Live From the Voyager

Also enjoy the deconstructed ravioli!

newlondon: I haven't checked today but I'm unable to "see" the cost of Oceania's excursions on the Oceania website. Would you mind giving me a couple of examples (just curiosity). In order to not put this thread off-topic, perhaps you could respond on Regent's or Oceania's Roll Call for that cruise (I'm subscribed to both). Thanks much:)

On Mariner roll call.

Dear Lady

We will be boarding the Voyager July 6th. My wife "Lady Christina" would like to know if it's not too much trouble (I know it is ) what the house Chardonnay brands they are serving.

Your Capt. John

As we had no internet access in Dublin yesterday, I was unable to post. The dock area in Dublin is in a very industrial area and apparently the satellite antenna was blocked.

The day started off poorly due to the promised wake up call never happening, so it was world's quickest shower, coffee and fruit in the Coffee Connection. Excursion report - the "Arts and Antiques of Dublin" was horrible. First, the National Gallery of Ireland is tiny. It has a very small collection of masters, but the most disappointing fact for us was that the section normally devoted to Irish artists was temporarily removed to make room for a special exhibit of abstract art. We then were driven to a short street with a poor selection of over priced antiques shops. Back to the ship took forever...heavy traffic and it seems we caught every red light.

Back at the ship we immediately took the free shuttle back into town and took the advice of a fellow passenger and high tailed it to Trinity College to see the illuminated "Book of Kells" and the amazing library at the college. Well worth it! Also, the area has fabulous shops, including the large Brown Thomas department store and Marks and Spencer. Also found lots of little side streets with great shops, many antiques too!

Dinner was in Compass Rose and although I enjoyed a chardonnay, I can't remember the name (sorry CaptJohn). I know it was Australian. They mentioned that they had a California too, but I didn't get the name. I'll research this for Lady Christina!

Service continues to be spotty. Went to the Horizon's aft deck as we sailed out of Dublin and had to go in and flag down a waitress for an after dinner cocktail. Prince Albert told her we were outside, but we saw her walking back and forth in the lounge looking for us. Prince Albert went in and waved to her and out she came. By the way, never saw her again.

Wake up call worked today! We needed to be up early for "Charming Chester." As we made our way on deck 4 heading to the Constellation Theater to get our excursion tickets, a passenger coming down the atrium steps stumbled and fell down the last three steps. Prince Albert got to her first and said, "don't move, wait for help." In mere seconds there were 4-5 crew members surrounding her, so off we went. I had forgotten something in my suite and went up. As I was coming back, she was already on a stretcher and being moved. She was talking to them, so I hope she's alright.

I have to say we loved the whole day! We loved our tour guide, who is a native of Chester and knew it inside and out. Charming town, very tidy, gorgeous buildings, cathedral, shops.... Didn't hurt that today was the warmest day so far and again, brilliant sunshine.

Back in Liverpool it's an easy walk from a gorgeous docking area to the city centre. You can see where the Beatles got their start, stroll down to the water and go to the Museum. Much to do! Got back in time to get trounced in trivia again (came in second). Prince Albert skipped trivia for a massage.

Tomorrow is Belfast! Stay tuned for more from the Voyager.

Ah, Deva Victrix, just 15 miles from where I am currently sitting :). Chester is a beautiful, walled Elizabethan city and very easy to get round with some lovely shops and restaurants. Did you manage to do the tour with the 'Roman' soldier? There are some very interesting places hidden away in the strangest locations!

ladym: Coming in 2nd is NOT getting trounced. I say congrats! ;-)

Hi Lady Madeline,

As an Irish person, I'm sorry to hear your trip to the National Gallery was disappointing. Such a shame that the Irish exhibition was unavailable as it is lovely. In our defence of the small collection...we are a nation of only four and a half million people (although we like think we punch above our weight)! Delighted that you got to see Trinity. The Book of Kells is one of our national treasures. Please come back and visit Guinness, Kilmainham Gaol and Glendalough in Wicklow, among other suggestions!

On a side note, I wish we weren't included in the "British Isles". It excludes us entirely from a nomenclature point of view. :(

Hope you come back soon!

Much to report as we've been to Belfast and are now on the Clyde in the town of Greenock, in Western Scotland.

Let me start out by saying if you haven't been to Belfast you must go! We thoroughly enjoyed our stay. We were fortunate to have a fabulous retired police officer as our morning tour guide - Roland. I love it when the guides not only know history, but have interesting personal anecdotes to go along with the tour. Rolly was full of stories! He led us on a fairly brisk walking tour of the city center including the beautiful city hall with a lovely memorial to the Titanic. As the day was unusually warm and sunny (again!) we were able to stop at two of the city's oldest pubs for a half pint. This caused Prince Albert to start to nod as we headed back to the ship, so I left him to his own devices, which turned out to be reading by the pool, so I could go back out. I asked to have a taxi as the shuttle bus didn't go directly to the "Titanic Experience," which was opposite the ship's berth.

The "Titanic Experience" is a massive, modern building right on the river, almost exactly at the spot where the Titanic and her sister ships were built. The exhibits are beautifully presented with excellent photos, models, descriptions and audio available. I opted for the audio guide and soon found it was redundant as most of the text and audio available via speakers in each section was better than the guide. The exhibits do not concentrate solely on the Titanic, but include extensive descriptions of life in early Belfast, including an explanation of the linen industry, rope manufacturing as well as ship building. You get through about 30% of the building before they start talking all things "Titanic."

Fascinating models, photos and audio explain everything from the design and construction of the Titanic to the actual voyage itself. Great exhibits show what each class of cabin was like as well as photos of the interior. Stories of passengers, both survivors and those who perished are shown throughout the exhibits.

The highlight for me was the Ship Yard Ride - an electronic ride (imagine sitting in a ski lift gondola) using animation, electronics and special effects to take you on a journey through the shipyard. Fascinating - Prince Albert really missed out!

Back on board and once again came in 2nd place in Team Trivia. I am determined that we will prevail today! Dinner in Sette Mari and as we sail out of Belfast, we make our way to the Observation Lounge and we find Elvis! He is our all time favorite bartender from Navigator. He is on Voyager for his first time, having boarded earlier this year in Manilla. He had never seen the Mediterranean until this trip and told us he really enjoyed his day ashore in Israel. The reason we had missed him for almost a week is because his night duty is providing drinks for folks in the Constellation Theatre (and we've only popped in there twice). For those of you who love the "crew follies" on the last night of most cruises, Elvis really does do an Elvis impersonation that is amazing!

Today we wake up to the Firth of Clyde and are off across the Clyde to the Hill House, designed by Charles Rennie Macintosh. It was a little confusing as the original excursion implied we would also see Glasgow, but a note on our door, as well as an explanation from the tour guide said we couldn't make it, as we sail early today at 3:00 PM. The Hill House though was well worth it, especially to architecture buffs like us. We also got a chance to take a quick side trip to Loch Lomand. Back at the cruise terminal we stopped by a small shop and got rid of our pounds sterling as this is the last place we can use them. Bought little Loch Ness monster toys for the grand daughters and Prince Albert got himself a nice wool hat - might come in handy as we're off on a sea day tomorrow and onto Norway.

By the way...a couple messages:

McShane is correct - the National Gallery is impressive for a small country. Also to CapnJohn: have been checking out chardonnays and there is a free Kendall Jackson "Avant", but you have to ask for it. I'll continue doing research!

They were in the process of building the titanic museum last time we were in Belfast. I need to go back.

Currently sailing through the Minch toward the open waters north of Scotland. Hoping the captain will stop at the Shetland Islands so I can bring a pony home, but I doubt he'll accommodate my passion for ponies.

Bad start to our departure from Greenock as two passengers refused to follow instructions and be back on board before our 3:00 PM departure. They were paged multiple times in both English and German. I voted to leave them, but the captain was benevolent and we waited while a terrific Scottish band and piper played and played on the dock. Finally, at about 3:15 pm the errant passengers were seen coming up the gangway, smiling and waving, with a crew member right behind them. Would love to know that story!

Our travel agent has 22 on this itinerary, so we all were seated in Prime 7 for a lovely dinner. We enjoyed getting to know them since they are far more seasoned cruisers than we are. They gave us lots of information about their favorite river cruises (the Rhine on AMA was one, and the Po in Italy). Interesting, since we've never done river cruising.

I was pleased with my surf and turf (6 oz. filet and crab legs), though my dinner companions who ordered lobster complained that it was tough. Good service. Turned in early with a book and set our clocks ahead one hour. Captain says to say good-bye to the calm seas and expect to wake up to 1-2 meter seas.

Captain is correct. Sunny skies, but moderate swells. Typical sea day - everybody milling about. Good lecture this morning on the Vikings. Off now to play Paddle Tennis with Prince Albert. He played yesterday for an hour with three people from Arizona and had a blast. He's a big Pickleball player at home, so this made him very happy. By the way...came in second again at Trivia, but this was quite an accomplishment as the Horizon Lounge was full since we were already at sea.

P.S. Would anyone be able to recommend a car or taxi service at the port in Copenhagen? There are three ships docking at once and the Destination Desk suggested I book my own pick up online prior to arriving. One suggestion via Trip Advisor is limos4limos. Any other ideas would be appreciated.

ladymadeline, Your crossing of the Minch was similar to ours-no problem. With its fearsome reputation one almost wants to see what it's all about.

If you are considering a river cruise imo the best is Tauck, Amsterdam to Budapest. If you can afford Regent, Tauck should be no problem

We are AMA people for river cruises. Their new longships are outstanding.

As far as Copenhagen, 3 ships docking at the same time is really no big deal there. They have room for many more. We have disembarked there several times, and always just grab a taxi. This has never been a problem.

Lady, thank you for the wine report. Lady Christina likes the Kendall Jackson.

A word of waring please leave some us !!

On the subject of Copenhagen do any of you know if the taxi drivers there will take a credit card ?

Thanks, John

Great relaxing sea day. Had best intentions to write some post cards, read alot and snooze...but accomplished very little, which is exactly what you should do on a sea day!

Lovely dinner in the Signatures restaurant last night with, again, some veteran travellers. Met a couple who did one of those private jet around the world trips. Pretty interesting. But one couple regaled us with a trip to the Arctic Circle that sounded truly fascinating. I was almost embarassed to tell them our favorite trip last year was Boothbay Harbor, Maine. Oh well...Guess I need to get out more?

The Captain denied my request to detour to the Shetland Islands, so I watched the show in the Theatre, which was pretty good and very well attended.

Don't arrive until after lunch today in Kristianstand, so it's almost like a second sea day. Prince Albert is off to find something athletic to do and I'm struggling to figure out the Daily Quiz.

Thanks for the tips on taxis in Copenhagen!

P.S. to CaptJohn - last night I had the best chardonnay - a 2012 Macon Villages white burgundy.

We got off the Voyager in Southampton as you got on. The tours we did from Barcelona to Southampton were very good. We had excellent guides full of history and interesting anecdotes. The buses were never full and they had more than one for every tour. Food was delicious in every restaurant. I had lobster twice in Prime 7 (surf and turf and Maine lobster) and it was cooked right. I also love the lobster ravioli and my husband had it once and was hooked. My other favorite is the scallops from Signature. I had a special order of seafood paella twice and it was the best. We want to do the British Isles sometime in the future. Enjoy the rest of your time.

Paulina is the bartender in Horizons and she makes excellent drinks. Her mojito is one of the best.

Lady, thank you for the wine report. Lady Christina likes the Kendall Jackson.

A word of waring please leave some us !!

On the subject of Copenhagen do any of you know if the taxi drivers there will take a credit card ?

Thanks, John

They do take credit cards, but only ones with a chip. Your magnetic strip ones will not work really much of any place in Copenhagen.

Greeting from a blustery, cold day in Skagen, Denmark. The weather finally turned on us after 11 days of warmth and sunshine. Oslo yesterday was 74 degrees! Everyone was out on the streets, dining in outdoor cafes and sailing on the water. Spectacular all around.

We were disappointed in Kristiansand...did I already tell you that? Mostly, I believe, it was due to a guide who was quite not up to snuff. One unpleasant fact was that she never offered bathroom breaks and at least two guests turned around and left the group. When Prince Albert said he really needed a break...she pointed to restrooms that required Norwegian coins, which we didn't have. Prince Albert was able to slip into a near by cafe and they took pity on him. The town itself has some quaint buildings and a really nice new area near the docks. We ended up cutting the walking tour short and spending a pleasant afternoon on the Pool Deck, reading and snoozing.

Oslo turned out to be amazing. Lovely city, easy walk from the pier, beautiful buildings and rich in history. Loved just looking out at all the activity in the harbor. As our official tour wasn't 'til 2:00 pm, we strolled the city on our own, at lunch outdoors at the Grand Hotel Cafe and were back in plenty of time for our afternoon excursions to the the Maritime museums devoted to the FRAM, Kon-Tiki and the Vikings. All were very well presented. Especially loved the Viking Museum. Our guide was very good and took us on a bonus bus tour through the heart of the city as well.

Back on board we enjoyed the "Krew Kapers" and saw our favorite bar tender, Elvis, do his thing. Managed to get into Prime 7 again and had the best meal of the cruise, lamb chops for an entree, crab cake appetizer and blew the rest of our credits on a bottle of French white wine. Sailed away in the Observation Lounge at 9:00 pm.

This morning we awoke to 50 degrees, rain, wind and poor visibility. Fortunately our tour to Saeby was shortened to skip the walking tour and free time and just see the fabulous church. Also had a splendid tour of the castle, nearby and a tour by bus of the "spit of Skagen," which is a narrow strip of sand dividing the North Sea from the Baltic Sea. The sand dunes of Skagen reminded us of the sand dunes of West Michigan!

Sad to return to the ship and see out suitcases on the bed. Time to pack up. We arrive early in Copenhagen and must be on shore by 9:00 am. It's all been happening so fast! We'll stay two nights in Copenhagen and head back to Michigan on Saturday. Hope to do another post to wrap this up when I get home.

Time to go unload the dryer....good thing to do on the last day!

Beautiful reporting, ladymadeline. I don't think we've ever had a cruise where the weather was so almost unrelentingly good as yours seems to have been. But you're obviously such a positive and fun-loving person that I suspect your posts would have been just as glowing without the warmth and sunshine. Glad most everything was delightful.

May your trip home be easy, and may your memories last a long, long time.

The Fram, kon-tiki and Viking museum tour in Oslo is a favorite of mine. We too had a great guide who was a retired teacher and very witty.

Too bad about the other tour though.

I really enjoyed making my way through this thread. Thx for the good reporting and taking us along.

Many thanks for this reporting - we are hoping to take a similar trip in 2017 :)

You will not see this till you are home but thanks for the wine report.

We are starting to pack!!

Capt.John and Lady Christina

Wow...what an ordeal getting back to Northern Michigan! We had no problem getting onto our SAS flight from Copenhagen to Washington, Dulles, but things went south from our arrival in D.C. We had a layover of approximately 2 hours in Dulles, which you need ever minute of since it's such a goofy system getting through customs. Didn't help that a flight from Frankfurt landed at the same time.

Boarded the Detroit bound flight and sat on the runway for an hour and a half. Thunderstorms in the D.C. area made us wait on the ground and finally return to the gate. Told to stay near the gate, we ordered a sandwich from a nearby bar, but a fellow passenger alerted us that they flight had been canceled. Stopped the order and ran to the United Club to request re-booking. Long story short, we stayed overnight in D.C. with no luggage. Both Prince Albert and I couldn't fathom the idea of a night with no change of clothes, so we splurged on $13.99 t-shirts to wear to bed and got a room at the Herndon, Virginia Hilton. Needless to say the place was packed with stranded travelers. A couple who had come in from Madrid told us they'd sat on the runway two hours and had been sent back to the terminal for four more hours before getting canceled, so by comparison we felt pretty good! Got to the Hilton at 9:00 pm, ate a quick bite and slept like babies 'til somewhere around 5:00 am.

Flight this morning delayed by about an hour due to who knows what, getting us into Detroit later than we wished. The goal today was picking up "the baby." Our 3 yr. old English Setter, Lizzie, has been at doggy camp since June 5th and we were desperate to see her. Mad dash up the entire state of Michigan and arrived at the kennel an hour before closing time.

Now it's all about laundry and catching up with mail and everything else.

I am going to do a full review on the cruise now that I've had some time to think about it. It's been fun filling you in on our experience. We each have a different favorite port - I liked Oslo very much and Prince Albert loved Copenhagen. We also both agree that Ireland was fantastic (our first time there).

Looking forward to what you're all doing next. Please post soon.

Sincerely,

Lady Madeline

Sorry to hear that you had such an ordeal getting back home. Really looking forward to your review:)

ladymadeline, :DWe get dog sitters for our two corgis.

They are exhausted from playing when we get home.

They say get out of here so we can keep it up:D