Cheng Heng Cambodian Restaurant - St Paul MN

 

Panama City, Panama

Ship going through a lock

In the taxi, taking photos.

Church

Reportedly the President lives down this way

City street. Not one of the tourist areas.

Fish market and a restaurant upstairs.

Colon, Panama - RC Enchantment Day 9

We had breakfast and disembarked around 9:30 AM in Colon. It's a rough city. Our cab driver took us out of town and told us repeatedly in his broken English that we were going through the ghetto and gesturing with his hand about guns and gangs going pop, pop, pop.

The trip was a brief respite from the real world although the excursions into the poorer areas often reminded us of how blessed we were. The cruise was decent as you would expect them to be but they seem to be losing their magic.

Royal Caribbean seemed to be running lean. When we engaged in a trivia contest, the winning prize was a key chain. Nonetheless, food was plentiful and much of it good. The one meal that still sticks out in my mind is the lamb shank. The Enchantment has one pay restaurant, a chop house, and no others. To a foodie, the limited options was a disappointment.

The Enchantment was small compared to other ships we've been on. The entertainment was decent and what comes to mind is the guitar player who did a version of the Scottish bagpipes on his electric guitar. The Ship's female dancers looked large on stage. Speaking of females, there was a passenger who seemed to relish showing off more of her body than most. It was the first time I'd seen someone wear a thong in public. Maybe I live too sheltered of a life...Service was good to slightly above good. The toilet in these ships always stink and this one was no exception. I wonder if there's some backwash. If there was a exhaust fan, it wasn't working. The bathroom would always be steamy even with the shortest shower. The room was missing a set of curtains separating the beds from the TV and couch area.

And so it ends another cruise. The taxi driver was taking us to Panama City. It would be about a 2 hour drive.

Puerto Limon, Costa Rica - RC Enchantment Day 8

Banana Plantation

Various fruits. We stopped here for banana and pineapple. These were the sweetest banana and pineapple I've ever had, without a hint of tartness!!! Most of us back in the US don't know what we're missing.


NY Strip Steak.  This was the Last Supper and it was OK at best.  Steaks need focused individual care and this one was mass produced.

Tortuguero (?) Boat Tour - Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

We cruised down this river or canal but I don't remember if this was the Tortuguero or not. Two toed sloth. The gentler version

Bats

Unfortunately, we didn't see any caymen.

At Sea - RC Enchantment Day 7

The cruise was winding down. There wasn't much to do today except eat. It's the second formal night of the cruise and it's lobster tail and shrimp. The one good thing about stateside originating cruises is that they offer lobster. None of the European originated tours have lobster. Our waiter offered us two tails. Yummy.

Cartagena, Columbia - RC Enchantment Day 6

A tour of the Old City

This was my favorite port of call. The city is beautiful and filled with culture. The people and especially the women are beautiful, with their honey brown complexion.


Hoisin Duck. Nothing else was of note.

Santa Marta, Columbia - RC Enchantment Day 5

Hot. That's what I distinctly remember about this port of call. The streets here were jammed with people, vendors, and traffic.

There wasn't much in the way of outstanding food today. This is a look at My Fair Lady, the main dining area.

 

At Sea - RC Enchantment Day 4

Another day at sea and it couldn't come soon enough as I needed more time to acclimate to the heat and humidity. This was another day of discovery on the Enchantment. It really is small. There is only one specialty restaurant. The ship has a bungee jump and a rock climbing wall.


Terrine of duck foie gras...or something like that.

T-Bone Lamb. It was good but not as good as last night's Lamb Shank.


A variety of cheesecakes were served. If I recall correctly, this was a leche or milk cheesecake. It had a lighter texture that was welcome after eating all the heavier desserts.

Ocho Rios, Jamaica - RC Enchantment Day 3

It was sweltering hot. I suppose the residents acclimate. No, we didn't try any of the local food like the Jerk chicken as tempting as it was.


Lamb shank. This was my favorite meal of the cruise. The lamb shank was fork tender, the meat falling off the bones. One thing I don't understand is why people eat lamb with mint jelly. Seriously, it's like eating toothpaste.

Lamb shank where I reside costs a small fortune if I am fortunate to find it. So when I go on these cruises, I very seldom pass on lamb.

At Sea - RC Enchantment Day 2

The Windjammer is show above. It the buffet area where breakfast, lunch, and dinner is self serve.

Breakfast on the ships all tend to be the same. The only difference here was that they served the best smoked salmon so far with no hint of sliminess.

This was food discovery day. While lunch can be eaten at the Windjammer, sit down lunch is also served at My Fair Lady.

Chicken Yakatori with wakame. Surprisingly good.

Strawberry Napoleon


Dinner:

Escargot. The sauce was too frothy.


Duck. I forget exactly the preparation but it was yummy. So far the food is better than on the previous cruise.

Ft Lauderdale, FL - Embark Royal Caribbean (RC) Enchantment Day 1

From Florida, the Royal Caribbean Enchantment of the Seas would take us to the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. It sounded as if the majority of the passengers were Spanish speaking and we were in the minority.

The Enchantment is the smallest of the ships we've been on, lacking many of the extras we have come to expect. Notice the central area below.

It may appear large but for a veteran cruiser, this is tiny.

Diane's Restaurant - Fort Lauderdale, FL

Nothing else was really nearby and everything seemed closed being Thanksgiving so the choices were go to bed without dinner or dine at Diane's Restaurant next to the Red Carpet Inn.  Talk about captive diners.

It was certainly packed and we had to wait over an hour for a table. The service was pretty dismal and the waitresses didn't appear happy this evening with the constant crowd. We got through the grumpy waitress. Eventually we got our dinners which were passable, especially when the alternative was a hungry belly.

Fort Lauderdale - Hollywood International Airport FLL

It's smaller than I thought it would be. We arrived at a time when all the restaurants were closed. I did notice a Chili's Too. It was difficult to judge what else they had seeing that the grilled roll up doors were all down but for the most part it appeared to be typical airport food.

Downy Woodpecker

This female caught our attention pecking away at the railing.

St Croix Casino TLC Buffet, Turtle Lake, WI

On the one hand you wonder why this casino is located in desolate Turtle Lake, yet when you drive into the parking lot, location is irrelevant as the casino really packs them in. And when I say "them", I mean seniors, lots of them.

Given its location and the clientele, it made sense the TLC buffet serves with farmer food, the basic staples even more conservative than what I broadly categorize as Midwest food. That's not a complaint but a way of saying the selections won't tickle a foodie's fancy.

The Buffet served a selection of the meat including steak, fried shrimp, baked chicken, baked fish, and the highlight prime rib. The fried shrimp was heavy on the batter. The remaining foods were decent but flat. The prime rib was served rare and tender but lacked a deep intense flavor. I can't complain for the price.

Spaghetti and (exotic!) seafood fettuccine rounded out the pasta offerings. The chicken wild rice soup was loaded with tons of goodies and would have been spectacular if it weren't so salty. The salad bar was conservative and a pass for me. The desserts included some moist white cakes with strawberry and lemon filling plus an assortment of pies.

All in all in it was solid value at $10, especially when you throw in the all you can eat prime rib and that the food is steps above Old Country Buffet offerings. The people were some of the most friendly I've encountered at a buffet. Given that, this will be our sole visit. Nothing was wrong but its a long way for food that we can get anywhere.


631 US Highway 8 63
Turtle Lake, WI

Khoury's - Inver Grove Heights

Khoury's is a family restaurant serving food that is comparable to the offerings of a Perkins or Country Kitchen. They don't offer any dishes that I would consider outside the zone of the stereotypical Midwest palate except maybe the Monte Cristo. That probably explains why each time I've dined there the majority of customers appear to fall into one of two categories: Young midwestern families who would never consider dining at 112 and customers old enough to have dined with the Disciples...Matthew, Mark, Luke, John.

I had the Monte Cristo previously. It was good but it was so heavy and it sat uncomfortably in my stomach for hours. Today, I tried the Khoury burger ($9) consisting of a char broiled Angus patty bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheese, Dijon mayo, and grilled Parmesan wheat bread. The burger was an average rendition of a burger, nothing bad, nothing good. The patty was well done, bland, and on the dry side. The only distinctive note of flavor came from the Dijon. The grilled wheat bread was textural distraction and I would have preferred a quality hamburger bun. Overall the value factor wasn't there. Better burger values can be had at Sonics and American Burger.

If you're looking for safe comfortable food, Khoury's is your stop. If you're looking for food that makes your makes your taste buds dance, there are other stops in the TC.

5660 Bishop Avenue East
Inver Grove Heights, MN

Nice and Eze, France - RC Voyager Day 10, At Sea Day 11

The cruise was winding down. The French Riviera would be the last port of call. Nice and Eze were quiet relaxing places to visit yet rushed because of the limited bus runs. And we missed seeing Monaco.

The food quality was also winding down. The next day, Day 11, would be at sea before we hit our disembarking port Barcelona.

How was the food on the Royal Caribbean? It was a disappointment compared to the other cruise lines. It wasn't bad on its own but we've been spoiled and had high expectations ever since after our first cruise.

Was the cruise worth the money? Unquestionably. Wait for the deals and look at the itinerary, lodging, food, travel, and service offered. I can't think of a better vacation value.