Good morning! I passed out with the TV and lights on last night. I woke up at 2:30 with it all still on and said forget it and rolled back over. I think I turned it all off at 5:30.  Today is the first of two consecutive sea days as we make our way back to Mobile. Let’s take a look at the weather.

Here are today’s Fun Times.

I’m going with the lido coffee shop first this morning.

This is what I was talking about yesterday with the clamshells. There are so many it’s really hard to get a peek at the ocean without getting in someone’s personal space.

It looks like there’s some availability at least on the side

This is at just after 8am.

I stopped by the bar for a screwdriver.

It looks like we could get some rain today.

I got another screwdriver.

I’ll have to try this one in the afternoon. They call it an orange creamsicle. It’s Malibu, orange juice, and pina colada.

Hopefully I get a table soon or I may hit 15 before breakfast. Nepa is twisting my arm with the “you want another, Greg?”

I don’t usually do this but I think I’m going to try to request a dining team tonight. This one was great last night. Post-Covid a lot of the Carnival dining teams just don’t give a darn. You order three things off the appetizer menu they bring them all at once. This team brought them individually as I finished them. Like it’s supposed to be. I never waited. Not even during showtime.

That took 30 minutes.

Skillet Cake.

Brunch potatoes and cheese grits.

I was 8 minutes late for Seinfeld trivia. They were on question #8.

 I could’ve won that. Even with me coming in after missing 8 questions I could’ve placed high. The winner had 16/20.

I wouldn’t have known what Sex in the City star played Jerry’s girlfriend in an episode. That’s not really Seinfeld trivia. I never watched Sex in the City. So now for Seinfeld trivia I’m expected to know the acting career of  every one episode person in the series?

The other one I wouldn’t have known is you had to know exactly how many times Jerry said “Hello Newman” in the entire series.

I was surprised how many people shouted out Kramer on which of the four main characters wasn’t in the pilot. It was Elaine. They didn’t know how to write for a woman. Actually the main female character at that point was going to be the coffee shop waitress. And it was a different coffee shop.

This would be a good trivia question if I were writing it. The original Newman was actually just Larry David’s voice. He was up on the roof threatening to commit suicide and the voice was Larry David.

Of course now in syndication they’ve changed all of that and added in Wayne Knight’s voice, but the box set still has Larry David’s voice.

I forgot about Serenity nights last night. That’s where they move the night club to the Serenity deck. When they do that they usually let crew use the night club. Apparently they setup a smoking section in the Serenity area. Maybe that’s normal. I’m just surprised they temporarily allow people to smoke in a non-smoking area.

I’m going with a spicy bloody mary now.

Just put your feet up on that table people may eat off of later.

The best buffet spots are these that go over the edge. They have them on both sides. Of course you won’t get near them during feeding time.

They are setting up for ice carving.

I’m going to get an aerial view.

Maybe I’m wrong on this, but it feels like on other ships you can line the deck above lido to watch events there. Here they have in lined with loungers so you definitely can’t.

This is the “smoking pool.” The right side is smoking. If you are a smoker, this is about as good as it gets on Carnival.

It really does taste like a creamsicle.

One thing I hear about ships with roofs is complaints that you have to go inside to get up or down stairs. Here you don’t have to with these stairs on either side of the buffet entrance.

A noon look at Serenity.

Groove for St. Jude

I  took a peek at the indoor/outdoor bar menu in the atrium. Everything was pretty much .50 more than the menu I got on Jubilee two weeks ago.

It’s interesting because I also recently discovered Venezia is about $1 more per item. It makes me wonder if they’re pricing things by market and if so why is Mobile more expensive than Galveston? Unless they’re grouping it in with Florida.

They have these windows like on the Venezia lido deck.

Everything sounded good today. 

It is so much harder to get a table on a sea day. I walked this whole buffet area. Towards the end I saw like a table for 8 open. I don’t want to take up a table for 8 when it’s just me.

I get to the end and what I can see outside looks full as well. Forget it I’m going for the 8 top. A party or two beat me to it. I found this one on my second lap.

On the port days I was able to slip in one of the booths right next to chopsticks. No problem.

Those good tables I showed you earlier that look over the side of the ship. There are four total. One of them is taken up all-day, every day by card players on the Chopsticks side. 

I wasn’t expecting a big bone in that soup but I’ve never had a rib soup before.

A lot of missing tables. That doesn’t help matters. I think they did this because the walkways are too narrow.

I noticed at least 10 tables of people playing cards or dominos. I’m not saying it’s right or wrong. I’m just saying it can be tough to find a place to eat.

No ropes on deck 3!

This is why I booked the deck 4 aft room. So I could get down here pretty quick. I never thought it would be day 7 before they’d let me out here.

I made it to the Alchemy in time for opening.

Leyla is on break.

Leyla is back from break.

After that I headed to afternoon comedy. This is comedy host Krish.

Daniel Dugar

He was next to me at the bar. I tried the “I heard he stinks” thing. I got no reaction. He said “I’m immune to that now.” But then he was asking me about the other comedians. He said “we never know who we’re working with.” I said I know a place you can find out sometimes.

After comedy I headed back to the Alchemy.

The entertainment has started.

Between the comedy show and this I stopped by the room and tried to put my last laundry bag out. I had about 1,000 forms and no bags. I had to leave a note for the steward to replenish the bags. I’ll have to call him to pick it up later since this is the last day you can send laundry out.

Another gift from my Alchemy friends when they found out I had been in the Air Force.

I didn’t even realize that. I pulled it back to check but didn’t think it was there yet.

Rico made an announcement. I couldn’t hear it all because people at Alchemy generally don’t care about any announcements not made by the alchemists but what I got was the playlist show is canceled tonight. They’re moving comedy to the main theater. They’re adding some game to the comedy club.

I got back to the room and the steward hadn’t cleaned or brought back my laundry the laundry bag I need.

I know he was by there because he left a Fun Times and debarkation info in my box.

He never left me a card with his number so I had to call guest services. They didn’t give me his extension as expected but said they’d call and tell him to bring a bag. So I had to wait for that. He said he would come back and clean.

I had planned on requesting a specific dining team tonight but not with this wait.  

I have time to send out my laundry now.

30 minutes later.

This is the bar by the dining room that’s only open in the evening.

I’m living the dream. I’m getting a chocolate milkshake and taking it to comedy in the big lounge.

And just about then…

The guy at the table next to me ordered crawfish fettuccine, salmon, two prime ribs, and chocolate melting cake with two ice creams. He ended up canceling the salmon because of the third entrée charge.

This is the kind of thing dining teams do that the one last night didn’t. The team last night would’ve brought the salad first. Then when I was done with it they would’ve brought the fettuccine.

Spinach salad

Crawfish Fettuccine 

Chicken cordon bleu

I knew I couldn’t eat anything sweet after that milkshake. I ordered a cheese plate but I ended up cancelling it. It was just too much food. The chicken was good.

I think we actually get less comedy with these schedule changes. They moved the 8:30, which I would’ve made, up to 7:30 which I missed due to dinner. Then we were going to have 30 minute comedy shows at 10:30 and 11:15. They canceled those and are having a showcase at 9:30 instead.

On other ships a showcase is each comic for 15 minutes. If they each perform their full 30 minute shows back to back, fine. I’ll go to bed early. But if they change it to a regular 15 minute each showcase, that really stinks. Not only did we miss the main show tonight but they will have taken 30 minutes of comedy away from us as well.

I’m not sure what I just missed in the comedy club. At 9:15 they’re having some kind of showdown. That’s timed so you can’t do it and comedy. Then later they’re having an adults only trivia after dark here.

The 10:30 is the adult game night like we had on Jubilee. I guess that means they don’t do Quest on this ship.

I was sure Rico said Face Off was at 9:15 but the app says it was at 8:15. I definitely missed something with back to back chairs on stage. 

I don’t know if this is true but a rumor I heard is the sound and lighting tech is sick. They don’t have any backup for that I guess. I bet they have a backup for their slot tech. They aren’t going to close that casino down, I know that much. 

I thought I’d catch the first bit of showdown, then head to comedy.

They split the room into two teams. It looks like a trivia game.

Every time I do that everyone looks at me. I just turn and look behind me.

Comedy is getting packed out.

Rico introduces Krish.

Keith Nelson

It looks like 15 minute sets.

Daniel Dugar

They announced it’s going to be the same thing tomorrow night. One PG comedy show in the comedy club then the showcase here at 9:30.

Daniel Dugar said they did 20 minute sets but I have the pictures with the time stamps. He stepped on the stage at 9:49 and was done at 10:04. The whole thing started at 9:30 with Rico introducing Krish. Then Krish introducing Keith. The math doesn’t work for two 20 minute comedy shows. The show was over 34 minutes after the start time.

Adult game night.

Rico introducing the Adult Game Show host

I missed the name but apparently she does the painting class.

The adult game show was mostly Quest. Most of the typical Quest things were in there but they mixed in some adult trivia, which is what adult game night was on Jubilee. Jubilee was just adult team trivia.

She did say this is not something they normally do on this ship. I wouldn’t expect to see it on your schedule unless all of the shows get canceled.

11:30pm atrium.

I’m off to bed. Tomorrow is a sea day and the last day of the cruise. Good night!