Showing posts with label PDA Pajama Jam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PDA Pajama Jam. Show all posts

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Favorite Quotes from 2011

Time to bring back good memories with some of my favorite quotes from the cruise. I'll let the Backstreet Boys speak for themselves for this post.

Sail Away
Howie- "We're gonna get our drink on, our groove on, and our party on."

Howie- "Are you going to pole dance again?"

Nick- "I love to see AJ in tights. Its really sexy."
AJ- "Im anxious to see me in tights as well."
Nick- "His junk hangs out. Its scary.
AJ- "I'm not ashamed to put a sock in there at all."
Nick- "No a banana! Is that a banana in your pocket AJ?"

Nick- "How many bad girls we got on this cruise? Oh you better represent girlfriend."
Howie- I'm a Puerto Rican fly."

Howie- "I'm Britney bitch!"

AJ- "I wanna take you way back."
Nick- "If you keep bringing me that far, I might not be born."

Nick- "If Weird Al had a version of our song... That's the way I wipe it"
In it to Win It Group A
Howie- "That's full service management right there."

Howie- "I just had some bean soup, so sorry."

Nick- "These freakin hula hoops don't hula."

Nick- "No one trusts me, right, because I'm the youngest. What the hell?"

AJ- "No one better have gas."

Nick- "Howie got back."

Howie- "I get paid to show my junk in my trunk."

Nick- "There's nothing clean about this show"

In it to Win It Group B
AJ- “Its like jazzercise with the Backstreet Boys."

Nick- “Hey, team pee pee because of the yellow shirts. You guys are so dead.”
AJ- “Team blue balls. Whatever. Its all good. We got this.”
Nick- “Hey at least we got the cajones man.”
Brian- “You know what... My wife is here.”

AJ- “I was going to say something but I kind of feel like Lindsay Lohan.” (With his legs tied up)

Nick- “That’s a little premature over there coming from some blue balls.”

Howie- “Wait, my nose never gets between balls. That’s for sure. AJ, you gotta do it.”

AJ- “I have to say for once, I’m actually glad for once my nose is as big as it is.”

Nick- “Anything to do with balls and moving. We tend to have it.”

Brian- “We played betterly.”

AJ- “Actually in everyone’s defense. We all played it wrong. Seriously we all did. ”
Brian- “AJ, we’re in a boy band, dog."

Nick- “That’s like a Florida vote.”

Nick- “Can someone tell me how the hell we were supposed to play that game?”

Howie- “I got a get out of jail free card. I got a threesome right here… AJ got to watch.”

Brian- “Oh Christmas tree. Oh Christmas tree.”

Nick- “The question is, where’s the mistletoe.”
Beach Party
Nick- “Girl, look at that Kevin”

Kevin- “Sphynkter’s my favorite band.”
Nick- “Yeah, screw the Backstreet Boys.”

Nick- “Say it loud and proud.” (right before the lyric ‘backstreets back alright’)

Howie- “I had one too many bahama mamas that night and things haven’t changed since then.”
 
Kevin- “Was Howie a good boy last night?”
Fans- “Noooo!”
Howie- “Oh no you didn’t!”
Nick- “I have a question."
Howie- "You said you had too many bahama mamas, or too many bahama mamas?”

AJ- “We’ve got twister…we got limbo, see how much you guys can be flexible, we have magical chairs, duck duck goose- duck duck goose, what are we 4?”

Howie- “Have you guys been drinking? It’s really bad you shouldn’t do that.”

Nick- “There’s a cruise right next to us. ZZ Top is on that boat. I might have to say goodbye and we’ll go hang out with some long-bearded old guys. I’ll bring Kevin with me and we’ll get a free pass.”

Kevin (laughing at AJ)- “Dude, its not the last one to sit, it’s the one that doesn’t have a chair.”

AJ- “I'm surprisingly good at this.” (referring to musical chairs)

Nick- “Just don’t sit in my lap AJ.”
AJ- “Are you excited?”

Brian- “Just remember to respect your elders.”

Howie- “I’m getting some ideas of some positions.”

Howie- “Nick that’s a compromising position. We should renegotiate our contracts right now.”

Howie- “Nick’s got the happiest face I’ve seen in a while.” (While playing twister)

AJ- “That’s what the Backstreet boys are supposed to sound like” (Upon singing with Kev)

Concert (Group B)
Howie- "All i can say, you girls want some bad bad boys."

Nick- "I'm in the middle of the song trying to sing and Josh is going 'Tag, tag, tag'. Tie? I dont have a tie on."

AJ- "But now that he took the tag off, it's now Nick's personal wardrobe."

Brian- "Can you turn me down a little bit in my ears because I'm killing myself. It doesn't sound good."

Brian's guitarist- "Hello"
Brian- "That was sexy. Do you want to be in a boy band."

Nick- "See that's what happens we mess up."


Brian- "See I can't read this."
Howie- "Nick, did you tear that up."
Nick- "Yeah I did that on purpose"
AJ (to Nick)- "You almost got in trouble with the Japanese Mafia...I got chased down by the cops. It was fun."
Nick- "It was awesome"

Nick- "I was eating this barbequed eel and it was the grossest stuff I ever had in my life. I wouldn't recommend it."
AJ- "But you still ate it didn't you?"
Nick- "I had to because it was on camera. You can't turn it down"

Nick- "I was thinking that. Next cruise, when you guys do the next cruise. Why don't we do Backstreet Fear Factor?"

Brian- "I'm a business man just like all 3 of the other guys, and when you think about holidays, and schedules, and gifts, and trimming the trees, and traveling home....doesn't it make sense to do it in the summer time when you have a little bit of time off. That's just me be being I cant say ecofriendly, thats not the right term. Economical friendly."

Brian (imitating fan)- "Thank you. God bless you. Because my pockets are empty. I have my room key and some chapstick."

Howie- "This is really unplugged."

Nick- "Can I be honest? We woke up a little late because we partied really freakin hard last night with you guys."
Nick- "Can we get a get out of jail free card, please?"

Brian- "Can we do the little boy band thing where we shake our butts?"

Nick (On IWITW)- "Which version? we've got like 3 versions"

AJ- "Dude, we're backstreet boys. We're like chameleons. We can make this happen man."

Brian- "Listen, we were like superheroes once in life."
AJ- "Superheroes who ate burgers."

AJ- "Howie doesn't get a mic stand."

Nick- "I forgot where I was."
Howie- "You're on a boat."

AJ- "No, no, no. Can we do the song that should've been the single? And the only reason why it wasn't was because you called TRL. Your fault"
Nick- "Do you understand the concept of TRL? Its voting. THEY voted for it.
AJ- "No I know it. Carson called me personally."

AJ- "Ladies, ladies, I dont know about you ladies, but I am Burning Up. I'm on fire. Nice segue."
Nick- "Just start the freakin song."
AJ- "You know what, I love you too"

Prom Night
Kev- “I wasn’t very creative.”

Howie- “He’s a used car salesman.”

Nick- “We’re adults now I can see things now like shit. Back in the day we would’ve gotten in trouble and I would’ve been spanked.”

Nick (to Howie)- “I don’t love you, I love Lloyd.”

AJ- “I'm the last one to know but I still know it all.”

Nick- “See I think it’s better to do the Perfect Fan versus that song that AJ used to grind to on the stage.”
AJ- “That’s not a prom song.”
AJ- “I was 15 when we cut that. What do I know about sex at 15?”
Howie- “You had no business humping that stage.”

Nick- “I wouldn’t recommend this anybody. I’m sorry. They’re still doing it. You look like cattle…May as well call that the sheep dance.”

Kevin- “I feel like I’m at a wedding reception where everybody just goes buck wild.”

Karaoke
Howie- “Did you guys have fun last night? I know I sure did. Til 6 in the morning.”

Brian- “I was always Sporty!”
Nick- “Howie knew Baby really well.”
AJ- “And it will be on twitter tomorrow.”

Nick- “Did you notice the lyrics to that song? If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my FRIENDS. Then slam your body down and wind it all around.”
Howie- “Zig a zig AHH”
Nick- “Whoever wrote that was a perv.”

Nick- “This song has a lot of lyrics in it. It really does. Right about now I could kill Sisqo.”

Brian- “Hey hold on, hold on. Do you guys know I’m divulging in some personal information but AJ had an old girlfriend that actually did that to his truck.”
AJ- “Wait what was that? Did I hear my name?”
Brian- “She dug her knife into his into his seat and 7,000 dollars later. And he didn’t even cheat.”
AJ- “Oh you mean my ex? Yeah she was crazy. But just because of twitter, she was a nice girl most of the time. But she was still crazy.”

AJ- “If ya’ll want to see little AJs running around she can’t be touching those.”

Nick (referring to the song Before he Cheats) “Girls don’t be mad but I don’t think guys really like listening to that song. It kind of makes them uncomfortable.”

Nick- “Who wants to get wet with Backstreet?”

Howie- “That gave a whole new meaning to my chapstick. I can put it on so much. 100 kisses. It’s got a whole new thought in my mind now. Oh I’m lathering it up tonight.”
Brian- “100 chapsticks girl”

AJ- “Who’s ready for the pajama party?”
Howie- “Make sure to wear your thongs.”
AJ- “I hope you guys brought some nice and sexy pajamas. Ours might not be that sexy but we do have pajamas.”
Nick- “Mine is cute.”
AJ- “Mine has big feet. Seriously.”
Howie- “Mine is easy to get in and out of.”
Nick- “Are you going in your birthday suit?”
AJ- “Uh no. That was the last cruise. Not this cruise.”
Nick- “I dare you to just go in underwear. Just straight underwear.”


Nick- “Do you guys like how dirty the Backstreet Boys have become?”|
AJ- “We have to we’re getting older. That’s what happens with age."
Howie- “It’s called the dirty thirties.”
AJ- “But for you guys its almost dirty forties.”
Brian- “I know you look up to me all the time.”
AJ- “Actually we’re a little taller but still.”

Nick- “Even Brian’s dirty. What the hell is going on?”
Howie- “See what the boat does to you. The boat brings out the dirtiness.”
AJ- “Howie is the dirtiest of all.”
Howie- “What are you talking about? It’s just because I’m Latin. I can’t help it. I have hair all over my body on places it shouldn’t be.”
AJ- “He’ll be talking to you telling you a whole serious talk and his hips will just go.”

Brian- “Can we do a bigger boat?…. She’s like ‘No’ “
Howie- “You want it small and intimate. Like AJ.”
AJ- “Whaaat. Damn this is like the full backstreet boy roast.”
Nick- “Its just because you’re getting married we have to roast you now.”
Howie- “She’s going to roast your nuts.”
AJ- “Really? Damn.”
Nick- “We could make hundreds of dollars of jokes on this cruise.”
Howie- “I'm the king of one liners."
Nick- “Chestnuts roasting on Rochelle’s dinner plate.”

Brian- “Thanks for staying out in the rain with us. It was kind of like the Quit Playing Games video. Its kind of like Howie when he jumped off the stage.”
Howie- “That was when I had a 6 pack. Now I got a 1 pack.”

PJ Night
AJ- “On behalf of myself and my brothers we want to say thank you guys for an amazing cruise. Its been better than the first cruise. We had the best time with all you guys.”

Nick- “Just so you know its past my bed time. And I’ll probably get in a lot of trouble for the things I’m gonna be doing tonight. So I might get a spanking if you want to spank me. Just be nice cause my bum is like really pale.”

Nick (after his voice cracks)- “Does anyone else got this shit going on with their voice? No its not just us, right. You ever hear of people getting sick on a cruise ship so you can be like ‘Yeah I got sick from a fuckin backstreet boy.' You can blame it on us.”

AJ- “We have one last event to end this cruise on a good night. We’re going to play, I cant believe this, truth or dare. So this could be your one and only chance if you get a truth to ask us anything you really don’t already know.”
Brian- “Why wouldn’t you chose dare, AJ”
AJ- “Well, I don’t want to get in trouble.”
Nick- “I say we make a rule. None of us can choose truth. We can only choose dare.”
Aj- “But what if the truth question is really gritty. Like really gritty”
Nick- “I don’t know. Seeing you do some stuff like walking down the hall with your pants down would be pretty funny, AJ”
AJ- “But that’s like a Tuesday afternoon for me.”

AJ-“What do you really really really want to know about the Backstreet Boys. I mean really want to know”
Nick (mocking fans)- “What’s your favorite position?”

Howie- “Protect ya tings. Use a rubber every time.”

AJ (while Brian’s body surfing) “Now that's the definition of a true rock star right there”

Nick- “Hold him up girls.”

AJ- “Boys, boys, boys”
Howie- “AJ, AJ, AJ”

AJ- “First of all, how fucking cool was that? Brian crowd surfing. Never in the last 19 years did I ever think that I would see that.”

AJ- “I feel like Joey Tribbiani right now. How you doin?”

Brian- “I’m not going to fall in a mud puddle.”

Brian- “Im playing by the rules. Normally I cheat”

AJ- “He needs rhythm for a white boy.”

Brian- “Suck it Howie.”

Nick- “I just want to get mine over with please. I don’t want to do this. I'm sure I’m going to get the worst.”

AJ- “Oh my god. That’s my mom’s name. You kissed my mom?! Oh shit.”

AJ- “Where do you think I got it from?”
Nick- “Where you’d get what? Wearing ladies clothes.”
AJ- “Why are you asking me?”
Nick- “Because you wear girls clothes sometimes.”
AJ- “So? Don’t be jealous. I’m just better.”
Nick- “I am jealous.”

Nick (Talking to Jen about Howie)- “Why are you doing that? You are protecting him? Don’t you protect him. Favoritism!”

Nick- “No no no no no no. Can we add to that? He has to have sex with a pillow?”

Nick- “What’s your poison?”
Howie- “Unfortunately everything.”

Brian- “Hey we could be the kissing cousins. I could make out with him.”

AJ- “Howie’s gotta do it on the bar. And Howie, lay the pillow down on the bar. The ladies want to see you work those hips on the bar.”

Howie- “This is definitely different than doing the centipede.”

AJ- “I'm so glad this wasn’t my dare” (referring to Howie's dare)

Howie- “Okay shut all your cameras off”

AJ- “I want you to go back to when you lost your virginity, Howie. That’s what that pillow is.”

Howie- “Don't tell me how to make love to my woman!"

AJ- “Lay her down. Lay her down. Be gentle Howie. There you go. Spank her ass. Howie, spank her ass. There you go! Good boy. Now give her a big kiss. That’s what these girls want to see. C’mon Howie, show that pillow what you’re made of. Pump howie pump. Pump. Pump. Pump. Pump.”

Nick- “Howie, get on the ground with that thing. Go doggie style. Get on your knees homes.”

Nick- “That’s not how he normally does it. Trust me.”

AJ- “In my defense, I really do have to pee so be gentle. If you tickle me too much, it could get really gross.”

Nick- “Go for his knees”

Howie (sung to wiggle wiggle wiggle)- “Tickle, tickle, tickle”

Nick- “I’m not massaging you AJ, what’s wrong with you?”

AJ- “Ladies, ladies. To make it more fun, Nick has to lie on his stomach. Massage his butt. He likes that. Really get in there. He likes his butt massaged.”

Nick- “Honestly, I kinda liked it.”

Howie- “Does anyone have a belt?”

Brian- “Wait, how old are you? Like 12… She looks really young.”
AJ- “How old is she?”
Brian- “She’s 19”
AJ- “So she’s legal. Go for it.”

AJ- “Please please spank it Howie. Please, please spank it harder. Please smack my butt.”

Nick- “The principals are calling you. Calling AJ and Brian. AJ, faster. Run.”

Nick- “I love you too. Even though I don’t know you. I still love you.”

Nick- “Sexy dog? Like dog? Ruff ruff.”

AJ- “We want to have a little pillow fight with you guys.”

AJ- “Are any of you ladies hooooorny? Howie’s horny."

AJ- “I’ll never let go, Nick. I’ll never let go.”
Nick- “OK, you can let go.”

Saturday, April 7, 2012

My Routine for General Admission Events

In case my last post didn't give you enough info on how to approach a GA on board, I'll go through my experiences and my overall observations with the general admission events on the cruise.

My Experience with GA Events

So I lucked out right off the bat and had front row for the sail away party. I maybe only put in 30-40 minutes of waiting and it paid off tremendously. It was great to be up front and be super close to the boys, but along with that came all the negatives of a GA event. Was it worth it? Absolutely. But because I was up close for that event, I didn't worry too much about it for the remainder of the trip. My general mindset was that I knew I couldn't be front row for everything, so don't stress myself out over it.

For the theme nights, it varied every day. For 2 of the nights, they had a concert right before the deck party. So I knew if I did go up early to wait, it would be a while before the boys showed up to either of those deck parties. I also went in with the mindset that it was more important for me to be up close for prom night because I figured it might increase my odds of getting picked for prom queen. However that proved to be moot. I would later realize PJ night was the key night to be up close. But these are things no one really knows until you get there, so as much planning as I did, it didn't really matter. I personally didn't show up very early to any of the deck parties just because of the nature of the events and the schedule. There's not really a "performance" where its key to be up front. Its more about just being there. Hopefully that makes sense.

The Beach Party was an event that most closely resembled your normal GA event because there was 1 main stage and a lot of waiting. By the time my bus dropped me off, there was already a massive crowd in front of the stage. Thus it made sense for me not to stand around for hours in the back of a crowd. I may have changed my mind if there were only 1 or 2 rows of people in front of me when i got there. However it worked out well because I was able to relax on the beach and get some lunch. I also had a fantastic view in the back anyway, so it didnt make much of a difference. The boys also moved around a lot and crowds shifted with them. It worked out in the end and I had a front row at one brief point and was able to snag a picture with Brian. No complaints here at all with this event and I didn't have to stand and wait at all.

Karaoke was the last general admission event. I did get there semi-early that day because there was more of a "performance" to watch. Maybe 45 minutes early or so? My memory is a little fuzzy, but that sounds about right. However because the boys were elevated on a higher stage, it proved not to make a difference whether or not I was up front.

One other thing that is pseudo-GA is dining. Both in the lido buffet and in the main restaurant. I found the experience to be the worst on 2010 cruise during dinner because all of the boys ate with us and it was a mad dash to be at those tables closest to them. Girls would start lining up over an hour early to get a prime spot. But as with any BSB event, there was cutting in line, pushing, shoving, and trickery to get in. What else is new? Since there wasn't any set schedule or dining room for the boys to eat in 2011, it was a lot more relaxing and not nearly as much waiting. I think people only waited outside because they wanted to eat dinner.

General Observations

Now that you've heard my experiences, I'll back up and speak to my general observations. I personally felt that as the cruise progressed, it got harder and harder to get good spots without putting in some serious time. I felt that as everyone got more acquainted with the cruise and how things were run, you'd see girls camped in front of the stage earlier and earlier. At least that was what I noticed. This was another deterrent for me to get to events too early. I knew I'd be able to see what was going on no matter where I was, even if I didn't get there super early. And for me, I didn't want to spend my whole trip waiting and not enjoying my vacation.

I also didn't think it always made sense to "camp out" for a good spot on the Imagination because of how the deck was set up. There were 2 stages, and the boys utilized both. So I knew if I was in the front for 1 part of the event, I'd be in the back for the rest. Which brings me to my next point. If you're patient, you will have your moment. I seriously can't stress this enough. For most events the boys moved around a lot. Even though you might not be up front in the beginning, doesn't mean you won't be next to them at one point.

I can think of countless instances where this proved to be true for either myself or friends. At the pre-club event I went upstairs just not to be packed in like a sardine. I didn't have to wait long before Nick went upstairs and was 2 feet away from me. *Swoons at the thought* This sort of thing happened a lot. Another example is Brian roamed around the deck at the sail away and even went to the upper deck. I also felt the boys moved around a lot at the beach party. Everyone is able to have a good spot at one point.

Another factor in deciding whether or not to wait around for a GA event is to prepare for the unexpected. There were instances were the staff might tell you the boys will be mainly on 1 stage but in actuality, they were mainly on a different stage. This resulted in some upset fans. Or look at the last night, the event was last minute changed to the main atrium. Had you been waiting up at the pool deck, it wouldn't have mattered.

Last point. I also notice that when you shy back a bit and are away from the massive crowd, it can pay off as well. If you think about it, the boys don't generally stop, take pictures, and talk to people who are in the mosh pit. But I do see them stop if you're maybe on the upper deck or just away from the main crowd in general. That's how I was able to grab my solo picture with Howie and Kev this past trip.

So in conclusion. You'll get to see plenty of BSB no matter where you are. Just be patient.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Your Favorite Memories

You may have noticed that I asked everyone for their favorite memory in my Backstreet Cruisie survey but didn't give any awards for that category. I know I'm being cheesy here, but everyone is a winner! I had so much fun reading everyone's response so I felt it deserved its own separate post.

Here are all of YOUR favorite moments from the cruise. If you didn't get a chance to take the survey or you may have skipped that question, feel free to post your favorite memory in the comments section below or email me and I'll update this post. You can also email me if you want me to link your memory to your blog/twitter/etc. Enjoy!


Chrissy
Brian remembered me during the photo session from the Wylee Party and the Pre-cruise event and called me "Kentucky Girl" as we had been discussing the University of Kentucky at the Wylee party.  I was taken aback when he remembered me.
Anne Marie
Getting a picture with Kevin on prom night.
Erin
I got to swim with Nick in Nassau & got a group hug from him, that was the best.
Anonymous
Every second was so amazing to me! I have so many memories and friendships that I have made that I know will last forever!
Melissa Duncan aka @melissa8313
Nick: running into him in the hallway deck 6 at 330am.  Having a moment with him during 80's night.  "look at that hair,  omg nick,  that's hot,  touches hair,  he grabs my hand...
Brian: talking to him during sail away about nicks pants,  getting him to sign my flag of him,  yelling at fans to get out of the way at the beach party so he could pass.  Watching him be free on pj night,  brian taking my camera and taking a pic of us on 80's night. 
Aj: getting a picture with him o.  80's night when i went in for group photos he says nice to meet u... Im like wtf nice to meet me then i grab his ass.  Lol.  Seeing him in the hallway deck 6 at 6am acting a fool with others.  Grabbing his butt multiple times on pj night and getting a pic.  Lol. 
Kevin : getting a pic with him,  saying ty so many times. 
Howie: pic on 80's night and at the beach.  Enjoying his other side... The machine who parties all the time.  And with nick and aj,  the private conversation on the lido deck that was funny and memorable.

Silvia Machielsen
Meeting Howie at the Bahama's on my Birthday
Venus
Walked up the stairs and saw Nick. I said Hey Nick and he motioned to go give him a hug.
Desiree (SingleMomDes)
At lunch the first day Howie walked past me just as I was starting to eat, I asked for a photo and he said sure and waited patiently with his arm around me as we got my camera turned back on...waited 14yrs for the best photo I took all weekend, I'll always be thankful for that
Melissa
NY best friend Danielle rocking out pinks raise your glass at karoake & being with my BSB fam
Melissa
Getting picked to play truth or dare.
Anonymous
Partying with HOWIE alllllll night!!!
Ashley
Winning door dec!!!!
Chelsea Smith
Being with nick and AJ up on the deck after the pj party. Hearing AJ talk about his wedding, nick (drunkenly lol) talk about his life and about the fans, was just a really special thing to be a part of. It was a smaller group of ppl, everyone put their cameras away, it was just really nice.
Kristen
I have to pick just one? Impossible!
Jennifer Blackwell
I just met brian littrell at the same hotel that i was stay for the night... i met aj mclean at the beach for the first time and they are the best people that i really want to meet for a long time since i was 14 years old... I really want to said thank them to be nice to me to take a pic with me because i was their awesome fan in the world....
Brandy
We randomly ran into Brian twice in the hall...just me, my friend, him and his bodyguard...the night of prom night. It was awesome because he just talked to us for a few minutes without any other fans being around.
Anonymous
Meeting new and other BSB friends.
Natizb
"I just said ""Hi AJ"", and he said ""How you doing sweet"", and my brother recorded!"
Kathryn
Has to be Brian crowd surfing! Right before he started I thought to myself JOKINGLY, "I should touch his butt!" I decided to be good & not grabby though. But lo & behold, that is the part of him that was passed to me! I also ended up holding his legs because NO ONE else around me was. When I couldn't move any further, I had to let go of him & that's when he fell on that girl! I am super glad though that no one around me knew what to do, though! It was so awesome & it made the trip for me!
Cynthia Irani
Being Nick's prom queen.  He made me laugh and it was an amazing experience :-D
Babybsbgrl
Kevin on prom night turning around to take a pic with me specifically! Awesome.
Anonymous
My best memory is Brian crying while singing Mary did you know. I cried too, it was very emotional and a very special moment that I'll remember the rest of my life. Also getting a pic with Nick at the beach party.
Salena
Hanging out on the back of the boat with Nick while he was in his ninja turtle pj's having "deep thoughts" :)
Mascia Cantoni
When i took the pic with him!!! i know, it could look stupid but... it was very important to me!
Tati Brayner from Brazil
Nick  giving me his bottle of water at sail away event. an than coming back just to give me the cap.
Cortney
Having Howie sing Helpless when she smiles to me at group A's concert.
Anonymous
Meeting Kevin, it made the experience of meeting the guys this year complete
Jay
Gosh getting a photo with Kevin <3
Anonymous
DJ Yo-C
Anonymous
Seeing Kevin!!!
Sammi Goff
I got to talk to Brian about how much I wanted his pink shoes, talked to Howie before In It To Win It, talked to Kevin about how awesome I thought it was that he was there, Nick liked my tattoo and remembered it the next day, and got to hug AJ 3 times even though I wad too nervous to have a decent conversation with him. Lol. Oh.. and Brian tried to tackle my friend because we were wearing Colts jerseys hahaha. It was awesome.
Janine
I don't think I can pick just one memory, and there isn't enough space or time to even begin on my favorite parts of the cruise.  :)
Anonymous
Nick and AJ said they liked my t-shirt during the meet & greet/photo session
Bethany Drader
Concert, the boys came up to the second level and each of them held my hand while singing As Long As You Love Me to me!
Anonymous
Seeing the concert first row!!
Gaby Zamudio
I have a lot of memories,HOWIE i signed my t-shirt, Nick and Kevin i was greeted, the last day ran into Nick on the boat and we could talk with him and AJ, Howito took my hand when we ran and good of all i got very good moments, the day of the meet & greet brian approached to greet me was in shock and nervous ... everything was awesome
Anonymous
The best memory certainly when we arrive in the boat ...we were at the bar drinking our first drink of the cruise and Howie just appear behind us ! Alot of girls jump on him ...we just stay there and smile to him ...he smile back and say thank you ....Or at the cameo club AJ kinda remember we were from Montreal and on our way down Leighanna spot us and was so happy to see us ! She wave to us like a crazy loll

Debnick
My best time was just when I met Nick in the elevator .. I did too much fun when I made ​​a funny face for me that I was photographing!

Jennifer Hall
When nick held my hand & was looking right at me while singing. I wanted to melt. Lol
Natalie
As I sat down to think about my favorite moment of the Backstreet Boys cruise, I realized two things. First, it’s hard to choose only one. Second, it’s hard to express in words the excitement you feel every single minute on that boat! If I had to choose one thing though, the highlight would have to be the entire concert. Even though I have seen BSB live multiple times, this was by far the best performance I’ve ever seen from them! And the thing is… they didn’t need fancy choreography, new music, or an expensive set to put on a good show. It was so special to see the boys be themselves onstage, getting emotional, joking around with each other, and forgetting a few lyrics here and there because they were too busy partying with us the night before to rehearse.  Like many fans, I grew up listening to them and seeing them sing “Don’t Want You Back” for the first time in over a decade was a dream come true. AJ and Nick seemed just as excited!  “If You Want It To Be Good Girl”… who would have ever thought we’d get them to perform that one?! Kevin coming onstage to perform “Drowning” at the very end of the show was the icing on the cake! Although there were hundreds to choose from, the shared connection I felt with the boys and my fellow fans in that moment tops everything.

Thank you everyone for sharing your favorite memories!

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

PJ Night Unabridged

These theme parties are a little tougher to do a recap for, but as always, I'll be doing my best to at least hit all the highlights. My personal favorite night was PJ night, so I'm starting there. (Advanced warning- this will be a long one)

The evening started off in a bit of chaos because the location was rerouted to the main atrium as opposed to the lido deck. The crowds quickly formed in order to get a good spot for our last night on the ship with the boys.

Act 1: The Intros
When the Backstreet Boys first came out, I think we all knew this would be a special night to remember. We had Mr. Carter dressed as a Ninja Turtle. AJ was in some sort of odd looking onesie with huge plastic feet. Howie donned a silk robe a la Hugh Hefner. Lastly Brian was clad in a cute Elmo ensemble.

The boys start with their intros. AJ thanks us all for coming and tells us that this cruise was way better than last years. Meanwhile Nick was doing some judo-like movies, completely not paying to attention to AJ...

Nick not paying attention to AJ
Next up was Howie. He also thanked us for coming and said they had an "awesome time." He also made sure to point out that the cruise was far from over and that "we're still drinking and we're going all night long."

Brian was the next one with the mic and he played up his elmo costume a bit by doing a cute elmo voice. Some more talking and he ended with his cute little Brian hip thrust.

Last and most certainly not least was Nick...

Nick- “Just so you know its past my bed time. And I’ll probably get in a lot of trouble for the things I’m gonna be doing tonight. So I might get a spanking if you want to spank me. Just be nice cause my bum is like really pale.”
Nick (voice cracking) “Does anyone else got this shit going on with their voice? No its not just us, right. You ever hear of people getting sick on a cruise ship so you can be like ‘Yeah I got sick from a fuckin backstreet boy. You can blame it on us.”
After the boys danced around a bit to Straight Through My Heart, AJ announces that they will have one last event for us. Truth or Dare.

Credit- Justin Segura
AJ- “We have one last event to end this cruise on a good night. We’re going to play, I cant believe this, truth or dare. So this could be your one and only chance if you get a truth to ask us anything you really don’t already know.”
Brian- “Why wouldn’t you chose dare, AJ”
AJ- “Well, I don’t want to get in trouble.”
Nick- “I say we make a rule. None of us can choose truth. We can only choose dare.”
AJ- “But what if the truth question is really gritty. Like really gritty.”
Nick- “I don’t know. Seeing you do some stuff like walking down the hall with your pants down would be pretty funny, AJ.”
AJ- “But that’s like a Tuesday afternoon for me.”
Act 2: Brian Doing the Worm

The DJ started playing The Call and a few other fun songs. Out of no where the crowd started chanting for Brian to body surf. In my head I'm thinking 'there's no way that's going to happen.' Then Brian actually starts motioning the direction in which he intends to body surf. I still thought it must've been one of his jokes. But lo and behold, I was proven wrong. He dove into that crowd and actually body surfed. I couldn't believe my eyes. He did fall at one point, which prompted his bodyguards to pretty much carry him the remainder of the distance. I was still incredibly impressed at how carefree he seemed.

While Brian was crowd surfing, Howie kept chanting the infamous line "Protect ya tings." AJ also revealed he went crowd surfing once.


AJ- “First of all, how fucking cool was that? Brian crowd surfing. Never in the last 19 years did I ever think that I would see that.”

You and me both, AJ.

Its also at this point that the boys start throwing marshmallows into the audience. Nick decides to take it one step further. Actually, he took it like 50 steps further. He puts a marshmallow in his mouth and then proceeds to feed it to a fan via his mouth.

Act 3: Truth or Dare


Next they segue nicely into Truth or Dare. The following 30 minutes was a blur of hilarity and sexiness. The fans we're preselected by Hal, which I'm going to bite my tongue on. Though my dissatisfaction is directed at Hal, not the fans, just to clarify. Nick also picked one lucky fan from the audience to participate.

Brian's Dare
Brian was up first and he boldly chose to do a dare. His dare was to do the worm on the bar, and Nick added onto that and challenged him to also add a shot in there. When Brian found out his dare, he didn't even bat an eye. He seemed quite confident he could complete this, no problem. So confident that before he started, he uttered "Suck it Howie" and did the best darn worm I've ever seen. I also loved how they had 'Shots' playing in the background. It was reminiscent of cruise 2010.


Brian- “Im playing by the rules. Normally I cheat”

After the worm, Brian was supposed to take his shot. And to the natural eye it seemed like he took one. But in actually he threw it behind him. You can also see him wiping his cheek off afterward. Brian's quite the tricky one. He then took his "real drink" which was a pretty looking 'girly' drink.

Next one of the fans opted to do a truth. They asked her if she's ever kissed a girl. She did, and her name was Denise. So AJ joked that its also his mom's name. Which somehow led to this conversation:


AJ- “Where do you think I got it from?”
Nick- “Where you’d get what? Wearing ladies clothes.”
AJ- “Why are you asking me?”
Nick- “Because you wear girls clothes sometimes.”
AJ- “So? Don’t be jealous. I’m just better.”
Nick- “I am jealous.”

Howie's Dare
Howie was the next lucky Backstreet Boy to do his dare, which he was reluctantly coerced into. So glad he was. As Jen sifted through the various dares, Nick started acting a bit childlike, which i found absolutely charming. He thought she was trying to pick an easy dare and whimpered, “Why are you doing that? You are protecting him? Don’t you protect him. Favoritism!”

Turns out Jen was in fact not protecting Howie. His dare was to make out with a pillow, tongue and all. AJ bursts into laughter in the background. Love it. Then Nick chimes in again “No no no no no no. Can we add to that? He has to have sex with a pillow?” One of the smartest comments he made the whole trip. The rest of the boys (read as AJ and Nick) continue to egg him on. They tease him that they have to pretend that pillow is the girl he lost his virginity to. Fun fact- apparently the girl Howie lost his virginity to was named Jennifer.

Nick and AJ continue to egg him on and you can tell how reluctant Howie is to do this. He finally snaps and says "don't tell me how to make love to my woman!"

Almost as amusing as watching Howie with the pillow was listening to AJ and Nick's commentary in the background.

AJ- “Lay her down. Lay her down. Be gentle Howie. There you go. Spank her ass. Howie, spank her ass. There you go! Good boy. Now give her a big kiss. That’s what these girls want to see. C’mon Howie, show that pillow what you’re made of. Pump howie pump. Pump. Pump. Pump. Pump.”

Nick can also be heard in the background with frustration in his voice, “Howie, get on the ground with that thing. Go doggie style. Get on your knees homes.” He continues, “That’s not how he normally does it. Trust me.”

Really Nick? I dont want to know how you know that.

AJ's Dare
Next up is AJ's dare. He has to be tickled by fans for 30 seconds. Nick seems to be getting way too much joy out of this dare. You can see AJ squirming and wriggling around in discomfort.

Nick- "Go for his knees"

After Howie's dare, AJ's seemed pretty tame.

Nick's Dare
Nick's dare was interesting as well. At first he was supposed to give a fan a sensual massage. At first I'm thinking all of my jokes about getting a massage by Nick are now becoming a reality. However AJ changes up the dare and says that he now has to be the recipient of a massage by fans.

Nick reluctantly makes his way to the bar with the other Backstreet Boys egging him on. I love how he screams out "oh my god" throughout the 30 seconds.

Nick- "Honestly, I kinda liked it."

Time to move on to the fans' dares. One fan had to dance in between Nick and AJ. Both of the guys got pretty into it. The next fan had to beg Howie and Brian to spank her. I was wondering how Brian would work around that...but he found a plush toy to spank the girl with. Still nothing I'd ever expect to see Brian do. If I wasn't there in person to see it with my own eyes, I'd never believe it. Meanwhile Howie found a belt to spank her with. Once again I found the funniest part to be AJ's narration.

AJ (I'm hoping speaking on behalf of the fan) “Please please spank it Howie. Please, please spank it harder. Please smack my butt.”

Act 4: The Antics Ensue
At one point the boys joked about that 'Protect Ya Tings' sign.

Howie “Protect ya tings. Use a rubber every time.”

Fast forward a bit more. Pillow fight time. The boys are fighting each other and the fans.


Of course no bias at all when I say this was one of my favorite parts of the night.


Brian and AJ seem to disappear a bit after that. Meanwhile its evident Nick and Howie have a few too many drinks. The evening continued with general craziness and fans continuing to violate the boys whenever they were on the bar. I personally thought it went a little too far with fans groping their private areas. To be clear, this is not me speaking out of jealousy. I just think its wildly inappropriate to grab someone in these unmentionable areas without their permission. Plus you can hear Nick say things like "That really hurt" and Howie saying “Don’t hit my butt. Don’t do that. Don’t do that. I’m a married man. Ow, ow, ow. That really hurts.” I'm not sure what part of these statements are unclear. It just was very uncomfortable to watch how uncomfortable it made them. Sorry, venting over.

Back to the fun stuff. At one point in the evening AJ seems to be spanking an inflatable doll for the better part of 2 minutes. Howie strutted around with his robe open, exposing his bare chest, to Moulin Rouge. The other highlights of the evening included Howie singing 100 kisses.

Howie singing 100 Kisses

Last highlight of the night was Nick singing, or should I say oddly dancing to Burning Up.


Nick dancing to Burning Up

The rest of the evening was mostly watching Nick and Howie drunkenly dance to whatever the DJ was playing. The evening finally came to a conclusion (in my eyes) when Nick walked around with the greygoose bottle in his hand. I guess he gave up on the formality of actually having a mixed drink at this point. It wasn't long before he took off for the night. Thus left Howie, once again, to close out the night.

And thus marked the end of the night

Other Items I haven't Covered Yet...
Here is the sound track for the evening (Not complete and loosely in order):

LTL, Tempted to Touch, STMH, The Call, Yeah Yeah Yeah, We Found Love, Party Rock, Tootsie Roll, Jump on It, Cha Cha Slide, Me So Horny, Moulin Rouge, Jenny from the Block, The Right Stuff, Step by Step, IWITW, 100 Kisses, Just One Kiss, Burning Up, Baby One More Time, Wannabe, Jump, Up in Here, Empire State of Mind, Drop it Like its Hot, All the Single Ladies

I was so happy with how this evening turned out. I went into it with relatively low expectations based on the prior two nights.  Not that I had a bad time, but it wasn't nearly the level of BSB antics that I felt we experienced for PJ night. The evening had all of the elements of a fantastic party. Backstreet Boys, fun costumes, drinks, friends, fan interaction, good music, activities that were enjoyable for the crowd to watch, and tons of sexual innuendos. I think my only complaint was the lighting in the room sucked for picture taking. Speaking of which, I do wonder if this night would've been as successful outside on the deck. I guess we'll never know.

Above all, a night I won't forget in a long long time.

One last thing, I want to profusely thank Chrissy and Anne Marie for letting me use their videos/pictures. Thanks gals!

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Top 11 Moments

It was really tough to narrow down my favorite moments of the cruise, as there were so many. But these 11 memories are the ones that stand out above the rest as the best parts of the trip for me.

11. Being at the beach party I had several opportunities to be up front and close to the guys. First being when the stage area cleared after the announcement of the 3-legged race. Second being when Howie, Brian and Kevin were playing volleyball. Everything just seems so much more fun when you're 2 feet away from the Backstreet Boys as opposed to needing binoculars to catch a glimpse.


Brian playing volleyball
10. I remember sitting in the cruise terminal in Miami when all the girls started pouring in. I have fond memories of this because it was the first time I was seeing all of my friends together after not seeing some of them since the last cruise. And what made it even better was getting to shake Nick's hand. I like that moment when you still have everything to look forward to.

9. Howie wiggling. No specific moment, just in general his wiggling. Whenever I hear that part in the song now, I literally can’t not smile. I’ve tried but it doesn’t happen.

8.  Being front row for the sail away party and having tons of close up interactions. Lets face it, any event is better when you're front row.

Up close to Nick at the Sail Away party
7. The meet and greet at Cameo the night before the cruise. Anytime I meet the Backstreet Boys is a top moment, and I was also so happy with the interactions I had and the fact that the picture came out so well.

Me and my boys
6. Not having a care in the world dancing with my girls at prom night. It's very rare that I let loose like that, but I had a blast, especially coming off the concert high.

Prom Night
5. Nick singing burning up at the concert. I'm sure you're surprised I didn't put down AJ singing London. But this was the first time I heard Nick sing this song live and there was just an unparalleled energy in the room. Plus he came right to my row and was singing right in front of me.

I <3 Burning Up

4. AJ at Cameo. What more can I say.

3. Catching my pillow from Nick. I know it seems trivial, but it means a lot.


Nick pillow fighting with my pillow

2.  Meeting Kevin. It was my first time meeting him and he made it an impossible moment to forget. Such a sweet guy. Probably my best experience meeting a Backstreet Boy.

Kevin is actually leaning into me!

1. AJ and Nick talking to a small group of us fans on the bow the last night of the cruise. AJs comments in particular were very nice to hear. It was a very unique and special moment that I was so happy to be a part of.

I was surprised that not all of the moments I actually met a Backstreet Boy made my top 11 list, trust me though, they were close runners up. It feels wrong not to include them. But I realized that as amazing as those moments are, they are so freakin quick that it barely qualifies as a moment. My brain doesn't even have time to process what's going on or feel any emotion because it only lasts for 3 seconds.

On that same thought, I was also shocked that some of my top moments didn't even involve a Backstreet Boy at all! I feel like I'm growing up.

So what are your favorite memories?!

Saturday, December 31, 2011

2010 vs 2011

Happy New Year everyone! Before we kick off 2012, I wanted to take a look at the 2010 cruise vs the 2011 cruise. Now for my reviews I really tried not to compare the two cruises. But there were definitely a bunch of differences, both positive and negative. So I'm getting it all out there now.

Most Improved
  • Kevin. Don't think I need to elaborate much on this point. Loved having him there.
  • Beach Party- All around this event was a much bigger success than last year. Logistically I thought the venue worked better because they had a nice big stage and anywhere you stood you pretty much had a good view. They also did a ton more events.
  • Sail Away Party- This was a new addition in 2011 and I really liked having a proper start to the cruise. Sure it helped I was front row for this event, but still a great way to get everyone pumped for the cruise to come.
  • Pajama Night- Probably the most successful theme night across both cruises. I loved how they added the truth or dare element to it to make it more entertaining for everyone in attendance.
  • Had a nice event/last evening to bring the cruise to a proper end. Last cruise that was a huge complaint.
  • Concert- LOVED the unplugged concert this year and the fact we could vote on the set list.
  • Lots of fun banners and signs around the ship, which they couldn't do last time.
  • The Backstreet Boys themselves appeared to be a lot more interactive with fans and comfortable with the whole experience AT the events. Last year you could tell they were very apprehensive, but by this year they definitely let loose.
  • I thought they did a much better job of trying to give everyone their “special moment” with the boys. Lots of opportunities at the concert to go on stage, at the beach party to play games, karaoke, game shows, even at deck parties. Even though I wasn’t so lucky, its nice that a lot of girls were.
  • Game Show- Debatable if this was improved or not. I thought the quality of the show was better and more entertaining than last year. Though last year we had 2 game shows. So I suppose it about evens out.
  • Howie! Don't know where that Howie has been hiding all these years but I want to see more of him.
What I missed from the first cruise:
  • Obviously 2010 was a day longer and I personally felt a huge difference between the 3 and 4 day cruise. I think they packed 4 days worth of activities in there, but it was a lot less relaxed.
  • You seemed to run into the Backstreet Boys more around the ship last time around. I definitely missed those random run-ins with the boys.
  • I really missed the Q&A or really just any event that was solely the boys.
  • I miss not eating dinner with them (though a few boys were spotted in the dining room some nights) but no where near the same experience.
  • As a whole, I thought the deck parties were better in 2010 (with the exception of pajama night) I liked how the boys were more interactive and engaging for everyone last year.
  • Karaoke was clearly better last year. In my opinion, I don't think they should've done it again.
  • Can't say this applies to everyone, but I felt like people were friendlier last year. I think most people had their friends established by this cruise and didn’t seem as open to meeting new friends.
  • The hallways seemed deserted this year, or maybe it was just me. But I missed the feeling of walking down the hall and always running into people . Not sure where everyone was.
  • Door decorations were waaaay better last year. No one really did them this year and the few that dad weren't nearly as elaborate. I felt like I saw every one's door decorations in 30 minutes where as last year I dont think I even got to them all.
  • I even missed all of their entourage not being there. It was nice last time that if you weren't running into a Backstreet Boy, you'd run into one of their friends or family members. I missed not chatting with Howie's mom or Rochelle this time. 
  • Not in anyone's control, but the ship wasn't nearly as rocky last year. At least I don't remember it being that bad. Seems like a lot of girls got seasick this year.
  • Backstreet TV seemed better last cruise. Lots more fun videos I hadn't seen before. This year they cycled through the same 5 or 6 music videos. Got old pretty quick.
It's really tough to say which cruise I enjoyed more overall. They were both so different in their own ways and I had such memorable experiences on each that make them both my "favorite." If a genie granted me one wish to go back and relive only one of the cruises, I'd have to pick the first one. My reasoning though is because it was the first cruise and everything was new, exciting, and no one knew what to expect. My level of excitement on the first cruise was probably 10 times that of the second cruise and regardless of what actually transpired on each cruise- that feeling could never be replicated.

Once again, Happy New Year everyone. To a happy, healthy, and Backstreet-filled 2012!

    Friday, December 16, 2011

    Recap 2011- Day 3

    I woke up the third morning of the cruise to an early morning phone call. And by early I mean 9:30. It wasn't that early but it felt like I had only slept for like 10 minutes. I had no idea who might be calling, but I was so excited to get a call from my friend Ashley who had just found out she won the door decoration contest. If I couldn't win, I could think of no better people than her and her sister Cort to win that contest. And if you remember, I had Ashley previously post her door decorating tips. See folks, even if I don't always have a clue what I'm talking about, I won't steer you wrong! Hopefully she'll be willing to do a follow up post for us (not to put her on the spot or anything :P)

    And speaking of door decorations, I took that morning to walk around the ship and see what people did this year. I was surprisingly underwhelmed this cruise. There weren't nearly as many doors decorated this year, which was a bummer. Though I'll post a few of my favorites for you:

    Door Dec Contest Winner

    Sphynkter Stage

    Life sized cardboard cutouts of BSB and even little giveaways

    Game of Life BSB Style

    Meet & Greet
    Before the meet and greet I grabbed a quick brunch so that my tummy wouldn't be grumbling in the picture. Then we headed downstairs to wait in line to for our turn to meet the boys. At this point we only had 7 girls in our picture, and most of us didn't really care who we stood next to. But in the end we interestingly had 2 open spots for AJ and 1 for Nick. I was seriously debating who I wanted to stand next to down to the last minute. I figured that I was going to meet Nick in February when I see him for the I'm Taking Off tour, so I was actually leaning towards AJ. However just at that moment Nick decided to walk by thus I decided I want to stand next to Nick!

    Waiting for our meet & greet
    Rose Tours seemed to be a bit more strict this year in enforcing groups of 8, which I think is only fair. So we had an AJ girl join us at last minute. I seem to be a lot more nervous waiting in line to meet them than actually out and about around the ship. We inched closer and closer to them and I was so excited. I was expecting a quick encounter, which is just what it was. I went down the line and shook all of their hands and said "thanks for another amazing cruise" to all of them. Nothing horribly exciting, but I couldn't come up with anything else intelligent given the time constraint. Then I parked myself next to Nick and stood on my tippy toes just to make sure I wasn't covered.

    The goal was for everyone to do the 'huggy pose'. We almost nailed it but not quite.
    I'm mostly happy with how the picture turned out. Everyone looks good and no one is blocked. I just wish AJ would've been a little closer.

    After the meet and greet, I went back for lunch #2. Yeah, I really did. We also had a few hours to kill until our next event, karaoke so eating seemed like a good way to kill time.

    Karaoke
    My friends and I got to karaoke a bit early and staked out a good spot. Though I was getting nervous since the skies were getting darker and darker. I wasn't sure what they would do if it started storming. I just remember waiting around quite a while for the event to start. Before the boys came out, Hal Roseman announced the winner and runner ups to the door decoration contest. Congrats again Ash and Cort as well as to the honorable mentions!

    Soon after, the Backstreet Boys came out and announced they wouldn't start the karaoke right away. First they were going to shave one fan's head because she was just starting chemotherapy treatment. Just another reason why I love these boys so much. I looked around the deck and noticed not a dry eye in the house. I think this took a little longer than expected, because we started karaoke 40 minutes late, plus I don't think they made it to a good portion of the girls who were picked to sing.

    Now I enjoyed karaoke, but it just didn't have the same energy as I was hoping. Could be many factors at play- weather, song choice, boys just not as into it, my personal view blocked by railings, or maybe a combination of everything. But for whatever reason, this just wasn't my favorite event of the cruise. I think my favorite moment of karaoke was when Brian was ribbing on AJs ex:

    Brian cracks me up

    So after standing in the cold rain during karaoke, there was only one thing to do afterward. Hot chocolate! That totally hit the spot at that moment.

    The rest of the afternoon/evening went by in a haze. I'll be the first to admit that I was pretty bummed that night at dinner. I think it was a combination of being physically and emotionally exhausted coupled with the fact that it was our last day and the other group was simultaneously having their concert. It was at this moment when I was hating the full charter. I know I was acting childish because I had seen them perform the night before, but I just hated knowing I was missing them when they were so close that I could even faintly hear the concert. The only shining moment of the afternoon was spotting Nick in the casino for a brief period of time. He can always cheer me up!

    In attempts to distract myself, my friends and I went to see the comedian on board. That didn't help much because the comedian didn't exactly share my sense of humor. So I left and figured I should pack and get ready for pajama night. Side note- sorry for being a debbie downer, but its how I was feeling at the time. I promise it gets happier.


    Pajama Night
    As I was laying in my cabin and watching the Backstreet channel, we were interrupted by an announcement that the deck party was moved inside to the atrium. I don't think Ive ever bolted out of bed so fast. My immediate thought was that we need to get there quickly and get a good spot. Even though my roommate and I were probably in that atrium within 30 seconds of that announcement, it didn't do us a whole lot of good because I guess they announced the change of venue at the concert so all the good spots were already taken. Though we found ourselves a decent spot on the next floor up.

    Pajama night was by far my favorite theme night of the cruise. We had Howie dressed up as Hugh Hefner, Nick dressed as a Ninja turtle, Brian with his sesame street look, and AJ with big feet? The boys were really engaged and entertaining this evening. I have no idea how Nick kept that costume on all night because I was roasting in my PJs. Sadly my planning for colder outdoor weather backfired this night, so I had to go back to my cabin to change at one point.

    The boys in their PJs
    One of the best ideas of the cruise was to do Truth or Dare during the deck party. It was fun for the girls participating as well as for everyone watching, which is key. So many surprising moments! I was shocked when Brian willingly went crowd-surfing. I seriously wondered what that man did with Brian because the Brian I know would never go crowd-surfing. I was just dying to be on the floor during that moment, but still had a ton of fun watching from above.

    I couldn't believe how open the boys were to let the fans touch them this last night between massages and tickling dares. It almost made me embarrassed to watch knowing that these are married, engaged, and taken men. But nonetheless, the guys seemed in good spirits. One of the highlights of the evening was Howie molesting a pillow. I'm actually laughing out loud just thinking about it.

     Howie's Dare with a Pillow

    The crowd didn't seem to thin out like it had the prior 2 nights, the place was still packed around 3 in the morning. The boys took a brief break after the truth or dare game, but came back out for some pillow fighting.

    At this point the party seemed to be winding down (minus Howie of course) so I decide I needed some pizza. I was finishing off my last slice when I spotted a smallish crowd in the corner of my eye outside behind the pizzeria. Figuring we didn't have much to lose, we wandered out and found 50 or so fans just gathered there. I didn't really know what was happening at first, but I quickly realized I had stumbled onto a really special moment. Nick and AJ were outside chatting candidly about a variety of different topics. No microphones, no cameras, no hugs, no autographs- just the boys speaking what was on their mind. I couldn't even see Nick or AJ. I just had my eyes closed and listened to every word they said. This was probably my favorite moment of the cruise even though I only caught about half of their talk. I was kicking myself for not getting their earlier, but also so fortunate that I was able to catch a part of it.

    I'm also choosing not to publish anything that was discussed that last night, because it was clear they didn't want it recorded and spread on youtube. I just left that talk full of emotion. It was the perfect way to end the cruise. I think that night can also teach us all a valuable lesson for future cruises and Backstreet experiences in general. If we behave well and don't bombard them, we will be rewarded. Easier said than done, I know.

    I had another night of about 2 hours of sleep and had to rush off the ship to catch my flight. I did catch one last glimpse of Brian and Nick leaving that morning, which was a bittersweet moment.

    I'm not ashamed to admit that I shed a tear or two on my plane ride home. Just months and months of anticipation and excitement finally coming to an end.  The whole experience was a whirlwind and it was everything I had hoped for and more. I want to thank the Backstreet Boys for yet another amazing cruise as well as my friends and you, my readers, who helped make my experience what it was.
    And so winds down Backstreet Cruise 2011.