LIVE from SE Asia with Sungirl - 29 Nov16 Diamond Princess

[sunsetbeachgal]

Check her Facebook page. She sounds like she is in a comical meltdown

 

just did, thanks!!

[KCSungirl]

Singapore In Transit 09 December16

 

My holidays are never complete without some medical drama. I left you last night at 10pm when PC wasn't feeling well. He got a bad case of food poisoning with vomiting and it turned into a vaso vagal episode. His blood pressure dropped and he was losing consciousness. This has happened a few times before at home. After two hours of trying to keep him alert in the cabin, I had to call 911. The paramedic came to get him. He was in a lot of pain. They had to get an IV going to try to get his blood pressure up. The Doctor, nurse, and paramedic were incredible. $700 later we were back in cabin at 2am or so. I am not sure if he will ever look at the buffet again. We were concerned they would quarantine us, but no mention of that. Thankful.

 

TAKE THE INSURANCE. If you can afford the cruise, you can afford the insurance. I would never go overseas without travel insurance.

 

So much for our breakfast with the Orangutans at the zoo! Plan B was put into action. PC rallied and I am happy to report he is eating lightly and fine, except for being weak and having that hangover effect. We got off the ship at 11am. We had planned to take a taxi to Suntec Center and get the Hop On Hop Off bus or go ride the Singapore Flyer observation wheel. PC couldn't walk far today. Lucky Princess! The HOHO bus makes a stop at the cruise terminal when ships are in port. The Celebrity Millennium was also in port. The bus was waiting to wisk us away on our super fun city tour. There are four loops on the tour, each an hour long. We only had time for two loops - the brown Original Tour and the Red ethnic area tour. It's $43S, maybe $32US for a one day pass. We love the HOHO buses. Singapore is great. Completely overwhelming like Hong Kong with shopping. Christmas decor in foreign countries is always fun to see.

 

When we returned to the ship it was magic! All the Christmas decorating was done. WOW. Looks so festive. We went to the buffet for late lunch, but PC steered clear. I am pretty tired of the food. I haven't tried the pizza yet. PC took a much needed nap and I went through photos.

 

I can't believe I completely forgot about the elite happy hour at Skywalker's Disco. I didn't get any info for the first ten days. Tonight we went up to check it out. Nice view of the Singapore skyline. We were three hours late leaving port because Princess let some Malays on board without checking their Singapore residency cards. It was a mess trying to hunt these people down.

 

I heard this was going to be a 3 night gambling junket cruise for Singaporeans and Malays. It's not exactly a gambling junket. A travel agency designed a theme cruise for kids based on the Poporo and Loopy cartoon characters. It is hysterical. Kids everywhere with all there cartoon party favors and toys. I have a cute photo to post that represents the situation. Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa are all along for the party. It's loud and wild on board, but we are too tired to pay much attention tonight.

 

Showtime - Kikyo Brothers Juggling. These two boys from Japan are amazing and adorable. I never go watch juggling, but FOMO made me go. Fantastic. I need to find out what happened to cruise director Lee Childers. Tonight Lexi his deputy, became the cruise director.

 

The Twilight Zone. We went to the dining room for dinner! This never happens. PC can't stomach the buffet for a while. The service was terrible. Slow, no water refills. Exactly why we eat in the buffet. PC had wonton soup, bread, and dessert. I had fettuccine with chicken and a chocolate soufflé. Love the soufflés.

 

We passed by the Explorers Lounge to see if the lead singer from The Sound was back. She is back, but I think she is still sick.

 

Sailing to Penang, Malaysia. Goodnight.......

[TracieABD]

I hope that PC is well on the mend. Thank you for the update. I will be very interested in how your cruise progresses with all those little children.

 

Were you able to secure seats in the Sanctuary?

[Bill B]

I just want to make sure I understand this correctly -

 

PC got his food poisoning from something at the buffet on the Diamond?

[tjwa]

I just want to make sure I understand this correctly -

 

PC got his food poisoning from something at the buffet on the Diamond?

 

You also get Norovirus et al in the same place.:eek:

[Pushka]

Its really hard to identify the source of food poisoning when eating in local places on port stops. It can take up to 12 hours to kick in. Let's hope it want Diamond. We avoid anything that is fish mashed up into shapes as it has been handled too many times. Cooked fish served as fish is usually fine, if that makes sense.

[TLCOhio]

Good Morning Saigon 04 December16 Lucky Princess! Thank God it is Sunday. Only half of the 12 million people on the roads. It is crazy! The ship docks 1.5 hours from the city center. There is a free shuttle service to a market 30 minutes away. Otherwise, you need to take a tour or taxi service to the city. I booked a shared tour in advance through Smile Tours. $85/pp. They are a very reputable tour operator. They contract with guides. Anh was our guide and he was fantastic. As well as our driver Phoung. Very nice mini-coach bus with seating for twenty. We had 12 on our tour. We were picked up at the ship at 7:30am. We moved a lot faster than normal due to the lighter Sunday traffic.

 

Appreciate your nice postings and sharing!! Of special interest to us were your stops in Ho Chi Minh City and Bangkok. We are planning to visit there in early 2018.

 

Since you only had in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam, from 7 am to 6 pm, how much "net" time did you have for there and how rushed did it work out to be? Did you tour and stops work out reasonable well given the limited time? Which one or two stops there were your most favorites where you wished to have had more time there?

 

For Bangkok, being there 7 am to 7 pm, the same types of questions on your time there, top favorites, liked least, etc.?

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 162,214 views for this posting.

[cporses]

I think Ocker is a great word, otherwise a Larrikin - a boisterous, often badly behaved young man.

 

"James was something of a larrikin"

 

 

 

I would always have classed Paul Hogan as a typical Ocker. Of course there is also the word Bogan which describes someone else altogether.

 

 

 

Jennie

 

 

 

......And that Coker may be a cobber....

 

 

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[caribill]

I need to find out what happened to cruise director Lee Childers. Tonight Lexi his deputy, became the cruise director.

 

The CD gets one day off each week. This might have been that day.

[KCSungirl]

Good Afternoon Penang 10 December16

 

A beautiful sunrise in the Strait of Malacca. A Far East sunrise is a religious experience. Even though PC was sick, he has not missed a latte delivery. Love those morning lattes. I do miss my Starbucks though. We have a late arrival into Penang-3pm.

 

I was eager to get out and about to check out the state of the ship with all of these children on board. I am happy to report these kids are very well-behaved. My first stop was the "outlet" sale in the dining room. Absolutely no one shopping. Where is everyone? This is weird. If I was still a hoarder I would have bought the Love Boat night light. So kitschy. I was able to walk out empty handed. WOW. I am making real progress.

 

I went to the Captain's Circle desk to see if I had moved up in the world. YES! I am now number 28. Getting closer to the top 10. I have a dream.........

 

It was really hot outside and very few people on deck. There were even loungers at the pool available. Where is everyone? This is weird. I skipped my free wine tasting for the second time. 11am was a bit too early for me.

 

I went to get a piece of pizza. No one in the grill or pizza line. Where is everyone? This is weird.

 

I found them. Every single person on the ship was in the buffet. SRO. Pizza was fine, didn't need to bother with the buffet. "Long Duc Dong, Grandpa is taking to you". This is playing over and over in my head. Great movie.

 

Everyone in Asia hangs wet clothes on apartment balconies to dry. They have rods designed for this. The cruise is no exception. Clothes hanging on balconies. It's a three night cruise. Why are they doing laundry? I have a nice photo of underwear over my balcony. We heard a dog bark next door. Either they smuggled a dog on board, the tablet games bark, or it's some Kama Sutra thing.

 

We are late getting into Penang because we got a late start in Singapore. Made me mad. Princess had no business letting anyone on the ship without proper documentation. It was chaos getting off the ship. PC decides we need to live dangerously and he pushes me into a tour group to exit the ship. We bypassed everyone waiting in line. My heart was beating so fast and I was afraid I was going to the brig for jumping the line illegally. It was so wrong, but saved us 30 minutes. Upon exiting the ship there are many taxis waiting. The Hop on Hop Off bus wasn't good because it was a 2.5 hour loop and there was no getting off. Not going to work. Too long and I want to walk around. It's a Saturday night which means less traffic and many shops are closed. We hired a taxi driver for 50 ringit/hour $11US. I probably could have negotiated for less, but that seemed fair. Roslan was nice and his car immaculate. They accept Singapore dollars, not sure about US.

 

I guided us around using my list of sites and maps. We went to the Thai Temple with a nice reclining Buddha and the Burmese temple. Most places closed at 5pm so we were too late to tour. Georgetown is a Unesco World Heritage city. It is fun, funky, artsy, and is known for good eats. A lot of British colonial buildings. Chinatown is fun to walk around. Very easy to do on your own.

 

Since Georgetown is known for good food, PC and I planned a dinner date on shore. We went to Tek-Sen. We got there before they opened at 6pm and there was already a line. This is one of,the most popular Chinese/Thai/Malay restaurants. It was a mouth watering feast for $20. Sweet and Sour Chicken, fried squid in Thai sauce, and chicken in a tumeric chili sauce. No starters like spring rolls. It was an awesome experience to eat with locals and tourists.

 

We strolled over a mile back to the ship. I found a little ceramic lucky money cat souvenir. It's the lucky Japanese cat. Tons of shopping, like all the Asian ports.

 

Back to our happy place at 7:30pm. We went to the buffet to checkout the sweets before going to the Princess Theater for our nightly show. Showtime - Do You Wanna Dance. We missed this production show last week, so glad we got another chance. I have seen it several times, but I always enjoy it. On to Crooners, the piano bar, to listen to Tony. Tony is from Portugal originally. On to Club Fusion for the 50's/60's party with The Sound. Back to the cabin to finally watch a movie - Miss Pelligrine's Home for Children. Tim Burton is just to out there for me. This was scary.

 

Goodnight. Early wake-up call for Kuala Lumpur.

[Aussie Gal]

Another great report. Looks as though you have come to terms with all the children etc. So glad you were able to eat in Georgetown. It is so very interesting and has so much history.

 

Looking forward to hearing about your trip to K.L. You do have to tie up a long way from the city. They also have a great China Town as well.

 

Jennie

[cporses]

Lots of interesting tips and hints. We are visiting many of these ports on our 10 day cruise mid January.

 

 

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[Chief02]

I love reading your blog and continue to look forward to the next post, as your humor and outlook are inspiring.

 

Also love the previous reference to "Long Duck Dong, Grandpa is speaking to you". That movie was way too fun.

 

I have long considered an Asian cruise, but DH served in Vietnam (Infantry - 1966 - 1967) and I am just not sure if he is ready yet. One never knows. It's just that personal and only he can decide.

 

Anyway, as part of our Dec., 2011, AU/NZ pre-cruise tour (Ultimate AU with Princess), we visited Darwin and Kuranda and he tried to warn me about the heat and humidity of the tropics. He said Vietnam was worse. After holding a Koala in Kuranda, I went to a local bake shop / cafe, had an Anzac Cookie (my first one) and stuck my head in the canned soda case / refrigerator for at least 20 seconds (Keepin' it classy, I know). DH was right. Maybe I'm not ready to go there either.

 

Maybe your posts will change that. You really are a great read.

[KCSungirl]

Kuala Lumpur 11 December16

 

Parting is such sweet sorrow. We are going out with a bang! I booked the Kuala Lumpur "on your own tour" ship sponsored excursion. It was $40/pp for transportation from the port. It is just over an hour ride, but we were there on a Sunday so probably a bit faster than normal. The port is just far enough away from the city that I felt better about booking the ship's excursion. Very good decision. The chaperone/guide was excellent and narrated different touring options on the bus ride and answered questions.

 

I booked this 3 day cruise for one reason - to see the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur. We thought about flying to KL, but the cruise was easier. The tears flowed when I caught sight of these twin towers. They are fantastic. The architecture and engineering blows my mind. The bus dropped us off at the towers. We jumped on the Hop On/Hop Off Bus. Very convenient. $11/pp approx. It was a three hour tour. Where have I heard that before? So hindsight is 20/20. I blew it, but didn't realize it. First, I should have gone and q'd up for the sky bridge at Petronas Towers. $20/pp. you only get 10 minutes on the bridge. Then I should have hired a taxi to take me to Chinatown and/or Central Market. I could have easily spent the entire four hours at the Petronas Towers. fabulous Christmas tree on the pond like Rockefeller Center. The HoHo bus was a complete waste IMHO. Boring and no time to Hop Off. By the time we returned to Petronas Towers it was a 2 hour wait for the sky bridge. I was not on my game. Dang. So instead we shopping at the lovely gift shop in the basement, walked around the mall, and had a snack at Chinoz on the Park. I don't think it is affiliated with the Chinois in Santa Monica. No time to go to Louis Vuitton and by the pocketbook I have been wanting forever.

 

We returned to the ship around 5pm. There were a few shops in the cruise center. I bought a few things - batik lucky cat framed art, 2 parasols. We made it back to the ship at last call.

 

On my way up to the cabin, I popped in Club Fusion to see what was going on. Lo and behold it was the Pororo and Friends photo session and souvenir shop. The coordinators invited me for photos. That was so awesome! I got my souvenir headband for $3. The coordinators explained that the cartoon characters are South Korean, but popular in Singapore. My life is complete. Petronas Towers and Pororo in the same day. WOW!

 

We went up to the elite lounge for happy hour. It's such a great view from Skywalkers. The food is not overly impressive. Veggies, dip, and cheese. We met a lovely couple from Wales and we so enjoyed chatting..

 

The last supper. Sobbing. Who is going to cook for me? There is no buffet in my house. We are pretty tired of the food by now, so we were ok with the Last Supper.

 

Laundry Time. One more load. I love the self serve laundry. Huge selling point for Princess Cruises.

 

We met our new friends from Wales in the Princess Theater for one last show - Monique Dehaney. Jamaican born singer who lives in Tokyo. This girl was FANTASTIC. She jumps around from Celebrity to Princess in SE Asia. Her set was fun and energizing. She sang a song in Mandarin since 95% of the guests spoke Mandarin. WOW. I am blown away when people can sing in foreign languages. She sang the Carpenters song 'Yesterday Once More'. Who doesn't love The Carpenters? Rhian, Dave, PC, and I proceed to the Wheelhouse for music and happy hour. I am getting a bit tipsy trying to get my money's worth from the mini-bar. I brought all the vodka to the bar to share. All the while I am wearing my Pororo headband. I am confusing the Asians. Domino Duo was a lot of fun in the Wheelhouse. We said goodnight to our friends and made that last walk to our mini-suite. Fabulous 13 days on the Diamond Princess.

 

I am a little upset we have to be out of our cabins at 8am. That is not right. 9am would be more appropriate. I gave our room steward my extra foreign currency and the Yankee Candle fragrance spheres. That Christmas cinnamon was terrible. Don't buy it. I have a few more things to say about the ship and I will answer questions when I get free internet.

 

This is where I leave you, unless you have energy for more. Thanks so much to everyone who took time to post, read, and/or enjoyed the cruise blog. See you tomorrow In Singapore. You don't think I traveled half way around the world to not check out that infinity pool?

[sunsetbeachgal]

Thanks again for taking us along! I love your journeys!

 

 

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[scluvsrain]

Fun to read your blog. I'll be in a few of those ports shortly, on HAL's world cruise. You gave me some good ideas!

 

 

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[LAFFNVEGAS]

Thanks so much for posting. My Cruise Personalizer says I am just 299 days till we board the Diamond in Yokahama. I have enjoyed your review and look forward to your follow up. :)

[Pushka]

Thankyou. Going to KL and Penang in 3 weeks on Diamond. We too are taking the ship bus to KL but have pre purchased Petronas Towers tickets for midday. Thanks for the tip about the tour Bus - sounds awful.

[Aussie Gal]

KCSungirl,

 

Have loved every minute of your blog. So glad that you enjoyed the last three days of your cruise. I am sorry that you missed out on getting up to the top of the Towers. It is always busy and being on a Sunday, you probably had a better chance of getting up there than being on a week day.

 

Enjoy your time in Singapore at the Marina Sands. I will be interested in hearing what you think of your stay there!

 

Safe travels once you leave Singapore. Are you going on the non stop flight again?

 

Jennie

[KCSungirl]

This was a hard day. A lot of time spent standing. Walked 5 miles at least.

 

Princess required us to be out of our cabin at 8am. That is too early. I would compromise with 9am. I do feel 8 am is unacceptable. Since we are staying on in Singapore I thought it would be wise to let the crowds thin out and get off later rather than earlier. With 2 ships debar king (mariner of the seas), the lines were bad everywhere - immigration, customs, taxi queue. It took 1.5 hours from the time we left the ship to the time we got a taxi. That was a long time to stand in lines.

 

Finally in the taxi on my way to another big bucket list item - Marina Bay Sands Hotel. A dream come true. We were looking forward to enjoying the skyline views and the infinity pool. It was a short ride to the hotel from the cruise terminal. My driver was a Sikh Indian man.

 

Call 911. Holy crap. Again, we are not going to make our date the Orangutans at the zoo. This is just ridiculous! As I was getting out of the cab I put my hand on the door frame for leverage. The driver didn't see that and slammed the door shut and locked on my fingers. I scream and it is only the second time in my 29 year marriage I have seen PC turn green. The first time was in Queenstown, NZ when I fell off a bench at a sheep show. I was the star. I was in shock and the driver was in shock. I told PC to go get security immediately. I couldn't feel anything, just swelling. I was bleeding a little. Security brought ice and first aid and whisked me away to their private lounge. What an entrance I made!

 

So I spend the next two hours on the phone filing a report with the cab company. I was pissed because the driver took my money. He should have refunded. RUDE. I am hoping it is soft tissue damage and not a fracture on my left middle finger. I am a lefty too! I debated on going to get an x-ray, but I will wait and see how it feels in the morning. It was super frustrating trying to find someone at the cab company to help me.

 

Refocus. Rethink my plans. We head upstairs to the 57th floor for the main event - the rooftop infinity pool. We had drinks and lunch at one of the three cafes in the "sky park". It was the second most expensive margarita ever. The first was at the Burj al Arab in Dubai. We decide to take a cab to the Botanical Gardens and Orchid garden. WOW! This park is a Unesco World Heritage site and is completely amazing. Don't miss this attraction. It's a lot of walking, however. We walked over to the hospital across the street to get a taxi. I wasn't up to navigating the MRT. We wait over 30 minutes in the queue. My feet are getting tired. The taxi company has bee calling to start the claim process on my hand. Relieved they are responding. Their insurance adjuster called me and wanted to meet this evening. Fine

 

We cab it to the famous Raffles Hotel, checking out the fabulous holiday decor on Orchard Road. WOW. I wanted to check out the gift shop and the Long Bar at Raffles. I got another expensive margarita and some yummy calamari for a snack. We decide to have dinner in a Chinese restaurant in the hotel. Soup Restaurant. It was terrible. Loved the atmosphere, hated the food. Good thing we only spent $32. No big loss.

 

We decided to walk from Raffles back to the hotel. On any other day, it would be no big deal. But today I was tired from the early wake-up call, waiting in lines, having the stress of getting my hand smashed, walking the gardens, and eating a gross meal. I was dragging, but needed the exercise. We walked through the Esplanade Mall. We meet with Mr. Soon about my injury. I told him I was hopeful it would be better tomorrow and I might not need an x-ray. He took photos. I felt like I needed legally representation as he was cross examining me. It was obvious what happened and the driver had no problem admitting what he did.

 

After my meeting with Mr. Soon, we walked across the street to the events center at the mall

Marina Bay has two nightly laser light and fountain shows. Very nice. I was super tired and kind of homesick. I turned around and looked up in the sky to an almost full moon staring at me. I am a lucky Princess.

 

Hoping to get to the zoo tomorrow. Night.

[sunsetbeachgal]

I'm so sorry to hear about your hand and hoping there isn't any long term damage. It is hard to maintain a positive attitude in the face of things going wrong.

 

 

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[Aussie Gal]

KCSungirl,

 

So sorry to hear about your hand or finger and the door slam. I feel for you as I too am a "lefty" and it would be very hard for me not to use my left hand.

 

Still you were very brave especially walking back from Raffles to the Marina Sands in that heat. It is quite a trek and when you are in pain, it would have seemed longer.

 

Lets hope today is brighter and that you enjoy the Zoo. The Orang-utans are fabulous. The Zoo has ropes right around the perimeter and the Orang-utans swing along the ropes. I just love them. I am glad you didn't book Breakfast with the Orang-utans as that is a rip off and very disappointing. I thought you actually ate with them but instead there is a terrible buffet and you only get to have your photograph taken with them and a person holding the Orang-utan!

 

Jennie

[emmak8]

Hope your hand is feeling better. You are an amazing trooper!! I know that you don't want to miss a thing. And it seems like you made it to all the important places.

 

Thanks again for your entertaining posts.

 

Stay well.:)

[Colo Cruiser]

Hope your hand/fingers are ok.

[scluvsrain]

Good grief! You two have had quite a go of it lately, haven't you! Here's wishing your hand is just bruised and not broken. Take care.

 

 

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