A Month To Go:)....more help questions please.

[Lois R]

Thanks for all the replies:).......I don't travel with electronics.........no laptop/Ipad/smartphone........I am not a picture

taker so just be aware there probably won't be any of those......I can check in from time to time to let you know how

things are going though;)

[TLCOhio]

Thanks for all the replies.......I don't travel with electronics.........no laptop/Ipad/smartphone........I am not a picture taker so just be aware there probably won't be any of those......I can check in from time to time to let you know how things are going though;)

 

Appreciate Lois' follow-up and YES, we would love it if you "check in from time to time". Look forward to hearing how "things are going" as you travel on this great itinerary.

 

Even without a camera, iPhone and/or laptop, there are the ship computers there to do brief postings. Maybe you'll run into some on the ship who would do some posts on these Cruise Critic boards, too.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Venice: Loving It & Why??!! Is one of your future desires or past favorites? See these many visual samples for its great history and architecture. This posting is now at 69,338 views.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1278226

[Lois R]

Well, Sunday will be one week from when I fly out:D

[UKCruiseJeff]

Well, Sunday will be one week from when I fly out:D

 

Take the plane. It is easier on the arms. :D

 

We're with you all the way L :)

[Lois R]

Good morning:)........got my email confirmation from the hotel about my car service.......I had to email them back because they had me down as MR LOUIS:rolleyes:..........I said no........I am MISS LOIS.........I have gotten that all of my life:eek: even

with a language difference I filled out the paperwork and whoever keyed it in, mis-keyed.

They apologized and said it has been fixed but when they sent the new confirmation it now says MRS........I said, nope

I am Miss........but at least now the first name is correct and they have me as female.

 

Oh well.............

 

Have a good Saturday everyone:)

[TLCOhio]

Good morning:)........got my email confirmation from the hotel about my car service.......I had to email them back because they had me down as MR LOUIS:rolleyes:..........I said no........I am MISS LOIS.........I have gotten that all of my life:eek: even with a language difference I filled out the paperwork and whoever keyed it in, mis-keyed.

 

Yes, Lois, I feel your "pain". As a Terry, I get labeled and/or called Ms. Terri many times. Not a Terri that is normally viewed as a female spelling. Nor, a "Ms.". BUT, life goes along and I have survived with such mix-ups.

 

As I might have mentioned earlier, I love your many great, upcoming stops on the Silver Spirit. We have never been to Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, Porto Mahon, Alghero or Portoferraio. Look forward to hearing more details about these unique locations, what you loved there, etc. Please do a little postings as you travel. PLUS, a nice summary after you get back. If you need an "official photographer", I am available and travel cheap.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

AFRICA?!!?: Lots of interesting and dramatic pictures can be seen from this live/blog at:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2310337

Now at 33,454 views for this visual sharing including Cape Town, along South Africa’s coast, Mozambique, Victoria Falls/Zambia and Botswana's famed Okavango Delta area.

[Randyk47]

Good morning:)........got my email confirmation from the hotel about my car service.......I had to email them back because they had me down as MR LOUIS:rolleyes:..........I said no........I am MISS LOIS.........I have gotten that all of my life:eek: even

with a language difference I filled out the paperwork and whoever keyed it in, mis-keyed.

They apologized and said it has been fixed but when they sent the new confirmation it now says MRS........I said, nope

I am Miss........but at least now the first name is correct and they have me as female.

 

Oh well.............

 

Have a good Saturday everyone:)

 

My name issue is my middle name which is Mac. Mac was a POW with my father in WWII and my father always credited him with nursing him and saving his life when he got sick. Ever once in awhile Mac gets connected to my last name so I become MacKlug. MacKlug???? A Scottish German??? 🤔🙂

[Lois R]

Randy, the company I work for is called MAC.......MAC PAPERS.........one of the owners is MAC;)

[TLCOhio]

Hi, Lois!! Are you all packed and ready to do your first sailings on the Silver Spirit?? Here are a couple of added "preview" pictures for the "conditions" you must face on this ship. These pictures are from our June sailing on this ship. Hope these visuals help to build the excitement for this initial sailing with Silversea.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Lisbon, NWSpain, Bordeaux/Brittany: Just finished June 2017 sailing on the Silver Spirit from Portugal to France along the scenic Atlantic Coast, plus great pre- and post-cruise experiences. Many interesting pictures and details on history, food, culture, etc., from my live/blog at:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2511358

 

Here is a view in the main dining room of the Silver Spirit. Like the orchids?:

(Open your screen/viewer wider to see these pictures larger!)

 

Another key dining location on the Silver Spirit is La Terrazza. The view from this wonderful and roomy outdoor deck is where you might have both fresh sea air AND nice views. In this case, this was our lunch dining location before we sailed under this 25 de Abril Bridge or 25th of April Bridge structure in Lisbon. This bridge has a length of 7473 feet. We were preparing to start sailing up the Atlantic coast of Europe.:

[Lois R]

Hi Terry, thanks for the pictures:D

 

Nope, not packed. Not even started. Since I fly out on Sunday I will do all my packing on Saturday:)....no muss, no

fuss, have all day to do it rather than starting after work each night this week.

[Camillus112]

Lois, I salute you. I start packing at least two weeks before my flight. Good for you! For me, packing, unpacking and packing again is half the fun. Have a great cruise!

[Solo mi!]

Lois, I salute you. I start packing at least two weeks before my flight. Good for you! For me, packing, unpacking and packing again is half the fun. Have a great cruise!

 

Because I live in Mexico, I was listed as Senora Penelope. I initially tried to change it, but it was on everything and now I love it!

[Camillus112]

I would too!! My name, Virginia, is a state name in the US, but has a prettier pronunciation in Spanish. You are alongside Penélope Cruz and that is not a bad thing at all!

[Randyk47]

Hi Terry, thanks for the pictures:D

 

Nope, not packed. Not even started. Since I fly out on Sunday I will do all my packing on Saturday:)....no muss, no

fuss, have all day to do it rather than starting after work each night this week.

 

Good grief! We're like three months plus out and already we're thinking of establishing our prepacking area. :o

[Lois R]

Good grief! We're like three months plus out and already we're thinking of establishing our prepacking area. :o

 

LOL.....that is what makes us all different:D......pre-packing area? I have some things set out on the bed in the 2nd

bedroom but they have been there for awhile. My pre-packing area is when I bring out the luggage and put it on the

floor LOL.......that will be Saturday.

[Randyk47]

LOL.....that is what makes us all different:D......pre-packing area? I have some things set out on the bed in the 2nd

bedroom but they have been there for awhile. My pre-packing area is when I bring out the luggage and put it on the

floor LOL.......that will be Saturday.

 

Our master bedroom is on the main floor with the other three bedrooms upstairs. The first cruise or two out of this house and we used the guest bedroom upstairs as our staging area but that was a hassle and not convenient. We switched to using what was designed as an office but we use as music/reading room downstairs. It has doors so we can close it up and keep the cats out of stuff. We have two collapsable clothes racks that I set up about two weeks out. Slowly but surely we start moving luggage, clothing, shoes, etc., into room where we can clearly see what we have to pack. Works for us. :)

[jpalbny]

Lois, we are more like you than like Randy. We do think about what we'll pack, starting a week or so ahead of time. We'll discuss with each other what we're thinking - how many casual clothes, evening clothes, what do I think about the dresses Chris wants to bring... We will have a pretty good idea of what were packing, before we do anything.

 

Then 2 or 3 days before we leave, we each make our piles of clothes, see what the other one thinks of our choices, and then pack them up. A glass (or bottle) of "packing wine" is an essential part of the process. [emoji485] It takes anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, depending on the length of the trip and the formality of dress.

 

We like to do this at least a day in advance because we worry about forgetting something important if we wait until the last day. So it feels good, and relaxing, to have our bags packed Wednesday night for a Friday night departure.

 

When it's time to leave, any last-minute items (like raincoats) get added to the suitcases, and we're off!

 

Love hearing about everybody's different systems. Our cat is too old to come upstairs now, but she used to get into our suitcases too, if we didn't lock them up.

 

Sent from my SM-G930T using Forums mobile app

[Randyk47]

Have to say we started our prepacking routine back in the days when we both worked. After 10 to 12 hour work days the last thing we felt like doing was packing at night. It's a bit easier now that I'm retired but Mrs K still works so while two weeks out sounds like a long time she really only has three or four days to pick what she wants to take, make sure it's clean/needs to go to the cleaners, and figure out if she needs to go shopping. Also works that we have no children at home and really don't have that much company so it's not like anybody but us has to put up with the staging area.

[Solo mi!]

I would too!! My name, Virginia, is a state name in the US, but has a prettier pronunciation in Spanish. You are alongside Penélope Cruz and that is not a bad thing at all!

 

 

There are so many beautiful names in Spanish...golondrina, mariposa, paloma etc.etc.

[spinnaker2]

Great stuff about packing!

 

I started making lists of what I take on each cruise, then when I come back I look at it and note if I wore it or not. I am trying to get into a better system and paring down what I take.

I used to make packing lists and then gave it up when I traveled so much for work. I pretty much had a small suitcase with a no wrinkle suit and other items ready to go. Then I flew to a formal weekend wedding and packed a huge suitcase with my finery. The airline " lost" the suitcase. I never got a stitch of what was in there, a small amount of compensation never replaced what I lost. Lesson there was I started making lists again for leisure travel. I also consider upping insurance on baggage too.

I also begin packing at least a week before, with making piles of clothes and accessories. I do try the color coordination, i.e., picking a color or two and keeping the choices within that category. I admit I am less successful with that on a cruise.

As I go through the process of packing, I can remove some of the stuff as I ask myself, will you ever wear this?

I also check the weather for my destinations several times...

 

Lois we are following your every post and are so excited for you!

[Emtbsam]

My style of packing is like Spinnaker2. I have lists which I take on the cruise and make notes for future reference. I also make sure that I have some clothes that are a bit too big at the beginning of the cruise that should fit by the end of the cruise!

[Solo mi!]

My style of packing is like Spinnaker2. I have lists which I take on the cruise and make notes for future reference. I also make sure that I have some clothes that are a bit too big at the beginning of the cruise that should fit by the end of the cruise!

 

 

Will you please address the issue of SHOES for your cruise......

Penny

[les37b]

I also make sure that I have some clothes that are a bit too big at the beginning of the cruise that should fit by the end of the cruise!

 

Ah, that must be in case they shrink in the laundry! :p

 

I should make lists and be more organised - especially with my camera gear. I went without my 360 camera for the Muse purely because I couldn't locate it and left it too late to search. Lists are definitely a good idea - particularly if they say where things were last left!

[spinnaker2]

Les.

Lists are good for claims when stuff gets misplaced or permanently lost.

You could also easily photograph stuff and keep in your computer.

Much like you would do for your fabulous art collection or those China dogs you insist upon collecting, or all of those beer steins from the 15th century.

:-)

[TLCOhio]

LOL.....that is what makes us all different:D......pre-packing area? I have some things set out on the bed in the 2nd bedroom but they have been there for awhile. My pre-packing area is when I bring out the luggage and put it on the floor LOL.......that will be Saturday.

 

Ah, that must be in case they shrink in the laundry! I should make lists and be more organised - especially with my camera gear. .

 

Lots of FUN, interesting and smart info items have been posted as a follow-up to the status and methods for preparing and packing by Lois. Good excuse by Les on the clothing shrinking!!

 

Like done by Lois, I will start to stack and place potentials items for packing on the bed in a spare room. But, it is only in the final 24 hours that I do the actual packing.

 

Much depends as to how long you will be gone, where visiting, the temperature ranges, etc. BUT, there are also those "weight limit challenges"!!?? For early next year, we will have a total weight limit of 44 pounds, TOTAL, per person, including camera, computer, carry-ons, etc., for three of our internal flights in Southeast Asia. That's going to take more "strategies" and creativity. Last year in flying between camps in Botswana, the weight limits were even lower. BUT, we had off-loaded/stored in Johannesburg many of our items from doing the earlier South Africa cruise on the Silver Cloud.

 

If just doing a week or so cruise in Europe, back and forth, in can be easier than a much longer trip over more varied geographic areas. As example early near year, it will be mostly in the 60'sF in Hong Kong and northern Vietnam. BUT, for southern Vietnam, Bangkok and Cambodia, it will be mid 90'sF. That requires more planning and clothing options.

 

Also for Lois, I just posted a number of added pictures and detailed tips for the Silver Spirit. It might be good to check, when handy. Or, for others to offer any added insights for Lois to consider as she does her first sailing with Silversea.

 

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 184,768 views for this posting.