11/29/09

By ParrotMom

• February 2, 2010

> PROLOGUE

>

> It was more than 24 years ago that we took our first cruise and

> through circumstances, we were luckily put on then the new NCL

> Seaward..closet sized cabins, french service and white gloved

> waiters. We have since cruised Premier, Dolphin, NCL Sky through

> their first transit of the Panama Canal, Carnival, Princess,

> Royal/NCL Majesty (the minimum of twelve times to Bermuda), NCL Sea

> (previously the Seaward) in one of it's last cruises, Royal Caribbean

> and Celebrity. We have read many pros and cons on the new Free Style

> Cruising and decided to try the NCL Gem on recommendation of avid

> cruising friends.

>

> Since we had cruised from Barcelona previously we had stayed at the

> Hotel Continental on La Rambla and met up with many folks who also

> booked the hotel and several used our favorite taxi driver/guide.

> What made it our own little party was that the night before embarking

> more than a dozen of us met for an informal bite to eat and drink at a

> little pizza place next door where we all seem to bond.

>

> EMBARKATION

>

> Unfortunately, our driver arrived earlier than expected and we

> decided to let the chips fall where they may. We were at the port

> much too early but our luggage was taken immediately and we were

> escorted to be signed in. We sat there meeting up with other cruisers

> or shopping at the duty free (they are always there, aren't they)

> shops in the terminal,

>

> In less than an hour we were allowed to embark. Parrot Pop who now

> uses a rollator was directed to the elevator for the handicapped. As

> we were about to enter the Atrium glasses of champagne and orange

> juice were offered.

>

> NCL GEM-FIRST IMPRESSION

>

> Walking into the Atrium I was overwhelmed by the purple and blue

> ceiling and the moving picture wall. We were not allowed to check out

> our cabins in that the doors were closed off, and there was a mob

> scene in the atrium with all chairs being immediately filled with new

> cruisers and their carry on luggage and others milling around. I guess

> if you were familiar with the ship or a previous cruiser on the ship

> and there were many, you could slip off somewhere. The area is very

> welcoming with huge chairs and I swear somebodies idea of a

> joke...ugly lime green modern sculptured hassocks. Being a sculptured

> glass fanatic I spotted what I thought was and is a Dale Chihuly glass

> sculpture on the balustrade,

>

> CLEANLINESS

>

> Never and I repeat, never have I seen a ship kept so spotless, people

> cleaning baseboards on their hands and knees in the hallways at 11:30

> at night, the Garden Cafe being polished up in mid-afternoon after

> what I observed was continual cleaning all day long, everywhere.The

> gentleman who greeted you at the Garden Cafe with "washie-washie", it

> was annoying at first

> but then you got into it. Automatic dispensers everywhere, bathrooms

> cleaned continually, the rugs in the heavily trafficked areas like the

> Atrium continually being vacuumed ( always special sales going on and

> people milling around). One of the ladies at bar in the Atrium

> cleaning the glass pastry case, the jewelers in Colombian Emeralds

> cleaning the wall cases. During the

> roughest of seas crossing the Atlantic with the attentive staff in the

> Garden Cafe not a drop or drip remained . A speck of dirt or a smudge

> seemed to be an insult to the staff and was promptly cleaned up.

>

> CABIN MINI-SUITE AF 11568

>

> Sadly, my husbands folding rollator could not fit through the doors

> and had to be left outside in the hallway, a handicapped cabin was not

> a available. The bathroom was divided by glass sliding doors next to

> the "throne" and the shower..leaving the sink area open.. Somebody had

> the foresight to install three shelves near the sink which gave extra

> space for toiletries.. This may seem like a strange comment, but the

> bathroom

> floor of shimmering iridescent green tile reminded me of the beautiful

> sea, a theme carried out in the design of rugs throughout the ship.

> Closet space was more than sufficient and the drawer space the best

> I've seen on any ship. My major complaint was as the person sleeping

> next to the closet there was one tiny wooden shelf to hold personal

> items.

> It would be wonderful if little shelves such as in the bathroom could

> be installed on that side of the bed. Kudos to NCL for a "real" hair

> dryer that's one less item to bring from home. One complaint was that

> the ice bucket was not filled daily. Ladies bring your own shampoo.

>

> ENTERTAINMENT

>

> After having cruised on NCL more than 15 times I was shocked at

> the poor quality of entertainment provided generally. In the Atrium

> there was an older piano player who was so "full of himself", he only

> played songs from the thirties up until the 50's...and "played" to

> several repeat cruisers.. He claimed he lived in Paris, but when asked

> about a famous song writer claimed he didn't know him, and he was from

> the fifties I believe... his genre.

>

> By accident we found a young new entertainer on the ship, Randon,

> whose guitar playing, singing and sweetness was the highlight of our

> trip. He is a find and deserves more. He often played in the

> Champagne Bar andoccasionally the Atrium.

>

> Yes, we enjoyed the Hypnotist and the Second City Troupe and sadly

> missed El Divos, but the musical troupe which was definetly NOT of

> Jean Ryan/NCL caliber was poorly directed and produced and was an

> absolute disgrace to the reputation for entertainment that NCL held

> with us. A woman singer one of the first evenings was so bad., she

> sang off key.

>

> Except for paying for a Jazz brunch in Le Bistro (we did not go and it

> was only offered once on a thirteen day cruise) there was no jazz

> heard at all.. that was a big disappointment..

>

> The Sring Quartet played throughout and was enjoyable

>

> FREE STYLE DINING

>

> MAIN DINING ROOMS

>

> MAGENTA

>

> We are early diners and found if you went to the dining room after

> 5:30 there was a long line waiting to get in. The first evening the

> food and service were very acceptable..

>

> The second evening at the Magenta. we were at the same exact table

> with a different waiter and when he asked how my meal was I told him

> the soup was cold and he walked away.

>

> GRAND PACIFIC

>

> A bit more formal once we found it and the handicapped entrance was

> the Grand Pacific, Lovely decor and on the whole, the same indifferent

> servers, except for one we discovered at breakfast. In other words..

> these waiters in the Grand Pacific and Magenta are just "order

> takers" and don't seem to give a hoot and it showed.

>

> GARDEN CAFE

>

> Not being a fan of buffets I must rave about the Garden Cafe. After

> entering and our washie washie routine.I would go further past the end

> of the buffet to find a table.. NCL has done something I'd never seen

> before there were at least four tables that had signs on them to be

> used by wheelchair/handicapped guests. They could have used a few

> more, but a nice touch. There were handicapped cruisers of all ages

> from teens to the elderly, many had walkers, canes, and I noticed

> several blind cruisers

> by their white canes.

>

> Parrot Pop loved the station that had hot cereals was a favorite place

> for him and my first stop was the hot upside down pecan rolls.. NCL

> has decreed that guests not have trays and that there is less wastage

> when they have large plates.The minute a staff members spots you with

> two plates or even juggling one they absolutely insist upon taking

> your plates and taking you to

> your table. No shortage of staff upstairs in the buffet whether it was

> an officer or server, not only that they were gracious enough to get

> Parrot Pop a coffee or cold milk and bring it to him. There wasn't

> just one omelet station in the morning, but at least four.. They never

> ran out of juices and another juice/coffee station was placed

> conveniently in the next room. After two days the attractive food and

> displays got to me and I decided as a

> foodaholic, smoked salmon, fresh danish, cheeses it was enough to

> drive an overeater crazy, so we went to the Pan American for breakfast

> at least for a few days..

>

> We never had supper there, but would stop up for a bit of lunch, i.e.

> salad..forget it.. so many choices, Caesar salad with anchovies, you

> couldn't help yourself. Best of all at the end of one section was an

> ice cream bar and soft serve ice cream, available all day long.. All

> in all the Garden Cafe was a highlight..

>

> BLUE LAGOON.

>

> What a disaster.. The big draw here was for me the chicken wings and

> the tomato soup (fabulous soup),. One example.. my husband and I both

> ordered our lunch at the same time..and it was to come with french

> fries, they

> both came at the same time, mine dead cold fries and his hot..The

> second day there I ordered ten chicken wings again, and mild,....they

> came cold...I sent them back and they arrived hot, but only six. When

> I mentioned the serving problem to an Officer helping out he

> said..people don't want to leave the tables..WRONG, they are waiting

> for their food.. Yes, I did see guests walk out. Heaven forbid you ask

> for iced coffee...you got it at the end of your meal..maybe.. We had

> breakfast and lunch there.. and always,, always a problem with

> service. Oh yes..

> I think the Hostess there felt the pressure and it must of been a

> punishment.. she always looked grim faced

>

> CAGNEYS

>

> Cagneys is a STEAL. and service quite attentive..compared to the

> regular free style dining rooms. I ordered a rib eye steak which

> arrived and was larger than a salad plate, the jumbo shrimp delightful

> and a wedge of salad with blue cheese.. also ordered with the famous

> french fries in truffle oil and sprinkled with cheese. Don't remember

> what Parrot Pop ordered for a steak although he did order a double

> giant shrimp cocktail.. Neither one of us could finish our steaks...

> Would never hesitate to eat at their Cagneys again. The food and the

> service were so far superior than Magenta and Grand Pacific. On land

> at a fine steak house..$25.00 might cover the cost of the entree, but

> not the side orders.

>

> LE BISTRO

>

> The only extra charge restaurant we went to twice.escargot, mushroom

> soup, veal, bouillabaisse, etc..The setting is very romantic and this

> may sound strange, but the charger plate is this magnificent piece of

> Versace china... I noticed a few guests discretely turning the dish

> over...absolutely beautiful.. The restaurant had a Gauguin theme,

> very lovely.. We were never able to make as far as the chocolate fondue.

>

> Coincidently we had received two bottles of wine as gifts while on the

> ship and neither restaurant charged a corkage charge which I thought

> was a nice touch

>

> LA CUCINA

>

> The evening we decided to go the restaurant there was a two for one

> for dining.. Great deal...NOT!!!! It seems that the more expensive

> items like veal, shrimp and their osso bucco are taken off the menu..

> Parrot Pop complained to the Maitre de who said he was new, but

> promised with the group party of 84 the next evening that we were

> paying FULL PRICE for everything would be on the menu... and it was..

> Sadly, Parrot Pop who loves pasta found his pasta with meat sauce

> inedible the first night.. The next evening at the special private

> dinner you could see the difference in the menu and the staff,

> including Officers who came in to check to check that things were

> "wonderful"... We never went back.

>

> ORCHID GARDEN, SUSHI BAR, TEPPANYAKI -

> GREAT OUTDOORS--we never went to.

>

> In general, Parrot Pop and I felt with the run of the mill food with

> the exception of the fabulous soups that NCL is trying to get you to

> go to the specialty restaurants (read that as extra $$) for service

> and quality of food. We missed excellent desserts and the presentation

> of desserts usually at the end of the meal by our waiter. In most

> instances we were asked what we wanted for dessert as we were ordering

> our meal.. We cruise for several reasons..the experience of the ports,

> the food, the entertainment and the high quality and preparation of

> food. Food in general for the most part was nothing to write home

> about and far less imaginative and tasty than we are used to.

>

> STARDUST THEATER

>

> Although the sightlines were great it was difficult for handicapped

> cruisers to get down to the seats and the only alternative was the

> back seats taken by regular cruisers.. railing are needed.. or another

> entrance/exit on the sixth floor

>

> BLISS LOUNGE

>

> Guess I'm old fashioned, but the bordello atmosphere of the Bliss

> Lounge certainly threw me for a loop.

>

> GREAT OUTDOORS

>

> Just as a side note on embarking I mentioned to the Food and Beverage

> Manager that I was looking forward to the rib barbecue.. sadly the

> weather did not cooperate..

>

> DISEMBARKING

>

> What a disaster for handicapped cruisers.. We were asked to report to

> one of the restaurants where the handicapped cruiser would be taken

> down by wheelchair when their color was called. The problem was..

> there was not enough wheel chairs nor helpers. When our color was

> called we discovered we were 8th on the list.. We decided to wing it

> and took off ourselves...on the way down the ramp we comandeered an

> empty wheel chair and steward and off we went.. Parrot Pop could never

> managed to get down to the terrminal in time for us to catch our

> transportation.

>

> A big thanks to all the people at the NYC Pier.. they are the best,

> even over our home port of Boston.

>

>

> MISCELLANEOUS COMMENTS

>

> At a Get Together a large representation of the Staff was present and

> as they introduced themselves they offered their extension number if

> anybody had a problem....it worked..

>

> Not in the theatre, nor the lounges were guests bothered by the staff

> to buy drinks.. nice touch..

>

> What I think is an effort to save $ Lattitude Pins are not being

> given out.. sad.. I would have loved to added the NCL Gem to my large

> collection.

>

> POOR TASTE--- NCL had chutzpah to have young ladies

> selling roses in the dining rooms and the selling of the Jazz Brunch

> during supper on one of the first evenings, tacky, tacky, tacky

>

> Lectures by Colombian Emeralds should be done in the Spinnaker Lounge

> which certainly has more seating than the Atrium where guests seemed

> to ensconce themselves early in the a.m. and NEVER BUDGED it seems the

> entire day..

>

> The library is in an inaccessble part of the ship.. it should be

> mid-ship..not on the pool deck tucked in a corner near the spa.

>

> Guests expressed concern regarding the lack of newer movies...if you

> want you can rent one for $12.00 they are available. They also were

> upset that only FOX was available on tv for news.. the excuse is they

> couldn't get CNN..NOT TRUE!!!! Have been on other trans-atlantics and

> CNN is available as are newer movies.. I think I watched Donald

> O'Connor, Debbie Reynolds, Gene Kelly movie, Singing in the Rain at

> least three times.. and lets not talk about the old John Wayne black

> and whites..

>

> Another concern was the lack of washing machines...and another corp,

> answer.. sanitary, etc. NOT TRUE..there is a large cruise line if not

> two that provides washing machines and dryers, especially useful on

> two week trans-atlantics.

>

> Sadly, the weather was not cooperative and we had a rough crossing

> with rain, thunder, lightening and high seas.. we were unable to use

> the pool or the jacuzzi. It was the roughest crossing we have had in

> five trans-Atlantics, rain, thunder, lightening and did I mention high

> rough waves.

>

> STAFF-OFFICERS

>

> A serious problem arose with a particular officer (which I will not go

> into) and I reported the incident to the front desk privately. Shortly

> thereafter the Security Officer came to investigate the matter and

> later told me that the matter would be taken care of.. THANK YOU

>

> FINAL THOUGHTS

>

> Having cruised in the past year Celebrity and Princess and now

> NCL...how do I feel about Free Style... It's a good deal if the ports

> and the price is right.. If you want TLC and those extra touches...

> NCL isn't for you.. The question is.. would I cruise NCL again... yes

> I would and I intend to.. there is an itinerary have in mind but I

> will also know that I had better as others have told me... put aside

> extra $ for the special restaurants..