It was all Greek to me........but I wasn't JADEd!

[meltingmoments]

Hi everyone, I thought I'd better get a start on my Jade adventure!!

 

This was our 3rd NCL cruise and we had done land-based holidays in Greece many years ago and after our Epic trip last year with all it's excursions, we decided a more relaxed cruise was in order this time round! This was just as well really, as some of you may recall I managed to take a tumble a few weeks before we left and injured my ankle and my back!! :(

 

Anyway, I wasn't about to let it stop me having a good time and DH and I were both VERY ready for this trip!!

 

We flew to Venice and headed in a taxi straight to the Port. I have to agree with coka and Umpy10......it was crazy!! Totally disorganised but with good reason.....not the Jade's usual docking area and staff were unfamiliar. Not too much of a problem for us, we were onboard within an hour. We had a wander around the ship to familiarise ourselves with it, grabbed a bite to eat in the Garden Café......yes, I know.....how mad are we?? ;)

 

Cabins were ready very quickly so we headed off to check it out and were very pleased with it! The bathroom was much bigger than I expected and the furniture in the rooms.....all the shiny wood...appealed to me a lot! :)

 

The wine I had pre-ordered was waiting for us......along with some chocolate covered strawberries......my DH was VERY impressed!! Great start!

 

Then it was time for sailaway. I had heard lots about how sailaway from Venice was amazing........and we were NOT disappointed....it was FAB!! When I find a little time inbetween all the washing and ironing, I'll put on some photos!!

 

Back to cabin after sailaway , unpacked and showered and changed to head out for the evening!

We ate at the Blue Lagoon this evening as neither of us felt we could do justice to a large dinner! I had Southern fried chicken tenders and DH had a burger.......both were good.

 

After that we went to Bar City and listened to the Piano player and finally made our way to the Casino. I have to say I much preferred the layout of the Jade casino to the Epic casino. I liked the bar being in the centre of the room........and I never ONCE smelt smoke! :)

We didn't intend having a late night as we had had an early start but as we had already put our watches forward an hour when we landed in Italy and now had to add another hour to be ready for Greek time.....it was 2:30am before we knew it! :eek:

 

And so ended our first day.........more to follow!! :)

[coka]

Love your title and your start! I just finished mine and felt a little bummed I was done...and then I see yours...hooray! I get to read more! Looking forward to it and I hope your injury is better by now.

 

coka

[meltingmoments]

Love your title and your start! I just finished mine and felt a little bummed I was done...and then I see yours...hooray! I get to read more! Looking forward to it and I hope your injury is better by now.

 

coka

 

Thanks coka.....I enjoyed reading your adventures! :)

My ankle is good now but I still have some back issues.....but thank-you for asking! :)

[SteveH2508]

Enjoying your review already - it's taking me back to our very enjoyable times on the Jade.

[umpy10]

Love your title, it put a smile on my face. Glad to hear your ankle is better, nothing worse than trying to get around with an injury to your foot.

I had to laugh out loud after reading your comment in my post about paging Mr. and Mrs. Umpy 10 LOL ...... that would have been a first for me but I definitely would have answered just to see who paged us. But I think I would have figured out lol.

I managed to post some pics of the Spirit and the Jade in that post : http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1898643

I gave a link to my photobucket, I also put our Chef's Table photos in there as well.

Looking forward to reading the rest of review MeltingMoments.

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[meltingmoments]

Enjoying your review already - it's taking me back to our very enjoyable times on the Jade.

 

Thanks Steve....we really loved the Jade :)

[meltingmoments]

Love your title, it put a smile on my face. Glad to hear your ankle is better, nothing worse than trying to get around with an injury to your foot.

I had to laugh out loud after reading your comment in my post about paging Mr. and Mrs. Umpy 10 LOL ...... that would have been a first for me but I definitely would have answered just to see who paged us. But I think I would have figured out lol.

I managed to post some pics of the Spirit and the Jade in that post : http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1898643

I gave a link to my photobucket, I also put our Chef's Table photos in there as well.

Looking forward to reading the rest of review MeltingMoments.

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

 

I'm heading over to read that thread and see those photos!

I'm having problems uploading my pics to Flickr at the mo but I'll persevere!! More to follow!

[nadeki]

Please hurry and add more..... we are booked on the Jade next June and I am devouring the reviews as even though we have traveled Europe on land it seems so confusing leaving out of Venice, having strict timelines to meet each day etc. Coka's review was so helpful about the hotel and port. We will have kids and seniors with us and have to make plans accordingly.

 

Keep on writing please......

[meltingmoments]

 

 

 

 

 

Ok so the cabin was good, complete with wine as requested!!

 

Let's move on to the next day.....a sea day.

We had breakfast in the Garden Café....well. we got food from there and went outside to the Great Outdoors....much nicer!

 

Then began the hunt for a sun lounger!! :eek:

 

We ended up in the Quiet Zone on Deck 13....I THINK it was deck 13 anyway!! :o...It was busy, but peaceful. We stayed a good while, just relaxing. Lunch was in the Blue Lagoon, back to find a sun lounger......we didn't chair-hog.......lots of others did though! :(

 

We wandered the ship, checking out Bar City and the Atrium area, then chilled on our balcony for a while.

 

This evening we were fortunate enough to be invited to the Captain's Cocktail Party in the Haven Courtyard! What a gorgeous place that was!! We met some lovely Staff and ate canapés and drank wine!!

 

We ate at Alizar this evening. Food and service were great.

This was followed by a show...Showdown....Motown music.......and the audience gets to choose the winner!! American Idol meets X Factor!! Good fun!!

 

Follow that with a quick casino trip, a few drinks and our day was done!!

[meltingmoments]

Just a couple of photos of sailaway from Venice.

I agree with everyone who said how amazing it was! My DH got carried away with the camera!! :eek:

 

 

 

[meltingmoments]

So......Monday.....must be Corfu!

 

 

This was as we docked.

 

After breakfast in the Garden Café, we took the NCL shuttle to the Port area and then the local bus to Corfu Town. We spent a couple of hours wandering the side streets, stopping for an ice-cream and a beer or two along the way! We had been to Corfu for a land-based holiday many years ago and if I'm being honest, this was the biggest disappointment to me of the whole cruise! I found the town scruffy and graffiti-ridden.......I know a lot of towns can be, but.....I just didn't like it! :(

So we headed back to the ship for a late lunch and a sunbathe by the pool.....because there were empty beds!!! :eek: Lol

 

We enjoyed drinks on the balcony for sailaway , relaxed for a while and then went to dinner in Moderno. I love this place and it was just as good as I remembered from the Epic.

This was followed by drinks at the Piano bar.......Michael Masci, the pianist, was very good. There was a lady in the bar who got up to sing with him. He told the audience he had known her many years and I'm GUESSING she used to be an entertainer herself! But as the week went on, I felt she kind of * took over * Michael's slot......and I preferred HIM to her!! Lol

Last part of the evening was spent in the Casino.....and another day was done!

 

Some shots of Corfu

 

 

[davejura]

Enjoying your review. We are doing this cruise in October with a toddler, so any tips most welcome!

[meltingmoments]

Tuesday.....Santorini

 

 

 

Santorini as we approached

 

We managed a lie-in this morning and had brunch at the Great Outdoors.

 

We were lucky enough to be on one of the first tenders off the ship and took the cable car up to Thira. There was no way I was getting on one of those poor donkeys!!

 

We did our own thing once again. We wandered the streets, looked in the shops, stopped for drinks and had a bite to eat in a café , the name of which escapes me now!

 

I had really been looking forward to Santorini as I had never been, and it didn't disappoint! I really liked it, though I struggled a little with the windy, narrow streets and cobbles as I was still not fully recovered from my fall, but with plenty of stops and a helping hand from my lovely DH, I managed!

 

 

The Jade from Thira

 

 

View from the cable car

 

 

Gosh....weren't we high up? ;)

 

 

Little side street

[meltingmoments]

 

Love this one!

 

This is now my screensaver!

 

 

 

 

We made our way back down to the tender by cable car again and were soon back on the Jade. It had all been far easier than I anticipated!

Our evening was spent having pre-dinner cocktails in Magnums, followed by dinner in Alizar once again. Good food and great service.....no complaints from us here!

A quick stop at the Piano bar and a dash through the Casino!!! and our night was done!

[meltingmoments]

Enjoying your review. We are doing this cruise in October with a toddler, so any tips most welcome!

 

Thank-you! :)

As for tips for travel with a toddler........lots of water.....although the heat shouldn't be as intense in October.

Stop in ANY café for a drink or a bite to eat.....the Greek people are SO welcoming , especially to children.

Don't try and cram too much into your day.....take it easy and make time to chill out......whether that's in a café, bar or in your cabin, or one of the quiet areas on the Jade......but mostly......ENJOY! :)

[meltingmoments]

Wednesday.....Mykonos

 

This turned out to be my favourite stop of all. Not sure why....apart from it was beautiful.....I just had a good feeling about it....I definitely want to go back!

 

It was an easy shuttle bus ride to Mykonos Town and once again we just wandered. Went into a beautiful church.

 

 

We walked to the windmills.

 

 

We took some more photos!!

 

 

 

 

We made our way back to the ship and I have to say here, I LOVE the way Norwegian staff welcome you back on board!! Cold drinks and wash cloths and music and smiles........no other ships we saw in any port did that!! I LOVE NCL!!

 

Our evening consisted of eating in Alizar.....I had the MOST delicious meze and salmon......drinks in Magnums.......the barman had our drinks ready before we even asked! ;)

We had to walk through the casino on our way to our cabin so it would have been rude not to partake a little!!

And another day was over!

[meltingmoments]

Thursday.......Katakolon

 

 

View from our balcony!

 

Katakolon was the place that surprised me the most! We had no inclination to visit Olympia so planned to walk off the ship, down the street and back on board again.....an hour...tops!!

 

It was not to be!! I had no idea there was a beach here!

 

Research better next time, Di!!

 

We ended up at a lovely beach bar where we spent a good while watching the world go by over an ice-cold beer! Lovely!!

 

 

 

 

 

DH treated me to some shoes on our way back up the street.......happy lady!!

 

Had a late lunch on the ship and sunbathed for a few hours around the pool again. Easy to find beds on days like these!

 

Tonight we ate at Cagneys. I had lamb chops and DH had a steak......both were delicious and I particularly enjoyed the cone of fries!! I'm not one for desserts....DH is......and he couldn't decide between the Oreo cheesecake or the warm apple cardamom crisp......so he persuaded me to order one and he ordered the other! The Oreo cheesecake was AMAZING!!!

 

After all that food we needed a walk so walked around the pool deck for a while, had a drink in Magnums and a fairly early night. This cruise was going by WAY too fast!

[meltingmoments]

Friday....sea day

 

Spent a very lazy day on Deck 13 in the quiet area.

We had lunch in the Great Outdoors.

We went to the Photo Gallery and chose some memories!

We shopped a little and then we packed!! AARRGGHHHHH.....that time had come when I had to leave my suitcases outside my cabin!! I'd always done self-disembarking before and some of you may remember I was a little paranoid about doing things this way!! :o

 

Oh well....a few glasses of wine helped me forget I wasn't in control...haha!!

 

Tonight we ate in the Grand Pacific.....lovely atmosphere, super service and great food. I had a Garden fresh salad to start followed by Rosemary roasted chicken. DH had Smoked salmon to start and the grilled New York strip steak. For dessert I had sorbet and DH had Cinnamon Apple pie. You will hear no complaints from us about the food on the Jade, we enjoyed everything!!

 

Dinner was followed by the show, Elements, which was fantastic.....great illusions, loved it! I had read on here to make sure you stay till the very end and I'm glad we did! The staff and crew come along and everyone quite rightly applauds them! When they sang * You are Norwegian now*.....I have to admit to having a tear in my eye......yep, I'm an old softy!

 

 

This was followed by the Chocolate Buffet, which I found fascinating seeing all the sculptures made from chocolate! Had to indulge just a LITTLE!

 

 

 

After that it was a final visit to Magnums and the casino and then bed!

 

The next morning we had a final breakfast and disembarked easily around 9:30am and our luggage was easily found!! All that worry for nothing!

 

And that was our Jade adventure over!

We were fortunate to have 2 nights in Venice followed by a flight to Barcelona and a taxi ride up the coast to spend 6 nights in Sitges, so our sea journey was over but our land journey wasn't!

 

All-in-all I have to say, we LOVED the Jade. Staff and crew members are excellent all over the ship! Our room steward, Francisco, kept our cabin spotless and was always cheery and asked us if we needed anything.

 

A special mention to the Casino staff, Radu, Kristine and Ana who looked after us so well.....a great team!

 

I had also heard on CC about the CD Gary Glading and we were fortunate enough to meet him at the Captain's cocktail party and again at the White Hot Party. What a lovely and interesting man he is. Thoroughly enjoyed meeting him!

 

Well I hope you have enjoyed reading about our adventures and if anyone is still reading and has any questions, please feel free to ask away!

[miss muffet]

Thank you so much for your time spent on information and photos of your cruise on the Jade. We are doing the same trip on Oct 5th to celebrate our 50th Wedding Anniversary. My DH and I enjoyed reading about your adventures and we are looking forward to ours.:)

[meltingmoments]

Thank you so much for your time spent on information and photos of your cruise on the Jade. We are doing the same trip on Oct 5th to celebrate our 50th Wedding Anniversary. My DH and I enjoyed reading about your adventures and we are looking forward to ours.:)

 

Absolutely my pleasure! I've read so many great reviews on here that I like to try and do the same and help out if I can!

I wish you a very happy Golden Wedding anniversary and an amazing cruise on the lovely Jade.

Be sure to come back and tell us what you thought......I for one, would love to know! :)

[squidf]

I don't know who you are but I think we were separated at birth. I also, take pictures of food and like to describe everything I eat in addition to the "normal" things that others post about their trips! Thanks for the info.

[meltingmoments]

I don't know who you are but I think we were separated at birth. I also, take pictures of food and like to describe everything I eat in addition to the "normal" things that others post about their trips! Thanks for the info.

 

 

Lol that made me giggle!! Nice to know there are others like me!! ;)

[NutsForParis]

Thanks so much for your outstanding travelogue and pictures. We celebrated our 50th anniversary on the Jade and are returning for our 52nd on the October 12th sailing. We too love the Jade and are looking forward to seeing the Greek islands.

Edited August 22, 2013 by NutsForParis

[lovetootravel]

Enjoyed reading your review...was wondering is there a fee for the shuttles in Corfu and Mykonos from NCL?