As we walked across the entry and onto the ship I had butterflies in my stomach - it was so beautiful! First we had to stop to have our picture taken and then you are given your card to use as ID for not only anything you want to buy on the ship but also to swipe as your room key.
You also need it to both get off the ship and back on at each port. We boarded on deck 7 which is the top of the Piazza area and you see the magnificent winding stairways and it just takes your breath away!
Crew members were all over directing you as to how to find your room and we were led thru the Gatsby Casino - which seemed much larger than on our previous cruise on the Princess Grand.
We took the elevator up to the 11th deck - Baja - where we hurriedly walked to B210.
We were pleasantly surprised to find a plate of appetizers compliments of Mark at Ohan Travel and also a card for a bottle of wine at dinner. He is such a great guy who we've worked with before and will again! We gobbled the appies down as we hadn't had anything to eat that morning. Our luggage hadn't arrived yet so we headed out to do a bit of exploring, get some lunch at the Horizon Court Buffet, and meet up with Alicia and her husband, Chuck, who live in CA and I had made friends with thru the Princess Cruise Critic message board. Alicia and I had been talking since last August when we first booked and we had hit it off instantly thru emails and IM's. We had called each other on our cells when we boarded so I knew they were all the way at the back of the ship by the adults only pool which is called the Terrace Pool. We hugged immediately and she introduced us to her niece, Cheryl, and husband, Kelley, who were also cruising with us.
Next stop was the buffet where there was lots to choose from. We both filled up our plates - my favorite being an Artichoke Tomato Salad. Time to walk off all those calories! The ship is huge and though it holds 3,000 passengers plus crew it never felt intimidating or crowded.
Family pool and bar, one of the many Jacuzzis
This is the MUTS screen - Movies Under The Stars. There are family movies, sports, and concerts on during the day and at night newer movies are shown. The pool lounge chairs are converted with comfy covers and you can get a blanket and popcorn to enjoy while you watch. We were so busy at night we never made it to do this as much as I wanted too. Some of the movies playing were Nights in Rhodane, Mamma Mia, Hancock, etc.
This statue is made by the famous artist Wyland and one flanks each side of an area between one of the pools and Horizon Buffet. Each one is worth $70,000!
After grabbing some cold drinks we settled ourselves onto lounge chairs and watched one of the great bands on the ship - Exotique. It was heavenly to know we had ten whole days ahead of us
of this luxury!
After a while we wandered back to our room and found our suitcases had arrived and we unpacked. I had brought an over the door plastic shoe holder for extra storage room but found we really didn't need it. As small as the bathroom was we seemed to fit all of our things on the three small shelves beside the sink and the one long one underneath. There was also a shelf in the shower to store our shampoo and soap. There were plenty of hangers as well and we didn't need any of the extra ones I had brought along. Also in our room was a desk, a small chair, and a stand up shelf unit with a door and on one shelf was a safe large enough for our passports, jewelry, and wallets. Unlike the land all inclusive resorts we had stayed in if you used anything Princess had prestocked in the small fridge provided you would be charged. Fortunately we had been told to bring our own water bottles on board for tours and such and we got them right in so we wouldn't be tempted to use Princesses drinks.
Once settled in we realized it wasn't too long til sail away at 5 p.m. so we hurried back up the elevator to the 15th floor and walked up another flight of stairs til we were at the very front of the Emerald. It was fascinating to watch the preparations and we got all excited when the vehicle stopped and the men got out who were going to release the lines attaching us to the dock.
We heard the sound of the side thrusters and suddenly felt the movement and watched as we pulled slowly away.
The Sheriff's boat led us out into the open sea
As we pass by the condo's lining the beach opening to the sea the people come out on their balconies and blow horns and wave flags and cheer - it was very cool!
As the sun set and Ft. Lauderdale faded into the distance we decided we were ready for an early dinner and from reading the boards I knew that there was a seafood buffet being held was at the buffet that night. It was slightly disappointing as we assumed there would be all kinds of fish but it was mostly cold lobster, crab claws, and of course plenty of chilled shrimp. Not that we didn't make a fine meal out of that!
After dinner we wandered around a bit more and ended up going to the Princess Theater to see their first night show which was a smattering of what was upcoming during the week. We saw one comedian, Jim McDonald, who we knew we didn't want to miss and kept an eye out for where he would be appearing and when. By then it was after 11 and we were once again exhausted so went to bed to the feel of the ship rocking from side to side. Being up in the front of the ship had given me pause when it was assigned, (next time I will definitely pick a cabin myself), due to hearing that could be a problem area in rough seas. In retrospect, as rough as the next days became, we're not sure any cabin wasn't feeling the intensity, and don't think we were any worse off than any other place during that trip. In fact we found the rolling motion made us very sleepy as soon as we lay down be it night or day! Walking down the halls feeling like you are drunk is quite another thing altogether however!
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