DAY 1 GETTING ON THE SHIP SUNDAY DECEMBER 10TH

I had set the alarm for 7:30am but was up by 7am. This is considering sleeping in for me. I'm usually up by 5am every day so the added rest was welcomed. 

We got dressed and we all headed over to the main hotel to see what they had for breakfast. When we checked in the night before, they handed us 3 breakfast coupons to use. It was considered a continental breakfast and we weren't thrilled with the options: french toast, cereal, yogurt, muffins, oranges and 1 (yes I said 1) apple. We mutually agreed that we would just head back over to McD's for a breakfast sandwich. I mean we didn't need anything big because we were about to indulge in a week long journey of food coma's with every option you could think of. We just needed something to tie us over with for now. 

Our assigned boarding times were...me 11-11:30am and the hubby and Sakari 11:30-12 noon. Um...ok. Weird. I called NCL to ask about the boarding times and also ask about us having priority boarding since we are Platinum. She said they would probably start boarding around noon and we all could arrive at 11am if we wanted. So, we had some time to just hang out in the hotel for awhile after breakfast.

I turned on the tv and started packing the few items we pulled out for the night. It was 8:30am and there was a knock at the door..."Housekeeping". We told them we weren't leaving yet. They didn't understand (only spoke Spanish). Then again at 9:10am...another knock on the door..."Housekeeping". Again, we are not checking out yet. I ask "What time is check out" and pointed at my watch...although this person spoke a little English, they said 10am. After the third knock about another 15 minutes later...well, it was getting irritating. Check out wasn't until 11am per the website. Pretty annoying. 

We decided to head out at 10am and summoned for an Uber to pick us up. We have learned within the last few years that to avoid the hassle of some small car pulling up and not being able to fit 3 people and 3 luggage in it to just order Uber XL. For those that are wondering what something like this will run you, it all depends on the time of day and what the demand of needing a ride is...but ours was $31.39, which included a fee for using the "dolphin express" and a booking fee. Our Uber arrived within 2 minutes of ordering it. 

It's always exciting when you start to see the ships lined up on the right side. I promise I was taking a photo of the ships...but the Lamborghini passing by was a nice touch.

When you pass under the water in the tunnel the excitement builds...

Then you pop back up and the ships are on the left side and we were seeing the NCL terminal in port.

For those that have never cruised out of Miami, this is a 4,200 foot tunnel that goes underneath Biscayne Bay and is 120 feet underwater! You are literally driving under the water to get over to the port.

We pulled up to the porters, they took our bags, then we headed over to the terminal. I didn't see any lines but there were plenty of people standing around. I wasn't really sure what to do so we headed over to the side doors and they motioned us into the building. Say what?!? There's no line? Alrighty then. 

We headed into the building and up the escalators at 10:40am and upstairs there wasn't a line in the priority check in and we walked right up to the counter. It felt like royalty! 🙂 But yet, not royal enough to score an upgrade to the Haven or anything like that after my measly low bid for giggles...just to see. I mean a girl can hold out hope right? Maybe some day.

After checking in we were given a "Group 11 Boarding Card", which meant absolutely nothing since we are Platinum and would get to board earlier than that. I'm not even sure why they bother handing these cards out to the priority members but they always do for some reason. 

As we sat around waiting I got the notion to wander around. You know me, I can't stay still for very long...that's just me. I've been somewhat immobile for 3 years with my injury and now that I can walk again...that makes me want to move around even more.

So, off I went to explore. NCL has a really nice, new building (the only gripe I would have with our last 2 cruises out of here is that they really need more seating for people and more restrooms) and I headed down to the other end of the building to see what was on a wall that caught my eye. They had a listing of all of their ships and a time line of when they came out. 

Yep, been on that one, that one, that one and this, this, this, this...I've pretty much been on all of them since they started having "class ships" except the Gem and POA and the new Prima Class...which honestly I have not kept up with things and didn't even realize there was a new class until this cruise. Oops!

Scrolling down toward the bottom I found my very first cruise taken on the Seaward back in 1989! 

Would you look at that "Guest Occupancy"??? I remember thinking how massive this ship was when we went on it. I would have never thought the ships would grow to what they are today. 

They also had 3 large replica ships: Norway, Pearl and Prima...yep, that is when it really sank in there was a new ship on the block.

As I made my way down toward the end there was a VERY large ship on a prop:  Arcturus New York. I'm not really sure what they purpose/meaning of this was and what it has to do with NCL? But it was interesting to see how they had little windows to "see inside" of it.

Also, there is a single bathroom, with lines out the kazoo, as you first walk into the waiting area upstairs. However, down at the end of the terminal (where this boat is) you will find an actual bathroom with several stalls and each time I used it (twice) there were no lines at all. So just make note.

It was a little before noon and they started calling priority boarding...Haven and then Ambassador and Diamond...then it was our turn with Sapphire and Platinum. WOO HOO!

They did make announcements prior to this that they were running late with boarding due to Port Authority Clearance. They also made everyone get away from the entrance as well. I remember the last cruise everyone was all standing in the way trying to get on even though it was not their time and it made it so hard for the groups being called to make it to the entrance. This was a different and more positive experience this time around. 

At 12:04pm we were walking down the corridor and heading to the gangway!

There she is in all her beauty!

Our first step onto the ship was at 12:07pm...which tells you that the line kept moving the entire time with no delays.

One thing I did want to mention is that (on our previous cruise) they had the photographers in the building taking your pictures but this time they did not. I thought that was strange and never had a cruise where they didn't take your first cruise picture before you boarded. Did something change somehow? Are others experiencing this? I guess that's one less picture for me to buy and less money they will get out of me. 😞 

So for those of you asking about the safety drill: When you do your online check-in you are forced to watch the video of the safety drill before NCL will let you finish your check-in process and get your boarding passes. Yes, each and every person going has to do this. When you get onto the ship, they are immediately looking at your key card and telling you where to go for the safety drill. Wait, what? Again? Yes, but no not really. They direct you to your station, scan your card and the guy ask everyone there "Did you watch the safety video?" (Like we had an option or something) and then said "This will be where you come in case of an emergency" and then we were released. Simple.

We were free to explore, eat or any other freestyle we wanted to do...except go to our rooms. No rooms for you!  

We explored for a little bit and noticed just how similar this ship was to her sister Joy. There are some differences (which I have to say I didn't like, mostly because there was no H20 on the back of the ship) but for the most part they are the same. 

The ship was decorated with all the Christmas goodies everywhere and one of the things I love about cruising during Christmas is all the decorations they have out. 

We also headed to customer service to purchase our soda package since I didn't do that prior to getting on the ship. 

As we explored, we passed by The Local (which is the name of the old O'Sheehans 24 hour restaurant) and seen some people eating there. After making our way upstairs to the buffet area, I really wished we would have stopped at The Local to eat lunch instead. The buffet was mad crazy, as it is on the very first day of every cruise, with lines a mile long and absolutely no place to sit. You would think I would have learned my lesson about this by now right?

We headed out to the pool deck and found a lounger around the pool. This would be our new dining table for the time being.  Hey, I guess you have to improvise right? Food is food no matter where you eat it.

Now most people that follow me know we have been on a Keto diet for the last year. I forewarned my hubby that this was going out the window on this cruise and I thoroughly expected not to be scorned by him the entire cruise for what my eating habits would be for this week. After a year of keto (and we've both lost 59 pounds each), our bodies have become adaptive and we can (and do) cheat sometimes without consequence of gaining or feeling sick after high carbs or sugar intake. I wasn't really sure how a full week of this behavior was going to pan out but I was willing to take my chances at it is all I'm saying. 🤣 The hubby followed my lead and went off his strict keto diet for the week as well. You know, for purposes not to make me feel alone in this journey...right?

They do usually have some good no sugar sweets and the strawberry cake and NS vanilla ice cream is my absolute favorite so we're starting off my sweet tooth on a positive note...well, so far at least. 

Ok, back to our day on the ship... 

The announcement was made that we could go to our rooms and we headed to our balcony room: 13264

Ahh, it felt mighty good to be back in a balcony room instead of an interior. I used to not care if we were in an interior because we hardly spend any time in our room and it was treated as just a place to sleep. However, now that Sakari is bigger...and taller, it's like 3 adults staying in a closet and doesn't work out quite as well. Our last cruise was in an interior and it was quite the eye opener on this situation. Will I still cruise in an interior? Maybe. Do I want to? No. This time would be one of the "no" times...thank goodness.

The couch pulls out (just a little) and into the 3rd bed for Sakari.

We sat out on the balcony and took in the view of the water. I was glad we were on this side instead of the side by the port. We could watch the boats go in and out, the water planes going by, the traffic with super nice cars going by and see all the beautiful homes in the area. It was quite the view and we were enjoying it while getting away from the chaos of the ship.

We started seeing (hearing) some of the ships pull out.

Here came the Carnival Magic. They were having one heck of a loud sailaway party on the ship. I heard them coming before I even seen them! I remember sailing on the Magic. I ❤️ed it!

Next up was the Carnival Celebration.

Did you know they have a roller coaster on the ship? How cool. I must sail her now! 

Then along came a rather quiet ship. There didn't seem to be a sailaway party going on. It was a smaller ship. I noticed the name: RC Serenade of the Seas.

Then I noticed this as it went by:

Ultimate WORLD CRUISE. I just had to look that up. I would find that these people were leaving today, day 1, to embark on a 274 night cruise around the world! Although it sounds intriguing,  I don't think I could ever do that. I'm only good for less than 2 weeks on any vacation and I'm ready to head home. Just in case anyone wondered...prices started at $61,000!!!

We heard a knock on the door. Who can this be? We already have company? 

Nope, not company but someone bearing gifts instead. Platinum gifts!

Sakari must have been craving chocolate because she did not let any of it go to waste and pealed off the chocolate with her nails and ate it. LOL

Our ship was still being gassed up. I couldn't figure out how we were able to pull into this small station for gassing. I swear it looked like it was stationary.

Then I finally got my answer...it pulled away. Ohhhh, I get it now. lol

For anyone wanting to know what was going on during Day 1, here is the daily from that day.

As Sakari and I sat on the balcony, I caught something out of the corner of my eye and yelled....

DOLPHIN!!! Sakari was so excited. I had told her that it was possible to see them at the port and reminded her that we had seen a bunch of them on one of our cruises after coming back into port with Kendra and family and I think Kolin was on that cruise as well. She didn't remember of course...it had been so long ago. So this was quite the treat to see. 

Our luggage arrived one by one and I managed to have everything put away from one luggage before the next came. I found that the room had enough shelving for all of our things with no problems. We didn't even use some of it (especially in the restroom under the sink). Our room also had tons of hangers in the closet.

We managed to meet our room steward, Christopher, who was extremely nice throughout the cruise and obliged to anything we asked of him (ice bucket). 

It was 5:30pm and we started hearing loud music. Was this us? Yep, it sure was! Sakari basically drug me off the balcony so that we could head upstairs for the sailaway party of our own. She finally loves dancing again. I look back on all the sailaways we've done and she was always dancing around and never wanted to leave. She had a period of not wanting to as she got a little older, but it's GAME ON these days! At least if I don't have my dancing partner, Kendra, with me, I'll now have Sakari to fill in. 😁

The party is held on the pool deck with all of the pool chairs removed for a dance area. (I still like the H20 as a place for the parties myself). The party was under way and it was THE place to be! We had the most amazing cruise director this cruise: Tiara.

So I did get a night picture of the adult pool after all. 

We danced and danced and then the party was over. I feel like the parties (sailaway, 80's, and glow) all used to last longer than they do now. Now it's about 45 minutes tops.

Sakari was sad when it was over and wanted to keep the party going. The night was still young. What should we do now???

We headed back to the room and I handed Sakari two of her Christmas presents that I had managed to sneak into our luggage without her knowledge. I need a mom of the year award for this.

On our last vacation to Grand Cayman, I had brought along some of our games to play while we were in the house. One of them was UNO cards only to find out that we only had 2 colors instead of 4. I have absolutely no idea what happened to the rest of the deck. So, I got her another set so that we can properly play the game without her yelling "You're cheating somehow". She found it hilarious after opening and screamed "We can finally play a real game!"

Onto the next present...something she has really taken a liking to. A chess set. My dad bought me one at a young age and taught me how to play. It was a magnetic chess board and you could take it anywhere and not have to worry about the pieces falling or blowing off. I loved it but can't seem to figure out what I did with it over the last couple of years. I knew that we would have many years of playing on this board and could take it anywhere with us on vacation. It even came with checkers as well. 

Of course I challenged her to a game. She's been practicing a lot lately with her bf on an online game and has taught him how to play...but has she learned enough to beat her momma yet is the real question? We will find out soon.

If the next picture don't tell you who the winner was I don't know what will. 😁

Well that only lasted one game and she was done. 

We headed for some food for dinner and went to the buffet. This soup (I want to say it might have been cauliflower soup) was AMAZING!

It was now almost 7pm and we wanted to go to the comedy club. We always love these shows, but of course still have to go to the "family" version of it...at least for a few more years.

Tonight's show was with a lady named Jessi Campbell. We came, we sat, we listened, we looked at each other, we left when it was over. She really wasn't very good and was one of those comedian's that told a joke, that wasn't that funny, then laughed at herself each time. We walked away hoping that each show would not be like this and ran into other people on the ship that didn't care for her either. 

Now our cruise director Tiera was hilarious! I wonder if she was a comedian at one point. She was great with the jokes and making everyone laugh!

After the show, I was itching to head to the casino and try my luck...or someone's luck, I didn't care just as long as I got to play. Sakari headed back to the room and we headed to the casino. 

Our philosophy is to put $20 in and if we double, we cash out. We had 3 chances to try this out tonight. In other words we each went with $60.

I absolutely loved this game and it would randomly pop up where a dragon with balls would drop on the screen and then a wheel would spin and you earned money. I did pretty good almost every time I played. 

Doubled my money on the Piggy Wiggly Squeak game...cashed out. 

Then came the big winner of the night and I definitely cashed out and called it quits for the night.

We went back to the room as I paraded around showing Sakari my winnings and decided to head to the buffet for a "winning" snack. NS vanilla ice cream it was!

It was about an hour past our normal bedtime at home and it had been a long day so off to get some Zzz's by 10:30pm.