swwake
RIP our sweet Magic (09/27/10)
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2008
- Messages
- 3,194
After purchasing our photos, Kellye went to the Schooner Bar to meet some new friends she had met on the cruise. Caitlin and Katie went to the gym, and Chris and I just casually explored the ship, enjoying our last evening aboard.
We had all agreed to meet at 8pm in the Windjammer for our last dinner, so that we wouldnt have to spend as much time as if we were in the Main Dining Room. I got a little mixed up and thought it was 7:30, so Chris and I got there and found a nice table overlooking the sports deck and starboard side ocean. We waited a bit for the others, but decided to go ahead and eat at about 7:45. We finished up about 8:10 and looked for the others on our way out of the Windjammer.
There she was, Kellye at a nice table for 6, with her wine chilled and two glasses for her and me. Right after we found Kellye, Katie and Caitlin showed up. I apologized for the mix-up on the time and Chris and I sat with the rest as they ate.
This was our only Windjammer dinner. We enjoyed it. We found the offerings to have good variety and they were very good. We didnt have a bit of trouble finding a table lots of open ones. And the service is simply impeccable. Chris had ordered a coke, and when we left our first table and headed over to the new one with the girls, a server hunted us down to refill Chriss coke. They also bring out little dessert treats, and the dining room manager visited our table just to chat at least twice.
After dinner, we went back and changed to our swimsuits and packed some last-minute items. As I mentioned, we used the Luggage Valet service. We had to sign up for this earlier in the cruise (I think by Wednesday night). They checked us into our flights on Friday and gave us special luggage tags. We had to have our luggage outside our door by 11pm (vs midnight for regular non-valet service). The cruise line then checked our bags in and we didnt have to lug them around Ft Lauderdale all day, since our flight was at 4pm Saturday. Also, we had our boarding passes and got to bypass check-in at the airport. We were able to go straight through security and to the gate. It was $20 per person (not per bag) and very convenient. I believe this is a free service for some suite guests.
We explored the ship a little more, then got to the Flowrider at 9:45 for our group lesson. We were super excited that one of our favorite coaches, Stephen, was there with us. There were 8 in our group and everyone did stand-up. The night surfing is fun because they turn on the colored lights and its just a whole different vibe. We were able to improve quite a bit, and really had lots of fun.
About 15 minutes into the session, I looked up, and there was this guy sitting up on one of the rails beside the Flowrider. I recognized that it was wait for it
Jesse! (aka Mowgli)
So I introduced myself and Chris, then went to get the girls (who were on the other side of the Flowrider because they ride goofy (right foot forward) ) and brought them to meet Jesse.
It was really nice to chat with Jesse in between our turns surfing. He is an all-around great guy, and all of us Americans just love that Aussie accent. Jesse is 18 and had only been on the ship for about 3-5 weeks at the time (I dont remember exactly). He said he was really enjoying it, but he missed being able to do some of the active things he did on land back at home.
Finishing off our vacation on the Oasis with a 1-hour Flowrider session was one of the highlights of the week. I would do it again in a heartbeat! Earlier in my report, I posted a link to the video that I made with us surfing (mostly from that night). Ill post it again here, just in case you want to watch it.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php...37&ref=notif#!/video/video.php?v=451255061787
After the Flowrider, the girls suggested that we hit the hot tub for a few minutes. So we went down to the cantilevered tub on the port side, and there was only one person there. The tubs are split into two halves, so we climbed in the other half. We hung out there for about 20 minutes, relaxing and reflecting on all of the cruise. It was a nice time to just chill out.
After the hot tub, the girls were really tired and I think they just went to bed. Chris and I ended up cleaning up again and heading to the casino. We had a great time there and met some new friends at the blackjack table. We won another couple hundred dollars (I think we were up about $300 by the end of the cruise) and stayed until about 2:30am. I kept wondering when they would shut down the casino, as I knew we had to be getting close to the port. I think the Oasis is usually back at Port Everglades at about 5am. But they didnt shut us down. I know that after we left, they closed our table though.
We sat out on our balcony for a few minutes one last evening, talked about what a great cruise this had been, and eventually slipped off to sleep.
Next: Leaving Oasis (sniff, sniff)
We had all agreed to meet at 8pm in the Windjammer for our last dinner, so that we wouldnt have to spend as much time as if we were in the Main Dining Room. I got a little mixed up and thought it was 7:30, so Chris and I got there and found a nice table overlooking the sports deck and starboard side ocean. We waited a bit for the others, but decided to go ahead and eat at about 7:45. We finished up about 8:10 and looked for the others on our way out of the Windjammer.
There she was, Kellye at a nice table for 6, with her wine chilled and two glasses for her and me. Right after we found Kellye, Katie and Caitlin showed up. I apologized for the mix-up on the time and Chris and I sat with the rest as they ate.
This was our only Windjammer dinner. We enjoyed it. We found the offerings to have good variety and they were very good. We didnt have a bit of trouble finding a table lots of open ones. And the service is simply impeccable. Chris had ordered a coke, and when we left our first table and headed over to the new one with the girls, a server hunted us down to refill Chriss coke. They also bring out little dessert treats, and the dining room manager visited our table just to chat at least twice.
After dinner, we went back and changed to our swimsuits and packed some last-minute items. As I mentioned, we used the Luggage Valet service. We had to sign up for this earlier in the cruise (I think by Wednesday night). They checked us into our flights on Friday and gave us special luggage tags. We had to have our luggage outside our door by 11pm (vs midnight for regular non-valet service). The cruise line then checked our bags in and we didnt have to lug them around Ft Lauderdale all day, since our flight was at 4pm Saturday. Also, we had our boarding passes and got to bypass check-in at the airport. We were able to go straight through security and to the gate. It was $20 per person (not per bag) and very convenient. I believe this is a free service for some suite guests.
We explored the ship a little more, then got to the Flowrider at 9:45 for our group lesson. We were super excited that one of our favorite coaches, Stephen, was there with us. There were 8 in our group and everyone did stand-up. The night surfing is fun because they turn on the colored lights and its just a whole different vibe. We were able to improve quite a bit, and really had lots of fun.
About 15 minutes into the session, I looked up, and there was this guy sitting up on one of the rails beside the Flowrider. I recognized that it was wait for it
Jesse! (aka Mowgli)
So I introduced myself and Chris, then went to get the girls (who were on the other side of the Flowrider because they ride goofy (right foot forward) ) and brought them to meet Jesse.
It was really nice to chat with Jesse in between our turns surfing. He is an all-around great guy, and all of us Americans just love that Aussie accent. Jesse is 18 and had only been on the ship for about 3-5 weeks at the time (I dont remember exactly). He said he was really enjoying it, but he missed being able to do some of the active things he did on land back at home.
Finishing off our vacation on the Oasis with a 1-hour Flowrider session was one of the highlights of the week. I would do it again in a heartbeat! Earlier in my report, I posted a link to the video that I made with us surfing (mostly from that night). Ill post it again here, just in case you want to watch it.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php...37&ref=notif#!/video/video.php?v=451255061787
After the Flowrider, the girls suggested that we hit the hot tub for a few minutes. So we went down to the cantilevered tub on the port side, and there was only one person there. The tubs are split into two halves, so we climbed in the other half. We hung out there for about 20 minutes, relaxing and reflecting on all of the cruise. It was a nice time to just chill out.
After the hot tub, the girls were really tired and I think they just went to bed. Chris and I ended up cleaning up again and heading to the casino. We had a great time there and met some new friends at the blackjack table. We won another couple hundred dollars (I think we were up about $300 by the end of the cruise) and stayed until about 2:30am. I kept wondering when they would shut down the casino, as I knew we had to be getting close to the port. I think the Oasis is usually back at Port Everglades at about 5am. But they didnt shut us down. I know that after we left, they closed our table though.
We sat out on our balcony for a few minutes one last evening, talked about what a great cruise this had been, and eventually slipped off to sleep.
Next: Leaving Oasis (sniff, sniff)
I don't remember us having any trouble getting 3-4 pool loungers together at any time of the day.
