Day 2 onboard the MSC Divina saw us at sea as we sailed towards St. Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands where we arrive at 9am AT on Tuesday.
The day started out with breakfast in the ship’s buffet, which was only served until 10:00am. For late risers like me, it’s get up… hustle… and hit the bacon line before things shut down. After a quick (hot) shower – by the way, the water pressure and temperature are great – it was up to Deck 14 where guess what? The buffet was packed. It was fairly obvious that I’m not the only one who sleeps in and enjoys a late breakfast. One-half of the buffet was being shut down and cleaned while the other half remained open. There was still plenty of food, although lines were long because only one side was operating.
After assembling the ingredients to create my own version of a bacon, egg, and cheese bagel sandwich, it was off to find a table. Around and around I went. I finally scored one in the aft section of the wall of glass windows that overlooks the ship’s wake. Not a bad spot to enjoy breakfast and write my report.
Not long after I sat down, the crowds started to dissipate as the buffet was shut down in order to prepare it for lunch service. You may recall me mentioning yesterday, that the amount of food, as well as the variety of offerings on the buffet, is incredible. Unlike other ship buffets where each station is just a repeat of the last one, on MSC Divina, it’s something unique at every turn. Want some freshly sliced prosciutto? This is an Italian ship, so not only is that expected… it’s a requirement!
As I was banging away on my $199 Chromebook (long story, my MacBook Pro broke and it’s out for repair so I’m struggling with a cheap computer while onboard), Liviu, one of the head waiters from the ship’s main dining room came over to check on me and to discuss last night’s dinner. He left and came back with the gentlemen in charge of all the restaurants onboard, the ship’s head maitre d’, Giovanni. We discussed some of the changes that were made to the food offerings for Divina’s return to America as well as his personal history with the line. He also suggested that I stick around in the main dining room for one more night (Day 3), then hit up the specialty restaurants.
Why?
Because of Italian Night.
Again, when in Rome… so Gala Dinner in the main dining room later, and then on Monday, Italian Night in the main dining room as well, where I’ll get a chance to sample some of the (hopefully) delicious Italian dishes. I have to say, both times I’ve been on Divina, anything that’s Italian is delicious. The pasta is simply the best I’ve ever had and the pizza is second to none. Before Giovanni left, he asked if I liked Pasta Fagioli. How could I say no? I have a feeling someone is going to be making an appearance at my table this evening!
As the buffet started to fill up with the lunch crowd, I was good and vacated my table so others could sit down. I was off to the ship’s Silver Lounge to finish up my review.
Being a sea day, many of the public areas inside the ship were very busy, including the shopping area which I quickly found out does not sell toothpaste. Yes, I mentioned yesterday that I forgot to pack toothpaste so I thought it would be easy to buy some onboard.
No such luck,
What about reception? Nope.
Stateroom attendant? Nope.
Anyone? Nope.
My fruitless search for a tube of Colgate resulted in a $4.50 purchase of peanut butter cups.
I dropped stuff off at my stateroom and headed up to the pool deck, which on the Divina is called the Aqua Park. There were people on all levels of the open decks soaking up the sun and sucking down the booze. It was very windy which made for cooler-than-normal temperatures. Some of the folks laying out will later be wondering if they got sunburn or windburn.
From there it was off to get something frozen. I headed back to the Disaronno Contemporary Terrace, a favorite place during my last stay on Divina. This area features a bar, the ship’s infinity pool, some chairs for laying out, and others for seating. Last year, this area was 1/2 smoking and 1/2 non-smoking. This year it is 100% non-smoking. At night it made for a great place to have a Disaronno on the rocks and have a cigar before retiring. Not now. That was a bit disappointing. Not a bit… it was very disappointing as it really was a favorite spot to smoke a Rocky Patel.
As a side note, Divina’s casino is still non-smoking, perhaps the only non-smoking casino on a cruise ship based out of the United States. The fact that it is non-smoking, makes it one of the less visited public areas onboard. Each time I’ve passed through, it is not busy. Dead is a more appropriate way to describe it. I guess smoking and gambling go hand-in-hand, and if you can’t smoke and pull the handle of the one-armed bandit at the same time, it’s just not that enjoyable.
I don’t gamble, so it doesn’t matter to me.
After enjoying a frozen strawberry daiquiri, it was off to do some more wandering. The upper decks were pretty much not doing it for me. It was way too windy and fighting the wind proved to be less than enjoyable, so it was back inside the ship to see what was going on. Apparently, I wasn’t the one with the same thoughts on that.
The “Baseball Greats” were having a baseball clinic followed by a movie later in the day. A cooking demo was going on in the Eataly Steakhouse. Trivia, bingo, and port shopping talks were happening around the ship. Two Winemaker Experiences were scheduled for the afternoon where you can actually work with a master winemaker to learn about the art of making wine and make some yourself. The obligatory Art Auction (who buys art on cruise ships anyway?) was scheduled as were Italian lessons, dance lessons, and a sunset Hanukkah Service.
What did I do? I had one more frozen and headed back to my stateroom with all intents to sit out on the balcony and watch the world go by. I made the mistake of laying down for a bit and that “bit” turned into a few hours of time that passed without recollection.
I woke up with some guy with an Italian accent whispering in my head, “fresh pizza upstairs. Fresh pizza upstairs.” So I headed up to the buffet to see if I was just imagining things and low and behold, the fresh pizza was coming out of the oven. I grabbed two huge slices, found a table and paid no mind to the number of calories I was consuming, as this pizza was simply heavenly.
From pizza to my stateroom where I had to hustle to get ready for the 7pm performance of “The Amazing Mask.” Before the show began, Andre the cruise director introduced the audience to the various department heads as well as the ship’s senior officers. Captain Francesco Veniero spoke to the audience and was much friendlier than the captain from last year’s cruise who made it very clear in his body language and facial expressions that he wanted nothing to do with socializing. Captain Veniero was gracious, spoke multiple languages, and was later seen out around the ship for formal pictures and mingling with the guests – as a captain should.
It was now showtime. The ship’s cast of singers, dancers, acrobats, and contortionists entertained for 30 minutes in what I would describe as a “Cirque” style show with characters from the movie “The Mask.” As I mentioned yesterday, there is no live orchestra on the MSC Divina for showtime. Tonight a soundtrack played and singers lip-synched lyrics to the songs. Many of the performers in the show were the same as last year and all did a great job keeping the audience entertained. From dance numbers to muscle men and acrobatics, it was a variety show that ended with the cast breaking out into a version of Y.M.C.A. The show itself was only 30 minutes, which is a little light.
With dinner still 45 minutes away, I headed to La Luna, the ship’s piano bar for a cocktail before dinner. I was surprised to see, once again, familiar faces. The duo entertaining in the lounge was the same duo entertaining in the same lounge last year at this time. Billed as Duo Ameritalian, they sing a wide range of songs from folk to the Beatles, to Italian to whatever…. they were a huge hit last year packing people in each evening, and they’re doing it again this cruise.
I guess it doesn’t pay to change a good thing!
At 8:30pm it was time to head to the ship’s main dining room for the Gala Dinner (aka Formal Night). Throughout the ship’s public areas, photographers were taking photos of people dressed up in their finery, and photos with the captain were also available. For the most part, men were not wearing tuxedos but were well-dressed. Ladies were mostly wearing cocktail dresses. There were a few scallywags who showed up in the main dining room in shorts and baseball caps. One of them sat next to me.
The 20-something gentleman had a baseball cap on the first night and came to dinner with shorts and flip-flops. Ok, the dress code that night was “Casual” so I’ll let it slide. Tonight he wore a different baseball cap (I have a feeling he brought seven – one for each night) and shorts. For the Gala Dinner. In my best James Bond attempt at trying to snap a picture, I believe I got caught by his female companion who after I snapped, looked my way and it wasn’t long after that that the hat was taken off.
There are two people who wear hats in fine dining establishments, those who are hiding plugs and those who don’t know any better.
Hats in restaurants will always be a bone of contention with me, I just don’t see the need to wear one at dinner. In this case, I believe he should have been told upon entering that the hat had to go.
But I digress.
It was dinner time and it was the Gala so I was expecting to have some great food this evening making up for last night.
Upon my arrival, Liviu, one of the head waiters, sent over a fruit and cheese plate to start off. Thank you!
I started off with the Portobello Au Gratin – a large portobello mushroom stuffed with herbs and mozzarella and a dried tomato medley drizzled with a balsamic dressing. When it came out it looked a little dry, but it turned out not to be. The mushroom was cooked tender and the stuffing was flavorful and very filling. A great start.
Next up was the Marmite Henry IV, a double beef broth with chicken julienne and root vegetables. It was a typical broth with nothing positive or negative to say about it.
For the salad course, they were offering a Spinach Salad with baby spinach leaves, raisins, and walnuts. While I would have liked the salad to be colder, it was ok with the spinach crisp and the dressing flavorful.
For a pasta course, Liviu had the chef prepare a special pasta for me. It was spaghetti a la olio and had plenty of olive oil, tons of garlic, and even more chopped pepperoncini. The pasta was cooked al dente, the amount of garlic was just right for someone like me who can eat garlic raw by the clove, and the pepperoncini gave it a kick that Liviu described as “suicide.”
Yes, it was another pasta dish that was simply incredible and another reason I’m looking forward to Italian Night tonight.
For the main course, I went with the Surf & Turf – filet mignon and king prawns with savory potatoes and crookneck and pattypan squash.
I asked for my filet to be prepared rare, which was more medium rare when it arrived. The size of the filet I would estimate between 4 and 6 ounces. The filet itself was tender, could be easily cut with a butter knife (steak knives were not presented), and was seasoned lightly. The king prawns were huge. They were whole and you had to remove their head and tail. Several diners around me were taken aback by that and didn’t know what to do. The prawns were cooked perfectly tender and easily came out of their shell without much work.
For dessert, I said, “surprise me.” What arrived was a sampling of a few of the desserts they were offering that night, including a CroustiChoc (crunchy praline, chocolate mousse, vanilla Anglaise), coconut ice cream with chocolate sauce, and a Lemon Tart (Italian meringue, raspberry sauce). While all were good, the star of the selection was the Tart, a creamy blend of flavors that made for a nice ending. Of course, I could not finish any of these, but I certainly wanted to.
By the time dinner was over it was after 10pm. I took a quick walk around the ship before hitting the sheets. A gentle reminder on the bed let me know that clocks will be pushed ahead one hour overnight as we sail into the Atlantic Time zone.
So with being two days in, here are some initial impressions:
- The ship is still very well maintained with no areas of wear showing anywhere that I have seen.
- Service has been markedly improved with a much friendlier staff and one that is willing to go out of their way to attend to your needs. I did not feel that as much last year.
- Buffet, while busy, has enough staff to keep things clean and they actually come over and ask if you want drink refills, however, I have yet to be asked about bar service in the buffet.
- Food in the main dining room appears to still be hit-or-miss. I have one more night in there before I begin my tour of the specialty restaurants and I expect to be “wowed” with Italian food tonight.
- Internet access has been fast, good, and not priced badly.
My only complaint… I wish Deck 7 – the lifeboat deck – had chairs out on deck to sit and relax. The only outdoor seating areas at either at the pool or on the sun decks. While the lifeboat deck is all obstructed views, it still wouldn’t be bad to have some chairs out there for those who just want to grab some fresh air on a quiet open deck.
As I sit here in the buffet finishing up, one of the servers told me they extended breakfast today until 11:30am instead of 10am, which would explain why it’s still busy here!
That’s all for today from onboard the MSC Divina… ciao for now.
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.