Live Voyager Beijing to London

[UUNetBill]

The internet was spotty for me before and I had written about Phuket and lost it all, so will try one more time.

Been there, done that. After about the third time I lost my posts from the Baltic, I finally got in the habit of typing up my posts in Notepad or Word and then cutting-pasting into my email/blog when I was ready to send.

 

Nothing worse than losing your thoughts after spending valuable time writing them up - you never seem to get the same flow trying to rewrite them!!

[s2000drvr]

Been there, done that. After about the third time I lost my posts from the Baltic, I finally got in the habit of typing up my posts in Notepad or Word and then cutting-pasting into my email/blog when I was ready to send.

 

Nothing worse than losing your thoughts after spending valuable time writing them up - you never seem to get the same flow trying to rewrite them!!

 

Yes, UUNetBill, I had to learn the hard way! I will use word from now on.

[forevertravel]

Thank you for the posts. We got off the ship in Bangkok. It was a wonderful cruise. Food in CR was excellent and we didn't seat in same section whenever we dined there. The service was very good and so were the wines being served. Enjoy the rest of the cruise and keep on posting.

[s2000drvr]

Internet has been down or too slow to post. But, today it is great, at least right now it is.

 

Did our own tour in Trincolmalee. Took the shuttle in and they dropped us off by a fort. We walked to the center of town and passed by some fish markets. The aroma was something else. Saw fish drying on blankets by the sidewalk.

 

This place is like Thailand was 40 years ago. The shopkeepers were friendly but there was nothing to buy, just plasticware everywhere.

 

On our walk we saw a spotted deer with antlers, at least it looked like a deer.

 

The next day we were to anchor off the coast of Galle, but that did not happen. The swells were too much for the tenders, so we moved on to Colombo and arrived around 4. There are many stalls out on the pier, but the quality of the fabrics is not good.

 

We will be doing a tour Colombo Contrast.

 

The weather is the same, sunny, hot, humid.

 

We enjoyed Prime 7 last night, had the roast chicken as I am beefed out. Friends had Dover Sole and one had the surf and turf. Rich had the enormous pork chop.

 

We leave on Sunday for the overland Taj experience.

 

More later.

[s2000drvr]

We had to skip Galle as the tenders could not take the large swells. So off we sailed for Colombo. Had a fantastic time there. We did the Colombo Contrast and saw the poor areas as well as the richer areas. It was a contrast. I liked Sri Lanka and feel we need to spend more time there.

 

Today we are in Cochin, India. First impression: love it here. I know people have said it is sensory overload, but not here. Yes, the streets are busy, and many people are walking around. Our tour was the City Highlights and Harbor Cruise. It was a 5 hour tour and was fantastic. Our coach was modern, with fully running a/c. We saw the famous Chinese Fishing Nets which was very impressive. We saw St. Francis Church, the Dutch Palace and walked to Jew Street where the shopping was plentiful. We then took a nice boat for a harbor cruise.

 

The cruise was the highlight. As we were going along, the captain snagged a fisherman's net. All heck broke lose as the fisherman's net was now destroyed. He waited until we rounded an island, then jumped on our boat to demand payment from the boat's captain. Lots of yelling was going on. Do not know the outcome. Hope that the fisherman got a new net out of this.

 

Tomorrow we are heading for the Taj for a 3 night overland trip.

 

More later.

[dabear]

Hi S2000drvr: If you recall we're on the next leg of your cruise arriving Monday in Delhi and will be in Agra on Tuesday & Jaipur on Wednesday. Just cureous if your land tour groups join ours or are you 1 day ahead of us. Glad to hear that you are enjoying the cruise.

[s2000drvr]

Hi S2000drvr: If you recall we're on the next leg of your cruise arriving Monday in Delhi and will be in Agra on Tuesday & Jaipur on Wednesday. Just cureous if your land tour groups join ours or are you 1 day ahead of us. Glad to hear that you are enjoying the cruise.

 

Hi DaBear, We just arrived back from Delhi today. We do not join you at all as we were one day ahead of you. Our time spent in Agra at the Taj was unbelievable with both sunset and sunrise viewings of the Taj.

 

Welcome aboard tomorrow! And we will catch up with you at CC meeting.

[Gilly]

Shame you missed Galle - we did this cruise a couple of years ago and the swell prevented tendering to the port on that day as well. When we arrived home, we spoke to friends who had cruised in that part of the world and who asked "does anyone ever get into Galle?" They too had missed out because of heavy currents.

 

So, can anyone here tell us what we missed? I know that whenever I see the cricket from there, I peer into the screen to try to see a little of the place, but that's as far as I've got!

 

Have a great time in India!!

[Travelcat2]

Hi DaBear, We just arrived back from Delhi today. We do not join you at all as we were one day ahead of you. Our time spent in Agra at the Taj was unbelievable with both sunset and sunrise viewings of the Taj.

 

Welcome aboard tomorrow! And we will catch up with you at CC meeting.

 

Good to hear that you were able to enjoy Agra in 100 plus degree weather. I would have been a melted puddle on the ground. What hotel did Regent use in Agra. I ask because there was some discussion about the hotel that was used last December.

[s2000drvr]

Good to hear that you were able to enjoy Agra in 100 plus degree weather. I would have been a melted puddle on the ground. What hotel did Regent use in Agra. I ask because there was some discussion about the hotel that was used last December.

 

Hi TC, We were in the ITC Mughal Hotel. It was fantastic. We had a large suite which consisted of a round table with 4 chairs, a bar. Then the work room/living room (Rich set up his computer at the large desk) and a very large massage chair was in that space. The next, of course, was the large bedroom with a very large bathroom which had a rainshower head. It was extremely clean. There was a butler button by the bed, but we never used it.

 

There were rose petals everywhere.

 

The heat was not bad considering the lack of humidity. Angkor Wat was so much hotter I think we are use to the heat by now. Today it is only 86 and I am wearing a hoodie outside with a scarf. Go figure!!

 

We loved Agra, but alot could be said because of our guide who had lived in Agra.

[s2000drvr]

Just a small outline of our overland trip of three nights and four days to see the Taj Mahl.

 

This was an amazing trip and it was Regent sponsored. Our guide met us at the gangway the day we stepped off and stayed with us until we got back on the ship. He was an amazing guide as he had grown up in Agra and now lives in Delhi.

 

The plane ride over was Indigo Air and they were great. Seating is very tight and our knees bumped the seat in front of us. But it was only a 3 hour flight down and 2 hours coming back. It was well worth the small discomfort.

 

The Taj Mahl is amazing. We saw both sunset and sunrise. The differences were quite different.

 

The food on this trip was excellent, both Indian, Chinese and sometimes Western. It was more than plentiful.

 

Bottled water, sodas and snacks were available on the coach. This is one of those trips of a lifetime for us and we are so glad we were able to do this.

 

We stayed at the Oberoi Hotel in Delhi which was beyond any hotel we have stayed in. The service was just over the top. When we were leaving to head to Agra, the waitstaff came over and asked if they could pack a small snack with coffee for us. They called Rich by his name which amazed me as I do not know how they knew his name.

 

By the way, I got one of the best pedicures at the Oberoi.

 

If you have any questions, let me know and I will try to answer.

 

More later.

[s2000drvr]

Today is change-over day in Mumbai. We should be leaving port around 7p.

 

We did not take the tour offered to us today as having been away for 4 days, we thought we would enjoy the quiet and peacefulness of the ship.

 

We will be dining in Signatures tonight. It has been a while since we have been in there.

 

There will be two sea days then we will arrive in Dubai.

 

More later.

[mesamis]

Today is change-over day in Mumbai. We should be leaving port around 7p.

 

We did not take the tour offered to us today as having been away for 4 days, we thought we would enjoy the quiet and peacefulness of the ship.

 

We will be dining in Signatures tonight. It has been a while since we have been in there.

 

There will be two sea days then we will arrive in Dubai.

 

More later.

 

Have really enjoyed your posting's -- the Taj trip sounded great. We leave in less than two weeks for Cairo and looking forward to the Safag - Southampton leg. Trying to square away Rome tour before we leave -- by chance has Destinations come back to you with anything specific for Rome?

If not, key piece of information I need is getting from Civitavecchia to S. Pietro by rail which we could book on board.

 

Many thanks,

 

R

[s2000drvr]

Today is a sea day as we head to Dubai. Seas are calm right now, early this morning there was a bit of rolling.

 

The weather is humid, sunny and warm, with a little bit of wind. Nice relaxing sea day.

 

Trivia was a bit challenging, again. Now I know how old Dolly Parton is. Unfortunately, we had her a bit older, sorry Dolly.

 

Cannot wait to see Dubai.

 

More later.

[findacruise]

Today is a sea day as we head to Dubai. Seas are calm right now, early this morning there was a bit of rolling.

 

The weather is humid, sunny and warm, with a little bit of wind. Nice relaxing sea day.

 

Trivia was a bit challenging, again. Now I know how old Dolly Parton is. Unfortunately, we had her a bit older, sorry Dolly.

 

Cannot wait to see Dubai.

 

More later.

A belated thank you for all your posts. We got off in Bangkok and I miss the Voyager and the wonderful people. .Will be interested in your thoughts on Dubai. We got off there when we did the Middle East cruise and did not have enough time to do much except the city tour. It was very hazy that day - not smog like Beijing, but sand in the air.

[s2000drvr]

We arrived in Dubai after sailing for two sea days. The seas were good to us.

 

I guess we chose the wrong tour for Dubai. We chose the Sharjah Heritage Tour and it was not good. The traffic in Dubai is horrendous at times and we picked the wrong time. It is stop and go.

 

We had an opportunity to take photos at the roundabout which was okay. The next stop was to visit a culture museum, which again was just okay. Bathroom facilities were available.

 

The next stop was a fish market/vegetable fruit market. We stayed on the bus because we have seen enough of these markets in SE Asia to last a life time. If one had never seen one of these markets, perhaps the opportunity was good.

 

Our next stop was the Blue Souq a 30 minute stop. We found some neat things to buy. However, two ladies decided to buy some gold and they needed their purchase to be adjusted. We waited on the bus for 15 minutes for these ladies to appear, finally our guide went into the souq and they needed another 15 minutes. He said to them to take a taxi as we are leaving. By this time the traffic was beyond anything I have seen. It was beyond slow.

 

We got back to the ship around 7:20p and instead of being a 4 1/2 trip it was over 5 hours. Not that 1/2 hour makes that much of a difference had the tour been fantastic, but it was not. Would not take this again.

 

The weather was comfortable, but I like it hot. There was some haze.

 

The skyline of Dubai was amazing, so modern.

 

More later.

[s2000drvr]

We are in Dubai and today we decided to take the shuttle into the Mall. It ran about every hour.

 

The mall was the largest we have seen yet. Very contemporary stores, modern, clean. We walked around and found a nail spa. The spa on the ship for acrylic nails is not what I expected. Not going to get into it, but needed a fine spa salon to straighten out the damage. This was the best nail treatment I have received. It was called the Nail Spa and was located on the lower level.

 

After spending time at the Nail Spa, we walked around and viewed the different stores. We walked outside to see the fountains and we were at the base of the Burg Khalifa. What a building, it goes up and up and up. Amazing. There were photographers willing to take your picture in front of the Burg, for a price.

 

We dined again in CR and had a fabulous dinner with new friends. A great ending to a great day.

 

 

More later.

[Gilly]

Oh no, s2000drvr....we did the Sharjah tour last year - no, the year before - and felt much the same as you did about it! When we returned home and I said to a friend who knew the area well that we had taken a tour from Dubai to Sharjah, I got an "old fashioned look" and was asked, "why?" Yes, we too stopped at the roundabout to take photos. Oh my.

 

I sympathise with you having to spend yet more time at the dull souk - the only time we've ever wanted a Starbucks!! (and one of the few places where there was none to be seen!) I did, however, take some great fish photos in the market.

 

Glad you made up for it with an interesting day in the Mall.

[Aloha 1]

To all who might be continuing from Rome to London, we are planning an informal Meet and Greet in the Observation Lounge on departure day at 5 Pm. please check out the thread on the CC site for details.

[s2000drvr]

Today we are in Abu Dhabi. The weather is warm, dry and sunny with some haze in the distance.

 

We decided to forgo our tour and do our own thing. We took the shuttle to the mall and then took a taxi to the Central Market Souk. This was a minimal fare and be sure to use the meter and not bargain with the driver.

 

The Souk was in a modern building with about 20 or 30 little shops. We had fun exploring and doing some buying.

 

After two hours we decided to take a taxi back to the shuttle and take the shuttle to the ship. This worked out fine for us. Along the drive to and from the Mall, we saw the skyline of Abu Dhabi which is quite smaller than Dubai or Doha. If we had taken our tour we would have seen the Grand Mosque, but maybe another time we will see this.

 

Have spoken with others who took the High Tea at the Emirates Palace and although the food was good, they were disappointed that it was more American tea than some of the delicacies from this area. They enjoyed the hotel and the rest of the tour. This was a paid excursion.

 

Trivia again was a bust for us. But, we have alot of fun laughing so that makes it enjoyable.

 

Right now the seas are good to us, but it is hazy, as we sail towards Fujairah, UAE.

 

More later.

[s2000drvr]

Today we have arrived in Fujairah, UAE. What a difference in the landscape. We now see small mountains instead of flat lands. The wind is blowing so hard and it is quite warm, sunny.

 

We did not take a tour today but we did have one scheduled: Relax, Snorkel or Swim. It sounded good, but after further investigation, we found out we would be at a resort. The resort would have a limited amount of loungers, and the resort was not rated as one of the top resorts, but the best one that is here. I could not imagine us sitting on a towel on the sand for 3 hours if we could not secure loungers.

 

We took a short walk to the Duty Free Shop and endured the high winds, sand blowing at us.

 

We continue to have fabulous lunches and dinners. I have taken to the Canyon Ranch menu to see if it helps with the weight! They are tasty, but tend to lean towards fish which I am not a big fan of. We are now over the half way mark and this is when the time goes by quickly.

 

Tomorrow we will be in Muscat, Oman.

 

More later.

[tallship]

I was in Muscat recently and loved it...the shopping, new Mosque, Opera, restaurants....everything was wonderful there

[s2000drvr]

I was in Muscat recently and loved it...the shopping, new Mosque, Opera, restaurants....everything was wonderful there

 

Tallship, I agree with you. We had a wonderful tour guide and tour. It was called Splendors of Muscat. This is a great area with the mountain so close by. The morning sun hit the mountains just right to show off their various hues.

 

We went to the Zawawi Mosque and viewed it only from the outside. We were told about the cleansing method men would do before entering the mosque.

we saw the Bait Adam Museum, Sultan's Palace and forts. We were allowed 45 minutes to see the Mutt Rah Souq where we had fun shopping and looking around.

 

The weather here has humidity in the air. It was quite warm, but now it is very overcast with a threat of rain.

 

Again, the seas have been calm. Dining in CR has been excellent both with the food and service. We do not go to La Veranda so cannot comment about it.

 

We have a sea day tomorrow, then onto Salalah, Oman.

 

More later.

[s2000drvr]

Yesterday was a great sea day, and the seas were calm.

 

We happened to be in the Observation Lounge when we saw many dolphins. This was the first time we saw them and we were in awe. We have never seen so many before. The last time we saw dolphins they were pink in the Amazon.

 

We dined in Prime 7 last night and had a wonderful NY sirloin. Unfortunately, it was too large and I could only eat half of it. The waiter thought something was wrong with it, just too large. The service was very nice. We like it slow and that is exactly how it was.

 

Today we are in the port of Salalah, Oman. Had a tour this morning called Scenic Salalah. It was okay, saw the Grand Mosque which was fairly new at being 5 years old. It was quite impressive with the beautiful chandelier in the center. The mosque will hold 3,000 people.

 

We were offered some coconut water and it is not our cup of tea, although some people enjoyed it. Next we drove to Al Balid Archaeological Site and Museum. I read the description wrong and thought we would actually see a site they were working on. Instead it was a museum which was okay.

 

Next stop, the souq where we had over an hour to indulge our shopping habit. This was not the best souq, but okay.

 

Overall, the tour was okay, perhaps the guide could have been better in explaining more to us.

 

It is now very warm and humid. The area has mountains in the background, and lots of sand and flatness everywhere else.

 

We will be sailing for 4 days until we get to Jordan. Yeah, for the sea days.

 

More later.

[s2000drvr]

This is day 3 of 4 sea days. We were jammed pack with activities.

 

We are doing a memory improvement with Ray. We have now completed two segments of this and we will see how we do. Rich and I have a very hard time remembering names of people. Ray will teach us how to improve this skill.

 

We have had two cooking demos. The first one was a tiramasu and yesterday was a black sesame crusted salmon. The salmon is one I will try at home. It had a panko crusted rice cake, red pepper ponzu, seasame ginger aioli and tempura of leek. It looked delicious.

 

We have heard two lectures on Egypt, both ancient and modern. They were well attended.

 

Yesterday was the country fair. Although it was very hot and humid out, the crowds were having a blast participating in all the games. The crew worked so hard to put this on. We enjoyed ourselves.

 

There was a special breakfast for those of us who are doing the 78 day voyage up in the Observation Lounge. The R ice sculpture was just beautiful. There were omelets made to order, fresh fruit, caviar, bagels, bacon, etc. As we walked into the Lounge, we were given a mimosa. We then all played a trivia game with Ray. As usual, our team did not win, but we had a barrel of laughs.

 

The last three sea days have been just perfect, great seas, blue skies. We have one more sea day until we get to Petra then the real fun begins. We will have a 13 1/2 hour tour, followed by a 9 1/2 tour. But, we are gearing up to this.

 

The food in both CR and Setti Mari has been outstanding. I am not a big fan of Setti Mari as they serve just too much food, but last night we opted out of the served antipasti and went up and got our own. That was so much better.

 

We are still playing trivia in the afternoon, and are just not good at it. But, the laughs we have makes it a fun 1/2 hour with our new friends.

 

Tonight we have Signatures and are so looking forward to it.

 

More later.