When last we spoke your intrepid reporter was getting onboard the Norwegian Breakaway for her inaugural 7 day Bermuda cruise. I got on up to my cabin and my new roomie was already there. Ive known Crickett a few years now. We met at some travel agent functions when she lived in LA. And it is SUCH a relief to have a platonic roomie. Let's just say there is less responsibility. If Crickett decides to get drunk and obnoxious, she can pour herself into her bed. And no one is going to hold it against *me*.
We hung out a while on the balcony and got caught up, waiting for Stanley the Steward, so we could talk to him about a few things in the room, got that accomplished, and headed our for a little ship tour. Ran into my favorite Canuckistani agents, Paul and Carol, so the four of us did our own little tour/cabin crawl. We are in a balcony, Paul in an Oceanview and Carol in the Studios. The tour continued with a walk around the Waterfront. Had my first (and most certainly not last)Sabrett's dirty water dog off a cart. Just like the ones on the streets of Manhattan, except it looks like they might change the water more often here. Ran into Klaus on our walkabout. He gave everyone his card and did his whole "just a humble servant routine". Thing is, it sounds so sincere when he says it. But it's kind of belied by the fact that, the next night, I got a plate of truffles and one of them is a rectangle of white chocolate with "KLAUS" embossed on top. So, yeah, he's the only humble servant I know that has, literally, "signature chocolates".
Anyway, after the walkabout it was time for muster, which went smoothly, and then a Sailaway Party on Spice with all my agent friends. Met about 20 of them. It was also where the main sailaway party was, so we had music blasting and cruise staff dancing and all that jazz. Based on my facebook page, a lot of you were watching it on various webcams. Kinda creepy when you get someone posting to look to the left, they are watching you from Brooklyn. heehee
It was then time for a welcome reception for all the agents doing the Seminar at Sea. About 120 of us. Nice chance to meet/remeet colleagues, and also our Hosts for the seminar, Meg and Karolyn. Two more Norwegian Rock Stars, imho. Especially Karolyn who toils behind the scenes at Miami headquarters. A lot of people don't realize just how much she does for the travel agents dealing with Norwegian...but she definitely is on the front lines when it comes to making "Partners First" a reality and not just corporate bloviating.
So, SHOUT OUT TO KAROLYN!
After the reception we had rezzies at Ocean Blue, Norwegians newest alternative restaurant and first foray into the Celebrity Chef craze. It mostly works. I know from the previous two days that Iron Chef, Geoffrey Zakarian didn't just design a menu and slap his name on it. I saw him in the kitchen, working, making things right. I heard he slipped out between the two pre-Inaugurals and went to Whole Foods to get some produce because he wasn't happy with what the regular wholesaler had delivered to the ship. Actually, pretty impressive. Though, I have to say, when I met him he wasn't the most personable person. On the other hand, if he's letting his food talk for him, he is sending a message. Dinner was great. I started with a Steak Tartare that was nothing short of brilliant. A nice patty of chopped beef topped with a celery leaf/fennel/something that had been very lightly marinated. For the entree I chose the Monkfish Loin. I was disappointed in the size of the portion, but only because I seriously wanted more. However, a couple of the non-seafood-lovers at the table ordered the Delmonico steak which was the size of a small car, and one of the ladies at the table gave me about 1/3 of hers, because there was no way she was going to eat it all. So, I had a very filling meal, and finished it off with a "Bergamont (sic) tea flavored" panna cota. Despite the misspelling on the menu, it was delightful. But, I have to tell you...I had a lot of fun finding a misspelling on a menu in this otherwise perfect dining venue. I do hope someone at Norwegian will take steps to correct this. Bergamot, for those of you who don't know, is a type of orange, the oil of which is used to give Earl Grey tea it's distinctive flavor. BergamoNt, on the other hand, is, well...not a word, that I can find. It might be a city in North Jersey or something, I guess.
So, back to the story: After dinner I was about exhausted. Cruised the casino, and dropped a couple bucks but it was packed and noisy. So I finally decided about 10:30 to catch up on the sleep I hadn't had the previous two days.
We hung out a while on the balcony and got caught up, waiting for Stanley the Steward, so we could talk to him about a few things in the room, got that accomplished, and headed our for a little ship tour. Ran into my favorite Canuckistani agents, Paul and Carol, so the four of us did our own little tour/cabin crawl. We are in a balcony, Paul in an Oceanview and Carol in the Studios. The tour continued with a walk around the Waterfront. Had my first (and most certainly not last)Sabrett's dirty water dog off a cart. Just like the ones on the streets of Manhattan, except it looks like they might change the water more often here. Ran into Klaus on our walkabout. He gave everyone his card and did his whole "just a humble servant routine". Thing is, it sounds so sincere when he says it. But it's kind of belied by the fact that, the next night, I got a plate of truffles and one of them is a rectangle of white chocolate with "KLAUS" embossed on top. So, yeah, he's the only humble servant I know that has, literally, "signature chocolates".
Anyway, after the walkabout it was time for muster, which went smoothly, and then a Sailaway Party on Spice with all my agent friends. Met about 20 of them. It was also where the main sailaway party was, so we had music blasting and cruise staff dancing and all that jazz. Based on my facebook page, a lot of you were watching it on various webcams. Kinda creepy when you get someone posting to look to the left, they are watching you from Brooklyn. heehee
It was then time for a welcome reception for all the agents doing the Seminar at Sea. About 120 of us. Nice chance to meet/remeet colleagues, and also our Hosts for the seminar, Meg and Karolyn. Two more Norwegian Rock Stars, imho. Especially Karolyn who toils behind the scenes at Miami headquarters. A lot of people don't realize just how much she does for the travel agents dealing with Norwegian...but she definitely is on the front lines when it comes to making "Partners First" a reality and not just corporate bloviating.
So, SHOUT OUT TO KAROLYN!
After the reception we had rezzies at Ocean Blue, Norwegians newest alternative restaurant and first foray into the Celebrity Chef craze. It mostly works. I know from the previous two days that Iron Chef, Geoffrey Zakarian didn't just design a menu and slap his name on it. I saw him in the kitchen, working, making things right. I heard he slipped out between the two pre-Inaugurals and went to Whole Foods to get some produce because he wasn't happy with what the regular wholesaler had delivered to the ship. Actually, pretty impressive. Though, I have to say, when I met him he wasn't the most personable person. On the other hand, if he's letting his food talk for him, he is sending a message. Dinner was great. I started with a Steak Tartare that was nothing short of brilliant. A nice patty of chopped beef topped with a celery leaf/fennel/something that had been very lightly marinated. For the entree I chose the Monkfish Loin. I was disappointed in the size of the portion, but only because I seriously wanted more. However, a couple of the non-seafood-lovers at the table ordered the Delmonico steak which was the size of a small car, and one of the ladies at the table gave me about 1/3 of hers, because there was no way she was going to eat it all. So, I had a very filling meal, and finished it off with a "Bergamont (sic) tea flavored" panna cota. Despite the misspelling on the menu, it was delightful. But, I have to tell you...I had a lot of fun finding a misspelling on a menu in this otherwise perfect dining venue. I do hope someone at Norwegian will take steps to correct this. Bergamot, for those of you who don't know, is a type of orange, the oil of which is used to give Earl Grey tea it's distinctive flavor. BergamoNt, on the other hand, is, well...not a word, that I can find. It might be a city in North Jersey or something, I guess.
So, back to the story: After dinner I was about exhausted. Cruised the casino, and dropped a couple bucks but it was packed and noisy. So I finally decided about 10:30 to catch up on the sleep I hadn't had the previous two days.
And that's about it for Boarding Day of the Norwegian Breakaway Bermuda Inaugural!
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