jbond

That's probably it. If you walk to the end there's St Michael's Cathedral and the old dry dock area. Great sea food. In the dock area there are some neat bars and they sell flying fish sandwiches, goes great with a Banks beer.

I love Barbados. We were there last year and had a great time. The shopping on High Street is as good as most Caribbean ports and the island itself is beautiful. The Southern Caribbean is our favourite Caribbean itinerary.

From the TSA website. Where We Stand Frequently Asked Questions New Security Measures Is it safe to fly? Yes. We do not have any specific threat to flights in the U.S. However, out of an abundance of caution, we have taken these steps as a precautionary measure. We continue to monitor intelligence sources closely and will adjust the security measures as warranted. What should the American people know? We ask every passenger to be alert and report suspicious activity to authorities. What can people expect at the checkpoints? Passengers may experience longer lines at airports and should plan to arrive early. Check with your specific airline and airport before flight departure time to determine how much time is needed for your flight. Passengers should pack their patience and ensure that that they do not bring any liquids to the security checkpoint in carry-on luggage. These items are no longer permitted on board the aircraft. To expedite the process, avoid having clutter in your bags and minimize the number carry-on items. Why are you banning liquids? We are taking appropriate preventive measures to protect the public given the plot uncovered by U.K. authorities. Will there be any exceptions? The following items are permitted to be carried aboard the aircraft: * Passengers traveling with infants may bring baby formula. * Prescription medicine that matches the passenger’s name. * Essential non-prescription medicines such as insulin are permitted. What about liquid eyeliner and similar items? If you are in doubt about an item, please leave it at home or place in your checked baggage or the item may be intercepted at the security checkpoint. Media reports indicated that passengers may be forced to sample infant formula or milk before being permitted to fly. Is that true? No. TSA will not ask passengers to sample fluids or beverages during the screening process. This process is being required at foreign airports and is not required at any domestic U.S. airport. Infant formula must be submitted for inspection to a TSA security officer by passengers traveling with a baby. Media have also reported that laptops, cell phones and electronic items are no longer allowed. Is that true. No. TSA continues to allow laptop computers, cell phones and other electronic items. Will you be hand searching bags? There will be more hand searches of bags at the checkpoint and a bag check at the gate immediately prior to boarding the aircraft. Do you have the ability to detect liquid explosives? We have several methods to detect explosives at the checkpoint. We also have the ability to detect liquids through our screening process. How early should passengers arrive? Passengers should consult their individual airline, but we recommend arriving at least two hours in advance of flight time. Again, keep in mind that if it is necessary to remove liquids at the checkpoint, time will be added to the process. What cities were the incoming flights involved in the plot arriving at? Due to the ongoing investigation, we cannot comment on the specific flights or threat.

Won't change any plans we have. The "no carry on" was a quick decision at UK airports, I don't believe it affects US airports. No liquids in carry on is OK by me and seems to make sense from what I'm hearing about the discovered threat. I just hope that they keep finding all the plots.

I don't know how fast the ship rolled, but if it was a sudden movement, a lot of water could have washed out due to the dynamics. In the early '70s, 1972 I think, we had the big Sylmar quake here in Southern California. We lived about 100 miles from the epicenter. We lost over two feet of water out of our swimming pool. The quake threw water over 6 ft high block walls at each end of the pool. Our back yard was flooded. So, depending on the violence of the roll, they could lose a lot of water, but just 1-2 ft left does sound a bit of an exaggeration.

We were stranded on the ship in Barcelona last year because of a strike. We spent most of the last day in our cabin and got to talk to our cabin steward and his wife, also his assistant, for about an hour. We talked about family and ambitions etc and why they chose to work on the ships. The reason was for the quick money that they couldn't make in Romania. He brought up the subject of tips and commented that we were generous tippers. He said that most people tip and very few don't. His comment was that you can almost always tell who is not going to tip from the first day. They complain about everything and are always asking for more and are never satisfied. Regarding tipping upfront, he thought it was nice, but didn't make him work any harder. He said he had a pride in what he did and did his best for everyone. He also stated that phone cards were not that well used, especially in Europe. Almost everyone on the ship had cell phones and in Europe coverage was pretty widespread. They planned to work for another couple of years and then buy a small hotel back home. It was an interesting conversation and most unexpected.

Now that's an interesting question. I really don't know how to answer it. We always get good service. So what makes it better? We tend to judge it on personality, how quickly our room is made up, how good the wine service is... etc But again, it's always been good. We tend to overtip, especially to the assistant waiter, they seem to work so hard and a good one can really make your dining room experience better. To answer sailingrose's question, I think that your tip was very generous, kind of in the overtip area. We usually follow the same guidelines as you and tip around 50% more than the minimum. We never tip at the beginning of the cruise, always on the last night. If we have a favourite bartender or two, we will tip them $20 and if we have spent a lot of time listening to the pianist in one of the lounges, we will tip him also. On RCI we have always tipped the Concierge, except for our last cruise. He was so bad we didn't think he deserved it. We tipped his assistant instead and she was very surprised.

Our favourite is RCI. We choose by itinerary and if RCI is doing it, we cruise with them. If not we look to Princess. Not a lot between them in service and food. Ship wise, RCI blows everyone else out of the water. We also like the salt water pools Concierge Lounge Diamond/Diamond+ perks Viking Crown Lounge those incredible dining rooms To each his own. It would be a boring life if we all liked the same thing.

We live in a community that has 28 miles of roads and 42 miles of horse trails, so I know what you mean. At local formal occasions I have at times discarded my bowtie and worn a bolo tie. I think that it looks great. I always wear black eel skin boots with my tux. I have four pair of boots and no dress shoes. When I wear a suit, I always wear boots. Cruise or no cruise. We will be in Mazatlan later this year and I will add a pair of full skin ostrich to my boot collection.

I only have experience with two, RCI and Princess. I think RCI has a better programme than Princess. Their Diamond is better than Princess Platinum and their Diamond+ is better than Princess Platinum Elite. That said, it takes 10 credits for Diamond and 24 for +, against 7 and 15 n princess. One advantage on RCI is they give extra credits for longer cruises and suite, whereas Princess doesn't.

I'll bet you could find people who sailed on the Titanic say it was great until we hit that iceberg. :wink: That was a very interesting website. She seemed to be a very unflappable kind of person with a sense of humour. Enjoyed reading it. I'm a little surprised that human error can still cause this kind of problem. With all the computer controlled devices out there, I'm amazed that there isn't some kind of control that would limit turn rate dependent on speed and /or limit roll angle by over riding commands. It's old technology in the aerospace industry.

I don't think so. Just because we think that it isn't necessary to wear a tux on formal night, doesn't signal the end of the world. My experience is that a large number of people enjoy formal night and dress accordingly. I believe that it is still a part of the cruise magic and it is not declining in it's appeal. We have only taken one Caribbean cruise in the past few years, but we were surprised at how well dressed it was. We have cruised the Med, Baltic, Hawaii, British Isles, Mexico, FP and Trans Canal in recent years and the dress code has always been very well adhered too. I think that cruising has revived the tradition, and it's alive and well.

Enjoyed viewing your photos. Isn't the internet wonderful, allowing us to share things so easily. Your daughter has talent, encourage her to keep it up. The signs were pretty awesome, especially the second one.

I'm not sure "train" is the right word, maybe advise or encourage. I'm not familiar with HAL, but I thought that Jeff's suggestion was OK. I think it depends on the line, the parents and the kid himself. While I don't share the "you should wear want you want attitude", I believe that you should wear what you feel comfortable wearing and make an attempt to follow the suggested dress code. I thought Jeff's suggestion was in that manner. Our grandkids love to dress up, so we encourage that. We rent a suit/tux for our grandson and my wife takes our granddaughter shopping before we cruise. We have done this since their first cruise almost 10 years ago. We are very happy that they share our enjoyment of formal nights. On our Adventure cruise, we had complete strangers asking if they could take photos of them. This is what they looked like. http://community.webshots.com/photo/443215...032533819FUZEyF

That is one area where Princess does score over RCI. You can still order a bottle of liquor from room service.

I, IMO, don't think that Princess Platinum Elite compares to RCI Diamond Plus. Except for the complimentary laundry. When they get a Concierge Lounge with all it's services, I'll agree that they are on a par. RCI Diamond is way better than Princess Platinum, but you do need three more credits. It is almost on a par with Platinum Elite. One advantage of RCI over Princess is that you get extra credits for longer cruises an suites. We have never cruised with Princess on a seven day cruise. Always 10, 14 or 17, but they only give you one credit. As for internet, it's complimentary on Princess at Platinum, but I'm usually so busy I don't have time. The only time I've ever used it was on Island, five sea days and lousy weather. Love that priority tender ticket on RCI, but they tender better than Princess anyway. Priority boarding on both Princess and RCI is a great feature.

You do get that on RCI. I just completed my on line check in for our next cruise and found that we had been upgraded from our D1 to a junior suite.

I agree with that. I think RCI's perks are great, but I'd like to see them give complimentary laundry and dry cleaning to Diamond Plus. Princess already does this for Platinum Elite.

You're not Irish by any chance? You three are a right pair if ever I saw one. Couldn't resist. :rolleyes:

If your upcoming cruise is the one to FP, be careful on the return journey with your 35 mm film. When we were there, Papeete airport put everything through their big scanner, carry on as well as checked. Several people found their film fogged when they had it developed.

There are lots of tours available on the dockside and many on the internet. We booked all our own tours with the exception of the 4X4 in Bora Bora, where Princess had it all sewn up. Huahine We did the picnic in the water with Marc, awesome. Booked over the internet. Raratonga We got a taxi on the dock and took a 3 hour taxi ride around the island. A lot of people rented jeeps and drove themselves around, but I thought that they missed out on the narration. Don'r forget to eat at Trader Jacks. Raiatea Cruised around Taha'a with Bruno. Visited a private motu for lunch and snorkeled the coral garden. Strenuous, but beautiful. Booked over the internet. Bora Bora Swam with the sharks with Johnny on the second day. An incredible experience. He handled rays like he knew them on a personnal basis. Booked by phone ahead of time. Johnny appears to have left the scene, but Shark Boy has a great reputation and he was on the dock. First day we did the 4X4 and it was rough, tough and awesome. Booked through Princess. It's pretty scary in places. Moorea My favourite island. It's so beautiful, it's hard to believe it's for real. We rented a private boat for eight of us for $600. We swam with the sharks, played with the rays and a pet barracuda named Jojo. You can't imagine how great it was. Papeete. The day we arrived we did a tour with Patrick into the centre of the island. It was an eye opener. Swimming in the waterfalls and four wheeling it over the rough terrain. Fantastic. Booked over the internet. The last day we just walked around town and shopped. Ate at Le Retro. Great baguettes with ham and cheese. This is a good website and the guy is really helpful. www.thetahititraveler.com

I've looked at them, and the D50, but I'm reluctant to go back to the big lenses. My 75-300 mm SLR lens for my old film camera weighs more than all my digital cameras and flash put together. They do have a great feel though and even though the shutter lag on the non DSLR's has been improved, it still isn't as good as the DSLR.

I use a Nikon 5700. It's 5 MP and has a 35-280 mm equivalent optical zoom. I like it because it feels like a DSLR, but is so much lighter. It's an all sing, all dance camera and has the option of adding a separate flash unit, which I also have. I always shoot at max MP and max quality, who knows, one day I may take a good photo and want to make a large print. I recently bought a very compact digital, a Minolta X1. It's 8 MP and has a 3x optical zoom. I use that for taking photos at dinner or when I don't want to carry my camera bag around, say around the pool. It fits in a shirt pocket and it takes excellent photos. It's biggest drawback is that it only has a screen, no eyepiece viewfinder. It also can be used u/w with a custom case that costs around $120. I'll probably buy one before our next Caribbean cruise. I'm not sure if I cruise for the enjoyment or the opportunity to take photos. Right now, I'm printing out a second copy of our last cruise album, all 116 pages of it.

Thanks. I think Rita made the right choice, in more ways than one.

A lot of women say that, but I think that women in formal gowns always look stunning. After 49 years of marriage, I never tire of seeing my wife in a long evening gown. http://community.webshots.com/photo/552362...032533819eMvIky Do you blame me?