If you haven't cruised in a while, it's hard to describe the experience. For me, it is the ultimate vacation. There is no bed to make, no dishes to clean, no cleaning at all and fresh towels and sheets daily! And, my meals are served to me at a leisurely pace and I can order just about anything I want. Then there is also my favorite coffee shop, Al Bacio. It makes the best Carmel Machiato's and Carmel Igloo's. And as if all the pastries, cookies and pies aren't enough, it has its own bakery that is replenished with different "goodies" on a regular basis.Granted, sometimes I do have to serve myself at the Ocean View Cafe but then I can have a tapas -like lunch.
There is also a state of the art gym with every new piece of equipment needed for a good workout! They have personal trainers, yoga and Pilates and Canyon Ranch provides all the spa services you could wish for (for an extra fee). If you want your clothing to fit after the cruise, a daily visit is a good idea and I just build it into my early morning routine, Also, I don't use the elevator, only the stairs .And, I've learned that moderation is a good thing.
Ed and I also enjoy playing Trivia. Guests form teams no larger than six and we play for "great" prizes like cards, key chains, Celebrity hats, etc. Since we seem to be lucky, our teams do very well and we have so many prizes we could open a little Celebrity gift shop. But, Ed seems to loose his hard won hat as fast as we can win one so it works out well. We are in touch with several of our former team-mates and we plan to cruise again with them.
Since seating for breakfast and lunch is "open", you have the opportunity of meeting different people or dining at a table for two. We usually enjoy speaking with people from all over the world. In general, there are at least 25 different countries represented on a ship of close to 3,000. It's interesting that there are people you see over and over and others that you wouldn't know had taken the same cruise. When foreigners learned we were from the U.S. can you guess the first question they asked when they felt it was safe? If you thought, "How did that man ever get elected???!!!!" , you would be CORRECT.
You can do as much or as little as you wish. In general, there are at least two different activities going on at any time. For the sun-worshipers there are always pool activities. And yes, there are several places on board,besides your cabin, where you can get away from people and just watch the sea or read a good book. There is even a library on board.
