KAREN & BUZZ - Cruise Connection

Aloha Fellow Cruisers….                           

Halloween 2014 - Royal Princess

We are so excited to be boarding the Ruby Princess with all of you next October for Roger and Dianaʼs 25th Anniversary Renewal Vows Cruise and Celebration. It has truly been a great....Wait.......did they say 25 years??? How the heck? Impossible....that canʼt be true....tell me we arenʼt all 25 years older already!! OMG ...Well, I was about to say it has truly been a great time being on this journey with Roger and Diana...from the original vows to each of the 5 year renewals (we have done them all), and all the events they have hosted in between (lost count they are such party people). And yes, it doesn't seem possible that 25 years have gone by, but I guess the calendar (or mirror) doesn't lie.

For Buzz and me, one of the best parts of knowing Roger and Diana is having met all of you! We may have introduced them to cruising back in 1992, but they have introduced us to most of you over the years and we are so grateful. We have loved being with you on cruises, joining you on motorcycle caravans (Duane, Linda, Rod and Jenny), for extravaganzas, celebrating weddings, birthdays, babies...all of lifeʼs moments. Thank you for your friendship over these past....dang it , how did they go so fast...25 years! Yes, Roger actually opened his wallet for the first cruise in 1992 (talk about a big gulp) when I insisted he needed to take Diana on a cruise with us. And Diana was pretty much hooked from the first moment. Since I worked for Roger at the time, I knew what I was in for (ask Marty, Stella, Ross, Jim, Jan or Jo Mary if you need more info), but I didn't know it would be the start of many such fabulous journeys. Over the years we have been to so many wonderful places and as most of you know, Diana has been the instigator of many of those adventures (a la Alex - thank you). Cruising has allowed us to see so many cities and countries we would likely never see.

Though itʼs generally only a one day visit, if you research the area or use the shipʼs tours, you really get a great picture of the people and surroundings of any port. Coming “back home” after a day of sight seeing is a wonderful way to unwind and reflect on your explorations. Joining your friends for a cocktail, some sun or game of cards on deck, just the best! Donʼt forget the ship has a lot of activities on the Sea Days for you to enjoy, too. We had a premium Italian wine tasting on our last cruise that was delicious (Rocky, Sara and Holly)! The Spa Queen, Peggy, will attest to those services Iʼm sure as well.The Art Auctions are a hoot and you might even get a great deal on a new work of art for your home. Donʼt get me started on the food, but Roger will tell you it abounds 24/7 and is some of the best at sea (just not Tedʼs special culinary fare).

In addition to our love for cruising (Buzz and I will be on Princess #16 this cruise, 20 overall), we also love Hawaii just as much..Maui in particular. The Islands have always been a special place for us and the people are what make them extra special. Those of you who have been, you know exactly what we mean and those who will be seeing them for the first time you will understand very soon. There are no people more welcoming than the Hawaiians - aloha spirit prevails everywhere - and few places on earth as beautiful and pristine. We cannot wait to be there again.

Diana welcomed you all to sign up for the cruise with E Komo Mai - Welcome! You all know that Aloha is Hello as well as Goodbye, but did you know that Mahalo is Thank You? If you need a restroom you might see Kane (cahn nee) for Men or Wahine (wa heen ay) for Women on the door. If someone tells you itʼs Makai thatʼs the water side of the road - Mauka is the inland side. Maui is (or any of the islands) No Ka Oi - the Best. When we are lifting our glasses to toast the happy couple we should say Okole Maluna (o ko lay ma luna) for Bottoms Up. The language is beautiful and melodic. The Aʼs sound like Ah and the Eʼs sound like Aʼs. The Iʼs are pronounced like E and the U sounds like “you” without the y. It can be a challenge when you see a word like humuhumunukunukuapuaʼ a - the state fish, but as in all travel adventures, an Aloha, a smile and Mahalo go a long way.

Itʼs especially wonderful to see the family joining us, Reagan, Fumi, Sue and Jim, plus dear friends from Sonoma (Sean, Andrea, Andre, Gary - we owe you a drink) - so glad you are coming, too! To you Sonoma pals, work pals and the pals we will meet or weʼve known for those 25+ years...YAY!!

With All of You, the Islands and the fun of being together in mind, let me just say A Hui Ho - till we meet again. So happy you are on board and canʼt wait to see you.
Aloha,
Buzz and Karen Vaughn 

IMPORTANT: Another Sign-Up Opportunity - February 2 to 6th!

Another special $100 deposit opportunity just for our group.
Monday, February 2, 2015
to
Friday, February 6, 2015

CALL ALEX

9am to 5pm  

Innovative Travel Planner
Phone 949-756-3223

For those on the fence trying to decide…Trying my best here to remind you to sign-up and take advantage of this promotional opportunity. It truly is a deal, pay $100 per person or even $200 a stateroom and work on getting a cabin mate before the cruise balance is due. Or miss this deal and have to pay Princess cruises 20 % of the total cruise fare for a deposit? This means taking it away from YOUR savings account and loose the interests, hmmm... How hard is this decision really, my fellow potential cruiser?  

Give Alex a call and use your credit card, preferably the one that you can get points on for your payback and make this deposit. You only have this designated 
week of February 2nd to the 6th. 
So don’t delay.

Alex is available Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. If she is not answering her phone..please leave her a message and your phone number. She will get back to you! It’s that easy...once you do this, you now can breath and relax ...you have time to make your other decisions, now who would you want to share this fun getaway with, hmmm or consider a solo vacaaaaay... call Alex now!

ALEX & TED - Cruise Connection

Hi Everyone,

My name is Alex Kuncio and my husband is Ted Rodriguez.  I also answer to A Rod and he will also answer to Mr. Kuncio.  I have been Diana’s and Roger’s travel agent for over 10 years…..and SURVIVED!!  I was interviewed by Diana and Roger many moons ago and after undergoing a forensic inspection of my abilities….I was initiated into the group.  Life as I knew it was no longer…..emails from Diana at 2am…”I just had a couple of questions concerning……. 2 pages later……  You all know what I’m talking about.  Diana is the most thorough and detailed person ALIVE!!!  And that is only 1% of what I love about her.  Diana and Roger both are generous, warm and giving to a fault.  The rest of the group moves along those same lines…caring and kind with threads of a sick sense of humor….I won’t mention any names.  This makes for a uniquely special group dynamic that just WORKS.  Not sure why…but it works……………. 

Ted and I had the honor of being in Cancun at the last renewal in 2010.  What a beautiful event and location.  A trip to remember to be sure but more than a great destination, it’s about the people who attended that made it an unforgettable experience.  My favorite part of being with the group is the nonstop laughter that surrounds us whenever we congregate.  It starts with our first get together and doesn’t stop until our final disembarkation.  What makes cruising so perfect for this group is how it allows each and everyone of us to fill our days as we wish….no pressure to join activities that others find enjoyable but we don't….it’s the freedom to do what we want.  That could be a hot stone massage; a game of Bingo, a cooking demo, taking a dancing lesson, joining a wine tasting or just ordering room service to your stateroom to relax.

Ted & I have cruised more times than we care to admit to (least you figure out our age!) and enjoyed exotic destinations experiences such as dancing in the ballroom of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg; riding a camel at the Pyramids in Egypt;  hearing the call to prayer while walking the streets of Istanbul, Turkey;  shopping for end of season jewelry bargains on the island of Mykonos, Greece;  skinny dipping in the Red Sea under  a full moon….oh, sorry, wrong story,  this was exotic destinations not erotic….guess that leaves Rio de Janeiro out too!  Anyway, you get the picture…..Spending your days doing whatever your heart desires, spending your evenings with friends and sharing your stories of adventures.  All this without the hassle of having to pack and unpack at a different hotel every couple of days.  Doesn’t get any better than that!  This is what I most enjoy about being a travel agent….fulfilling people’s dreams.   Ted and my perfect dream experience would be waking up in the morning and stepping out onto our balcony to feel the warm ocean breeze on our face, having that perfect cup of coffee with a delicious croissant while being able to smell the ocean.  Next I would go to a Zumba class and Ted would RUN to catch that SPIN class before we meet and try to decide where to eat lunch….the pizzeria (always my favorite) or the British Pub!  After all this hard work…I need a massage which does not appeal to Ted so he would attend a lecture on “How to boil water without burning yourself”.  I enjoy dressing up so allowing myself the luxury of a leisurely pace to get ready to meet the group for our favorite cocktails….I like my Vodka Martini with olives and Ted stays true to wine…whatever color.  Now the hard part….what to order for dinner?  That is typically the biggest challenge of the day.  Escargot to start is always good, with a Caesar Salad, maybe some soup de jour and being carnivores….we like our meat!  Dessert is a must for Ted and if it’s not chocolate….it’s not dessert or worthy of being called dessert in”The World According to Ted”.  I can easily skip dessert and have another steak:-)  We have been to Hawaii many times but have never cruised there before.  Ted has always wanted to sail there on his own sailboat so hopefully I’m off the hook with this cruise!  Ted’s favorite island is the big island of Hawaii where he worked as a camp counselor in his late teens.  Picking a favorite for me is difficult…I have wonderful memories from each and every island, Diamond Head in Honolulu is stunning, the charming whaling village of Lahaina on Maui is where we bought a piece of artwork that still hangs in our dining room, and the beautiful lush landscape of Kauai is unforgettable.  The people are kind and warm and the water is so blue…..I love it!  Leaving Hawaii is always difficult but being able to slowly acclimate back into LA life is much easier on a cruise rather than having to hassle with the airlines.  I can also bring back some extra goodies since I won’t be flying….oh boy!!!!  I wonder if they have any whale bones there to match the one we got in Mexico!  I won’t have to limit myself to size….this is always dangerous!  Well, I feel as if I’ve taken a stroll down memory lane and now want to jump onto a ship…no matter where it’s going…there’s always an adventure to be had.

We’re looking forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones.

Warmest regards,

Alex & Ted

Innovative Travel Planner

Charting Our Introductory Course...CRUISE CONNECTION SERIES

Wanted to let everyone know that I had sent out an email invitation to all our our cruiser group members who have come aboard and deposited. So please check your inbox.

CRUISE CONNECTION SERIES is in it’s second running as we are now onto making a tradition of our group cruises to have our cruisers introduce themselves through our group cruise blog. Hey, what can I say it’s a technological world, right? Which by the way, did you know we have a cruiser among us who took all of the cruiser photos from the Cruise Connection articles and printed them with their names so ‘HE’ would know the cruisers first hand upon boarding. Can you guess who? No he is not a part of the Princess Cruise Security Crew... c’mon aboard and meet Roger and I on deck for a Bon Voyage Sail off and we will let you know who....

I have asked our cruise writers to include their name and also their affiliation with Roger and Diana. What can I say, it is our 25th Anniversary Cruise and we are here to have some fun together right? So seem only fitting to start with how do you know us?

Topic is of course about cruising, fun, friends and about all the moments and memories we hope to create and experience. Some may choose to just do a couple of short paragraphs (not everyone talks a lot) and others may want to write a novella (some enjoy sharing & having fun, okay!). But for the most part, it is in the hands of the writer and all I’m asking is for the writer to be nice, especially when you are writing about someone (you did remember what your Mom taught you?). And of course keeping it clean so I don’t loose my blog on Google Blogspot (did you read this Roger, keep it ‘Clean’ and at least PG). 

So after I post this article and another helpful hint article to get our guest writers on the road to creativity. I want to give a shout out to our first four guest writers for their Cruise Connections, they are: Alex & Ted, Karen & Buzz, Peggy & Rocky., Angie & Lien.. I have you on my schedule ready for posting. Mahalo Nui Loa for stepping in so quickly and supporting me as you always do...

Looking forward to all our Cruise Connection introductions...thank you so much!

Photo Provided By Chart RTA & Associates

HELP...Where do I look for other Cruise Connection Cruiser Articles ?

I have sent out emails to a number of our cruisers who are already deposited for our 2015 Hawaii Cruise. I have asked them to write an introduction about themselves and as a result some have asked for examples of past cruiser introductions. So hopefully this will assist those inquiry minds... 

Here is a guide to help you check out the past cruiser's intro that past cruisers have created.The article is called CRUISE CONNECTION & their name to follow.

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SIGN IN...just go directly onto the blog and...

Step One: Begin by linking onto:

Roger & Diana's ASIA to ALASKA CRUISE 2013

http://rogerdianaasiatoalaska2013.blogspot.com

Step Two: Look for...

Right-hand side of blog > BLOG ARTICLE ARCHIVE

Step Three: Look for.... 

2013

01/27-02/03

02/03 -02/10

02/17-02/24 

02/24-03/03 ALEX & TED, ROGER, DIANA

2012 

12/09-12/16 ROCKY & PEGGY

11/25-12/02

11/11-11/18 STELLA

10/28-11/04 KAREN & BUZZ

10/21-10/28 JO MARY & MICHAEL & Diana's Intro

Step Four....

You can click onto any of the dates listed and you should see a CRUISE CONNECTION article with a name following. I noted a few individuals that will be joining us on our Hawaii Cruise next to the date.

These are articles that our Asia Cruisers wrote...are examples and can be used as a guide, just in case you need some format or ideas. But hey, be creative and do your own thing. Appreciate your help and looking forward to getting to know you even more! MAHALO, Diana

February 2 to 6, 2015 ...Another Opportunity to C’mon Aboard

This is to announce that there will be another $100 Deposit Sign-Up promotion for the upcoming week of Monday February 2 through Friday February 6, 2015 for the Roger and Diana's 25th Anniversary Renewal to the Hawaiian Islands. Round Trip from the Port of Los Angeles on the Ruby Princess for a 15 day cruise. 

Please contact our travel agent Alex Kuncio during this week... 9am to 5pm, leave a message with your phone number if she is unavailable to talk to you directly. If you will not be available during this promo week, please feel free to contact her in advance so that she can assist you and be prepared to place your deposit during this specified time period. 

Again, this is a special promotion for our group only. Alex can assist you with any specific questions. However, it would be helpful to have your stateroom category available for her. You can check out our cruise blog article at: 

http://rogerdiana25thanniversarycruise.blogspot.com/2014/10/im-cmon-on-board-now-what.html 

to get you thinking or speak directly to Alex to answer your questions.

Again here's another chance to save your dollars in your hand (and Savings Account) and just sign up with a $100 per person deposit or $200 per stateroom to secure a guaranteed spot to fun...hope to see your name on our group cruise roster soon!

Join Us? Hope so! 
Diana & Roger

    

Happy 2015…We're back!

Wow 2015! Can you believe it’s already been three months since I’ve launched this cruise blog for our group. Time does fly! But Roger and I are very excited for the arrival of the 2015 year.

In the upcoming months, I will be introducing our cruisers as well as offering some helpful information about our cruise and it’s lifestyle. If you have a special request or interests please feel free to drop a note or call out my way so I can get an answer out to you and perhaps even share this bit of information out to everyone else on board if it can help them with their cruise planning.

To keep you connected please check out the following article and submit your email address. I do think this is a very helpful tool.

Happy 2015 and looking forward to having you on board.

   

Follow By Email

We all seem to have full lives, ever so busy with not enough hours in the day and inundated daily with things to do, task & chores, demands and responsibilities...it just never seems to end! But, you're going on a cruise and this means you need to know the details, information and deadlines!

Our Hawaiian Island Cruise Blog will be the central information tool that I will be using to disseminate all the information to assist you with  your cruise. So please stay with me for a bit more and follow this helpful tip that you might want to seriously consider incorporating in your planning so that you can save time and still keep you connected without needing to check the cruise blog for information. Now take a breath and check it out --- It's not hard, really!

Located on the Cruise Blog, left hand side, under our opening welcome remark “Hope to see You on Deck...”  and above the “Look who’s Coming on Board the Ruby Princess with Roger & Diana...". There is a white box with Email address noted.. and a submit button, just right of that. Do you see it? Simply, Enter your email address in the white box...keep looking, can you see it now? Now Click the Submit button. Then a window will pop open to have you verify your action. Type in the symbolic alphabet/numerical script that is shown and then click the "Complete Subscription Request". Can’t get the notation, try guessing and if you guess wrong, it will give you another code. So don't fret. Next you will have to go to your Email In Box and reply to with the Feed-burner email & confirmation that you want this subscription. Once you link on, the next posted blog article or posted comment will be sent directly to your noted email account. This convenience will allow you to not have to link on the blog website each and every time to see if anything new has been added. Thereby of course, giving you more time to handle your day to day business or simply to take a moment for yourself! 

Oh, and you can always unsubscribe as well. So no need to feel trapped. Just check out the bottom of the article that gets sent to you. There is a highlighted unsubscribe, that you can click onto to delete this service.

Please note that this tool does not send you articles and comments that have already been posted prior to you subscribing. So scroll down and check out the other articles including clicking the “Older Posts” note on the last article, on the lower right hand side so that it will update you to the full cruise blog. If you still can't get what I am saying...email or call me and we'll walk it through it together. You're gonna love the convenience. Now give it a try!