Cruise critic review for Jan 18 and 22 2007: Those who have read my reviews in the past know that I eschew chronological accounts. I prefer to do something different. This time, my cruise was my first inside stateroom, my first back to back, my first solo cruise, and my first short (4 or 5 day) cruise, so this review will focus on my jottings on these four firsts. Inside vs outside The oceanview window is replaced by a mirror. This gives the impression of more space (and gives unwanted views of the face and body from yet more angles). Otherwise the stateroom is identical to similar category oceanviews. But, without the daylight oozing in around the drapes, the room is dark, and this early riser was surprised to find that it was 8am when I checked the travel alarm the first morning and that we were already docked in Key West. The inside cabin was definitely quieter, and there was less sense of motion of the ship. I had not felt the change of direction or heard the noise usually associated with docking that first morning. To counteract the feeling of being in a perpetual night, when I was in the cabin I turned on the TV, tuned to channel 19 for the picture from the bridgecam (located starboard on deck 6). This made me feel more connected with the outside and with the reflections from the various mirrors, it seemed to be visible wherever I was lying or sitting or standing. In fact, one morning when the TV refused to function for an hour or so, I missed the brightness, and felt slightly claustrophobic for the first time. I had remembered to take a small flashlight in case of power failures but it was not needed on either cruise. Back to back For those who wish to try two cruises (or more) in a row, have no fear. It works seamlessly, and the staff seems to relish seeing familiar faces on consecutive cruises. There are changes. There is a new Seapass, a new account started, a new table assignment with a new waiter, assistant, sommelier and likely a new Assistant maitre d. I did try to have the maitre d move me to the section of the same waiter from the first cruise, but it did not work out due to the corporate groups on the second cruise. On the day of disembarkation/embarkation, the concierge came to our assembly lounge and escorted all of the back to back cruisers off the ship, through customs and immigration and directed those who were immediately returning to a holding lounge. I chose to walk into the downtown area (actually the Miami Bayside Shopping Mall), and so I braved the somewhat sidewalk-deprived streets, across a bridge and around construction to an up-market mall with trendy shops and cafes right on the waterfront. It took 30 minutes to walk from the pier, and slightly longer (head wind over the bridge?) to return. By flashing the Transit Card I had been given, I walked right past the employees setting up the embarkation lines and desks, and was back aboard in my cabin by 11am. It was a delight to sit in the Cova Cafe, with coffee served by familiar faces, to watch the second set of passengers come on board. Having the same cabin on both cruises meant I had not packed, had not been assigned a new stateroom attendant or assistant. The continuity was a delight. They already knew my foibles, and they continued the excellent service, having trained me in their ways too. My first solo cruise was enlightening. A long complicated story had my wife at home on Vancouver Island with commitments, and I was on two back-to-back cruises on Century. The first difference was at airports where we are accustomed to establishing a base with the carry-on luggage, with we two alternating the luggage minding and walking/shopping. Suddenly I found I was forced to carry everything everywhere, including restrooms. On board, decision making was easier; no need to consult on what to do or when to do it, and where. The flip-side was that there was not the second opinion, and at times the un-consulted decision was not always the wisest choice. However, the channel to select on the stateroom TV and the volume was an individual choice, as was the time the TV could be active. Without the protection of the preferred table for 2 in the Dining Room, I was vulnerable. It was time to play the where are you folks from? gavotte, as well as the one-up-manship dance of where did you cruise last, on what ship, where are you sailing next? I survived (very well according to the feedback since). Visits to the Spa Cafe for lunch were different. The prepared platters there were ideal in that previously we chose 3 plates for 2 and shared. Somehow one platter solo was not enough, but 2 were wasteful in that I could not do justice to them both. Being on my own made me a target for other solos  a couple of interactions were very hard to terminate as fellow non-paired individuals wanted to engage me and tell me the story of their illnesses, their grand-children, their pets and their careers. Other, well-meaning pairs wanted to include me and invited me to join their table at breakfast, or for pre-dinner drinks. If I am to cruise solo again I may have to develop polite strategies to decline gracefully. Strangely, the change of routines produced by my solo status resulted in different perspectives. Because I did not go early each morning to the buffet on deck 11 for coffee to take to my wife in the stateroom, I did not see the territorial cruisers who sat each day at the same time in the same seats. I did not need to go to Guest Relations for the second copy of Celebrity Today, so I did not have as many frequent contacts with the friendly and helpful staff there. Finally, I had to double/triple check all commitments because there was no other person to remind or check that all forms were filled in/out/up at the appointed hour and delivered to the correct desk or slot. (For those who might wonder, Pat is still my wife; we met up in San Diego after the cruise, and have four more cruises booked together in 2007 and 2008!)

Short versus long (regular) cruises. Strangely, while I was expecting to make generalizations about the 4 day and 5 day cruises and compare them with our usual 9, 10 or 14 day cruises, the bigger differences were between the 4 and 5 day cruises themselves. The 4 day cruise, being Friday to Monday, was as close to the carnival atmosphere as I want to come. There were few Captain's Club members, ergo lots of first time cruisers, and the usual demographics were drastically changed. There were over 150 (under 18s), lots of 20 somethings, and not the normal percentage of 50 plus. Additionally, many of the 20 somethings had come in groups, complete with pre-paid drink packages. As a result, just a few hours after sailaway, there were some very inebriated people and in many difference places, though the pool deck was the main gathering point. Throughout the four day cruise, this situation continued; little regard shown for dress codes, lots of abuse of the deck chair reservation policy, and so on. Even Murano's where I had made a reservation on the first night was not immune. I witnessed some very boorish behavior and flaunting of the dress code there too, though Dominique and staff must be commended for coping so well, and defusing a potentially ugly scene. Fortunately, with my prior knowledge of Century, I was able to find sanctuary when needed, and with the inside cabin on deck 9 I seemed to be well insulated when necessary. Fortunately also, the 5 day cruise (Monday to Saturday) reverted to type with a much more normal clientele and the staff and crew (and back to back cruisers like me) relaxed and breathed more easily. Back to the differences between short and long cruising; obviously not all featured events and activities from a 10 day cruise can be squeezed into 5 days. Just one elegant tea in the Dining Room; no Guest Talent Quest; no Bridge directors and very few tables for scheduled social bridge; no jigsaws out in the Library; no Librarian (though I learned this is now a permanent cut on Century (and other ships?)); no real enrichment lecture series (the caricaturist was billed as Enrichment!); no Future Sales Presentation; no Liar's Club (though the Newlywed Game survived). Some activities drew very few passengers (table tennis, shuffleboard, bridge, trivia), though poolside activities were often jammed, as were the outside bars. In many cases the body types and shapes around the pool were thinner and better muscled than on longer cruises, but there were also lots of people entering the cafes in swimming attire, and walking the decks carrying bottles of beer or drinks in glasses. Cell phones were more obvious than on regular cruises (perhaps because we were so close to the continental US all the time?). It was hard to find a quiet corner without someone disrupting one's concentration by talking loudly on a cell phone. There was also a higher percentage of smokers, many of whom did not seem to care that they were on the wrong side of the deck without ashtrays. A distinct advantage of the shorter cruises was that my favorite place for breakfast and lunch, the Spa Cafe, remained a secret right through the cruise. I never had to wait for a table inside or outside; sometimes I was the only person eating breakfast. At the end of the cruise, there was only one questionnaire to be filled in/out/up. The customary questionnaire for activities and entertainment was nowhere to be seen. It is probably not easy to prepare and print when the range of these events is so curtailed? Wonder how they are evaluating without them.

But some things did not change; waiters and assistants and serving staff in lounges still took the time and effort to learn passenger names and use them, and they still remembered preferences by the second night and provided the lovely touches, though I doubt some of the passengers would have noticed (or remembered on the 4 day?). Though I did not see a majority using the hand wash dispensers regularly, Century was a clean and healthy ship. Noticeably absent was the hacking cough that often spreads by day six or seven; an unexpected consequence of the shorter cruises. The entertainers: singers and dancers, Celebrity Orchestra, Cat's Pajamas, and Baltic String Quartet did their best and wowed those who attended and listened (not everyone on the 4 day). Captain's Club events, as expected, were thin. Both cruises had a cocktail party, categories of select and elite had a backstage tour on the 4 day and a chardonnay blending on the 5 day. That was it, if you do not count the exclusive invitations to the art auction events. On balance, I think I have taken my last short cruise; though the 5 day one was much more like my normal Celebrity experience. In closing, I must mention some stellar performances on board. Stateroom attendants Marites and Andi, a waiter (Valeriano) and an Assistant Waiter (Jesus), the complete staff of Murano's and both chef's (Connie on the 4 day, Rodrigo on the 5 day), Mylene and Brian in Cova Café, Sommelier Daniela and Cellar-master Victor, and the full set of Guest Relations staff who handled things with patience and humor; not an easy task with some of the circumstances on board. Can't wait now for the 10 day wine cruise on Mercury in November!! Les