Our Beautiful Breeze cruise (with pics) - 8/15/15

[Jamman]

Looking aft, you could see how calm the seas were this evening…..

Here are some views of tonight’s beautiful sunset…..

We decided not to eat dinner in the MDR tonight. Patti and Ryan went up to the Lido Marketplace to eat, while I chose to head over to the Red Frog Pub and have some pub grub. I had the Grouper fingers (didn’t know they had fingers – lol), and the conch fritters, and both were excellent and filling.
Afterwards, I went to watch a Dive in Movie (Hunger Games – Mockingjay Pt 1), at the Seaside Theater. Fresh popcorn and Thirsty Frog Red’s, perfect together!!

Ryan met up with me there, and after the movie we went down to the casino for about three hours. Ryan won some money playing slots, and I wound up losing another $50. Hmmm, I’m beginning to see a pattern here!

Patti popped in several times to see how we were doing, but didn’t play any. She spent the evening shopping, looking for our pictures, and catching up on our emails.

Around midnight Patti and I decided to call it a night and head back to the cabin. Ryan went off to do what 18 year olds do. Good for him!! Anyway, here is tonight’s towel animal. We had a great day in Grand Turk!! Goodnight!!

Coming up next: Our last day at sea.

 

[Jamman]

Our final sea day aboard the beautiful Carnival Breeze…..

We slept in until 8am today, and looking out our cabin window, we could see that it was a beautiful day, and the seas were very calm…..

We decided that we would head to the Sea Day Brunch. Outside our cabin, we ran into our room stewards, I Nengah, and I Dewa…..

When we got to the Blush Dining Room, there were only a few people ahead of us so we were seated quickly…..

Here is the Sea Day Brunch menu…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

Here are Patti and I at the Sea Day Brunch…..

Tasty breakfast breads and cakes…..

I started off with a Caesar salad with jerked bacon, followed by the steak and eggs…..

Patti had a tomato and cheese omelet, macaroni and cheese, and turkey bacon…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

As we left the Blush Dining Room, we could see that the line to get in was really long…..

Patti was planning on check out our pictures at Pixels, and then doing a little shopping. I was going to walk around the ship a little, so I grabbed the camera. Here is Piano Bar 88…..

A couple of the Liquid Lounge…..

Here are some from my favorite bar on the Breeze, the Red Frog Pub…..

My buddy Regino…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

Though the Red Frog Pub had not officially opened for the day Regino poured me my first Thirsty Frog Red of the day…..

Here are some more Red Frog Pub views…..

Here’s a picture of the Ocean Plaza Bar…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

Walking out of the Ocean Plaza out onto the Lanai…..

Outdoor seating on the Lanai……

You can walk completely around the ship on the Lanai. Follow me as I take you on a tour…..

We are heading forward on the starboard side towards the bow of the ship…..

Here is one of the four hot tubs on the Lanai, two on each side…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

We are continuing to walk forward on the starboard side of the Lanai…..

Large chess set…..

Rats!! It figures. We can’t get to the bow due to maintenance. We’ll have to cut across to the port side…..

We are now heading aft on the port side…..

Here is one of the port side hot tubs…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

We are approaching the outside seating by the Ocean Plaza on the port side…..

Travelling further aft, we come across the outside seating for the Red Frog Pub…..

Here is the second, aft, port side hot tub…..

We have arrived at the stern of the ship, looking at the wake of the Breeze…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

Here’s another view of the wake…..

We are heading around, back to the starboard side of the ship…..

Looking forward up the starboard side of the ship, from all the way aft…..

This is the last of the four hot tubs and shower…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

Continuing to head forward, we are approaching Fat Jimmy’s C-Side BBQ…..

It will be opening up later for lunch, since it is a sea day…..

We are back to where we began. I hope you enjoyed the walk…..

I stopped by the Ovation Theater, where Matt the CD was hosting the Morning Show…..

The stage was set for the Towel Animal Theater, which would follow the Morning Show…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

The map on the wall shows our current position, as we are heading back to Miami…..

I made my way to the Lido Deck aft. The Tides pool and hot tubs are not that busy this morning…..

Suzette and Teodoro at the Tides Pool bar…..

Teodoro sets me up with a dark and stormy…..

After a drink or two or three, I made my way back to the cabin. Our (gasp!!) debarkation information has arrived…..

To be continued…..

 

[Jamman]

This afternoon was the second blackjack tournament of the cruise. Ryan and I both entered, but this time neither of us would qualify for the final table. Ryan and I played regular blackjack for a good three hours, but we wound up breaking even for the day.

Patti went to the afternoon session of bingo, and she didn’t have any luck as well. As she was leaving the Ovation Theater she ran into Matt, who happily posed for a picture with her….

Today was the day for the Diamond / Platinum party. Here is what the new invitations look like…..

The party was held in the Limelight Lounge…..

Ryan and I at the Diamond / Platinum party…..

A line of senior officers greet guests as they arrive…..

Matt was the master of ceremonies……..

To be continued……

 

[Jamman]

Matt along with the senior staff members…..

Captain Massimo Marino…..

My favorite bartender Teodoro was working the party. Here he is with Ryan and me…..

After the party, Patti went back to the cabin to pack, and I went to the Red Frog Pub for the last time this cruise. Here is Ryan with his room stewards Mahayana and I Nengah.....

Soon it was time for our last dinner of the cruise. We started off with a lot of starters. Patti had the French onion soup and the flatbread…..

To be continued……

 

[Jamman]

For his starter, Ryan had the macaroni and cheese, and I had the mussels……

Patti and I both had the caprese salad…..

For his main course, Ryan had the grilled chicken…..

Patti and I had the ricotta ravioli for our mains…..

I also had the shrimp Creole…..

To be continued……

 

[Jamman]

We were all too stuffed to even order dessert. The wait staff sang and danced for us one last time…..

Our wait staff posed with us before saying goodbye…..

After we left the dining room, Patti went to the casino to play some slots, while Ryan and I went to the adult comedy show starring Percy Crews. It was a great show.

We all made it back to our cabins about the same time to find our last turndown and towel animal of the cruise. All in all, it was a great relaxing day at sea…..

Coming up next: Debarkation and final thoughts.

 

[Jamman]

The day that every cruiser dreads is here. It’s debarkation day. Here is the debarkation information that we received yesterday…..

When we woke up at 6am, the Carnival Breeze was already docked in Miami. Self assist debarkation began promptly at 7am. Since we were not carrying our bags off the ship, Diamonds and Platinums were instructed to meet in the Ovation Theater at 7:45. We got there a little after 7:30. They provided us with water, juice, coffee, tea, and Danish. About 20 minutes later, Matt came in and told us that we could debark. I had read quite a few horror stories about the debarkation process on the Breeze, but I have to say that our experience was great, and it was all done in a very orderly manner. I feel it was probably because Matt was very hands on and visible during the whole process. Another reason I believe he was the perfect choice for the Carnival Vista.

Once off the ship, we made our way to claim our bags. In Miami, they use luggage carousels like the airlines, and it makes it so much easier. No searching through rows of bags, climbing over each other, rather just picking your spot at the carousel and waiting for your bags come to you. Well done Miami!!

Porters were very easy to come by, and after loading our bags on his cart, quickly led us through customs, and then took our bags across the street by the parking garage. I paid my parking fee ($20/day = $160.), by credit card at the nearby, handy kiosk, and then went to get the van. Patti and Ryan stood by and watched our bags…….

Our last looks at the Carnival Breeze in Miami…….

Looking up at the Lido Deck, we could see people hanging out, waiting for their turn to debark…..

Once we loaded up the car, it was very easy to get out of the port because of all the well marked signs. We took the tunnel exit……

We will be heading north on I-95, and then on to the Florida Turnpike, to head back to Orlando to continue our vacation, another great cruise completed! THE END.

We really enjoyed our cruise aboard the Carnival Breeze. Here are some of our random, mostly positive thoughts…..

Both embarkation and debarkation for us were quick and well organized. Now, being a Diamond / Platinum family probably helped a lot with that. We also loved that Miami had the luggage carousels.

We absolutely loved the décor on the Breeze. We loved the blues and golds and the Caribbean feel of the ship. The lanterns in the atrium were stunning.

This was the 4th cruise that we had the 4J cabins at the front of the ship with the “secret” deck. We have decided that this will be the last. It seems that all our favorite activities, including the aft dining room, are at the stern of the ship, so we did a lot of walking to get back there. Also, if the seas are just a little rough, you can feel the bow cutting through the water, like your tire hitting a pothole. We love the “secret” deck, but you don’t need a 4J cabin to enjoy it. Anyone can go there.

Cucina del Capitano. What can I say, it was simply awesome, especially at dinner. We thought that the service at dinner was better than the Steakhouse, if that was possible! The free lunch, as a pasta bar, was also very good. Just bring earplugs to drown out the din from above. Lol.

Speaking of the Steakhouse, Fahrenheit 555 was also awesome. We really liked the smaller more intimate space, as opposed to all the other Steakhouses in the fleet.

Our experience in the Blush Restaurant was not as good as it has been on our most recent cruises. We requested, and received a booth for four, but the booth we were given felt like we were in a closet. For the second cruise in a row, we were placed on the upper level, which we have discovered we don’t like. That’s all on us, so in the future I will fine tune my requests a little more. We also didn’t care for the Halloween like lighting during dinner. Again that’s just personal preference. Our wait staff was just adequate, but we couldn’t really blame them, as the large family group that occupied two tables that I talked about earlier in the review, just drove them crazy with their musical chairs, lateness, and unrealistic demands. I thought about talking to the Maitre D’ about it, but I was afraid that it would cause more trouble than it was worth. On the positive side, for the most part, the food was good, and served at the proper temperature. We had no problems finding something that we liked to eat on the American Table / Feast menus.

We loved the Red Frog Pub. This was the first ship with a Red Frog Pub that we have been on, that had the Pub Grub. Fantastic. I made a meal out of it one evening!

We all enjoyed the casino even though we didn’t win a lot of money. The hosts, pit bosses, and dealers were all professional, and a lot of fun. Patti also loved the two handles on the backs of the chairs at the table games, making them so much easier to move. It’s the little things!! Lol.

A big shout out to our fellow roll call members. It was great meeting each and every one of you. The meet and greet, and the slot pull were a lot of fun. Let’s do it again some day!

Finally, CD Matt Mitcham was simply awesome! What a remarkable young man. He was everywhere, very approachable, and just plain fun! He is the best CD in the fleet, and will serve the Carnival Vista well.

Well, that just about wraps this review up. I just want to thank my lovely wife Patti, and her wonderful picture taking abilities. I couldn’t do these reviews, or live life, without her. Thanks Babe!! To my son Ryan, thanks for letting me share your stories with everyone. You have quite a fan club out there! As always, I want to thank all of you, the readers, for making this all worthwhile. I hope you all enjoyed the ride, and if I was able to help you in any way with your future cruise plans, or entertained you in any way, then I did my job. If you have any questions or comments, please post them here, and I will be happy to respond.

As of this writing, our next cruise will be next August on the Carnival Sunshine from New York City. Come join us if you can, we would love to meet you! So until then, may you have clear skies and calm seas! Happy Sails!!

 

[gram]

Thanks Jeff for the great memories. Joe & I were in St. Kitt a couple years ago and rode that train. I personally enjoyed it. Also, I really enjoy reading about your cruise.

 

[connie seabee]

Thanks for adding the history of the train.

 

[Donna - dsw]

Love the way you cover the whole ship- even areas you do not use. I feel like I was on the cruise with you! Thanks for sharing

 

[gram]

Jeff,

First of all thanks again for great review. My question to you is at grand Turk when you rent a cabana do you receive a ticket on the ship stating you rented the cabana and then take that ticket over to Margarettaville to get the cabana? Don't know the process once you purchase.