Posting Live(ish) from QE Q620 Canaries and Portugal

Monday 7 November - Southampton Embarkation

The four of us arrived in Southampton the day before after a train journey from north England to South. It was relatively uneventful but somewhat stressful trying to get 4 heavy cases (for 4 people) on and off trains. It was a relief to get to Southampton and relax the night before. We had a relaxing meal at the hotel and then a relaxing morning doing a bit of shopping at West Quay shopping centre before checking out of the hotel and getting in the taxi to Ocean Terminal.

Despite booking both cabins at the same time, one couple had an embarkation time of 13:00 and one a time of 13:30. Regardless, we checked out of the hotel just before 12pm and went straight to the terminal. On arrival, cases were promptly taken from us by porters and we entered the terminal. E-tickets were checked and we were told which direction to go to check in. We didn't need to queue at all, we went straight to an empty desk and our travelling companions to the desk next to us. *We walked to security; took our shoes, belts, jewellery etc. off, emptied pockets and strolled through the scanners. A short walk up the ramps and we were on-board! The quickest and easier embarkation yet. Very pleasing indeed.

We went straight to our cabin and were very pleased with our first impressions. *After much consideration we chose to forsake our balcony cabin for an inside deluxe. *This grade of cabin is much bigger and we were really pleased with just how spacious the cabin is. We have a very large sofa and a small arm chair as well as a table. There is a lot of floor space in front of the wardrobes. No more bumping into each other as we get ready for the evening! Our travelling companions*have a cabin that is graded at the top grade for inside deluxes, on deck 8. However, their cabin is slightly smaller. Their cabin is also more spacious than the standard but their sofa is a standard sized sofa and they have a smaller table and no chair. We've actually booked their cabin for a future cruise - we're going to look at changing our booked to have our level 1 cabin. The space in ours is fantastic! The downside is that most things are some flights of floors away and there is no launderette until deck 4. We don't have any mobility issues so this is not a problem for us. We welcome the opportunity to keep active.

Once we had taken some photographs of the cabin, dropped our carry on bags in the cabin we went straight upstairs to the Lido for a lunch. On the way we went to have to a look at the fitness centre and got accosted by a Royal Spa girl and then hoodwinked into a sales pitch about arch supports in the fitness centre. Impressive demonstration of the effectiveness of the supports but the cost was steep at $199? I just felt irritated to have my time wasted. Not a good 'upsell' Cunard...

The selection of food in the Lido was good. I had a salad with a selection of cheeses and my husband had plaice with vegetables. In fact he went back for seconds and thoroughly enjoyed his meal, twice.

We had some coffee and then returned to our cabin. No suitcases were outside, but when we went inside, there they were. So we unpacked our cases, had a drink of bubbly and then waited for the call to muster and the mandatory life jacket training. it was painless and quick enough, the crew very pleasant.

I'd expected the vouchers for our wine package to be in our room but they weren't. A trip to the Purser's Desk established that they would be with our Sommelier (it turned out he didn't seems to be aware when I first asked him at dinner later in the day, but a few minutes later he had our vouchers and we were selecting wine from the list. Of course, as previous experiences with sommeliers attests, as soon as he came back to ask for our choice, he told us a better choice. Am I the only person this happens to?

The sail away party happened a little later than planned, but not by much. We pulled away just after 5pm. The party was moved from the Lido pool (the outdoor pool at the far aft end of the ship, to the midships Garden Lounge (near the Pavillion Pool). We preferred to wrap up and watch the ship leave Southampton so we missed the loud dancing and singing inside the lounge!

It was then time to get ready for our 6pm dinner sitting. First night is an informal night. So I wore a knee length crushed velvet dress (no ironing for me!), black bolero cardigan with silver threads, long art deco earrings, black opaque tights and black sparkle flat shoes. Other guests were dressed more casually but neither was I the most dressiest.

We had requested a table for 4 and were allocated a table towards the middle of the Britannia Restaurant on deck 3. We were in nearly the identical position on our last cruise, just one station further forward. I wonder who or how gets allocated the sought after tables near windows? Anyhow, we enjoy our conversations during dinner and at night time we can't see out into the darkness anyway.

I have also noted that there are now only 3 formal nights over the duration of our 12 night cruise which is disappointing. It was originally 4 and I've packed 4 dresses, so I'm not that happy to have packed unnecessarily! I would wear the 'extra' dress anyway, but all my 4 formal dresses are floor length and I will probably feel overdressed. So I'll be re-wearing one of my informal dresses.

For our first evening meal I chose: chicken liver parfait, spinach salad, roast lamb with creamed savoy cabbage, and chocolate marquise with bitter orange coulis. Service was good and the food was delicious. The quality of the dining experience is one of the main reasons that we choose Cunard, so it was great to be back on board and enjoying the dining experience so much.

We popped back to cabin, had a bit more of the glasses of bubbly we didn't have time to finish. I put on a wrap, the theatre can sometimes we cold, and then we went to the 8:30pm evening show in the Royal Court Theatre.

I have to admit, the evening show was a little disappointing. It was a variety show which included an introduction to the entertainment team, including host Amanda Reid, the Cunard international (German, French and Japanese) hosts, an introduction to the orchestra, a singer, and a magician. It was OK but it wasn't as impressive as I would expect.

After the show we had cocktails in Commodore Club. I had an espresso martini and my husband had a signature Commodore's cocktail, the Punch Romaine a la Carpathia. Apparently this was the 'last libation served aboard the Titanic'. It is a reinvented version o the Punch Romaine. It included a performance at the table as the waiter flamed the mallow top. Brilliant! We both agreed that the Punch Romaine was the better drink, although the Commodore Signature Cocktails have the special prices to go with their special effects!

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Tuesday 8 November - Sea Day

We have three sea days ahead of us as we sail towards the port of Funchal on the island of Madeira, Portugal. A first night's sleep somewhere is always a little interrupted and I woke several times, but we were both relatively well rested overnight. Our deck 1 inside deluxe cabin has a bit of engine hum from the wall interior to the ship. It's noticeable, although the engine hum is something that you feel in most places on a ship, but it was not something that disturbed sleep. There's little noise from the corridor - the only time we have noticed anything is when people are talking particularly loudly as they pass outside. Otherwise it all seems quiet. The extra space is impressive and so we would book this cabin again.

After a later than expected sleep in until 8am, we got ready and went to the main dining room, the Britannia Restaurant, for our breakfast. We arrived to join a small queue just before 9am. The maitre d' asked if we wanted a table for 2 or to share. We said that we didn't mind, either would be fine. It seems we stuck lucky as we were shown to a lovely table for two next to a window. The sea was only slightly choppy and the cloud cover was slight so it felt bright. The menu was tempting and the waiters walking round with pastries and bread rolls were also very tempting, but we resisted the breaded goods (how long will that last?!). I had scrambled eggs, streaky bacon and mushrooms with plenty of coffee with cream. The waiters were very good and we had a very leisurely breakfast.

After breakfast we went to the Madeira Funchal Port Presentation. James Anderson-Smith gave the presentation and told us some of the names that Madeira is known as: The Island of Flowers, the Pearl of the Atlantic, the Isle of Eternal Spring. Apparently there are many more visitors to the island each year than there are residents; not surprising when you consider the popularity of Funchal with cruise ships alongside the other standard tourist visitors too.

The temperature in Funchal is 20 degrees Celsius this time of year and the island is much closer to the coast of Africa (Morocco) than it is to Portugal. The island of Porto Santo is 30 miles away, it has white sandy beaches in contrast to the black beaches of Madeira. Poncha is the local drink made of honey and sugar cane rum. It's strong but delicious!

Shuttle buses will be available and walking will be 20 minutes into the town, so it is recommended to catch the Cunard shuttle buses. The Shuttle buses will drop off at the Seafront Road. Once in Funchal there are yellow public transport buses that go all over the island and are an option to use to get about but drivers may not speak English.

There are colourful farmers markets on the eastern end of the tour is where the locals shop - it is a long walk and you will need a map to get there, but it is a lovely market and there are lots of unusual fruits and vegetables. Fish market further inside, a local atmosphere with the fishermen selling their fish. Of course, there is a Cunard tour option which takes you there and to the nearby Botanical Gardens.

The famous toboggan is one of the highlights of the island. Cunard offer a cable car and toboggan tour. This can be done on your own of course, but it is a very popular attraction. You get to Monte with the cable car which goes high over the roofs of houses. The ride takes about 10 minutes. The village of Monte is high on a hill and there are no brakes on the toboggans! The steering and brakes are the two men who run with the toboggan the 1.2 miles downhill for 10-12 minutes. The Cunard tour also includes a visit to a wine lodge and Madeira wine will be enjoyed.

Cunard also offer a jeep adventure - there was a warning that this is for the adventurous and it will be a bit bumpy! The jeeps go off the beaten track and take you to spectacular places where coaches aren't able to go. We have independently booked to go on a jeep tour already. Cunard Tours offer the protection of the ship never leaving until the tour is back, but we take the small risk of sorting our own tours out. So we are on a jeep tour in the morning in Funchal. We're then going to get the cable car to Monte and the toboggan ride down, again independently. That should all give us plenty of time to explore the town of Funchal before catching a Cunard shuttle bus back to the boat.

After the talk we went to the Lido for a coffee. I'd started to yawn, so it was time for a shot of caffeine to perk me up again! The cloud cover seems a little thicker now, it doesn't seem that the sun will shine but who knows as we continue down south past the French coast.

After a mid morning coffee we went to the Britannia Restaurant for lunch and happened to get the exact same same as we had done for breakfast. I chose the sandwich option, but as I don't eat bread I asked for it without the bread, the waiters were accommodating of course and I really enjoyed pulled pork with some salad and skinny fries. I hoped to resist the dessert options but the pistachio ice cream tempted me and it was worth it, the flavour was gorgeous.

After lunch we walked about the ship, checking out some of the areas and shops that we had not been to yet. We encountered one of our travelling companions and stopped for a chat before talking a brisk and breezy 3-loop walk of the promenade deck outside.

We went back to the cabin briefly, my husband had a 30 minute snooze while I listened to an audiobook that I am enjoying. We then summoned up enough energy for a trip to the gym.

It was then time to get ready again for the evening meal. Another informal night and I wore an a-line tea dress in red and blue lace, dark red high heels, and a black ruffle bolero cardigan. My choices this evening were pate, salad with a spicy tomato dressing, prime rib of beef, and Bakewell tart with creme anglais. The waiter already has me pegged though, he added a scoop of vanilla ice cream to my Bakewell tart - and he was certainly right to do so!

More cocktails in the Commodore Club followed - this time A Chocolate Affair (vodka, Baileys, Creme de Cacao and Cream) for me and a Pina Colada for my husband. Both were delicious.

More at: https://11adventures.wordpress.com/

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Hi reading your trip report with interest

We are sailing canaries next oct in delux inside deck 1 and it is our first cruise on Cunard - so please pack as much info into your trip report as possible

Enjoy your trip :)

Following the write up with interest , glad you are very happy with the cabin , we are booked on Q720 next May and have 4107/9 on Deck 4 (obstructed ocean view) .

Did you have to change trains on the way down ? , we will be travelling from M/C Piccadilly direct to Southhampton Central (hopefully) , any issues getting the luggage on board the trains (4 of us travelling).

We were initially planning to travel down on the morning of departure but can see that is not such a good idea , wifes work means she doesn't finish till 3.30pm the day before so we have some thinking to do .

Looking forward to the rest of your write up .

Wednesday 9 November - Sea Day, Day Three

We awoke this morning, after a mildly rocky night, to the surprising news that America has elected Donald Trump as their next president. The least said about that the better.

We had an even later start to the the morning and didn't get to breakfast until nearly 9:30. We chose to try the Lido buffet this time. I do prefer the leisurely pace of the main dining room so we might need to set an alarm for tomorrow morning! The Lido food is very good though and there is lots of choice, so one a table is secured we are good to go. I stuck to my usual favourites of scrambled eggs, streaky bacon and mushrooms; this time with a slice of black pudding and a sausage - when the food is there in front of you it is. More difficult to resist a couple of extras! Accompanied, as usual by plenty of coffee with cream.

We went to the Commodore Club at midday and pushed the boat out with a 'Chieftain of the Clan' $16 cocktail (because I'm worth it). This cocktail has a long list of ingredients: Rascally liquor, Illy espresso liqueur, Licor 43, Cognac, espresso, honey and cream. It's basically a very posh espresso cocktail and it tasted great. Again, the signature cocktails don't just come served, they come with a performance. This one was delivered to the table with a smoke-filled glass cloche which had a glass coffee-cup and pipe inside. The cloche is removed and the smoke billows away. The pipe is then lifted and the chocolate shavings in the end are sprinkled over the cream-topped drink. The smoke flavours the top of the drink - it tasted very smokey and then the drink underneath is sweet coffee. Delicious!

I chose a mint julep for my husband but he preferred the Chieftain of the Clan, so we shared the two drinks.

At 1:30pm we went for lunch in the main dining room. I chose Brussels pate for starter and for main I chose the sandwich course again, but without the bread! So I creamed mushrooms with skinny fries and salad. For dessert I had a couple of scoops of maple and walnut ice cream. The ice cream flavours are always really very good.

After lunch we did several loops of the promenade deck - the weather was windy and there was quite a swell in the sea which meant for an unsteady walk at times, but it was quite warm and we didn't need our coats.

Although we were not really hungry we then stopped by the Queens room, spoke with our travelling companions and then sat down ready for afternoon tea at 3:30pm. We have travelled with Cunard before and have experienced the afternoon tea - it is really quite a performance - a string quartet and the bustlings of the waiting staff as they move around tables with their trays of crustless sandwiches, mini cakes and scones. The room was already full by the time 3:30pm came by. It is certainly very popular.

We had another walk around the promenade deck, it may not be burning off all the excess food we are consuming but it is enjoyable to have a walk in the fresh air.

This evening was our first formal evening and after delivery of tomorrow's programme, it also seems that there was an error on the overview itinerary (which stated 3 formal nights), there's another formal night tomorrow and so that should bring us back to 4 formal nights in total - my four dresses will be used! This evening I wore a floor length red lace gown with a short fish tail train. Probably the most dressy dress that I have ever worn. I don't normally dress up so cruising is when I dress quite differently to the norm!

The menu in the Britannia Restaurant is also a notch better on formal nights and my favourite chateaubriand was on offer. It was absolutely delicious and so much so that I forgot to take any photographs of the menus or the food. I made a joke to the waiter at the end that I forgotten to take photographs and would need the same again. he obviously didn't understand either my humour or what I said, because a second helping of dessert promptly arrived! Whoops! There was no way I could manage it but one of our travelling companions was able to polish it off!

After dinner we went to the show - a clarinet player, Kenny Martyn. The show was excellent and really showcased both the talent of Kenny as well as that of the Royal Court Orchestra. A highlight was two of the orchestra musicians playing with Kenny as a clarinet trio, quite an impressive performance despite only a single rehearsal beforehand.

After the show we went to one of the bars and both chose a cocktail called P.S. I Love You - Baileys, Creme de cacao, cream and something I've forgotten. It was delicious!

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We travelled from Sheffield station and had to change in Birmingham. I think if you travel from Manchester that there isn't likely to be a change.

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I am enjoying your blog, especially you evening attire. I also like the pictures of the cocktails.

Here are two examples of my evening wear.

This is the first evening, informal dress code:

This is what I wore on the first formal evening:

Both these outfits were easy-packing items - the black dress is crushed velvet and the red dress is lace with some stretch - both came out of the case the same as they went in. No ironing required. I always take a selection of small cardigans or bolero-style tops. They can be mixed and matched. The red sequin bolero would go equally as well with the first dress for example.

More posts coming today, I'm catching up!

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I had an interrupted night's sleep last night. For some reason the engine hum seemed loud to me and I ended up putting in ear plugs. I suspect that it is louder in these inside deck 1 cabins than other cabins but it didn't bother me the last two nights. Maybe the quantity of red wine, port (the sommelier talked me into trying 20 year aged port) and the post-dinner cocktail - had something to do with it??

We were up and out for breakfast in the main dining room at 8am. No table by the window this morning but a nice central table near the impressive frieze. I had eggs benedict (without the muffin) and lots of coffee. I like to try something new but I will be going back to my usual scrambled eggs, bacon and mushrooms next time.

We went to the port talk for Gran Canaria and Lisbon. We already have an independent tour sorted for Lisbon and are planning something independent in Gran Canaria, but the port talks can give some useful insights even if you don't intend to book a Cunard tour.

I was feeling tired, so despite the 11am insights lecture promising to be good (her previous one was), we grabbed a cup of tea from the Lido and went and sat outside by the Lido pool. It's definitely warming up and even though there was a breeze it was a very pleasant temperature to sit outside. The sun was breaking through the clouds and there was some blue sky.

We went to the Britannia Restaurant again for lunch. It really is so much more relaxing and enjoyable compared to the Lido buffet.

At 3pm I was back in the upper floor of the Britannia dining room for a wine tasting. 6 whites and 6 reds, 1 each for 6 countries. Each country was represented by a sommelier. The 20-or-so guests would then circulate around the 6 sommeliers who would talk about the wines. It was a good way to do a wine tasting and the sommeliers were very passionate about the wines. I was rather tipsy getting back to the cabin to get ready for another formal night and the captains welcome party. This evening I wore a floor length navy blue dress and a sapphire blue scarf. No photos of the outfit though, we forgot. Too busy enjoying ourselves!

The menu was really excellent this evening and it was difficult to chose from but I settled on the pheasant which was, as expected, delicious.

We didn't go to the evening show, it was a magician and magicians aren't really our thing. So it was cocktails in the Cafe Carinthia instead. We tried a Brandy Alexander and a BBC.

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We went to the Lido buffet restaurant for breakfast and met a couple who came and shared our table. We were talking with them about our plans for the day and our booked jeep tour. They were talking about their evening table-mates and that a Canadian couple were also going on a jeep tour today. We due to meet a Canadian couple in La Palma (tomorrow) for a day tour. So I asked, are they called Sharon and Graham, by any chance? Yes they were! Later on when we assembled to meet the jeep tour guide, it also transpired that they were also on the same jeep tour as us! It's a small ship!

We met the jeep tour a short walk from the dock. There were 6 of us in total and as well as Sharon and Graham, another couple from the ship joined the tour, David and Sadie. We had a great tour and saw the beauty of the island. We'd highly recommend using the company we used, UpMountain Madeira. We chose the half-day tour and it was good value for money.

Our tour guide, David, took us to a number of locations in the jeep, including a very rocky off-road section that had us all hanging on. We started the journey in Funchal on some smooth roads first.

We stopped at some stunning spots with views. The island of Madeira has no flatlands, so everything is up or down hill.

We stopped for an authentic glass of poncha in a bar. I have no idea where the bar was, but it was back on way downhill from the mountains. We watched the poncha being made - lemon juice, orange juice, and a large quantity of 50% proof rum. Dangerous stuff! Delicious though. The locals say that one is enough, two is too much and if you have had three, that is not enough and to keep drinking!

The island is truly stunning.

On arrival back in Funchal we went up the cable car to the village of Monte.

Great views of the ship! The little one is the Prinsendam (Holland America Line) which I believe was a ship (with a different name) in the Cunard line for a few years.

The village of Monte is famous for its basket toboggans which you can take a trip downhill in! No brakes, just two men in straw boaters who use ropes and their feet to guide and brake. I don't know this couple, they were just another couple who happened to be using the toboggans just after us. They look like they are enjoying the ride! The roads are normal roads, not closed to traffic. At one point the route crosses another road - they have a man on watch at that point!

We then walked back down to the town - I do not advise doing this. I have a dodgy knee and what we thought was a reasonable walk, probably would have been on the flat but it is a steep walk down and it was really very tiring. There are lots of taxis where the toboggan ride stops so get a taxi would be my advice!

So of course, when we got back into the town on Funchal, we deserved an ice cream. We also had a look around the market. Very lively and colourful.

It was a lovely evening for a sail away party on the Lido deck.

Informal dress tonight so I went for this ensemble. Another easy packing dress - lace doens't crease! Flat sparkly black shoes go with almost anything. Sorry for the frowning face!

A lovely sunset as we sailed away from Funchal. Next stop, La Palma.

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We travelled from Sheffield station and had to change in Birmingham. I think if you travel from Manchester that there isn't likely to be a change.

 

 

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Hi, loving your reviews and pics could you confirm which cabin you are in on deck 1 and is their any difference booking port or starboard

Thanks

Ellie

We are in 1063 - can't say about the port/starboard differences, I suspect there aren't really any.

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12 November La Palma

Our stop today is the most westerly of the Canaries, the lush island of La Palma, also known as La Isla Bonita and La isla verde. It has the highest rainfall of the islands and so is very green with lush vegetation. 80% of the economy is based on banana exports. The population is only 87,000 in total.

In the middle of the island is a gigantic volcanic crater, "caldera taburiente" and the word 'taburiente' actually means stewpot or cauldron. It is 8km in diameter!

Prior to leaving the UK, we had arranged to share a tour (via the powers of the internet and Cruise Critic Forums) with our new canadian friends, Sharon and Graham (who we met on our Funchal tour yesterday). We had arranged to meet in the Grand Lobby. Us, our travelling companions and Sharon & Graham were all going on a tour of the centre and the south of the island. We docked in Santa Cruz de la Palma and it was a short walk out of the port area to a taxi rank. We managed to find a 6-person taxi and off we all went to the rendezvous point with our tour guide, just a 10 minute ride away to Los Cancajos a little further down the coast.

We were a little early so we had a chance to take photographs of the coastline and enjoy the breezy morning!

It wasn't long until Gregario, our tour guide for the day, arrived and the six of us set off. Gregario runs a small family business of taxis and you can find him at http://www.taxilapalma.com/en/ - the tour we were on is called "Centre and South", it is the tour he recommends for cruise ship visitors as it fits into the time a cruise ship is normally in port for.

Our first stop was only a few minutes up hill - a great vantage point to see the Queen Elizabeth looking resplendent in port.

There were views at nearly every stop, this was a little further along, the ship now hidden by a hill but the town of Santa Cruise de La Palma now in full view. (See photos on the blog)

I won't include photographs of all the stops as there were several. One of the highlights was stopping at the edge of the caldera, just to see the edge of it gave an indication of the scale of it!

We also saw the second city of La Palma, Los Llanos. It was a bustling place with lots of little shops. We were there on a Saturday so there were lots of locals about enjoying their weekend time.

Then it was onto the seaside town of Puerto de Tazacorte and time for lunch at a very nice little cafe.

Overhead there were paragliders circling as they slowly made their way down to the black volcanic beach.

We saw the huge variety of flora, fauna and terrain on our trip. There have been volcanic eruptions in living history (the last in the 1970s). The evidence is still very much in view.

We also stopped at authentic places and sampled authentic local food and drink. Here we are with our tour guide (on the left), having local dessert wine and almond cookies at Bar Parada in Fuencaliente, right at the southernmost point of the island.

It was a great tour and we all enjoyed it immensely.

We were back on the ship at about 16:30 which gave the 4 of us on early sitting (6pm) enough time to get ready for dinner. A cruising schedule is a busy schedule! No picture of my outfit, I forgot! I wore a purple velvet knee length dress, purple sequinned bolero top, black tights, black sparkle flat shoes.

Our post dinner drinks were a little less exciting this time. Just a Grolsch for him and another Chocolate Affair for me. Again we enjoyed sitting in the Commodore Club listening to the singing pianist, Graham Wellard.

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Queen Elizabeth in port at La Palma

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Monday 14 November – Las Palmas de Gran Canaria

We didn’t have any tours planned in Gran Canaria, so our plan was just to have a mooch near to the port. We had heard about the city beach, Playa Las Canteras. We walked from end to end and looked in shops at one end, walking back and then looking in shops near the port. We didn’t see anything that we fancied.

After being out all morning from early, we decided to go back to the ship and try fish and chips at The Golden Lion. We have never been to the pub on a Cunard ship and had heard good things about the food. So we both had fish and chips and enjoyed it immensely! We also both tried the strawberry cider, very nice need if you like flavoured ciders and not too sweet as many fruit ciders can be.

We enjoyed the rest of the afternoon on the Lido deck. It was gloriously warm and sunny.

I tried the Rum Runner (Captain Morgan Dark Run combined with Creme de Casis, Creme de Banane and orange juice, served over ice with a splash of grenadine, $8.95).

We left at 5pm with 3 short blasts on the ships horn. We were slightly late departing due to two Cunard tours getting back to the ship late because of Las Palmas traffic.

Another informal evening and I wore a dress I had worn previously in the cruise. A red and blue lace a-line tea swing dress in a 1950s style. I wore it with a black ruffle short cardigan and red high heels.

See photos at https://11adventures.wordpress.com/2016/11/16/monday-14-november-las-palmas-de-gran-canaria/

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Quick question does the upper bed take up any room in the inside cabin and the gap between 1064 and 1078 is it a cupboard

Thank you

Sorry, out of the correct chronological order, but:

Sunday 13 November, Tenerife

The pace is getting to to us - a late start to this morning after an early night to bed last night! We got up at about 8:30am which meant that we did not have enough time to make breakfast at the Britannia Restaurant (07:30-09:00 on port days). So breakfast in the Lido, where I intend to a small breakfast and end up having too much of something entirely random that I would never eat at home and wasn't indending to have at all! No wonder my waistline has already expanded!

We went into Santa Cruz de Tenerife and after wandering about the streets, we found a pharmacy that was open and bought heel blister plasters (why do shoes that seem innocuous at home, suddenly turn into vicious skin rubbing hideous shoes on holiday?).

We stopped at a pretty square with a fountain, and I attended to my heels. We noticed a busy kiosk in the corner which had lots of seats outside and was clearly popular with locals and tourists. It was the "Kiosko Weyler Santa Cruz" in Plaza Weyler. After working out what to order, I chose to try the local popular drink of cortado leche y leche. It is condensed milk with a shot of espresso and then a small amount of steamed milk on top. It is quite sweet but very pleasant to drink. My husband went for the more familiar cappuccino. I then followed that with an even sweeter Cafe Chocolate Negro (a black chocolate cappuccino). Too sweet, but nice to try something different anyway, even if it is contributing to a further expansion of said waistline!

Another informal night. I wore my black crushed velvet dress, black ruffle cardigan, black tights and red rose fabric brooch.

My husband has been feeling left out... he wore a dark blue suit, blue striped shirt and blue tie with red paisley spots.

We think the glass screen has patterns that look like storm troopers from Star Wars, can you see them too?

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Photos: https://11adventures.wordpress.com/2016/11/16/sunday-13-november-santa-cruz-de-tenerife/

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Sea day, Tuesday 15 November - We got up to be in the main dinin room for 8am breakfast. We haven't been feeling very sociable on this cruise and have requested tables for 2 for breakfast and lunch. We eat our evening meal with our travelling companions on a table for 4. So we like to get to the dining room just as it opens so we can have a table for 2, usually near a window. Breakfast is such a civilised affair, I will miss it when I return home!

At 10am we went to another insights lecture with Martin Sanderson, wildlife cameraman. His talks have been excellent, really interesting to see some of the behind-the-scenes of the filming work that went into some of David Attenborough's early wildlife TV programmes.

At 11am there was a talk from Angela Rippon. We were disgusted with many passengers that arriving while Martin's talk was going on. Looking around for seats, standing in the aisles, asking those already in the room to stand so they could get to empty seats. I really felt very embarrassed for Martin. Their behaviour was completely disrespectful. All they were interested in was seeing Angela and securing their seat. Cunard should have anticipated the draw of Angela Rippon's talk and thought about how to manage passengers more appropriately.

After Angela's engaging talk (which was a very polished presentation of the key aspects of her career) we spent half-an-hour briskly walking around the promenade deck before we went to the main dining room again for lunch at 12:30pm. The maitre d' (who I think looks remarkably like the actor Andy Garcia) allocated us the same table as this morning. Towards the back by a window, very nice. We had fish goujons with skinny fries - posh fish and chips.

In the afternoon we spent some time in the Carinthia Lounge, and I tried a caffe viennese and my husband went for a caffe freddo (I think that was what it was called, a chilled latte essentially). We sat next to a window, I love reading a book and occasionally looking up to see the sea going by. Very relaxing.

Although afternoon tea was very tempting, we decided to give the gym a visit before getting ready for our third formal night. This evening was the masquerade ball evening, so I wore a black long gown with a colourful sequinned and embroidered layer with peak clock style colours through the full length of the gown.

We went to the Cunard World Club Reception at 5:15pm and met one of the crew who we talked to for about 20 minutes until the speeches started. We asked her a little about the crew quarters and where they all lived on ship. Most crew quarters are on the lower decks A, B and C but there are some on deck 1 and forward on deck 7. Most crew work 6 months on and 2 months off. An interesting way of life!

The most loyal member of the Cunard World Club is recognised at the reception, this reception recognised a couple who have spent 1170 nights on board over 40 voyages! They have been on the world cruise and have the next one on Queen Victoria already booked too! What a way to live!

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Photos in the blog post: https://11adventures.wordpress.com/2016/11/16/tuesday-15-november-sea-day/

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A beautiful day in Lisbon! Clear blue skies on arrival and the sun was shining brightly!

We had booked a tour with "We hate Tourism", along with Graham and Sharon who we met earlier in the cruise. The tour guide was already waiting for us when we got off the ship.

We headed to the village of Sintra, where there is a the Moorish- and Manueline-style Sintra National Palace with it's unusual twin chimneys. On the way we stopped to see views of the Pena National Palace further up on a high hilltop.

We stopped for classic Portuguese pasties in the village of Sapa close by and on the way to Sintra.

We stopped for a 'picnic' lunch at a local bar and cafe on the way to the coast. We had cooked chorizo, bread, tomatoes, goats cheese, and olives. We had a glass of wine. A lovely and authentic experience.

We then went to the coast and the area of Estoril. We stopped, overlooking a surfing beach with lost of surfers and paddle boarders.

Miguel, our guide had a 'surprise' for us - the local sour cherry liqueur. Very nice!

It was then onto Cascais, further along the coast. There are many examples of patterned pavements in Lisbon.

Our last stop was on a hilltop overlooking the city of Lisbon.

A further 'surprise' from Miguel was another local custard tart. Absolutely delicious!

We spent some time walking about in Lisbon.

We finished the day with a gorgeous sunset just before we left Lisbon.

The evening was an informal night and I wore a black sequinned and lace dress with a pale pink pashmina wrap and black s flat sparkly shoes. We had another delicious meal with excellent service from our fabulous waiters, Ronel and Visva.

After dinner we went to the Commodore Club and I had the Rhubard Daquiri while my husband went for his favourite pina colada. While we were drinking we noticed Captain Aseem Hashmi was circulating through the lounge. He went the opposite direction to where we were sitting so I popped to the ladies. When I came back my husband said that Captain Hashmi had already spoken to him! Oh no! Thankfully my husband has said how disappointed I would be not to speak to him so he had promised to come back when I had returned. He was true to his word and we got to have a conversation with him. We told him that he was our favourite captain! Out first cruise in 2014 had been to the fijords with Captain Hashmi at the helm. We discussed the Bay of Biscay and expected weather amongst other things. It was a real pleasure to speak to him. We missed our usual 8:30pm show but it was worth it!

We stayed in the Commodore Club for a while longer and I had another Chocolate Affair and my husband had another pina colada. We then had a cup of tea in the Lido before making our way to the Royal Court Theatre for the Cunard Singers and Dancers do a "Palladium Nights" show. It was absolutely brilliant, the whole cast is so talented.

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Photos at https://11adventures.wordpress.com/2016/11/17/wednesday-16-november-lisboa/

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Lovely to read your adventures, it's helping to dull the pain of having to leave QV on Tuesday.