Carnival Spirit - May 2013, Day 2 Sailaway

Cruise day has arrived and we are ready! We checkout of our hotel nice and early and head down to Maccas at the Ent Cent for breakfast - we need all the energy we can get as it's a looooong walk to our ship that's docked at Circular Quay. We've got plenty of time as our checkin isn't until 1pm. A very foggy start to the day but no rain, thank goodness that certainly would have messed things up a bit. So off on our long walk we go through the middle of Sydney - busy busy busy. It is a work day afterall. A quick pitstop near the Apple store and then on we trek.

Getting closer:

 



There she is our home for the next 10 days - the BIG Carnival Spirit! We thought the Dawn was big (and it is) but this ship is even bigger, wow. Circular Quay is a gorgeous place to leave from, it IS Sydney! The Harbour Bridge and the Opera House right there with ferries here there and everywhere. Such a busy, exciting place. As exciting as it is though, all we wanted to do was drop off our suitcases! We walked over to the terminal and one of the very friendly Carnival staff came over and explained what to do - very easy. Walk over to that tent just there and give them your bags. Make sure you have your luggage labels on them and then the next time you see them will be at your cabin door onboard! We were told that everything was running on time and to come back at our boarding time. ok. It as about 10.30am so we still had a bit of time to kill and the kids were done with walking and they certainly didn't want to look at any shops (well maybe miss 13) so we slowly walked around to the Opera House. Took a few happy snaps

 

 



It's getting closer so we walked back around to the Spirit and hope we can board a little earlier than what our boarding pass says and..................woohoo, they're running ahead of schedule now so off we go! Checkin was a breeze but you do checkin per cabin not per group - not a drama though. Once everything is confirmed and you've got your cruise card you're off to customs. This was quick and painless too. Closer and closer and then we're onboard! Let the eating fun being! First up, finding our cabins - deck 4, 4117 and 4127. They're both obstructed view inside grade cabins, something we haven't been in before. Now, which side are we one? Port or Starboard, Aft or Front?

 Cabin 4117 - Twin

 

 Cabin 4127 - Quad (the bunk isn't down yet - it lowers from the roof above where the painting is)

 

This is what an obstructed view is - a tender. Cabin 4117.

 

The cabins are setout a lot different to the Dawn and Jewel - they seem roomier. The bathroom is a better layout too, the shower is smaller but big enough so the rest of the space is better used. Our suitcases fit under the beds which is handy and there is plenty of hanging space and drawers for all our gear. Both the rooms are the same just reverse and of course the quad room has a bunk bed and the sofa is made into the other bed. Initially the quad room had a queen bed (we needed it as twins) but this was easily sorted.

 

Right, off to lunch. Now, where's the buffet? Finding our way around the Spirit took us sometime - the layout is very different from the PO ships Dawn and Jewel plus it is quite a bit bigger. Lots of extra walking. The buffet is on Deck 9, many sets of stairs. I think the first meal at the buffet was one of my favourites!

 

Time for a wander around the Carnival Spirit. First up, the waterslides!

 

 



This is the Green Thunder!

 

 

Almost time for sailaway so we head back to our cabins to grab a cardy or 2 and then back up to the Lido deck (9). Let the party begin! Unlike the P&O ships the Carnival Spirit doesn't actually have a sailaway party - never mind, we'll have our own!

 

 

Even the Opera House joined in - simply stunning! What a send off! See you in 10 days Sydney.

Our dining time was 7.45pm (late sitting) in the Empire Dining Room so we still had about an hour before we had to find it - time for a glass of wine and a toast to our glorious adventure on the Carnival Spirit!

When you get your sail and sign card on check in it will have printed on it what your dining time is (5.30pm, 7.45pm or Anytime) and your table number (unless you're anytime) this is the table you'll have for the whole cruise. We sat at a table for 6 because, I guess, there were 6 of us! Makes sense. If you have anytime dining you at seated in the upper level of the restaurant, deck 3 because we had a set time and table we were on deck 2. As we found out, if your time says 7.45pm then that's the time it is - no earlier!

The first on many (many) yummy meals. This is why we LOVE cruising! After dinner there's plenty to do. On our first sea day there was: The Show Band on in the Artists Lobby(deck 3), Guess That Song in the Pharaoh's Palace (deck 2), Live Party Music in Club Cool (deck 2), Texas Hold'em in the casino (deck 2) plus the Welcome Aboard Party at 10pm in the Pharaoh's Palace (deck 2) - and a whole stack more! We went to bed :-)