Checking IN

 

Well I am sure I have left all of you hanging once again wondering where I have disappeared too. I have made a few more changes to this thing we call life. I have separated from my husband and my children and I have relocated to Brockville, Ontario. This made sense as that is where my "other" day job is. So my commute has gone from 40 minutes one was to less then 10 minutes which means 30 extra minutes of sleep for me. That is a bonus right there.

So what does all of this mean for you my awesome clients, family, friends and followers. My direct number has changed. I am now operating solely with a cellphone. No more landline. That number is 343-998-6387.

My day job hours are 8am to 4 pm. I am then available in the evenings and weekends for travel needs. My emails are all the same just my home address has changed. I will still serve any one in Canada via phone and email and anyone in the SDG or Leeds and Grenville I can meet in person.

I did have to cancel my upocoming August 2022 Alsaka cruise on the NCL Bliss but we will defintely get that back onto the books again asap. Just so many places to see and things to do. I will be having major surgey ealy Sepetmber but should hopefully not be out of comission for that long. Couple fo days max

I still have my fourteen day cruise planned for November with extra time in NY city where is starts and extra time in New Orleans when it ends. 

Here are the groups and trips I have for 2023 at the moment

10 day Southern Caribbean cruise on Celebrity Equinox sailing end of January/February 2023

14 day land/cruise trip of Japan on the Diamond Princess July 2023

Game of Thrones Ireland group bus tour August 2023

I also have one two bus groups scheduled for NY city in the sping and fall 

And is Newfoundland on your bucket list we will be doing 2023 or 2024 not confirmed yet fly there and then do bus tour

If you and your family would like to get a group together for a milestone celebration, a simple retreat or just beat the winter let me know and we can put things together.

Booking earlier is going to be the best rates in the near future as demand for travelling is increasing after the lock downs and there are still staff shortages being felt all over. Rates are increasing. Once again let me help you naviagte all of this with ease.

My recent road trip to London, On with three of my kids. Exploring our own backyard can be just as fun as exploring the world and I can help with local get aways as well

Where you can find me:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/stephaniethetravelagentnextdoor

TikTok: StephanieTTAND
Website: http://www.exclusivetoyoutravel.ca
Email: slough@exclusivetoyoutravel.com

TICO 50021282
55 York Street, Suite 1003
Toronto, On M5J 1R7
Office Phone 416-367-8264 ext 2625
Direct Phone 343-998-6387

Please keep in mind that while my head office is in Toronto. I am a home-based travel agent and I live in Brockville I can service clients anywhere in Canada. But, I meet with clients in the SD&G area. I will still meet my clients in this area as well as in Leeds and Grenville.

Harmony of the Seas - Day five

 We once again had a port day. Today our stop was in St Thomas the US Virgin Islands. We started class at 7:45 am so we could avoid the crew's drills and get off the ship earlier to visit this lovely city. We once again did room service for breakfast. I was still disappointed.  The class went by as quickly as could be this morning.  Here are a few pictures I took from my cabin once we were docked in the morning. The music was very loud I would find out later that Carnival was today in St Thomas and they were already celebrating that early in the morning.

When the morning was over I was to head on a foodie tour arranged by one of my fellow travel agents with a local company. My roommate was going as well. We were split into two groups. Her group was leaving earlier and she recommended I take a short nap and rest before joining mine. I did wake up but it was just not enough of a nap so I messaged the group leader that I would not make it. I am sad to say I did not wake back up until my roommate returned at around 2:00 ish. However, she has been kind enough to share her pictures with me that I am now going to share with you. Many people told me about how crowded it was and how long it took to get anywhere in town due to Carnival. Some agents were going to explore on their own and came back when traffic was too much to handle. I am not 100% disappointed as I have been to St Thomas before and explored her beaches at that time.

There was so much food and drinks to eat during this tour that Sarah was stuffed by the time it was over. She was very shocked to find me still in bed. So was I to tell the truth but I guess my body needed it. We decided that after we did a bit of work we would go for an early dinner. Skip the dining room and go back to Johnny Rockets which is also considered a specialty dining room. I also finally found Starbucks and treated myself to my favourite Mango dragonfruit Lemonade. When we finished supper we decided to explore the ship as we had not had much time to do that even though the cruise was half over.

Johnny Rockets and Starbucks are both found on the boardwalk deck. In behind them is the aqua theater, The night we were supposed to see the show we did not make it however it ended up being canceled due to high winds. 

Small climbing wall for the little people in your life

Part of the Aqua Theater

deck above the boardwalk has the rock climbing walls one on each side

The Abyss the Slide starts at deck 17 and comes all the way down to the boardwalk. It is a closed dry/slide in the dark!!!

The carousel and yes I rode it on a frog no less. That video will be on my TikTok maybe

Here are some pictures of the pool deck. Big pools, slides and kid water park area and of course the hot tubs, there is lots of space to have fun.

We also went and explored the central park. This deck is open to the skies hence why at each door you will find umbrellas. The luscious garden area is nice and relaxing and this is also home to several of the speciality restaurants and a bar that moves between decks

I am going to leave you here and continue this day in the next blog post with more of our ship exploration.

Where you can find me:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/stephaniethetravelagentnextdoor

TikTok: StephanieTTAND
Website: http://www.exclusivetoyoutravel.ca
Email: slough@exclusivetoyoutravel.com

TICO 50021282
55 York Street, Suite 1003
Toronto, On M5J 1R7
Office Phone 416-367-8264 ext 2625
Direct Phone 613-543-3006

Please keep in mind that while my head office is in Toronto. I am a home-based travel agent and I live in South Dundas I can service clients anywhere in Canada. But, I meet with clients in the SD&G area

Harmony of the Seas - Specialty Dining

 So on this night, we chose to go to a specialty restaurant for dinner and all I can say is Oh my God this was the best experience I have had in dining in a very long time. We were a group of six which helped make the experience even better. You will understand why as I go on. The restaurant in question was Wonderland. It is loosely based on Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.  This restaurant is also tucked away on deck twelve on a deck with mostly staterooms. You have to find it. It is not out in the open like many other specialty restaurants are.

You enter into the restaurant through this tunnel. Sorry, I only got an exit shot and then you walk through a cool gold door that is in the middle of a room. You can technically walk around it on either side. Upstairs you check in and they have you sit at the bar while they get your table ready.

My group.

The drinks were different/unique. I have a video of mine on Tik Tok. Pink cotton candy that you pour the drink on and then it disappears. Called the Cheshire Cat and I was grinning I am sure while I made it. They then take you down the rabbit hole (downstairs) where your journey will begin

The mad hatter comes over and greets you for your journey and you are provided with a paintbrush a picture frame and water and you get to make your menu appear out of thin air.

So because we were a group of six our waitress suggested family style. We all got one of each appetizer, We shared one of each entree (2 short ribs) and one of each dessert (2 chocolate balls) So we got to try all these molecular delights. Some of which I may not have ordered myself and would have missed out on.

The only appetizer I did not like was the tomato water. I have two pictures of it above in the test tube. Otherwise, I enjoyed it all and I would not normally have dared try the spicy things but as appetizers, in small amounts, I did and enjoyed them immensely.

So after the appetizers, all of the entrees were brought out and we shared a little bit of everything and I was not disappointed in any of them. They were all yummy and divine. I am running out of words to express how much I enjoyed this experience and food.

Before and after the gravy was added

This is actually fake eggs but looked so real

This was the Halibut

Short ribs before and after the gravy was poured on 

Well after we filled ourselves on the main courses and we pretty much demolished them between the six of us we moved on to the amazing desserts. I also have a magic video on TikTok to show the revealing of the chocolate sphere of amazing gooeyness for dessert

And dessert concluded our amazing evening. We did not leave any behind. The poisoned apple was a nice mousse and the mushrooms were an interesting meringue dessert. Now the chocolate spheres they were melted with a hot sauce and were full of ice cream and, Krispies and peanut butter and good know what else. My only regret is that I did not get more pictures of the decorations in the dining room. Guess I need to book another cruise for a Wonderland dining experience. I know what a hardship right? 

If you have any questions about this experience please let me know and if you want to book your own Wonderland adventure uhhmm cruise then definitely reach out to me.

Where you can find me:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/stephaniethetravelagentnextdoor

TikTok: StephanieTTAND
Website: http://www.exclusivetoyoutravel.ca
Email: slough@exclusivetoyoutravel.com

TICO 50021282
55 York Street, Suite 1003
Toronto, On M5J 1R7
Office Phone 416-367-8264 ext 2625
Direct Phone 613-543-3006

Please keep in mind that while my head office is in Toronto. I am a home-based travel agent and I live in South Dundas I can service clients anywhere in Canada. But, I meet with clients in the SD&G area