Propeller’s Turning The Deep Seas

As I am on the deep sea, gazing on the horizon seeing the sunset, sunrise and the moon from afar. As I am sailing through the waters, I can hear the splash of the water from the ship, hearing the propeller’s from a distance, enjoying the sounds of the cruise ship, and taking in the pure clean air. I am on my way to the aft of the ship and can hardly wait to listen to the propeller’s do its work. A lot of thought and positive goodness comes from it all.

I absolutely love seeing the beautiful bluish colour of the water and bubbles around it and the occasional splash. I love spending time looking at it during the day, and as it gets dark, all you can see is the dark waters, but still incredibly amazing to hear and to feel it in your soul. It was amazing and my eyes were so relaxed and it was great. Often times, we are so invested into screen time, and when I went to watch the water turning, it was such a great way to relax the eyes.

I don’t see many people on cruise ships often admiring that part of the ship, and enjoying looking at the sea. Passengers are often couped up into spa treatments, massages, in the restaurants, bars, pool decks, and inside looking and buying things from the shops, but how often do we take aback from all those and simply go out on deck, take a chair, lounging and taking in the true beauty of nature and disconnect from screens and just take in the moment? I don’t really see it happen. I am sure there are people like me, but it is scarce.

With little time we have to spend with the vessel, it is important to take time to smell nature and appreciate each second we have onboard on one of the most unique and awesome ways to see the world and travel. The propellers that turn the waters of the deep seas are incredible and a huge marvel of technology, engineering and it is so powerful and incredly amazing.

Life on the high seas is definitely different. I feel the positivity, the happiness, the joy and appreciating the simplest and yet most incredible things onboard such as the propellers and watching the ship sail. Often times we are too invested in reviewing the ship with feedback, but I feel that some passengers need to up their game and to really reflect on nature and the sounds.

I remember having conversations with the master captain and officers of the vessel’s I have been on, and I couldn’t help myself with so much excitement to talk to them about the ship, to give them compliments, and telling them my story of the propellers and how much joy it brings me and my life just watching it all unfold. They had never really heard of passengers being so invested into the very interesting parts of it and going behind the scenes and actually exploring these mighty ships. They really appreciated what I had to say and to relate to their passion of these vessel’s.

So, the next time you get onboard a cruise ship, don’t forget to see the simple things and enjoy the moment and take it all in, to not be so critical and to fully live life to the fullest extent and to really hear the sounds of nature and to appreciate each moment that comes.

Cruise Reviews and Cruise Ship Travel

Cruise Ship travel is incredibly awesome. Most of the time the things we read online about cruise ships and other people’s reviews on them misleads people and There are always people with a negative approach to everything. Well, here I am to debunk those reviews and to tell you the truth from an honest traveller like myself. When it comes to travel stuff of any kind, I am serious about it. I don’t just talk out of thin air. Here are cruise questions people frequently ask…

Aren’t cruises boring?

– Far from it. Not boring at all. There is so much to do onboard that you have no time to be bored. Cruise Ships are built so big now, and with so much to do on many of their decks. You hardly have time to spend in your own stateroom. You do not have time to waste. Everything is fabulous and you enjoy every second of it.

Don’t you get sea/motion sickness?

– Now, with the ships new designs, stabilizers and the massive and huge ships that are built, you barely even feel the ship moving. Technology has come a long way.

Why do we have to be back on the ship an hour or half an hour before the ship disembarks to another destination?

– Ship crew needs half an hour or so to take off the ropes/anchors (on tendering ports), gangway disassembles, need to put ship equipment back onto the ship, and need clearance from the port to give the okay to leave the port. Captain and his/her officers are in constant contact with the port workers and pilot boat operators to leave the port, so that is why people need to be on board.

What if we miss the ship?

You need to find your way to the next port of call – call the emergency phone line on your cruise embarkation/disembarkation card and notify the ship of what happened. Sometimes ships do wait for passengers, but sometimes due to the number of people onboard the ship, they need to leave because of time constraints. If a ship is late in the port, they pay fines.

How do we know what to do onboard the ship or in a port of call destination?

Everyday on your door or in your stateroom cabin, you will receive a newsletter of events happening on the ship and excursions or whatever else. You will see dining times, the dress code for the day, theme parties, and amongst specials going on at the stores and boutiques onboard. It’s always great to participate in everything onboard and make it a fun experience for you. They also show you what entertainment shows are on for the night. Some cruise ships, you have to book the shows due to the number of people on the ship. Also, now cruise lines have Apps that you can download on your phone and it will tell you everything going on for that day. All you need to do is put your booking number and your name and you are good to go. Ask or research the onboard cruise line APP and download it before you go on board and log your information in.

Any other questions, let me know.

Cruise Ship Etiquette – Kindness goes a long way

A crew member of a cruise ship of Royal Caribbean went overboard. As you may or may not know, cruise employees get depressed and spend a lot of time alone and are always working and are away from family and friends for 6 to 8 even sometimes up to 9 months from home on the oceans and seas and different ports of call.

I’ve witnessed passengers that come on vacation being so rude to them, demanding and say the most terrible things to them. They work their tail off and I see how hard it is to keep up a smile from them, how they manage to seem strong but passengers add fuel to the fire sometimes and the crew sometimes get to their breaking point. These people sacrifice being away from home from months at a time and the only way to stay in touch is by phone and messages. It’s really hard.

Kindness and patience go a long way. Treat them with dignity and respect. The way you treat others does affect the way they work and serve. Some people don’t realize that. Cruise work is a lot more difficult than an All inclusive resort. There are a lot more people on a ship to serve.
These crew people go through a lot and they have to make a living to provide for their families they hardly get to see. They go home for 2 to 3 months then back on the ship they go.

Kind attitude goes a long way. It does matter more than you think.

Atlantis Hotel, Resort, Casino – Nassau Bahamas – Disappointing

Atlantis Hotel, Resort, Casino
Nassau, Bahama’s.
MSC Seaside Cruise — Last Port of Call.
January 18, 2019
Disappointing –

In 2002, when we were on Costa Atlantica cruise ship, we went to Atlantis and we were able to visit the whole facility and to walk around without being heckled and stopped by hotel security saying these spots are for people who are staying at the hotel and we need to see ID. Now, in 2019, we decided to go after many years later, and we were not permitted to access key points to the hotel. Oh yeah and unless you pay a large amount to enter everywhere its ok.

After a day of walking, taking a water taxi boat ride for $4.00 per person per way, we walked quite the distance to reach the hotel/resort, we were excited to be back on the grounds. Little did we know that almost all areas were blocked off, except for the Casino and the shops where they know they are places where people will spend money, but then some areas where you do not have to spend money and they don’t allow you through. We were so disappointed. We had told the security that we just walk a long distance from our ship to come to visit, and we get turned away.

We told them that what if one day we come and stay here at this hotel? Now, we know not to. It is so overrated anyway. We were so tired and the sun was shining hot. We said time to walk the distance again and go to the water taxi and go back to our beautiful ship and relax. It was absolutely disappointing.

Cruise Travel Inspiration — Cruise Ship

Did a lot of thinking about so many details while I was on my cruise… ⚓️⚓️⚓️

As I was looking at the deep sea/ocean sailing through the many miles of salt water, I can see fellow cruise ships from different cruise lines and sizes, cargo ships, and other vessel’s from afar wondering where they are going. I also noticed parts of land which belongs to the Caribbean islands as we were sailing to our next port of call. I Was waking up fresh and happy every morning way before sunrise to see we have reached another place and a couple of days of sailing on the seas.

I was taking in the fresh clean air of the sea spending every day on my balcony morning and night, just looking at the moon shining down on the water so clearly and beautifully admiring mother nature’s beauty and gazing at the sunrise enjoying the little time I have on the vessel. I was living in the moment, embracing life and how beautiful it can be.

Often times we are too invested in being too busy with life, and we don’t take time out of our lives to embrace life’s pleasures and how beautiful it can be. I was happy to disconnect from my device that week to really remember to enjoy the scenery without a screen in my face, especially when you travel and when you are on a cruise ship.

I remember saying a few words to myself in my head, and thinking about how interesting travel can be and there were so many different types of transportation we used during that week starting from a van, aircraft, bus transfer to port of Miami, a cruise ship vessel, a water taxi boat and a tendering boat(which takes you to shore from the ship that is anchored in the water).

When we were visiting Costa Maya, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman, Nassau Bahamas and Miami all in a week, I said to myself cruising is the way to go and it’s such a great way to get around.

As I experienced cruising many years ago; the industry has come a long way since then with these vessel’s that are enormously huge and massive with thousands of passengers and crew onboard. The terminology and phrases used on ships are very different. I love the food, the entertainment onboard, the ambience, seeing different cultures and backgrounds, and so much more. I loved every moment.

Don’t even second guess, don’t look at negative reviews from negative people. If you ever get a chance to go on a cruise, please go and don’t waste any more time. Don’t even think twice about it. Just go. It was my 5th cruise and I can’t wait for the next one. Panama Canal is my next more than Europe. Europe is overrated and it gets tiring. Your life will change forever and it did for me. ⚓️⚓️⚓️

Are you a Sentimental Traveler?

Traveling is an incredible experience in life, and when we book our flights, cruises, all inclusive resorts, it comes with the hotel name, airline name, tickets, and when we go to the airport we obtain our boarding passes, luggage tags, Airline Destination Tags which are attached to the luggage, and keep them for memories and sentimental value to some, but however some people discard them and throw them away saying ahh they do not need it anymore, but then when it comes time to reliving memories by taking out your travel memorabilia and overlooking where you have gone, the airlines you have traveled with, or the cruise ships you have sailed on, but do not have anything but maybe pictures from your travels, and then regret not keeping those. It has happened to a few people whom have thrown it all away. Not a good idea to. Its nice to have and overlook them once in a while. It may take up some space, but in the end you know you have it with you for years to come.

For me on the other hand, I am a very sentimental person when it comes to these things. I keep all my travel tickets, documents, luggage tags, the destination code checked baggage tags, airline boarding passes, airport maps, headsets, cruise ship cards, even the napkins, and any logo with the airline, the plane model, or cruise ship, the airline magazines, the pens, anything. I have even kept my all inclusive wristbands from the hotels. Call me crazy, but I keep everything.  I have even kept a record of the room numbers I have stayed in, even shampoo/conditioner bottles from hotels, the shower caps and stuff that they put in the washroom. I take my own shampoo and stuff, because I know that the hotel will have those, so I put them in my luggage right away. I grab a few more. I have kept them in boxes and labelled on what is inside and sometimes I take it out and take a look at them and its nice to be refreshed on my travels. I have traveled a lot in my life and its a beautiful thing and I am so thankful for all those experiences.

Are you a sentimental traveler? Do you keep everything when you travel?

 

Traveling Pen-Pals – Are You Still In Touch With Them?

I remember when I was a child, I first traveled on a plane with Royal Airlines which is no longer in service back in mid 90’s, I remember traveling to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico when I met new friends on the plane and I got their phone numbers and address, and I kept in touch with them for 3-4 years and then we drifted apart, and then I remember going to Florida, in Daytona Beach, and I had gone there for 2 weeks for Christmas and New Years, and I met great people from England, United Kingdom and we had seen each other and hung out with each other quite a bit and then we ended up getting each others address, and phone numbers, but we only sent each other mail and became pen-pals and sent pictures to each other. We still keep in touch since 1997. As the years went by, and my travels increased, I ended up meeting so many different people in the world and I still keep in touch with people I met from Russia, England, Armenia, Vancouver, in other parts of Ontario, Canada where I met them on my trips, and it was so awesome. We have each other on Facebook and we have each others e-mails and its such a great thing.

When you travel around the world, you meet so many different people with different views and lifestyles on life, and the way people see things and different opinions, and its so good. Travel and People experience has been part of my life since day one. I love being social and interactive with so many people. When I travel, I tend to bring up subjects and meet random people when I am at resorts, cruise ships, planes and airports. This last trip I did go on however, it was quite different, we all spoke and kept bumping into each other and met some really cool folks, but I ended up not getting any  phone numbers, e-mails, addresses. I don’t know what happened to me this time, but I had written a review on trip advisor online and one of them spotted me and my pictures, and she wrote to me and said Hi remember me from the hotel? I said Oh yes I do, She said I am sorry we didn’t get each others contacts, but thank goodness you wrote something on our hotel we stood at or else I would have never found you. You had told me your name, but I wouldn’t have known how to spell it to begin with, so she said I am glad I checked. So at least I am keeping in touch with one of the people I met now.

I had always carried around a small notebook and pen with me in my little purse around the hotel in case I met someone interesting, nice and great, but I never got to asking them. I was just so excited to be away and enjoy the hotel and everything else. There are so many people you meet, some you see again, some you don’t get to see again. I miss my friends in United Kingdom, Russia, and other places. I want to see them again and soon. Hopefully. Have you had a pen-pal? Do you still keep in touch with people whom you have traveled with or have met while you have been abroad? Have you kept your bonds strong with your travel pals?

Would love to hear from you.

All the best!

Cruise Ship Travel – Yes Or No?

In Life there are so many ways you can travel and experience new places, take memories home with you for a life time and so many things. Various forms of travel teaches us a thing or two about life and exploring the world, however due to the recent events that happened on board the Carnival Triumph Cruise ship of Carnival Cruise lines that an engine caught fire leading to power outage on the cruise ship with toilets not functioning and more than 4200 passengers and crew aboard the Triumph were completely deserted until rescue came along. They arrived last night safely to the port and it took them hours to tow the ship to the port to get the passengers and crew off the ship safely. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of them and hope they found their way back to their loved ones and are okay. Now the ultimate question on Cruise Ship travel, would you go? Or wouldn’t you go?

To me, Cruise Ship travel is something so incredible and you get to sail to many countries and places all in one vacation. I know some of the incidences that happened with Costa Concordia, Carnival Triumph may deter and prevent people from going on a cruise, but to me, I would still go on a cruise. I love cruise ships a lot and I had studied them a lot and I would pin point which cruise ships would dock at the ports and among everything else. I am very happy I got to travel on 5 cruise ships of all sizes. I want to go on the Oasis of The Seas from Royal Caribbean Cruise line and I want to travel on the bigger cruise ships. I know that it might sound crazy with everything that has happened with the cruises in the past year and a bit, but It will not prevent me from sailing on another ship again. It depends on the cruise line and cruise company you go with too. Do your research, Is the cruise line reputable? It also depends on individuality too and what you want out of a cruise ship trip vacation. Now in your opinion, would you sail on a cruise ship? Have you been on a cruise ship before? What are your feelings and thoughts about them? What Cruise line would you sail with? What do you know about cruise ships instead of the obvious?

To me, I would go on a cruise ship no problem. All the best to everyone!

Special Announcement – My Travel Blog Site To Be Launched Soon!

Hello everyone, I have a special announcement to make to everyone. Besides my primary blog I have here, and due to popular demand, I decided to launch my very first travel blog site which will be launched at the end of January, 2013. Since I was 7 years old, I got introduced to a world of travel by my family, and I travel every year to different destinations and everything. Now, All my knowledge, understanding and my expertise in travel, I want to put it into good use and assist others who are into traveling, and those all new to the traveling world. This blog I will create will include tips, advice, cruises, cruising, cruise ships, how to connect flights, best deals, discounts, great sales, all inclusive vacations, flights, airlines,  hotels, car rentals, airports, road trip travel, my very own travel experiences, travel updates, websites to visit, aviation, the list of places and cruise ships I have traveled and so much more. Traveling is such a big passion of mine, and its something I love doing and helping others with their travel needs is important to me and to make sure they travel comfortable and happy. I am very excited for this step I am taking to create a blog just for the reason of this incredible world of travel. You name it, I have done it. I am very fortunate for all my experiences and expertise and I want to put it in great use. Well, that is all for now.

my blog address will be provided once it is complete. Thank you! 🙂

Happy traveling, Safe travels.

So Blessed With All My Experiences In Travel

There is so much I am blessed with and I am so happy to share it with you today. I am so blessed about my experiences in travel and in the past weeks and months, There have been people who have asked me so many questions on travel and so many things and I have helped them with the best of my ability and they came back from their trips so happy and thrilled. They gave feedback and told me that I was there travel consultant. That made me feel so incredible, and so blessed. I want to be able to cater to people, assist them in their travels, and whatever questions they have, I will do my best to answer them. I feel I am a great asset to any travel company out there and I feel though I have enough credentials to get out there to help people and to make a difference in someones travel plans and no matter how big the airport or how small the airport is, no matter where the travel hubs are, and so on and so forth, I am here to assist at anytime. If you would like to know about certain documents, visa’s, passport validation, among tickets, and so many things, I am here always to help you and I am honored to do so. Traveling is one of my favourite things in life and getting out there to explore the world is what I love to do and help people too. Thank you.

I Have Been Discovered By A Travel Advisor!

I am so excited to announce, that I have been discovered by a travel consultant with all the tips and all my travel blogs I have written over the last few months, and said that I am such a good travel advisor, and now I may have a great job as a travel consultant for airports, cruise ship travel, and among other advice to give to clients who travel. Who knows, I may get in and I may get into the world of travel and that would be one incredible thing. Lets see how things pan out, but lets start with I got discovered. Only a matter of time until I land a great job and a great future ahead of the travel industry. Lets do this. I am keeping this short today because I am going to head out and celebrate my happiness and being discovered is something I really appreciate. I cannot name the travel consultant as I would like to keep that confidential but it is one of the big travel companies out there. Anyway, I am so happy! Thanks for believing in me and giving me energy! signing off now 🙂

Travel Now before It is Too Late!

I have learned so much during my travels on the various places I have been, the history, the culture, heritage and so much more. I believe in traveling when I am still able to. People say that they will wait to travel until they retire, but things can happen and traveling may become difficult for people as they really age and cannot really take steps anymore. I think it is really important to take some time for traveling and changing scenery once in a while. I like to travel once or twice a year by plane to a nice destination to the Caribbean, or a Cruise Ship Vacation to the south. When I flew back from Cuba this past weekend, I had the window seat and I saw how fast the plane is traveling up in the air. When we got to Florida, I can see the Florida shape from high up in the air, and I saw the Port Everglades Cruise Port and saw some Cruise ships in the harbour at night. It was beautiful. It makes me realize how great traveling is and seeing really cool things from up in the airplane when it is a clear sky of course with no clouds in sight. I love all aspects of traveling and I am going to travel as much as I am able to before it is too late. Some people wait and wait and wait to do so, and then they go on vacation all sore, and people have limitations unfortunately. Unless people have people to assist them in travels, that is a different story, but I truly believe in traveling now, than later on. Then we can say, Oh I have been there, we can tell our travel stories together, we can express ourselves, have various subjects to talk about, what we saw, what we felt, how we felt during all that. Its pretty neat.

God gave me a gift of Life and life is meant to be enjoyed, to see places, to get out of our circle and visit our wonderous world waiting for us to discover it. I know some people may have trouble traveling, or some people are not financially fit, but I believe in saving money and putting it in for travel and booking a holiday. I am sure all of us deserve a getaway once or twice a year. We all work so hard in our lives. We owe it to ourselves to save the money, to see the world, and just live life, to experience our world, to experience the greatness.

So, what are you waiting for? Pack your bags and make travel a yearly thing.

After A Month from The Costa Concordia Tragedy

For the past month, I have been thinking a lot about the tragic Costa Concordia capsizing that took place off the coast of Italy in Giglio Island. It pains me to see all those lives lost. We probably would not have had any deaths if the cruise crew were not ordering people to go back to their cabins. They thought by doing that, they thought that they would not make the passengers on the ship panic, but they failed to tell people what really is happening and that there is on the list of criminal offences. I am still in disbelief over all this. I thought at first it was a movie they are setting up, but it really happened which is so unfortunate. Before being able to work on a cruise ship, before being about to operate and be a captain of a cruise ship, everyone needs a lot more training, a lot more background checks, and people need to go through strenous amounts of tests before they can lead a cruise ship and its passengers that will travel on it. It is very important that the cruise lines hire captains that will be more responsible, not show off, not to abandon people and the ship if a catastrophe strikes, Heaven forbid. These things are super important.

They do not realize the damage this has done to loved ones, families, friends, so on and so forth. The Captain is a coward for doing this terrible thing to so many lives. He was responsible for the safety, security of more than 4200 people on board his ship, and so he thought he take a huge cruise ship for a joy ride and go off coast to show off his ship, then hit a huge rock and put a huge gash on the ship, and capsizing it, then abandoning ship, having dinner with a woman, so many things. Unbelievable. This coward needs to be locked up for good. 15 years isn’t enough.

I am disgusted that this ever happened and this day in age when cruise ships are at their finest, with technology, stablizers, and modern day gadgets. This would have never happened if the Coward did not go close to shore. There are bouys that ships need to get through and follow them, and navigational systems that tell how deep the water is that the ship travels on. I remember going on a cruise and the captain announced that were 6,750 feet above water in the Caribbean. WOW thats a lot of water.

God help all those families and friends effected by this tragedy. I am sure we all are in this world.

 

The Costa Concordia Cruise Ship Tragedy, Hit Me Really Emotionally…

As I had woken up, I decided to do my regular daily routine by getting on the computer and checking my e-mail, but I decided to check out the news, and I saw a headline that a Cruise Ship had capsized, and I right away clicked on it, and I was just in shock, I could not believe what I was seeing on the computer. I thought it was something out of a movie, but unfortunately it is real. I cannot even begin to describe how I am feeling for the Costa Concordia Cruise Ship tragedy that happened on January 14, 2012 off the coast of Italy in the Mediterranean Sea. My heart feels heavy for all those people involved in such a terrible ordeal. I am glad 4000 people were evacuated and are safe, but I feel for those who have not been found yet and unfortunately those who lost their lives. I have not stopped thinking about this since I heard about it. I started to cry and my emotions on this was on the rise.

Having been on the same Cruise Ship Company on another Cruise Ship called Costa Atlantica, and among other Cruise lines in the industry, this news even hit me harder as I have been on these huge ships before. I cannot believe how scared and eery I have been feeling the last 24-48 hours since this terrible tragic thing that happened. Now I am thinking about how all these people are going to go home without travel documents, how they will be salvaging peoples belongings, how they will even raise this enormous and a 135,000 ton ship. I know this may put a big scar on the cruise ship industry and now people may not travel with cruises anymore, and I wouldn’t blame people who are looking to travel. I know this is a very scary thing, but I really enjoy cruising and visiting so many countries all at once. This definitely will not deter me from cruising again as I have had a passion from cruise ships and cruising and for several years this has been part of my life.

My thoughts and prayers go out to all those and all the families.