Tothesunset

 

the way she spoke to wait staff, other diners was just horrendous...

Looks like she had the same etiquette coach as some we have encountered on Silversea/Seabourn!

Aha...yes, one and the same with a twist as you know. ;) Lisbon was excellent, a lovely relaxing day in a superb hotel...I didn't move so still failed miserably with the shopping!

The poor man fortunately had his wife with us that night to support him..I think he closed his ears after the first course!!

 

Hope you had an uneventful journey home and a lovely welcome back from the pooch...I did! Also hope Mrs Sunset is still recovering well.

 

S :)

She's jumping around again - boot off. Arrived home to find we had missed a world of chaos with K's mum. Details are tedious but the other 2 sisters were very kind to leave us alone during the crossing. Dog was excited then did his usual thing of being in a huff with us for the rest of the day.

Hi Spin,

 

It was a super trip, no gory details I'm afraid, l just relaxed and behaved myself...very boring l know...:rolleyes:

 

Yep, it got a tad choppy when we left Bermuda for some time due to a tropical storm about and we missed the Azores so eight sea days into Lisbon..with the Captain telling us that whilst the ship would be fine he wasn't sure the passengers would be!

 

I did book another cruise for later this year, Istanbul to Athens so far...:D

 

Sophia :)

Now then, would this be the same Sophia that favoured the occasional glass of vodka and diet coke? If so, how did you enjoy your stay in Lisbon overnight? And did that poor man ever recover from his dinner with the single ladies?;)

Seems a long time ago now...

And what also worries me is that the Lib Dems cynical revelations of cabinet type discussions for political advantage of what I consider to be fundamental breaches of trust and confidence means that how will a future government operate when no one will trust anyone any more.

:(

I think the Lib Dems have already demonstrated that they are prepared to prostitute their principles for the illusion of power. That they should also show their lack of integrity concerning confidential events of the past 5 years comes as no surprise. Indeed, political expediency seems to be a much better driver of political position than does honour, integrity and principle.

I truly miss the peas.

There's plenty of peas being taken on this thread.

Get a room, you two.

Anyway ... I am really pleased they named the Princess after my favourite potato.

And a plum.

And a Paul Anka song.

Looks like my tips of Britney or Kylie were a bit wide of the mark, then.

The West Wing and The Good Wife and The Sopranos .......

:)

Don't forget The Wire, Deadwood, Six Feet Under, Orange is the New Black, Mad Men, Game of Thrones, House, House of Cards, Justified, The Newsroom.

I'd like to add some UK series to the list but can't come up with anything that comes close although the Scandies get a look-in with The Killing, The Bridge and Borgen.

Even the French get a mention with Engrenages (Spiral) for which even the most fluent French-speaker will need subtitles unless familiar with the Parisian argot.

Or Tothesunset- were you making another point? In which case- my apologies.

I feared the irony was lost. And you'll note no Italian influence in those mentioned.

Un- no. The Titanic was built in North Ireland and was a White Flag Line ship, captained by a British Naval Reserve Officer. The SS Eastland was built in the US and based in Chicago and used for tours. The MS Estonia was a cruise ferry built in Germany. The MV Dona Paz was built in 1963 by Onomichi Zosen of Onomichi, Hiroshima, Japan and based in Manila. The Herald was built in Germany and sailed from Belgium.

 

So- sorry but wrong on all counts.

You mean that lines that are not Italian can have disasters? Well, I never!

Not forgetting the Costa Concordia staffed by more of those Italian experts.

Wasn't the Titanic Italian, too? And the SS Eastland, MV Dona Paz, MS Estonia, Herald of Free Enterprise?

I'd be curious to know if they sell anything. Other than duty free perfume we have not seen anyone even browsing to any serious degree. Do they really think the savvy SS traveller will be seduced by overpriced baubles?

Sorry we didn't get to meet with you David. Our best wishes for your return home.

Alternatively, to save the petty squabbling and the oppression of the minority by the majority, Seabourn could configure their ships in such a way as to accommodate the desire of smokers and non-smokers to avoid each other's acrimony (which, incidentally, seems more prevalent in the safety of forumland than in the real world). Designated outdoor smoking area(s), indoor, dedicated and properly ventilated smoking lounge and banning of smoking on balconies or any other area where smoke can drift seem a suitable conpromise. It works very well on Silversea ships.

The only thing is that there is still an extremely small but hardcore number of people who will seek to discover somewhere where they can smell smoke the better to complain about it. I'm sure they will find something else to feel sanctimonious about and dictatorial over if the smoking issue is resolved.

Also on this cruise. Concur with the OP's observations.

The CD, Moss Hills, is something of a folkloric figure in the cruise community following his and his wife's heroic actions during an incident at sea some years ago. Google is your friend here.

He is also a gifted musician - we can recommend his one man show (which he promises me he will be performing this voyage). Definitely not to be missed.

There are around 340 passengers on board giving an embarrassingly high crew/guest ratio and, as ever, the welcome and the service have been warm and efficient. Dead flat calm sea, glorious sunshine and 25 degrees although starting to cool from tomorrow with the chance of rain. In anticipation it seems that many guests are disporting themselves on the sun deck but it has not felt in the slightest crowded.

The ship seems to be in good condition but we have not made an effort to find anything to moan about - perhaps we are a little colour-blind to minor blemishes? We also rather like the artwork around the ship; it is both tasteful and in keeping, we feel, with the ship's ambience.

Many of the crew have served us on previous voyages and such kind welcomes on our return have elevated our feeling of wellbeing. Without wishing to sound too gushing, there really is something of a family feel. Of particular note are Moss, Karolina the head sommelier and Carl Vlaeminck the Cruise Consultant but that is to overlook those cheerful crew members who have displayed genuine (we hope) delight in welcoming us back.

So, 2 days in and another 10 to go all but 3 of which are sea days. Does life get any better? I think not!

We boarded Spirit yesterday at around 12.30. We were by no means the first. Checked in and tucking into a fine Terraza lunch within 15 minutes. Cabin ready by 2.

We are currently on the Spirit having had our previous 2 cruises on the Whisper and Shadow.

Plus points for Spirit:

Stars supper club.

Larger outdoor areas.

Prefer Spirit Humidor.

Better Vista cabin positions (not as far forward)

? slightly smoother, quieter progress.

For Shadow.

More homely public areas.

Terraza brighter.

And that's about it. We've decided we like each equally. Not much help!

Bon voyage!

Merci.

Just on the coach from the Hyatt to the ship. That first Corona will be going down in about 15 minutes.

Arrived in port Everglades.

Ahead of schedule.

Beautiful day here.

We are almost home.

A short car ride and we will be back a la casita.

It's been a terrific cruise.

As we left la Terrazza last night lots of hugs from crew.

Hope you have left her in good condition as we are sitting in the Hyatt itching to get aboard in about 4 hours.

Re my comment about replies to this topic I went back quickly and counted 40 odd replies from 2 people of the 150 odd replies

Empty barrels make the most noise?

One of the greatest joys in life is to dine alone with good food, good wine and a good book!

As stated above, SS are very good at looking after their single passengers and we have never observed anyone clearly unable to find dining companions - of course there are some who prefer to dine alone and always seem to be particularly well looked after by the staff.

I'm sure you'll have an awesome voyage!

Thanks, that is a relief as we are "coffee snobs" and cannot stomach the stuff any cruise line passes off as regular coffee.

This is one (small) reason why we were put off SB after a cruise a little over a year ago now. We simply couldn't get a decent cup of coffee - this was on the Seabourn Spirit which did not have the benefit of the Seabourn Square coffee venue. The regular coffee was, to us, the typically insipid, brown, flavourless stuff that passes for coffee. Even the espresso lacked bite and lattes or capucinos again lacked any richness of flavour.

As a fellow coffee snob I would be interested to hear how you find the coffee when you return. I think, from what I've read on here, that you will be catered for better on the bigger ships in this matter.

The Victor Meldrew within us all is not easily silenced!

I don't believe it!

Good grief, this has become overly complicated.

 

If the rules permit smoking, then by all means smoke!

 

I prefer a balcony.

 

I prefer a balcony without smoke.

 

Seabourn doesn't seem to offer a balcony without smoke.

 

So, I've booked on Silversea.

 

Not very complicated.

But if you continue to show this sensible attitude you lose the comfort of moaning.