fudge

Thank you for your updates, very much appreciated. Please say hi to Rhys from the people on the last cruise, the trivia people, boozers, losers and cruisers, the guy always checking up on his 13 cats at home. From a very sunny Cyprus. 

3 hours ago, Hlitner said:

It is difficult to defend a line that ONLY offers Hardy VS Cognac as it’s included brandy.

You are not kidding, I will never forgive Seabourn for that cut back, outrageous, unforgivable even.🥲 

5 hours ago, kej1 said:

 But what will we bring the spa team from Solis?  

A 32 oz steak?

On our last cruise (just back) we got friendly with with a lovely couple. One evening we dined together, the lady on the desk asked us for our suite numbers, they were in suite 900, when I looked on line its enormous, its a signature suite I think. They were sailing for two weeks so I guess it was worth it.

I suppose its all relative, £2600 does seem a lot to add on though, but thanks everyone for your thoughts.

Are the 800 900 signature suits, they are very expensive!

Thanks, Istanbul to Athens, 7 days, normally we wouldn't consider this but we thought we would treat ourselves, you are right if we go ahead we would have to make good use of it. 

We have just left the Seabourn Encore two days ago, we are back on the ship in seven weeks time. We are booked in a veranda suite as we were last week (827)

The deals are anything from a wintergarden suite, owners suite, signature suite, penthouse spa and penthouse. 

My question is: Are any of them worth the extra cash? We are looking at an owners suite, looked on you tube they do look lovely. 

We don't spend a great deal of time in our suite but we may in the owners suite. Cost: £1300 PP

I realise this is very subjective, but any replies would be very much appreciated.

Thanks Hank,

We are in a lovely hotel in Athens, flying home in the morning. By the way, as expected nothing came of my speaking to a senior staff member about you know what.😝

That’s almost it  folks nearly over. We have had a great time on this cruise. Met some lovely people, a lovely ship, great crew, super food.

We cant wait to come back in October. Our last evening in the Solis, Mrs Fudge has 90% packed, that’s above the pay scale of Mr Fudge!!

What ever cruise line you choose we hope you have a safe and pleasant journey, thanks for your responses, it wouldn't be the same without you.

We had very relaxing meal in the Solis, it really is a cut above the rest if you manage to get a reservation.

When we disembark we decided to spend a night in Athens so we could secure a decent flight to Istanbul then onto Cyprus. Our 13 cats will give us a warm welcome we hope?

Our usual nightcap in the observation lounge, very quiet indeed, I guess most folks packing who are leaving the ship.

Here we are then, arrived in Athens 03.30. A lazy morning before heading off to our hotel.

Bye everybody, see you in seven weeks. Take care, stay safe.

The Captain made an odd statement earlier “some of you think we are not moving, I can assure you we are”?

You just know its towards the end of the cruise when you receive your disembarkation luggage tags and your “do you want to leave a deposit for a future cruise notice”

This evening we received an invitation to a special cocktail reception in the grand salon at 6pm to honour Seabourn club members.

We ate in the colonnade with a lovely couple we met on the ship, the ladies had the fish, the gents had a steak, all very nice food.

This morning we landed in Nafplion, Greece, this is a marina day apparently, where guests can go out to sea on the toys, kayak, banana boat, the sea is very calm so it sounds good to go.

We have just returned from our one and only excursion, the Corinth canal.

We took a tender to the shore about 15 minutes, met by a local guide who we spent 50 minutes with around the town exploring places of interest.

We then boarded a bus/coach for a one hour ride to the Corinth Canal. I wont bore you with the dimensions suffice to say its about a 20 minute boat ride along a very narrow and  steep sided passage.

It was a lovely trip, plenty to see, great photo opportunity.

We returned to the ship about an hour late so missed the Colonnade, no big deal.

We ate by the pool side then the heavens opened, torrential rain, thunder and lightning, we had to rush to take cover with our burgers!

Thank you for your feedback, very much appreciated.

We really are sailing at a snails pace, 7 knots, about 8mph which is not a bad thing.

So, there was a coffee morning with senior officers at 10 am in Seabourn square. Mr Fudge was there bang on time to raise the cognac issue. Look, I know I am making a big deal over this but when there are three top cognacs on the menu and none available then something is not right?

A lady officer approached me and asked if everything was OK, I asked her was she wearing her hard hat? I politely pointed out my issue. She listened carefully and said she would look into the matter. I said, if you find any on board please deliver to suite 827, which she said she would, sorry Hank!

Chair hog day! I predicted last evening it would be a chair hog day because we are at sea, yep, I was right, went to the pool deck hardly a sun bed to be had, and a lot unattended, oh well, that’s human nature for you.

While Mr Fudge was at the coffee morning Mrs Fudge had another bowl of bird seed crafty devil.

Finally, we had our first caviar at the fourth time of asking, OK it took 45 minutes to arrive but we enjoyed it.

Trivia: Don’t ask!! Who wants a Seabourn travel plug anyway?

Lunch: Pizza and fries hits the spot sometimes.

SB President Natalya Leahy will be onboard on our cruise in seven weeks, I am going to ask her will she join me in having a top cognac or  similar? 

.

Serious question: Is there a place lower than last at Trivia? Today's prize a weeks cruise, and if you believe that you would believe anything? Hey, it’s a fun quiz game right?

Tomorrow is a sea day, on our last cruise Alaska to Japan we had six sea days, Mr Fudge thought he was going to burst he consumed so much food and alcohol, he was worried that he may may be weighed at the airport, even if it was a first for us in first class.

Sail away today is an Abba theme, the weather has turned, there was thunder and lightning in the distance but thankfully is did not come our way. It was a great turn out for the sail away, everyone singing and dancing, ABBA never seems to age does it?

The only small hiccup was we ordered caviare, after one hour wait we gave up! Never mind, there is always tomorrow. One of the crew promised us he would look after us tomorrow.  The sea is very calm thankfully, a big lie in this morning, no dig in the ribs until 08.30 the coffee at Seabourn square is very nice as are the cranberry twists.

Last evening at the sail away I squeezed the last of the Courvoisier bottle, I think Hank has been having a sneaky drink? I was told by the bartender that’s it no more to be had, big boos.

We had a lovely meal in the Restaurant, Mrs Fudge has two appetizers followed by the lamb rack, Mr Fudge had the seafood cake followed by a lovely pasta dish, the plates were piping hot.

Half way through the cruise and enjoying it very much. Mr Fudge did not get his usual dig in the ribs this morning, Mrs Fudge decided no morning coffee and pastries today.

Forgot to mention, we missed out on a Seabourn cloth puffin by not winning the trivia, no expense spared there then.

I am sure I spotted on of the crew wearing my “Stockport County” soccer shirt. Panic over, the laundry just arrived.

At the risk of sounding boring we took the 09.25 tender to town.  Plenty of high end boutique shops, Mrs Fudge bought a pair of nice sandals (like she needs more sandles) anyway at 14 Euro,a bargain.

When we returned to the ship the bank manager had left a message on the telephone asking if Mrs Fudge had “lost” her credit card?

I know there are minor disappointments on some voyages however, Mrs Fudge sent a lovely thank you note to the F & B manager thanking him for a lovely in suite dining experience.

Because dozy Mr. Fudge fell asleep on the first day, thereby missing the Solis restaurant we have asked for a cancellation even if means eating at 02.30!!

Stop press: We secured a booking at 6pm on Saturday, Mr Fudge only gets to see the first half of the soccer, it would be more than his life is worth to either fall asleep or mention the football.

For Hank

Sorry Hank, this had to be done! I had a portion of Gelato (ice cream) went to the pool bar ordered a glass of Courvoisier  and poured it over the top.

Are we missing something? We were reminiscing about cruises we have been on. We have only been cruising since 2010, Regent, Silversea and of course Seabourn. We love them all however, we have seen cutbacks on all cruise lines.

When around the pool deck we used to get fruit on sticks, cool towels, chips/crisps, of course if you ask you get but it dosent come as standard?  

The in suite experience was just outstanding. Two crew members brought enough food to sink a battleship. There were 13 different dishes, king prawns, chicken, beef, all cooked to a high standard. Well done to Seabourn for a delicious meal.

After dinner Mrs Fudge went to the boutique to spend the last of her on board credit. There was $3.60 in credit so she treated Mr Fudge to a packet of paper tissues, she is generous to a fault, nothing gets past Mrs Fudge where finances are involved.

She then went to the theatre to watch the show, The Earth song, by the Seabourn six, scenes included performance of desert rose, coldplay and the shows title Earth song. Even though Mr Fudge is very hard of hearing Mrs Fudge said it was very loud.

Mr Fudge stayed in the suite in his jim jams and tried to finish off the dinner but to no avail.

Today, Thursday we have just docked Zakynthos, yet another lovely day, it’s a tender today, The clocks went forward last evening.

I hope the laundry returns today its been over three days, if not Mr Fudge will have to raid Mrs Fudges lingerie draw, he thinks he would look quite fetching in Blue satin French connection underwear!! (Maybe not)

Lunch was in the colonnade (again) a Mexican theme, chilli, fajitas, refried beans Etc.. All very nice but as ever with buffets luke warm food, still very enjoyable, washed down with a White wine.

Time for an afternoon nap, it’s a hard life!

Well, well, well, afternoon trivia, we didn’t come last, we came second last, do you ever get the feeling we are just not brainy enough to do trivia!

We set sail at 5pm for Zakynthos, Greece. A lovely evening, the sun shining brightly, eagerly  awaiting our in suite dining experience.

Zakynthos is the third largest of the Ionian isles. It is famous for its “isolated shipwreck beach” accessible only by boat. The official language is Greek but English is widely spoken.

There are churches and other places of interest including a Byzantine museum.

We were on the pool deck and Mrs Fudge spotted a cruise ship heading towards us, it was the new Silver Ray from the Silversea fleet. It looked like a ghost ship, we couldn't see one single person on board, heading towards Albania, very odd indeed.

Before departing from Albania the Captain announced we will be sailing at 14 mph, for you expert cruise people out there is that a normal speed for a cruise ship?

2 hours ago, sfvoyage said:

Andrew Pedder

Thank you, as Mrs Fudge says, he cant be right all the time!

Mr. Andrew Penner, he has been with Seabourn a long time.

All of the sailings have been really smooth, the only difference I have noticed is that when cruising the speed of the ship is slower than I remember? Whether that is to conserve fuel I have no idea?

We are back on this ship in seven weeks time Istanbul to Athens, it’s the last cruise before the ship moves to Asia. Istanbul is great for us only 1 hr 10 minute flight from Cyprus. If you have time it’s a great place to walk around, lots of places to see.

On a different note, all the crew have been fantastic, very warm and friendly, had a long chat with the Captain at lunch time, he works 10 weeks and then has 10 weeks vacation.

I have orders from Mrs Fudge, cut out the fatty breakfast, so instead we had a relaxed coffee on the pool deck, Mrs Fudge had a bowl of bird seed.

We left the ship for a stroll around the town. Much to Mr Fudges delight there are no shopping malls to speak of, instead there are plenty of small boutiques with sales on today, or maybe every day? Although the local currency is the Lec they do take Euro s.

It just goes to show if you are not technically minded which we are not, we have only just realised the “included” internet package is one device EACH. Mrs Fudge has been without her what's app since boarding, she is now a happy bunny back on line, Mr Fudge locked his phone away when he came on board, no interest whatsoever.

The weather is still very hot and humid. The pool is cool though, nice to have a dip to cool down. We ate lunch in the colonnade today, a wide selection including pork ribs, lasagne, pork fillet, great choice.

Just off to the trivia, lets see how we go on today? Well, what a disaster that was, no umbrella for us today we came last!!  We are named cruising and boozing, we are now cruising and loosing!!!

At 5pm we had a sail away event, well attended, Im sure on our last Seabourn cruise we had “nibbles” during these events?

Last evening we ate in the MDR, we both had the goats cheese soufflé followed by the lamb chops, both were excellent.

We skipped the entertainment and chose to have a night cap in the observation bar, we were the only folks in there.

Today (Wednesday) we are in Sarande, Albania. I used to wok in Albania a few years ago so know the place quite well.

Mrs Fudge has spent half of her on board credit, nothing for Mr Fudge and that’s OK.

This evening the food in the Colonnade is a British theme, hot pot, roast beef with Yorkshire pudding, we will miss that, we decided to have in suite dining this evening, we have ordered a very hot Indian curry, really looking forward to that, we love spicy food.

In other news, it would appear Seabourn have curtailed the daily on board activities, no more shuffle-board or baggo for points towards a baseball cap or bottle opener. Never mind, we have more merchandise than you can throw a stick at, Mrs Fudge is very competitive though, another big lip day.

A bit of local knowledge:

The walk from the ship into town is less than 3 minutes, lots and lots and lots of tourist shops, cafes, restaurants, and lots of cats in every doorway. This pleases Mrs. Fudge, we have thirteen cats. There is a cat museum in the main square.

Take the escalator under the busy main road, you can walk from one end of the city in under 15 minutes. Very clean, very safe, lovely friendly people.

There is a Kotor fortress climb for you energetic folks. There is also Kotor old city walls which stretch all around the town.

Its 11am and the ship is sooo quiet, looks like they have hit the excursions, hardly anyone on the pool deck and no “chair hogs” so far which is a pleasant change. You guessed it, champagne time.

We gave breakfast a miss today but couldn't resist a custard doughnut from Seabourn square, very yummy.

I have now found two half bottles of Courvoisier, am not disclosing where except to Hank who is on the ship.😆 

We are also on this cruise, we had three upsell offers prior to the cruise, from deck 8 to a penthouse suite for £1500 pp, we declined, far to much for a weeks cruise. 

At 6.30 pm we went to the observation bar for the Captains introduction of his senior staff. A great atmosphere the Captain is from Yorkshire UK, spoke very well.

Coincidently it was described as a “formal “night.

We went to the Earth and Ocean to eat, very disappointing. The tempura prawns were nice as a starter but the main meal was a vegetable curry, not nice at all. Curried chick peas with vegetables thrown on top.  Oh well onto another night. Even worse there was no bartender all evening, so it was wine or nothing, strange??

Day 2 cont….

We left Earth and Ocean and went to the club bar for a nightcap, still no top cognac!

We went to the show featuring Lauren Drew  a Welsh west end star, performed in Les Miserables and Six. She had a lovely voice and performed well.

We turned in fairly early, woke early, went to Seabourn square, it was packed at 06.30 12 people in the queue for coffee only one lady serving.

07.00 Tuesday, just docking in Kotor, Montenegro. Initially it was a tender however, the captain has managed to secure a berth happy days. We have been here before on another cruise, as I recall there is lots to see in town, Mrs Fudge will be pleased I can feel the credit card taking a hit.