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Live From the Caribbean Princess Iceland & Norway Explorer Sept. 5th 2015

Woobstr112G

By Woobstr112G,
in Princess Cruises

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RHayes8793

RHayes8793

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We made it to Southampton. Richard of Lionheart Travel picked us up at Heathrow. Our plane was 45 minutes late because a maintenance log had been incorrect, and FAA had to approve the corrections from two days ago. Had a very enjoyable 6 hours that included a stop for coffee at Tylney Hall in Rotherwick ( a manor house converted to a hotel), a stop at Stonehenge and backroads to here. A lot of enjoyable history and correcting of our many mispronouncings of British names and words. Tomorrow's folks will enjoy his trip. Worn out. We were lucky enough to have our seats changed to be right in front of the lavatory, so we had people in our living room all night long.

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CruisinLow

CruisinLow

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Bob,

Forgot to tell you that the road from London to Southampton may be very busy on Saturday. Several weeks ago there was bumper to bumper traffic for a great deal of the way. Took way longer than it has in the past to get to Southampton. And everyone is anxious to get there and get on the ship. And there were lots of people sleeping on the bus down.

Hope it is better this weekend when you are making the trip. On the plus side, when we got to the port, check-in was a breeze for Elites and others.

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Bob' date='

Forgot to tell you that the road from London to Southampton may be very busy on Saturday. Several weeks ago there was bumper to bumper traffic for a great deal of the way. Took way longer than it has in the past to get to Southampton. And everyone is anxious to get there and get on the ship. And there were lots of people sleeping on the bus down.

Hope it is better this weekend when you are making the trip. On the plus side, when we got to the port, check-in was a breeze for Elites and others.[/size']

 

Ann;

 

Thanks for the information.....:):):)

 

Bob

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Good morning all (U.K. Time). Hope all are well. Today is our last full day in London before we make the trek to Southampton tomorrow to board the CB. As I stated earlier, not much to do today other than trying to force Holli to rest up. This is a job in and of itself.

 

I decided to start touching up and cataloging my pre-cruise photos so I can stay one step ahead of the time consuming task of getting photos ready to upload to my flickr site. I'm hoping to have all the pre-cruise London/Paris pictures done before we leave tomorrow for Southampton.

 

Later on today, we are headed out to get a few last minute items. This evening we hope to meet up with a few roll call members for a nice dinner. After that, get the luggage tags on our stuff in final preparation before beginning a journey that has been 18 months in the planning.....:):):)

 

Bob

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maggieq

maggieq

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Just wanted to let everyone know what we are doing while during our stay in London. We are staying at the Hilton Doubletree Westminster. After we get over the jet lag, we plan to explorer the Westminster area. On September 3rd, we are taking a day trip to Paris that I booked on Viator. The night before we head to Southampton and the CB, I arranged a pre cruise Meet & Greet dinner for several roll call members at a Westminster restaurant called "The Loose Box Bar." I'm looking forward to having a blast while we are in London and during our day trip to Paris......:):):)

 

Bob

 

We stayed at the doubletree Westminster precruise for the quantum. We loved how quiet the neighborhood was. Looking forward to your review

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Good morning (UK time). The day is here:). I'm just sitting around the hotel, very ancy I might add, for our car service to pick us up. It won't happen till 0900. Hope I can hold out that long.....:):):)

 

Bob

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Look forward to your comments about this trip. My husband and I are seriously thinking about booking 2016 trip.

Lu Ann

 

Lu Ann;

 

I say go for it. My DW and I are already booked on next year's sailing. I like the slightly different itinerary with the additions of Rotterdam, Flaam, and Boston. I'm sure you'll have a great time should you decide to book.....:):):)

 

Bob

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Bon Voyage Bob and Holli. We're leaving Southampton one day later on the Iberian TA passage. Looking forward to another wonderful TA. All the best to Holli!

 

Susan

 

Hello Susan. Hope all is well with you and Bob. I'm sure you two will have a fantastic cruise.....:):):)

 

Bob

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Good evening from the Caribbean Princess. We've beeN on board for about two hours. Our drive to Southampton was uneventful just a little long and slow due to some pockets of heavy traffic. Embarkation went very smooth as we were onboard no more than 30 minutes after walking into the terminal. The muster drill is at 1530 for our scheduled 1600 departure. I'll post more in a bit, but I gotta get ready for the drill. Our muster station is Club Fusion.

 

One quick note regarding the all inclusive beverage package. Back in April I test drove it for our then three day cruise. While I obviously didn't have to pay anything, I had to still sign a a regular charge slip. I always added an extra dollar for a tip. I just bought a Seawitch and all they did was slide my card and send me on my merry way.

 

More later.....:):):)

 

Bob

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Colo Cruiser

Colo Cruiser

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Good evening from the Caribbean Princess. We've beeN on board for about two hours. Our drive to Southampton was uneventful just a little long and slow due to some pockets of heavy traffic. Embarkation went very smooth as we were onboard no more than 30 minutes after walking into the terminal. The muster drill is at 1530 for our scheduled 1600 departure. I'll post more in a bit, but I gotta get ready for the drill. Our muster station is Club Fusion.

 

One quick note regarding the all inclusive beverage package. Back in April I test drove it for our then three day cruise. While I obviously didn't have to pay anything, I had to still sign a a regular charge slip. I always added an extra dollar for a tip. I just bought a Seawitch and all they did was slide my card and send me on my merry way.

 

More later.....:):):)

 

Bob

 

 

Bon Voyage!

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Good evening from the Caribbean Princess. We are just now pulling away from the docks in Southampton. We were a little over two hours late departingng due to heavy container ship traffic in the channel. Before we departed, I did a little exploring around the ship and found that initially she seems to be in pretty good shape for a ship that is 10+ years old.

 

We are getting ready to avail ourselves of the embarkation night specialty dining perk in that we are going to dine in the CG. So far the crew members I've encountered seem very and willing to please. Tomorrow is our first formal night so I just finished making a hair appointment for my DW. After dinner, I might try on my tux to make sure everything fits.

 

That's all for now. I'll probably post something after dinner.

 

Take Care.....:):):)

 

Bob

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Woobstr112G "Live from...." Rare

Woobstr112G

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Good evening from the Caribbean Princess headed towards Bergen Norway. Holli & I just got back from doing a little shopping in the stores after a very nice dinner in the CG. The filet was okay but it didn’t wow me. The family style sides were very tasty and our waiter from Romania was excellent. As far as shopping goes, I have to admit I kind of like the new “chic” design of the stores (at least on the CB). Since the Effy store went in, there is no more Facets. All of the watches are now in Latitudes. The half sundry-booze/clothing item store is now all handbags, Swavorski, and Tommy Bahama type clothing. The sundry and booze items are now in the area next to Vines that use to be the exclusive Godiva area.

 

Several observations I’ve noticed so far. First one has to do with the reason you no longer have to sign when you make a drink purchase at an adult beverage establishment. Several bartenders told me it was due to too many people complaining they felt they were obligated to tip since there was a line for an extra gratuity. Just what I was told. Next item deals with items priced over the limits of the all-inclusive beverage package. This probably has been reported before I forgot about it and others may not have heard. When you buy a single item over the $10.00 limit, you have to pay the full amount. When you buy a bottle of wine that is over the $100.00 limit, you have to pay the full price.

 

So far from my brief look at the CB, I think the ship is kept in very good order. Sure there is some rust, but she’s in the water 24/7 365 days a year.

Tomorrow is our first formal night so after our Meet & Greet, I have to remember to try on my tux to prevent any surprises.

 

As far as entertainment goes, there was piano melodies in the Piazza with Jan Gulbicki. A guitar and vocalist Jumari was also in the Piazza. As far as Mutts goes, Woman in Gold was the night movie.

 

That’s all for now as I got to turn in and get some sleep as we lose an hour tonight.

 

Take Care All…..:):):)

 

Bob

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