JimmyVWine

Using the app, go to “Dine My Way.”

Day 4-Cohb/Cork Ireland (Contiuned) Tonight was Sabatini’s night which we were looking forward to very much. We have eaten at Sabatini’s on every cruise we’ve been on, and have largely given up on the Crown Grill. We find that there is usually enough red meat on the MDR menu throughout the cruise to make paying almost $40 per person for another meal of red meat an unnecessary extra expense. The menu at Sabatini’s has changed a number of times since we started visiting that venue, and here again we were confronted with a menu that differed from our last one in October. I’d say that of the past three menus, this one had us commenting that we could eat here a second time in a week and not repeat a single dish given the wide range of tasty looking offerings. Before walking into the restaurant we stopped in to Vines and loaded up on three glasses of Chocolate Block so that we had something in our glasses as we looked over the menu. When those glasses were drained we moved over to a the Nero d’Avola from Donnafugata which was priced within the Plus allowance. Nero d’Avola is a lesser-known wine unique to Sicily (though some U.S. producers are starting to dabble in it.) It is a value play in restaurants because its lack of prominence on dinner tables outside of Sicily means that it can still be had at a reasonable price. It is a dry-vinted wine that can stand in the shoes of a Cabernet, Merlot or Syrah, often at a fraction of the cost. Donnafugata is one of the more reliable producer names to look for, along with Planeta and my new favorite, Cantine Colosi. So when we saw the Donnafugata on the menu within the Plus range, we decided to give it a go. Jump on board the Nero d’Avola bandwagon while bottles are still priced under $20. It’s going to be the next “trendy” wine in my opinion and when it makes the big time, prices will jump. When the Nero was gone we switched over to the glass of Barolo offered on the wine list at a cost of $2.36 extra over the Plus allowance. On to the food. As you probably know, Sabatini’s is a set coursed menu where they keep bringing out courses until you surrender. K and S surrendered before dessert, and I surrendered mid-way through dessert. The first course offers only two choices, so there was no way for the three of us to order three different things which is our typical way of dining. That way everyone can try as many different dishes as possible. But here, there had to be overlap and both K and S ordered the Salad and I had the Ribollita soup. Both dishes were very good and made nice partners with the bread and breadstick service that opened the show. Next came a mid-course of Arancini. No choices at this stage as the table is brought the correct number of crunchy risotto balls as there are diners at the table. We all enjoyed this dish and the sauce served with it was very tasty. For the Antipasti course there are six choices and we selected the Fritto Misti, (K cannot resist fried seafood), the Burrata (which I think has been on every iteration of the Sabatini’s menu since inception) and the Piadana di Verdure, a version of flatbread. Again, all were excellent but I could tell half-way through my Burrata that I was going to need to loosen my belt. This portion was surely large enough for two, but other than the courtesy bites that K and S took from my plate, they “forced” be to down the whole thing! Next came the pasta dish. I had the Pappardelle Bolognese (another dish that I recall being on every menu). It was very tasty, but here one could see the downsize in portion. Not complaining as I surely did not need a bigger plate. S had the Porcini Risotto, which we all agreed was far, far superior to the risotto that K had in the MDR a couple of nights ago—night and day, and K had the Spaghetti Polpette. An oddly “pedestrian” choice for K as she usually orders more adventurous selections. But I am glad that she did as this gave us all the opportunity to try a Princess meatball for the first time and I must say that we were all very impressed. Not going to top my homemade version, but I would gladly eat one of these again. For Secondi’s K had the Branzino which was excellent, S had the Veal Marsala which was very good, but fell short of excellent, and I ordered the “Ossobuco Milanese” not to be confused with the “Milanese di Vitello con Osso” which comes at a $10 surcharge. Well, I didn’t confuse them, but perhaps the kitchen did. Or perhaps the kitchen prepared enough of the latter that they needed to start serving them lest they go to waste because even though I purposefully ordered and pointed to the non-surcharge dish, I was served the bone-in version and never saw the $10 charge hit my account. The dish was spectacular. Easily the best main course that I have had at any visit to Sabatini’s. As noted earlier, K and S punted on dessert and I had the chocolate concoction that defies description as well as gravity, with cake, gelato, a chocolate orb, and several other items all tossed in the bowl. It is a great dessert but way more than I could handle after all the previous courses. All in all we were very, very happy with our meal, paid for at the old price, but would gladly pay the new price the next time we have the chance. The balance of the night was spent as before, listening to various music choices around the ship and making several requests to AJ Clarke, all of which he played, which made us happy. We had a few more cocktails at the Princess Live bar and one at the Casino bar to cross that venue off of BINGO card and called it a night. We totaled 9 glasses of wine and 9 cocktails. Our out-of-pocket cost would have been $237.18. With Plus we paid $7.08 and with Premier we would have paid $0. Tomorrow is a Sea Day. Patter Day 4.pdf

We had it for the first time two weeks ago and dubbed it “The Shipwreck Nightmare”. Horrible. Mentioned it numerous times in our post-cruise survey.

On our May cruise on Regal we found that there was a difference between the “Always Available” which was not part of the menu and the “Princess Favorites” which was. The Favorites rotated each night but supposedly were dishes with some sort of past track record. Certain dishes we recognized from prior cruises but some we did not. Fish and Chips did show up one night. And as noted in this thread, the FA and Strip Steak appeared every night as did the French Onion Soup.

Color me confused. You watched a video about a Carnival cruise and this caused you to be concerned about a Princess cruise. Why is that? You also did not mention when this Carnival cruise took place. Christmas? March? July? May is typically one of the lowest months for family travel. Lots of schools were off in March and/or April for Spring Break or Easter Break. There aren't any natural school vacations built in to the May calendar. May is when the school year is finishing up and there are papers due, tests to take, final work to complete, proms to attend, state athletic tournaments to compete in. Schools simply do not have vacations in May. And not many parents will take their kids out of school in May because there is too much going on during that month that the kids don't want to miss out on. We just got off of a May cruise and you could count the number of 2-18 year olds on the fingers of one hand. Don't let a Carnival video dictate your behavior.

Day 4-Cohb/Cork Ireland Two consecutive days of long, organized tours started to take its toll. Cadence-wise, this seemed to be the perfect slot for a Sea Day. I can’t recall when, or if we have ever taken a cruise where the first three days are all port stops without a Sea Day built in there somewhere. But here it was, Day 4 of our cruise, and there would be no rest for the wicked or weary. Thankfully, we had planned ahead by not planning ahead, meaning that our agenda for the day included little more than taking the train from the dock at Cohb to Cork where we would see some sights on our own with only a modest number of items to check off from our must-do list. The Princess excursions (and most of the private tours that we investigated) seemed to focus on going out to Blaney Castle, or the Jameson’s Distillery. Neither of those things interested us all that much and based on the way we all felt when we woke up, we were glad that we had decided to take a day for ourselves. Kissing the Blarney Stone to receive the “gift of gab” did not seem to be something that I much needed! Taking the train from Cohb to Cork could not be simpler. As we opened the curtains in or Port-side cabin in the morning we were staring directly at the train station so if you are wondering about the logistics of this first step of finding the train station, put that concern to bed. S used one of her public transportation apps to confirm that trains would be running every thirty minutes on the top and bottom of each hour. This was to be a long port stop with an All-Aboard time published as 9:30 in our Patter. However, this was the day to which we moved our Sabatini’s reservation, and we were locked in at 7:10. So while the ship could hang around the dock until 9:30, we could not. Working backwards based on when we wanted to be back on the ship and what we wanted to do in Cork, we concluded that catching an 11:00 train would do us just fine. So we enjoyed a more leisurely pace this morning, took our time getting ready and had a light breakfast on board the ship until it was time to leave the cabin at around 10:45. We walked off the ship and headed straight to the train station and the ticket vending machines. Some helpful “greeters” were there to help clueless Americans navigate the payment system, as the UK and European guests seemed to have no difficulty whatsoever. S is a seasoned European traveler when it comes to things like trains, buses, Air BnB’s, ferries, etc., so we left her in charge of buying the tickets. It was now 10:55 and the train we were to board was in the station, gearing up for its run to Cork. As S took her turn buying our tickets, the “helpful” greeter insisted on working the machine for us and retrieving our tickets from the dispensing area as they were spit out, clutching them in his hands as he offered us all sorts of advice for the day. Well, I now have a firm understanding of the phrase “gift for gab” as this guy must have planted a kiss on the Blarney Stone the likes of Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr. “You must do this, and be sure to do that. And when you get to this place, make sure that you blah, blah, blah…” We did our best to smile and converse politely, but we now had about 90 seconds to catch our train. We thanked him for all of his help and walked briskly to the awaiting train and were lucky to find three seats together for the 25 minute ride to Cork that follows a beautiful coastal/tidal river route with some nice scenery especially on the left hand side of the forward moving train. And while not as grand as Blarney Castle, there are some castle ruins that can be spotted along the way. While on the train I went over our agenda with our “Amazing Race” team. We are big fans of the show and fancy ourselves as being contestants on the show when we have adventure days like this one. Silly, but fun. The goals for the day were to visit the English Market and score some local vittles for lunch; find dad a new mid-weight weatherproof jacket so that he could retire the well-worn one he has been traveling with for the past 17 years; see a cathedral; drink a pint in a very old pub with some history and charm; and get a Christmas Ornament and some other souvenirs to commemorate our visit to a brand-new country. (Well, the country isn’t brand new. But it was the first time visiting it for either of us, so it was new to us.) Anything else that we wanted to add to that itinerary would be gravy. The first item on the list was easy. From the train station we walked about 15 minutes, crossing the River Lee and following Oliver Plunkett Street most of the way, and entered the English Market through one of its many entrances, this one on Oliver Plunkett. For those who do not know, the English Market is an indoor market with stall after stall of local produce, meats, cheeses, prepared foods, spices, and pretty much anything else that you can think of that you might find at a Farmer’s Market. It is pretty much Cork’s version of the Mercato Centrale in Florence. We knew that we would find a nice local lunch here, along with some cheeses and other goodies to bring back with us on the ship. The Market was as advertised, and we ate well and could have spent many hours there. Our family has an oversized appreciation for markets like this and whereas others might not give it a second thought, a place like this can be a whole day’s adventure for us. But we had other items on our Amazing Race list to check off before we could meet Phil at the Pit Stop, so we had to press on. When I told a friend that I was in the market for a new coat to take with me on our UK Cruise, she gave me the obvious advice that I simply had not thought of on my own. “Why not bring your old coat with you and buy a new one while on vacation, and leave the old coat behind? You are going to the part of the world where mid-weight weatherproof jackets are mandatory attire.” She was right, of course. And when S asked me to describe the type of coat I was looking for, after giving her the description she said: “Dad. You just described a Barbour Waxed Coat.” I said: “Yeah, probably. But I wasn’t looking to spend that much.” She said that her flatmate just bought one in Edinburgh and that prices in this part of the world would be lower than what I was used to in the upper-end boutiques where Barbour is sold in the U.S. She did some quick research and found a men’s clothing store (Fitzgerald’s—can you get more out of Central Casting than that?) that allegedly carried Barbour clothing and which was just two blocks from the English Market. So that become our next stop and lo and behold, Fitzgerald’s had exactly what I was looking for, in my size, and at a price that was considerably less than what I expected to pay. Still more than I thought I should pay, but K and S said that if I liked the jacket, it would be my Father’s Day present. And so it is. Two tasks down, and still a few more to go. Next on our list was a visit to a cathedral. After all, what is a European vacation without a visit to a cathedral, (or 4 or 5)? This was really our only opportunity for such a visit, so we made it a priority to walk to Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral, a Gothic Revival structure built in 1870 and named for Finbarr of Cork who I am embarrassed to say I know little of but who lived in the 6th C. It is a striking edifice in good condition with turrets, gargoyles and lost of other Gothic iconography. The sky became more threatening, and a spot of rain began to fall from the sky, so we decided to press on and thought that this might be a good time for a pub visit to see if the clouds would blow over. In my pre-trip research I made up a list of half a dozen or so pubs that would fit the bill for checking off our must-do pint. But oddly, what I forgot to do is check for the operating hours of each establishment. I am just so used to cities, towns and ports adjusting their schedules to cruise ship visits that I neglected to take into account that Cork is a “real” city that does not live and die by the cruise ship calendar or shift is operations to accommodate the likes of us. So two of the prime candidates for a visit, situated right next to each other and within minutes of the Cathedral had to be stricken from the list as they did not open until after we were scheduled to be back on the train. With an “all aboard” time of 9:30, it would be possible to visit either or both of these establishments, but we did not plan to hang around that long. “An Spailpin Fanac” opened at 7:00 p.m. and “The Oval” opened at 4:00. To avoid further disappointment, I consulted my handy-dandy list of pubs and looked up the hours of each. Luckily, there were a few civilized ones that would serve up pints in the early afternoon. So we continued our self-guided walking tour of Cork enjoying the old buildings and overall atmosphere of the place. Two things struck me as we walked around. First was the inordinate number of barber shops around town. Not sure why that caught my attention, but it did. The other was the signage of the shops around town. Instead of a city full of chain, international shops and stores, Cork is replete with small, one-off shops that have interesting names and even more interesting signs. I made a little photo-journal of some of these signs and share some of them with you here. A Tailor Shop A Bakery A Clothing Store And in the same vein, this one made me laugh out loud Before long we were at Mutton Lane which is both an alley and a pub. Reported to be one of the oldest and most admired pubs in Cork, it had all of the attributes we were looking for, including an opening time of 10:30 a.m. It is dark with nary a single right angle in its construction. S absolutely forbade me from taking any flash photos, (she was right), so is set my ISO at 3200, set the cameral for a long exposure time to try to capture “movement”, and hoped for the best. A tripod would have helped, but that would probably gotten me thrown out on my keester. You have to love the portrait of Jack and Jackie over the bar! K and S had each had a pint of Guinness and I rounded out the order with a pint of local brew from Rising Sons Brewery which seems to be all the rage in Cork. The pints were great, the bartender friendly and the atmosphere pretty darn perfect. Check and check! All that was left was to do some souvenir shopping. We were certain that if we walked far enough along St. Patrick’s Street we would find a store that would suit our needs, and sure enough, Carroll’s Irish Gifts was exactly what we were looking for. We found our Christmas ornament, bought some sweatshirts, and some gifts for the cat sitter, along with some other stuff that we wanted, but none that we needed. With all boxes checked, it was time to head back to the train station to catch a 5:00 train that would get us back to the ship around 5:30. Dinner at Sabatini’s and ship activities to be covered in the next post.

While certainly sharp looking, it's not in my closet.

We received the "White and Gold Party" email before our cruise earlier this month and honestly, despite the fact that the crowd on our cruise dressed up quite a bit with lots of tuxes, suits and gowns, I didn't really see any evidence of people making an effort to wear White and Gold. Especially the men.

I neglected to post the Patter from Day 3. Here it is. Patter Day 3.pdf

Sure. If you look at Google Maps and zoom in to St. Peter Port Harbour area, you will see a several distinct piers. When you zoom in close enough you will see their names. Our tenders came in at Albert Pier. At the city end of the pier is a statue to Prince Albert and at the water end of the pier is a restaurant called Pier 17. The tenders docked here and the walkway up from the water level takes you right to the Pier 17 restaurant and the outdoor seating area of the restaurant served as the meeting place for our tour. Here is a map that will help you get oriented. Guernsey Harbour(1034329.1).pdf

I’m not aware that Princess has ever varied things like this on a ship by ship basis. Princess is a “product”, not a disassociated collection of ships, each with its own set of norms. Decisions made in HQ are rolled out fleet wide. And truth be told, things haven’t changed as much over the past few years as your post seems to suggest. The cruise experience in 2023 is more like 2019 than it is different.

Day 3-Guernsey (Continued) From the dock area we walked north along the waterfront esplanade a few blocks, made a u-turn onto The Pollet (one of the main shopping streets) and arrived at Christie’s Brasserie in time for our 1:30 booking. The last tender was scheduled for 3:00 but we assumed correctly that we could complete a nice lunch in the time allotted. As the name “Brasserie” suggests, Guernsey’s closer proximity to France than to England becomes most evident when looking at street names and restaurant menus. We shared an escargot appetizer, not certain if that old favorite would make its way onto to the current ship’s menu, while I had the Octopus and Baby Squid Casserole, K had the Salmon Niçoise, and S had the Pan Roasted Skate. While up to this point of our cruise the weather had been fair to good, by the time the afternoon rolled around in St. Peter Port, it was downright sunny and warm. We were seated indoors, but right beside fully accordioned doors that were wide open facing the waterfront below. We had a wonderful lunch of fine dining and service with time enough to walk back to the ship…if we could find it! You see, an odd coastal phenomenon occurred while we dined, which was a perfect corridor of fog rolling in from the sea that enveloped the port area and the place where Regal was anchored. Where one minute we could see the beautiful ship from our second story table, a minute later the ship was gone and the fog continued to roll in as if pumped from a theatrical fog machine. It was quite a site to see. Or not see, as the case may be. We walked back to the dock area, confident that David Copperfield had not made the ship disappear, boarded a tender and made our way back to the ship. A trivia competition was scheduled to begin at 4:00 in Club 6 and S insisted that we get there in time to participate. She and her mates in Edinburgh enjoy pub trivia frequently and she also enjoys ship trivia with her parents. We ordered cocktails at Club 6, crossing that venue off of our BINGO card, both as an entertainment venue and as a cocktail venue, got settled, and lo and behold, won our very first every game of Princess trivia. We took home the life-changing prize of three rubberized Regal Princess coaster, one of which is destined to be converted into a Christmas ornament which we can hang low on our tree where we put the ornaments that the cats cannot destroy. Afterwards it was back to the cabin to shower and dress for our first Formal Night. Ah, Formal Night. Two simple words that engender countless words of debate and debacle. I am not going to use this space to discuss what one is allowed to wear. I will not use this space to opine as to what one should wear. Rather, I will simply (he says with a grin and a chuckle) tell you what we actually witnessed people wearing, with some candid photos to boot. The photos were snapped quicky and inconspicuously with my phone so forgive the horrid quality. And let me begin by noting that the Cruise Director made an announcement after all were back on board welcoming everyone back, reminding folks that tonight was Formal Night, encouraging folks to put on their finest attire, and comforting those who wished to remain casual that the buffet was open to all with no formality expected. Now, people can fuss over whether that was a “rule”, or a “suggestion” or whether it was meaningless drivel. It really doesn’t matter. This is not the place for debating the rules. As noted, I will simply tell you what we witnessed, and where we witnessed it. On our walk back to our cabin after trivia, there were already people dressed for dinner making their way to one of the MDRs. We saw far more tuxedos than I was expecting, and lots of sparkly, sequined dresses. We say suits and ties. Blazers and ties. Blazers without ties. Some long-sleeved shirts with no ties, and a handful of Polo shirts. What we did not see was a single pair of shorts or a single pair of jeans. Small sample size in the hallways and elevators, but still. Our standing reservation at Concerto was for 7:30. The Captain’s welcome and Champagne event was scheduled to begin at 6:45. We have been there and done that, but were dressed in time to make our way to the railing above the Piazza by around 7:10 and took some time to enjoy the music, look around and soak in the atmosphere. It was here on Deck 7 at just after 7:00 that I took the following photos. And I know that there will be some who will insist that I purposefully sought out the most dressed-up people on the ship, but I assure you that I did not. I just snapped off photos twisting this way and that to capture what was in out and about at that time. As was our custom, we headed to Vines to load up on some wine before dinner, (three glasses of the South African “Chocolate Block” and while there I fired off another candid. And once seated at our table, surrounded by the same cast of diners that we had been with on the first two nights, all of whom, like us, were enjoying the same table at the same time each night, I took a visual survey of the men in my field of vision. 16 in all. Four of whom wore tuxedos, three in suits and ties, four with blazers and ties, three with blazers and no ties, and two with long sleeved shirts and no ties. For people who want to make the claim that people simply don’t dress up for Formal Night any more can not use this evening as evidence. Perhaps it was the UK itinerary or the moderate temperatures. I don’t know the reason. But what I do know is this was as a dressy a crowd and as if I need to mention it, while I provide only the statistics for the men, the accompanying women were equal to the task. After dinner we went back to the Vista Lounge for more fun with AJ Clarke, and while there I snapped off one last photo as discreetly as I could. So no more from about attire and no debating it here. I was not in all places at all times so I cannot make any comment about the 3,000 people whom I did not lay eyes on that night. I comment only on the light that passed through my own rods and cones. As for dinner, the menu for a Formal Night was not what we were used to. Perhaps it was because we still had another “Dress to Impress” night as well as a “Coronation Night” dinner coming our way. But the menu was pretty standard. That does not mean that we did not enjoy it. But it could have been any night on any Princess cruise. For Starters I had the Seared Pepper Duck Breast and K had the Sunchoke Cream Soup and we were both satisfied. S had the Lump Crab Cake and one would have needed to send for a search party to find any evidence of a lump of crab, only the search party apparently got lost in the fog. We agreed that we would not order that dish again. For Mains, I had the Beef Tenderloin, K had the Halibut with Proscuitto, and S had the Duck a la Orange. I enjoyed my beef, having ordered it medium rare and receiving it “rare+” which is actually what I prefer. But the portion was quite a bit smaller than I recall from the past. S enjoyed her duck as well. K’s halibut was a bit overcooked and the “Proscuitto” appeared to be just regular sliced ham, similar to what Alfredo’s uses on its pizza. For dessert I was happy to see the Chocolate Hazelnut Bar still on the menu. In our household it is referred to as the Chocolate Viking Ship given its shape. While Norman Love’s name is no longer attached to this dessert, it remains faithful to his original recipe and was as good as ever. K and S each enjoyed their Caramel Pecan Turtle Cheesecake. As for wines, after we finished our first glasses brought in from Vines, K and I each had a glass of Belle Glos Pinot Noir and S had a glass of the Silverado Cabernet. I finished dinner with a glass of Port and K and S split a glass of Seghesio Old Vine Zinfandel from the MDR list which was priced $2 over the $15 allowance. While we were at the Vista Lounge we stuck to cocktails, all of which were under the $15 limit. We got one round at the Princess Live bar, checking that venue off of our BINGO card, and ordered another through the app which came quickly and accurately. Our total for the day was 9 glasses of wine and 6 cocktails. Our out-of-pocket cost would have been $304.44. With Plus we paid $16.52, and with Premier we would have paid $0. We closed down the Vista Lounge and from there it was time for bed with Cobh/Cork to come the next day.

Day 3-Guernsey (Continued) The reason why I wanted to address the next two stops on our tour in a separate post is because you will note a distinct change in writing style. While I generally prefer a lighthearted, Erma Bombeck style of writing when doing my travel journals, there is nothing lighthearted about the subject matter of German Army (I can't even spell out the "other" word) war tunnels or the most comprehensive museum of occupation artifacts found anywhere on the planet. My typical irreverence would be misplaced and tone deaf. That said, the stop at the German Underground Hospital was fascinating. It makes all too real the story of the complete occupation of this island during the war and both the physical and emotional scarring that this occupation imprinted on the landscape and the people. Thankfully the effect on the people has largely faded, but the change to the landscape is evident everywhere. I have been to other German war tunnels before, most notably at Eagle’s Nest in Berchtesgaden. But this system of tunnels and storage facilities left me speechless. The tour takes you far underground, (as far as about 80-90 feet) to cold, damp, dark but intricately constructed and maintained tunnels and storage rooms, most left exactly as they had been abandoned on May 9, 1945. According to Soo, after the German surrender, the de-occupation of Guernsey was negotiated on May 8 and by May 9, the Germans began (and largely concluded) their departure from the island in one day. So much of what the occupying forces had constructed was left in place, torn down or converted at the discretion of the people who resided or returned there after the war. These tunnels were largely forgotten about until construction and curiosity brought them back to the metaphoric surface many years later. The tunnel system is so vast that one would surely get lost in them without a guide. Indeed, a non-tour visitor had to beseech Soo for some directions our of the system and back to the entrance/exit as she had gotten terribly turned around. The tunnels themselves are mostly poured concrete, held in place by wooden boards until the concrete set so that the boards could be pried off and reused. In this photo you can see a “wooden” texture to the walls which are just concrete, with the lines you see formed by the wood planks. When you get close enough, you can actually see the graining of the wood imprinted into the concrete. In the second photo you can better see puddling on the concrete floor. Many of these puddles for in clearly discernable boot prints that were left by either the tunnel builders, (forced labor, obviously) or German soldiers themselves. The third photo provides a perspective of the length and vastness of the system. As the name of the museum implies, there was a hospital aspect to the facility and that can be seen here. The beds are replicas of what would have been found during the time of its use, but everything else including the whitewashed brick is original. From here we were taken to the German Occupation Museum. This is a small in size, but huge in content private collection of one man’s obsession of collecting everything he could from within the island that the Germans had left behind. The artifacts are in “as if used yesterday” condition and present some of the best war artifacts found anywhere. We could have spent a full day here, but the 90 minutes gave us ample time to get the overall sense and scope of what we were seeing. If there is one single “don’t miss” site in Guernsey, this is it. With that said, I did not take any pictures inside of the museum. It was not that they were prohibited, but emotionally I just did not think that it was right to fill my camera with swastika-laden objects and German Army guns, uniforms and paraphernalia. I have my memories, but “tourist photos” just didn’t seem right. When this part of the tour ended, we were driven back to the tender dock where some people opted to get back on the ship for a late lunch, but we honored a previously made 1:30 reservation at a lovely restaurant about four blocks away along the waterfront. Lunch and our time back onboard the ship will be covered in a subsequent post.

Day 3-Guernsey We now begin Day 3 which is the tender port of Guernsey. And by that I do not wish to imply that the Isle of Guernsey is somehow fragile or overly sensitive. Rather, one must board the ship’s lifeboat (tender) to reach the island. The stopover is a tad short, with arrival expected at 7:00 and the last tender back departing at 3:00. As this was yet another place with which I was not the least bit familiar, I did my homework, read up on some private tour options, took everyone’s advice and watched “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” on Netflix, and landed on a small group tour called: “Highlights of Guernsey with German Underground Hospital (4 hours) - SPECIAL SMALL GROUP TOUR” run by an outfit called, appropriately enough, Tours of Guernsey. Our instructions were to take one of the first tenders off the ship so that the group could assemble by 9:00 and depart by 9:15 for a full morning of adventure, leaving us just enough time for a sit-down lunch before heading back to the tender dock. Now, the instruction to “make sure that you are on one of the first tenders” is easier said than done, especially when priority for shuttle departure is given to guests in Suites, who are Elite, or are booked on a Princess tour. We did not qualify for any of these ranks. The stated process for tender departure is to go to the Photo Gallery on Deck 6 once your entire group is ready to disembark, collect a paper ticket with a silly aquatic animal name printed on it (and often misspelled), and wait until your misspelled nautical animal name is called which signifies the “all clear” to march down to Deck 4 for tender boarding. Past experience has ranged from: “Make your way down to Deck 4. We are not handing out tickets at this time”, to “Sit and wait for over an hour to hear your nautical animal’s name called.” Because of this, I had a heck of a time answering K’s question of: “What time do we need to leave our cabin in the morning?” I tried to explain that if we found ourselves in the “Head straight down to Deck 4” scenario, 8:15 should be fine. If we found ourselves in the “Wait to be called” scenario, 7:30-7:45 would be better. She gets very frustrated when I cannot give her a straight answer about what time she needs to finish her morning routine in preparation for being seen in public, but I was doing the best I could. We settled on 7:45 and at that time, K and S headed to the IC to get coffee and takeaway pastries while I ventured up to the Photo Gallery. Luck was on our side (in terms of timing) as we were told to head straight down to Deck 4 because nautical animal groupings were not being formed at this time. This was good in terms of ensuring a timely arrival for our tour, but bad in terms of incurring the wrath of K who moaned that she could have slept an extra 30 minutes. Oh well. We headed down to Deck 4 and were ushered onto a tender with much of a wait. S and I went up top for the view and fresh air and K stayed below thinking that this would be more conducive to keeping the hair she had just spent 20 minutes on in a condition suitable for public viewing. While up top, I was able to snap off a quick shot of Regal as we made the 20+ minute trip to the main dock. We arrived at the dock and walked to the Private Tour meet and greet area and soon found Amanda, the Tours of Guernsey agency owner. She paired us up with our guide and we then had to wait about 20 minutes for the last of our group to arrive. They had obviously opted for the extra 30 minutes of sleep and were on the tender after ours. Because tenders do not leave until they are full, this can take some time. So it goes. In all I think there were 3 “small groups”, each taking their own van to the various sites. Whether by luck or design, the guide with whom we were paired, Soo Wellfair, wrote the book on visiting Guernsey. No. Really. She literally wrote the book, and “Soo” really is how she spells her name. https://www.amazon.com/50-Gems-Guernsey-History-Heritage/dp/139810356X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=VKJ2J8094HPS&keywords=50+gems+of+guernsey&qid=1684079927&sprefix=50+gems+of+guernsey%2Caps%2C137&sr=8-1 Soo is an incredible guide who loves what she does almost as much as she loves her adopted home of Guernsey, and I can see why. Here is a place that I knew nothing about, and after 4 hours of driving the entire length, width and depth of the island, I could honestly see myself retiring here, if only I could afford some real estate. Each house we saw was nicer than the next and it really looked Utopic. I can see why Victor Hugo spend his days in Napoleonic exile on this island where he wrote some of his most important works including “Les Misérables.” The island’s beauty and charm are reasons enough to visit, but as one learns from reading (or watching) the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, the island’s occupation and eventual liberation during WWII is the defining history of this place, and the common thread for much of what is the fabric of this Channel Island Crown Dependency. (The first thing Soo tells you is the answer to the most-oft asked question, which is: “Is Guernsey part of the UK?” and the answer is “No.” But please do not ask me to explain what a Crown Dependency is, how it operates separate and apart from the UK, and why Coronation bunting and UK flags were everywhere to be seen on the island. Soo explained it, so don’t fault her. I am just too dense (or too American) to understand it all.) Indeed the WWII history informs much of this tour, which is described on the website thusly: You will be picked up from your hotel or the tender pier, by your accredited guide and separate driver, from where we will start our amazing adventure. Drive past Victor Hugo's House, to see where this famous writer once lived, and onwards to a photo stop (for small vehicles of 7 guests or less) overlooking Castle Cornet, nearby islands and any visiting cruise ships. Travel through the parish of St Martin before arriving at the unique and beautiful Little Chapel where you will have time to visit inside. A short drive will then take us to The German Underground Hospital, the largest construction in the whole of the Channel Islands by the Germans during WWll, you will be provided with a private tour inside this amazing attraction. On leaving, a short drive will take us to the German Occupation Museum, explore with us a private museum which we consider to be the best in Guernsey. On leaving the museum, drive through the beautiful countryside and along our west coast to view some of the best beaches on the island. We will then continue back to St Peter Port where we finish the tour at your tender pier or hotel. This very accurately describes our four hours. The company offers other options, but this is what we chose to see. We began with a lovely drive that did indeed take us right past Victor Hugo’s beautiful house in a beautiful neighborhood. Of course, prior to my research, I associated the name “Guernsey” with only one thing, which you can probably guess. Cows. And at our first stop at the Little Chapel, we were greeted by some namesakes right by the Chapel itself. We learned that all of the cows are privately owned, used only for dairy purposes, and all of their milk combined and processed/sold through an island cooperative. S took some time to make new friends as she truly is an animal whisperer. Animals take to her like, well, flies to a cow. Spinning around from the bovines, you see what is accurately described as a “Little Chapel.” This was started in around 1914 as either a labor of love, a labor of lunacy, or both. It is a toy-shaped chapel made from broken ceramic mosaic and sea shells, but just big enough for humans to duck in for a look-see, a prayer or a candle lighting. However I would not recommend this venue for a wedding. There is a small gift shop beside the chapel (because, of course there is), and outside it, and just as you enter the chapel driveway stand two five-foot puffin statues that are part of a local community fundraising campaign entailing 60 decorated puffins placed in various spots around the island. The one by the giftshop is appropriately decorated in the style of the chapel. After some more scenic walking and driving where the full bloom of Spring could be experienced… …we arrived at our next major site, The German Underground Hospital. The name is a bit misleading, as it seems that 90% of this tunnel system was designed and used for munitions storage and hiding armaments from aerial attack. A more full description and photos will appear in the next post.

Will do. My photos are being held hostage on my wife's computer and she has needed it for work over the past day and a half!

The older tiny hair dryers were not good. Lately I have been seeing larger salon style dryers that are fine. This is a picture of the older one. The newer ones are bigger and more powerful.

Day 2-Portland UK (Continued) Skipping back in time just a bit from the last photo which was taken from our balcony, (and as an aside, not that it can be counted on for future trips, we were on the port side and at every port stop except Holyhead, our side of the ship faced the land/disembarkation area) before we headed back to our cabin we sat (collapsed, really) in seats in the Piazza to enjoy some well-earned refreshments. K got some espresso, but it was too late in the day for me to indulge. We all got a sweet from the IC and we used this opportunity to cross the Good Spirits at Sea bar off of our BINGO card. So we sat, relaxed, had a cocktail and then made our way up to our cabin to shower and change for dinner. This was another Smart Casual Night. As 7:00 approached the Celebrity ship beside us was preparing to leave and after the Andrews Sisters finished their set, we heard the thunderous booms from a cannon placed at the end of the pier. I thought that we were being besieged by pirates, but Penzance was too far away for that to be an issue. It was just the locals saying farewell. We would receive the same treatment just a bit later. As became our habit, we made a stop off at Vines to load up on a nice glass of wine to take with us to the Concerto MDR. The wine list in the MDR is just OK, and nothing compared to what one can find at Vines. We had checked out the menu on our TV while getting ready and had a pretty good idea what we were going to order, so each of us opted for a glass of Belle Glos Pinot Noir. I don’t think I recall seeing that wine on the Concerto list, but on the first night the sommelier did come to our table with a bottle in hand after she noted our Burgundy glasses and suggested that we might enjoy that wine. We let her know that we were familiar with the wine and to keep a bottle (or 4) handy during the length of the cruise, so we were able to get a second glass of that in the MDR later during our meal. Incidentally, it was this evening that I checked the lines at the MDRs (Symphony and Concerto) to see how things were shaping up and found no waits at either at 6:15 and 7:30. At exactly 7:30 we walked straight in and headed to “our” table and received a warm welcome from John and Shashi. Our first night at our designated table and we could not have been happier. For starters I ordered the French Onion Soup from the Favorites board, S had the Traditional Caesar Salad and K had the Beets and Goat Cheese Salad. We were all pleased with these dishes and the Onion soup was among the best I have had on a Princess ship. K’s salad wasn’t quite as she expected, thinking that it would be mostly beets with an accompaniment of goat cheese, and instead it turned out to be the reverse. That’s OK, as she enjoys goat cheese, but it turned out to be heavier and more filling than anticipated. For Mains I rolled the dice and ordered the Pork Schnitzel. This isn’t something that I would ordinarily try from a mass-producing kitchen, but it turned out to be a wonderful dish that exceeded my expectation. S had the Chicken Cordon Bleu which she declared a success and K had the Truffle Risotto. The flavor of the risotto was fine, but the consistency was off. It was not really a true, creamy risotto and more of a fluffy rice dish. But the flavor overcame the texture issue. For desserts we chose the French Vanilla Crème Brulé (me), the Frozen Chocolate Praline Torte (K) and the Lemon Meringue Cheesecake (S). I am always amazed at how consistently excellent the Crème Brulé is on Princess ships. They never seem to have an off night, and tonight was no exception. S enjoyed her Cheesecake. But K’s frozen concoction was sort of like a Baskin Robbins ice cream cake. She wasn’t expecting the “frozen” part of the dish to be just plain ice cream, but that is all it was. The name of the dessert promised a more interesting preparation, but it was really just a dish of ice cream with just a little touch of extras. So far we had two really full days and nights, and tomorrow we would have to get on an early tender in order to meet our private guide for our tour of Guernsey. So we resisted the temptation to keep the party going and decided to relax in our cabin and get to bed early-ish. Our drink scorecard for the day was: Good Spirits bar checked off; 3 cocktails and 6 glasses of wine. Total out-of-pocket had we paid cash would have been $169.92. Total cost with Old Plus was $28.32. Total had we had Premier would have been $0. Some random notes while I am thinking of them. On our first day when I was at the Guest Services Desk getting my Gift Cards placed on our account, a gentleman came up to the agent next to me and asked about the Special Desserts. Specifically he wanted to know if his package qualified him for "just gelato" instead of the whole concoction. He was politely told "no" and that the only thing that was within the scope of the package was the full dessert. I could sense the frustration on both of their faces as each seemed to understand the idiocy of this policy. As we sat in the Piazza that afternoon I explained the various packages to K and S as they know nothing about any of this. Dad does all of the heavy lifting when it comes to planning family fun. When I explained the Special Desserts to S, she said that she had to see one so I called up a picture of some on the internet. Her response was one that I will never forget: "I prefer my desserts without pyrotechnics and moving parts. And you can leave the sound and fog machines behind as well." K just laughed hysterically at the photos and insisted that no sane person would ever eat two of those a day. For the record, despite spending a whole lot of time in the Piazza, we never saw a single Special Dessert being made, carried or consumed over the whole 8 days. Not. A. Single. One. I don't know if they make them at Swirls, but given the weather on the trip, not many people were hanging out around Swirls and we were only in that area for a brief time or two. On our first sea day, we saw a crew member walk past us in the Horizon Court dressed up like she was stationed at Ice Station Zebra. We saw her later that afternoon manning the station at Swirls! As for internet, we never had any issues. We aren't super-users and don't post "Live" updates or upload photos. Nor do we stream or download content from Netflix or Disney+ while onboard. For quick internet searches, texting, reading email and keeping our Wordle streaks going, the internet was perfectly fine. Guernsey is on the way as soon as I get my photos sorted out. Patter Day 2.pdf

Day 2-Portland UK (Continued) Our next stop, after a nice drive through the countryside, was to the Village of Tyneham. Tyneham tells a sad but interesting story of a coastal village set too close to the dangers of WWII. The residents of the village were required to abandon their town and relocate so that the British Armed Forces could use the area for training and bombing practice. Even to this day the village is engulfed in an active military training and bombing base, and Terri told us that Ukrainian forces are brought here to be trained to use the weaponry being supplied by Western nations. Today the village sits as a ghost town, but there are some heartwarming plaques commemorating the return visits of some of the children who were born here, only to return 50+ years later to see what was left of the village. From there we were off to Corfe for a visit to a more lived-in village, and a medieval castle. Along the way we were able to glimpse Lulworth Castle from the moving van. This castle has always been “residential” as opposed to one built for defensive purposes. Corfe Castle was built by William the Conqueror in the 11th Century as a strategic and defensive stronghold, but the geopolitics of the medieval times have taken their toll on the structure. Still, it is fascinating to be looking at something that was built before 1100. Aside from the castle itself, the village of Corfe and its adorable train station are worthy of a bit of time and souvenir shopping, and perhaps a pint. Coronation bunting and flags were everywhere. And I swear that Thomas the Tank Engine stops at this station! After some more countryside sightseeing, we made our way to Weymouth where we had time on our own for lunch. My research led me to a local favorite “chippie” called Fish ‘n’ Fritz which did not disappoint. The haddock was battered with a crisp, craggily crust of goodness that we enjoyed al fresco along the Weymouth Quay. After lunch we wound our way back to the Isle of Portland itself to take in a fantastic view of the surrounding area, see the Olympic Rings commemorating Portland’s claim as the host of the sailing events for the 2012 Olympics, and to see some real live, (well, not really live) fossils that help give the Jurassic Coast its name. A view of the strip of rocky sand that connects Portland to Weymouth. And here is a nautical fossil that is almost the size of a car tire. I can’t imagine seeing one of these things swimming by me! Our last stop was the Portland Bill Lighthouse with some more unbelievable coastal views. We used the full 7 hours for this adventure, and were returned to the Portland Castle where we started, and where a blue bus picked us up to take us back to the ship. After we were settled in our cabin, we heard the beautiful tones of what sounded suspiciously like the Andrews Sisters. We opened up our balcony slider, stepped outside and saw this! What a great way to send us off to our next port. One last photo to capture the mood. (And yes, they did sing “In The Mood”) Shipboard activities, dining, drinking and entertainment to be covered in the next post.

Day 2-Portland UK One of the great joys of travel is going to a place you never thought you’d visit, that you never knew you wanted to visit, and learning that this place exceeded your most humble expectations in its beauty, culture and most importantly, it’s people. And you wonder why you had overlooked such a wonderful place and conclude that it is because of nothing less than your own ignorance, yet you are comforted in knowing that this ignorance can be so easily overcome if only you let it. So it was with much of this itinerary. The driving force behind the selection of this cruise was not the itinerary per se, but the date, and ease with which S could join us for a week+ of family together time. At the time of booking, the actual port stops were a mere afterthought. And then I began doing what I always do, which is compulsive research. The Portland/Weymouth area (as well as Guernsey) was completely unknown to me, and no “must see” or “must do” adventure jumped out at me upon first blush. But after a fair amount of investigation, I concluded that the best way to approach an unfamiliar area would be to immerse myself in it. So I happened across a company by the name of “Dorset Tours” which offered cruise passengers small van tours including one called “The Jurassic Coast Adventure.” This was to be a 6-7 hour tour guided by an area specialist that would, well…I’ll let them tell it: “This is a fun packed day along the stunning Jurassic Coast from Portland. You’ll travel through England’s first UNESCO World Heritage site the Jurassic Coast, discovering sites dating back 180 million years with perfectly formed coves and archways carved into the natural limestone. You’ll then navigate through Dorset exploring hidden villages, thatch cottages and castles built by William the Conqueror, not forgetting a stop Weymouth and Portland’s Olympic Rings overlooking 18 miles of Chesil Beach.” Seemed pretty immersive to me, so I booked it. Another popular option at this port stop is a trip out to Stonehenge, and while a number of tours will get you there, S (with a Masters in Classical Archaeology) warned me that we would be underwhelmed by Stonehenge, especially if visiting with thousands of other cruise ship passengers. We would see that some other time. For today, it would be the Jurassic Coast. I was particularly excited to discovery what sort of dinosaurs we would see, and perhaps get a chance to meet Jeff Goldblum and Laura Dern. See? I really didn’t know anything about this area at all. We were emailed instructions that we were to take the free blue shuttle bus that would meet us shipside and instruct the driver to drop us off at Portland Castle. The port of Portland is a working port with no convenient access for cruise passengers, so as a result, you will either be taken from the disembarkation area by your Princess-organized tour bus, or, if traveling on your own, by a blue shuttle bus that whisks you out of the commercial port area. Our meeting time was 9:00 so for this morning, all we could manage for breakfast was a few “to go” items from the IC and some coffee for K. We walked off the ship, boarded a blue bus and in minutes we were at the Portland Castle where we were greeted by Terri, (not Laura Dern) who was to be our guide for the day. Terri is a Dorset native and experienced traveler, has a wealth of fascinating stories and is clearly passionate about the Isle of Portland and surrounding areas. The Isle of Portland where the cruise ships dock is a small almost-island, with the “almost” being a strip of rocky sand that connects it to the mainland. But for all practical purposes it is an island, and the more bustling tourist area is the town on the tip of the mainland called Weymouth. If the blue bus will continue on to Weymouth if you are not getting off at Portland Castle. We boarded our van and began our journey to our first stop, called Durdle Door. Along the way Terri explained the history and geology of the Jurassic Coast. This really is an incredible area of geologic interest, and if you are a fan of the show Broadchurch, know that its exterior coastal shots were filmed just around the bend from the places we would be visiting. Durdle Door is a natural arch formation created by thousands of years of tidal erosion. It stands out along the beach like a sea monster guarding its lair. And while the sea monster is the star of the show, one cannot help but be overcome by the sheer beauty of the sheer cliffs. S has been to Dover and she said that she preferred this over that. From there we went to a charming village called Lulworth Cove where we walked around the village, got close up with some beautiful houses covered in tightly woven thatch, saw some more forming arches, and experienced the beauty of Spring in action with wildflowers and gorce blooming everywhere. Terri then pointed out something that should have been obvious. The rock layers of the earth had been visibly displaced in a number of areas showing where continents collided and broke apart as Pangea became the world as we know it now. Note how the rock layers clearly form a vertical pattern in what used go be horizontal sedimentary layers. And of course, Lulworth Cove would be nothing without a cove. This one a near perfectly formed circle. The village itself has more ice cream shops per square foot than any other place I have been! There was time for a bit more walking and picture taking before heading off for our next stop.

Day 1 (Continued) With dinner completed, it was now time to venture out for an evening of entertainment, and this provides a convenient opportunity to discuss the offerings for this cruise. The two live bands were “The Prestige Quartet” and “The Voyagers”. Both were very good, but there can only be one winner in this competition and the nod goes to the latter. They tended to be the band that hosted the parties in the Piazza. Which brings up a point. Perhaps it was the weather on this itinerary (not bad, but not conducive to holding deck parties outside due to the temperature and threat of rain), or perhaps this is the new normal, but there was entertainment, (especially these bands) almost non-stop in the Piazza, all the way through 11:30 p.m. As a result, Crooners was like Dean Martin’s glass of Scotch--put on ice. Over the course of an 8 day cruise, Crooners was not used as an evening entertainment venue except for a brief time on the very last sea day. This disappointed us as live music in Crooners has become our staple entertainment on most evenings. Maybe when the weather improves, the live bands will head up top opening up the possibility that Crooners will rise from the ashes. The ”piano man” for this cruise was A. J. Clarke. He played in the Vista Lounge every night except the last night when he staked out the Wheelhouse Bar. He is very, very good in a “Bert with an E” sort of way for those who remember Bert. But his library is more diverse, and his shows are pretty much non-stop requests. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of music and will tell you who wrote each song, when, why, and what they were wearing at the time. His piano playing is top notch and his singing is more than adequate for the task. His performances in the Vista Lounge were always well-attended and by the time the last evening rolled around, he had enough of a following to make his appearance in the Wheelhouse Bar a tough ticket to come by. Other musical performers (who served more as background music as opposed to featured performers) included Acoustic Guitar player Christian Bispo, the “Gold Strings Duo” (who had the honor of being one of the performers to headline in Crooners on that last night, and we enjoyed their set very much), and pianist Olena Konstantinova. She was the only holdover entertainer from our prior cruise on Regal. The Cruise Director Staff led by Allie Ambriano was well organized and did a fine job with the typical cruise entertainment of trivia, game shows, Jenga, karaoke and the like, as well as adding an additional splash of Coronation fun here and there. There was one particular entertainment staff member with whom we did not connect. I won’t name names as this will undoubtedly lead to a chorus of: “But s/he’s my favorite.” To each their own, but we found several of this person’s trivia/quiz emcee duties to be painful to the point of ruining the event. To the extent possible, I will try to upload the Patters so that you can see for yourself what was going on onboard the ship each day. We did not attend any of the big production shows. Part of this was due to the timing or our dinners, where we were seated each night at 7:30 once our “same table each night” had been offered to us at that time. That eliminated any chance of seeing early shows, and for the later shows, there was always something else that K and S wanted to do. So I have nothing good or bad to say about those performers and performances. On this first night we headed to the Vista Lounge to see what was up with this AJ Clarke dude. We enjoyed his performance enough to stay to the end. We carried in with us the last of the wine we had ordered at dinner, and for the rest of the evening we ordered cocktails through the OceanNow feature of the app. We found the ordering process to be easy, fast and accurate. On our Bingo Card for this cruise we intended to have a drink at every bar and lounge on the ship as well as use the delivery service, and here we were able to cross off the Vista Lounge as a venue and OceanNow as a drinking option. As our day came to a close, we had eaten and ordered drinks at both Alfredo’s, and Concerto MDR; had coffee and pastries at the International Café; had wine at Vines and cocktails via the delivery service in the Vista Lounge. Not a bad start. Our Old Plus “scorecard” showed that between the three of us we had had 15 glasses of wine and 3 cocktails. The retail value of these had we paid out of pocket would have been $319.78, ($106.60 per person). With Old Plus we paid $23.60, ($7.86 per person). And had we had Premier we would have paid $0. A final note on the costs. We have cruised many times without drinks packages and never, ever have we run up a tab equal to what the out-of-pocket cost of this day presented. There are two reasons for that. First, when paying cash, we would have been far more frugal with our consumption. And second, with the increased wine allowance under the Plus package and the corresponding increase in drink prices, the current cost of drinks on the ship makes it almost foolhardy to not have a package if one plans to do any sort of drinking at all. Clearly this is Princess’ goal, Even if we had consumed 6 glasses of wine and 3 cocktails, our total cost would have far exceeded the single highest tally we had ever incurred onboard a ship. By almost double. So keep that in mind when calculating whether “It Pays To Plus.” Patter Day 1.pdf

That's what I guessed. Thanks.

It's not difficult. K uses a "beach bag" style of bag for her airline carry-on "personal item" allowance, stowing her purse in her rolling carry-on. In it she carries reading material, a collapsible bottle for water that is filled up at a bottle filler, and that still leaves room for 3 nice glasses, each wrapped in a tea towel placed at the top of the bag. This bag stays under the seat on the plane, and is carried on her shoulder as she boards the ship. As long as you remember that there is glass in there and handle the bag accordingly, all is well. We have been taking glasses with us on all of our cruises. We used to buy them at our embarkation port and then donate them to the ship upon our departure, but we decided to give transporting them a chance and that has worked out well. This is a shot of one of our glasses that we are now using to give some perspective to the size. We bought them in Athens a year ago and they have been back and forth across the Atlantic twice now.

I prefer the multi course structure of Sabatini’s. For me, Crown Grill is about the main course steak which recently has been sub-par. The rest of the meal isn’t really memorable. At Sabatini’s you get numerous courses most of which are equal in stature. For my family it is a more memorable meal.

An old paper coffee card?? Call Princess and ask them, (using this phone)

Thought it was perfectly fine, especially for the price paid. (We booked through that travel website whose name I don't know I can use, but they handle reservations "expediently".) The only issue is that it only has one dining venue and that is a pricey Michael White establishment. But casual dining is a short walk away.