Carnival Dream 2014 7-Day Bahamas Cruise Review
Day 3 Part 1 June 17, 2014 Key West, Florida Arrival: 8:00AM Departure: 4:00PM
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Day 3 Part 1 June 17, 2014 Key West, Florida Arrival: 8:00AM Departure: 4:00PM
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Overview: Today was the first port of call of the cruise - Key West, Florida. I woke up early to walk around the ship and to get to the front of the ship to watch it dock. However, the weather was not very good on this day.It rained almost all morning. Today's review is in two parts. Part one of the review will include some morning photos around the ship, Key West photos, and lunch buffet photos. I have included more lunch photos on today's review than the other parts of the review so far.
My day started around 5:45am and I quickly got dressed to have time to walk around the ship. Some of the best pictures around the ship can be taken in the morning before other cruisers are everywhere. My plan was to walk to the front of the ship and watch as the ship approached Key West. Here are some pictures I took while walking around Deck 5 (Promenade) in the early morning:
Looking Down The Carnival Dream's Atrium
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Atrium Lobby
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Atrium Part of Deck 5 (Promenade Deck)
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Cherry on Top (Deck 5) - Costs Extra
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Cherry on Top In The Store - Costs Extra
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Deck 5 - Fun Shops of Carnival In the Atrium
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I took some stairs in the atrium to go down from Deck 5 to Deck 3. Deck 3 is the lowest level of the atrium and is home to the Guest Services desk & Shore Excursions desk. There is a bar in the atrium and many different areas to sit along the edges of the atrium.
Deck 3 Lobby - Bottom Sitting Area
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Tables & Chairs By The Shore Excursions Desk
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Shore Excursions Desk
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Atrium Lobby Bar
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Atrium Lobby Seats and Bar In Background
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I made my way outside to have a look at Key West in the distance. There were thunderstorms in the distance and I knew that it would start raining before we could dock. Here are some pictures I took as the ship was getting close to Key West and before the rain came:
Front of the Ship At The Sunrise
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Sunrise From The Front of The Ship
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Sunrise And Dark Clouds
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Coast Guard Ship
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View Of Key West In The Distance
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The rain is coming towards us and we going towards it.
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Buoy
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Front of The Ship - Look The Seaweed In the Water
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The rain came keeping everyone inside. I was a little disappointed that my plans were changed, so I headed to the lido for breakfast. Since I had been outside on Deck 5 I walked to the aft stairwell area and took the elevator up to Deck 10. Here are some pictures I took on my way to back of Deck 5:
Ocean Plaza
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Ocean Plaza
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Tables, Chairs, and Booths in the Promenade
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The Onboard Disco - Caliente (On Deck 5 AFT)
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Chairs in the Carnival Dream's Disco
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Omelet, Bacon, and Hash Browns
Breakfast in The Gathering:
Once again I ate breakfast in The Gathering. The continental breakfast lines opened around 6:00am and the general breakfast buffet lines opened around 7:00am. Breakfast was also being served in the Scarlet Dining Room from 7:00am to 9:00am.
I had an omelet, bacon, and hash browns. The omelet lines were long again today, but the omelet was worth the wait. There are a variety of toppings that you can choose to put in your omelet such as ham, cheese, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, and other mixed vegetables.
The bacon and hash browns were also good. The bacon was greasy (it always was each day) and it was rationed again. Today I had a server that was very generous and gave me about 5 pieces to start with. If you are very friendly to the bacon server and want a lot of bacon they will probably be more inclined to give you more.
Once again I ate breakfast in The Gathering. The continental breakfast lines opened around 6:00am and the general breakfast buffet lines opened around 7:00am. Breakfast was also being served in the Scarlet Dining Room from 7:00am to 9:00am.
I had an omelet, bacon, and hash browns. The omelet lines were long again today, but the omelet was worth the wait. There are a variety of toppings that you can choose to put in your omelet such as ham, cheese, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, and other mixed vegetables.
The bacon and hash browns were also good. The bacon was greasy (it always was each day) and it was rationed again. Today I had a server that was very generous and gave me about 5 pieces to start with. If you are very friendly to the bacon server and want a lot of bacon they will probably be more inclined to give you more.
Docking Near The Carnival Ecstasy:
The Carnival Dream docked at a separate pier that was very close to another pier where the Carnival Ecstasy was docked. The Carnival Ecstasy was the first cruise ship that I ever cruised on and it is responsible for starting my cruise addiction. I first cruised the Carnival Ecstasy in 2007 and cruised again many more times on the Carnival Ecstasy after that. The last time I cruised on the Carnival Ecstasy was in June 2011, a few months before the ship got re-positioned from Galveston to Port Canaveral. Since then the ship has been re-positioned from Port Canaveral to Miami, Florida. It was great to see the ship and many memories got brought back from my past cruises.
The Carnival Dream docked at a separate pier that was very close to another pier where the Carnival Ecstasy was docked. The Carnival Ecstasy was the first cruise ship that I ever cruised on and it is responsible for starting my cruise addiction. I first cruised the Carnival Ecstasy in 2007 and cruised again many more times on the Carnival Ecstasy after that. The last time I cruised on the Carnival Ecstasy was in June 2011, a few months before the ship got re-positioned from Galveston to Port Canaveral. Since then the ship has been re-positioned from Port Canaveral to Miami, Florida. It was great to see the ship and many memories got brought back from my past cruises.
Back Area of The Carnival Ecstasy
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Carnival Ecstasy
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Carnival Ecstasy
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Side View of the Carnival Ecstasy
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Carnival Ecstasy Docked in Key West
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Carnival Ecstasy
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It was still raining while the ship was docking, but that didn't stop me from going outside. I stayed under the balconies above the Lanai for some protection from the rain. The rain was no longer pouring, but it was still bad enough that most people were not going ashore.
Wet Deck of the Carnival Dream's Lanai
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Wet Deck Chairs & Decking on the Lanai
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Lanai and Carnival Ecstasy in the Background
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Little Ship Passing By
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Plane Flying Over The Carnival Dream
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View of An Island From The Ship
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View of Key West In the Rain
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View of Key West In The Rain
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Boats Docked
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Ocean Plaza Coffee Bar
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Ocean Plaza
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Lifeboat From Cabin Window
Before Going Ashore - The View From My Cabin's Window:
When I walked into my stateroom to gather my belongings and prepare to go ashore, I was surprised to see a lifeboat in my window. The crew members were testing out the lifeboat and took it for a test drive in the water. This was interesting to see and made me hope that I never have to get into a lifeboat during a real emergency.
Carnival has made many claims that they prioritize safety and that emergency devices are tested. This is a real life example of an emergency device getting tested.
When I walked into my stateroom to gather my belongings and prepare to go ashore, I was surprised to see a lifeboat in my window. The crew members were testing out the lifeboat and took it for a test drive in the water. This was interesting to see and made me hope that I never have to get into a lifeboat during a real emergency.
Carnival has made many claims that they prioritize safety and that emergency devices are tested. This is a real life example of an emergency device getting tested.
It was still raining outside, but we made a decision to go ashore and try to see what we could see. The gangway was located in the middle of the ship and everyone was directed to use the mid-ship elevators to go down to Deck 0. Here are some pictures I took on my way down:
Sign Pointing To The Gangway on Deck 0
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Deck 0 - Usually A Crew Area
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Uniform Identification Guide For Crew
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Elevators on Deck 0
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Ashore In Key West, Florida:
There was no line to get off the ship. To get off the ship, a security guard scanned each person's card and the shopping desk workers handed out shopping maps. It was still raining, but it was not pouring anymore. As the morning progressed the rain slowed down and by the afternoon it completely stopped. This was the only port of call that we did not do a shore excursion. Our plans were to walk to the Hemingway House and to the Southernmost Tip of the Continental United States. Here are some pictures that I took after getting off the ship:
There was no line to get off the ship. To get off the ship, a security guard scanned each person's card and the shopping desk workers handed out shopping maps. It was still raining, but it was not pouring anymore. As the morning progressed the rain slowed down and by the afternoon it completely stopped. This was the only port of call that we did not do a shore excursion. Our plans were to walk to the Hemingway House and to the Southernmost Tip of the Continental United States. Here are some pictures that I took after getting off the ship:
On the Pier - View Of The Side of The Ship
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Back of the Carnival Dream
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Carnival Ecstasy Docked in the Distance
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Row of Bikes
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Some Resort Near the Cruise Dock
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View of Buildings
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There were many chickens & roosters aimlessly wondering around Key West, Florida. Since Key West is a part of the United States it has its own post office and gets serviced by the USPS (United States Postal Service). Throughout the day, I saw many different postal trucks making deliveries around the island.
Rooster in the Street
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Mail Truck
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Post Office in Key West
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The first picture on the row below is of a bunch of tree roots that I found very interesting. This tree was outside a residential house. The third picture on the row below is of Mile 0 of the Florida Keys Scenic Highway.
Very weird tree roots on this tree
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Looking around Key West
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Mile 0 Marker in Key West
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Street Intersection
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Courthouse in the Background
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Courthouse Building
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Crossing the Street
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Street in Key West
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The Ernest Hemingway Home is a popular attraction in Key West that many cruise ship passengers visit. You must pay to go into the house and the yard surrounding the house. The fence was low and I was able to raise my camera above the fence to get some pictures. Otherwise you cannot see anything at eye level without paying to enter.
Hemingway Home Sign
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Hemingway House
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Hemingway House
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At this point in the day the weather was starting to change for the better. The rain had now completely stopped, but there were still dark clouds in the area. The quality of the pictures are much better when it is not raining and when the sun is out!
Lighthouse - Part of A Hotel
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Looking at the Lighthouse
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Southernmost Point of the Continental USA:
One of the most interesting things that I saw in Key West was the Southernmost Point of the Continental USA. There was a long line of people that wanted to take pictures in this area, but between people I was able to snap a quick picture of the marker.
One of the most interesting things that I saw in Key West was the Southernmost Point of the Continental USA. There was a long line of people that wanted to take pictures in this area, but between people I was able to snap a quick picture of the marker.
Southernmost Point of the Continental USA Marker
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Behind the Marker & Water
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We took Duval Street to head back towards the area where the ship was docked.
Gato House Historical Marker & House in Background
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Entering Duval Street
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Duval Street - Streetlight Sign Marker
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Looking Down An Alley
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Information Desk in Key West
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Duval Street
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Walgreens on Duval Street
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Key West Fire Engine
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Key West Women's Club Building
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Hard Rock Cafe in Key West
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Fat Tuesday in Key West
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Building in Key West
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Looking Down A Side Street in Key West
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Little Ship With "Mary" on the Back
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Monument
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Area Around The Monument
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Here are some pictures that I took around the area where the Carnival Dream was docked:
Rooster and Children
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Tropical Tree
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Front of the Carnival Dream
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Open Area Near The Front of the Ship
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Carnival Dream in the Background
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Carnival Dream
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Water in Front of the Key West Aquarium
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Key West Aquarium
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Area Outside of A Hotel
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Tree in Front of the Carnival Dream
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Mall Entrance - Had Free Restrooms Upstairs
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Sculptures Outside of the Museum Of Art
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Sculpture and Museum of Art
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Key West Museum of Art & History Sign
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Getting Back Onboard The Ship:
There was a very short line to get back onboard the ship. In order to access the pier each guest was asked to show his or her Sail & Sign card to a security guard. Some guests were asked to show photo identification as well. The ship advised that all guests over 16 needed photo identification in order to get back onboard.
There was a very short line to get back onboard the ship. In order to access the pier each guest was asked to show his or her Sail & Sign card to a security guard. Some guests were asked to show photo identification as well. The ship advised that all guests over 16 needed photo identification in order to get back onboard.
Carnival Ecstasy and Carnival Dream
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Side View of the Back of the Carnival Dream
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Side View of the Front of the Carnival Dream
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Carnival Dream Funnel
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Harbor Area By The Ship
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Side View of the Ship
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The crew gangway had nobody waiting on it. During peak passenger times guests would be instructed to use the crew gangway. Carnival also sets up tents with cups of water for guests that are getting back on-board. Once on-board the ship Sail & Sign cards had to be scanned by security and all guests had to go through metal detectors.
Crew Gangway - Nobody Waiting To Board
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Tent With Free Water Underneath
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Looking Back At Key West
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Lido Deck Pool Area
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Blue Iguana Tequila Bar
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Redfrog Rum Bar
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Lunch:
I had lunch in The Gathering (Lido Buffet). The Taste of the Nations buffet line was serving Caribbean food today. Most of the buffet lines opened around 12:00pm, except for the Pizzeria & Deli. The Pizzeria is 24 hrs. and the Deli is open from 11:00am - 11:00pm. I tried the grill and got a hamburger and fries. Both were very good, but the hamburger was not as good as the Guy's Burger I had on the Carnival Triumph last year. I also went to the Burrito Bar and only ordered chips & salsa.
I had lunch in The Gathering (Lido Buffet). The Taste of the Nations buffet line was serving Caribbean food today. Most of the buffet lines opened around 12:00pm, except for the Pizzeria & Deli. The Pizzeria is 24 hrs. and the Deli is open from 11:00am - 11:00pm. I tried the grill and got a hamburger and fries. Both were very good, but the hamburger was not as good as the Guy's Burger I had on the Carnival Triumph last year. I also went to the Burrito Bar and only ordered chips & salsa.
Hamburger and French Fries
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Taste of the Nations - Caribbean
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Burrito Bar - Chips & Salsa
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Carnival Dream Tandoori Food
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Greek Farmers Salad in the Buffet
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Carnival Dream Desserts
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Dessert Station Food
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Dessert Station Food
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Dessert Station Food
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Dessert Station Food
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Dessert Station Food
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Salad Bar
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Salad Bar
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Carnival Dream Tandoori
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Tandoori Food
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