Lirio

15 hours ago, QueSeraSera said:

Sad day in Virginia today, we took one of our 2 dogs to the vet, he just seemed tired and at times having trouble breathing.  While being x-rayed, he went into labored breathing with blood pressure dropping, they rushed him back to the room where we were waiting and he died in our arms.

 

The world is a bit poorer without Grover in it.  Much larger impact on us to lose him.

 

QSS so sad. My cat died 2 weeks ago and the house is so empty.

2 hours ago, zqtchas said:

Ready for Halloween?

spring in the Mountain. 

19 minutes ago, alithecat said:

Check your Silversea itinerary. On our excursion cruise, which starts & ends in Kang., Silversea has included a charter flight to/from Reykjavik. That's also where their pre-cruise hotel is.

In our Silversea cruise last August there was alson an option to a charter flight to US.

My best wishes for those in Florida.

Keep us posted.

Tourist thing, but it is ok to entertain guests.

I must take a course with JP how to write and take pictures of food!

So today I decied to cook for some friends. Salad + rice with duck. We used lava salt from Iceland, wines and chocolates from New Zealand.

Thank you @Host Jazzbeau and @jpalbny

I visited the Dali Museum this morning. Tomorrow get back home.

I will be in Tampa this week to attend a conference. I will have 1 free day. Any recomendation? I do not want to go to any park....

2 minutes ago, Lirio said:

yes, my husband got covid and he stayed 6 days in isolation. we still had opportunity to enjoy the other days and we will be back next year.

Thanks for the infformation about the smell.....

6 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

Recently, I read a very interesting post about sewer odors in the bathroom of cruise ships. There's a poster on the River Cruise boards (chengkp75) who has a lot of knowledge about the mechanical systems of cruise ships. He shared a tip in posts #8 and 10 of this thread:

 

 

I will definitely keep this in mind because it makes perfect sense to me. We have a guest bathroom in our house that doesn't get used for long periods of time and the same thing can happen when the water evaporates in the traps.

 

***

 

Lirio - thanks for your review! If I remember correctly, you had planned a longer stay in Iceland post-cruise but your plans were derailed by Covid? I hope you have recovered and are feeling back to normal. 

 

yes, my husband got covid and he stayed 6 days in isolation. we still had opportunity to enjoy the other days and we will be back next year.

39 minutes ago, highplanesdrifters said:

Thanks @Lirio for posting about the Wind and west Greenland.  Would also love to hear more about your excursions and how things are on the Wind. Other than the shower issues, any other problems?  Thanks again.

I will write a review of ports and excursions and post pictures.

10 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Where you in the same hotel (Hilton Nordica) at the end of the cruise?  Did you get a room upgrade before the cruise because you had booked 2 nights on your own?  [We're Hilton Gold, so they often treat us very well.]  Just seems odd that Silversea would have different room categories for the pre- and post-cruise hotels.

We stayed both times in Hilton Nordica.

Our own reservation was to a de-luxe room, not standard one. When we arrived at the hotel, we informed that we would stay for 2 nights: 1 with our own reservation and the second with Silversea reservation. We asked to be in the same room and the hotel agreed upon.

About Silversea reservation I must say that we informed we would need the pre cruise hotel very early in the process. But we only informed Silversea that we would need the post cruise hotel very late in the process, and maybe it was the only room left.

In both occasion the hotel was fully booked.

Appologies for any typo.....

10 hours ago, jimdee3636 said:

@Lirio

You traveled a long way from Brazil for just a seven-day cruise!

 

What did you think of the Greenland stops? We're on a somewhat longer (12 night) sailing in September of 2023 (Reykjavik to Halifax, NS), on the Cloud, and I'm eager to know about how the Zodiac landings went, and in general what you liked (or didn't like) about Greenland.

 

Thanks!

 

Jim

Yes, the seven-day cruise was the one that we could afford in terms of cost and time. After the cruise we had a 12-day land trip (self drive) in Iceland + 1,5 day in UK.

This cruise was 7 days,.

We book directly with Silversea as of the other times. Our reservation included airport reception in Reykjavik, hotel transfer, one night pre cruise, charter flight from Reykjavik to Kangerlussuaq, round trip, transfer to hotel and one night post cruise.

The hotel Silversea offered is the Hilton Nordica and we arrived the 2 days before and stayed at the same hotel. The room we stayed in was very good, the hotel has good facilities and a great restaurant for both breakfast, lunch and dinner. The room on the way back was ridiculous as small as it was appropriate for only one person. The reservation with Silversea included breakfast.

On the eve of boarding Silversea offered the quick test to Covid.

On the day of boarding two flights were organized, the first being very early, and passengers were ready before 6 AM at reception. We stayed in the afternoon group whose departure was scheduled for 1 PM. A lunch was offered at 11:30 and following the transfer to the airport, which delayed about 30 minutes. As the flight was delayed more than 2 hours, the bus took a tour through a lava field that lies between the city and the airport. Beautiful landscapes.

The charter flight was quiet, as was the arrival at the airport. Then 20 minutes by bus and we reached the point of boarding with zodiacs. On the ship had stations to present the covid test, the vaccine certificate and documents. Passing through the stations lasted about 30 minutes. A buffet for dinner (it was already about 9 PM) was waiting for us at La Terraza and at 22 hours the drill.

In our cabin were the parka, bag, bottle for drinks and the necessaire.

Our suite was the same as the previous ones we already knew, but the bathroom is much smaller. The shower, with half glass wall makes the floor get all wet.

A bad smell come from bathroom all the time, the smell was getting worse along the cruise, but we didn't complain. Meanwhile for the fifth day, the floor of the closet appeared wet and it was necessary to call our butler. Unfortunately, the problem was not solved and as we were already finishing the trip we stayed right there.

Our butler did an excellent job on everything we requested, and it was really a highlight.

O Silver Wind has the following restaurants: The Restaurant, La Terrazza, The Grill (by the pool) La Dame.

The buffet breakfast is served at La Terrazza and offers ample options. At The Restaurant breakfast is a la carte. We tried both options and also ordered in the suite on the days of leaving very early.

Lunch is served at La Terrazza(buffet), The Restaurant (a la carte) and The Grill. We did most of of our lunchs at The Grill to enjoy the outdoors. One day there was Bouillabaisse that was very good and one day Mexican food that I did not taste. The Grill's traditional dishes were good. One rainy day we went to La Terrazza and it was reasonable.

For dinner we went twice at La Dame as there is a star with foie gras which is spectacular. The rest was ok, without impressing. The other nights we went to the Restaurant and La Terrazza. The food was ok. We drank the house wine at all meals. Nothing spectacular, but reasonable.

The entertaining was reasonable. A show about Elton John was very good and the disco club night was also great. The expedition team's lectures were reasonable, but not as good as those in previous trips (Antarctica, Artic and Galapagos).

The disembarkation was much easier than the boarding. Again, the passengers were divided into two groups, this time we stayed in the first group and arrived in Reykjavik in the middle of the afternoon.

Just now, Mahogany said:

Is there a guided tour in English?

Not sure, but I can send an email and check for you.

1 minute ago, Mahogany said:

When I looked at Trip Advisor, there were only 2 in the "luxury" brand, Juma and Amazona. I have attended concerts at the Opera twice on previous visits to Manaus, so it was a sentimental choice to book Juma (I'm not a pool person which seemed Amazona's feature).  I will be in Manaus 3 nights and have been guaranteed a balcony room with Opera view, and yes, I have read mixed reviews. I just wanted to be assured of accommodations since the pickings are very slim and there may be 200 Seabourn passengers boarding. There is a photo of a beautiful staircase, but I was unaware there was no elevator. May have to reconsider. Thanks for the info.

Juma and Amazonas is just a block away from each other. Both are in front of the Opera. I just saw Juma from outside, passing by. There is elevator at Amazonia.

12 hours ago, Hobar said:

We are booked at Villa Amazona.  Rezos are open.  I did my homework.  Much nicer than the SB hotel, and also many and much better reviews than Juma Opera.  I like the location, too.  Booked the best suite they offer but not sure much different than the others.  We booked flights to get in the afternoon rather than 2 AM so will get to spend 2 days in Manaus. 

Suites are quite different. I had the best suite for myself and the standard one for the teens. I hope you enjoy as much as I did. Consider visiting the Museu da Amazonia (MUSA). I did the guided tour and was great.

Last month Silversea booked us at Hilton Nordica. If you get a good room, it is a great hotel. But there some tiny rooms that are very disappointing. Breakfast is very good. Restaurant is very good as well.

After the cruise we stayed some nights at Edition that we booked directly. Pastries at Tides Café were the best I ever had. But the restaurant is pretentious. The Spa is fabulous. There is hot tub, steam, and sauna. I didn’t like the room. TV is on the bed side, not in front of it. There is a chair and a stool. Not comfortable. The room that I got was totally exposed to the other building nearby. Curtains must be closed all the time. Location is everything in this hotel. In front of the port for small cruises (walking distance) and very close to several main attraction.

11 hours ago, TrulyBlonde said:

Instant coffee? Nespresso Dark Roast in this family. Order over the internet and you receive your pods. Plop a pod in the machine and there you go. Misty, what is your address, I will send you some. 😉 

In England do they do instant tea? I do not think so 😉  

Coffee...Italians do it best.

I do not drink coffee or tea, should I quit this "group"?

winter time in Ipanema.....

best time to be in Rio is from fall, winter and spring. Not summer that is too hot, too humid, and full of people

12 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

Well, it's got us in the end. Yesterday OH had symptoms like a common cold. Positive Covid test. Today, the same for me. 

 

Spent the weekend at our son's wedding with 125 guests. Wonder how many of them are feeling similarly under the weather? 

 

Still, it's endemic now, I suppose. Just need to be grateful for the 3 doses of vaccine. 

 

 

Hope you recover soon.

57 minutes ago, mysty said:

 

No adequate button to react Lirio!  So very sorry to hear that things were such a trial!  Hope your dear lad is recovering and sending hopes that you managed to escape the nasty! 🥰

We had a glimpse of Iceland and we want to get back. 

Back home. We left the ship on a Monday and on Tuesday night my husband had fever, cough, sore throat. Tested positive for covid. It was complicated because we were already in a remote area of Iceland with no place to stay and I don't drive. Despite the annoyances, in the end everything worked out, but it was 7 days of isolation and the vacation partially lost.

The return flight on the part from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro the airline (TAP) replaced the regular plane of the route with a chartered airplane of the 1990s in terrible conditions. Two hours after a lot of argument, police, etc. we took off and we spent a bad night on board.

somewhere in UK....last  vaccation day....Monday back to office, I mean home office. enough of ship office  hotel office......