The first walk Keith takes around the ship the past couple of days is walking the pool deck and the wrap-around promenade deck.  

Some people ask if there are lounge chairs and tables with shade. A few of these photos show this. There is shade on both sides of the pool.  One side smoking is permitted and the other side it is not.

We dined at Tastes last evening with Hotel Director Hubert. Following is the Tastes dinner menu.  The menu features tapas which are designed to share.

Dinner was great. So great that Keith only took two photos. LOL.

The bottom four photos were taken this morning.

We dined for three hours.  The waiter did a great job serving just one course at a time.  Food, service and venue are terrific.

This is the daily program Reflections.

Some photos from walking early this morning.

Before we were cleared to go ashore we walked the Promenade Deck and while on the deck saw the Head Chef of Osteria. We spoke with him for awhile. He has two sons that also work on Serenity. The chef swings between Crystal Symphony and Serenity.

Keith went ashore and walked the nearby town for a little while.

Enjoyed a great day today as we closed down 2023.  We can't think of a better way to end 2023 and welcome in 2024 than being on-board Serenity or Symphony.

As to Paddle Tennis saying it is hot...hot...hot is an understatement. LOL.

The ship was decorated for the New Year.  

Some photos from around Serenity including the Promenade Deck, Paddle/Pickle Ball Court, Palm Court & Children's Area.

Last evening we returned to Waterside for dinner.  The restaurant menu follow.

We each had Wiener Schnitzel for our entree but Keith's is the one with an egg on top although you might not know with the spots which are pepper.  LOL

This is the daily Reflections Program.

We arrived to Barbados at 8:00 AM.

Keith went ashore.  We have visited Barbados many times and enjoy this island.  In years past we have visited the Nidhe Israel Synagogue, formed by a Jewish Community in the 1620's. One time we were welcomed inside.  We have also visited St. Michael's Cathedral built in 1628. St. Nicholas Abbey and viewed from outside the Parliament Building.

We were docked much further from the terminal and this involved about a 1/2 mile walk just to get to the terminal building with shops. From there Keith made his way out and where there were lots of taxis inside and outside the terminal area. He headed to the walkway to walk and run with the sea and beach on his right and made his way into town.  On his left were many familiar buildings. Once in town he strolled around.  

A shuttle was offered by Crystal for those who didn't want to walk. It was a hot and humid day.

​

Anne Marie enjoyed morning and afternoon walks on the Promenade Deck where she could enjoy the shaded area.

The afternoon included Paddle Tennis for Keith

Cheers and Happy Holidays.

​Anne Marie & Keith

Some nice photos from yesterday courtesy of a dear friend.

Shortly after the party ended, we hosted an exclusive Vintage Room with eight participants including ourselves. We called this A Special Vintage Dinner With Our Crystal Family.

We collaborated with Head Sommelier Jiri to select the cuisine and after providing a few thoughts on the wine we deferred to Jiri to select each bottle which to pair with each course.  We have known Jiri for many years starting when he was a Sommelier assigned to our table in what was the Crystal Dining Room for one of the World Cruises. Since then we have watched as he moved into increasing areas of responsibility including being the Sommelier in what used to be called Prego, then to swinging to being Head Sommelier to provide vacation relief and then to being the permanent Head Sommelier. Before becoming a Sommelier Jiri worked at the Bar. Jiri has a passion for wine, takes the time to research the vineyard/chateaux along with each vintage.  

​This is the menu.

We enjoyed some very special wine. Collectively, the food was the best we had enjoyed at any prior Vintage Room.  The Sea Bass melted in your mouth like butter. This was the first time we had this type of risotto and the Wagyu Beef was delicious. We enjoyed the other items as well and the dessert was equivalent to a grand slam home run.

Following is Reflections from today.

We were cleared to go ashore at around 9:00 AM. These are photos as we arrived to St. Lucia and in town.

We enjoyed a good portion of the day on-board Serenity with walks together, by ourselves, paddle tennis and of course the food.  

Cheers and Happy Holidays To All

​Anne Marie & Keith

We wanted to begin with some areas on the Lido Deck by the pool.  Keith likes to change up his daily fitness when sailing with Crystal and early each morning he's been walking the deck around the pool as it's less windy than the promenade deck. Keith also makes use of the Fitness Center early in the morning.

Last night was the White Night Party. The Crystal Plaza was decorated for the evening.

Last evening we returned to Waterside for dinner.  These are the dinner menus.

Once again, we were taken care of by the extraordinary wait staff team of Senior Head Waiter Jacques, Senior Head Waiter Marcin,Waiter Enver, and Sommelier Zayne. As they say we were in excellent hands.

We enjoyed delicious cuisine, outstanding service and the beauty of Waterside.  

Our Sommelier Zayne with Sommelier Mila.

This morning Keith changed things up. In addition to walking the area around the pool, he walked the sports/sun dec and the Promenade Decks.

The two of us walked in the morning on the Promenade Deck and Keith returned for another walk and saw friend Ashley so they walked for a while.  Keith played Paddle Tennis in the afternoon. Anne Marie got in another walk.  The photo is of Keith and Dr. Soto the ships Physician from yesterday.

It was hot...hot...hot.... 

This is the daily program (Reflections) for today.

We are having a great time.

Cheers,

​Anne Marie & Keith

A couple of photos Keith took while walking the Lido Deck by the pool early this morning.

Before dinner we met with another couple Gail and Lou. They are such a nice couple.  

Dinner was a Umi Uma or as some say Nobu.

​These are the dining menus.

We made today a sea day.  This included walking together in the morning, haircut for Keith, another walk for Anne Marie, Paddle Tennis for Keith and conversation with fellow guests and crew.  

We are having a marvelous time.

Keith and Lieve finally got to play together and the even won.  We've known Lieve and Hector for several years.

Reflections follows.

Cheers,

​Anne Marie & Keith

Patricia...Many thanks for your nice wishes. Some of the common areas underwent renovations including the casino which was replaced by a lounge, Umi Uma and Osteria (used to be Prego) which got complete renovations, the salon, along with some new carpeting in selected areas.  Many guest rooms were replaced or went though some enhancements, pool and spa were redone and even the Paddle Tennis Court received new decking and Pickle Ball can also be played.

We wanted to begin with photos of the Fitness Center.  The fitness center is open 7x24 and has an excellent array of fitness equipment and also has space for group classes. Each day classes are offered including cardio and stretching.  Every couple of days indoor cycling is offered.

Last evening was the first of three formal nights on-board this cruise.

We began last evening by attending the Captain's Welcome Reception with Captain Vincent. We met the Captain on the second voyage of new Crystal.  Captain Vincent welcomed everyone to the reception. He described his background including where he and his family live in France and his time at sea.  He introduced the senior officers including Vice Captain Kaloyan, Chief Engineer Salvatore, Hotel Director Hubert, Cruise Director Raphael and Doctor Soto. We chatted with some guests including one couple we met sixteen years ago along with Food & Beverage Manager Svein and Front Office Manager Marco.

It was a very nice party.

We dined in Waterside last evening. It was Formal Night on-board Serenity.  These are the dinner menus. The menu was oriented to Christmas in the USA.  

We returned to Waterside for dinner.  We were taken great care of by the wonderful team of Senior Head Waiter Jacque, Senior Waiter Marcin, Waiter Enver and Sommelier Zane.  Restaurant Manager Paolo visited with us as well.  Also, Senior Waiter Ayhan who has taken care of us on several voyages including the first two starting on July 31 of this year came by to check on us.

We enjoy chatting with the waitstaff team and three was plenty of time to do this as it was not busy with people going to specialty restaurants and about seventy guests at the Supper Club.  It's enjoyable for us to hear about their families, life at home, and time with Crystal.  This is our first time having Macron take care of us but we have known him for many years.  

Since it was Christmas Day, the menu included many American items that one might have on Christmas.  We ended up ordering the same first three courses but our final course, dessert was not the same.  

​Service exceptional as was the Waterside dining venue.

Afterwards, we returned to Serenity.  We went to the cooking class presented by Chef Jon Ashton.  Chef Jon is clearly part of the Crystal Family and we enjoyed his cooking demo.

The demo covered Caribbean Spice Mahi-mahi with Coconut Rice and Pineapple Salsa. Yummy.

​

A very Merry Christmas from Crystal Serenity.

Walking the pool deck early Christmas Day morning as it was breezy outside and less windy on this deck than walking the promenade deck.

Last evening we dined at Waterside. These are the dinner menus.

Dinner was terrific.  As we experienced during the first two cruises when Crystal restarted the cuisine is better than ever.

We were in excellent hands.

​Our Senior Waiter is Marcin, Waiter Enver, Sommelier, Zane and Senior Headwaiter Jacque.  

Following is the Reflections Daily Program.

We enjoyed a very nice Christmas Day on board Crystal Serenity.  It's nice when a sea day is planned for Christmas and this itinerary has been great starting with two sea days. It is relaxing and allows everyone to enjoy the ship.  

Crystal has a lot of nice touches and that included last evening's Christmas Eve Performance and an event for the children to see Santa Claus up in the Palm Court. Santa certainly had a very busy 24 hours and it was very nice that Crystal could invite him to be with us today.

Since today is a sea day lots of activities were on the schedule from classes to enrichment to music.

With a sold out cruise they have been able to offer two shows on most evenings.  

We enjoyed some of the activities, took in walks and of course Paddle Tennis for Keith with his tennis buddies.

We hope you are having a wonderful day.

Cheers, 

Anne Marie & Keith

Patricia, many thanks for your good wishes.  We will take some photos of the room during the cruise.

We got settled in our room yesterday afternoon. Our suitcases showed up early which was terrific.

Attended the muster drill which was held at 5:30 PM and afterwards had dinner at Osteria d'Ovidio.  

​The ship is decorated for the Holidays.

We've also included menus from Waterside below and the daily program from yesterday.

Dinner menu from Osteria d'Ovidio

We enjoyed a great dinner.  We had dined here a few times on the July/August sailings. It's a beautiful dining venue with superb cuisine and the amazing service of the Osteria team.

Before and after the muster drill we ran into several guests some who we knew already and some for the very first time.
 

For those who have dined here before the lighting can now be dimmed and last evening was the first night they used a new color of tablecloth which is no longer white and also added to the contrast to the white china.

The taste of each item is magnificent starting with a special item from the chef and continuing through dessert.  We also enjoyed the three different types of rolls.  There have been a couple of tweaks to the menu including the veal which is no longer on a bone. We tried the veal and it was very tasty.

We dined early and it was quiet with more guests arriving between 7:00 and 7:30.

Before retiring for the evening we moved the clocks forward one hour.  

We enjoyed our normal breakfast to start of the day  Today is the first of two sea days. Reflections follows.

​

We walked after breakfast and enjoyed the ship and today's program.  When we returned to our room there was a nice platter of desserts and when we saw the cruise consultant right outside Waterside and next to Andrew's desk was a bunch of goodies.

Keith played paddle tennis this afternoon but it was very challenging with the speed of the ship and the wind gusts.  He played with so many of our cruising friends who we know from previous cruises. Always a lot of fun. Anne Marie got in a nice walks and we continued to visit with guests and crew.

We're in a happy place.


Cheers,

​Anne Marie & Keith

Thank you Cindy for your good wishes. We both walk quite a bit when visiting cities such as Miami.  At home Keith also runs and does indoor cycling for exercise and Anne Marie walks and she puts in greater distances while traveling.  If you enjoyed your first Crystal experience you should enjoy new Crystal as much and possibly more.

Thank you Jonathan for your good wishes and for following along.

This morning we awoke with great anticipation for our  return to Crystal Serenity and to make new memories will last a lifetime. We enjoyed our last breakfast and got ready to be driven to the Port of Miami. We were driven on the same route that we have walked this stay and previously when before embarking or after debarking other Crystal cruises.

First a selfie at the hotel before we departed. Keith wishes his arm extended another few feet.  LOL.

, ​ 
Similar to boarding on July 31 of this year, it was wonderful to be back on-board Serenity and we shed some tears. After all that occurred between Covid-19 in 2020 and carrying over to 2021 when Crystal was forced to stop operations because of the previous owner's insolvency, we feel blessed to sail with Crystal.
 
Since first sailing Serenity in the Fall of 2005 after prior sailings on Crystal Harmony in 2002 and Crystal Symphony in 2002, 2003 and 2004, we have sailed 1,200+ days on Serenity or the equivalent of 3 years and 4 months on this one vessel. We never felt the need to have a second home because Crystal is our second home and that includes Symphony.
 
Words cannot adequately describe how much we love and enjoy the Crystal product. We have met so many nice people, both crew and guests sailing Crystal, celebrated so many special moments including birthdays, family get togethers, wedding anniversaries, retirement milestones, and even renewing our wedding vows in 2017 with our family with us.  
 
The ship has gone through many changes, including the most recent ones, after the vessels were purchased in 2022 that one would never know she in her 20th year of service. What has not changed is the glue which holds everything together, creating that special bond which is the crew. We have known some of the crew not only since our first Serenity voyage in 2005, but from earlier sailings on Crystal Harmony and Crystal Symphony.  
 
This voyage marks our fourth Crystal Holiday Cruise. The ship looks beautiful decked out in holiday attire and within the first couple of hours we have seen so many of the crew who are part of our extended family, along with several guests who we have sailed with before along with others who we know from the Crystal Society Face Book group page. Our first meal on-board was at Waterside, where we enjoyed our traditional embarkation lunch of Cobb Salad and a flute of Champagne. We toasted our love for one another, our love of Crystal, and the anticipation of another amazing voyage with Crystal.  
 
We received the best gift possible when news arrived that A&K Travel under the leadership of Manfredi Lefebvre d”Ovidio had purchased Crystal Symphony  & Serenity, the name Crystal and the customer lists. It culminated when we had the honor of being on-board for the inaugural cruise starting on July 31 of this year and the one after that.
 
​When we arrived to the Terminal we saw Golf Pro Joe Hubert outside as he was waiting to return to the ship. Once inside, we saw friends Ashley and Kelly, Christen and Carl, and a short while later friend Dave and Gary.  

Eventually, Rao our butler came down and we also saw Hotel Director Hubert and Front Office Manager Marco.  Once on board we saw Chief Concierge Ariela and Thomas who works in Reception. We saw Captain Birger who goes home today and Captain Vincent who just came on board. We sailed with Captain Birger on the July 31 Cruise and Captain Vincent on the following cruise.

We started to get settled in our room unpacking items from our carry on roller boards.  

Waterside opened at 11:45 AM earlier than normal to coincide with embarkation starting at 11:45 AM as well. This is a full ship with every room sold out.

We enjoyed our traditional embarkation lunch of a flute of champagne toasting our love for one another and to a wonderful voyage along with a Cobb salad. Senior Waiter Ayhan who we have known for years took our order. We saw Senior Head Waiter Jacques and Restaurant Manger Paolo and several other members of the waitstaff team came by to check on us. We saw some guests we have not sailed with before and some who we have known for years.

We are super excited to being on board.

 

​We will do our best to share our experiences over the next 13 days through words and photos.

Cheers,

Anne Marie & Keith
 ​

We wanted to begin with some thoughts on downtown Miami.

Prior to 2007, our prior cruises in and out of Southern Florida involved sailing Port Everglades and staying in Fort Lauderdale.  We had driven into Miami a couple of times on vacations but never stayed in the city. When Keith was young, his family stayed at the Fontainebleau in Miami Beach.  In 2007, we stayed downtown as this is where Serenity was sailing for the World Cruise and the pre-cruise hotel was the Four Seasons.  

We couldn't get over the volume of construction which was well underway.  Many buildings were torn down and replaced with high rise condominiums, apartments and office buildings.  Often, we would have to cross back and forth on Brickell Road as sidewalks were closed due to construction projects.  We never saw more cranes in a city until we visited Dubai for the first time in 2007.  A couple years later when we returned several of the buildings were complete, some of them vacant and other construction projects were on-hold due to the financial impacts of the "great recession".  Over the next few years as the economic outlook improved, vacancies turned to occupancies, construction restarted to complete buildings that were in various stages of work, and some new projects were started.  Even today, there is some new construction but far less than in years past as so many projects are complete.  On our last visit in November of 2021 sailing Crystal Serenity construction was taking place on many of the Brickell sidewalks forcing pedestrians to detour. This work is now complete.

Compared to 2007 there are so many more venues including restaurants, hotels, condominiums, apartments, offices and shopping.The downtown area is vibrant during the day and at night.

Another change we have seen over the years in this area is a far greater number of motorists who yield to pedestrians crossing the street. In 2007, you crossed at your own risk.  

The one item that has not changed is when you walk one wants to look closely at the sidewalk. Why you ask? Well, some owners of dogs do not clean up after their dog. Enough said.  LOL.

One of the things we enjoy about cities is walking and taking it all in and that is what we do when we visit Miami.  In our younger years, we would go to the beach, but this is something we have less interest in.  

Due to Anne Marie's situation, we have made adjustments due to Covid.  On this stay rather than dining inside at restaurants for lunch and/or dinner we are getting mainly take-out to enjoy in the room, other than having lunch outside with others on Wednesday.  Normally, we would go to the theatre, and as mentioned to some sporting events but not on this trip.  In time, we'll do that again.  

Despite this, we have enjoyed a great visit to Miami as we get ready to return to our favorite cruise line, Crystal, that we consider home.

We enjoyed another nice long walk this morning.  We walked along a path from our hotel towards Brickell Key Island with beautiful views of Biscayne Bay. We crossed the bridge over to the Island.  From there we could see many of the cruise ships in port. It doesn't get busier than today with nine ships in port.

For those who want to stay at the Mandarin Oriental we learned about the plans for the property. The reason that there is a detour as you walk around the island behind the hotel is the construction of a sales office to purchase residences. The plan is to construct a second tower which will have residences.  Sometime in 2025 they plan to demolish the existing hotel and build a new hotel.  We suppose all of this will take several years to complete.  

Weather was nice with moderate temperature and a little less breezy.

Some photos from our walk including another area where we saw the name of Keith's former company; MCI.

When Keith went back in the afternoon to pick up something for Anne Marie he took a short video of what is being used to deliver meals. We've seen this in a couple of cities.
​

Tomorrow we return to Crystal Serenity to begin another adventure and create memories which will last a lifetime.

Cheers,

Anne Marie & Keith