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A Peter Knego Blog
The PK POV: PEARL Of NCL-Dom, continued
December 16-18, 2006
Our dinner began at 7:30 in the 96 seat Italian country style La Cucina restaurant on aft Deck 12 just as NORWEGIAN PEARL's lines were unleashed. Seen from the room's panorama of windows aft and along the port side, Miami's massive new skyline twinkled in the misty night, casting a glow on the clouds hovering above. As the olive oil and balsamic vinegar flowed onto our bread plates, the PEARL had reached the turning basin. We savored the view of the brightly lit causeway during a course of antipasti, which included small chunks of delicious parmesan, sun dried tomatoes, marinated artichokes, olives, and mozzarella with tomato. By the time we passed the endless strip of bustling beach and entered the sea lanes, I was finishing up a tasty Caesar salad and ready to consume my main course, an al dente penne with fresh marinara sauce under a small mountain of parmesan. The delightful Romanian waitress was tempting us with an array of desserts as NORWEGIAN PEARL rolled ever so slightly in the moderate, wind-whipped seas. Our course for the next thirty six hours would be a steady back and forth along the Florida coast between Miami and Boca Raton.
The evening's Jean Ann Ryan-produced show in the Stardust Theater, "Tubez", could be described as a cross between The Blue Man Group and "Stomp!" Broadway show tune purists may be left in the cold by its 1990s street-oriented leanings, but NCL deserves credit for seeking out alternatives to the tried and true shipboard fare.
A mural worth pondering. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006.
Another glass of Merlot just outside the handsome Magnum's Wine and Champagne Bar gave us a chance to study the silver and gold Deco panels inspired by the iconic Jean Dupas works aboard NORMANDIE from the comfort of a plush chair. Even the stanchion on the stairtower is reminiscent of the oversized alabaster structures from the legendary 1935-built French liner's first class dining hall.
We fleetingly attempted a visit to the Bliss Ultra Lounge, but a huge crunch of people at either entrance to the popular watering hole prompted us to change course.
NORWEGIAN PEARLŐs sponson-smoothed wake. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006.
The next morning, Sunday, December 17, began late for me as I tried to catch up on some sleep. A quick breakfast in the Garden Cafe included a made-to-order cheese, onion, and tomato omelet, some delicious muesli, and smoked salmon with fresh lemon and capers.
During the press conference held in the Prague and Barcelona meeting rooms, I asked our host, NCL's executive VP of sales and marketing, Andy Stuart, about the status of the UNITED STATES (following last May's mention at the PRIDE OF HAWAI'I's inaugural by Star chairman Tan Sri LIM Kok Thay that she would be the fourth ship for NCL America's fleet -- Even NCL chairman Colin Veitch affirmed this statement during that ship's press conference). Andy called the May statements "non-announcements", saying that the feasibility studies to bring the UNITED STATES back in service were ongoing but that there were no new developments. He also stated that Orient Line was about to release the MARCO POLO's schedule through 2009 and that the NCL-owned subsidiary and classic ship were not on the sales market, in contrast to a recent public comment made by Veitch. There was no point in even asking about the OCEANIC (ex INDEPENDENCE, SEA LUCK I, OCEANIC INDEPENDENCE), which is laying at San Francisco's China Basin.
Back to my pursuit of Freestyle happiness. I especially like that the Garden Cafe is broken up into several serving or "action" stations, which works wonderfully for people like me who focus on one or two food offerings. At lunch I bee lined it to the salad bar, which had plenty to work with, including a selection of crispy lettuce, spinach and endive, and all sorts of veggies to pile up along with a daily selection of fresh dressings (or my favorite, just plain olive oil and vinegar with a generous heap of parmesan obtained from the nearby pizza station).
Picture windows and cardio equipment go well together. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006.
Eschewing the myriad of activities in the public areas and poolside, I enjoyed the rest of the balmy afternoon walking around the ship's upper decks and promenades before meeting up with Rob for a pre-dinner workout in the gym. It really isn't too hard to be inspired when you have a long panel of full-length windows to gaze out of and individual multichannel televisions to distract from what might otherwise be a ponderous stint on an elliptical machine. We watched as a heavily-laden MSC container ship plowed past us with a bone in her teeth, backlit by the setting Florida sun. Afterwards, we took a walk through the men's portion of the spa, which was quite spectacular with its views over the bow, a wonderful thalassotherapy pool, and lavish steam areas.
Art Nouveau butterflies by Versace. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006.
Dinner at 7:00 in the extra tariff ($10) Le Bistro was a delight, starting with the Versace decorative plates and their multicolored art nouveau butterfly patterns, tall stemware, and polished silver. Our attentive waitress and her assistants flawlessly tended to our every whim.
As one might expect, escargot, frog legs and foie gras are available to the true connoisseur of French cuisine, however, I was very content with my hearts of Boston lettuce with truffles and champagne vinaigrette, a magnificent warm goat's cheese tart with caramelized onions, and grilled fillet of turbot on a truffle leek confit with parisienne potatoes. Rob's braised short rib and grilled beef tenderloin had him swooning and the lady next to me purred that her mushroom soup was the best she's had anywhere. Our table lingered for over two hours, yet there was no sense that we had overstayed our welcome, even though we considerably outlasted the desserts, which included apple tarts and creme brulee.
Facing aft in the midships portion of Blue Lagoon. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006.
Instead of the big show in the Stardust Theater, we head up to the Spinnaker Lounge to see the Second City Improv act, which was a huge crowd pleaser. By midnight, as the "70's Disco Night Party" was about to begin, we found ourselves taking a breezy romp on deck. In the interests of covering all the "Freestyle" we could in our two short nights, we stopped at the 94 seat Blue Lagoon Cafe. Besides, I really like its chairs! The waitress convinced us to eat something, so we ordered some baked potato skins and tomato soup.
By 6:00 am, the PEARL was back alongside her berth, with breakfast and disembarkation to follow. NCL granted us some extra time on board to photograph what we were not able to cover during the cruise. However, the disembarkation process was remarkably smooth, devoid of announcements, and mercifully kind in not forcing people out of their cabins to sweat out the wait in a public room with hangovers and hand luggage.
Congratulations to NCL on its latest ship, one with an edgy, modern presence, a mind-boggling array of features, a friendly, eager to please staff, a wide range of accommodation, and some truly excellent dining options.
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