LiquidWu

3 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

My husband worked for Guinness in Dublin. 

What a dream 😃

Thanks for the very entertaining thread

Just now, ConnieTact said:

I doubt he agrees with cans of Guinness! 😊

Yes, you're probably right.
But I can assure you that it tastes even less here from bottles or on tap.

Shaking the ball in the can under pressure is the best way to get that certain creaminess.

6 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

 

No way will Mr B touch Guinness onboard a ship.  It doesn’t travel well. 

I'm interested in that now, though. Because here in Germany, real Guiness has always traveled a long way.
Do you know the cans with the ball inside? What does a connoisseur think of it?
I'll probably have to travel to Dublin myself to find out the difference.

I look forward to your report. It will make me think back to a wonderful time a week ago on the Virtuosa and your very different perspective will make it interesting.

But most importantly, I wish you a wonderful trip with unforgettable moments 🙂

8 minutes ago, Cathygh said:

We are on our first MSC cruise on Virtuosa soon, I have your blog to be very helpful, thank you. Can you tell me what time you have to leave your cabin by when you disembark please?

Thank you, have a wonderful cruise.

The cabin must be vacated by 8am so that it can be prepared for the new guests.
The time to disembark is usually later, so that you can then still have breakfast in peace. If you have a beverage package, then that is also valid until you leave the ship. Of course, early in the morning the bars are closed, I was thinking more of a cappuchino and a freshly squeezed orange juice 😉

Be creative 😉
On board you can exchange your OBC (refundable or not) e.g. into casino chips. Then you play a little, roulette for example has a minimum stake of only 1$.
Afterwards you exchange the casino chips for cash. Done 🙂

Oh how nice, another interesting travelogue.

Since my next cruise also starts in Abu Dhabi, I would be particularly interested in the transfer options from the airport (AUH) to the ship.
How did that go for Bea?

Regarding blocked CC Webpage: I used the "hide.me" VPN.
For it to work on board you have to choose the protocol "SSTP" in the settings. This protocol is older and potentially insecure, but we don't want to transfer secrets, we just want to trick the firewall 😉
There is a free test plan which is sufficient for the duration of a cruise.
 

Since here sometimes was asked about the settlement and currently even a "BEWARE" thread is discussed still my experience:
At 6:00am on the day of departure my boarding account was closed, at 6:04am the correct amount was debited from my credit card. The rest of the previously blocked (higher) amount was released.
I was still able to use all public areas incl. my beverage package at my leisure until 9am. Then I disembarked, all financial matters were settled. It could not have come better.

PS Only my cell phone woke me up at 6:04am. To be on the safe side, I had set up an alarm for credit card charges during the trip 🤣😂
Note to self: next time delete the night before

21 hours ago, ConnieTact said:

Have a safe homeward journey! I hope the strike action doesn’t delay your travels. 

20 hours ago, insidecabin said:

Safe travels home, enjoyed another Virtual Virtuosa trip.

Thank you very much to both of you. 
I had my own car parked at the port, so I had no stress with possible strikes or postponements. 
Although we came from a port outside the EU, there was hardly any control at customs. I think the officials have a sense of who they need to control. I was only sniffed by a drug-dog and that was it.

A last sad farewell look
 

On 3/25/2023 at 9:50 PM, ConnieTact said:

That’s my fave pasta dish! I loved it! 
glad you enjoyed it! 

Oh yes, I like duck meat in all variations. It is relatively low in fat and still tastes delicious.
In general, I always find the risooto and pasta dishes on board the MSC ships remarkable. You can really still feel the Italian influence.

4 hours ago, sidari said:

Maybe a change of itinerary or an earlier departure.

I can rule out a change to another port instead of Hamburg, we are already there.

What has not yet been mentioned here is the total closure of the Elbe Tunnel. Steinwerder will be difficult to reach as a result. Plan extra time.

In the theater, after the show, they really said goodbye. Thank you MSC Virtuosa

Today I found it the only time pity that this cruise has no clear beginning or end. Many guests have just come on board in Belgium or England. Thus, no farewell mood arose on my last evening.

But the dinner was still great again.

My aperitif before dinner. I stick to rum-based drinks as a precaution.

Santa Teresa Manhattan
Santa Teresa 1796 rum, orange bitters, red vermouth

A visit to the crew show is always entertaining and for me also a recognition of their really great commitment

For all those considering booking YC a typical picture. The whole theater was full, everything was jostling.  But in the corner reserved for YC guests there were many free seats 

No mobile Data in YIN 14009 on MSC Virtuosa, but relative fast WiFi. 

PENNY LEE Cocktail

Captain Morgan spiced rum, Malibu coconut liqueur,

Montenegro Italian bitter, fresh lime juice, passion fruit cordial

Since there is not so much to report from a lazy sea day, I'll start with the first summary. The following is a series of nibbles that I got delivered to the cabin without being asked:

Since not ordered, of course, completely free. The most delicious plate with pastries is unfortunately missing, I have plastered before I thought of a photo

2 hours ago, ConnieTact said:

Looks like you had a fabulous time! We hope to meet you again one day @LiquidWu.

You must be arriving in Hamburg soon. Have safe onward travels. Thanks for the great live report.

Thanks for the kind words, but luckily I have one more sea day before we dock back in Hamburg. I'm just strolling through the gallery, the "sky" looks dreamlike again.

With you @ConnieTact I will be happy to be on a cruise again at any time. 

Dinner today was once again fantastic. I had a risotto, that's what the Italians do best.
Then a delicious fillet steak under a paper-thin slice of hard cheese. 

Below as always for you the complete menu:

14 minutes ago, insidecabin said:

 

Thanks for your live from.

 

Were they still doing face to face with UK border force for regular pax that boarded other than Southampton?

 

 

Yes, I talked about it with other German passengers during the shore excursion. The line was frighteningly long, but it went quickly, as the large gymnasium was used for several parallel stations 

Of course, I do not want to forget to mention yesterday's dinner:

Unfortunately, the cruise is already coming to an end. 
For me, this is the time for individual tips. Actually, with MSC you pay them via the on-board account, but for particularly helpful crew members I always have a few extra bills with me.
The waiters thanked me with a group photo.


Speaking of tips, of course my butler got one too and gladly accepted it. But actually he had a completely different wish. He said it would be more useful for him if I thanked him with a small letter to his superior.
That was new to me, I only did that after the cruise when that survey email came. But my butler assured me that this would be the best way to thank the crew to do it on board.

I'm reporting so late today because I was at the casino until the wee hours yesterday.
But it was worth it, at the end I had almost 100€ extra in my pocket.

This morning I slept until the start of the shore excursion. Fortunately, I had set the alarm.

We had a nice little walking tour of Southampton with a very nice, engaging tour guide

The highlight was then the visit of the SeaCity Museum with a really well designed, interesting exhibition about the history of Southampton and the RMS Titanic.

16 hours ago, Captain-John said:

Non-refundable deposits are the norm in the UK (if not the rest of Europe as well?). MSC don't allow for example UK based guests to book US ticketed cruises, sadly, so we can't take advantage of the refundable nature of the deposits, where they exist.

I can confirm this from a European (well, rather German) point of view. Such practices as on the American market are rather unusual here.
But for me it is sufficient that I can rebook at any time, without giving reasons free of charge. Then I move my cruise just to...

Bad news guys , I should have been on the bridge and in the engine room right now. I would have liked to tell you about it.

But because of the strong wind, the bridge is on "alert" and closed for us. VERY sad.

The whale laughs about it, as always 😀

Today the sun finally comes out. My opportunity to enjoy an Aperol Spritz outside.

For you the full bar menu to browse. Since the sign is just here also the prices and conditions of the drink packages.

QR_T_POOL-BAR-LIST_OTHER_DAYX_EN_1679568362.pdf