Morning on the Fantasy
We had all been to Nassau so many times, and since this cruise did not include a sea day, we decided to stay on the ship and turn our day into a sea day in port. J. R. got up early and took a walk around deck 12 and then went to Cabanas for breakfast, where he ran into Alex and Bethany. Janie joined us all a few minutes later.
Rainforest Room
One nice change due to COVID-19 was that instead of having to book a day in the Rainforest Room in Senses Spa and share it with other people was you could book and hour and forty-five minute private session. So Alex and Bethany made the reservation for 8am for the four of us. We checked in and took advantage of the hot tubs (although one was not working correctly), the saunas and the heated loungers. There were three saunas, including a traditioanl dry sauna, the steam Laconium sauna and the steam Hamam sauna. Bethany and Alex tried every button in the showers, including the freezing cold one.
Nassau
While we were in the Rainforest Room, we pulled into Nassau port alongside the Carnival Mardi Gras, their newest and largest ship.
Crafts and Lunch
We went our separate ways after the Rainforest Room. J. R. and Janie decided to try the 3D Pirate Crafts. As we were finishing up, Alex and Bethany joined us because their friend Shelley was hosting the event. We took our creations up to the room and headed to Royal Court for lunch. Janie wanted to 'borrow' the bread basket for home.
Royal Court Lunch Menu
Champagne Tasting
Somehow Janie found herself booked into a Champagne tasting she had never scheduled. There were no openings and she didn't want to go alone so J. R. came down and they were able to add him in at the door. We began with a Taittinger Brut la Francais and then the Moet de Chandon Imperial, which we both liked much more. Our third was a Taittinger Rose, followed by Bollinger Special Rose. This was very smoky, which is unusual for a champagne. Finally we ended with a glass of the Moet de Chandon Ice Imperial which was served with three cubes of ice. This was really unique and we both enjoyed it very much.
Christmas on the Fantasy
J. R. and Janie continued their tradition of winning trivia on DCL with a tiebreaker win in "Know It All Trivia" followed with another tiebreaker win later. We ended up with two pairs of Mickey medallions and lamented our days when we used to get notebooks and baseball caps and other cool prizes for winning trivia.
Janie and Bethany were doing the chocolate and liquor tasting at 4PM so J. R. and Alex met up in O'Gills to have a drink and talk about football. One of Alex's friends was hosting a craft session so he had a chance to chat with Alex. The server in O'Gills was not very knowledgeable. Alex asked for a Kronenbourg and they were out. Then he asked for a Stella and they were out. Then he asked for a lager and he suggested Guinness, which is definitely not a lager.
We met back up with the kids for a drink and then went to change for dinner. The plan was to have some photos taken in the atrium but the photographers didn't start until 7, which was our dinner time at Remy.
O'Gills Menu
Remy
The highlight of our evening and the cruise was dinner at Remy. We stopped by Meridian to get a drink before dinner but it was not long before we were called into the restaurant. As it turns out, the hostess had been one of Alex's 'Traditions Buddies' when they had first started working on the ship several years previously. To our surprise and delight, we were seated in the semi-private glass-enclosed wine room. Alex, Bethany and Janie added on a champagne paring to their meal experience while J. R. opted to stick with water. They were served Champagne Taittinger Nocturne, J Vineyards Sparkling Rose, Ruinart Blanc, Dom Perignon and Krug Grand Cuvee. Our sommelier said the Ruinart was the wine that made him want to become a wine steward.
Other than Bethany, we all chose the Saveur menu bu Arnaud Lallement. Bethany would be served her own special allergy menu. We started off with the Colette cocktail, which was 1/2 oz. of Grey Goose VX, 1/2 oz. Grand Marnier Paris Edition, 4 oz. Champagne, two dried pineapple cubes and three creme de cassis pearls. Our waiter put the pearls in the bottom of a martini glass, then added the champagne and vodka and finished with the pineapple cubes.
Next came the bread course, complete with non-dairy "Bethany butter". Rather than a tray of bread, the waiter brought around the bread and gave us each a slice, probably a COVID-19 related change. We could still get as much bread as we wanted, so no one cared.
After that was canapes, including a wonderful foie gras, followed by an amuse-bouche with a crisp on top of a parsnip puree over a curry cream. J. R. doesn't like parsnips, but he enjoyed this very much, as did everyone else.
Remy followed that with the "Homard du Maine", which was a prepartion of Maine lobster, which was perfectly cooked. Then came a lovely Sole which we all agreed was too large because it filled us up. This was not good because the next course was the Wagyu Beef with a miso-sake sauce.
We weren't done yet because our waiter rolled in the cheese cart. Janie chose her favorite cheeses while Alex and J. R. asked the waiter to just serve them a selection. The cheese came with dried fruits and honey and Bethany had herself a small honey plate.
Dessert came next which was an excellent chocolate dessert, kind of like a brownie. But we were not done, as our waiter came by with fruit rolls and chocolate chef hats. He bid us farewell with a box of chocolates and some lollipops.
