SailorJill and I Sail on the Orient Express a.k.a. Millenium's Immersion Cruise

[SailorJack]

Love your writing! Would definitely buy a book written by you!!

No book in the works, but I am glad you enjoyed the review.

Another great review of yours... thank you![/quote

 

Another great review of yours... thank you!

 

 

You are most welcome. Thanks for reading the review.:)

 

Jack

[Yorkvillain]

I finally finished reading this masterpiece. Wow. You have not lost a step. Absolutely amazing.

[sassy12]

Just a hint- Someone gave me a set of chopsticks that are connected on one end. They came from a $ store. I kept them in my purse and used them for all our meals in the Far East. Easy peasey to use.

[SailorJack]

I just searched Cruise Critic last week to see if you have been on a cruise lately. I can't wait to read this. Thanks to A&L_Ont for the headsup.

Thanks. Good to hear from you. I see from your signature that you have a review that I have overlooked. I enjoy your reviews and will have to check it out.

 

I'm reminded of the scene in "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" wherein Big Dan Teague, the Bible salesman, draws Ulysses Everett McGill and Delmar to the boonies with his seductive, jocular monologue. Well done, sir. Even for a Canadian.

 

 

You have just referenced one of my favorite movies. Who cannot like the Foggy Bottom Boys! Thanks for the shout out, Matt.

 

PS. Jill loved your graphic!

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

Also, it appears there are numerous balms of tiger on Amazon. Or is it more effective if purchased freshly-squeezed from an actual tiger in Asia?

 

Thanks. I went on line and found out that Amazon carries it. I am not sure if freshly squeezed is any better!:D

 

Jack

[soraya]

I was told that the red one is best for pulled muscles and the white for headaches.

BTW the red tiger balm formulation can stain fabric pretty badly - the cinnamon oil is quite resistant to stain removers!

[JaniceB]

Just a hint- Someone gave me a set of chopsticks that are connected on one end. They came from a $ store. I kept them in my purse and used them for all our meals in the Far East. Easy peasey to use.

 

 

That is a great hint, I need to find those.

[SailorJack]

Thank you for another great Sailor Jack review! Cafe al Bacio is also our favorite place to hang out on Sea Days and you can't beat the Martini Bar when you have a Beverage Package. Looking forward to the pictures.

 

The beverage package really does help. To get the treats from the Café you must buy something (which really came as a surprise to me)... coffee, tea, etc. Once they know you have the package then you can bypass the purchase requirement.

 

 

Great review, thank you so much.

 

You are more than welcome.

 

Jack

[Champagne Cruiser]

I have never had to purchase a drink in order to have a pastry. I wonder if this is a new policy or just the ship having a different policy.

[SailorJack]

Another fantastic cruise review - thank you!! I keep a look out for your reviews and really look forward to them! I'm really looking forward to both Cafe el Bacio and the Martini bar after reading your descriptions

 

We're actually on the Millennium at the end of March and I was wondering what the embarkation was like at Shanghai?

 

Thanks

 

Enjoy your cruise on the Millie...I know you will have a great time! Embarkation in Shanghai was about average. They were boarding two ships so there were quite a few people there. We got there about 1:00 PM and got right in line. It probably took us about 1 hour from the time we got to the port until the time we were aboard the ship. It was pretty well organized. Just a note - once you are on the ship, but before you actually get through the scanner they collect your passports so make sure you have copies ( if you are on a similar itinerary.) At several ports they warned us to take copies of our passports ashore for ID purposes, but nobody ever checked them. Again, I don't know what ports you are visiting, but on two of the ports we visited, we had to have our temperature taken. I assume those with high temperatures were not allowed ashore, but did not hear of anyone failing.

 

Another note - the port in Shanghai is quite a distance from downtown. We stayed in a hotel near the Bund and it took us about a hour to get to the pier. We took a private car and the cost was $60 and we talked to some people who paid near a $100 - they may have stayed nearer the airport. It really pays to make sure you have arranged for transport to the pier in advance. We stayed at the Marriott and there were no taxis waiting to pick up fares. I suspect the hotel could have called a taxi, but like I said, we had already arranged for a car.

 

Jack

 

Woo Hoo!! So glad to see another review from Sailor Jack!!

 

Hope you enjoyed it!:)

 

Jack

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

To get the treats from the Café you must buy something (which really came as a surprise to me)... coffee, tea, etc.

 

Jack

 

I've never had to purchase anything either to get treats from Bacio and I do it all the time. I never have a beverage package unless it comes with my cabin. Wonder if this was specific to this cruise or if you had new servers who weren't aware of policy.

[SailorJack]

Reading the excellent adventures of Sailor Jack and Sailor Jill never disappoint! Thank you for starting my day with a smile!

 

Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading.

 

 

LOVE your reviews! Thanks for another great one.

 

Glad you found it entertaining.

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

Thoroughly enjoyable review. This trip would have never been a part of my bucket list. Your review has vastly changed my opinion!

 

The trip just sort of popped up. It had a unique itinerary that included three places I have always wanted to see - Ha Long Bay, Manila, and Nagasaki. At sixteen days, our Cruise Director said it was the longest Asian cruise that Celebrity has ever had. It was such a success that I am sure they will repeat it - or at least some version of it.

 

The only drawback are the flights. It took us nearly 30 hours to get home and around 22 hours to get there. We had upgraded seats on the way there, but it was economy all the way home. That said, we flew back on the Japanese airline ANA and it is now my favorite airline. If you have to spend that many hours in the air they made it bearable. I suppose we could have taken nonstop flights but such was not in our budget.

 

However, if you go you will not regret it - the sights and experiences were wonderful. Hopefully I will start to get my pictures edited this weekend and I will temp you even more!:D

 

 

Excellent writing, thank you for bringing a ray of sunshine to my daily drab routine!

 

What a nice thing to say, thank-you.

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

What??? Left over Pijiu??? That would never happen on a cruise ship, not even on a 7 day HAL sailing. :p

 

 

 

 

 

Did you spot Dana Delany?

 

 

Another great review Sailor Jack. I'm quite surprised Sailor Jill hasn't used the machete on you yet, it must be your good Canadian disposition and looks that have spared you all these years.

 

Thanks for the great reading. Right up there with Stewart McLean.

Andrew

 

Thanks. And don't use SailorJill and machete in the same sentence!:D No, did not spot Ms Delany. In fact I almost did not see anybody! When I post the picture you are going to see the most deserted beautiful beach you have ever seen. We were told that Vietnamese avoid the sun and only use the beach before sunrise and after sunset, but that doesn't explain why all the tourists were not at the beach.

 

Jack

 

 

What an awesome review! Can't wait to see your pictures.

 

SailorJill is supposed to be uploading them today and tomorrow.

[SailorJack]

Sailor Jack, I thought I better requote myself. I'm not sure if it went through or if you saw it etc... I think you have had more success with your chopsticks than I have had posting on CC the last few days.

 

I think there was a glitch in Cruise Critic's program...a lot of people had posting problems for a while - including myself. I repeated a couple of posts, not thinking that the first one had gone through.

 

 

This is hilarious. Thank you so much for posting!

 

Glad you enjoyed it!

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

If you come back to Vancouver you can buy Tiger Balm in China Town:D

Great review. Eagerly waiting for the pictures

 

I get back to Vancouver quite often, but I don't need to visit China Town to get Tiger Bahm. I have never heard of that stuff till two weeks ago and now it is everywhere = Amazon, Wal-Mart, the Internet. I was watching Hawaii 50 last night and it mentioned on the program!:D

 

Pictures coming.

 

 

Ok, THAT was funny. Well Done.

 

Glad you enjoyed it.

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

Wow, another Sailor Jack outstanding review.

 

I sure would like to tag along on one of your adventures, even it meant that I would have to hold your camel while you took photo's.

 

Bob

 

Love to have you along! You remembered my camel ride! Not exactly the highlight of my visit to Egypt!!:D

 

 

Yes, top notch as usual.

 

Thanks...good to hear from you. Hope all is well down under.

 

Jack

[SailorJack]

Hi

I enjoyed your review. I can't master chopsticks either. DW gave me a pass during China river cruise/land tour. Probably a smart move since I can be a klutz even w. cutlery.:)

 

We actually picked up a couple of souvenir sets of chop sticks in Hong Kong and I am going to practice before we head out to a Chinese restaurant. I am determined to master these to atone for my incompetence when it really counted - in Asia!:D

 

Sailor Jack and Sailor Jill, always a pleasure. Thank you for entertaining us once again. :D

 

 

Thanks for reading.

 

Jack

[Tom47]

We actually picked up a couple of souvenir sets of chop sticks in Hong Kong and I am going to practice before we head out to a Chinese restaurant. I am determined to master these to atone for my incompetence when it really counted - in Asia!:D

 

 

 

 

Thanks for reading.

 

Jack

 

I admire your determination. Thanks again for your review. I have been to BC, cross Canada rr trip.

Tom:)

[silkismom]

One of the best ways to learn chopsticks is with popcorn, there are so many areas to grab, one large batch and you should be able to handle most things--just don't cheat.;p

[awhfy]

One of the best ways to learn chopsticks is with popcorn, there are so many areas to grab, one large batch and you should be able to handle most things--just don't cheat.;p

 

 

That's how I learned in Okinawa with popcorn. How was Galapagos? Melody

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[awhfy]

SailorJack & Jill. Loved your review, chopsticks are definitely a help to the diet.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Tom47]

That's how I learned in Okinawa with popcorn. How was Galapagos? Melody

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

 

We enjoyed Galapagos and recommend Celebrity Xpedition:)

[SailorJack]

I have never had to purchase a drink in order to have a pastry. I wonder if this is a new policy or just the ship having a different policy.

 

On our previous two sailings we have never had to pay and I was quite surprised at the change. There was a small sign on top of the pastry cabinet that said, among some other words, "Purchase Required." I did not inquire as to the change as we had the drink package.

 

 

Thank you Jack for a very well written, amusing and informative review.

G.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

Glad you enjoyed it.

 

Jack

[silkismom]

Hi Melody, Galapagos was fine. Found out last Aug that I needed a hip replacement, waited until after the trip, good thing because there was a big complication and I was toe weight bearing for 6 weeks, still using walking sticks 21/2 months later. Heading out of Reflection this Sat.