Live on the Wind - Singapore to Muscat

Hi all, my husband and I are currently on the Wind - Day 2 of this wonderful cruise. Just wanted to check in and say that everything is great so far. A long way to go, but based on my experiences over the last 24 hours, it will be a fabulous cruise.

Weather is good so far. Singapore was hot and steamy, but Port Klang/Kuala lumpur is not so bad. In fast, I am writing this from the pool deck and catching breeze from time to time (and we are still in port!). We enjoyed lunch at the Pool Grill and it was very pleasant.

Ship looks good. Staff is fabulous. Service is great - in fact better than what we had on Crystal in October. We don't "require" a butler but on SS, it comes with one and ours is very nice. We have had an issue with our (clearly hard of hearing neighbors) with their TV on continuously. Last night he dealt with it, but they were back in full force after dinner and until about sometime after 3 am. If one doesn't want to start knocking on doors or calling up reception, having a butler to resolve is a good thing. Will let you know how this sorts out.

Other than that, everything is great. Food is quite good. Chef seems to know what he is doing. We are having lots of local dishes - something my husband and I really appreciate. This is something a small ship can do that we haven't seen as much on the slightly larger ones.

We've been told that there are 214 passengers on board; seems to be very few Americans and a fair number of British. I have seen 3 young children.

We had a very nice Cruise Critic Mix and Mingle last night. It was nice to put faces and personalities with names on CC. Thanks to Silversea for doing this!

We have chosen to do unlimited internet, but even so, I feel a nap coming on. Will check in later on!

NJBelle

Enjoy your cruise. That's a long way from Monroeville, Al.!!!

Looking forward to following along with your trip. I haven't been to any of the ports you will be visiting so will be interested in what you have to say.

Too bad about the hard of hearing neighbors. Hopefully that gets sorted soon.

NJBelle thanks for taking us along. Is the lovely Helmut still your CD?

Hi all, a quick note to say that we are currently sailing along at a fast clip to reach Penang. We will be several hours late since we were late leaving Port Klang due to a barge refueling situation. All is well now and our tours will just be moved out later to accommodate. Colin, our CD on board, just announced that they will keep La Terraza open until 4 to take care of all returning from tours late.

We just spent a half hour filling out all the forms for the Myanmar visa. I think I signed 5 or 6 different documents!

Yes, neighbors are much quieter now. Thank you, Saiful, for taking care of that for us!

And yes, Daddyo, we are quite a distance from my hometown - in many ways! I feel so fortunate to be able to see all these wonderful places. This cruise is especially rich in interesting and new places for us.

Any other questions, please let me know!

Colin Brown, the CD, rocks! You are fortunate to have him.

NJ +Belle make sure you buy yourself a longyi when you are in Myanmar. If you can get one with some gold in it you will be able to wear it to formal night :D And maybe one for Mr NJBelle ?? :eek:

On our recent river cruise in Myanmar every passenger was given a longyi for "formal" night. What a sight to behold !! Everybody in Myanmar(men, women and children ) all wear the traditional longyi. Somehow we did not look as elegant !!

Hi Rojaan19, thanks for the tip on the longyi. It is nice to have something to ship for. At this stage of my life, I don't need more stuff. We shop for the occasional present, but mostly just look. Good to have a goal!

NJBelle - Didn't know anyone was from Monroeville, AL. Used to drive thru there all the time before interstates. Bama or Auburn grad or fan? If you are staying in Muscat long let me know. Lived there for two years. Oh, BTW, I grew up in Autauga County, NE of Selma.

Enjoy your trip

Just a quick suggestion; there's a small, wonderful, less pressure than is usual, souk in Muscat. Hope you have time to walk thru it. I bought, what else? 2 beautiful pashminas about 5 years ago and I have worn both many, many times.

Well, CrusinPashmina, I have to admit that today, while in Phuket, I did buy a gorgeous silk scarf. I mean, despite what I said earlier, you can never have too many scarves, right? We will be in Muscat for 2 days, so please give me more info on where your favorite souk is, if you have the details!

And bohaiboy, everyone is from somewhere. But granted, there is not a lot of Monroeville traffic here on CC (but now I have to mention that Monroeville is the home of Harper Lee of To Kill a Mockingbird fame - not to mention the latest bit of news). I went away for college but did return home for medical school (UAB). However, when the Bear died, I did wear a black armband - Roll Tide!

Okay, back to the cruise... Still great. Such nice service. After every excursion, we have returned to staff - totally at the ready - who have cold towels and tropical drinks for us. Not just ice chests with water and lonely towels available, but genuine service with a smile.

We have had three port days in a row since starting the cruise. Tomorrow is a sea day. Whew! I need one. We love sea days. This is a 17 day cruise with 6 sea days. I really like a few more sea days in the mix, but this is such an interesting itinerary, that it didn't matter so much. But still looking forward to a lazy day tomorrow.

If you haven't been on SS in a while, they are doing something new in the main dining room. All the waiters have iPads and that is how they enter your order. Makes for very efficient service - although if you like your meal a bit more leisurely, just tell them to increase the intervals. Also in La Terraza, they have them at the desk, so when you show for your rez, they greet you by name (since they have pulled up all the 7:30 reservations (and your photo from embarkation). We don't really care if they remember who we are, but it is a nice touch to be greeted by name.

Again, if there are questions, let me know!

Much enjoying your cruise report - hope you manage to keep it up.

We'll be interested to hear how Myanmar is, I believe the ship is there 2 or 3 days. How's the port for spending an extended period and what you find worth doing.

Also, I had read several reviews that La Terrazza was getting harder to book, I think possibly as more passengers enjoy the slightly less formality of dining there. Wondered if that is actually the case or if it's still quite practical to eat there 2-3 times on a 2 week cruise which is about the level we enjoy.

Enjoy the sun, but be careful out there.

Rols, not to high jack this thread, but you can make as many reservations for la terrazza or the pool deck, etc., by going to MySilversea and making those reservations starting 120 days from your cruise. You can also make reservations for the spa and excursions at the same time.

We know of at least one couple who only eat in La Terrazza in the evening, never anywhere else.

Don't forget that Silversea is extremely accommodating with special requests for food, with the proper advance notice.

NjBelle thanks for giving us the highlights of your cruise!

And although the tide may roll, it's actually all about the "U".

NJbelle/Janice; thanks so much for y'alls robust Wind on board reports. We want to go back to Singapore/Asia and are closely following your outstanding commentary.

Janice, we also loved the unlimited internet plan ($16 per day for cruises longer than 8 days) and believe if you post often on CC/other travel blogs and/or keep in touch w/your family/friends often online/on board, this may be a good ($) deal vs spending $250 for 1000 minutes and wash & repeat when needed. When you have the unlimited internet plan--you can relax when you are online/on board and do not have minute anxiety (i.e., worry about your minutes counting down to zero).

We just returned home from the Spirit (21 days on board) yesterday and in most dining venues they are also using Ipads.

Look forward to your continued reports, esp when y'all are in Myanmar (bet your wish your daughter was with y'all to share this wonderful area of the world).

NJBelle,

It's been quite a few years since we visited Muscat, but I do sort of remember that a visit to the souk was included in a Muscat overview tour. It is located close to the waterfront, near the king's palace. It's small and manageable. We felt that the quality was more consistent than usual...pretty good variety too. Prepare to bargain. I'm an awkward bargainer but it is expected and sometimes can feel like a rather amusing exchange. Sometimes.

Don't miss the spectacular Grand Mosque complex..also on the overview tour. You'll have to wear trousers or be prepared to wear a handed out sarong type thing..yucky. We also took flip flops to leave in the cubbies so we wouldn't take any chances that good shoes could be taken. (by mistake, of course.) We found the much smaller Ladies Mosque quite lovely although the need for it was rather unsettling to westerners.

Thanks for your colorful posting. You'll be fascinated by Burma. We were on The Whisper for SS' maiden call. It is our favorite itinerary in all our many years of SS travel. We'll be returning in December on The Shadow. Can't wait to hear about your experiences!

Rols, not to high jack this thread, but you can make as many reservations for la terrazza or the pool deck, etc., by going to MySilversea and making those reservations starting 120 days from your cruise. You can also make reservations for the spa and excursions at the same time.

We know of at least one couple who only eat in La Terrazza in the evening, never anywhere else.

Ah - that's changed since the last time we cruised SS, you had to make the reservations on board after arrival. Perhaps the ability to do it online beforehand is behind the comments that reservations are harder to get than they used to be, we shall see next time we book one.

I have reservations of the Whisper in La Terrazza, the Pool Grill and Le Champagne. The cruise is in July If you go to my bookings, then activities, there are menus for Spa, Shore, and Dining. Click on whichever one you want and pick your time. it will tell you if there is availability. Good luck

Eric and I have been on Crystal, Regent and Silversea and in fact, on all the ships on those lines (except for the explorer ones on Silversea) but we always say that our favorite cruise is the one we are on. We are 4 days plus on this cruise and everything is great. Maybe that is the sea day talking, but seriously, we are enjoying every minute.

Our day in Phuket yesterday was very enjoyable. Hot and steamy, yes, but still was great fun. Heck, we were just glad we learned to pronounce Phuket correctly so we didn't embarrass ourselves! The trip to the Elephant Camp was just icing on the cake. We had ridden on camels before and I have to tell you that elephants are much nicer. I don't want to own or have to feed one (well, the occasional banana would be fine) but did enjoy the ride around the camp and the "talent" show afterwards.

Today on board, we had a lecture on the British Empire in Burma. Professor Patrick Allitt is one of the best presenters I have ever seen on our many cruises. His talk was fascinating and he seemed to do it totally without notes. I didn't go to his talk yesterday afternoon, and I regret that now - I won't miss the rest! Also we had a cooking demo given by Chef Edgar van der Aar. That was very entertaining and I might even cook those dishes myself! The food on the Wind continues to be excellent. I am loving all the fresh fish and Eric is enjoying all the fresh pastas. Plus everything else, of course!

NJBelle,

Thank you so much for the info on theWind.

We will be boarding in Muscat and wonder if it possible to find out which nights will be formal ? Looking back on this thread it appears that it is wise to prebook La T and the Pool grill on those nights where formal is required in the MDR. At this time it is a guessing game as to when the Formal nights will occur. Again thank you so much for your excellent reviews of the current cruise.

We will be boarding in Muscat and wonder if it possible to find out which nights will be formal ? Looking back on this thread it appears that it is wise to prebook La T and the Pool grill on those nights where formal is required in the MDR. At this time it is a guessing game.

If you log into "My Silversea " and then hit " Reserve Now" what should come up is your itinerary. With a heading of "My Activities" there should be a daily list of your cruise and options of what to book, either, spa, restaurant, excursions. Under the days date is where the word FORMAL is if it is a formal night. So then book your restaurant option for that night.

Print out what you have booked to take with you by hitting " View Reserved Activities"

:)

Many thanks for the info, I really must get a new pair of glasses, did not see the left side of the activities calendar for the formal nights.

Myanmar is a lovely country, still developing its infrastructure for tourism. Yesterday we had a tour - 14 guests plus one guide and one assistant as well as the bus driver and an assistant for him (all in addition to the Silver Sea host who went with us). Then, there was the police guide who accompanied our bus the whole time - said to be there to help avoid traffic jams. The tour was very nice: included visits to 2 pagodas, including one on an island, that we had to reach by boat. We had a visit to the market (always like that) plus a really special stop at a local village where we walked down a dusty road and actually went into the homes of several of the local folks. None of them spoke English and their homes were very rudimentary (outdoor bathroom facilities and mud huts for the kitchen) but the locals were so lovely, calm and gracious. It was one of those experiences that probably could not have happened with a larger ship and excursion numbers. Only downside is that it was so so hot. Not that I didn't know it was going to be hot here, but still it was hot. Today, we have stayed on the ship, awaiting our evening excursion. Today's has been milder and we even enjoyed an alfresco lunch at La Terrazza.

Everything is still great. Will share more after our next excursions - tonight we are doing Shwedagon Pagoda and Royal Dinner by Omnibus. Tomorrow we are doing Cooking Experience with Myanmar Cuisine.

Thanks Belle

have many done the Bagan trip?

The excursion last evening was really good - totally exceeded expectations. We were picked up from the ship in a refurbished omnibus. Ours had 6 plush seats and curtains on the windows (but pulled back for the view) and a little galley in the back. The finish on the bus is a maroon and gold and since there are only three in Yangon (all in use for our tour and in a convoy), we turned heads. The Swedagon Pagoda was unbelievably lovely. We were there at sunset and watching the lights come on and then seeing the whole complex so dazzlingly illuminated was something I won't forget. I am pretty pagoda'd out now, but that is one I am glad to have seen. Then we went in our chariot to the Governors Residence Hotel. On the way, our steward served us fresh juice and offered cold towels. The grounds of the GR were so lush and beautiful. We were 20 people total and they had two tables set up on the lawn for our dinner. With the candles and soft lighting, it was a fabulous setting. During the dinner, we were entertained with local musicians (antique instruments) and very talented Myanmar dancers. The food was authentic and very tasty. My husband thought it had too much fish paste as an ingredient in some of the dishes (they do love fish paste as we learned from our market tour) and I like Asian food a little spicier, but still it was a very nice meal. The service was excellent and the wine flowed. And they presented us all with longyis as a take-home gift.

I haven't seen our new friends who took the Bagan tour since they got back, but I will check on that. Also will report on today's cooking class later on - but now need to go to the sail away! Goodbye Myanmar - we will be happy to come back!

Hello UK Jeff

My fellow passenger is doing a great job of describing the cruise to date. I have just returned from the Island Pagoda trip..wonderful. A police outrider both ways to clear traffic, felt like royalty. The captain has just announced a 45 minute delay for sailing, waiting for the spring tide. Terry still unable to upload photos onto this site..must be getting too old