November 29th

Today we took a cab to Carambola beach club. We had reservations and  good thing they did as if you did not you were turned away. Seabourn had  bought out pretty much the entire club but they did a good job to  accommodate us and some other celebrity cruisers. We ended up getting  free drinks because of it and the staff there could not have been nicer.  
 

The water was a bit cool at first but we got used to it quickly and then it started to feel like bath water.
 

We arrived via taxi at just before 10am at a cost of $5 per person. We  had two others with us. If it was just us he was going to charge us $16.  
 

We had the driver pick us back up at 2pm to hear back to the ship. He  was there right on time. Same price to go back. The other two who were  with us (we did not know them they just got picked up by our driver)  were turned away at Carambola and had to go to a different beach.
 

Reservations at Carambola were free. Two nice loungers and an umbrella cost $30 total.


November 29th Evening


We started at the Martini Bar per the usual. I had a couple difficult  work calls to deal with so my first drink was much much needed. We  actually came by the bar at perfect timing and got seats right away  without any struggle.
 

Dinner was in Luminae and the food was very good. We did both  opt to start with a salad off the MDR menu but everything else was from  the Luminae menu.

November 30th

We enjoyed Sushi on 5 for lunch again today. I was surprised they were  open on a port day, it is something we haven’t seen before. There were a  few other couples in there eating and service was much quicker than the  other day.


We then went for some gelato. The woman working the gelateria was  extremely nice. Very talkative. Maybe she was happy to have a customer?  We took her recommendation and went with the banana. It was delicious.


We started at the Martini Bar per the usual. We then had some wine in  the Ensemble Lounge and listened to the solo guitarist. He was very  good. I wasn’t able to get video of him last night but I will in the  next day or two and will post it.
 

Our dinner in Luminae was great last night. The grilled octopus  appetizer rivaled octopus I’ve had back home in Chicago, in NYC, and in  Europe. Extremely tender and great flavor. We then had the short ribs  for dinner which were very tender and tasty. We had some pasta to split  which was ok. Nothing to write home about.


After dinner we headed to Ensemble to listen to the jazz quartet who  were excellent. We got our favorite seats at the end of the bar where we  can see the performers.
 

The bartenders at Ensemble are great and I want to make particular  mention of that because I think it’s a bar that isn’t talked about  enough. Cveta, from Macedonia was particularly amazing. She loves scotch  and helped us pick out a new scotch to try and we have another new one  to try tonight. Ironically she is the wife of Vasil (who has been our  bartender at World Class in multiple cruises and is this cruise too).
 

I’ll upload some great video I took of the jazz quartet. They were  exactly the kind of music I enjoy listening to Ensemble and reminds me  of some of the music I love listening to in classic hotel bars (the  Drake in Chicago, St. Regis in NYC).

December 1st

We rarely go into the sky lounge. We stopped up there last night briefly  to see Niksha, a bartender we know. But today we stopped up during the  day to get a better view of the port from the ship. Since it was mostly  empty I thought I’d use this as an opportunity to take some photos  especially as someone asked me what the difference is between the sky  lounge on the Reflection versus the Eclipse. (Photos will be in gallery below). 


We ate in Tuscan and we actually had one of our best Tuscan experiences  in a while. I haven’t been a huge fan of Tuscan in the past but we had  wonderful waitstaff and great food choices. I’ll share a more detailed  review with full photos later in the day.
 

I’ve always liked Tuscan but I’ve never loved it. There were some  aspects of it I loved but I always felt each meal something went  missing. Either the service would be a miss and the food great or the  opposite.
 

This time everything came together. The service was outstanding. From  our waitress to the sommelier. For food we started with their cheese and  meat board which was excellent. Three different cheeses that were fresh  and of good quality. Their prosciutto and salami was great.
 

We then followed our waitress recommendations and had the crab cake and  the calamari. Both were well prepared. The calamari seemed chewy when I  went to cut it (they’re large rings) but it was very tender when you  actually ate it.
 

We then split the lobster pasta Alfredo and the porterhouse dry aged.  The porterhouse dry aged was extra, even for us with unlimited specialty  through the Royal Suite. Is it worth the $18 up charge? Hmmm that is  subjective. What I can tell you was the steak was cooked perfectly,  excellent flavor, and coming from someone who almost eats exclusively in  steak houses in Chicago, I was happy. The cut was not as thick as I was  hoping for but the quality did not disappoint and that is what is most  important. The lobster pasta was very tasty with some good chunks of  lobster. There was not a lot, but there was more than I was expecting.
 

We finished with some tiramisu, limoncello, and double espresso.
 

For wine our sommelier (I forget her name but she is a tall woman from  Romania I believe) made a couple good recommendations. We were prepared  to slender extra ($9 more per glass) but she recommended a standard  option that was wonderful.
 

Overall we were very happy with our meal. It was timed well. Food was  cooked great. Service could not have been better and I can’t always say  that about Tuscan.