50% Dutch, 50% French, and 100% avoidable. That about sums up St. Maarten and our port-of-call for day 4 on this eastern Caribbean cruise on the MSC Divina. If you follow my exploits, you know my feeling about Caribbean ports. They’re all lot like the McDonalds McRib. Once you’ve had a taste, you don’t want another.
We pulled into port around 8am AT and the day started off looking nice. The sun was out, however, out to see there were plenty of clouds and you can see some showers starting to roll in. Just when I finished breakfast and was ready to go outside and find the nearest “Welcome to St. Maarten” sign to take a selfie, the skies opened up and it began to rain. Not hard, but showers were the norm for most of the day.
The weather did not discourage people from going ashore as once I was back onboard after 17 minutes on terra firma, the ship was pretty much empty. Most of the public areas, including the buffet, were pretty much desolate thanks to the showers.
Up on the pool deck, the afternoon’s entertainment on the big screen was Pavarotti in concert. I said to myself, luckily it’s raining as I don’t think that would appeal to many of the American passengers on board. On other cruise lines, the entertainment on the big screen is usually movies or music videos, not Pavarotti. But on MSC Divina, I have to keep reminding myself this is an Italian ship! This is just one of the things that I feel needs to be tweaked to appeal to the American traveler if MSC is going to reach out and try to take business away from Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and NCL in the Florida market.
Speaking of MSC it’s interesting to note that the company, known as the Mediterranean Shipping Company, is a family-owned, private company with roots that go back 300 years. They are the second largest container ship company with more than 450 container ships sailing the oceans around the world. MSC Cruise Line currently has a fleet of 12 ships, with more on order to be delivered over the next several years.
Much of my afternoon was spent up on Deck 15 at the Disaronno Contemporary Terrace / Garden Terrace, a nice spot that hasn’t been too crowded most days. It’s the home of the ship’s infinity pool and one of the ship’s smoking areas. With plenty of lounge chairs and tables, it’s one of those spots on the ship that you can consider a hidden gem. At night, you can usually catch a singer or duo entertaining, and with its close proximity to the ship’s buffet, one level below, you can grab a snack, bring it upstairs and enjoy some live music under the night sky and sip on one of the specialty Disaronno cocktails.
As we approached departure time, the public areas including the Garden Terrace started to fill up. A started chatting with people and of course, asked what they thought about the cruise so far. It’s pretty refreshing, especially after the group of complainers I encountered during my Quantum of the Seas cruise, to not hear constant complaints. The majority of the people I’ve talked to all agree that the ship is beautiful, they also agree that service in some areas can be inconsistent and there’s the occasional crew member who could go above and beyond to make a guest happy but just doesn’t. Case in point, a person told me that one of the ship’s two pool bars was out of his favorite beer. Instead of the bartender walking across the deck to the other bar to get a bottle for him, he was told to “go over there and get it.”
Food continues to receive mixed reviews from all those I’ve talked to. While nobody has given it high marks, most are rating it average, while some are rating it poorly. Specialty restaurant diners have been hard to find, as, from my experience, not many people are taking advantage of the surcharge restaurants onboard which is unusual. While I’ve only eaten at the buffet for breakfast and the occasional soup and salad in the afternoon, most passengers are thrilled with the endless variety of offerings on the buffet for both lunch and dinner. I plan on doing the buffet for at least one night for dinner, just to experience it, as it is one of the largest buffets I’ve seen on a ship. I’m definitely not one for eating buffets and tend to ignore them, but on this ship, curiosity is pulling me in.
I did mention yesterday, and it bears repeating, one concern I have with the buffet is the lack of hand sanitation enforcement. Sure there are hand sanitizers at the buffet entrances, but there are no crew members stationed with them to remind passengers to “be wise and sanitize.” I will not hit the buffet without slathering Purell on my hands, but I feel it’s totally worthless because almost every passenger entering the buffet ignores the sanitizers and is touching the same utensils I’m using to pile the bacon on my plate.
Speaking of hand sanitizing. In St. Maarten, there were no hand sanitizers stationed at the gangway when coming back on board. Today in San Juan, hand sanitizers and a crew member squirting sanitizer in your hand were at the gangway. So I’m not sure what the official policy is regarding this and I’m a bit confused.
I’m just thankful that ketchup, mustard, and mayo are in packets and salt shakers on the table have been replaced by single-serve packs in the buffet. Anything to reduce the chance that you’re going to catch norovirus from someone who doesn’t practice basic hygiene after using the toilet is a plus, I just wish enforcement was more stringent onboard.
As the all-aboard time of 5:30 came around, I sat outside on my balcony watching the last batch of rain-soaked passengers make their way down the pier. Across from us was the Carnival Freedom. Earlier in the day, an ambulance was seen taking a passenger off the ship and taking a slow drift away from the pier. While people watching, a car pulled up to the ship and three suitcases and a cane were offloaded without an accompanying passenger. One can only speculate what happened.
Death occurs on ships all the time, whether from natural causes or suicide. Ships have morgues where bodies can be stored until they can be taken off at the next port of call. For those that require immediate medical attention during a cruise, the Coast Guard is often called upon to airlift passengers at the taxpayer’s expense. The cruise lines are not responsible for reimbursing the government for charges associated with such assistance.
The debate can rage on about that.
Just as we were departing from St. Maarten, the rain began to come down harder. For some reason, probably late returning passengers, our departure took place at 6:40pm, 40 minutes later than scheduled.
Wanting to check out the ship’s pizzeria, my sights were set on enjoying a pie for dinner. So I headed down to Eataly Pizza where more than a dozen different varieties of pizza are made to order, including the $22 “metre of pizza” where you pick different toppings and get a very large pie with plenty of flavors. A plain Marinara pie, just tomatoes, garlic, oregano, and EVOO, will set you back $8.00 with other pizzas priced in the $10 – $15 range with the exception of the $22 metre of pizza.
My server, who happened to be the same one who sold me the $ 45-a-day beverage package on embarkation day, recommended I try her favorite – “The Original Margherita with Buffalo-Milk Mozzarella” ($12). Made with Italian peeled tomatoes, buffalo milk mozzarella from Campania, fresh basil, and EVOO, the pie was cooked in a brick oven and came out crispy with a slightly burnt crust. The crust itself was light and airy and overall the pie would rival a pie created in any land-based pizza joint offering this style of pizza.
Before the pie came out, instead of bread, my server brought over a plate of appetizers ranging from different cheese to stuffed peppers and olives. There is nothing else on the menu here. It’s pizza and that’s it. If you want a salad, forget it. In fact, if you want a salad in any of the ship’s specialty restaurants, you’re only going to find the “Salad of the Day” and a Caesar in Eataly Steakhouse. Galaxy Restaurant and Ristorante Italiano do not have them on the menu and were told at Eataly Pizza, “you can go get one at the buffet and bring it down.”
No thanks.
I ended up leaving a few slices of pizza behind and headed over to the Pantheon Theatre for the evening’s entertainment, The Witches of Paris, a French-style review. Once again, the show was a departure from anything you’re going to see on other U.S.-based cruise ships. The Divina’s singers, dancers, and acrobats put on a 45-minute display of dances including the cancan interspersed with what I would describe as short vaudeville skits as performers changed costumes. The show was lively, didn’t involve any sets, was accompanied by pre-recorded music but live vocals, and had brilliant costumes. The music, dancing, and interaction with the audience had those in the 1,600-seat theater clapping along. A variety show isn’t something you get to see every day and was quite enjoyable.
The theme of the evening was “White Night,” with a white party scheduled on the ship’s pool deck. However, due to the weather, the party was moved inside to the Black & White lounge starting at 10:30pm To say the place was packed would be an understatement!
Instead of hanging out there, I made my way over to La Luna, the ship’s piano bar where the duo from Monday was performing once again, this time to another full house.
After a few sets of songs and Prosecco, I made my way to the Piazza De Doge, the area of the ship where you’ll find shops, a cafe, and plenty of ship made Italian pastries.
Once again, this area felt very crowded to me, with cafe-style tables set very close together, already narrow walkways made even narrower by tables set up selling merchandise, and just an abundance of passengers passing through. A quick walk through the non-smoking casino revealed that while the table games were busy, the slots were not. I continue to believe smokers are avoiding the one-armed bandits because they can’t light up a Camel while making a donation.
Before calling it a night, I headed up to the pool deck as the rain finally stopped. The two pool bars were open so a nightcap was in order. I was contemplating on having some of the ship-made gelatos which is available at the one bar, but after pizza for dinner, I decided liquid refreshments would suffice.
With all but the Galaxy, the ship’s disco, closing at 1am, it was time to head back to my stateroom and call it a night. Again, no new towel animal and no chocolate. I guess I won’t mention it anymore, as I don’t think talking about it any more will make them magically disappear, they’re just not something that is done on MSC or the Divina at least.
It may sound silly, but I do look forward to a monkey hanging from the ceiling, or a platypus on my pillow. And of course, I do miss the chocolate. But I guess I can do without the added 15 calories.
Besides losing my Cruise Card/room key three times so far, my “do not” was swiped twice. Not sure who would go around and take the “do not” from the door, but someone is doing it. So I went to bed not knowing if I would be woken up by Ada the stateroom steward looking to make the bed in the morning or not.
Today we are in San Juan, Puerto Rico where the weather has been sunny and warm. We arrived at 8am and are scheduled to depart at 4pm, however, due to a medical emergency with one of our fellow passengers, our departure is being delayed. Not sure what I’m going to do for dinner tonight, but I think either a repeat of the Galaxy Restaurant may be in order, or a trip to discover what awaits in the buffet at dinner time.
In the meantime, it’s time to watch the sail away from Puerto Rico, head down to the photo gallery and either buy or ask for the destruction of the photos I got wrangled into having taken last night. As I was walking through the Piazza, one of the ship’s photographers called out, “Please let me take your photo…” let’s just save that story for something I’ll tell you about one-on-one!
Till tomorrow, as they say in Italy, Buono Sera!
Personal Day-By-Day MSC Divina Cruise Review:
Photo Tour of the MSC Divina:
Photography is a key aspect of preserving vacation memories, and my recent voyage aboard the MSC Divina was no exception. From the ship’s striking interior design and inviting swimming pools to my own cozy cabin, I captured numerous photos that showcase the highlights of my journey. If you’d like to take a look at my snapshots, feel free to check out the MSC Divina Photo Tour or browse the daily cruise review by clicking on the links provided above.