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Hambagahle

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Everything posted by Hambagahle

  1. Greece (not Turkey) is a member of Schengen which has passport-free travel between the member states. If you are arriving in Greece from, say, Italy - you will not even have to show your passport unless you are using it as your ID when you check in for your flight. Arriving in Turkey - either the key card from the ship is accepted or the ship's clearance officer will do the necessary paperwork. I don't know if Turkey will stamp a non-Schengen passport. They might.
  2. I love that expression "the no nos". Never heard it before this afternoon. It makes sense! I was (luckily for me) taught to cook Indian food by an Indian chef. he explained you simply don't add the spices. You "layer" the spices all the time you are making the dish. There are some you "temper" the oil with. Others that go in very early. And yet others that are added at the end. This produces a dish with a real depth of taste. It is not necessary to have a lot of chili in a curry if you don't like hot food. It IS necessary to have various different spices added as you go. And god forbid you use curry powder!! Those "walking symbols"... I was looking at a tour to Akrotiri on Santorini. Had 3 of those on the title. Yet the excavation at Akrotiri is wheelchair accessible. (Says so on their website). All under cover. Has ramps as well as stairs etc. Go figure !!
  3. The winds sound terrible. It seems though that the wind is blowing strongly all over Europe right now. Here in the Alps it has been very very cold - winter temperatures with snow - after a week or so of almost summer weather. I do hope that the Captain was able to keep Vista docked - or what would happen to those who are in Knossos for the day ? it is not next door... For the food. Perhaps Oceania should introduce a small "alternative" menu - "ethnic food without flavour". But they shouldn't be leveling everything down to a lower common denominator. If you are going to make a Vindaloo (don't know if they do!) then make one. Put a "3 peppers" type of icon next to it on the menu. To warn timid eaters off.
  4. I am also glad they took out those whirlpool baths outside. Had one in a Vista and Owners Suite (possibly also in an Oceania Suite but I don't remember). Never used them and wondered who would !
  5. Even when the Vista Malta/Trieste cruise dropped Istanbul and Kusadasi all the cruises that started or ended in Istanbul were kept. We were originally booked on the 21 April/1May Vista cruise but for unrelated reasons we cancelled. We have been to Istanbul and Kusadasi before and really wanted to go again. And hopefully will - we're booked on Regent Splendor Athens/Istanbul at the end of April next year.
  6. We stayed in Cassis for a week some years ago. It was lovely. Perhaps the best thing we did there (aside from eat and enjoy the views) was to take a boat to the Calanques. You can't comfortably get there any other way without walking down the cliffs and they are splendid. Lovely coves, swimming beaches etc. Really enjoyed the local wines in the area too.
  7. Something similar happened to me some years ago. Got to Genova from Venezia OK by train but then there was a strike Genova/Ventimilgia (I was headed for Cannes on a business trip). Ended up by hiring a limo to drive me to the border and drop me in Menthon from where I got the train to Cannes. Cost a fortune but at least I could work in the car.
  8. Hank - thanks SO much for all the info on this thread. I "followed" your adventures around Japan on HAL last spring and sense that you are enjoying this cruise a little more. Looking forward to reading what you have to say as the next 2+ weeks of the cruise rolls on.
  9. Thank you for this informative review. May I ask a question? For your flight(s) to MIA - did Regent UK arrange those or did you do them yourself. Getting a one way trans-Atlantic flight is very very expensive (we are Swiss) and although we have been faithful clients of an excellent agency in the US for years they cannot do our flights. We love TA cruises...and would like to do another before we leave the planet but the flight cost is very very expensive.
  10. Julia Child has a recipe for Duxelles in her Vol. 1 (Along with the recipe for Beef Wellington). Finely chopped mushrooms, onions and then sautéed - and yes - some foie gras added. But not much.
  11. They might not have known. In Italy most strikes are announced ahead of time - but far from all. And even when there are strikes - some trains run. If you are willing to show up and go with whatever is running. Fine. Problem is coming back to a ship and discovering the train you planned to take from Termini is not running... Taxis are expensive and take a little longer - from Termini - than a train...
  12. Thanks to all, especially the info on the Divani Caravelle. I have stayed at the Grande Bretagne in the past, and at the Hilton too. Like the location of the former more than the latter. Hotels were both OK but the décor of the GB is a bit "early brothel" for my taste!! On Splendor we are in a Grand Suite and Regent says boarding at 1200 with access to suite at 1300. So I would like to get to the port early and will probably take a taxi. Really appreciated the info on the assigned bus numbers and the melée to get on the bus!
  13. You just answered my question!! Thanks and take care, g
  14. We will be on a Splendor cruise which leaves from Athens next April. A night in an Athens hotel is included...if possible I would love to know which hotels Regent has used in the past ? And also roughly how far in advance of the cruise do they tell you where you will be staying? (They aren't doing our air). I know Athens quite well and know more or less where I would like to stay. So might set something up on my own if I don't like their choice (!).
  15. Of course ! Or if with the GM ... Makes me chuckle because the first time I met Franck Galzy he was F&B Manager on the Voyager. We were on a TA crossing and had dinner with Louise Ross, Social Hostess -- and Franck! What a pleasure. And the meal was very good.
  16. We have a very successful Roll Call going right now for a cruise starting in April on Vista. Looking at the nationalities I would say that maybe 75% or more are from the USA. Of the rest, mostly Canadian with several Australians and one Kiwi. Only two from the UK I think. and then there is my husband and I - Swiss.
  17. The we will be the ideal neighbours because we don't watch the TV !
  18. Not really. The cruise had been booked, deposit paid, last May. I was getting ready to make the final payment (which I have done). My TA is someone I have dealt with for cruises for well over 10 yaers now. And she is great! She and the company she works for are among the biggest "clients" of both Oceania and Regent. (Almost all their staff were invited to the christening of the Vista last May and in December to the christening of the Grandeur). It was I who wanted to add the SM because I (and my husband) hate being "nickled and dimed" if you know what that means? We have a Vista suite. We have 6 bottles of complimentary wine/spirits of our choice in that suite but we don't like thinking, when we are in a bar "well this drink will cost another $35 or so...) I am not fussed about the amount I spend per day because we don't go on cruises often and this may be our last anyway. So I am a happy camper with the SM package.
  19. Before SimplyMore we had planned to take the full beverage package which would have cost us $69 per person per day - so $690 pp for the cruise. Plus we were planning to take a few excursions. With SimplyMore the upgrade is only $30 pp/day - so a total of $600 for the cruise AND all the excursions dropped by 25%. Both my TA and I think in our case this is worthwhile.
  20. On the contrary - we did the maths (with our TA's help) and initially came out about $66 better off with Simply More, mostly because of the drinks at meals and therefore reduced price of the full beverage package. But then I read the "fine print" and saw that if we booked one more excursion we would get 25% off ALL the excursions. And since there was one we wanted to take - we did that. With the money we saved as a result we then booked yet another one - all at 75% of cost. For us it makes sense. I think if you don't drink alcohol or wine it probably doesn't.
  21. Thank you so much. I am used to Swiss prices so find all this reasonable even with the 50% increase for same day service...
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