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Carnival Elation 5 Day Caribbean Cruise Review
Day 1    Part 2        June 8, 2015               New Orleans, LA                      Departure:  4:00PM
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Welcome to Part 2 of my Carnival Elation cruise review!  This part of the review will include a short walk around the ship, the muster station drill, sail-a-way, dinner photos, and some evening pictures of the lower Mississippi River. If you would like to go back to Part 1 please click here. 

Carnival Elation Promenade Deck
Promenade Deck - Photo Gallery Area
Carnival Elation Photo Gallery
Photo Gallery Register Area
Carnival Elation Atrium
View of the Elation's Atrium
             After checking out the Promenade Deck, I decided to walk one deck lower to see the Atlantic Deck. Duke's Piano Bar on the Atlantic Deck was one of the nicest lounges on the Carnival Elation. Duke's Piano Bar has a New York City theme and includes NYC highlights such as a Statue of Liberty head, Empire State Building, and other city buildings. This lounge was clean and had a good smell.
Carnival Elation Duke's Piano Bar
Corner of Duke's Piano Bar
Carnival Elation Duke's Piano Bar
Statue of Liberty Head in the Piano Bar
Piano Bar
Piano Area
               The majority of the Carnival Elation's shops are located on the Atlantic Deck near the front of the ship. The logo shops sell a variety of Carnival themed gifts. There is another shop on the Atlantic Deck that sells a variety of different perfumes, jewelry, and alcoholic beverages. Between the two shops, there are entrances to the Mikado Lounge. 
Carnival Elation Shops
Logo Shop Area of the Gift Shop
CArnival Elation Gift Shops
Another Look Into The Shop
Carnival Elation Entrance to Mikado Lounge
Entrance to the Mikado Lounge
               After walking around the Atlantic Deck, I walked back up to the Elation's Way Promenade. One of the first places I visited was the Romeo & Juliet Lounge. This lounge was used for a variety of functions during the cruise vacation.
Carnival Elation Romeo & Juliet Lounge
Walkway in the Romeo & Juliet Lounge
Carnival Elation Romeo & Juliet Lounge
Stage Area in the Romeo & Juliet Lounge
Carnival Elation Coffee Bar
Cookies At The Musical Cafe (For A Fee - Not Included)
                  One reason why I like cruising from New Orleans is the Mississippi River. About an hour before the scheduled muster station drill I decided I wanted to walk around the outside open decks again before sail-a-way. Here are some pictures I took:
Mississippi River
Mississippi River
Port of New Orleans
Port Administration Building & Bridge Above
Mississippi River
Barge On the Mississippi River
Carnival Elation Funnel
Thick Puff of Black Smoke From Funnel In the Afternoon
Carnival Elation Funnel Releases Smoke
Other Side of the Funnel Releases Black Smoke Too
Mississippi River
Opposite Side's Bank of the Mississippi River
Tugboat on Mississippi River
Tugboat Connected To Barge Docked On the River
Erato Street Cruise Terminal
View of the Erato Street Cruise Terminal
Release Gripes Sign on the Carnival Elation
Sign That Says "Release Gripes"
             The pier was still a very busy place around 2:30pm. Luggage and food supplies were still being loaded onto the ship. Many of the ship's crew members were re boarding after enjoying some time off the ship. 
Food Supplies Waiting To Board Carnival Elation
Food Supplies Sitting on Pier Waiting To Be Loaded
Carnival Elation Life Preserver
Life Preserver At the AFT of the Elation
Ship Sailing Upriver on the Mississippi
Ship Sailing Upriver
Front of the Carnival Elation
View From the Front of the Ship
Carnival Elation Sideview and New Orleans Skyline
New Orleans Skyline & Sideview of the Carnival Elation
Barge Sailing on Mississippi River
Barge Sailing Upriver
Carnival Elation Funnel
Ship's Funnel and Nautical Flags
Sideview of the Carnival Elation
Sideview of the Ship - Service Barge Has Left
Ferry Departing New Orleans
Zoomed In View of Ferry Departing
             The pictures below should give you a better idea of the amount of luggage that still needed to be loaded around 2:30pm. The crew on the dock appeared to be working efficiently and all of the luggage was loaded well before time to sail. 
Erato Street Cruise Terminal Gangway
Gangway Is Still Connected To The Ship Around 2:50pm
Suitcases Waiting To Enter The Carnival Elation
Many Suitcases Waiting To Be Loaded at 3pm
Suitcases
View Of The Suitcases From My Stateroom
Muster Station Drill:   The Muster Station drill is always a required event for every passenger on the cruise ship. My muster station was "C" which was the Romeo & Juliet Lounge on the Promenade Deck. The drill was scheduled to begin at 3:30pm, but was delayed due to stragglers. The ship's crew would not start the drill until all cruisers were present in their required muster stations. The drill probably started about 15 - 20 minutes late due to people being late. 
            In muster station "C" the staff was friendly and did an excellent job explaining all of the necessary safety information. Lifejackets were not needed for the drill, but the crew demonstrated how to put on a lifejacket. The cruise director, Brandon, made several announcements as well as the captain. Before we were allowed to be dismissed from the drill, we had to practice walking from our muster station to the lifeboats. This took less than five minutes and everyone cooperated. While we were outside at our designated lifeboat, it started raining and everyone was forced to get wet because we had no choice. Luckily, once the rain started the cruise director spoke quickly and ended the drill. Overall, the muster station drill was not that bad and is usually the most unenjoyable part of any cruise vacation.
Carnival Elation Departure
Pier Behind The Ship As We Depart
Erato Street Cruise Terminal
Erato Street Cruise Terminal
Julia Street Cruise Terminal
Julia Street Cruise Terminal
Sail-a-Way From New Orleans:   As I mentioned earlier, I love cruising from New Orleans because of the Mississippi River. The muster station drill ended at approximately 4:15pm and within 5 minutes we were already moving. The ship's ropes were untied during the muster station drill. It was still sprinkling when we began to move, but it was a light rain that cleared up within minutes. 
              The outside decks were packed with cruisers wanting to catch a view of New Orleans as we departed. I chose the back of the Verandah Deck to watch sail-a-way. This area of the ship was crowded, but I managed to find a spot. Within 10 minutes we made our first turn on the Mississippi River. The Elation was able to make the turn smoother than the Carnival Dream. This may be because of the size of the ship. 
               Here are some pictures I took during sail-a-way:
Riverwalk Mall New Orleans
Riverwalk Mall - View As the Ship Sailed By
Creole Queen Ship
Creole Queen Docked in New Orleans
Crescent City Connection in New Orleans
View of Crescent City Connection As The Elation Sails Away
Picture
A View Of New Orleans As The Ship Sailed Further
New Orleans
Buildings in New Orleans & Green Park Space On Ground
New Orleans St. Louis Cathedral
A View Of The St. Louis Cathedral
New Orleans
Looking Back As The Ship Makes First Curve on the River
Mississippi River
Opposite Side From New Orleans On The River
New Orleans You Are Beautiful Building
Building That Says "You Are Beautiful" On It
East New Orleans
Looking Towards East New Orleans
East New Orleans
East New Orleans Side of Town
Two Ships Docked Along Mississippi River
Two Ships Docked Along River
Picture
Barge Docked Along Banks of River
Tarps on Building
Building With Many Tarps on Rooftop
Large Crane
Large Crane
New Orleans
Small Boats Docked and Water Tower in Background
Sugar factory
A Factory - I Believe Produces Sugar
Ships Docked Along Mississippi River
Ships Docked Waiting To Continue Upriver
Two Ships Docked Along The Mississippi River
Two Ships Docked Along The Mississippi River
Ferry Docked
Ferry Docked
New Orleans
Banks of the Mississippi A Few Miles Out From NOLA
Barge Sailing By on the River
Barge Sailing By on the River
Carnival Elation Pool
AFT Pool and Back of Funnel
Industrial Looking Area
Industrial Looking Area
             After watching sail-a-way for a little under an hour, I decided to head inside to line up for dinner. Here are some pictures of the menus I took while in line for dinner:
TIP:  You can click on the picture of the menu to make it larger! 
Everyday Menu
Everyday Menu
Dinner Menu For Night 1
Dinner Menu For Night #1
Picture
Dessert Menu For Night #1
Dinner #1 In The Imagination Dining Room:
            I had Your-Time Dining which means I could dine in a specific dining room from 5:45pm until about 9:00pm. My assigned dining room was the Imagination Dining Room. The entrance for cruisers with Your-Time Dining was in the Elation's atrium. On this night of the cruise, there was no line for dinner until a few minutes before 5:45pm. However, on later nights of the cruise, a long line would be formed by 5:30pm. 
            The food was very good! The hostesses working the entrance of the Imagination Dining Room were very friendly and did a great job getting everyone seated. We requested a table by a window to get a view of the Mississippi River as we sailed. Our dining room staff members did their jobs well, but were not above & beyond. I think these dining room staff members had just gotten on the ship for a new contract and were still trying to get the hang of the job. Although the service was not exceptional, we were well taken care of. I'm not complaining about the service, but I have had some crew members in the dining room that have gone above & beyond. 
              Here are the first night's food pictures I was able to get:  
Bread Basket
Assorted Basket of Bread
Escargots Bourguignonne
Appetizer: Escargots Bourguignonne
Fried Vegetable Spring Rolls
Appetizer: Fried Vegetable Spring Rolls
Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Appetizer: Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Shrimp Cocktail
Appetizer: (Two) Shrimp Cocktails
Picture
Appetizer: Caesar Salad
Southern Fried Chicken
Main Course: Southern Fried Chicken
Pan Seared Fillet of Tiliapia
Main Course: Pan Seared Fillet of Tilapia
Picture
Main Course: Chicken A La Grecque
Picture
Main Course: Grilled Flat Iron Steak
New York Cheesecake
Desert: New York Cheesecake
Picture
New York Cheesecake With Strawberry Sauce
An Evening View of the Mississippi River:
              Before heading inside for the Welcome Aboard Show, I wanted to take a look outside. During this time I was able to catch a glimpse of the sunset and some houses along the banks of the river. There were many crew members at the front of the ship using their cell phones while we still had reception. At this point I could still use my phone without paying any roaming or searching charges.  Here are a few pictures I took during my short time looking at the view from the ship:
Front of the Carnival Elation
Front of the Ship With Sunset in the Distance
Carnival Elation
Sunset is Starting To Fade
Carnival Elation
Sideview of the Elation With the Sunset
Mississippi River
Ships Docked Along the Lower Parts of the River
Mississippi River
Little Road and Town In the Distance
Mississippi River
A View of the Mississippi River
Towel AnimalTowel Animal and Fun-Times Newsletter
Stateroom Nightly Turndown
           Our stateroom steward came during dinner and cleaned our stateroom for the night. In the process of turning down the room,the stateroom steward left a towel animal as well as the daily activity newsletter for the second day of the cruise. Carnival no longer gives chocolate mints at night due to some changes implemented by the corporate office. I knew about this change before the cruise, but it was weird not having the tasty mints to end my day.
            The stateroom steward also lowered the pull down bed during the nightly turndown. He forgot to put padding on the bed, but when he came in the morning to service the room he must have realized his mistake. After the first night the upper bed had padding and was comfortable. The room was comfortable, but I did not sleep well the first night because of being in a different environment.

Carnival Elation Mikado LoungeMikado Lounge With Sparkling Curtain Turned On
Welcome Aboard Show In The Mikado Lounge
             
The Welcome Aboard Show was at 10:15pm in the Mikado Lounge. This was the last time the Elation's cruise passengers would ever get to watch this show because the ship is getting new shows. The show started with the lead female vocalist singing "Holiday" by Madonna. The dancing part lasted about 5-6 minutes and then the cruise director, Brandon, spoke. He told us this was the last showing of this Welcome Aboard Show and the following day the set would be destroyed. 
               After the cruise director spoke two comedians performed. Both were good and had the audience laughing the whole time. Following the comedians, another singer performed and then the show was over. Overall, the welcome aboard was great and it was cool getting to be a part of the show's last time being performed.

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