Day 43 - Carnival Panorama Cruise (Day 6 - At Sea)

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Well no more ports of call left now on the Carnival Panorama and after 3 days of having to be on time to get to port we can get up anytime we choose as it’s a sea day. I was looking through the wardrobe for something I have not worn and decided to wear my new adidas blue t-shirt that I bought from Macy’s in Portland which still had the $4.97 price tag which is amazing as it’s a genuine authentic product. Actually as far as clothes go I will make an effort to try and wear the couple of nice shirts that have not been used but one item that has not been worn and is not going to be worn is a pair of blue dressy shorts and it might be a while before I can fit into them again !



We decided we’d go to the Vista Restaurant for a late breakfast as they are serving brunch from 8.30 to midday and we can get table service rather than going to the Lido Marketplace (aka buffet). I went to the Carnival Hub App and requested a reservation for a shared table and within 1 minute my booking was confirmed for Table # 398 so we headed down to Deck 3 Aft straight away. Our table was right at the back of the ship and we had a view out the back and it was interesting that we had not seen the view from here before as the two other occasions we had been here for dinner it was night time. When we were seated at our table there was a lady there named Gloria and she was from Los Angeles.



For the first time we felt a little vibration of the ship here but nothing too bad. It did bring back memories of a previous cruise that had a pretty bad vibration problem and that would be hard to fix I guess once it first sets sail. There was a good choice of items on the menu and Kerry chose the Parfait (granola, greek yoghurt and berries) and the House Special of 12 Hour French Toast with roasted peaches which looked more like a cake as it was about 2 inches thick ! I had an omelette with bacon and a side dish of corned beef hash which is one new food item I have discovered and enjoyed on this holiday.



It was just after 9 and as this was a brunch menu they also had desert so why not have desert for breakfast ? So I went in for the Banana Cream Pie with graham cracker crust and it was delicious. An OJ and a couple of coffees and I’m set for the day ahead. We chatted with Gloria who is a lovely lady who was really genuine and is sailing on her own and she said she was one of 9 children and has actually been to Australia twice. One on occasion she flew to Brisbane with some of her sisters and rented a car and drove down to Sydney using time share coupons so she must have driven right past our home in Tweed Heads (it’s a small world !).



She has been on many cruises and mentioned she got “casino rates” where the 7 day cruise only cost her $200- and she got casino credit of $200- so essentially cost her nothing. I asked about how this worked and she said if you gamble in the casino and win they will invite you back at very cheap rates to get the money back off you next time. If you are lucky enough to keep winning then it’s happy days but if you lose your money it’s unlikely an invitation to cruise on “casino rates” is coming your way. Anyway she is not a big gambler so sounds like she got a good deal.



She mentioned the biggest problem she had whilst driving in Australia was with roundabouts going the wrong way and I have certainly noticed that here on this trip (especially when we were in Sedona). It’s OK when there is raffia around as you just follow cars but once there is no-one around you default to old habits.



As I was devouring my desert I mentioned to Gloria that I was a bit disappointed that after being here for 6 weeks I had not once found a Key Lime Pie on the menu and I was so looking forward to having a slice somewhere. I can’t recall when but it was definitely on a cruise ship where I had this for the very first time and is without doubt the best desert that has ever been made (or maybe the a tie with the vanilla cannoli !). Gloria asked the waiter if they had Key Lime Pie on their menu and he checked and came back and said it was being served only in the Lido Marketplace but on a rotational basis so not every day (I will have to check it for the remainder of the cruise to find it !).



We chatted about other cruise lines that she had been on and she mentioned she now favours Princess Cruises or Royal Caribbean and that Alaska was a real disappointment and we felt the same way when we did it in 2019. The demand is falling away from Alaskan cruises and she felt it was because the ice is melting and everyone wants to see the glaciers up close and icebergs but there are not any icebergs left in the inside passage, and now everyone wants to do land based excursions like Denali National Park up near Anchorage. As Alaska cruise season is short they are normally sold out at least 1 year ahead and sometimes in peak season 2 years in advance but not anymore.



Gloria mentioned she had a slight southern accent and it’s because she grew up in Arkansas and I asked her why it’s pronounced as “Arkansaw” and she said she did not know why and some people pronounce it that way.



Kerry headed off first to catch an arts seminar at 10 in the Limelight Lounge where the comedy sessions are held. It’s called ‘The Power of Picasso” and some sort of history session to explaining how and why he became famous. It clashed with another activity at the same time she was keen to see being “Dodgeball” on the sports deck. I guess she was looking for some more painting tips or inspiration on her return home.



One of the many good features of the new Carnival Hub App is that you can send messages to other guests using the ship’s free limited wi-fi coverage. It’s a shame you need to pay $5- each to register as when I initially paid $5- I was only able to message myself which got boring after a while ! Anyway Kerry sent me a message at 10.05 saying she was back in the room as only 1 other person showed up for the seminar.



Hence we went to see the dodgeball event anyway and it was interesting watching two teams of 6 or 7 players showing their competitiveness. A couple of blokes were taking it way too seriously but overall most were just having some fun and definitely getting a workout as there was a lot of sweating going on.



It’s quite windy today and we are heading northwest directly into the wind so quite choppy seas but the ship is handling it very well and it’s just a little motion you feel. The temperature is a bit cooler around low 20’s but a mostly sunny day.



Had a late lunch around 1.30pm and went to the buffet and the food was a bit exotic for me. They have two separate food stations in the buffet and I thought they both served the same food but turns out is not so I from the other section I had pumpkin soup, with some sweet and sour pork and a little bit of chicken lasagna and we both had some Cocunut Lime Pie (not quite the Key Lime Pie that I wanted !).



We sat in what you could call a booth seat and watched this chap called Douglas finish his huge meal and 2 cans of Pepsi then stumble into his scooter and off he went. We knew his name as he was wearing a name tag like he was attending a convention in Las Vegas ! Surprise surprise he came back about 5 minutes later and he had another plate of food in one hand and steering his scooter with other and in his scooter basket he had 3-4 slices of different cakes and more supplies of Pepsi cans as well. Some people just don’t know when to stop !



We then hatched a plan on how we can smuggle the last bottle of Rose from our room to drink outside the room tonight as were thinking of watching a movie on the pool deck. Our options are Thor @ 7pm or Elvis at 10pm. So Kerry got two plastic yellow cups that people use to get their water or iced tea so we can deceptively fill these with Rose and take with us. We were allowed one bottle of wine each on board but the rules say these must be drunk in your cabin, so we will have one glass of wine on the balcony (weather permitting) and the rest will come with us to the movies.




One thing I discovered today as we left the buffet was these automatic hand washing basins which are pretty cool. You put your hands into the these holes (imagine you are putting your hands into some big mittens) and then suddenly a circular supply of water starts washing your hands and adding soap for about 20 seconds and before you know it your fingers and hands are as smooth as silk (we need one of these at home now !).



Around 5pm we headed out to our balcony as the sunset was around 6.30pm and it’s a nice evening and it feels a bit warmer on the balcony now as the wind is a bit lighter and it’s now in the high 20’s and the swell is lighter. I had paid for a 24 hour wi-fi package using the satellite internet for $20.00 so I decided to play some music on Spotify. First up was a song called Indianapolis from the Bottle Rockets (I love this song !) and then Kerry said we should start listening to Keith Urban’s new album as we are seeing him in a months time (it’s the postponed tour originally that was originally scheduled in late 2021).



When I searched I found 2 brand new singles so I played them and then went in search of some classics of his as I cranked up the volume around the same time as our 2nd and last bottle of Rose came out to join us. It was just amazing watching the sunset over the ocean and it was like time was flying by as the Rose disappeared quite quickly in conjunction with the sunset where I swear the sun was halfway set at one moment and within 5 seconds it had totally disappeared altogether ! We had some fun taking some cameras shots being careful not to lose the iPhone overboard and kept the music playing for our private deck party.



Soon the stars came out and a nice crescent moon was now on display as well. Very relaxing but no more alcohol in our cabin so we decide to head off for late dinner around 7.45pm at the buffet where there was not many people around at this time and decided to go to the comedy show at 8.30pm but for the first time on this cruise it was full and they were not letting anyone else in !.



We decided to head down to the atrium bar and have a couple of drinks as Kerry discovered they have Angry Orchard Apple Cider on board and I got her to get me a Dos Equis beer and she came back with a Corona (close !). It was another elegant dress night and we watched this older lady in her pretty blue dress struggling to set up her tripod attached to her iPhone to take a selfie and she rejected my offer to assist and then started making these silly poses as she clicked away with her remote control and it soon became apparent she was pretty drunk so lucky Kerry was with me or she might have tried hitting on me !



The repeat comedy show is on at 9.45pm so we give that a try and can you believe that it’s full again so I convince Kerry to head out on pool deck to watch the movie under the stars which is the new Elvis movie which started at 10pm. Kerry had seen this at the movies and I thought she she said she liked it but it is a bit weird the way it’s done by Baz Luhrmann and at 2 hours 40 minutes it is way too long. I had my first box of popcorn to go with a couple more beers whilst watching it and I had to get some towels to keep us warm as it was a bit breezy and cool watching the movie.



Oh well eventually off to sleep around 1am but ship time moves back an hour at 2am and no reason to get up early tomorrow for our final day at sea.

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