Saturday : I experienced my first cruise with my daughter, her friend and her mom. The daughters celebrated their 30th birthdays and they were very sweet to invite their old moms along. We booked our cruise four months earlier and none of us knew anything about cruising. I decided to do as much research as I could, to learn everything I could and found Cruise Critic on the Internet. I am so glad I did. I think the whole experience would have been different if I had not known as much information as I did. I decided, after reading everything I could about the Carnival Conquest, with all the help from the amazing Cruise Critic members that my cruise would be a great experience no matter what happened. As I write this review I am going to be putting the letters CC in parenthesis to let you know about something I knew about because of Cruise Critic and the information I learned. I believe that our time is what we make of it. I knew there could be problems, that even dangerous situations could occur but I went into the whole cruise experience with the attitude that the week would be all about expectations, that I would expect to have an amazing time and I would have an amazing time and I think in retrospect it happened because Cruise Critic made it possible. Our flight from Denver to Houston Hobby except for running about thirty minutes late was uneventful and the plane wasn't even very crowded. The flight didn't seem long at all mainly due to a little entertainment from two fellow passengers that were sitting behind us. They had apparently imbibed a bit too much before they boarded the plane and they let the whole plane know that they were "On vacation and they were going to Jamaica!" It didn't take much effort to discern that they were going to be on the same cruise we were and I almost wanted to share my excitement as loud as they did! We had our first bump in the road, so to speak, as we made our way to the shuttle area just out of the airport. When I saw that we were running a little late back in Denver I called Galveston Limousine Service (CC) to let them know. The lady who answered told me that I needn't worry that the driver would not leave us. After we landed in Houston we made our way out to Area 12 where the shuttle was supposed to pick us up but it was not to be found. I called GLS and the same lady I had talked to earlier said the fellow thought that we had decided not to come ??? and had left. I couldn't believe it. She finally said that he wasn't very far away and would be right back. This could have really started out our week really badly but thank goodness, my brother who lives in Katy had decided to come down to Galveston for a visit and he said, even though he was already down in Galveston at our motel, he would drive up to HH and pick us up. I called the GLS back and the lady said the fellow would be there in a little bit so I called my brother back and the shuttle driver finally arrived. The shuttle was completely empty and we had a pleasant air-conditioned drive down to Galveston. The shuttle let us off at the Super 8 Motel. We checked in, put our bags in our room and then my brother loaded us all up and took us to The Fisherman's Wharf restaurant. I was so excited to recognize the area that I had seen on the Galveston web cam (CC) every Sunday as I watched the Carnival Conquest sail away. What a thrill to know that in just a few hours the Conquest would actually be docked right beside where we were eating! After we ate my brother dropped us off at our motel but we were too excited to sleep. We all walked down about a block to the seawall and walked a little on the beach. The smell of the ocean and the sound of the waves only made us more aware of our amazing journey that would start in only a few more hours.

Day 1 of our cruise: Sunday morning a taxi picked us up and took us to the terminal. We pulled up to a stoplight a block away from the pier and all gasped with delight at the sight of the magnificent ship that would be our home for the next week. While sitting at the light, I grabbed up my camera and started taking pictures as fast as I could all the while trying to roll down the window. I had never ridden in a taxi before so didn't know I couldn't roll it down but actually was able to take a great picture of the ship in the Galveston port. LOL Our driver was very informative and we gladly tipped (CC) for the cheery helpful information. The taxi pulled right up to the terminal doors and we immediately were met by a super nice porter. The porters were all dressed in matching tropical shirts so they were easy to find. Our porter piled all our luggage on a cart and wheeled everything along while telling us what to expect next, right to where we could enter the building. We gladly tipped him a dollar a bag (CC) for his help and then we entered a small room and got in line to show our ID for the first time. We climbed some stairs and came into a huge room with lots and lots of people standing in a long line. We felt like we were at Six Flags as it wove around and around through ropes. It was interesting to see that some people had fancy Carnival luggage tags and some didn't and some people had nice looking Carnival boarding papers and some didn't. Because I had read about this on Cruise Critic I was able to explain to my fellow cruisers about the difference in e-docs and snail mail docs. We had the e-docs and though it really didn't make any difference in boarding it would have been nice not to be the only people we could see who had plain pieces of paper. LOL (CC) (Also, along the same lines, thanks to CC we did make our luggage tags nice and sturdy with packing tape so we had no problems receiving our luggage and all the tags stayed on nicely.) (CC) We had arrived at the terminal about 11:00 and it seemed the line to board the ship went really fast. Of course everything about my review is relative since it was my first cruise but like I stated before, everything was about expectations and to me the line seemed to take less time than I expected. The Carnival people were very efficient and very orderly. We had another tiny bump after we went through the line, though. There was a wedding party waiting to board and they took up a large amount of seating space, so for about 30 minutes we had to stand in the back of the room until they were able to board. It felt good to finally sit down and it was probably only about another thirty minutes before we were finally able to get in line to board the ship. As we left the large room the Carnival people took our photo in an island setting and the excitement really started to mount on the realization that we were really actually going on a cruise. We walked through what seemed like a maze of halls and finally came out onto a large glassed in gangplank. It seems impossible to put into words the feeling I had as I made my way onto that ship but let me try. Think of your three favorite Christmases, high school graduation and the birth of your first born and it would probably be pretty close. LOL It was around 12:30 when we walked onto that gorgeous ship. Anyone paying attention at all could tell that we were first time cruisers just by our gaping mouths. We walked onto the ship on the Lobby Deck where there was a wonderful quartet playing classical music. The lobby was huge, so elegant and so awe inspiring. Because of CC, I knew that our room wasn't ready, that our luggage would not be available yet and that we could eat lunch on the Lido deck (CC) so we made our way up there. The buffet was so nice. Of our party of four we all had different tastes and we had no problem finding something we liked and enjoyed our first meal of the week. After we ate we explored some of the upper decks of the ship. What a beautiful ship she is! We took photos of everything we could see. I really didn't have anything to compare it with but it seemed like she was in pristine condition. The teak and marble floors were amazing and the carpet looked like new. Around 2:00 we made our way to our room on Deck 1 the Riviera Deck. We had room 1288, which is an outside room with a window and it was so fun opening the door to such a clean, light filled room. There were two twin beds and a set of bunk beds all made up for us. I left the room for something that for the life of me I can't remember and was so upset when I tried to find the room again. The halls and rooms all looked alike and my poor tired brain couldn't remember the room number. I didn't realize that my room number wasn't on my Sign and Sail card so after walking the halls from what seemed an eternity I finally asked someone what I should do. A very helpful Carnival person told me to pick up the phone that was located at the elevators and dial a number and they would be able to help. Such a simple fix for what seemed an extremely embarrassing moment. I found the phone, dialed the number and gave the nice girl my Folio number that is on my Sign and Sail card and she told me immediately my room number and I just walked a little ways down the hall and there it was! We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring and trying to figure out how to get around. Because of CC I knew that the easy way to get across the whole ship was on deck five so that helped a lot after we got a little situated and used to the deck names and numbers. (CC) At 4:00 we set sail. Because of Cruise Critic I knew that it would be fun to be on deck for sail away. My daughter and I went up as high and far as we could up to the front of the ship to wave to my dad who is 92 years old. He was in the Coast Guard during World War II so was very interested in everything about the ship. I had told him about the web cam and each Sunday as we talked on the phone we would discuss the ship and what it would be like to sail on her so it was only appropriate to call him while we sailed away from the web cam. It was such fun to talk to him and my husband and to know that they were watching us sail away and even though we were waving as hard as we could we knew they couldn't see us. LOL After the sail away we heard the announcement to go to the Lifeboat Drill or Muster Drill. Because of Cruise Critic, I knew that we didn't have to hurry and be the first ones so my daughter and I casually made our way down to our room, got our life vests and then casually made our way to the 4th level at D area. (CC) I was so glad that I had read about this on CC. We were able to be on the first row but we certainly weren't the last ones up on deck. It was hot and stuffy but the talk went really quickly and very orderly. After about twenty minutes we were able to go back to our rooms and clean up a little for dinner. We had the early 5:45 dining in the Monet Dining Room so after we rested a bit we made our way to dinner. To me the dining experience would probably be considered a little bump and a bit disappointing and maybe after reading about others experiences on Cruise Critic my expectations were a little high. I think we probably had the worst seat you could have in the dining room. It was table number 501 and was located near the entrance on the upper level back against a wall that hid where the waiters prepared our drinks. Our waitress, Vaida seemed a little cold to me and one night she told us that her time on the ship was about up and she was getting a little tired of it and that she missed her family so maybe it is just time for her to do something else. I had read so much on CC about friendly waiters who knew your name, presented your drinks as you sat down and knew your preferences before you even said anything. Vaida didn't lay our napkins on our lap, it was if she threw them there and I felt like I was a bad child who had done something wrong. I never received my iced tea and the assistant waiter never remembered my cappuccino with my Warm Chocolate Melting Cake. One night two of our party ran a little late and Vaida didn't mind letting us know that it made her job harder. Overall the dining room experience was nice, just didn't meet my expectations, a very small bump on an otherwise smooth road of adventures. Hmmm… I need to back up a bit… Warm Chocolate Melting Cake… mmmmmmmm…. I had read of this desert on Cruise Critic but nothing really prepared me for that first bite. If there is a Chocolate Heaven then at that point I died and went there. Think smooth, warm, chocolatey flavors all hitting your tongue at once and being able to close your eyes and experience the creamy richness over and over as each spoonful touches your lips. Oh my goodness…. How soon can I get back on that ship? After dinner we explored a little more and then went to the Toulouse Lautrec Lounge for some fun trivia. This was our first time to find out how everyone could earn points for their Red, White or Blue Team. What a hoot. We had learned earlier in the dining room that we were on the White Team. At first, this seemed like a good thing but as time went by we learned what it was like to be on a very losing team. But no one lost heart and it was good fun to keep up the team spirit while lagging way behind. After a couple of trivia type games we sat through Bingo and then were treated to a delightful "Welcome Aboard Show" by the Carnival Dancers. Carnival is very fortunate to have such a talented bunch of kiddos on their cruise ship. We enjoyed each and every one of their performances. After the show we made our way down to our room and hit the hay. I don't know if this is normal or not but I was just a teeny bit sad that even though our beds were nicely turned down we didn't have a towel animal on our bed. I didn't say anything to my fellow cruisers at the time but wondered just the same.

Day 2 of our cruise: It was truly amazing to wake up on a ship at sea. We all agreed that our beds were extremely comfy and the pillows were divine. We all ate breakfast on the Lido Deck and were amazed at all that was offered. They had toast, bagels, croissants, pastries, eggs, bacon, sausage, ham, pancakes, waffles, all kinds of cereals, fruit, milk, juices and coffee. The coffee was a little hard to take but otherwise everything tasted wonderful. This breakfast was offered every single day! After breakfast we found Alfred's Bar and attended the morning trivia contest. We tried our best to win points for our team and to win a famous Ship on a Stick (CC) but there were some really smart people on that ship. We did get to meet Jessica face to face. She is a fairly new social director and we just fell in love with her. She is from Australia and she has such a fun laugh. She made the game so much fun that none of us cared if we won or lost. We just kept commenting that we were playing trivia on a cruise on a ship on the ocean. LOL At 11:00 we made our way to the Travel & Adventure Talk in the Toulouse Lautrec Lounge. Butch Begovich gave the talk. He is the Cruise Director for the Conquest and has had the job for four years. He was truly amazing. The only cruise director that I knew about was Julie on "The Love Boat" and Butch beat her hands down. LOL The talk was really informative and especially so for first time cruisers like myself. After the talk we trooped back up to the Lido Deck for lunch. We felt like old timers now and had no problem finding something good to eat. There is a hamburger station, an Asian station, a pasta station and a pizza station besides the huge buffet. (CC) Those in our party ate a lot of salad and fruit and it was always fresh and tasty. At 2:30 we went back to Alfred's Bar and played trivia again. This time we were able to meet Randy. Again, I have to reiterate how fortunate Carnival is to have such a great bunch of fun talented people on their staff. At 3:30, while the others in my group did some shopping, I decided to attend the Classical Music and Tea Time in Alfred's Bar. (CC) What a wonderful experience. The music was amazing and it was so delightful to spend time in such a quiet calming atmosphere. I had brought my journal with me and spent this time catching up and writing several pages of all that had occurred since we had started our adventure. I didn't want to leave. I think this time was what I really wanted my cruise experience to be like. The tea and treats on the desert trolley were fantastic but they weren't what made the experience special. It was just that I could sit there, enjoy the tranquility, sit and enjoy, sit and think on where I was and what was happening in my life. Tea Time was definitely one of the highlights of my cruise. I chose not to attend any of the Formal Night activities so while my cruise mates dressed for dinner I explored some more of the ship and finally made my way up to the Lido Deck to take some pictures of the sunset and to have a bite to eat. I wasn't able to get a very good sunset shot as there were too many clouds so I went to the Cezanne Restaurant where the buffet is set up and where I had some watermelon and some of the amazing soft serve ice cream that I had heard all about. (CC) I had just sat down and a couple next to me asked if I was a professional photographer. I told them no but then we started talking about me being a first time cruiser and they had cruised many, many times. That was the first of many wonderful conversations with people on the Conquest. I found it was great icebreaker in the elevators or to anyone sitting near just to ask if it is your first time to cruise and you could end up talking about anything and everything. People were so friendly on this cruise. Of course, again, I have nothing to compare it with but it seemed that way to me. At about 7:30 I went to the Toulouse Lautrec Lounge to sit and wait for the Main Show of the night. I thought it started at 8:00 but found out later that it started at 8:30. This was a good thing for me. I was sitting in the almost dark theater when a young man and woman came in and made their way down to the front at the edge of the stage. They conversed in quiet tones for a bit and all of a sudden I realized that the young man was on his knee proposing to the young lady. That moment will always be burned into my heart. You could just feel the preciousness and specialness of what was taking place and knew the second that the young girl said yes. They hugged and kissed and then slowly made their way back up the aisle so sweet and loving. As they passed by where I was sitting I could see the young girl had tears streaming down her face. They smiled at me as they passed and after they left I reached up to realize that I too had tears rolling down my cheeks. I knew then without a doubt I had experienced something very momentous and unique on my cruise. Read more