EdgeCited to Set Sail on Edge Again

Second Time on 
Celebrity Edge

November 2018 we sailed on Celebrity Edge for one of the Trade and Press Preview sailings. We immediately fell in love with the ship, and vowed to sail on her again. Two days just wasn't enough time to fully experience the ship.

 Celebrations at Sea 

After the cruise we checked upcoming sailings, and as luck would have it, there was a Western Caribbean itinerary during my birthday week. A cruise can enhance any special celebration, so we decided to book a Sunset Veranda cabin.   Last time we sailed on Edge, we were in an Infinite Veranda.  This way we could experience the difference in order to share with our guests.

We are especially EdgeCited that Captain Kate McCue will be the skipper for this sailing. Follow her on Instagram

We began our story about Celebrity Edge in our Post:

Most Anticipated Ship of 2018 Arrives Florida

The story continues here (we'll pick up where we left off).  For convenience, we'll combine both experiences into one.  We'll do more videos this time as well.  Be sure to follow our social media accounts so that you can sail along with us.

Bookmark this Page - we will be posting more soon

BLOG POST LINK (click title)	Photo Albums / Videos
Celebrity Edge Revealed	First Glimpse
Xcited to Meet Celebrity Edge	Concierge Cabin
Setting Sail on Celebrity Edge	Resort Deck
Introducing Infinite Veranda	Solarium
Celebrity Edge Resort Deck	Magic Carpet
How Suite it is on Celebrity Edge	Edge Villas    Sky Suite      Luminae Royal Suite    Iconic Suite
Pamper Yourself on Celebrity Edge	Edge Spa & Fitness
Pre-Cruise Fort Lauderdale	Staybridge Suites          Hard Rock Hotel Guitar Light Show (Video)
Celebrity Edge Embarkation	Embarkation
Edge Embarkation Lunch	Embarkation Lunch
These Are My Favorite Edge Things In Martini Heaven on Celebrity Edge	Martini Bar      Bartenders Juggling (Video)
Making Birthday Memories  Tiny Chefs EdgeCiting Meal	Sunset Veranda  Le Petit Chef     LePetit Chef Playlist (Videos)

View Celebrity Edge Sailings

Celebrity Edge Infographic

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Gather your travel and food pics and join us every Wednesday night for the latest installment of #FoodTravelChat

6 Examples of Texture in Travel Pictures

#TRAVELPICS 
the travel photography chat/share on Twitter

Monday we joined #TRAVELPICS chat on Twitter for a fun packed hour exchanging ideas and travel photos with like-minded posters. The theme was “texture” and participants shared their own travel pics about the theme and answered pre-arranged questions. Here are our replies.

Follow us on Twitter: @ChrisPappinMCC
 

Q1: What are elements that add texture to make your travel photos stand out?

A1: @AntiTourist #travelpics Cloud sky waves color water rocks buildings streets mountains are all elements that add texture #Mykonos #Greece #ttot

These first two images were captured during our 12-Night Mediterranean & Greek Isles Cruise

Q2: Whether it’s snow in a forest or tiles on a home, show us a travel photo that’s all about texture.

A2: @AntiTourist #travelpics   Acropolis a Journey Into Antiquity  http://bit.ly/1zBWs8Y #Athens #Greece #cruise #ttot

Q3: Share a photo of yours that shows off texture in a unusual fashion: shadows, birds, abstract patterns…

A3: #travelpics Glacier ice flowing in #Hubbard Bay #Alaska has interesting patterns #ttot #cruise

Photography opportunities abound in Alaska. As our ship cruised through Hubbard Bay, we emerged from our balcony cabin to capture floating chunks of glacier ice like this.

Q4: Interesting people lead texture to photos, stories, & experiences. Share a photo or tale of a bizarre or memorable encounter!

A4: #travelpics A Man & His Donkey http://bit.ly/1oY2adZ shores #Mykonos #Greece #ttot #cruise #photography

Click on the link above to learn more about this experience in Mykonos.  If you click on these images, you'll see larger versions of them which will help show the #textures we captured.

Q5: Specific or general, what’s something that has added texture to your travels? Get creative!

A5: @AntiTourist #travelpics Add special effects in the digital dark room to enhance your travel #photography http://bit.ly/1mOQjQY #ttot

The instructions were to be creative, so we dug into our archives and selected an image where we'd taken one of our photos and using a photo editor turned it into an entirely different image.   Click on the link to learn more about how this and other examples shared in that post could become a part of your travel portfolio.

 

Q6: Textures add interest to landscapes near and far. From your backyard to travels abroad, share a “colorful” photo!

A6: #travelpics Buildings & Streets of #Bergen #Norway composed of many colors & textures #ttot #photography

Our final example has a mixture of color and textures along with people to make a very appealing image.  Bergen is one of our favorite ports in Norway.  It can easily be explored on your own and there are plenty of photo spots to add to your enjoyment.

We only had an hour to share some of our #texture images.  The time passes so quickly during the chat.  Hunting through our archives to prepare for the chat brings back memories of our trips.

We hope that this has sparked your interest in taking your photography to a new level.  Follow the weekly #travelpics chat on Twitter for more ideas on this and other travel topics.   We'd love to hear your ideas as well, or better yet, join us for the next chat.

Thank you to this week's co-hosts: @AntiTourist, @TheTravelCamel, @Sihpromatum, @VibrantIreland, and @travellingmolly.

Have you seen the  #travelpics recap? http://bit.ly/17RRaFq

Join us for #travelpics on Monday's at 3 PM ET every week for a fun-filled hour related to travel and photography. 

Chipwrecked on Carnival Dream

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011)

December 16 marks the release date of ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: CHIPWRECKED!, the third installment of the blockbuster movie franchise produced by Fox 2000 Pictures that was shot aboard the Carnival Dream.

Filming took place primarily on Carnival Dream’s open decks with scenes featuring actor Jason Lee (reprising his role as Dave Seville) and the antics of the three beloved chipmunks shot within the ship’s expansive outdoor recreation areas.

Tropical ports on the Carnival Dream’s western Caribbean itinerary, including Cozumel, Roatan, Belize and Costa Maya, also provided a stunning backdrop for many of the movie’s shipboard scenes.

The Chipmunks certainly picked a fabulous itinerary for their little adventure.  This public pool right in the heart of Costa Maya's port shopping district is the perfect place to soak up some Caribbean sun, have your favorite beverage, or relax in one of the shady areas.

The Chipmunks and The Chipettes (three female counterparts to the Chipmunks) go on a cruise trip with the Chipmunks' owner/manager/father figure, Dave Seville. During the cruise, the 'Munks and 'Ettes turn the ship into their personal playground, causing trouble and running amuck as they will. Eventually, their chaotic behavior gets them ship wrecked on the Isles of Scilly, everyone getting lost in the process. As Dave sets out to look for the lost chipmunk trios, the six find a new castaway on the island who turns out to be more than a match for the trios.

Speaking of movies,  you can watch movies, concerts, news, sporting events, and even watch others shake their "groove thing" on Carnival Dream's Carnival Seaside Theatre.  It is a 12'x22' jumbo-sized LED screen with a crystal-clear picture and a 70,000-watt, easy-to-hear sound system. This is one of the innovations on the Dream which sails year-round, from beautiful Galveston, TX to the exotic Eastern and Western Caribbean.

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Fun Photo Journal of Norwegian Epic in Costa Maya

Photo Journaling
Your Cruise Vacation

Norwegian Epic

Costa Maya,

Mexico

Here I am in Costa Maya, Mexico, posing in front of Norwegian Epic.   Without any words being spoken, you can tell that I'm enjoying myself..   You can also see that it is sunny since my glasses have turned dark.

In the picture to the right, passengers are being taken from the ship by tram to the end of the pier where the resort is located.  The resort includes an administration building, several bars, swimming pool, beach, and souvenir shops.

Your Cruise in Pictures

Telling a story through pictures is known as photo journaling.  A cruise vacation provides many opportunities for story telling.  We join this photo journal in the port of Costa Maya, Mexico.   To tell this story, we begin with arrival in the port and continue with activities, the people, and the sights.

To add interest to the story, we have chosen to apply borders and effects to the images.   Thanks to the digital age, modifications to photos can be accomplished in the digital darkroom using Adobe Photoshop or other photo editing software.

The Plugin Site  offers various resources for Photoshop, Lightroom, Photoshop Elements, Paint Shop Pro, Photo-Paint, After Effects, Premiere and other applications.  We utilized effects from Edge & Frame Galaxy, Harry's Edges, and Harry's Actions in these images.

Arriving at the Costa Maya resort, the first building you see is the administration center.  You can obtain information, brochures, and obtain phone cards if you need to phone home.

To add interest to this photo, we have applied "Waterpaint3" effect to the image. The edge covers a portion of the image framing the photo and helping to call attention to the main focal point.

Costa Maya Resort is Colorful

Explore the many shops at your leisure, looking for local souvenirs.   Wear your swimming wear and you can pause for a dip in the pool.   Swim up to the bar if you like and enjoy your favorite beverage, or simply lounge on one of the chairs that line the pool area.

This photo was enhanced by applying the "Torn1" edge using Photoshop 6.0.

Colorful buildings and souvenirs can become more interesting when they are distorted.   Compare the original photos to their modifications.  Would you be able to determine what the original picture looked like?    We applied a Photoshop action which twirled the images to create these new images.

We applied a texture effect in the following two images.  The image on the left is an archway which we have framed with the "door5" effect.   The local liquor store becomes more interesting after the "canvas10" effect was applied.

These digital effects can be easily applied to your favorite cruise vacation photos to assist in developing a fun photo journal to share with family and friends.  You are only limited by your imagination.

Double the Fun

In this final image, we've used a Photoshop action which we found on About.com's Graphic Software pages.   The action was part of Sue's Symmetry Action collection.  The tool actually applied both vertical and horizontal symmetry to the original photo, but we then cropped the picture in half.   At first glance you might think this was an actual panoramic picture, but look closely.

Hopefully this gives you some ideas on how to take your digital images, which to some might be pretty boring, and breathe new life into them creating an intriguing photo journal.   Have fun creating your documentary of your next cruise vacation.

Princess Galveston Deployment 2012-13

Galveston, TX - Sea Wall

More Ships Sailing 

From Galveston

2012-13
Caribbean Season

Princess Cruises announced that for the first time since 2007, they will be returning to Galveston, Texas sailing Western Caribbean Itineraries.

Crown Princess  will offer 19 departures from Galveston between December 22, 2012 and April 27, 2013. The seven-day R/T Western Caribbean itinerary includes ports of call at Costa Maya, Mexico; Roatan, Honduras; Belize City, Belize; and Cozumel, Mexico.

The 113,700 GT Crown Princess has a passenger capacity of 3,070 and offers many signature features including a piazza-style atrium with International Café and Vines wine bar; the 300-square-foot Movies Under the Stars poolside theater; The Sanctuary, an adults-only "oasis of tranquility"; and a variety of dining, recreation and entertainment options. 

The addition of Crown Princess to Galveston, TX will add additional passenger capacity to a growing market amongst one of the 23 U.S.  home-port options for cruise passengers.   Galveston's famous Sea Wall is a great place to take a stroll, shop among the seaside shops, dine at one of the popular seafood restaurants, or relax in your hotel before your cruise.

Princess Executives & Galveston Officials Comment

"We've received a great deal of feedback from cruisers interested in sailing from Galveston again," said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises executive vice president. "So we're excited to be returning in 2012 to bring our Western Caribbean sailings back to Texas."

"Welcoming back Princess Cruises and hosting Crown Princess is a great addition to the Texas cruise market. We're excited that the return of Princess Cruises will offer our passengers additional options of cruise vacations sailing from Texas' premiere cruise port," said Steven M. Cernak, Galveston port director. 

The remainder of the Princess Cruises Caribbean schedule will be announced later this month. We will bring you additional information about their schedules, as well as those for the other cruise lines.