Mariner, Miami to Lima, dep 25 January

[Gilly]

Good Morning! We're enjoying some lovely days in Florida with cruise friends prior to joining Mariner on Saturday to sail through the Panama Canal and on to Lima, Peru. As usual, I'll blog the journey and welcome you to read along at http://www.elegantsufficiency.org - though it's more conventional to add updates and reviews here, my non-CC friends want to read and see photographs, plus I keep a sketchbook and journal too! So, though I may read this forum now and again to keep up with the gossip, I'll leave it to other CC'ers on board to post the details here.

 

So, fellow CC'ers, we'll look forward to seeing you on board soon! In the meantime, best wishes from sunny Key West.

 

Gilly

[WesW]

Thanks 4 sharing blog link Gilly, look fwd to following along.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Edited January 23, 2014 by Colonel(Ret.)Wes

[Mudhen]

Sounds like a lovely trip....will keep track of you as you go.

Fair winds and following seas; have a wonderful time!

Linda

[RachelG]

We did this trip a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it. I love your blogs anyway, so will look forward to reading along. Have a great trip.

[LoonCall]

Have a lovely trip! Looking forward to your posts.

[Two Happy Cruisers]

We did the Ft.Lauderdale to Lima on the Mariner three years ago and had a great time. It's a wonderful cruise and know you'll enjoy it as well! :)

 

~Benita

Edited January 24, 2014 by Two Happy Cruisers
Typo

[Gilly]

Just to say, thank you for kind words and comment - all appears to be well, in spite of leaving Miami three and a half hours late. We have a new Captain, Felice Patruno, on board and I've just spotted Terry Breen's name there in Passages, too. We've enjoyed a delicious meal in Signatures and have retired to our extraordinarily spacious suite. What's not to like?!

[greygypsy]

Thanks for the link to your blog. Enjoying the pics and comments. What, no gambling in Aruba? Anyway, did they repair the stabilizers? How is she riding? Jeff

[Gilly]

Looking good Jeff. We feel Mariner is a currently a happy ship and we are super-happy to be here. Yes, stabilisers are repaired and though it's been windy with quite a swell, I haven't noticed any signs of distress or discomfort around the ship. Tonight, the Captain has forecast further swell with waves of 3 metres or more, so we'll see how it goes.

 

Our last four cruises have been on Voyager and we'd forgotten the differences in layout. We'd also forgotten how much larger the suites are, though I must say, there are areas which feel more "hemmed in". Nevertheless, we are delighted with the service we are enjoying and continue to think that the Regent product suits us very well indeed.

 

I'm glad you are enjoying reading along! :-)

[cAPS lOCK oN]

I'm really enjoying reading your blog. Our first ports on our very first cruise were Curacao, followed by Aruba. It was long enough ago that we were on Royal Caribbean's largest ship at the time, and it only held 720 passengers! :eek:

 

Curacao doesn't appear to have changed much at all. Aruba, OTOH, has seen a lot of development since we were there, to say the least.

 

Here's hoping that you like the Canal transit as much as we did.

[Jay23]

Gilly, Thank you so much for sharing your holiday with us on CC. I have been "tuning in" every day. I do admire your ability to capture the very essence of every new venue you have visited. I go out with great intentions of taking many photos, but somehow I seem to "forget", and then it is too late. You are ready with the camera at every opportunity. Excellent.

 

I also had a look at some other photos you took at Christmas time, astonishingly you recorded your shopping at W.Rose at 7.00am! I shop there too, but in that other town, a few miles away from you. They were so efficient during the festive shopping season, unlike M & S who were a disaster.

 

But I digress, Peru looks fantastic…….. we have been many places in the world, but never S America, so your commentary is very welcome. J

[Gilly]

Thank you for such kind comments Jay23 and CapsLockOn. I keep my blog primarily for myself and my family, but it's fun to share enthusiasms, isn't it?

 

Now we are the Sacred Valley, Peru, acclimatising a little before visiting Machu Picchu and for the first time since leaving the ship we have a good, reliable internet connection so I'm catching up.

 

Funny you recognised our favourite Waitrose, Jay23. About two days before the end of our cruise we met a couple from Sheepscombe; many friends and acquaintances in common, of course. Small world, isn't it?

[Mudhen]

Just checking in to say how much I'm enjoying your blog! Photos are fabulous, especially enjoying all the market shots and those horses......what more can I say! Magnificent!

Keep up the good work.....your efforts so appreciated!

Linda