I hope this helps future cruisers so there are less surprises and they know what they are getting.
Lessons learned:
- You can board as early as 10am (disregard the 12 embarkation on your paperwork and the bad info from the Carnival 1-800 people). You should board as early as possible to avoid the lines, the trouble finding a table and the overall craziness (1st hour on the boat did not give a good 1st impression)