every 67 people…..yes I used a calculator.
The Cayman Islands are a British colony, complete with cars that drive on the right side of the road and a British governor, who, on special occasions, puts on the ceremonial outfit of white helmet and peacock feathers.
Of course one of the most popular destinations for our guests is Stingray City. It is one of the great Caymanian experiences to swim with these giant rays. They glide below you like stealth bombers, with their great black wings. Guests feed them by holding a piece of squid between their thumb and forefinger. Stingrays don’t have teeth but have these rubber suckers that shoot out of their mouth and suck the food in. The old stingray got a lot of bad press after the terrible incident with Steve “The Crocodile Hunter” Irwin but we have never had any incidents in Cayman and the comments from guests continue to be ones of great enjoyment.
Guests also love the Atlantis Submarine as well as visiting the Turtle Farm. Hatchlings are reared to over 300 pounds, and while most of the output ends up in restaurants placed between two slices of bread. Nearby is the little village of Hell, which has a tiny post office doing a lively trade thanks to its amusing postmark. I send a card every time to the President of France………it reads “I’ve been to Hell………..wish you were here.”
Still. Grand Cayman is still one of the most superb ports of call in the entire Caribbean and here we are today bathed in beautiful hot sunshine. There are only three cruise ships here. Carnival Freedom, Carnival Inspiration and two others I can’t be asked to name or make fun of. This means there are eight thousand cruise ship passengers who are for the unparalleled diving and snorkeling, for the beaches and the turquoise-colored, perfectly warm sea. All of these eight thousand passengers plus a smattering of the ship’s crew all have to go ashore by tender. I have moaned here before that even though all the cruise companies have offered to pay this massively prosperous island to help build a pier …… bugger all work has been done and thus the passengers are tendered ashore.
This is done from the ship in a very organized fashion but it would be wrong not to say that there will be lines and some waiting time to return to the ships as most people are having such a brilliant time they leave it to the last moment before doing so. Today won’t be so bad but can you imagine what it’s like when there are 6 or 7 mega ships at anchor? …come on Cayman……let’s build a pier……although apparently….they already have!
Guest: _____________ Ref: 840006350A
Cabin: -Booking#: _______ Added-Changed: 06/30/09 – 07/01/09COMPLAINT ABOUT TENDERING
Guest came to the GSD to state that he was not happy with having to use tenders to go ashore in Grand Cayman. Guest stated that he was here last year on a Holland America ship and that the ship docked at the pier. GSA explained to the guest that this was possible as every ship used tenders Guest then said the GSA was saying that he was lying and wanted to speak to the Cruise Director and Captain. Gst refused to leave the desk until this happened.
CD called and CD came to the desk and sat with guest in the Lobby. Waiting for report from CD.
So, there I was having my morning coffee thinking about how to start today’s blog when the phone rang and there it was…………the subject for today.
I spoke to Mr. Pierman and explained that he was probably confused and that as he would see when he went ashore all the ships today were at anchor at that none were able to dock. I think he suddenly realized that he had made a mistake and covered this by telling me that the food was better on HAL and that there were too many people on the ship. And so I sat there listening to him for 10 minutes and eventually I think I had persuaded him that he was in fact having a good time. He loved the shows, he liked his cabin and the waiter he said was very good. And so I stood up, shook his hand feeling like I had had a small sense of victory…………however as I shook that hand Mr. Pierman said “we definitely docked when we came here on Holland America.”…………….bugger!
Time for today’s questions………….here we go.
Kathy M. Asked:
Hi John,
Please respond,
I have been reading your blog for over a year and I finally decided that I needed to ask this.
Since the Carnival Magic will sail in June 2011, when will passengers be able to start booking cruises on her? I have decided that since my birthday is in June, I am going to give myself a cruise on the Magic as a birthday present to myself. So how do I find out when they will start taking reservations?
Also about the pins, I am a big fan of the pins as well and I was saddened when they said they were dropping them. I am glad to hear that they will be bringing them back, but I also feel that if people would like one, they should be able to get one at the Pursers desk for free. Many of the past guest perks have gone by the wayside until you hit Platinum, so I think that maybe Carnival can give a little past guest gift like the pin as a gesture that they appreciate our return patronage.
Kye is getting so big and you can tell she is starting to notice her surroundings. I do have to tell you, I agree with another poster that Kye should be a baby model, she is beautiful.
KathyKathy M.
Hi John,
Please respond,
I just had to tell you this; you really did not miss Kye smiling for the first time. Just think about all the father’s that have missed their child’s first smile and don’t even have a picture of it like you do. So really you did not miss her first smile. Don’t get me wrong, it is not the same as being there, but you are lucky, you do have the photo of that beautiful baby.
John, I have been meaning to say this for awhile, I notice that many people write to you to intervene for them when they have a problem with Carnival, but I have not seen many write back and thank you. So I want to “THANK YOU” for all the extra things you do for all of Carnivals passengers. Whether it is setting up a backstage tour, setting up special seating arrangements in the dining room or even taking care of corporate business, you go far beyond just being a Cruise Director and for that I commend you. You are one of a kind John and I admire you for that. Carnival is very lucky to have such a wonderful caring special person to work for them.
Your blog thingy fan,
Kathy M.
John Says:
Hello Kathy M
I understand what you mean Kathy and I think of all the serving military personal who are away from their loved ones for so long and unlike me cannot contact them as and when they will. I just don’t want to miss too many of Kye’s milestones. And I want to say thank you to you for saying thank you. I always do my best to help as many people as I can. The blog thingy certainly has taken on a major guest relations role and hopefully I can continue to provide the support that people need. Thanks so very much for your kindness and I hope you continue to read the blog for a long time to come
Best wishes
John
Isabel Smith Leshen Asked:
John (please reply), you have a beautiful wife and child; the pictures just keep on getting better. Ten years ago we were on the Triumph. My husband Joe said at that time we must book our Carnival cruises when you are the cruise director. As luck has it, we missed out when schedules changed and we were disappointed. We have had the fortune of seeing other fine CDs but Joe wanted another opportunity to see you. He just turned 60 and is thrilled you will be on our July 4th cruise on the Freedom. Our son Mike liked you when he was 6 and now at 16 can even more appreciate your sense of humor. Hope you can drop by the Cruise Critic meet and greet at the Pizzeria July 5th at 3pm.
Best to you and your family. Isabel
John Says:
Hello Isabel
Goodness me…………I am old. Your son was 6 the last time we were together and now he is 16. Where do the years go? Anyway, it will be an honor to say welcome home to you and please would you leave me a note when you arrive at the Guest Service Desk so I can call and say hello.
My best to you and all the family and I will see you in a few days
John
Bill & Linda Asked:
John please reply. Just a quick question. What happened to the azi pod system Carnival used on the new ships.
John Says:
Hello Bill and Linda
For those who don’t know the the Azipod unit is fixed outside the ship in a pod, or casing, which combines the functions of a propulsion motor, main propeller, rudder and stern thruster……………..and thanks to the captain here for checking my work.
It was developed in Finland jointly by Kvaerner Masa-Yards where the Spirit class ships were built and by a company called ABB.
When the Destiny class and the following generations of ships were built in Italy we moved away from the Azipod system but there is no doubt how successful this system was and still is on some of our ships.
Hope this helps answer your question and if you have a follow up please let me know.Best wishes to you both
John
Jim Eakins Asked:
John – Please Reply
I was dreaming about our upcoming Dream cruise in October; thinking about our special South American cruise on Splendor this past January; and looking at possible future cruises: as doubtless we all are oft wont to do.
What came to mind was the launch of the Magic in 2011 and I wonder what the girls and boys in the back room might be planning? Since so many have been musing about Carnival’s departure from the Mediterranean, might I be so bold as to suggest this might be a golden opportunity to do something along the lines of the Splendor South American cruise. How about a grand tour of the Mediterranean?
On an entirely different topic. I have often noticed many tables on the Lido Deck only partly full but have been somewhat reluctant to ask the occupants if we might join them (once bitten, twice shy!) and wonder if it might be possible to have a table tent type card made up that occupants could place on their table to indicate they would be delighted to have others join them for the meal? Just a thought to help with the often crowded Lido Deck and to encourage passengers to get to know one another.
John Says:
Hello Jim
It seems that you are pining for another cruise Jim and it’s great to read about your special South American Adventure.Once again I see that the Carnival Magic’s destination is a hot topic and unfortunately at this point I cannot confirm or deny where she is or isn’t going. I can tell you that she will be a remarkable vessel and that we are all working hard to introduce even more new features on the Carnival Magic. Hopefully, once your Carnival Dream has sailed I will be able to tell you where the Carnival Magic will be heading to.
I love this blog…….I love the fact that people share ideas on how to improve the Carnival product ………..one they love so much already. And yours is a great idea. I have never thought about this before. If you want someone to join you ……….put a flag up. Maybe a small flag with Fun Ship Freddy on it? Then people will know that you would love to meet new friends. What a great idea and one I will present immediately.
Thanks so very much for this and thank you for speculating about the Carnival Magic and I hope to tell you more soon about her and your brilliant idea.Best wishes
John
slickabrina Asked:
Please reply…
Hello John! Looks like my post never made it a few days ago so here is attempt number 2. Is there a particular reason why the Elation’s schedule is only through April of next year? I see Paradise is scheduled through 2011 but as someone who prefers Cabo, Elation would always be my first choice. Catalina and Ensenada just don’t hold much appeal for a short getaway. I also would prefer to sail out of San Diego as it is less of a headache.
Thanks!
Colleen
John Says:
Hello Colleen
Hopefully by now you will have read yesterday’s blog that featured some great news about the Carnival Elation. If you have any questions please let me know.Best wishes
John
George & Marge Ribas Asked:
John Please Reply
Hi John,
In less than 15 days, our group of 24 will be sailing once again on the Spirit to Alaska. I am taking my Bobble Head along and will be sure to take some pictures and forward them to you. I know we will have fun with Bubba but we are surely going to miss you as we have been spoiled by you. Our cabin is #—. Any messages for Bubba, let me know and I will gladly pass them on. Who knows maybe I can get a picture of Bubba and the Bobble Head. Thanks John
John Says:
Hello George and Marge
I wish I was going to Alaska with you and if you have time please stop by and see Bubba and give him my best regards. He loves chocolate by the way………….I mean………..he loves the Waffle House more but he loves chocolate.
I look forward to seeing your photos and reading a review of your cruise.
Have a brilliant time
Best wishes to you both
John
Patty & Rich Byrd Asked:
JOHN: URGENT, PLEASE REPLY!
John, I submitted this question earlier in the week, but I’m not sure you received it. My husband and I are booking an Alaskan cruise for August 2010. I wish to book in the very near future, so my question is this: Which side of the ship offers the better vistas? We are booking a balcony cabin and I would hate to spend our time in port looking at the dock. While I realize that that situation could certainly happen, I would hope that one side offered a better view than the other. Could you please check with “Bubba” Roberts as to which side may be better? We were sorry to hear that Chris is retiring after this season as we sailed with him as our CD on the Inspiration a few years ago. We also enjoyed you as our CD on the Freedom in Europe a couple of years ago…you are a hoot! Congratulations on parenthood…it suits you and Heidi.
John Says:
Hello Patty and Rich,
I am sorry I didn’t answer your question before, must have got lost in the void that is cyberspace. Having not had the honor of being cruise director in Alaska, I will ask Chris Bubba Roberts to let you know which side gives the best views although one would think there is a good chance that both sides are equal. Anyway, I will get back to you soon, and again my apologies for the delay.Best wishes to you both,
John
Lynn Peterson Asked:
Dear John,
Congratulations on your beautiful baby girl! I am sailing on the Splendor on July 12 to the Mexican Riviera and I can’t wait. I have a shell fish allergy and I am not sure if I need to notify anyone on the ship and if so who I should notify. Can you please let me know if I need to notify anyone and who it should be? Keep working hard on your diet, I know how difficult it can be but you can do it!!
Thank you so much for helping me.
Lynn Peterson
John Says:
Hello Lynn
Thanks so very much for the kind words about Kye. I miss her and Heidi very much.
I have alerted the maitre d and hotel director re your food allergy and they will make sure you are well taken care of.
Thanks for the words of encouragement and I look forward to hearing all about your cruise.
Best wishes
John
cruzn buckeye Asked:
Hi John! (please reply)
I enjoyed Heidi’s blog yesterday. And Kye’s first smile…she is such a cutie….don’t worry … it is okay to shed tears….how could you not? I know you must miss her terribly!
I have to say that the loss of Michael Jackson was so very sad. At first, it didn’t seem real. And then yesterday, I felt much sadness as I watched on TV and YouTube so many videos….and brought back so many memories of my years spent listening to his music.
I wanted to let you know about a current thread on cruise critic. It concerns the Dream and the wraparound promenade deck. Personally, I love the wraparound promenade but I have to agree with some of the posters, it takes away from the feeling of your balcony. I like having a balcony so that whether it be day or night, I can get away from it all and enjoy the ocean and fresh air. Now, it will not be quiet on the balconies anymore during the daytime. I know there will be many opinions on this. I am sure I will have a perfect time on my Dream cruise in February. But, I must wonder, why could that wrap around deck not be extended beyond the balconies? I think the cove balconies under the promenade will become even more popular and requested than they already are.
Have a great time next week as you begin your CD duties again! Can’t wait to be onboard with you in February!
Edy
John Says:
Hello EdyThanks so much for the kind words about Kye and her first smile. I hope I do not miss too many other milestones in her life. If you will give me a few moments I will be addressing the comments that you and others have made about the wrap around promenade and the balconies above.
Thanks as always for your loyal support
Best wishes
John
Peg Dunbar Asked:
John, Please Reply
Ah John, I am sorry you missed your beautiful baby girl’s first smile. Hopefully you will be home when the next first comes along. Kye really is such a beautiful baby. You and Heidi are so blessed to have her in your life. She is a very lucky baby to have the two of you as parents.
I really liked Michael Jackson in the 80’s. My daughter was a huge fan and had MTV on all the
time, so it was either like him or cover my ears. I think he was probably the most talented then, too bad he got so lost.
As I told you before Mike and I are going on the Spirit to Alaska on August 5th. Mike is getting very excited. I am going to go with a good attitude and hopefully come back home very happy that we did go. Alaska is not a place I honestly thought in terms of “cruising”. Everyone I have talked to says we are going to be amazed by the beauty of Alaska or as you have called it, The Last Frontier.
We were disappointed last September on our Splendor cruise to Europe when we arrived and found out that there would not be a Catholic Priest on board. On our two previous Carnival cruises they did have one and since we were going to Rome, I was very disappointed that there would not be one. I was wondering why you stopped asking Priests to be on the cruises? I think they really enjoyed not only having Mass every day that they could, but being on the cruise and the ports they went to. Do you see Carnival, in the future, reinstating having a Catholic Priest on board? I hope they do and I think there are others that feel the same.
I hope you are enjoying being on the Freedom. I am sure you miss your girls more that you are able to say.
Keep smiling John; you truly are one of the good guys.
My best to Heidi and your beautiful Kye.
John Says:
Hello PegIt is so gratifying to know that so many of you are thinking of my family and thanks Peg for those beautiful words.
I have a feeling that after experiencing quality time together and experiencing the wonders of Alaska you will not regret your decision to cruise there one bit. Bubba and his staff will make sure you experience all the iconic Carnival fun you have enjoyed before but this time you will be doing so with the Last Frontier as the backdrop.
As I said a few months ago ……we have to do better when it comes to getting priests onboard. You may have seen a letter I posted yesterday from a very upset guest. The truth is though that it is very difficult to find priests or ministers or rabbis who are prepared to leave their parishes to come out and cruise. We mostly have to choose from those who are retired but that still is not easy. I asked this week here on the Carnival Freedom if we had anyone who would be prepared to conduct an interdenominational service but I have not had any positive replies so far.
I admit that I have not done anything about looking for a better way to get priests on board but I will address this again now with the Miami office as I know you and many others would appreciate this.
Best wishes
John
Joko Joan Asked:
Hi John:
One comment and two questions:
1. Kye’s precious smile. I do have printed contracts for future beaus to fill out when they start calling on her (she’s going to have a long line). You have to watch out for that ‘carriage crowd,’ ya know . . .
2. Last year, while sailing on the Glory, we had to pleasure of often meeting an ACD named David. I have never seen published as to what would be an appropriate token of appreciation to an ACD who extended themselves in friendliness. I’d like to see a piece on him – he made himself available, was not standoffish, he made going to the activities fun and didn’t treat the elderly (errr – me) with disdain but made me feel genuinely important and furthermore made me feel like a friend when we saw him over again. I hope he will be on the Glory’s 9/12 sailing so that we’ll get to enjoy his effervescent personality again.
3. Since you started blogging, I do not believe that there has been anything written concerning Religious Services.
To many of us, having services onboard is very important to us. If the sailings are from Sat. t0 Sat. we miss our religion’s requirement. If the ship sails from Sun. to Sun. that will entail missing the two services listed as in “Thou shalt keep holy . . . ”
I know that Holland America always has a cleric onboard and I am wondering why this is not possible on the Carnival fleet.
As we are sailing with 56 +/- in our group, I did attempt to recruit three clerics to travel with us but all three had prior commitments and are not in the retirement age group that would make travelling possible at this time.
We have met many clerics on Holland who were happy to use their retirement time to minister not only to passengers but to the hard-working crew who should have some entitlement to practicing their faith. I hope Carnival would give this issue some thought . .
John Says:
Hello Joko JoanI have the photo of Kye’s smile on my Raspberry and my lap top dancer computer. I look at it and feel like she is smiling at me.
I would love to feature an ACD called David. Do you know anything else about him as we have 2 ACD’s called David? One is now changed his stage name to Charlie Daniels …….was it him? He is British and looks a little like Austin Powers.
Let me know if it’s him and if not I will know it’s the other David. Regardless it was nice to know that he treated you so well and you wrote a wonderful example of what we aspire all our staff to be.
I just wrote to Peg about the religious services. I know Holland America has a person responsible for leading religious services on board and that is indeed wonderful. However, I do not think that we need one all year round on every ship. The two products are very different and I am not sure we should look at having 22 ships each with a permanent cleric. However, there are times when a priest and or rabbi or minister is truly important. Holidays and important religious dates for example and on longer cruises. This is now on my desk and I will certainly push to accomplish getting this done because as you said it is important to many
Thanks again for the kind words and best wishes
John
Aneta Asked:
Hello, John. My family and I are going on the cruise ship “Freedom” on July 4th and we have a question about on-board Masses. We are Roman Catholic and we were wondering if there would be any priest doing masses on both of our Sundays on board. If there is no official mass then maybe a Catholic priest who happen to be traveling and it would be a most great favor if you got him contacted about us.
Thank you for your time!
John Says:
Hello Aneta
I often wonder if some of you all call each other and discuss what you will all write here on the blog. Kidding of course. It is strange though that all of a sudden and on the last three comments for today that the subject of religious services should come up. Unfortunately we will not have a priest on board although I will be asking if there is any guest who would like to lead a service. Hopefully there will be someone who could hold an Interdenominational service.
Anyway, I will let you know and please drop me a note at the Guest Relations Desk so I can send you a welcome on board something
Best wishes and see you soon
John
That’s all for today. I remain at your service should any of you have a question for me.
I saw on Cruise Critic that there is one of those thread thingies written by people with possible concerns about booking balconies above the deck 5 wrap around promenade.
Well, it would be silly to say that we at Carnival have not been having discussions about this as well. We have been talking about what time to close the overhang Jacuzzis and to stop the soft piped in music that will be playing in the outside seating area of the disco and the Ocean Plaza. As soon as operational decisions have been made I will let you know.
However, I will also say that if anyone is concerned then I would suggest for the time being you book a balcony on a higher deck. And while that may seem a bit harsh and I don’t want to appear flippant when I say this but it would again be silly not to say this as we are still ironing out the details on various aspects of this ship. What I mean is that if you are one who goes to bed around 9 pm – 11 pm then I would suggest booking a cabin on deck 7 or above. If however you are someone who stays up later and will go to sleep after 11 pm then a balcony over the lanai should not be a problem.
We must not forget the benefits of this though. Having a wrap around promenade gives us so many more areas for guests to enjoy everything from an early morning coffee……a mid morning outside game of cards or trivia…a lunchtime treat……..an afternoon gelato……or an evening sitting with a loved one and a glass cocktail thinking life is good.
I will update you on this very soon and maybe Host Mach would like to post this on the thread thingy please.
But not this bit!…………if you want noise then book a cabin on the twohundreddecibles of the seas overlooking their indoor promenade………don’t forget your ear plugs.
Anyway, lets remind ourselves just how stunning your Carnival Dream is going to be with these amazing photos sent to me by my friends at Fincantieri of the ship heading off for further sea trials.
One of the events I enjoy doing so very much is the Marriage Show. I think this is because it gives me a chance to improvise as you never know what’s going to happen. Here are two photos captured from the video of the show………hence the quality is not so good.
Yep…….that’s me……….kissing a man………hey………it’s been four months.
Also featured there are Terri and Isaac Todd who have been married for 58 years …….. they met in prison. Yep……..Isaac was captured during the last few months of World War 2 and held in a German camp. When the war finished he was visited by a young British Red Cross worker who helped him and many other GI’s with their release. It was a wonderful story that had some of the audience shedding a few tears.
Since the death of Michael Jackson jokes about him have started clogging up my Raspberry. “And he looked so well” said one. “He’s re-releasing the ‘Thriller’ video in six weeks’ time,” said another. I’m not a big fan of jokes about people who have only just touched down the wrong side of rigor mortis, but I guess with the way Jacko lived his life it was to be expected that friends and colleagues would look for ways to make fun of his passing. Anyway, tonight in the dance club we are holding a Remembering Michael party.
This will include nonstop MJ hits and the MJ dance contest. I am sure it will be well attended.
OK…………let’s talk rumpy pumpy.
I remember when my Mum and Dad had our family dog castrated. Not a very fetching sentence to read, I’m sure, and not particularly pleasant to write, either. Few sights are more guilt-inducing than your poor Cocker Spaniel gazing in bewilderment at the blackened, pillaged terrain that is now his bollocks and wondering why you have put a plastic lampshade around his head.
The subject of contraception came up when Heidi and I spoke recently as apparently according to our family physician Doctor Ramitin ladies are extremley fertile after giving birth
Now, I would have thought the fact that we were 3000 miles apart might be contraceptive enough but as an option Heidi sent me a link thingy about …………….the male pill.
A new study in the UK has found that monthly testosterone injections in fertile men were 99 per cent effective in rendering them temporarily sterile. As we speak, volunteers are being sought for trials by researchers at the University of Oxford. There is talk of a male Pill being on the market in as little as five years………except it will come in the form of an injection.
Oh yes, I said to Heidi, put me down as a volunteer. You know how much I love doctors, needles and chatting about my Thingy don’t you? In on my list of “my favourite things”, lowering my trousers in front of people wearing white coats and having an is right up there with shaving my nipples off with a cheese grater. Nope…………we will have to talk about other forms of not getting another Thingy as there is no way I am going to see Dr. Ramitin and have a small prick in the bottom…………………….contraception my arse.
Goodnight
Your friend
John
40 Comments
July 1st, 2009 at 10:08 pm
John, remember the smiley stick…………
how can we forget so soon. If the smiley stick can tell you when Heidi can get PG,then in doing so can it not inform you when to sleep in the other bedroom so she doesn’t get PG? Hmmmm just a thought.
I heard from David Tanock……… &%.or whatever the name is he is going by these days.He is on the Paradise and is very happy with the ship .He was sorry to hear you weren’t able to make it to Pigeon Forge before you took over the Freedom. PF is one of his very favorite places to visit.He was sure you would have had a blast. We enjoyed him so
much on the Valor. He does a great Dolly Parton impression..
Countess Carolyn who will cya in 3 more days…..
wooohooooooooo
July 1st, 2009 at 10:22 pm
JOHN PLEASE REPLY,
My friend Jean Evon and her husband Robert are going on Holland America’s ship Zuiderdam on Sat. July 4th on an Alaskan cruise. They were supposed to go on this cruise 2 years ago but were in a serious car accident 2 days before they were to leave. They are so looking forward to this cruise so I was wondering, could you please ask the CD on the Zuiderdam to send them a little something? Thanks so much!
Cindy
July 1st, 2009 at 10:55 pm
JokoJoan:
Since you were not able to have a cleric travel in your group….might I suggest a good ole fashion prayer meeting. “Where two or more are gathered together in my Name….”
It does not require an official pastor and our nation and the world could certainly use it.
John:
About the balconies on the Dream…
Every cruise ship has certain cabins that need a little * by it to denote “issues”. There are cabins on Upper on the Conquest class that are right above the piano bar and therefore are better suited to late night people.
A good TA will know their clients and be able to advise about cabin selection. If PVPs are also educated about possible “issues”… then problems could be avoided.
Where the Dream is concerned, a quick reminder (by TAs or PVPs) to look at the picture when booking a balcony would help people decide IF this would be an issue for them.
IF people are booking on line….perhaps some kind of * with a notation to look at the picture of the whole balcony set up.
Linda (Mom of your friend DJ)
July 1st, 2009 at 10:56 pm
To anyone who is losing posts:
I have lost a post or two UNTIL I realized that I was closing the “page” to quickly after I hit Submit.
After you hit Submit Comment…”sometimes” the page does a count down at the bottom left (where it should say DONE). Don’t exit out of the page until it says DONE.
Linda
July 1st, 2009 at 11:00 pm
jim’s letter got me to remembering something that happened on the lido deck once. prince charlie and i were at a large table as that was all that was available and it was on the freedom transatlantic in 07. a large italian family (lots of people, not large people) were looking for tables. since a large one was open next to us i motioned for some of them to sit with us. i spoke no italian, they spoke no english but we got to “talking” to each other and laughing and ended up staying there at the tables with them about three hours. the rest of the cruise every time we saw any of them we had a great time “talking” again. it was so much fun. i love the idea of welcoming guests to sit with us!
smiles, bonnie and prince charlie
July 1st, 2009 at 11:06 pm
Great Blog John..looks like you are back in rare form on the ship.Pictures of the Dream are looking great..looks like more paint has been put on the Hull. I loved the Captain picture holding up the ship in drydock as “Mr.Atlas”. See you soon.
Mark from Alabama
July 1st, 2009 at 11:18 pm
I love Grand Cayman but I think I’m gonna love my Carnival Dream more–those pictures are so beautiful! Also nothing prettier than a sunny summer day on the water in Italy …
July 1st, 2009 at 11:43 pm
john, my husband and i sailed to the caymans on our first cruise. i decided i wanted to swim with the stingrays so we booked the excursion. when we first got there i realized that the sting rays were wild and i started to get nervous. i guess i thought they would just be in a fenced in area or something. anyway, my husband jumped right in and was having a blast. i very slowly eased into the water and immediately felt my chest tighten as they brushed my legs under the water. i was scared to death and started screaming, “put me back on the boat, put me back on the boat!” my husband heard me and came over to calm me down. all i remember him saying was, “be quiet, there’s old women and children out here!” I eventually eased up and stayed in the water after he reminded me that this was all my idea. i never felt really comfortable there but it was beautiful. When the croc hunter had his accident i felt horrible for his family, but i let my husband know that my reaction that day in sting ray city was now justified!
This changes the subject, but i have a favor to ask. my little boy loves fun ship freddy and we are taking him on a cruise for his birthday in October. is there any way you could put in a request or recommendation to start making fun ship freddy birthday cakes to sell like the heart shaped cakes? I mentioned it to our maitre d on the splendor last week, but he sort of laughed and didn’t convince me that he would make the suggestion. I honestly believe people would buy them. I know we will! Thanks so much!
Sara Jennings
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:57 am
John,
You are soooo funny. . .it is good to have you back where you belong! Making people laugh, both on board and here on the blog is what you do best. Thanks!
Sheryl
July 2nd, 2009 at 3:02 am
Hi John (please reply)
Congratulations on Kye. She is beautiful.
I wonder if you can give me your views on the fiollowing – having sailed on the maiden voyage of Independence of the Seas, I was truly disappointed with the lack of celebration at the sail away. I am going on the Dream on 21 Sept and wondered what Carnival do on their maiden voyages. Also, we were booked on the Liberty, then cancelled and moved to the Freedom, then cancelled and will now be on the Dream. We were given $50 per person obc. However when our travel agent called Carnival to enquire if there was any other good will gesture, given that my husband and I have had to use another days holidays, she was advised that this would be up to Miami. She also advised that we had previously sailed on Princess and again this seemed to make no difference (regardless of what the back of Carnival brochures say about past guests). I am not asking for free cruises and upgrades (if only!) but just wondered what you thought about this?
Many thanks
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:22 am
Ahhh… judging from the pictures of the Marriage Show it looks like all is right with the world and you are back in form!! Wonderful!!!
Those pictures of the Carnival Dream are fantastic!! Wow, she surely looks to be at home in her element, doesn’t she? Those pictures have raised a question in my mind that I’ll address to you under separate cover.
Tomorrow is Friday and I’m expecting to get my weekly Kye fix… make it a good one!!!
All my best to Heidi and the lovely little one.
Ciao!
Host Mach
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:28 am
Good Morning John!
I loved the pictures of the new Carnival ship. It is so exciting that Carnival keeps building new ships. I call that Family Vacation Security! By the way, any chance that Carnival may be returning to Europe? Jim will be retiring next year and wants his cruise to be a European cruise. Amanda is a Carnivalholic and only wants to sail with Carnival. Actually, the whole family is that way. We know the quality of service that is available on Carnival.
I plan to spend some time this weekend skimming the past blog entries to see pictures of Kye. It sounds like she is gorgeous.
I told you I would try to do a better job of staying in touch. (I haven’t even had my coffee yet!) Have a wonderful day. Oh, by the way, loved the reference to the pooper scooper invention. Sounds like it was needed on the Freedom!
Ru;th
July 2nd, 2009 at 6:36 am
Hey John!
I just looked back and found a picture of Kye! She is absolutely beautiful. I agree with Heidi. We need for the Splendor to return to England. It was so beautiful sailing out of Dover last July. I hope Carnival will take a serious look at that!
Ruth
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:06 am
Hi John,
Yesterday you asked for names of Carnival entertainers who made it to the big time.
Jeff Dunham, the superb ventriloquist was a performer on the Legend during our Exotic Southern Carribbean run.
Bill
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:24 am
What beautiful Dream photos! Thanks for sharing John!
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:46 am
Good Morning John!
Always amazes me the things people feel the need to complain about…just wanted to say how much I enjoy your on board blogs.
I asked my Elation question a third time so if it makes it to the blog again…Sorry!! Guess I just love my Elation sailings to Cabo and need to know!
Colleen
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 am
John please reply.
Hello John! Very anxious here as I and my adult son Brian will be taking our first cruise ever. On the 13th we’ll be on the Destiny sailing to the eastern Caribbean. My wife Judy and daughter Melissa are veteran cruisers with Carnival as they have sailed 10 times with their 11th coming up in October. They’ve given us advice and suggestions, but I wonder if you have any tips for first time cruisers. We’re really looking forward to having a great time and just wanted some tips to make it even better. Every time Judy and Melissa have returned from a cruise, they very enthusiastically tell us what a FANTASTIC time they had. We’re looking forward to the same!
Thanks! Mike and Brian
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 am
Hello John,
Hope Kye doesn’t grow up too fast or you could have a problem with the boys chasing her.
We too would like to have a priest on board at least for Sunday (or Saturday) services. On the European cruises we were lucky enough to attend Mass at most of the ports we docked at. We missed at Istanbul and St. Petersburg but did catch part of a Mass on the TV. When we go to Nassau on Sunday we can walk to the church and if we’re in St. Thomas or St. Maarten we stop in at the churches there even if it is not a Sunday to say a prayer for missing the weekend Mass.
As the above poster mentioned about sharing tables on the Lido. We have just asked people if we could join them and they always say yes. Maybe since we’re RVers we’re more likely to talk with other people.
Can’t wait for the Carnival Magic. We want to know where she’s going and where she’ll be home ported. Since she is coming out in June maybe she’ll spend the summer in Europe before she crosses the Atlantic.
Have a great day and look at Kye’s picture again.
George and Linda
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 am
Hi John. I was wondering if you could “hold services” via satellite at those times you were not able to have services held live. Make a Catholic Mass or other service available via satellite in a small non-smoky lounge on Sundays, perhaps.
Enjoy these months when they smile so sweetly!
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:49 am
For the Alaska question: a balcony on port is best for a southbound voyage and on starboard for a northbound.
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:16 am
Hi John,
Great shots of the DREAM. Counting the days until we’re aboard.
Just an FYI…………..eventhough our sailing of Jan. 30th, 2010 is not officially a BLOGGERS cruise……..I have posted on Cruise Line Fans asking any of my fellow bloggers if they will be sailing on that date. I think it would be great to have an impromtu meeting at some point and get to know each other. I hope to hear from some of you . Just go to ROLL CALL and you’ll see the topic of the Jan. 30th sailing.
Who knows?…………maybe John will meet with us and make us all laugh with his history of stories on the seas.
BTW John …………..what was the guest smoking when he thought he’s docked in Georgetown in Grand Caymen? LOL
All the best,
B&D from Canada
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:36 am
John, please reply
We had a great cruise last week on the Freedom (6/20 sailing) but I’m sorry we didn’t get a chance to chat more. I’m assuming the mingle you were organizing for the last day fell through, as we never received an invitation in our cabin. Thank you very much again for the gifts!
We did have one issue, but it was not under Carnival’s control with the current policy. We were in a port side balcony, and our neighbors on the forward side were chain smokers. Not only that, but apparently they were a group of 4 adults and 2 children, with some staying in the inside cabin across the hall. Unfortunately, the adults were constantly congregated on the balcony next to ours and smoking their little hearts out…as well as talking (and coughing, hacking, choking) very loudly, until the wee hours of the morning. What was truly astounding was the amount of time they spent out there…I’m pretty sure they did it in shifts, because it was rare for me to be able to even go out onto our balcony, much less spend quality “ocean watching” time. There were a few exceptions, such as the afternoon in Antigua, when we enjoyed our own balcony without being fumigated, but unfortunately those times were few and far between.
Is there any chance that Carnival would consider making the cabins on one side of the ship non-smoking? Perhaps the Port side, since the outside port decks are already non-smoking areas?
Anyway, we had a fabulous time regardless of our neighbors, I just wish we had more balcony time
Regarding religious services…I think it is silly to demand that Carnival provide religious services for any specific faith onboard. If guests wish to have services, then {only if feasible, and given enough notice} perhaps a venue may be available for them to gather and conduct their own private service.
I hope you are enjoying your CD time, even though it has taken you away from your precious ladies.
–Jay
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:03 pm
John – Please Reply:
I have been “stalking” your wonderful blog since the beginning and always look forward to my morning email letting me know a new entry waiting to be read. Your question several weeks ago about why/how people choose a sailing date really made me think about how our family chooses the cruises we do. Usually it’s price. There are 9 in the 3 families that sail together (me, 2 daughters, their husbands, and grandkids).My first thought was that I would never book a cruise because of the CD. Does Carnival even have any CDs that aren’t excellent? We haven’t experienced anything but great times with the 6 we have sailed with. However, I’m beginning to rethink how we book; maybe my original thought isn’t exactly true. We booked the Feb. 09 Bloggers cruise only because you were going to be there even though we were already booked on the Freedom for December. Two cruises in 2 months that will never happen again! While on the Bloggers cruise we booked another cruise for this December. However, now you are going to be on the Holiday for her last sailing on Nov. 2. A chance to sail with you again for such a reasonable price, can you pass that up? Maybe we do book our cruises because of who is going to be on the ship. We have never had the pleasure of sailing with you as our CD, but this will be our second time sailing on the same ship. Now to my questions: Will you be hosting any events? Will there be any time that you will be interacting at events with the guests, or are you sailing incognito (is that even possible for you?) as a passenger? The other concern, will all the amenities of a regular cruse be available? Since this will be the Holidays last sailing with Carnival, will anything be cut? Will Camp Carnival be available? My grandson has started packing his things now for our December cruise. He LOVES Camp Carnival! He’s the little boy that interrupted your lunch on the Fantasy to ask where Fun Ship Freddy was. You were so gracious to get up from the table and take him by the hand to the phone to call and make arrangements for him to meet Fun Ship Freddy. Something he still talks about to this day. You went way beyond what was necessary to please even the youngest of passengers. (Not to mention his Grandmother!) Thank you for being so kind to him. I have left a message with my PVP and he’s a really good closer, so I will probably be booked on the cruise before I see a response. Even if some of the features normally on a cruise are cut, I’m sure we will have a great time, and hopefully we will see you at an event or two.
Kye is beautiful, and I can’t even imagine how much you must miss her, and Heidi. Thanks for making the sacrifices you do, so we can all enjoy and benefit from your gift of service, and thanks for going the extra distance to make our cruises on Carnival so special, even if you’re not on the ship with us.
See you in November,
Donna Bell
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:30 pm
Dear John,
Having a cleric or priest or man of the cloth onboard would offer the chance for onboard weddings without having the captain do it. It would give those a chance to have a Sunday service if they were so inclined. If someone does the unspeakable there would be someone with training to be with the families. I suggest that you look for someone with training as a chaplain for the fire department or police department like my dad was. These folks are trained not only by the church but they also have crisis training. I was told when Nancy & I wanted to renew our wedding vows onboard the Spirit that they only allow that before the ship pulls away from the dock so we did it ourselves. Would have been nice to have a member of the church perform the ceremony but we held each others hands, looked into each others eyes and told each other how much we love each other. It was very emotional and Nancy loved being able to wear a white dress and stand in a church and marry each other all over again. The single most romantic thing we have done. It would be great to offer the chance for more people to do the same.
James & Nancy
The Cruzin2some
July 2nd, 2009 at 1:30 pm
John (Please reply),
I swear, something or someone is eating my replies, as I have to resubmit them 2-3 times before it ends up on the blog and reaches you. Hrumph.
Anyway…I ask again…can you possibly get in touch with Ryan Fitzgerald and ask when the next few 90 Day Customes Inspections are going to be on the Glory (we’re cruising 11/29)? I ended up on the wrong side of one of them on our first cruise and ended up missing our 2:30 flight. Thankfully we had no kids with us at the time, and this time we’re travelling with a large group including several children. Needless to say, missing our flight would be a disaster.
Thanks.
Stacey
p.s.–I was thinking it’d be a smart move to publish when these are, as obviously they’re not super-secret, and would prevent those getting off the ship from booking flights that are normally fine, but with the hold up, become too early. And would also prevent those who are embarking that day from arriving too early at the port and causing further chaos and confusion. Thoughts?
July 2nd, 2009 at 1:57 pm
John,
It looks like Carnival picked the right name for the ship, Carnival Dream. It looks like a dream ship!
I LOVE Grand Cayman. It is one of my favorite ports in the Caribbean. It would be great for those with scooters to have a port there instead of tendering.
Now for the important comment!!! All this talk about preventing another little thingy…well…what’s wrong if you did have another little thingy??? You have to admit Heidi does a good job at making beautiful thingy’s (I guess you might have helped a little bit). I think Kye would love a baby brother or sister.
July 2nd, 2009 at 2:32 pm
Hi John,
Sorry I haven’t caught up with this week’s blogs yet, but I wanted to respond to a comment – I think it was Paul – about whether the ships are going to Roatan. I assume he means because of the “Coup”. As I mentioned before, a neighbor or mine has family & property on Roatan. I saw her the other day and asked how things were. She said everything on the island is fine. In fact, the islanders and mainlanders do not get along at all, and they couldn’t care less what happens with the government. Her son runs a small hotel there, and he says things are well, there is no cause for alarm for tourists. Even the recent earthquake didn’t do much damage. I hope this helps Paul and everyone else concerned. Of course, I don’t know what Carnival’s official position is, or the State Dept. either.
Thanks for the updates on my Dream. I just made my last payment yesterday – exactly one year to the day that I booked the cruise – the first day cabins went on sale. WooHoo.
Have a great weekend, and I’ll try & catch up on Monday.
Hugs,
Carol
July 2nd, 2009 at 3:06 pm
John,
Many thanks for the smiles you have put on my face while reading some of your posts…. outstanding traditional Dry Humor.
Will be on my 13th Carnival Cruise, this time on The Dream, sailing Oct. 15th. Having sailed on 6 different Carnival ships, I regret I have never been on one you have DIRECTED…. perhaps some day it will happen.
Just wanted to say I Love Carnival Lines, and have always enjoyed the crew on all ships. My only worry is that, the Casino managers always send emails to the Casino managers on the other ships, and ask them to take good care of me……. Why do you suppose they do that ?
Thanks again for entertaining me from afar… Smooth Sailing to you.
Tom
July 2nd, 2009 at 3:47 pm
Hi John!
Such a sad thought about michael passing.
Love those Dream pics. She’s such a beauty.
Avoid the contraception needle my friend.
Have a nice weekend and take care!
Hi to Heidi/Kye!
David
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:24 pm
Thank you John for answering my question. Mike and I were disappointed that a priest was not on board (Mike was mad because I dragged him up this very high hill in Cannes France to a Catholic Church that he could not understand LOL) But we would have never approached you are your staff about not having a Priest. I think that was so rude. If the pax had read his documents he would have noticed that you only have them on Christmas and Easter.
I mentioned this the other day and I have to say you have got to read The Gold Coast by Nelson DeMille. You would swear you had written it.
I am so enjoy your blog when you are at sea John, you never fail to make me laugh but when you are at sea you do run into the strangest people.
Keep smiling John, you truly are one of the good guys.
My best to Heidi and Kye
July 2nd, 2009 at 8:05 pm
John & Heidi,
I agree with Princess Susan…another Thingy would not be the end of the world! : )
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:32 pm
The Episcopal Church has Lay Eucharastic Ministers some of whom may lead a worship service. (LEM 3). Do you know about them? My husband is one and could lead a service. It might sound like Morning or Evening Prayer.
July 3rd, 2009 at 12:08 am
Hi John! – Please reply
I saw that Mary had kindly pointed you in the way of my sister’s blog of our vacation. I didn’t see a link so here is the link to both the blog and the thread with an overwhelming amount of great responses it has received over on Cruise Critic:
http://www.sunglassesandumbrelladrinks.blogspot.com
http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=998573
I had posted a comment here a few weeks ago with no response, so I will try once again! My mom, grandma, sister, and I had returned recently from a wonderful vacation on the Miracle (5/24-6/1). This was our third time on the ship and she remains to be our absolute favorite. What made this cruise even more special was that a lot of the staff members recognized us from our last minute booking on the Miracle in January, and so many of them stopped to chat with us and catch up. There are so many great people working on that ship, and it would be great to name them all but that would take all day. I would, however, like to alert you of two fantastic ladies that Carnival should be extremely proud to have working for them. Dewey and Karuna (both are upper dining room hostesses) went above and beyond their duties and made us feel even more at home on the ship. They honestly felt like members of our family for the short time we were there, and we were sad to leave them come disembarkation (although Karuna jokingly offered to hide us in her stateroom so we could stay). Carnival has two GEMS in these ladies, and I do not have enough kind words for them.
There is one other issue that I wanted to ask you about. Although we had a wonderful vacation, there was one thing that really troubled us. Grandma is completely wheelchair bound for almost two years now. She has been on every one of our cruises with us (7 on Carnival since 2004), and even though she cannot get around on her own anymore we can’t imagine going without her. This was the first time we were able to find her a handicap accessible balcony room since she started using a wheelchair (having previously booked HC interiors and oceanview) and she was so looking forward to being able to enjoy the sea from her own room again. We were assured when the rooms were booked that there would be a ramp to get onto the balcony and saw pictures of the same room on the Pride that had a ramp, but when we arrived there was no ramp to access the balcony. We had asked the pursers if a ramp could be placed in the room, but they informed us that not only was this not possible, but there had never been a ramp in that room in the first place. You can imagine our disappointment we felt finding out that while her room was completely accessible, the balcony we paid a premium for her to enjoy was not accessible at all. Had we known this, we would have saved ourselves the disappointment and money & booked an accessible oceanview room. My first question is has a ramp been placed there on the ship for others who need it since our talk with the pursers? If not, who would be the best person to contact to make sure this happens? I really feel like this is an important matter to clear up… Before Grandma was in a wheelchair we never knew how difficult it is to travel when someone is handicapped and Carnival has wonderful accessibility, which makes me wonder why this was overlooked. Thanks again!
~Stephanie
PS—Kye is absolutely gorgeous! Keep the pictures coming, she has already grown so big!
July 3rd, 2009 at 6:50 am
Good Morning John!
It is me again! Three comments on one blog entry. I was reminded of the old days of cruising on Wednesday as I was working hard in the bakery (my part time job). They were piping in patriotic music and all of a sudden they started to play “Anchors Away”. I immediatly looked up from what I was doing and told the manager that I had to leave. She looked at me and I explained that the cruise ships used to play that song as they were starting to move away from the pier. She is from another country and I am not sure if she understood so I commented, “So in other words, I can’t leave.” She understood that and said, “Right!”
It did, however, bring back some very fond memories. (Jim and I started cruising in 1977-so it has been quite a while. Each cruise is absolutely marvelous and I am proud to say that Cruise Day 2009 is just around the corner.)
Ruth
July 5th, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Hi John,
I think we cruised with you many years ago. Can you give us a list of ships on which you have been the CD? We have been cruising with Carnival since 1992. Our best cruise was in March 2009 on the Freedom. We loved our maitre d’ but Todd and Jaime were the best cruise director and ass’t CD we have ever had. They were so great, as was Capt. Q. , that we are compelled to take our 10th cruise with them on the Dream in January. My husband, a friend and I are so psyched to see them again. Hope you are enjoying your “new” post on the Freedom. It certainly is a beautiful ship. But, I bet the Dream will be awesome. Enjoy reading your blog, although I have not done it very often.
Paula
July 5th, 2009 at 7:37 pm
John,
I know you are struggling with the clergy issue. My wife and I are both ministers serving in CA with a denomination that gives us ample vacationan. We are trying to cruise once a year or every other year. The thing is we love Carnival. So, I think if Carnival developed some sort of database of clergy who were willing to perform non-denominational services and offer the clergy some sort of discount or perk you would find will clergy. I will be the first to sign up. PS we are booked on the Paradise Oct 26th.
Thanks
Bill Finley
July 5th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
John,
Dealing with issues of clergy can be complicated. My wife and I are both ordained clergy with The Salvation Army. While many clergy we know are not the type for Carnival (they prefer HAL or Princess) some of us love Carnival. I know we would be willing to conduct ceremonies and services if asked. Also some sort of board where interested clergy could post their availability would be helpful. Also, I think getting clergy to volunteer for non-denominational functions would be easier if there was insentive for them to take time out of their vacation. So some sort of policy would be nice. If you need any assistance in this please email me.
Also, I will post that we will be on the Paradise Oct 26th. We would be willing to cunduct any services that are needed.
Thanks
Bill
July 10th, 2009 at 6:00 pm
[b]Definately will not go to Vilamoura anymore, 6 Hour rounds of Golf and 4.5 Euros for a beer , we will stay clear of the Vilamoura golf courses this year, and the so called free shuttle bus turns up if you are lucky.[/b]
July 14th, 2009 at 4:36 pm
John,
I have sailed with you twice on the destiny. You my friend are the best. I will on the freedom on Aug 15 will you be the host on it?
I am coming there with 4 families.
Hope to you there.
July 20th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
John, John, John,
I know I am becoming your least favorite blogger and you would love to tell me to “bugger off”, but please! stop trying to get Grand Cayman to build a pier!!!!!
If all you people understood the history and geography of Grand Cayman, you would hush up and stop clamoring for the total destruction of this beautiful place! Key West has already destroyed some of the most beautiful reefs in the world and Grand Cayman is strictly trying to preserve what little bit is left of theirs!
You keep talking about how pristine and wonderful it is to go scuba diving and snorkeling in this area, yet at the same time you bemoan the “inconvenience” of tendering to the island to do these very same activities! Please understand that if you cater to the rich and powerful very soon you will have nothing there for them to dream about visiting!
Tendering goes with the territory! It has been a part of the experience of cruising for years and there will always be ports that will be inaccessible any other way. Stop the complaining and leave it alone! Carnival needs to be a little more innovative and figure out a way to get their passengers safely ashore, as well as cater to those with disabilities WITHOUT destroying everything it touches!
Thank you for listening!
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