From the editor —  aka Leslie:  Our cabins on The JR are quiet and comfortable; kind stewards make our beds, change our sheets, leave fresh towels, and do our laundry. The salad bar is great and you can eat breakfast, lunch or dinner four times every day.  The mattresses are fresh and new and the view is spectacular.  Being on a new ship, however,  means learning new things every day, including how to operate the new showers and toilets.  Jerry Bode describes them very well…

Great Showers

The rooms are nice as they are new and are limited to only 2 people.  Being new, the really nice thing is everything works, mostly.  The room is not without problems, however.  The shower is great and has a flow rate we can only dream about on shore.  Only it hits me right in the face and the only adjustment is left or right, not up down.

While it hits me in the face, for all the people who share the shower (3 in all) the spray goes over their heads.  They have to remove the shower head and hold it in their hands, but then what do you do when the seas are rough (like this morning) and you need to hold the handhold?

Risky Business

The other problem is one that is actually ship-wide, and that is the toilet system.  It is a state-of-the-art vacuum system much like the airlines use.  It is a good system, but takes some getting used to.  When you push the activate button the system can act quickly, but usually thinks about it for up to 10 or 15 seconds.  Once it determines it OK to work, the toilet starts making some odd noises and then opens the valves and sucks the contents down to the bowels of the ship accompanied by a sound reminiscent of a Saturn rocket taking off.  If there is a vacuum leak anywhere, or the system decides it wants a break, then a call to the Engine Room may be required.

Photo:  The ladies room toilet on the Poop Deck (not kidding) & Forecastle.  Credit:  anonymous