Friday, October 23rd, 2009...5:06 pm
Dude Looks Like A Lady
So last night the crew held their Halloween Party. A bit premature I know but next week we have a busy cruise so we thought we should let them have fun………and they did. It’s wonderful to see them relaxed and enjoy some food, some crap hip hop bollocks and each other’s company. I normally do not go to these parties because I become the object of attention and am dragged onto the dance floor where I am expected to perform some whimsical dance to Pee Diddly’s latest hit. In fact, it’s safe to say that I would rather strap myself naked to a helium balloon and fly away.
However, I thought I would show my face as the Captain had “suggested” all the department heads attend and so because he is the Captain and Italian and because I didn’t want to wake up with a horse’s head in my bed………..I went.
Many of the crew was in costume and many of the costumes were wonderful and some were not. Those that were not were mostly the men who for some strange reason had decided to dress as women and looked like Judge Judy on steroids. However, I admit something to you all here. I was sitting, talking to my assistant Craig when a lovely young Filipino lady walked by wearing a very short skirt and my eyes were…..because I am a man and not dead yet………..drawn to her bottom.
However, after dribbling on myself for a few moments I heard Craig laughing next to me ………because she…………..was a he………….one of the waiters actually and wow ………. did he/she look fabulous. I wondered if some of the younger men who were staring new this. And I wondered if one of them was about to enter their own version of the Crying Game.
Anyway, I went and sat with some of the dancers and techs (hello to blog reader Nick’s – our head technician’s Mum) and they all seemed surprised to see me there at the party. One of the dancers said I looked like I wasn’t having a good time and asked what I would rather be doing. So I replied “reading books”………..and you know what…………this 21 year old laughed at me…….and her friend joined in……….”reading”………ha ha ha ha ha.”
I sat there and listened to their laughter and realized this was today’s young generation. If you are at school and admitting to your classmates that you play chess will probably result in your head being shoved down a toilet for being “a nerd.” Reading a book with no pictures in it will cause there to be no friend requests on your Facespace page.
I would like to host a serious debate onboard or interview people about their life and work, but this is a fun ship so unless my pants fall down at some point nobody will care.
Anyway, I left the crew having fun and dancing to a song mysteriously called “Don’t you wish your girlfriend was hot like me, don’t you” ………”not if she’s a he with meat and two veg “…. I sang to myself thinking of my Filipino friend. On my way back to the cabin I passed through the promenade deck. It was 1:10 am and the only place still busy was the casino and casino bar. I said hello to some guests and had my photo taken and all was well until I was accosted by a very “happy” lady. Actually, let’s tell it as it is. She was wasted. She was sozzeled, blasted, ripped, totally and utterly hammered. She wrapped her arms around me and told me that she loved me.
I told her I loved her to and at the same time unwrapped her arms from around my neck and looked for an escape route. But she was having none of it.
“My husband sis praying bwackjack,” she slurred, “Oh, that’s nice,” I replied and trying to be nice I added, “just the two of you sailing is it?” She looked at me as though I had asked her to describe the molecule structure of underpants and translate her findings into Mongolian. The answer though eventually came to her but only after taking a gulp of her cocktail
“Iave two chilerderen” she slurred …………and then…………….bizarrely …….she hooked her arms around my neck and said “I’m a yummy mummy.”
I looked at her and I am sure in the morning when she had sobered up she would indeed be somewhat yummy. But then and there, at 1:10am and sponsored by Grey Goose …… she was as yummy as a Yak Poo Pop Tart…………..and so……………I ran away.
Time for today’s questions……..here we go.
Juan & Maria Santana Asked:
John, please reply…Hi, John,
I think you misunderstood our message… We were away for a week & returned last Sat., Oct. 3 but we have not sailed yet on the Freedom with Wee Jimmy … The sailing date is Nov. 21. So, we would love to read his bio on your blog before that date. We have been several times on the Freedom but always different itineraries.Regards to you and Heidi & kisses to Kye.
The Santanas of Miami Beach
John Says:
Hello Juan and MariaI am sorry Juan and Maria, I thought you were sailing this weekend. Anyway, I have asked the wee Scotsman for his bio a hundred times and am still waiting. I will show him this e mail and see if this encourages him to put down the haggis he is nibbling on and send his bio to me.
Have another great cruise and I wish I was there with you.
Best wishes to you both
JohnPam Johnson Asked:
John and Heidi, Please replyMy husband and I went on a cruise with you 2 years ago. You were awesome. We are going in January on the DREAM. Can’t wait. Is there any way you could be on this ship. We have been on 5 cruises so far and I can only remember the cruise director 2 years ago. You kept us laughing, our spirits up, even when it rained. You are amazing. If you are not going to be there, who will? Please reply.
ThanksJohn Says:
Hello PamThanks for the very kind words and I will be joining your Carnival Dream on January 23 and will take over as the CD on January 30. I am so glad that you enjoyed your cruise with me last time and I hope we get to sail together again on Carnival’s newest Fun Ship.
Best wishes
JohnRichard Sanders Asked:
Please ReplyDear John, I wanted to something for my wife on our 26th wedding anniversary (I blew it on our 25th by not having a party or anything special) so I booked a cruise on the Dream this Nov, 15. When I booked last month I tried to sign us up for your bloggers cruise and they said it was filled. I am sure we will have a great time anyway, if miracle happens and my dream comes true and a spot should open up we sure would like to be included in the festivities. John thanks for all the fun and information you provide on your blog. Thanks again, Richard Sanders
John Says:
Hello RichardIt is always terrific to read comments that show people have booked a cruise with us to celebrate special occasions and so in case I forget ………..Happy Anniversary. Your Carnival Dream is a superb vessel to celebrate on and please make sure on the night of your anniversary you book a romantic meal in the steakhouse followed by a moonlit walk around deck 5 through the Lanai stopping for a nightcap under the stars.
I will be hosting a bloggers cocktail party before the ship sails on the 15th. I will give details of this on the blog thingy very soon and I do hope you will both join me.
Look out for an anniversary gift from me.
Best wishes to you both
JohnAmy Fowler Asked:
John Please Respond–As my very southern Grandmother would say… “Well, bless your heart. I’m so sorry.” I truly don’t know how you handle all the complaints (legitimate or not). You are the absolute standard of customer service. That’s why I enjoy cruising so much. Your personal pride in everyone’s enjoyment is to be admired.
As for the military complainers… some people just live in ignorant bliss of what’s happening in the world around them. Amazing really. I consider myself to be from a fairly Anti-War stance. However, I would be happy to see all the active military join the CD on stage on all of my cruises. They deserve so that… and so much more! They fight for our country without being asked to… because they want to. It’s our LEADERS who they need to take to task about not liking the war. Not the honorable men and women who are out there defending our country.
Enough political commentary on my part… on to more important matters… ME! (Just kidding)….. Sort of.
You have asked me to remind you that my fiancé and I will be joining you on the Carnival Legend on October 25th for our honeymoon. I’m so excited to meet you and enjoy this much beloved Carnival ship! I hope we get to be part of the Newly Wed game… I would LOVE to embarrass the heck out of him.
Anyway, thanks for all that you do on the guests’ behalf. It is truly appreciated!
AmyJohn Says:
Hello AmyThanks so much for those shining words of support for the military personnel who I make sure I feature each and every week. A negative comment about this is highly unusual yet when it happened it shocked me completely. Thanks then for letting me know you feel I am doing the right thing.
Please make sure that you send me a note when you arrive. Leave it at the Guest Services Desk as I would like to send you a Honeymoon gift.
See you soon
Best wishes
JohnDJsMommie Asked:
JOHN PLEASE REPLY******We are thinking about sailing on Paradise for New Year’s Eve. Can you tell me anything about possible planned festivities?
I see this sailing is quite pricey so I am hoping that means there is a lot of fun planned
John Says:
Hello DJ’s MommieSeeing in the New Year on a Carnival ship is always a spectacular and very memorable experience as it will be this year on the Carnival Paradise. The ship will have a wonderful New Years Eve dinner followed by a special show and then it’s up to the Lido Deck for the best party at sea including live music, party favors and champagne for all…..who are over 21.
I promise it will be something you will never forget. Happy New Year.
Best wishes
Johnges918 Asked:
John (please reply),Last year at this time I had the good fortune of being able to sail with Gary Hunter in Europe. Even though that experience was certainly very different than sailing a Fun Ship, I know why you speak so highly of him. That said, I look forward to being able to be a part of one of your cruises.
So here’s my question. We live in Baltimore, in the neighborhood next to the cruise terminal and every Sunday we see the Carnival Pride from our house. At its 5:00 departure time there is a series of blasts from the horn. Then at varying intervals there are more soundings of the horn before one last set when the ship actually departs. Does each set mean something different (they seem to always be of different length), or is it as we expect that the ship is just taunting us for not being on it?
Hopefully we’ll get the chance to sail with you on the Carnival Pride next year.
Best Regards,
GaryJohn Says:
Hello GES918I hope you enjoyed sailing with Gary Hunter on Crystal. He was my mentor and taught me all I know about how to be a good Cruise Director and I have a lot to thank him for.
You asked about the horn sounds from the Carnival Pride and I guess it must be awesome to hear it every Sunday. The first time you will hear them sound it is for our Safety Briefing when the emergency signal is given. This consists of seven blasts of the ships whistle followed by one long blast. Then, at the end of the drill there is a shorter one blast only given. Now, the ship may also sound three long blasts of the whistle as it leaves port as a salute and a thank you to Baltimore. Some Captains do this and in some ports this is not allowed because as you have experienced………..it is very loud.
I hope that you do get to sail on the Carnival Pride soon. She is a wonderful ship and we are very proud to be sailing her out of Baltimore.
Best Wishes
JohnDeborah Asked:
Hi John, Please replyI am so teed off about Mr. Anti War and not showing respect to our young men and women who allow him to have his voice of dissent. What you should have done was send each service person a fruit basket and charge it to his sign and sail card. What a jack-ass.
I travel a lot for business and run into young men and women at every airport. Some are just starting their career in the military; others are coming home or going to their next tour of duty. I do my best to buy them a drink or give them a pack of smokes, a bag or two of candy or pick up a lunch tab. They deserve our support and our continued prayers.
Deborah (Debs)John Says:
Hello DeborahI appreciate your passionate response to the guest who complained about me mentioning our military personnel. As I mentioned just now, this is a rare occurrence yet it was one that took me by surprise. Anyway, I continue to mention them whenever I can and thank you again for showing your support.
The Shore Excursion department is indeed working on the logistics of a tour of New York once the Trans Atlantic is over on the 12th. I will chase them up now and provide a definite yes or no very soon.
Thanks you for the kind words for my family which I return to you.
Best wishes
JohnJIMC Asked:
John Please ReplyOk, you don’t really have to reply because I know how far behind you seem to be getting, but I do want to be sure you at least read this and I never know if you have time to read the comments that are not marked “reply”.
I wanted to thank you for helping with our recent Valor cruise. I had written and asked if you could arrange a window table for us. I do not know if you had anything to do with it or not but we did get our window table, much to the joy of my sister. If you did do that, thank you very much. If you had nothing to do with it, then go ahead and take the credit anyway.
2 comments for this wonderful cruise-1) The loyalty desk. We bought 2 future cruise “coupons” at the loyalty desk. This is a wonderful program and it’s something Carnival should have been doing ages ago. The person helping us said that the Valor was one of the few ships that had the program and that Carnival was considering expanding the program to other ships. I think it is a brilliant program and you should urge those in the suits that they should have it on every ship.
2) The Steakhouse- We have eaten at the steakhouse on the Carnival Freedom as well as the Spirit and we had an unbelievable meal. The food was beyond anything I could imagine. So we booked 2 nights for the Steakhouse on the Valor expecting the same. I am sorry to say we canceled the second night after our experience the first time. The service was outstanding, but the steak was not up to the level set on previous cruises. My rib-eye steak was not great. Which in itself would not have been a show stopper. The bigger issue is that they sat a couple of very young children at the next table. One of which was an angel which made up for the other that was …well not so nice. We thought that there was a minimum age for the Steakhouse? Now don’t get me wrong, I like children, and I have 2 myself but I would never dream of bringing them into the steakhouse where they could have disrupted other guests. Is this a new policy? Or has there never been an age minimum? It turned an evening that should have been wonderful and peaceful into one where we had to listen to a crying child and a mother trying to appease it. If they are going to allow children, then they should consider setting hours for dinning with the family and hours that are “adult” only so those that want the intimate setting can eat then.
Well, we will try the steakhouse again on our Dream cruise in June. Hopefully this was an isolated incident. (Or we will know better and ask to be seated away from families)
John Says:
Hello JIMCI do read each and every comment. In fact, it’s the first thing I do every morning ………… well……..second ………depending on what I had for dinner the night before.
Anyway, the 343 Stephanies then compile 10 questions each day that are marked for my reply and send me them to answer. I know the Future Cruise and Loyalty program is a huge hit on the ships that it is on and there are plans to see if we can extend it onto other vessels. I have to agree with you though………it is something we should have done long before now.
I am going to send your steakhouse review to the Executive Chef and the shipboard personal. It is quite rare that we get a comment like this and when we do it is one we must look into. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. There are actually no age limits in our steak houses but it is very rare indeed that you will find children there. I am trying to think if I have ever seen young kids there and actually, I don’t think I have. Anyway, although having kids in the steakhouse usually isn’t an issue, I will mention this to the VP of Food and Beverage.
Please don’t let this discourage you from eating at the steakhouse on your Carnival Dream. It will be just, if not better, than you expected. I hope you enjoyed the table I arranged for you in the dining room.
Best wishes and thanks for taking the time to post a comment. I hope you continue to read the blog thingy.
Johnlmnielsen Asked:
John, Please Reply!John I have just started reading your blog a couple of weeks ago and I love it. It’s always has many useful items concerning cruising with CCL. My Husband and I and our daughter and our foreign exchange student from Germany will be cruising on the Dream in April 2010. This will be mine & my Husband’s 10th cruise, my daughters fourth, and our exchange daughters very first. We are all very excited. We have been enjoying all the beautiful pictures you have posted! And I love your daughter’s beautiful name Kye, my daughter’s name is Skye like the Isle of Skye! They sound very much alike, they’re 2 beautiful girls. Now I have one question, who do we contact for help regarding something that I bought in the onboard store on my last cruise on the Miracle this past March? I have just a small problem with it and have not notified CCL prior to this as I did not know where to turn. In all the items I have bought over the span of 10 cruises this is the first time I have ever had a problem with anything. We love to cruse Carnival; it is our cruise line of choice. Thanks for your help.
LindaP.S. We have had the pleasure to cruise with you on two of our cruises, the last being on the Liberty in April 2006
John Says:
Hello LindaWhat a beautiful name Skye is and I am sure she is very excited to be cruising on her Carnival Dream. That’s one very lucky exchange student and I know that she will have a brilliant time. OK, here is the information you need regarding the concern you have with your onboard purchase. Please let me know if you need anything else and I hope to sail with you again in the future.
Starboard Cruise Services, Inc.
Attn: Customer Service Dept.
8034 N. W. 14 Street
Miami, Fl. 33126
Email: customer.service@starboardcruise.com
Toll Free Phone: 1-800-540-4785 or Outside U.S. Non-Toll Free: 1-305-728-4520Best Wishes to you all
JohnPhil Asked:
Hi John! Please replyThanks for the great work on the blog. I very much enjoy reading it.
My question to you is: how far in advance do you learn upon which ship you will be stationed and for what time period?
We are sailing on Miracle on Nov. 12 and would be thrilled to learn that you were cruise director. But in the unfortunate case you are not there, do you know who will be? Enquiring minds want to know!
Yours truly,
PhilJohn Says:
Hello PhilGlad to hear you are enjoying the blog so much and I hope you continue to do so. The Cruise Director schedule for 2010 is being completed as we speak and should be ready to post here on the blog by December 1. The Cruise Directors will know at least 6 weeks in advance where they will be going next although there are last minutes changes due to the many unforeseen circumstances that arise. I do though have my schedule for next year. I will be sailing on 5 different ships as CD but unfortunately the Carnival Miracle will not be one of them. Never mind though. I am sure whoever is will make sure you have the very best of times.
Best wishes and thanks again for the kind words
JohnJenn Asked:
Dear John, Please Reply- Sorry sooo long!I wanted to write to you to tell you part of my husband’s and my story and journey to our cruise in January. I’ll start at the beginning with our wedding in March of this year; we were married in my hometown and quickly returned to Jacksonville, NC where my new husband is stationed on Camp Lejeune. He didn’t have much leave time left and so we only went away for a short weekend for our honeymoon. Two months later he was sent to Afghanistan and I was left here hoping and praying for his safe return. We are getting to the point where he will be coming home very soon and cannot wait for his return and, drum roll please…our honeymoon! We have made plans to go on a Carnival cruise for our honeymoon. Now the fun begins, we had plans to go the third week of December and had paid our deposit and fallen in love with the itinerary we picked. A few days later we found out that my husband’s leave had been denied so I tried to call our wonderful PVP who was unfortunately out of the office and ended up speaking with several other PVPs who were mostly helpful. We finally decided on a cruise on January 17th out of Baltimore. We are still crossing our fingers that his leave gets approved, but that is a worry for another day.
My main question for you is if you have any recommendations for things I should arrange for on this trip because it is a huge one for us! First off it’s going to be my husband’s first cruise (I took a Carnival cruise in high school), it’s our honeymoon, we’ll be celebrating his return and reconnecting from us being separated for so long, and we will also be trying to have a baby starting on this trip. Needless to say I want this to be an amazing cruise and the first of many. I have already picked out several things to have waiting in our room; the honeymoon decorations, a bottle of Champaign, toasting glasses, and a happy honeymoon cake. We’ve picked excursions in each port, and are very excited for them. If you can think of anything else we should do or that I should arrange please let me know! We plan to try a lot of things and explore the whole ship and I personally want to find the secret door! We are super excited!
Thank you for this wonderful blog, as a Marine wife I find it helps to obsess about happy things instead of sad things while he’s away, so it makes me so happy and stress free to have another thing to obsess over for this cruise because I’ve gone through almost everything on the Carnival website, and thought I was doomed to wander the internet searching for something cruise related to read, until I found your blog. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Can’t wait to hear your response-
JennJohn Says:
Hello JennWhat a wonderful story and I although the ending has yet to be written it will be one with a happy ending. It seems that you have a lot planned already to make it special and hopefully as he has not seen you for so long and because it’s your Honeymoon you have something’s planned that you did not tell us about……..nudge nudge……..wink wink.
May I suggest two things? Book a romantic table for two at the steakhouse. You can do this on line or ask me to do so for you. Then, the second thing is to send me a comment as soon as his leave is confirmed and send me your cabin and names etc. I will then take of some things from there. It will be an honor to have you both onboard and to wish you happy honeymoon ……………and to say Welcome Home and thank you to your husband
Best wishes and please send your husband my kindest regards.
JohnSarah Asked:
**Please reply**John,
Great blog today! Since getting off the beautiful (even with her dents) Carnival Legend two weeks ago no, I am absolutely LOVING all the blogs from the ship. It was truly an amazing vacation. I don’t know how my Carnival vacations keep getting better and better and better, but they do! Now that I’m starting to recover from my Post Cruise Depression some, I thought I would finally post a mini review of my vacation! And I have a few questions for you too!The “Incident” in Cozumel was just part of my exciting week, but I want to start by thanking everyone in charge when that happened. I thought both the Captain and Jen (as well as the rest of the crew) did a great job handling things! I never felt worried and thought the crew handled themselves with amazing class. And I loved that Jen came out in the life jacket. Though I think it’d be appropriate if she personalized her life jacket with glitter! (I got a great picture of it). I also want to say a special thank you to Nicoletta and Robin.
We had anytime dining and Nicoletta was wonderful. In 6 cruises, she has been the best waitress I’ve had. She is an amazing person and was so personable, funny, and a pleasure to be around. I would almost pick another cruise based on the ship she’s working on! If you get a chance, please pop into Truffles and tell her hello and thank you from our entire group!
Robin as our ACD was so much fun. I could tell that he really enjoyed his job and he always had time to talk to us. We enjoyed hanging out with him and seeing him around the ship. As you start sailing more often, you encounter lots of different hosts and ACDs, but Robin will always stand out for me and I just wanted to pass that along! The rest of the staff was GREAT too, but Robin went above and beyond.And thank you to you! Words can’t say how appreciative I am of you helping me honor my dad. You helped me our cruise even more special and thank you for having Jen read my letter on her show. John-you’re really one of the good guys out there and I want to say it again- Thank you for all you do! It was great to see you again and though I didn’t get a chance to say good-bye, hopefully we’ll meet up again on the seas!
So, now for my questions!
Did you ever get the gift we left you at Guest Services? I wasn’t sure I’d run into you again on the ship, so we left it there later in the cruise. I’m hoping you received it since the Agent who helped me wasn’t really sure who you were. (Not sure how that happened!)
What days will there be events for the Carnival Dream in NYC? I saw today you mentioned the 7th. I really wanted to cruise on the 2 day, but it’s not looking like it’s in the budget. I will still be in NYC on the 13th of Nov and didn’t know if there would be anything going on. So if possible, could you list the NYC events and dates soon? I’d love if one of the events was a tour of the ship for bloggers and a chance to buy a Carnival Dream T shirt from the Fun Shop! (Hint. Hint.
Well thanks for your time John! Keep up the Fun and Fantastic Work! You make getting over Post Cruise Depression a little easier!
SarahJohn Says:
Hello SarahThank you so much for the great comments and I will make sure everyone you mentioned here gets to see your words of praise. Jen did an outstanding job under the circumstances and having me close by I hope gave her some extra support.
Was the gift a cigar? If it was I did get it but it was strange because there was no name or note with it so I had no idea who to thanks. So, if it was you please let me say a very special thank you……it was most welcome and most enjoyed. The New York events will feature a bloggers get together at breakfast time on the 7th plus a cocktail party on the 15th. The ship sails on a 2 day cruise on the 13th. Can you join us for the 7th………it would be wonderful if you could?
It was an honor to meet you again and to shake hands with your Father and thank him for his extraordinary service.
I am very glad you continue to read the blog and I remain at your service.
Best wishes to all
JohnTheresa Tamash Asked:
Attention: STEPHANIEWe have already booked on the Carnival Dream on 12/03 as you can see by the booking number below. We would like to be added to the bloggers cruise. The only question I have is we are already sitting with six of our family and friends at dinner (they are not bloggers) and we would like to continue to sit with them at dinner if possible.
Thank you for your help.
John Says:
Hello TheresaOf course we can add you to the list of bloggers events etc. Please can you confirm the names of everyone in the cabin and e mail them to socialnetworking@carnival.com and say “bloggers cruise”? One of the 343 Stephanies will take it from there.
See you soon
Best wishes
JohnBrett Asked:
Dear John, Please replyI have been reading the cruise critic forum now for almost a year along with my mother who has always wanted to cruise but due to my father having a dislike to water has never been able to talk him into cruising until a year ago when she hit the 5 year mark of being in remission from cancer. (October 23 is the anniversary of that date).
My father decided to show her that nothing would stand in her way of doing anything.
So he booked for them a cruise on the Legend for October 18-25th of this year. Sorry such short notice.Booking in January gave them the time to save for this trip.
Two months ago my mother had to have surgery again for active cancer cells and is making a good recovery. While posting a question on the cruise critic forums I had asked if anyone knew of any coupons, specials or things that would be within their budget that would make this more of a special cruise for them and it was suggested I come on here to ask you if you knew of any. As they stated you Know All (and that was said in a loving way).
Budget is tight for them now due to medical bills and being out of work with her being in hospital and recovery on sick leave without pay.
So if you do know of any suggestions to make this a very special time for my mother who is always doing and thinking of others, it would be greatly appreciated I can be reached at. if you address it to this e-mail with the title c/o Brett.
Thanks for your time,
BrettJohn Says:
Hello BrettLet’s start with the most important part of your posting and that is to wish your Mother continued good health and happiness. While there are no coupons we do have constant specials available around the fleet. I have taken the liberty to send this to a friend of mine who is a PVP. This stands for Personal Vacation Planner and he does exactly what his title suggests. Let him chat with you and let’s see what we can do. Thanks so much for taking the time to write and someone will be in touch very soon.
Best wishes to you and the family
JohnJane M Smith Asked:
Dear John (please reply)Wanted to let you know that I love reading your blog. After a tough 6 months you really make me laugh! My in-laws were going to be with us on this cruise, but my mother in law had to cancel because of illness and my father in law passed away just after the booked.
Please see the below comment I sent you back on 8/31/09 and have not heard from you. I will be sailing on the Glory on the 10/31/09 and I want to make sure that I am all set with my past guest number. (Can’t let my husband get all the benefits of a past guest.)Thanks
Jane M. SmithJohn Says:
Hello JaneI want to say how sorry I am to hear of the passing of your Father in law. Please send my deepest condolences to your family. I have confirmed that your past guest status is up to date so you have nothing to be concerned about. I wish you a wonderful cruise on the Carnival Glory and hope that after the tough few months you have had you have fun and rejuvenate as much as possible.
Best wishes to you all
JohnBob Haywood Asked:
Please reply….Hi John.First of all thanks for posting the pictures of Carnivals Holiday. I am using it as my desktop background……yea!!! Recently returned from the August 29 cruise on the Liberty (third on Carnival) and we had a great vacation…they keep getting better, so much so that I can’t wait till the next one which is what I’m writing about. The highlight of our cruise had to be the day we spent on Half Moon Cay and I’m having trouble finding a 7 day Carnival cruise in April that visits there. I was hoping for the Carnival Dream but no such luck. Could you speak to the bearded ones who do the scheduling about stopping there for about 4 days so I can get it out of my system and cruise with carnival to other ports?
John Says:
Hello BobHalf Moon Cay is fast becoming THE port of call that everyone wants to visit. It is perfect for our shorter cruises from South Florida being so close to home ports like Miami, Port Everglades, etc. I will indeed mention to those with beards that more and more of our guests want to see it as part of their itinerary and on longer cruises and maybe one day soon they will make it so.
Glad to hear you had a wonderful time on the Carnival Liberty and I hope it’s not long before we see you onboard one of our ships again
Best wishes
Johnbobbyfk Asked:
John Please Reply,Any updates on a bloggers meet and greet in NYC for those not going on the cruise? I think you said something about one? I live in NJ but would be willing to go up to NYC to meet you and the other bloggers providing the date/time works for me.
Thanks,
Bobbyfk (Robert)John Says:
Hello RobertI will very soon be posting the details on the bloggers breakfast in New York on November 7th. I will let you all know where and when to be there. I hope you can come.
Best wishes and hope to see you soon
JohnRonRythm Asked:
John & Co. (please reply)I was just on the Carnival web site to book some shore excursions for My Carnival Splendor 12/27/09 sailing and wanted to book the Off Road Bicycle Adventure. Then I noticed there is a weight limit of 200 lbs. Why? Nobody but me is going to have to haul the weight around. I really want to do this as bikes are the best way to actually see the country for me, and would prefer to do it through the ship, but as I weigh 230, I guess I’ll have to do it through an outside vendor. At least there wasn’t a weight limit when I booked my night at the supper club!
Enjoy life,
RonJohn Says:
Hello RonI agree…….that seems a bit odd………200 pounds? Please let me check on this as it seems rather a low weight limit. I will be back to you ASAP.
Please hold on before you book anything else.
Best wishes
JohnDave (please reply) Asked:
Hi John,I just wanted to thank you for looking into the deck 8 Cat 9A matter on the Dream.
Based on what you have said and the pictures we have seen of the interior of the cabin we will be canceling the 9A and moving to a cat 8.Even with the balcony extended to make it a wrap, after looking at the pictures of the cabin we know that we really would not be happy with it, so rather than be unhappy, we will switch to a regular balcony cabin and have a blast
All is not lost though; we will be using the money saved to move to an aft wrap on our cruise on the Miracle a couple of months after our Dream cruise, which happens to be my 40th birthday as well.
Thanks again for looking into this and for all the hard work you do to try to make Carnival customers happy.
John Says:
Hello DaveOnce again I apologize to you and everyone else who booked this cabin based on the ships plans which as you know by now were wrong. The partitions are now down and hopefully this will help matters. I am sure the cabin you have booked now will be wonderful as will the one on your Carnival Miracle cruise. Thank you for your kind words and I hope to cruise with you one day soon.
Best wishes
JohnShannan Asked:
Dear John. Please reply!!!Hi John,
Great blog about the Dream. I am hoping you can help us. A group of us are booked for 9/11/2010 and we have deck 8 aft cabins. We are hearing that there is a problem with the deck plans not showing the right type of cabins. Could you please tell me which cabin on deck 8 is the actual aft wrap, is it 8473 or 8469? Reservations are in question until this question is answered.Help from anyone who knows for sure what the aft wrap cabin # is would be appreciated!!!!!
Thanks, and keep up the great blogs!
ShannanJohn Says:
Hello ShannanJust in case you haven’t seen the previous blogs or indeed the above comment let me first apologize again for the concerns that this has caused. Our deck plans were wrong because the yard had mistakenly put partitions up…….these though are now down and so you will get exactly what you booked when you experience your Carnival Dream cruise next year.
I hope you all have a brilliant time
Best wishes
JohnPaul Asked:
John – please replyI just returned from a great time on the Elation. I noticed these meetings written in the program every day. Can you tell me what they mean?
Friends of Bill W
Friends of Jimmy K
Friends of DorothyI also wanted to tell you that my waiter Natalya was the best and most friendly we have ever had on our three cruises. Please can you tell her she made our cruise special?
Love the blog
PaulJohn Says:
Hello PaulGood question. Let me answer them for you.
Friends of Bill W – Bill Wilson was the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous
Friends of Jimmy K – Jimmy K was the founder of Narcotics Anonymous
Friends of Dorothy – This is an invitation for our Gay and Lesbian guests to meet. Dorothy refers to the character from the Wizard of Oz.There you go. We also will by the way upon request arrange meetings for Rotarians, Lions and various other service clubs to meet.
I am glad you had such a great time on the Carnival Elation and I will pass on your words of praise for Natalya to her and the Hotel Director on the ship.
Best wishes
John
That’s all for today and that double batch has me up to the 11th of October. Once again my apologies for the delay in answering yours and thanks for all the great comments this week.
Let’s do the news.
I know that many of you are waiting for news on the New York events and the bloggers breakfast. I am ready to tell you what’s happening but I have been asked to wait by my friends at Public Relations who are busy drinking red wine………sorry……..busy writing a special press release about the event. I realize you all want to make plans and I promise to have this information to you next week………it’s going to be great. By the way, how’s the weather in New York? Is it cold, should I buy a coat? I didn’t bring one…………bugger.
It’s not often I highlight the world of Costa here on the blog thingy but having been at the naming ceremony of the Costal Luminosa and the Costa Pacifica I became an instant fan. Well, Costa has two more ships in 2010 and 2011 and they need your help in choosing the names. There is a list to choose from and they asked me for your help…..yes your help in choosing the names that will become proud additions to the Costa fleet. And what great names they are. Have a look and chose your favorites. The information is on
When you have finished over there, pop on over to www.carnival.com/dream and have a look at all the new photos that one of the 343 Stephanies has placed there. What a brilliant ship.
Hi John and Bloggers. There are also a few new videos. Check them out and enjoy. Steph
The sun is shining in Roatan today and beginning next month the Carnival ships will be docking at the new pier built by the Hondurans and Carnival Corporation. The official name of the pier is Mahogany Cruise Center. Today, I met with Carnival Corporation’s Senior Vice President of Port and Destination Development Giora Israel who came onboard to speak to the Captain and I about this wonderful new facility. And from what he told us it is going to be a brilliant addition to the time the Carnival Legend, Carnival Valor and Carnival Glory spends on this gorgeous isle. I asked Giora to send me some photos and I will post them as soon as he does.
I spent three years in Europe on the Carnival Liberty, Carnival Freedom and Carnival Splendor and I must say the weather was for the most part amazing. However, if there was one night that it could get a little bumpy it was the later season crossings from Messina to Barcelona and from Barcelona to Monte Carlo…….across the Gulf of Leon.
I received a few e mails and comments today from eagle eyed viewers of your Carnival Dream’s web cam that something had changed………and indeed you were all correct and very observant. Here is the news from the ship in the form of a letter we sent to guests.
October 23rd, 2009
Dear Carnival Guest:We hope you are enjoying your Grand Mediterranean cruise aboard the beautiful Carnival Dream. We also want to provide you with an update for our itinerary plans for the rest of the cruise.
Due to adverse weather conditions, we have found it necessary to change the ship’s course. Unfortunately, this means we will have to cancel our call into Barcelona tomorrow. We know how important ports of call are in your vacation plans and regret that we were not able to visit Barcelona as planned. Please understand that the safety and comfort of all on board is my main priority and for this reason this change was the best course of action.
Tomorrow we will spending a day at sea and then proceed directly to Monte Carlo. The good news is we have obtained authorization from the local authorities to arrive earlier than planned so all of you can take advantage of the spectacular nightlife and shopping in Monte Carlo. Our arrival is now scheduled for 7:30pm. In addition, we will be extending our call there to include an overnight stay with our departure planned for 8:00 PM on Sunday.
We sincerely apologize for this itinerary change and thank you for your understanding. In the meantime, we have a full schedule of exciting activities and entertainment planned for you aboard the Carnival Dream.
My officers, staff and crew will continue to do everything possible to provide you with a fun and memorable cruise vacation.
Captain Carlo Queirolo
I know Captain Queirolo very well and I know that the weather must have been pretty severe for him to change course and miss Barcelona. I hope that for the rest of the cruise they are blessed with calm seas.
Well last night I hosted the bedtime story and I must say it was a funny one. My hero was played by a chap called Stan Edgard. He was so very funny and I am working on having video clips so I can show you next week. All I can tell you now is that he is 89 years old, married for 65 years and a bit hard of hearing……….it was a night of hysterical laughter.
Well, it’s Friday and once again let me apologize for not posting photos of Kye. She is doing well though and I sing to her twice a day every day down the phone. I think she recognizes my voice because she gurgles and giggles and I laugh and when I put the phone down sometimes I have to wipe a tear away.
Anyway, it’s autumn in the UK and even though I am thousands of miles away I am in the dog house. That’s because I am thousands of miles away and that means that the grass has grown, there are leaves all over the driveway and Heidi is far too busy feeding Kye and watching Bold and the Bollocks to take care of it. This means we have to have a gardener come and do it which is only just less expensive than chartering the Queen Mary 2 and filling it with Latvian women.
I should be there to do this. I am, after all, the man of the house. As I may have mentioned before in a previous blog thingy I have not exactly been blessed with gardening skills. However, cutting or mowing the grass as we say across the pond is something I can do………….and something that I actually find relaxing.
It’s wonderful, all you have to worry about is going in a straight line and not running over the flowers or a rabbit. With the sun on your back, a Monte Cristo #2 in your mouth and Deep Purple playing on my Eye Pod thingy I would be as relaxed as a Frenchman in the world’s smelliest man contest.
When I finish a show or indeed a blog there is no time to admire my work, I walk of stage or press send and then do my President Bartlett impression and say “what’s next?” However, when you cut the grass you have time to stand back with your hands on your hips and admire your work and praise yourself for having created a picture perfect lawn worthy of playing billiards on…
This is something I got from my Dad. Not only is he a master wood craftsman he is also a lawn master…….or when we were kids he was the Chief Inspector of the Lawn Police. My Dad is calmness personified but when we were kids playing on the lawn was as forbidden as setting fire to our dog “Ringo” and if we darted to walk on it or even think about playing on it we would see calm Dad turn into a Tasmanian Lawn Devil.
I often thought he was a bit over the top but having had a lawn of my own now I understand. The fact that I am not there at home now and Gary the Gardener is cutting the grass for me makes me very jealous.
I love my lawn and have morphed into my Dad. Just before I left for the Carnival Legend I discovered a patch of thistles and I was so angry if I had had a gun, I would have shot it. It was ugliness in a garden of beauty…..it was like having a photo of Megan Fox’s bottom photo shopped onto Judge Judy’s body.
Apparently Prince Charles is an avid gardener and says in his autobiography that all gardeners should talk to their plants. This is something that I have found most unrewarding. If I talk to them…….they die…….and if I ignore them………they die. It may work for His Royal Highness Prince Jug Ears but it doesn’t for me and anyway ….why should I listen to someone who has always been a bit “weird” in my book…..I mean it has to be said…he left one of the world’s most beautiful and sexy ladies……….. for someone who is only just better looking than the Norwegian Epic.
Goodnight
Your friend
John
52 Comments
October 23rd, 2009 at 5:47 pm
Hello John,
I wonder if you would be in the doghouse if you called Heidi a “yummy mummy” !!
Phil & Liz
October 23rd, 2009 at 6:01 pm
John, So it sounds like when we meet you that I need to hug all over you!! HA HA HA, Seeing You are the love guru. We should have you start hosting a Love guru show
Big Fans as Allways,
Frank and Bridie
October 23rd, 2009 at 6:21 pm
While the information might not be current, The Santanas of Miami Beach might want to read the following blog.
Wednesday, August 8th, 2007…4:17 pm
Highlighting the Carnival Glory and Cruise Director Ralph “Wee Jimmy” Valente
Keep up the great work
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:13 pm
John:
WOW …. you really covered all the bases with this blog.
There was intrique, romance, danger, humor and information….and all that just from having to deal with the drunk slut at the casino bar.
Things that make you go “bbbrrrrrrr”……..
I completely understand about the “lawn thing”.
Here in the United States, you can earn a Master Gardener Certification. Two of my brothers and one of my sisters are Master Gardeners.
I did all the yard work for most of our married life (since David was always traveling) until I had an “episode” with my heart one day after cutting the grass. (That is what the doctors call it when they don’t have a clue what is really wrong.)
I really enjoyed it and it is great exercise. But now David has to just squeeze in the yard work between being out of town.
Linda (Mom of your friend~ and HUGE GATOR FAN~ DJ)
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:31 pm
John,
Great blog as usual! Really, I don’t know where you find the time and energy to keep this monster of a thing going. Most blogs are self serving, egotistical pieces of crap. What keeps everyone coming back to yours is the honesty and”warts and all” commentary that you so expertly thread throughout all of your recaps of the days and nights aboard a cruise ship. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that you have a never ending well of fodder (your guests) to draw from! Also, kudos to Carnival Corporation for not filtering your commentary, even after all this time. I am truly impressed by that.
I would like to comment on the blog from yesterday, mainly to your question concerning the formal dining room. It seems that true dining is fast becoming a lost art. You would be hard-pressed to find younger people who truly care about the way they dress when attending events such as weddings and funerals. We live next to a church that performs weddings on a regular basis. I have to say that MOST of the women still know how to put an outfit together, but the MEN are simply atrocious! Someone please tell the younger generation of men that a pressed shirt (with tails hanging out), pressed (non-filthy) jeans and a brand new pair of work boots (open at the top) does NOT constitute a well dressed man, nor does it convey any sense of respect for the occasion.
I believe the same is true for the dining rooms aboard cruise ships. A lot of people just don’t care how they look or act in public any longer. Attending the formal dining room is one of the main highlights of our cruises with Carnival. Not only do we enjoy the attention given by the wait staff (not to mention the bonds formed!) and the excellent choices in food and wines, but when we are getting ready in our cabin, with the music channel on and my wife putting the finishing touches on her ensemble, while I make one last adjustment to my Windsor knot, it is the only time when we feel like we’re on a date together. With life being so busy these days, the time spent together (at a table for 2, of course!) is VERY special to us. It is truly one of the highlights of our cruise and we hope that the tradition will continue well into the very bright Carnival Cruise Lines future. Of course the show after dinner is just icing on the cake.
Keep up the excellent work my friend!
Lance & Ilda.
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:43 pm
Sounds like the Halloween Party for the crew was a good one. The sexy gal who was not a gal, I can only say I bet that guy had great legs. I would kill for great legs, it just does not seem very fair that he does. Oh well, I do have things he does not LOL.
If I had been on that cruise on the Dream, I would have been very happy. Barcelona was my least favorite place we went to last year on the Splendor. Another day at see would have been perfect. I hope they did not have any disgruntled passengers, but I am sure that is probably not the case.
Keep smiling John, you truly are one of the good guys.
My best to Heidi and Kye.
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Sorry for the passengers that missed Barcelona but on the Liberty some missed Livorno. It happens and most of us just roll with the punches–there is nothing anyone can do about it so enjoy the rest getting ready for the next port. Sometimes the seas get angry and the captain’s job is to protect his passengers and his ship. Besides, refunded excursions are like someone just showered me with extra cash to spend!
Ok, when is your cruise on the Queen Victoria?
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:08 pm
Hi John, (please reply)
My wife and I have just booked out first cruise on the Carnival Dream for Jan 30/10, something we are really looking forward to.
We have timed this trip with my wife’s 30th birthday, any specific recommendations for something special?
Thanks…
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:11 pm
John,
The weather in NY right now is pretty decent…for someone who’s used to it…
Now, for someone who has been bouncing around the Caribbean for the past month I think the best way to describe the NY weather is….It’s bloody freezing!!!
I would suggest you bring along a medium weight jacket for your trip to NY. Also, if you plan on doing any blog writing then I would suggest that you might be a bit more comfortable in long underpants.
October 23rd, 2009 at 9:56 pm
Wow! I asked my son Nick to tell you hello and ask you mention him in your blog, if you could…. and you did! That was great! I have forwarded it to all of his grandparents, aunts, uncles,sisters… well you get the idea. You now have many more readers! Thanks for the shout out. We all miss Nick so much, but we are so proud of him!
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:04 pm
John have you never heard the saying that beauty is only skin deep. Prince Charles loves his wife, as I am sure you love yours. Or did you just marry Heidi because she’s pretty? Do you suppose that people wonder why Heidi married you?
I just don’t think it is nice to make fun of the way people look. Not funny at all.
October 23rd, 2009 at 11:09 pm
Please reply!
Would it be possible for you to bring pictures of Kye to the 11/15 bloggers cocktail party for all of us to see?
October 24th, 2009 at 7:05 am
PLS REPLY
John this is my periodic push for an improved interline loyalty program.Pls pass my comments on to the appropriate person in corporate marketing.
We travel all 3 major US lines –Carnival, Princess and HAL. Coming up on # 10 on Carnival Spirit, Have the Sapphire Princess booked and probably will book the Nooordam for next fall.
We need some loyalty program that reflects that.
You did such a good job on the life boat drill, that it thought you might help here.
I have one thought. How about having the “future cruise credit” (Princess term) able to be purchased on any of the lines , but usable on any of the lines. For instance a Princess FCC would be useable on Carnival.
I’m sure the individual lines have their “tunnel vision” profit concerns, but in the end it’s the profitabilty of Carnival Corp. that counts.
This program would not cause any “blurring ” of the distinctions, between the lines. Pass it along, if you would.
October 24th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Good morning, John! I can’t believe I only just discovered your blog yesterday. We are avid Carnival (and sometimes Holland America) cruisers. The most interest coincidence in finding you just yesterday is that we are coming aboard the Legend tomorrow! This is our second “Legend” cruise and our 9th Carnival. I have thoroughly enjoyed yesterday and today’s blogs and look forward to meeting you and then keeping up with your “words.” See you this next week!
October 24th, 2009 at 10:06 am
John, while we sailing with you on the Carnival Freedom in July, there was a family with 2 teenage boys dining with them. I can only assume that one was their son and possibly the other a friend of the son’s. The boys showed up for dinner in the MDR dressed in whatever they had worn the entire day. Ball caps on, turned backwards. They did not sit up straight but rather sat half reclined. I wanted to first, take the ball caps off and hit them on the head with it. Then I wanted to ask the parents where they were when they were supposed to be teaching their son manners. Not once did the parents make them take their caps off.
When my son was growing up he would not have been allowed at the table with a ballcap on and would have been told to sit up straight or get up from the table. The blame goes back to the parents in this case. They were sitting at the table with the boys and should have done something about their “posture” and their ballcaps.
Books…………. John, I’m with you about reading a good book. I love to take a chair from the Lido deck outside away from the crowd and sit and enjoy the water and the nice breeze. Don loves to watch the water and I love to read. On some ships some of the crew will be out on the deck doing their chores, painting and cleaning . So of course I enjoy talking with them also.
In all of our cruises with Carnival, I have made friends with at least one member of the crew on each of the ships. They remain in my memories long after the details of the cruise are long gone. Trisna ,hostess on the Carnival Holiday, Larissa, who was assistant Maitre’D at the time but forget the ship, Z our waiter who went way out of his way to see that his helper went to the Lido deck and get me yogurt so I would have a dessert with everyone else ( I can’t eat the desserts on the menu because of the milk products in them), Chai, our room steward who was absolutely the best Steward we have ever had. Of course Ken, Maitre”D what is not to love about him. Dining in his dining room is a memory in itself. Last but not least, our very favorite Sr CD, John Heald.
I could go on and on about the crew we have made friends with. There is always at least one on each ship. But on the Carnival Holiday in September, I have to say there are so many besides Trisna. Tory, Romy, Gabriele, on and on it was the friendliest ship we have ever sailed on. It made the best memories of our last cruise on the Carnival Holiday. We’ll miss her.
Our cruise on the Carnival Dream is getting closer . I hope to see some of the crew that we have made friends with in the past. Our room steward from the Carnival Holiday will be on there, Ken, Z, maybe Larissa, it will be a nice surprise to become reacquainted with friends from past cruises.
Countess Carolyn…reminiscing …….
October 24th, 2009 at 10:49 am
Hi John
(Please forward along to anyone you feel appropriate)
My wife and I just got back home from the Carnival Victory (sailed from San Juan the 11th through the 18th). This was our 3rd together (my 4th). While I must admit it wasn’t my favorite ship (that would be the Valor) – it was the best time ever.
I wanted to call out two people that made a difference in this cruise. The service we received from Eugene and Hanna (Pacific Dining Room early seating) far exceeded our already very high expectations.
Having been on three other cruises, I know what levels of service to expect from Carnival. Top notch – above Disney (and that’s saying something).
In addition to remembering who drank what, and who ordered a second ice cream with their chocolate melting cake every night (yes every night) – all of the things a repeat cruiser expects with Carnival – Eugene and Hanna made us felt like they wanted to be there. They had engaged us at a personal level. This was not a job, it was very important to them that dinner was spectacular – and it was.
We filled out our comment cards at the end of the cruise, but I wanted to make sure that someone else knew about it. You never know what happens to a comment card in the bottom of a box. The service was so good. Please forward this to everyone that would value it.
Secondly…
Do you have to put please reply at the top of your message for you to reply?
Finally…
My first cruise was in May of 2001 on the Carnival Triumph with John Heald as the cruise director. I was in awe of the ship, food, and service. Just wanted to make you aware that 8 years later I still remember how cool the cruise director was. Thanks.
Have a good one…
October 24th, 2009 at 11:00 am
John, I have a question I’d rather ask in private. I know its unorthodox for you to give out you e-mail address and I perfectly understand, however, if you could reply to me at my address associated with this blog and let me reply back I’d really appriciate it. BTW, its not a bad thing, just a dilema that I don’t know which way to go with.
Thanks.
October 24th, 2009 at 11:38 am
Hi John!
Will you ever be CD out of Long Beach??? We keep hoping to see your name on the schedule.
Can’t get enough of Carnival! We celebrated my husband’s birthday on the Paradise in June and will be celebrating our 25th anniversary on the Splendor on Nov. 1. Trying our best to do 3+ CCL cruises a year!
We had a fabulous cruise on the Splendor (5/10/09) to the Mexican Riviera by way of Victoria & Vancouver and wish that would become a regular itinerary. That full day in Victoria was wonderful (early a.m. arrival). Anything you can do to push this at your end??? BTW, Ken Byrne was in our dining room and he was amazing.
Thanks!
Linda
October 24th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
Hi John -
Please Reply
I very much enjoy reading your blog daily. Thank you for always keeping us updated. One suggestion that I would like for you to pass on is regarding the perks or lack of them that is included with the suite categories. We are booked on Carnival Dream in a GS as it is now referred to and although Carnival does not have concierge for these levels it would be nice if some extra perks came along with them other than VIP embarkation. I have cruised in suites on other cruise lines and I have to say it was nice to come back to complimentary snacks in the afternoon, SPA bath and shampoo products and limited complimentary sodas and water in the suite. These are just small little touches that I think would enhance booking one of the suites in addition to the extra room. Just a thought that maybe you can pass on to the decision making team.
Thanks again and see you in February – Karen
October 24th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
JOHN!!! Don’t feel bad about reading!!!! I read ALOT! and then donate my hardcover books to the library!! Runs about 250-300 a year!! KEEP READING!!!
October 24th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Hey John,
I know how hard it is to be away form loved ones for long periods of time (I like you work on the water, however I know work close to home,) and like you have been away for long periods, I think the hardest was being away during special events, and I was lucky enough to be able to talk on the phone every couple of days. I can’t say anything that will make you feel better, all I can say is that the time away makes the time together more worht it. also I understand that I need to do what I do to earn a living, and that my family stands behind me 100% and that helps make it better.
your lucky you can bring Heidi and Kye with you on the ship, and I think it will help her (Kye) understand why her daddy is away so much, and If there is one thing I can say that is good about youtube videos, your daughter will understand why you make people laugh and why people want to be on board with you. she will be her hero along with the rest of us who think you too are a hero.
please keep up the good work and PLEASE continue the Blog.
your friend
Capt Bill
PS. Carnival COrp has Been very well represented here in Boston Ma this fall, from Cunard, to Holland, to Crystal, to ADIA, and of course the Carnival Thriumph…… great to see all these ships. I make sure that I comment on them to my passangers when we pass them.
October 24th, 2009 at 4:16 pm
John,
Will next week’s cruise have the “passenger” halloween party? My husband & I took a cruise 17 years ago with our kids, they had a blast. Some of the passengers costumes were quite impressive as it some of the crew.
October 24th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
John (Please reply),
We are looking forward to our January 14, 2010 cruise on the Carnival Spirit in which we’ll be celebrating our 40th anniversay (Jan 16th). I’m trying to set up a dinner at the Steak House but don’t want it to conflict with the first elegant night as my wife wants i.e., expects, lobster on two nights. Since the cruise starts with two sea days the Carnival phone representative was not able to be definitive. Are you able to help me? Thanks in advance!
October 24th, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Hi John,
Please Reply…
I just had a quick question for you. My girlfriend and I are booked for the Carnival Dream March 6, 2010 and are excited about this new ship and these ports of call. Since we have not been to neither Isla Roatan or Belize, we are planning on partaking in the most exciting excursions we possibly can. I have a specific question about the Land Rover and Cave Expedition (in Belize) – The excursion website indicates that all vehicles are manual transmission. This may sound dumb, but if neither of us can drive a stick shift, can we still participate? How does this work if we can? Will we be grouped with another couple?
Thanks for the great work you do! We really appreciate you!!
Chris and Kristie
October 24th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Hi John, Reply if you like
I promised a review of my September Carnival Inspiration cruise, late I know, but that life thing has been getting in the way.
I must say this cruise was even better than the same cruise 1 year previous, service was outstanding, not 1 complaint, what a great crew. The shows were the same, but I believe they were better this year as well. Jaques was filling in for Skippy, and he did a fantastic job. Live music was always great, and numerous venues to enjoy.
One thing I had not seen before was how well the Serenity deck was utilized. This is my favorite place to relax during the day, but there were activities there at night as well. Mojitos and Cigars was my favorite, but every event was enjoyable. tables were set up and music playing, under the stars. I loved it.
In response to your question about dining, when I cruise solo, I don’t eat in the dining room, I enjoy the alternate dining and the deli.
Wish I could have cruised with you on the Carnival Legend, that life thing again. It is still my goal to cruise with you. Looking forward to my Feb cruise on the Carnival Miracle, only 107 days. Going to look into the Cunard cruise of the U.K., sounds like a great cruise.
Take care,
RonRN
October 24th, 2009 at 11:11 pm
Hello John (please reply),
I just noticed that the cabins have been re-classified on the Liberty. My 9A aft wrap is now a 9C. Not that it matters much as I like these aft wraps a lot. Just wondering why they decided to change the classifications.
I heard on cruisecritic about the new safety briefing (life boat drill). Is this fleet wide now?
One last thing. I wrote a message on another blog of yours about the steakhouse. As I stated before I’ll be on the Liberty Dec. 5th for the week. What would you consider a good night to book the steakhouse. It is my g/f’s first time on a cruise and my third with Carnival. I’d love to do something special for her and I think she would be amazed by the steakhouse.
Anything else you can recommend that would be great to. Thanks and happy cruising.
October 24th, 2009 at 11:47 pm
John Please Reply,
John,
Is there any way I could get the recipe for the Baked Stuffed White Mushrooms that are on the Appetizer menu. My sister really likes them and was hoping I could get the recipe. Thank you so much.
Spencer
October 25th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Dear John –
Please reply
Thank you for your daily blog and updates. I enjoy reading them daily. I have a question. I know Carnival does not have concierge service for it’s guests sailing in suites but I suggest that these guests should get some extra perks for booking these rooms. I have cruised in suites on other lines and even though it may not seem like much it was a nice treat to have a daily special snack delivered to the room as well as having spa products to use in the bath/shower and limited complimentary soda/water in the suite. I am sailing in February 2010 on the Carnival Dream in a GS. I hope you can pass this information to the higher ups so that they may reconsider providing some special services to suite guests. Thank you – Karen
October 25th, 2009 at 10:36 am
John,
Just wanted to touch base. It has been a while since I even had a chance to read the blog. My husband has been hospitalized twice over the past month. He is starting to improve now, but is still not back at work.
It sounds like things are continuing to be wonderful aboard the Carnival ships. In fact, I wish the family were aboard the ship right now.
I think it is wonderful that you are able to stay in touch with Kye and sing to her each week. I know it is hard being away from Heidi and Kye.
I will try to do a better job of reading the blog.
It has been difficult for me to even stay on top of my e-mail. I may go one whole week and not even turn on the computer.
Take care and hope you have smooth sailing on the next voyage.
]Ruth
October 25th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
John I’m just curious. I sent a comment on this blog the 23rd and it has never showed up on here. There have been several posted but mine never has. Just curious as to why sometimes a comment never makes it on the blog.
Countess Carolyn………. curiousity killed the cat, hope it doesn’t kill me…
October 25th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
John
Please Reply
This is a great blog. Keep up the good work. I have a question for you. Our family of 20, going on a group cruise on November 22, 2009, four weeks from today on Carnival Conquest. We have some newlyweds with us and would like to enlist your help in getting them into the Newlywed Game. Any chance you could help us out? There names are Patrick and Natalie Zacha, they are in room 8272. Any help in this will be greatly appreciated. BTW this will be cruise number 13 for me. Go Carnival!!
October 25th, 2009 at 4:53 pm
JOHN PLEASE RESPOND. Well, most of the following comments require no response but several bits at the end would benefit from your sage words.
First to the beautiful Carnival Dream. Our all too brief 3 Oct 09 cruise on the Carnival Dream is over but the memories linger on. The staff and crew went above and beyond and clearly enjoyed putting the fun into Carnival cruising.
Ken, as always, was the maitre d’ of maitre d’s and should be given yet another gold star (pay increase might also be nice!) for his sterling service and for going the extra mile to accommodate the “Back of the Bus Dream Team” at the “back of the bus”: some bus! The food in the main dining room was wonderful: served with care and dispatch by Mario and his team; always piping hot; and always above expectations.
Sir Micky Arison, if you are reading this blog, you really should pair up John and Ken as a roving Carnival Tiger Team. Oh, and make sure Jamie from Carnival Splendor is on the team.
The Chief’s Art Steakhouse is a cut above and Eva went out of her way to ensure each of our meals there would long be remembered. The food and food service was five-star in every respect. The steakhouse was full whenever we attended which was no surprise. I think the only down side must be for Carnival because at $60 per couple you must be loosing your shirts.
Sugene and Api, our room stewards were attentive to our every need and made little problems vanish in the wink of an eye. The sliding closet door by the entry door fell off its track when first opened and did it’s level best to destroy a chair in the process. Sugene was there to assist before the echo of the crash has left the room and within minutes had an engineering team there to repair the door and seconds later arrived with a brand new chair (if the Captain is missing a chair, it is in stateroom 7304). We had problems with the phones but they were also quickly resolved (I did hear rumours that phones were an ongoing problem throughout the cruise but hopefully have now been sorted out). Hmmm, programmed by the same folks who provided your new server software ?
We missed one port-of-call, Monaco, due to high winds but in hindsight I think we were happy for the extra sea day so as to put up our feet and relax after so many hectic shore days. There was so much to see and do on Carnival Dream that all twelve days could well have been spent at sea. Never did manage to fit in the water slide!
I must mention that the Behind the Fun tour was way beyond “funtastic”. Thank-you good sir for giving us a heads-up on this very limited tour and a special thanks to Carnival Dream staff and crew for making us feel like family.
Oh, before I forget, I should mention our delight in finding Carnival Dream pins with our invitation to the past cruisers cocktail party. Did John have something to do with this? I’m sure he did so a thousand thanks. The pins are one of those nice gestures that make coming back for another Carnival cruise so very special.
No cruise is ever perfect but I really am struggling to find anything that could have made this cruise any better. Coffee and drink-of-the-day cards would have been nice but they were most certainly not show stoppers. Whatever happened to the monkeyhead drinks? Ah, wait, here’s something: we really wanted to purchase more “Where Next” certificates: can you talk the boys and girls way up there in corporate headquarters (where the likes of you and I get nosebleeds) into making them available?
There was one smelly little issue. I have noted several posts here about the “not so sweet smell often noticed in the Empress deck hallways” (not sure if it happened on other decks as well) and I think I should comment since we were on Empress deck and it was very noticeable more often that we would have liked. My suspicion is that there may be a design flaw here that needs to be seriously looked at. We sailed on Carnival Splendor on all three South American legs and we experienced the grey water smell, along with five minor grey water floods, in our stateroom 7333. We left the ship in Rio de Janeiro and returned in Buenos Aires and the smell in our cabin after our three day absence was quite beyond belief. Eventually, tired of mopping up one or more times each day and probably equally tired of offering an apology for something over which he had no control, our steward put a rubber dam in the floor drain to stop the floods. The grey water smell remained but very much diminished thanks to the tireless efforts of our stateroom steward. The smell was worst when in port and especially so if the ship listed slightly. None of this diminished our fantastic South American cruise on the Carnival Splendor: heck, it gave us somewhat unique bragging rights . When we first noticed the smell on Carnival Dream it brought one of those “I know this” flashes of memory. Happily, for us, the smell was confined for the most part to the hallway rather than our stateroom. I am no engineer but I wonder if there might be a suction problem as I noticed the s-traps in our stateroom were drained of water whenever we noticed the smell. Is this unique to Carnival Splendor and Carnival Dream? Both seem to share many common features vis-à-vis stateroom layouts so I wonder if there is a plumbing design flaw that needs to be addressed; hopefully before construction is begun on Carnival Magic staterooms. Nuff said.
We are non smokers and naturally applauded the smoking policies being trialed on Carnival Dream. Many of our friends are smokers and we recognize and recognize the special efforts that were being made to accommodate them as well. I do not know if it was by design or by pure dumb luck but there was little or no evidence that anybody was smoking in the casino although many clearly were. It would have been nice to have been able to keep the doors from the Ocean Plaza to the Lanai open but I expect the smoke from the starboard side Lanai would have otherwise drifted in. Having the doors closed all the time “closed up” this otherwise beautiful open space. Bottom line: Bravo Zulu for the efforts taken to accommodate smokers and non-smokers alike.
Now to my questions. John, whom does one write to in order to make a plea for a special cruise? We travel from afar for each of our Carnival cruises and therefore prefer longer cruises so as to give value for money spent on airline tickets. I would like to pitch a thought I had that would satisfy our wishes and possibly even help Carnivals bottom line at the same time. I am looking for a name and e-mail address of someone that is high enough up the food chain to get listened to but low enough that credit for the idea might help their careers (mutual back scratching never hurts, right?).
My second question is for feedback on the discussions that had been or might still be ongoing about the awarding of points towards Platinum cruise status.
Wait, one more thing….. I’m Canadian so please accept my apology for the tome. French text to follow!
October 25th, 2009 at 5:49 pm
John please reply.
John,
I have a question. On Embarkation day when the Dream is in its home port of Port Canaveral, what time does the shore excursion desk open? Will it be open in the morning when I get on the ship, or does it not open until after the ship sets sail? Really need to know this.
WOW is all I have to say about the Dream! Had a wonderful, wonderful time on the 10/3 sailing (my 11th CCL cruise). Everything was perfect. We had to miss Monaco due to severe weather but I respected the captain’s decision to do so because I knew he was looking out for our safety. Instead of Monaco, he charted a special course for the ship to sail very close to the Italian Riviera so we all could see it. WOW!! That was a real highlight of the cruise and worth missing Monaco for. It is something I will never forget.
I could tell that everyone from the officers to the crew members were very proud of their ship. I simply cannot wait to sail on the Dream again on January 2!! Going with very dear friends and this will be their 2nd cruise on Carnival.
Thanks!
Melissa Jurgensen
PS: I hope Carnival returns to Europe for a full season soon.
October 25th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Carolyn, the comments are moderated. Recently, I posted an e-mail that was lively and full of fluff, but questioned whether John should have sent champaign to underage kids. That comment never saw the light of day and John’s post was edited by some Stephanie to delete his reference to his behavior, however well meaning, in violation of Carnival rules if not local law.
That said, I love this blog and think John is a character. I am a committed Carnival customer and hope to meet John one day.
October 25th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
Dear John..title..Waiting..Wondering..Thinking..Last night I couldn’t sleep because I was so excited to think that I will be on my Carnival Dream in a couple days. You won’t have time to answer my questions so hopefully I’ll see you on the Dream in Bermuda and you can answer in person. Will you be on the Dream first or second day in Bermuda. Will you be escorted to enter a private entrance to avoid the screaming crowds of your fans? I heard the ship sails full, will they have a room ready for you labeled “John Heald’s Suite”? Then laying in bed I also thought about beautiful Kye and wondered..when she begins talking , will she have Heidi’s accent or yours? And now I’m wondering..do you really read all these messages or is that the job of 007. My best to you and your girls and looking forward to seeing you on board…Regards from Houston..The Beast
October 25th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
Hello John,
Maureen and I just returned from our wonderful cruise aboard the Legend. I want to tell you that you made our cruise the most enjoyable ever. Not only did you give me the opportunity to express my gratitude to Maureen for supporting me during the past horrible year of breast cancer and chemo (Your Dear John Letters), you managed to bring laughter to both of us. You are a wonderful entertainer which comes from your natural kindness to everyone I’m sure. I wish to thank you once again for your gift and know that we shall always seek out cruises where you will be with us. Since I am now a Survivor, I am sure there will be many more! Laughter, Love and Prayers are surely the best medicine.
Gloria & Maureen
October 25th, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Dear John,
We left the Carnival Legend today… A sad day indeed! It was our first cruise and we weren’t sure what to expect. Wow!!! What a great time with the nicest people around!
You will always be in out fondest memories with your amazing bedtime story!! I’m regretting now not buying a copy. We laughed so hard we had tears streaming down our faces! You always added an amazing brand of humor to everything you did. We wish we could’ve taken you back to chilly Maryland with us but alas we were over our luggage weight limit and the carry on bags are small! There’s always another cruise…
Thanks for everything! You made the already great cruise amazing! We miss you already!!!
Xoxo
Erin & Bryan
October 25th, 2009 at 11:30 pm
I heard that alot of the Carnival ships are having the logo removed. What is the story on this?
October 25th, 2009 at 11:34 pm
I have heard from the Cruise Critic Website that it apppears that Carnival is removing all the logos from the outside of the ship. Do you know why this is being done? Thank you!
October 26th, 2009 at 12:23 am
Hi John,
Please reply because inquiring minds need to know.
I have noticed that on the following Carnival ships , the Carnival Freedom, Carnival Miracle, Carnival Pride, Carnival Fascination, and the Carnival Ecstasy that all of them have had the Carnival Logo’s removed from the sides of the ships. Could you please tell us why? I like the logo on the ships.
Best Regards from your #1 bloggy thinggy friend,
Kathy
October 26th, 2009 at 12:27 am
I see the Saints and Sinners have returned and are back posting on the Cruise Critic boards again. I trust you survived your week with them. They said they had a blast with you!
October 26th, 2009 at 9:20 am
Hi John,
(Please Reply)
About three weeks ago you were kind enough to answer my request for help in doing something “Special” for my wife on our upcoming cruise on the Valor on Nov. 15th. I really do appreciate the suggestions you gave and will follow them.
You requested that I remind you on the 25th of Oct. with my cruise info. Sorry that I am a day late, but our info is as follows:
Thank You So Much for all you do to make everybody who comes to you for help feel like a friend. More people should realize the value of being helpful to your fellow man, not just just because it’s your job, because in your case, it isn’t, but just because that’s what “good people” do.
You, my friend, are “Good People”; truely one of the best.
I really hope I can meet you when you come to NY for the Naming Ceremony for Our Carnival Deam. I am going to make every effort to be there. Please post the Blogger’s Breakfast info as soon as the people with beards will let you so I can make plans to attend.
You asked about the weather here. You will Difinitly Need A Coat! It’s starting to get cold here now and by Nov. 7th it could very easily be in the 40’s.
October 26th, 2009 at 10:52 am
John (please, please, please reply),
Per the instructions of your September 19th reply to my posting, I am reposting to provide you a reminder.
My wife (4th cruise) and I (3rd cruise) will be sailing out of Los Angeles on the Carnival Splendor 11/15/09 and will be celebrating two occasions. First will be a delayed 15 year anniversary celebration. Second, and the reason for the delayed anniversary, is the celebration of the adoption of our first child. Do you think it would be possible for you or the Captain to send my wife, Amy, a little note of congratulations? I am sure it would mean a lot to her…
I want to once again thank you for your kind consideration of my request.
Thanks much,
Jason
October 26th, 2009 at 11:33 am
Dear John,
(please reply)
We just left the Legend yesterday(10-25-09), and we had a couple of questions for you. What happened to the honeymoon couple that missed the boat in Cozumel? We never heard anything else about them! Also, where can we purchase the future cruise certificates? I purchased one on the Freedom, and thought that I would be able to purchase one on the Legend for my next cruise. I was so disappointed to find out that I couldn’t! We had a really great time & I’m looking forward to booking my next cruise soon!
October 26th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Hi John!
I hope you had a nice and pleasant weekend with warm weather for everyone.
I really enjoyed catching up on the blog and I’m glad that you attended the Halloween party though you didn’t want to.
I guess you see all sorts of people out in the middle of the night.
Hope you have a great week!
David
October 26th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
John,
Back up comment after reading some of the other comments. I hope Carnival is not going to remove the classic red smokestacks. I will never forget the day I came home from work after a very stressful day. I turned on the computer and checked out the blog. You had posted a picture of the smokestack on the Freedom. You called it
Symbol of Freedom. I sat in front of the computer and cried for at least five minutes. I knew that the Freedom would be my escape and sure enough it was.
Oh, John, I need to let you know that I saw the commercial you did for Carnival. It was being run on the Food Network. I am a big fan of that channel (in fact I have it on in the background right now.) It was great to see you on the ship.
I hope our family will be able to sail with you again very soon. I know if Amanda had her way we would sail with you every cruise. She enjoyed being on the Freedom with you.
Take care and Happy Reading.
Ruth
October 26th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
Hi john,
I only recently started reading your blog, but now I am addicted.
My wife and I are booked on the both the 11/13 and 11/15/09 Dream sailings out of NY; we will be celebrating her 50th birthday onboard and she thinks I booked an inside room. She will be pleasantly surprised when she walks into our Spa Balcony room.
You’ve mentioned many times about a cocktail party on the 15th for bloggers. Is this just for those that booked as part of the bloggers cruise or for anyone?
Keep on blogging,
Steve & Tina
October 26th, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Hello John,
First of all, I have a question. JOHN PLEASE REPLY. I was recently on the Carnival Triumph, on the 10/10 sailing. We all had a great time on the cruise, but I didn’t get a pin (I have Platinum status) and there were none for sale in the gift shop. It was the only disappointment of the cruise. When I asked at the Information Desk, the young man said that as far as he knew, there were no more pins on the ship. He said he would try to find one for me, but I guess he didn’t, because I never heard back. I thought I read on the blog that Platinum guests would get pins. If I misunderstood, I apologize. Is there any way I can get a Triumph pin? Thank you for all that you do, and especially for writing the blog. We all look forward to reading it.
About the “any time” dining question. We’ve tried it twice on Norwegian, and twice on Princess, and we don’t like it. The reason is that it isn’t really anytime. There were times when we arrived at the dining room, and were given a pager and asked to wait. Once on formal night, the 20 min wait turned into 45 min. and we gave back the pager, and told the hostess “thanks, but we’ll come back later.” We didn’t want to miss the show. After the show, we came back and the wait was longer! So we went to the buffet, dressed in our formal wear. As travel agents, we felt we owed it to our customers to try it, and we have decided that it isn’t for us. It is very nice that Carnival is offering its guests the choice. We really like eating dinner in the dining room, and having the same wait staff every night. We only eat on the lido for breakfast and lunch most days, and for dinner in unusual circumstances. Like when we’re in Juneau, and have a late afternoon shore excursion. I even ate in the dining room when I was in Venice on the Carnival Freedom!
We tried the steak house once, and it just wasn’t for us. The food was very good, but not really that much better than what we would have had in the main dining room. There was live music for dancing, but my husband’s back was bothering him, so he didn’t want to dance. We felt that 3 hours was just too long for dinner, and we missed the show that night.
Thank you again John, for writing the blog, and all the other things you do to brighten our days!
Your friend,
Cheryl D.
PS. Are you going to be in Baltimore for the “Fun for all” weekend?
October 26th, 2009 at 8:29 pm
John please reply
I saw a picture today of you talking to my buddy Allen (Miss Understood). Please lord tell me that isn’t who you were drooling over.
October 27th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
John Please Respond,
John, I wonder if you can convince the powers that be to give the platinum cruisers first shot at the “Behind the Scenes Tour”. I’m not quite sure how to accomplish that, but I do know that as we board the Carnival Dream, my wife plans to make a mad dash to the Guest Service Desk to secure her position for this tour. Can we possibly do a reservation on the Fun Pass or some other avenue through the website. All of those folks trying to put money aside for their sail and sign card as well as the many concerns that arise as you are boarding, should make for a busy Guest Service Desk. What are your suggestions
October 29th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
John,
Love the blog!
How does one go about becoming one of the 343 Stephanies. I am interested in finding out what it takes to do shipboard information technology. I dont see it on the Carnival website anywhere.
Thanks!
October 29th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
Nice West Wing reference btw! I also love to read and as another 21 year old, I can tell you we’re not all like that! In fact, my husband and I will both each need several books to take on our cruise because we go through them so very quickly! Thank you as well for answering my question I will be sure to follow up with you as soon as Bryce’s leave is approved!
Thanks!
Leave a Reply