And it is Over

Brown Boobie
Celebrity Beyond, North Atlantic
October 3, 2026

Disembarkation day is generally a sad day. Last evening we sat at the Martini Bar and said good-bye to some of the friends we had made during our cruise.

We enjoyed a relaxing day, spending some time watching the brown boobies dive for fish. I enjoyed seeing them chase flying fish. It seemed to be an even battle. The birds would sometimes snatch the fish out of the air, but alternatively the fish would make a severe trajectory change and the bird would miss. 

Sitting on the Magic Carpet
Celebrity Beyond
October 3, 2026

Leaving the ship went smoothly as we enjoyed a last breakfast aboard and precisely when we rose from the table our departure number was called. Perfect timing. Even better, our car was right where we left it and ready for the return trip home.

Despite some of the annoyances we felt during the cruise, Chris and I both had fun and really appreciated the attentiveness of the crew and the diversity of the food. 

It was a sad good-bye, but being home felt good as well. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Day 7 - Final Sea Day

 

Turning Screws for Home
Celebrity Beyond, North Atlantic
October 2, 2026

Today is our final full day aboard Celebrity Beyond. It is also our final Sea Day and we do not have much planned. 

Well, other than packing because tomorrow we will arrive back into Port Miami to begin the transition back into day-to-day life. 

Yesterday we attended another greet the officers function. Prizes were awarded, but of course we were not winners. It was held in the beautiful Eden restaurant area and we explored the entire area trying to find a seat--which we eventually did. I took the image through the windows at the very stern of the ship. 

Out the Stateroom Window
Celebrity Beyond
October 2, 2026

Earlier in the morning, I was again confounded in my quest for an image by the design of the Infinite Veranda. Due to the storm we were on the edge of, the captain closed the veranda windows and all I managed to image were raindrops and not the rainbow on the edge of the storm. My frustration with the Infinite Veranda continues. I tried to open the window this morning to enjoy the sea breeze and capture an image, but now the window seems non-functional. 

We enjoyed some shopping and relaxed most of the day. 

Chris at Dinner
Celebrity Beyond
October 2, 2023

Dinner was fun as we were able to be seated at a table with wait staff that we enjoyed on a previous evening. Chris decided to join the food service staff parade around the dining room and she had a lot of fun. 

After dinner we enjoyed a spirited conversation at the Martini Bar before turning in for the night.  

-- Bob Doan, Celebrity Beyond, North Atlantic near 2405N 07334W, Heading 344 degrees 

Day 6 - Sea Day

 

Ready to Sail
Philipsburg, St Maarten
October 1, 2026

Heading Home began last evening about 5 PM as Celebrity Beyond departed Sint Maarten and turned northwestward. Today and tomorrow are sea days with arrival in Miami Sunday morning.

I enjoy sea days. Sometimes though I have the urge to sat, "are we there, yet?"

Yesterday was, without a doubt, a drink and food day.

View from the Dutch Blonde Beach Bar
Philipsburg, St Maarten
October 1, 2026

About noon, Chris and I headed off the ship for a wine tasting in Philipsburg. Advertised as the Small Group: Dutch Blond Beach Bar French Wine and Cheese Tasting, we were pleased to learn, upon arrival, that calling it a tasting was a misnomer. It was a wine drinking experience. And we experienced it with five nicely chosen French wines paired expertly with Dutch cheese. As a backdrop to the tasting, we were treated to the story of the how the owner came to have a restaurant on Sint Maarten, which was very compelling. We had a great time with the about twenty other oenophiles and learned a lot about Dutch cheese and French wines.

Returning to the ship about 4 PM, we had just enough time to prepare for our Chef's Table experience. 

Dessert
Celebrity Beyond
October 1, 2026

The Chef's table is not for the faint hearted. And I don't just mean the price. We were unprepared for the dining experience that was to come. We enjoyed five courses of dishes that we did not even conceive of before the dinner.

I enjoyed having the Chef explain each of the courses and the Sommelier provide a dissertation about each wine. The wine explanation was very personal because Chris and I were the only ones who chose the premium wine add-on--which was not for the faint of heart. It was pricey, but worth the cost to enjoy perfectly paired wines with each course.  

Well, it was a day of wine and food. And it was fun. We also met a lot of very nice people. 

 

-- Bob Doan, Atlantic Ocean, 

Day 5, St Maarten

 

Celebrity Beyond
Tortola, BVI
September 30, 2026

Happy October 1st

Yesterday, a relaxing day was enjoyed. 

Walking the streets of the Tortola cruise port, we enjoyed the bright sun and gentle sea breeze. Together they were refreshing. A Norwegian Cruise Lines ship was in port as we arrived, but due to our late day arrival, they were in the final hour of their stop and most of their passengers were headed onto their ship as we disembarked from Celebrity Beyond.

Tortola, BVI
September 30, 2026

Chris and I did some shopping, but did not head out on a tour.

We have a busy day planned in Philipsburg, St Maarten. We are doing a French Wine and Cheese tasting with a little beach time added. We may also wander the streets of Philipsburg a bit. Tonight we are dining at the Chef's Table. We are both excited about that. 

Through the Dirty Window
Philipsburg, St Maarten
October 1, 2026

At this moment we are cruising into Philipsburg and the coastline is bathed in morning light. I would take an image, but Chris is sleeping and the window makes an incredible noise. I am still not a fan of the Infinite Veranda that this class of ships sports.

We have vacationed in St Maarten and also visited here on at least two previous cruises. This is one of our favorite islands in the Caribbean. 

-- Bob Doan, Philipsburg, St Maarten

Day 4, Tortola

 Our second Port Call of the cruise is today. We are making a stop at Tortola, BVI. 

Fortress of San Filipe
Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
September 292926

Chris and I enjoyed a relaxing day yesterday as most of the other cruisers got off the ship to explore the Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. We actually had a hot tub almost to ourselves and the noise level in the solarium was greatly reduced. Teh heat and the jets in the hot tub did wonders for my back, which has been problematic for the entire trip thus far.

Enjoying the Solarium
Celebrity Beyond
September 29, 2026

We had fun in the solarium. On this ship, the solarium is climate controlled, which made the experience nicer. The solarium was pleasant and we spend a while there before returning to our stateroom to head out for lunch. 

In the evening, we enjoyed a Captain's Club welcome celebration in the Eden. I enjoy these activities because we got to meet the captain and many of the senior officers of the crew. While at the event, I noticed the rocking of the ship abnd captured the motion on a chandelier. 

We had fun and are looking forward to visiting Tortola today. 

-- Bob Doan, Celebrity Beyond, Atlantic Ocean near 1850N 06557W

Day 3, Welcome to the D.R.

 

Arriving Puerto Plata
Dominican Republic
September 29, 2026

Day three dawned with the ship preparing to enter Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, for a brief port call. It truly is brief, we arrived at 8 AM and the gangway goes up at 2:30 PM. 

Chris and I are staying onboard today.
This is our third visit to Puerto Plata and the port area is very nice, but we are going to take the opportunity to enjoy the ship while most of the passengers are off.

First Wine Tasting of the Day
Atlantic Ocean
September 28, 2026

Yesterday's sea day was especially fun. We attended two wine tastings and enjoyed a very nice dinner.

The two wine tastings was a complete accident. I had purchased the worldwide wine tour for our afternoon enjoyment and when we boarded we were advised that because of our Captain's Club status we were invited to a complimentary late morning wine tasting. So we wined out for the day.

Tomorrow we visit Tortola and while we do not have an excursion planned, we will definitely get off the ship to explore.

-- Bob Doan, Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic

And we are off

Bag Drop-off
Terminal AA, Port of Miami, FL
Septemberb 27, 2026

Embarkation Day was not without its challenges. The challenges began right as we dropped our bags off and then had to park. It was not the smoothest process.

Let me explain.

South Miami Beach
Miami Beach, FL
September 27, 2026

I knew that our ship was docked at Terminal AA, and I had previously received a notice from Celebrity that we would also park at Terminal AA. I understood then that we returned that the ship would dock at Terminal A and we would have to schlep our bags to Terminal AA and depart the garage. Well that got changed. We dropped the bags off at Terminal AA and then drove to the Terminal A parking garage and then had to return to Terminal AA to depart. Sound confusing? Yup! And wait, the Post of Miami is a confusing enough to begin with.

The process to board the Celebrity Beyond was very smooth and we only stopped long enough for them to review our passports and verify us as the travelers. With the parling gymnastics wev arrived a mere 15 minutes before our scheduled time. That is the latest we have ever presented ourselves for boarding. 

Being Chased by Icon of the Seas
Atlantic Ocean
September 27, 2026

Our welcome aboard Concierge Class lunch was fantastic, although I didn't understand the non-English words on the menu--we chose wisely.

Our bags were a bit late arriving to the stateroom, but that allowed us to take a nice midafternoon nap. 

We were lucky to be able to watch the tense game between the Cowboys and the Ravens in the sports bar. I felt bad for Chris because the overwhelming majority of those watching the game were Ravens fans. We might have gotten a bit rowdy when the Ravens were the winniers with a 1 second remaining field goal. 

First Impressions: 

The ship is beautiful. It is 4 years old and wears it design well. 

Stateroom Door Secorations
Celebrity Beyond
September 27, 2026

The stateroom, however, is tough to enjoy. It is long and narrow and the much touted infinite veranda is a poor excuse for trying to convince people that dual use space is a good thing. So far, it is not. It becomes a problem when one of us is awake and desiring to sit on the veranda without disturbing the other. The motors for the blind and the window are loud! I am, however, writing on the veranda with the window closed and the blind half down. And it is too small--there are no recliners.

The crew has been fantastic even last evening when I could not find the room service menu to order or the promised bath robes. Within 15 minutes I had everything I needed. 

More to follow. And Monday Musings are on hiatus until next week.

-- Bob Doan, Atlantic Ocean near 2429N 07529W heading 210 degrees

Sunday Follies

 

MSC Cruise Terminal AA
Port of Miami, FL

And we are off. 

Headed to Port of Miami in a couple hours to board the Celebrity Beyond for seven nights of "get away!"

We are, sadly, sailing alone. It has been a very long time since we sailed alone without friends or family. It feels different and we are already missing those with whom we have been sailing. 

Even though we are on a Celebrity cruise, we will be embarking at the MSC Terminal due to some problems with scheduling at the Royal Caribbean terminal. That swap caused me to spend a lot of time trying to discern the proper parking garage. 

Excitement is in the air. The preparations are final. The EV us charged and ready for the round trip to Miami! 

We are looking forward to a sweet Bon Voyage!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Break out the Relaxation

Celebrity Beyond

 Chris and I have been careening down the highway that is the week. Looking forward, on Sunday we will board the Celebrity Beyond for a seven night vacation to the Caribbean. Yay!

All of the planning that began months ago will come to fruition. We began packing yesterday. Packing will be a three day exercise to ensure we take more than enough for the seven-night cruise. 

We have never cruised on the Beyond or any ship in its class. This will be a new experience for us. The Beyond carries about 3200 passengers, which is about half as many as the Royal Caribbean Allure, an Oasis-class ship, on which we last cruised.

We have not planned an aggressive schedule for our three port calls: Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic; Tortola, BVI; and Philipsburg, Sint Maarten. We are looking for relaxing. The nice thing about the cruise is that we will be visiting Tortola for the first time!

There is still so much to do to be final and ready on Sunday morning. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Happy Saturday!

 Wow, it is already the second Saturday of August and I really don't have anything on my schedule.

Sweet. 

I have almost exhausted writing about our cruise on Allure of the Seas as I can't think of anything significant and really interesting to write about. I just have two images that I will share today and then I believe the cruise will be a wrap.

Central Park
Allure of the Seas
July 25, 2026

As a side note, I received the graphic at the right from a friend and just had to share it. It makes me smile!

And for future travels, our next adventure will be a trip to Virginia and Maryland during Labor Day weekend. 

The first image I am sharing is a view of Central Park. The ships is so large that there is a park, complete with green living plants in the middle. The park hosted musicians and activities throughout the voyage. Some of the speciality restaurants line Central Park. The wine restaurant is also situated along the park as is one very nice cafe. The park is a relatively quiet place to sit and enjoy a light meal or some coffee and escape the busier areas of the ship. When selecting a stateroom with a balcony, cruisers must be careful not to select a room along wither Central Park or the Boardwalk area in the aft of the ship if they want an ocean view. 

1936 Mercedes Benz 500K Replica
Allure of the Seas
July 26, 2026

The other image I'm sharing is of the antique car positioned on the Promenade Deck.

Each of the Oasis-class ships had a signature car at one end of the Promenade Deck. The one on Allure is especially awesome. The cars on each Oasis-class ship are there for photo ops. And they are all beautiful. We have cruised on every ship in the class except Symphony of the Seas. Purists will note that the actual Mercedes on Allure of the Seas does not have the license tag on the bumper. That was added by Chat GPT when I asked for a specific identification of the vehicle. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Chef's Table - Allure of the Seas

 

The Table
Chef's Dinner, Allure of the Seas
July 31, 2026

Chris and I were fortunate to get a seat at the Chef's Table on Allure of the Seas for a sumptuous dining experience. The highlight of the dinner was, of course, the wine pairings. The wine pairings set the Chef's Table apart from the specialty dinners offered across the ship. Additionally, the explanations of the wines by a sommelier and the preparation of the courses by the chef make this dinner truly special.

Chef's Table
Allure of the Seas
July 31, 2026

This is for all the foodies that I know.

We enjoyed six courses and we also enjoyed the other 9 people seated at the table. We all jelled quickly and engaged in wild, fast moving conversations. 

We also thoroughly enjoyed the wine pairings. I was especially intrigued by the pairing of the Sauvignon Blanc with the Lobster Salad--it worked. Pairing the Leviathian with the Grilled Filet Mignon was also a bit unexpected. 

Scallop Carpaccio
Served with Italian Pinot Grigio

I will try to mention a bit about each course.

Smoked Tomato Soup 
Served with Conundrum

Maine Lobster Salad
Served with New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc

Roasted Branzino
Served with South African Chenin Blanc

Grilled Filet Mignon
Served with Leviathian

The World
Served with Salted Caramel Espresso Martini

The scallop carpaccio was one of my personal favorites. The thinly sliced scallops on a cold plate worked very well with the yuzu vinaigrette. 

The smoked tomato soup surprised both Chris and I. It was smooth with a lightly smoked flavor. I would not have chosen Conundrum as a pairing, but it worked very nicely. 

The Maine lobster salad was a genuine treat. Even though I am allergic to shrimp, I am fortunate that I can still enjoy other shellfish and crustaceans. Again, pairing a Sauvignon Blanc with the dish was unique, but it worked marvelously.

Roasted Branzino paired with a nice South African Chenin Blanc was perfect. I am not a huge fan of roasted fish, but the Chenin Blanc made this dish more than acceptable. 

The filet mignon was perfectly grilled to medium rare and it was tender and no knife was needed. I would have usually paired a Cabernet Sauvignon with the filet, but the big bodied Leviathian worked nicely. I think I would still go for a nice Cab Sauv in the future. 

And then there was the dessert. I have already described the dessert in a previous blog. But it was divine. The only problem, there was too much of it coming after the other five courses and I could not help myself. I ate it all!

It has been a few years since Chris and I attended a true wine dinner and we had forgotten how much we enjoy the pairings of wine with each course! 

We will likely avail ourselves of future Chef's Table experiences on future cruises! Yes, they are pricey--but worth it. 

 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Highs and Lows of our Cruise on Allure of the Seas

 

Allure of the Seas
Basseterre, St Kitts & Nevis
July 28, 2026

Chris and I cruised on Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas from 25 July until 2 August 2026, sailing from Ft Lauderdale's Port Everglades. 

Here are my thoughts on portions of the cruise:

Highs:

The main show: Mama Mia

The Aqua Show

Our Stateroom

Morning Room Service

Anniversary Chocolate Strawberries
Allure of the Seas
July 28, 2026

Chef's Table

Service everywhere was excellent

Weather

Bow & Stern Pub

Orient Beach, St Martin

Trunk Bay, St John

Cleanliness of Allure of the Seas

Anniversary Love Birds
Allure of the Seas
July 28, 202

Fellow passengers

Veterans Recognition and Celebration

Breakfast on the Veranda every morning

Chocolate Strawberries to celebrate our anniversary

Towel Animals

Lows:

The Mason Jar food

The Mason Jar Country Band 

CocoaCay

St Kitts Caribbean Railway Tour

Rightway Parking

Bread served at meals - not warm and often hard and stale

Ship's Elevators

Trying to get a table for 8 on the same day

My Time Dining doesn't take reservations

Kinda middling:

Dining Room menu diversity and selection

Giovanni's Table

Observation: The debarkation and embarkation processes for port days was uneven. There were lines to get off the ship and when returning there were also lines because not all of the scanners were in operation. 

It was a wonderful trip and we had a lot of fun. We were busy, but also enjoyed some free time. We logged a new destination in St John. We look forward to our next trip.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Last Day on the Allure

Last Full Day Breakfast on the Veranda
Allure of the Seas, Bahamas
August 1, 2026

 It is my opinion that the saddest day of a cruise is the last full day on the ship. Actually leaving the ship on debarkation day is sad, but there is so much activity crammed into a short few hours that there really isn't time to think about the day until already off the ship and traveling home. 

Our last day began, as did every day of this cruise, with breakfast on the veranda. I read somewhere that is it believed that for most people paying extra for a veranda/balcony stateroom is a waste of money. Why? Because, allegedly, most people only spend about 15 minutes of the whole cruise on the veranda. Well, I spend a lot more time than that on the veranda and so does Chris. We start the day with room service delivered breakfast. On our last full day of this cruise we were able to watch the ship arrive in CocoCay, Bahamas. 

Wonder and Allure of the Seas
CocoCay, Bahamas
August 1, 2026

Following breakfast we headed off the ship to spend time with Beck and his parents on CocoCay. CocoCay is not my favorite stop on any cruise. But, having a grandson or other family to enjoy makes the port call palatable. And we had fun!

As I previously wrote, two Oasis-class cruise ships were ported at CocoCay on August 1st. That meant about 12,000 passengers were on the island. It was a gray and overcast day, which made the weather enjoyable.

Happy Hour at the Bow & Stern
Allure of the Seas, CocoCay, Bahamas
August 1, 2026

After playing with Beck and eating on the island, we made our way back to the ship for showers, nap, and packing. Packing is a necessary evil of the last day.

About the food on CocoCay--avoid if possible! My burger was grossly overcooked and sat in my stomach like a rock for the rest of the day. The corn, well it looked like corn, tasted like field corn. It was terrible. 

The evening began with a trip to the Bow & Stern Pub. The pub was the unofficial meeting place for our family. We got to know the service staff there really well over the course of the sailing. Then we collected for a last-night dinner. All eight of us were able to dine together. It was our third family dinner of the cruise and we had an enjoyable time. 

Dinner ended about 8 PM and we went our separate ways to finalize packing and prepare for the upheaval of debarkation which was yet to come.

It is still hard to believe that the cruise is over. We had been planning for months and it was all done after eight too-short days which rocketed by at hypersonic speed. 

I have a few more blogs to write about the cruise. The highlights and the low-lights are still to come. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Monday Musings - August 3, 2026

 

Our Spot on CocoCay
CocoCay, Bahamas
August 1, 2026

1. The first Monday of August has arrived. July is over and done. There are 5 months remaining in the year, but only 21 Mondays. 

2. Travel day, yesterday, was wild. Getting off the ship and getting home was the easiest part of the day. The weather from Florida across the south and to the northeast was not conducive to air travel and our families from Maryland experienced hours long delays. Jeremy and Julie finally made it to their home about midnight. Patrick, Jen and Beck (PB&J), gave up about 8 PM and they returned back to our house with flight reservations for this morning. It was great having them here for the night.

Patrick, Jen, and Beck
CocoCay, Bahamas
August 1, 2026

3. Perfect Day at CocoCay, wasn't spectacular. It was nice that the sky was cloud filled preventing the sun from baking us. We shared the island with Wonder of the Seas meaning we were there with 12,000 of our new best friends between the two ships. I witnessed a very interesting accident as Wonder was preparing to depart. The ship eased away from the quay while one forklift was attempting to get the last gangway aboard. The gangway slipped off the forks and fell into the water banging against the hull of Wonder before falling. Someone is likely buying Royal Caribbean another gangway. There are a number of videos on YouTube. Gangway falls off Wonder of the Seas.

4. As a fitting end to the cruise, we enjoyed a big family dinner. All 8 of us gathered together and had a great time enjoying the food for our last night together. 

5. I took PB&J plus 1 back to the airport this morning and they made the 7:25 AM flight that took off at 7:42! Yay. 

6. At exactly 2:30 this afternoon [Sunday, 2 August], the President of the United States stopped to share an important message with the world from his private golf course in New Jersey. He had spent the entire weekend there, isolated from the press, but this moment was important enough to break his silence. Donald Trump proudly announced on Truth Social that he had made “The Winning Shot in the Bedminster Club Championship!” He won his own tournament on his own course and needed everyone to know. He went into more detail on this historic win, writing, “Unlike the rest of the field, I’m given very little time to practice, because I’m focused on many other things. It’s called TALENT, and I have it, and they don’t! President DONALD J. TRUMP.” (Hope for America) My thought--does anyone remember when Trump pilloried Obama for playing golf? Also, with everything happening in the world that's his fault, should he really be playing golf. Like Nero playing the violin.

7. Today in History. On August 3, 1958, the U.S. nuclear submarine Nautilus accomplishes the first undersea voyage to the geographic North Pole. The world’s first nuclear submarine, the Nautilus dived at Point Barrow, Alaska, and traveled 1,830 miles under the Arctic ice cap to reach the top of the world. It then steamed on to Iceland, pioneering a new and shorter route from the Pacific to the Atlantic and Europe.

The USS Nautilus was constructed under the direction of U.S. Navy Captain Hyman G. Rickover, a brilliant Russian-born engineer who joined the U.S. atomic program in 1946. In 1947, he was put in charge of the navy’s nuclear-propulsion program and began work on an atomic submarine. Regarded as a fanatic by his detractors, Rickover succeeded in developing and delivering the world’s first nuclear submarine years ahead of schedule. In 1952, the Nautilus’ keel was laid by President Harry S. Truman, and on January 21, 1954, first lady Mamie Eisenhowerbroke a bottle of champagne across its bow as it was launched into the Thames River at Groton, Connecticut. Commissioned on September 30, 1954, it first ran under nuclear power on the morning of January 17, 1955.

How Iran is widening its pressure campaign to force US concessions - ReutersCapital One says it closed Trump Organization's accounts after antimoney laundering probe - ReutersActing US Attorney General Blanche rescinds 'anti-weaponization' fund before confirmation vote - Reuters
About 60,000 ordered to evacuate from fires in Spokane, Washington - Reuters
US military asks troops for ‘creative and unconventional’ ideas to punish Iran - CNN
Another eclipse is coming. Make sure to view it safely with these ISO-approved glasses - CNN

A brutal new poll for Trump shows why Democrats must run against his corruption - MS Now

How Trump just hung nearly 25 million seniors out to dry - MS Now

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL