Carnac767

The ship will stick to a track that provides the smoothest conditions and will alter that as necessary. Remember that October is still hurricane season so nothing can ever be guaranteed. Fortunately, hurricanes just don't pop up out of nowhere, so the captain will have plenty enough notice to select a safe track to avoid it.

It's a bit more than ironic that those protesting tourism, especially in Europe, never fail to take their annual holiday someplace other than in their hometown.

Don't go in August. It's the absolute worst time of the year to travel in Europe because everyone is on holiday. September is a much better option. I've lived in Spain and Italy and spent a lot of time in the Med on really, really big yachts, the type in my avatar. Places I've always liked include Lisbon, Sevilla, Grenada, Palma, Barcelona, Provence, Pisa, Florence, Sorrento, Amalfi Coast, Venice, Dubrovnik, Split, Athens, the Greek Isles, Istanbul, Izmir, and Malta. I'm sure others will chime in with their favorite places. You can't wrong with any of these places. At least it will give you a brief introduction to places that you'll want to return and explore in greater detail. Take a look at some of Rick Steves' videos covering these places and you might get a better idea of where you'd like to visit.

We're now under 300 days to go, 298 to be exact. Just saying. 😀

I saw on SD's instagram that on the current crossing SD II held swim call somewhere between the Azores and Lisbon. They reported the water depth was 4,500 feet where they stopped for swimming but the water temp was not noted.

Welcome aboard.

The restaurants in Paris don't charge for bread and butter any longer. Spanish restaurants used to provide free tapas but that custom has pretty much died away except in the eastern, less touristy, parts of Andalucía. Hey, Trapper Z, did you do the mid-Atlantic swim? How was the water temperature? I've done a mid-Pacific swim, but I consider any water temp below 78 Arctic conditions. I used to teach scuba in Bermuda and the water in April was usually pretty damn cold, unless you're a Canadian, eh.

Thanks for sharing. Good stuff.

One thing I forgot to mention about dining in Lisbon. Your server will bring you a platter of bread, cheese, olives, and the like, and you'll think, "wow, this is nice." They don't tell you that it's not free. It will be added to your bill and in some places it's as much as ten Euros. However, you can refuse it. Just tell your server you don't want it, though I usually found it hard to resist because that bread and cheese is usually really good.

What's everyone doing pre and post-cruise? We're taking Amtrak from Jacksonville to West Palm the day before. In Lisbon we're staying at the Indepentende Prícipe Real, which is in the Bairro Alto but a quieter section than the last place we stayed. It's about a 15-minute walk to the ferry terminal by the Time Out Market. The ferry is the quickest and cheapest way to get across the river and get to Ponto Final. We're only going to spend two nights in Lisbon before flying to Nice to spend a couple of weeks in Provence, something Sarah's been wanting to do for ages.

If you're interested in dining with Zé, you can find his Eatwith link here: https://www.eatwith.com/events/8982?date=2024-04-30&seats=2

Let's try this again. We were booked on this cruise in 2023 but had to cancel because of health reasons. We've been to Lisbon before and have lived in Bermuda (long time ago), so we can't wait to return. For those of you who are traveling to LIS for the first time, I recommend you watch the "Somebody Feed Phil" Lisbon episode on Netflix. You'll get lots of ideas of places to visit and places to eat. We highly recommend dining at Ponto Final. You'll need to make reservations about two months in advance, but if you can't score a reservation, don't worry. Get there at six, wait in line, and around seven they'll start taking people without reservations. One of the waiters there guaranteed us we'd be seated, and he was right. It's worth the wait. The Time Out Market is also worth a visit, especially to enjoy Pateis de Nata (Portuguese Egg Custards), which are amazing. If the line at Pastel Manteigaria is too long, just go outside around back on the street and they have a counter on the back end of the building that never has a line. All the tourists who've watch Somebody Feed Phil are in line inside. We also recommend you get the "Eatwith" app, where you can find local families who host people for dinner. We've used the app in Lisbon, Rome, and Paris, and have always had a fantastic experience. The people who want to host on Eatwith are carefully vetted by the company, so you can feel confident about wherever you book. The last time we were in Lisbon we had dinner with Zé at his apartment in the city, and he was a great host. I can't remember how many courses we had and lost track of the wine after the fifth bottle. We stumbled out of Ze's place at two a.m. He said when he has several guests, the revelry has gone on until five in the morning. You can also make bookings for Eatwith at Eatwith.com. One word of caution if you book a hotel in the Bairro Alto section of Lisbon. It's a great location but it can also be crazy noisy, as it's the hip and happening part of Lisbon. We had an apartment there that was surrounded by bars and nightclubs, and those places didn't seem to close until three or four in morning. Bring earplugs. Well, this has gone on long enough. Feel free to ask questions, and we'll try to answer them. I'll add a few photos. Rent a bike in Bermuda and live on the edge, especially when a squall hits. Weather in Bermuda in April can be windy and rainy. The Swizzle Inn, located near the airport. Famous for its Rum Swizzles. Their motto: Swizzle In and Stagger Out. You might want to take a taxi if you visit here. Lisbon's Time Out Market. Lots of different food choices in here. Get your Pasteis here, hot off the press. Be sure to sprinkle nutmeg and powdered sugar on them. I could eat these all day Zé, our EatWith host With each course, Zé showed us where in Portugal the food came from, the history behind the dish, and the wine that paired best with it. One of the many courses we were served Outdoor seating at Ponto Final. Don't push your chair back too far. Indoor seating is also available for the less adventurous.

You're right. It's about $90 for an Uber from the Island to JAX airport, and the port is probably about $10-$15 more. On a 12-day cruise that's more cost effective than paying for parking. Fly Navy.

The Jax NBC affiliate reports that Gem will cruise from Nov through April every year through 2028. The proposed itineraries will be available on February 15, they say. The Florida Times-Union says destinations will include the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, St Thomas and St John, VI, Antigua, and St. Kitts, We're hoping the ship will reposition to Europe ahead of hurricane season for summer cruises, so we can jump on a TA, which we always enjoy.

Great news for us, too. The Jewel Class is our favorite class of ship, and some of the itineraries reported in the Jacksonville media look pretty good. It will be nice to see something in port beside that ugly Carnivore ship.

The question often arises concerning Transatlantic cruises and that is "what will the sea conditions be like?" Here are a couple of photos taken from USS Teddy Roosevelt in 1999 on her way from Norfolk to the Med. She ran into this storm in early April. The ship encountered 20' swells and 80' waves. The first shot is TR taking white water over the flight deck, which is roughly 60' above the sea surface. The second photo is of one of the escorts getting clobbered. Now that I've terrified everyone, let me add that this was a freak storm and very unusual. I've made several crossings in late May and they've all been bathtub calm for the most part. But as these photos illustrate, the Atlantic Ocean is a fickle beast. If we ever encounter conditions like this on SDII, we won't have to stop for swim call. The ocean will call on us.

Welcome aboard, TZ. I hope we have swim call. I've done it in the mid-Pacific, right where the equator meets the international date line. Want to add the Atlantic to that very short list. When I lived in Bermuda in the 80s, the water temperature in late April/late May was in the high 60s/low 70s, which to me was like the Arctic. The further east we go the cooler it will be. So, it won't be a long swim. 🥶

Welcome aboard.

Don't look now, but this sailing is less than a year away. We were wondering who else is joining us on this bodacious event. I guess nobody needs to worry about arranging pub crawls (that would go by quickly), slot pulls (ditto), cabin crawls and private tour excursions. That gives us plenty of time to concentrate on cruise essentials--eating and drinking. I lived in Bermuda but that was in the 1980s when a coat and tie was mandatory for almost everywhere. We were there four years ago and times they have changed . . . and so have the prices. We went to one of my favorite watering holes, the Swizzle Inn. Two rum swizzles and two fish and chips cost us nearly $70, but hey, we were in Bermuda, so it was still awesome. Looking forward to meeting the rest of the motley crew for this adventure.