08-16-06

By Mebert

• March 29, 2007

The Carnival Legend sails from New York City so it was very convenient for a relative to drive us to the pier since we live in New York. She was able to drive right to the entrance where we were met by the porters who took our luggage. From the West Side Highway the New York pier looks pretty dilapidated but inside is fairly decent. The embarkation process was pretty simple because of membership in the Carnival Vacation Club (CVC) which offers priority embarkation. We went to the VIP desk and received Sail and Sign Card. We then proceeded to the boarding photograph section and the gangway to board the ship. One of the landside representatives did not know how to read the Carnival Documents so she told us we would have to go on a very long line. I told her that we were Carnival Vacation Club members and we should have priority parking. She directed us to another representative who escorted us to the gangway because she recognized our documents were from the CVC. The original landside said that they (Carnival) didn?t tell her about CVC. We were finally able to board the ship where our photos were taken for the Sail and Sign Card.

The Ship

Since we boarded after 1:00 PM were able to go immediately to our cabin. The cabin was very spacious, had lots of closet space, and ample room under the bed for large luggage. We got the steward to open the refrigerator and moved the pre-packed items aside so we could keep our water cold. We washed our hands and proceeded to the Lido Deck for a light lunch. Everything that we had was very delicious. After the meal we explored the ship to familiarize ourselves with how to get around. We noticed that the Carnival Legend was smaller than the Destiny Class and Conquest Class ships that we had sailed and the Legend was much easier to get around. There is only one dining room, Truffles, at the aft of the ship. Our cabin was at the bow of the ship but the walk was not as long as it was on some of the larger ships. Also the route to the dining room is very direct from the Promenade Deck or the Atlantic Deck. It?s not necessary to go up or down one flight because of a galley mid-ship. Yes, the legend was extremely easy to maneuver.

We returned to our cabin and found that our luggage had arrived. We proceeded to unpack and hand and drawer our belongings. The great advantage of cruising is we only have to unpack once until the end of the cruise.

Day two and three were two very relaxing sea days. We enjoyed people watching on the Promenade and Lido Decks, participated in various ship activities, searched for photographs of us in the photo shop, and prepared for the captain?s reception formal evening.

Food

We had requested a table for two but ended up with a table for four. There were two other people at the table that turned out to be very nice so we kept the table. Our waiter was Malcolm from India and the assistant waiter was Alphonso from Peru. They were great and did everything to please the table. We only had to ask for cappuccino with cream one time. After that Alphonso brought it to the table automatically.

The dining experience on the Legend was an extremely enjoyable one. I would rate the food good to very good. (I must judge everything based on the vegetarian dishes since I?m a vegetarian). Most items were very good. I don?t understand the polenta. It is very tasteless and does not have enough seasoning for my taste. Some of the cream soups did not have enough cream but were still moderately delicious. Some people complained about their steaks not being cooked as ordered but the waiter was very accommodating and got another steak for anyone who wanted it. Many people loved the seafood, but the escargot was prepared in that strange polenta recipe with lots of butter. My traveling companion is very fond of escargot but does not like it with polenta.

Ports

On day three we docked in Puerto Rico. Since we have a friend who lives in Ocean Park we took the A-5 bus right from the bus terminal immediately outside the pier directly to his house. We spent the day with our friend and went to Old San Juan for dinner in a little restaurant on one of the side streets. The food was very good. I only wish I could remember its name. I will post it later.

In St. Thomas we did some shopping and bought our supply of St. Thomas flavored rums from A.H. Riis to give away as gifts.

On Tortola, British Virgin Islands, we walked along the main road to a little crafts village where they had hand made items and souvenirs. It also offered spectacular views of the ship, great for taking photographs.

Entertainment

The entertainment was very good and the shows were ones I had not seen before, thank goodness. There were several comedians and a magician. The Carnival the dancers and singers were very good. The highlight for me is always the passenger talent. There are always surprises when an amateur performer sings rings around the hired acts.

The final days at sea were relaxing and I made my usual contribution to the casino.

Disembarkation was surprisingly easy for New York. We were out on the street in minutes and made our way home by taxi.