Spiriting around the British Isles with Walking Difficulties

[fabnfortysomething]

 

 

Welcome to the latest adventures of 6.

For those not familiar with previous reviews I nicknamed husband 6 after 70’s series the 6 Million Dollar Man also known as Bionic Man or Steve Austin.

After an accident he was rebuilt better ,stronger, faster to the cost of 6 million dollars .

6 issue was developing an aggressive form of inflammatory arthritis in his mid 40’s which has destroyed most joints in his body before being controlled by biologic weekly injections.

He has had 3 hip replacements so far-1 being a further replacement after problems with metal to metal causing muscle damage .Estimated cost so far £6000 hence name 6.

 

We booked this trip a year ago along with our USA friends K and D who we first met on a cruise nearly 10 years ago and have kept in touch.

We have cruised with them 3 times before-twice on NCL Spirit .We were in a pattern of seeing each other alternate years but last few it has been every year.

In May 6 suffered a stroke at age 57-this came with absolutely no warning and was really scary.

There are 2 types of stroke-more commonly it’s a blood clot on brain which causes typical symptoms of paralysis.

6 suffered a haemorrhagic stroke where a blood vessel in brain bursts and causes a thunderclap headache which can be fatal if not treated quickly.

He spent over a week in the high dependency unit of Regional neuro surgery specialist hospital. He has made really good progress but as we discovered on this cruise after effects can occur.

 

At the time of his stroke we had just paid final balance for this cruise so waited to see  how things worked out and whether would need to claim on travel insurance.

In the end because he was making good progress and no flying involved we decided to go ahead and treat the cruise as part of his rehabilitation.

The original plan was to drive the 300 miles south to Southampton from our home in North East England. Of course  that had to be amended as 6 not cleared to drive yet and I didn’t fancy doing all the driving myself!

With purchase of a disabled persons railcard costing £20 a year it entitles 6 and an accompanying  adult to travel at 30% off regular fares.

We booked 2 ½ hour train to London Kings Cross day before cruise with passenger assistance to help getting ourselves and luggage on and off train.

We were travelling light anyway with a 24 inch suitcase, cabin bag size case and 2 small rucksacks.

As platinum plus on NCL we are entitled to 2 free laundry bags over the cruise.

Passenger assistance was provided by Chris-a burly 6 foot plus guy who looked like he could have picked 6 up in his arms like a baby and lifted him on to the train!

We got his life history in the 5 minutes before train arrival.

36,lived in London for years where he met his partner. Cant handle all night partying anymore so moved back to North Yorkshire for a quiet life.

 

We arrived in London just before 12 noon where met Adrian from Blackberry Cars who would transfer us directly from Kings Cross to the Holiday Inn Southampton where had booked pre cruise stay.

Cost £110 paid in advance for 2 of us in Saloon and  worth every penny. Slow London traffic meant took an hour to clear to M3 but from there 1 hour to Southampton and arrived 2.15.

We had prepaid rooms several months in advance. We had a cruise stay package costing £140 and friends K and D room only £95

We no longer needed the car parking aspect but prices for room only had gone up to nearly £140 so left arrangements and would still include transfer to port next morning.

Our room was not yet ready but reception informed us our friends had already checked in so we went up to their room to renew our friendship and get excited about upcoming cruise.

The hotel obviously caters to Cruisers but with only 2 small lifts/elevators  can be waits with luggage.

We went down to the foyer for a few drinks and ordered a couple of bowls of chips/French fries to tide us over ed but 30 minutes later were still waiting.I went to bar to enquire and it turned out they had been sent out 20 mins ago but delivered to wrong table! The people there were non English speaking so perhaps they thought it was a complimentary offering from the hotel!

Anyway staff apologised and sent out fresh.

We showered and changed about 7pm then had a full meal in hotel restaurant where got a good view of an P and O ship leaving from adjacent Ocean View terminal.

Time for bed-adventure starts in earnest tomorrow!

[goldmom]

So sorry to hear of 6's stroke, but glad he is on the mend.  Looking forward to your report of your adventures.  I have enjoyed all of your reviews!

[SteveH2508]

We will be interested to hear how the Spirit is now. We sailed on it in 2012 and are booked on it for March next year.

 

Hope all goes well for you both.

[fabnfortysomething]

Sunday 21 July Cruise day

Woke to warm and sunny day 20c 70F

A heatwave was forecast for next few days-in the South.

We are of course heading North to Scotland.

Included buffet breakfast at the hotel was very slow due to lots of people in the queue staring at the coffee machine or food items as if there was something hard to figure out. This prepared us for the ship buffet where these same characters can be found-we call them food zombies.

 

As part of the cruise park and stay package a taxi transfer to port was included.

We pre booked for 10.30 and turned up right on time. The 4 of us and our luggage were duly delivered to the Spirit where the Platinum line was very short and we were checked in and directed to waiting area where we sat and chatted and watched area fill up.

11.30 a girl with microphone called for suite passengers to board and a sea of passengers moved forward. She had to continually ask people to sit down again until their boarding number was called.

Wheelchair boarders next then platinum so we joined queue. I had requested wheelchair assistance at port a few weeks earlier as 6 ankle had flared up and was back on his crutches .However never heard anything back and ankle was better so he got himself on. There is a long zig zag boarding ramp so if you have any degree of difficulty walking wheelchair assist at Southampton a good idea.

By 11.45 we were onboard and into Henrys pub for first Rebellious Fish of the cruise.

1.30 we ventured up to buffet for a snack and 2.15 announcement cabins ready.

No luggage as yet however confirmation letter that Meet and Greet at previously arranged date and time-NCL have been known to change last minute which can be an issue informing people from an anonymous forum like Cruise Critic!

 

Spirit is due a dry dock soon and it is showing its age.

However it remains one of my favourite ships as I love the pretty soaring atrium which is lacking on the newer bigger ships.

I chose our balcony cabin on deck 10 carefully to have cabins above and below, also avoided connecting doors as have had noise issues in past. We were mid ship near elevators and had no issues. However talking to people later in cruise some  had engine noise issues particularly front and aft, one couple were in a suite so that must have been really annoying paying all that money.

Muster drill held 4pm and outside by lifeboats. It was unnecessarily long as they covered every possible safety issues not just related to emergency evacuation eg unplugging electrical devices  when not in cabin. These were then repeated in Spanish.

With best will in world it was difficult to concentrate for that long and it was very stuffy in crowds of people.

We had pre arranged an informal sailaway with some of Rollcallers 5pm at Raffles bar deck 12 aft.

However there was an announcement that due to repairs needing done on the propulsion system sailaway would be delayed by several hours but assured will make up  time before our first port stop Edinburgh on Tuesday.

 

At Raffles bar about 10 people showed up and it was good to put a few faces to roll callers A couple had booked this cruise as a back to back with next one going to Baltics using credit offered for them being on board the Epic when it shunted a few weeks back.

They said our cruising friend Keithjenner was hosting the next meet and greet but he warned wouldn’t be as organised as mine-no pressure Keith!

 

After a few drinks and socialising we went down to cabin 7pm to find suitcases arrived so I unpacked before heading back to Champagne Charlies for the evening. This is bar area overlooking atrium and will be interesting to see what they do with this post dry dock as on other ships this is where O Sheehans bar is located and which serves food.

Live entertainment by C Notes billed in freestyle daily as perfect for all occasions. They were a male duo vocalist and keyboard player and we did indeed listen to them many times over the cruise.

We headed to bed around midnight still in dock at Southampton.  

[EllieinNJ]

Looking forward to more.

[KeithJenner]

19 hours ago, SteveH2508 said:

We will be interested to hear how the Spirit is now. We sailed on it in 2012 and are booked on it for March next year.

 

Hope all goes well for you both.

It will be a lot different by then, due to the dry dock.

 

I also love the Spirit, but it is also quite tired and the refurb is long overdue. I’ve had a couple of conversations with staff and officers regarding it, and they are fairly tight lipped as usual. However, I’ve been told that there will be significant changes.

[KeithJenner]

Lyn, the back to backers all say hi. 🙂

[SteveH2508]

5 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

It will be a lot different by then, due to the dry dock.

 

I also love the Spirit, but it is also quite tired and the refurb is long overdue. I’ve had a couple of conversations with staff and officers regarding it, and they are fairly tight lipped as usual. However, I’ve been told that there will be significant changes.

Let us hope they do not remove Champagne Charlies - that was one of our favourite bars.

 

I agree that the Blue Lagoon/O'Sheehans or whatever it was called needs shifting - sitting in the corridor demolishing wings was not brilliant.

 

There was also that odd area at the front of the ship with couches or something in it - seemed rather underused IMHO.

Edited August 8, 2019 by SteveH2508

[fabnfortysomething]

1 hour ago, KeithJenner said:

Lyn, the back to backers all say hi. 🙂

 

send them our love

[fabnfortysomething]

Monday 23 July partly cloudy 17C 62F

 

Woke to feel ship moving-apparantly set sail around 4am

This was to be our only sea day on a busy 12 day itinerary.

Shower and chill out on balcony before Meet and Greet set for 10am in Shogun restaurant.

6 wore his “will sell wife for beer” t shirt which is a bit ironic as he hadn’t had a beer since his stroke.

He was teetotal for 5 weeks then developed liking for Gin and tonic[slimline]

As a result he has lost a stone in weight-14pounds for you USA people-as for you Canadians with your metric system I’m not sure.

We headed down about 9.30 to get set up and lay out lanyards had made up with peoples screen and real names.50 had signed up and a good attendance of around 40.

There was a good turnout of ships officers but they gave brief intros and left.

Think have learned from previous experiences when inviting questions turns into an excuse for guests to rant about real or perceived problems .As usual they provided cards with direct dial numbers of department heads so as to deal quickly with any potential on board issues.

Mingling and putting names to faces and identifying tourmates followed then L led about 20 people off to Casino for slot pull-apparantly lots of fun head but no money won.

We headed off to atrium for a well deserved Rebellious fish and looked at the long line of people queuing at guest services for various reasons.

 

Around 12 I could see land off to my right and going outside to other side off ship could see white cliffs of Dover and a cross channel ferry just crossed our path.

1pm I headed up to the Ladies pamper party in Galaxy lounge hosted by Mandara Spa.

This proved to b a mini self facial but then a full on plug for onboard Botox and facial fillers.

I got out of there quick before could be collared for a free consultation!

6 decided to go along to a camera seminar whilst I decided to get some sun as day was getting out warmer and sunnier than forecast.I easily found loungers away from pool area to enjoy quiet time reading my kindle.

 

There was a tannoy announcement that due to late departure the next 2 ports arrival and departure times had been adjusted

Edinburgh from 8-6 to 10-8

Inverness from 7-5 to 9-7

Actually these times were better than original and would give more leeway for return time for Inverness tour. Made note to email the tour company when in port at Edinburgh next day

We had 60 free internet minutes as Platinum Plus but ships internet dreadful so used my mobile data package whenever within Vodafone signal range   .

 

After an hour in the sun I found 6 in Champagne Charlies and we decided to explore another bar. Ended up at the Bier Garten overlooking pool deck. It’s outside but with a large canopy so plenty of shade and shelter.

Back to cabin to snooze in sun on Balcony and rehydrate.

When we booked this cruise last year the UK package was all inclusive of DSC Beverage package and 30 large bottles of water! We left 10 behind in Cabin at end of cruise as couldn’t get through it all.

We thought of setting up shop in the atrium and selling to fellow guests at a much lower rate than the overpriced water package offered by NCL but thought that may result in us being made to walk the plank.

We had our first Platinum meal booked for le Bistro that night so met K and D 7.45 followed by night in Champagne Charlies listening to pianist Ian West billed as Classy Piano and vocals in freestyle daily. We recognised  him from our previous Spirit cruise in 2014 and indeed spent several cruise evenings there .

I was crashed out in bed by midnight but 6 turned on TV navigation screen 12.45 and noted we were passing very close to our home in North East England.

 

[fabnfortysomething]

Tuesday23 July Newhaven Edinburgh

Sunny 22C 71F

Adjusted port time was due to arrive 10am but when awoke 8.30 was already there.

We had already decided to stay on board as have been to Edinburgh seeral time.That turned out to be a good move.

Newhaven is a tender port with a 30 minute ride to get ashore!

It was very slow with lots of people complaining

By 11am was up to number 10, 16-19 were called around 11.45 and open tender wasn’t till 12.15.

I had a wander round ship and in Galaxy lounge there was a poor girl in wheelchair surrounded by crew-she had fallen down the stairs and suffered a suspected broken leg.She was being transferred off ship to local hospital-not fun on a tender port.I never did find out whether she was treated in time to return to ship or indeed had to cancel.From her accent she was American so not sure when she would be allowed to fly home-hope she had travel insurance!

 

We had lunch then 6 started feeling queasy and “fuzzy headed”.

He has noted these effects post stroke but usually pass.he had been a lot more active in recent days so put in down to that.

He had been alone in the house at time of his stroke as I was at work.

He managed to ring me and    said his head felt as if it was about to burst.From the panic  in his voice I knew this was serious as he is a pretty laid back character.I immediatedly rang 999[UK equivalent of 911] for an ambulance.

After spending over a week in hospital he was discharged home but nervous about being alone.On advice from a friend we bought a panic alarm system whereby if he presses button will connect to call centre who can alert relatives or emergency services .

Back on ship he needed to rest but decided to join me on the quiet pool deck where he stretched out on a lounger in the shade whilst I sunbathed.

When sun was in danger of hitting 6 we retired to the cabin for him to lie down on bed and me to enjoy rest of sun on balcony.

It was very peaceful until about 6pm when a loud voice from the balcony next door announced “oh its so peaceful out here” and then proceeded to ruin that peace with a loud conversation with her travelling partner about their day in Edinburgh!

We went to buffet then met K and D in Charlies.

Unfortunately 6 then took a turn for the worse with his level of “fuzziness”increasing to the point it reminded him of the period of lightheadedness he experienced immediately preceeding his stroke.

Of course him going into panic mode meant an adrenaline surge which is counter productive in itself as post surge he started shaking and unable to stand.

I went down to guest services leaving K and D to sit with him and asked for a wheelchair to take him back to the room. Fortunately it was the first time all day there was no line. A crew member turned up with a wheelchair and we all went back with him to our room to sit quietly with him.

I was watching him like a hawk for any signs of deterioration whilst trying to appear calm .As an ex nurse sometimes a bit of knowledge    can be bad as I was poised to press the 911 button on room phone!

My own blood pressure was probably through the roof at that point!

As time passed with no deterioration we decided sleep was best option so early night.

[fabnfortysomething]

Wednesday 24  July Invergordon

Supposed to be 22C 70F and sunny but its raining as we pull into port.

6 wasn’t feeling up to a full day tour of the Highlands and I didn’t want to leave him alone.

I rang K and D to let them know and they went off with our other tourmates .

It was disappointing as had planned this tour extensively

 

It was an 8 seater minivan tour with Invergordon shore excursions and had been emailing owners Nigel and Elaine to plan a full day of touring with minimal walking.

We had filled the van with our friends K and D and a middle aged couple and 70 year old mother so seemed to be a good fit.

The 5 of them had a great day with guide Johnny ,

By 9.30 the rain had stopped and the sun came out-and so did the portside entertainment.

Bagpipes!!!

Now 6 is a musician and appreciates most types of music-except Bagpipes which he hates!

So with our balcony facing pier it was extra torture for him as he was trying to rest .

11 o clock I went to get him some cornflakes and a cup of tea from the buffet   

The ship was obviously not prepared for tea drinking Brits on board as down to last 3 bags of breakfast tea.

Mind that was nothing compared to my experience ordering a cup of breakfast tea later from the atrium café.

The barista obviously expert at coffees but added frothy warm milk when asked for milk in the tea-NOOOOO!

Fortunately the waiter who brought it over noticed my look of horror and took it back and made it  properly.

Lunchtime I ventured to the blue lagoon for fish and chips.

This is probably an area which will disappear post dry dock as it is effectively a corridor linking atrium to casino back of ship and not an ideal eating place.

I spent most of the day sitting out on balcony whilst 6 resting up on bed.

We always go for a balcony cabin and was very glad we had this time as would have been very claustrophobic being stuck inside cabin .

As I mentioned our balcony was facing port so able to do a lot of people watching.

There were a lot of crew members carrying CO OP carrier bags-probably a good port to stock up on toiletries!

 

There was only 1 gangplank open and obviously port provided. It consisted of a series of shallow steps which proved very difficult for the crew member who was trying to bump the drinks cooler down them to prepare for returning guests!

Someone then realised that the edges of the gangplank had fold down sides so can create a ramp along outer edges leaving just the central third as steps. This made the next 2 wheeled drinks coolers much easier to get off ship.

Very entertaining watching people making life hard for themselves until someone shows a bit of common sense.

By mid afternoon  6 was feeling peckish so nipped to buffet to get him a deli sandwich.

To my delight there was a cardboard box of PG tips tea bags in buffet-our favourite.

About 3 o clock the first of the ships excursions started to return-guess that’s the taste of whisky tour as most clutching orange bags of whisky bottle size

Mind you the local CO OP was obviously doing a roaring trade in whisky too judging by carrier bags being toted back from town centre.

One gentleman was approaching the gangplank in a mobility scooter-unfortunately it was a 3 wheeler so no way the central front wheel is going to go up the central steps area.

3 crew members attempted to push him up with him sat in it-no way-he was a large man!

In the end he got off it and pulled himself hand over hand up gangplank while 3 crew members lifted scooter on board.

3.30 the tour buses started coming back in earnest and gangplank getting busy so they get rid of side ramps so its all steps again and more people can get on-and here are another couple of wheelchairs approaching.

Fortunately someone in authority pulled them aside and the ships own luggage ramp was put into place so the wheelchairs could get up it and created two points of entry for the crowds of returning passengers-better late than never.

As I say I had hours of endless fun people watching.

 

We saw our friends coming back from their tour about 6 and K called in to check on 6.

6.30 we hear bagpipes again!

There was a youth group setting up on the pier to wave us off for sailaway-and 6 was just starting to feel better!

To be fair it is encouraging that young people are still prepared to take part in traditional dance and traditions  and they did get a lot of applause from the ship.

7.15 we set sail along coastline with sun and scattered clouds-much more picturesque than rainy sail in this morning.

The whole of the coastline was in view for most of night and it was pretty spectacular.

6 ventured out of cabin for first time and joined K and D for meal at buffet and enjoy this view from outside Raffles  area.

6 decided to return to cabin “just in case “ and we headed to Champagne Charlies which was busy.

I recognised a couple had been chatting to earlier in day who had a couple of seats next to them and asked if we could join them.

This lovely couple were from Wales so D  was having a bit of a problem following their accent!

Anyway we started chatting about cruising and comparing the days experiences .I explained we had missed out on the tour as 6 was experiencing after effects of his stroke.

Our lovely Welsh lady said she is herself a stroke survivor from 14 years previously and recognised some of the symptoms!

 

I ran back upstairs and collected 6 who was planning on an early night and the two of them had a good conversation which went some way towards reassuring 6 this is all part of recovery

Made note to check out patient support groups when we get home!

 

[fabnfortysomething]

Thursday 25 July Kirkwall Orkney Islands

Partly cloudy 15C 59F

6 was feeling better but decided to stay on board and rest whilst I went ahead with our private tour with K and D and another couple from roll call.

This was a tender port with a short time in port 7-1

No surprise after the tender fiasco in Edinburgh this was worse and cause of many complaints to NCL.

2 of our tourmates were in a suite so we were able to take advantage of their perk of concierge escort of ship to early tender. The rest of us were platinum so could join end of queue at any time rather than having to collect tender number but this did save us some extra time.

NCL excursions were off first but we were on one of first tenders at 7.20.As arranged I sent a text to David from Redsorkney tours that we were on tender and he would meet us at port as his home was only 100 yards away.

Short tender ride so 7.30 were ashore. Departure time 1pm but last tender time listed as 11am.

No way was that going to work on such a short day anyway.

At least we were able to get a good start but David suggested we concentrate on the Neolithic sites to West and bypass Italian chapel as that would eat into our time.

We were 5 of us in an 8 seater van total cost £400 for 4 hours.

Basically the experience on Orkney is a mini version of Stonehenge but less crowded and able to get up close and personal.

It is also a very windy location and few trees on the islands as a result

First stop was standing stones of Stenness-just off road in a field.2 large tour buses passed by on the road but David escorted us up to the 6m high stones in a circle and explained the significance. There were probably 12 originally but a local landowner in the 19^th century dynamited a lot of them not having any concept of the historical importance!

Then it was on to the Ring of Brodgar -originally 60 4m stones set in a circle 6 degrees apart. The 60 stones were representing each of the families on islands at time. There were several tour buses here but David managed to find quiet path to explain. Ground was very slippery due to heavy rain day before so 6 would have had difficulty here.

On to excavation site of Ness of Brodgar-very much work in progress.

They receive over 1000 applications per year to volunteer for the excavation.

Final stop was Skara Brae-a 3000 year old colony at beachside with a replica of an original type house-all very interesting.

 

We saw a lot in a limited time and David dropped us off 11.15 to join tender line.

Talking to security guide he said that the tender operation took so long some people got off ship so late they had no time to explore as had to get straight back in line for tender back-as I said lots of complaints.

On way back to port could see reason why we had to tender-there was another ship docked.

However it was a 400 passenger ship which would have been able to tender its passengers much easier than our 2000plus ship

They had probably paid more than NCL but it was a false economy for NCL to have such a short port time anyway made worse by tendering.

Back on ship we found 6 relaxing by poolside and watching tenders to and fro

 

They were  running 2 continuously in each direction but well after last tender time posted of 11am

We actually were only 15 mins late sailing away at 1.15.

We had only booked 1 ship excursion this cruise for lack of anything else to do in Anglesey a few days time.

We had pre booked an afternoon trip starting 12.30 called Anglesey coastline. Tickets were in our cabin on arrival but hadn’t checked them properly .D mentioned showed morning departure time so went to check.

Showed 7.30am start in theatre!

Went to shore excursion desk and because insufficient numbers for afternoon trip they had moved everyone onto morning one without telling us.

No thanks-whole idea was to have relaxing day so we cancelled.

We met up with K and D in Henrys bar-only second time been in there since embarkation day. We had anticipated spending more time there but Champagne Charlies became our go to haunt.

After fully making use of UBP during the afternoon I went back to cabin for rest and crashed out on the bed.

I woke just before 10pm and startled 6 who thought I was out for the night.

He had got changed and was heading out of cabin for a late night drink. Now I know he’s feeling better!

Having spoiled his plans for a pass out by himself I joined him in Charlies and finished off night listening to C Notes.

So far North sunset wasn’t until 10pm and cruising along coastal highlands made for some stunning scenery.

 

[fabnfortysomething]

17 minutes ago, fyree39 said:

I'm loving your review! Thank you for all the details and I hope 6 is by now feeling much, much better.

thank you

 

we have been home a week

he goes several good days then has a fuzzy day

its looks like something will just have to work through

we have a appointment with his GP next Monday and have been in touch with local stroke support group

[fabnfortysomething]

Friday 26 July Greenock

Cloudy 17C 62F

This is the port for Glasgow about 30 mile away but had previously visited Glasgow and not impressed so had already decided to stay on board.

It was a very pretty inlet to sail through along the Clyde Estuary and from non port side some stunning scenery.

We docked around 12 noon and K and D went off to explore the local town.

Being in UK and in port had access to my full mobile phone data so got call from Darling Daughter [DD]

She and husband had just got keys to their new home and turned on water to make a cup of tea[we Brits know our priorities]

However water was gushing from the washing machine valve.

The previous owners had taken their washing machine to their new home leaving a faulty valve leaking water .

Their solution turn off water and leave problem to new owners without even a note to warn-nice!

 

It’s a 1930 build house with last updating 1970s so that’s probably when valve was last replaced.

Wonders of facetime she was able to show offending valve location to her dad who googled parts to get and they headed off to local DIY store.

Then it was plumbing 101 via facetime as 6 explained to DD how to replace valve

My son in law made himself useful by holding the phone-lets just say our daughter is the practical one in that marriage lol

So 6 back to himself today

Sailaway 9pm with another scenic sail out

Evening in Champagne Charlies again listening to C notes and Ian West.

[fabnfortysomething]

Saturday 27 July Belfast

Cloudy 18C 64F

I had ordered room service breakfast-note there is no $7.95 fee if you don’t order cooked items so got ready in room and 6 psyched himself up to leave the ship.

We were due to dock 7am but were about 30 mins late .

We were in atrium queuing to leave and chatting to other members of roll call who turned out to be on same tour company we had booked -Odyssey coaches but had booked via Viator or  cruise excursions ie 3^rd party.

The atrium was very crowded and 6 was starting to feel a touch of vertigo, however cleared to leave 7.40 and started to make way down stairs to deck 5 clutching at hand rail to ensure wasn’t knocked down by surge off people desperate to be first off ship.

We could see a large coach and 2 minivans with Odyssey coaches emblazoned across them and 3 drivers with clipboards standing beside them so far so good.

Spoke too soon ,none of them had our names on and 1 man was quite rude telling us we weren’t booked.

I then produced the 7 pages of printed out email correspondence with a James Monague who turned out to be our rude guy!

 

I found Odyssey coaches on trip advisor and was assured by their 5 plus years excellence awards .They regularly get 4 or 5 star reviews however there are a few bad ones relating to customer service and we were about to add to that.  

 

I first started communicating with James over a year ago to check the Giants Causeway trip would be suitable with 6 walking limitations .I was reassured and we decided to go with the extra leg room tour for a few £ more on a 19 seater minivan to assure extra comfort Another selling point was the heading up to Antrim coast first to beat large tour coaches and therefore the crowds.

 

I tried to pay in advance on website but wouldn’t go through. I again emailed James who said they were having website problems but he had confirmed our 4 seats and cash on the day would be fine.

Crucially this printed conversation was what was needed to convince him as he denied all recollection of the conversation-well it was a year ago but surely when you update your order books from one year to the next prior bookings should transfer!

Even then there was no sincere apology but excuses like” I’m only human”

Conferring with the other drivers he said he could find us room on the large coach as some people were no shows[spoiler alert they were delayed getting off ship and had to get taxi to Giants causeway to catch up-one of the negative reviews for customer service way they were treated.]

However 6 didn’t feel up to being on large coach with 50 other people and said would be better off getting back on board.

James then said he was arranging a private taxi tour for us which would normally cost more than double but we wouldn’t be paying that.

This apparently generous offer was delivered in such a tone that implied we were a nuisance!

His whole attitude sucked!

By this time 6 and I were in no frame of mind to enjoy a trip so we got back on board having to fight our way against flow of traffic.

K and D stayed out deciding to take HO HO into Belfast

Update on that later.

Up to Raffles aft to calm down

6 suggested I see if Spa had any special offers

YES

Spatopia of full body massage available now at $159

75 minutes later feeling suitably refreshed rejoined 6 in the atrium

We met our should have been tourmates for Invergordon-she had awoken with a migraine so had had to cancel their Giants Causeway tour.

She was contemplating the spa brochure so as I had been given a $50 off voucher for a friend I passed it over to her and she went for same treatment I had just had.

Whilst sat there a gentleman on a mobility scooter approached guest services with alarms going off . I recognised him as the gentleman who the day prior had crew members trying to push him up ramp.

Not surprised having problems after that rough handling.

Obviously a hire vehicle but crew member produced a replacement so looks like they must keep a number in reserve on board in case of breakdown.

D and K joined us just before sailaway to tell us we had dodged a bullet by  declining the Giants Causeway trip.

They had hung around after we left as James said he had found them seats on the minivan after all[see above tale of people missing trip]

However it was a very long day with lots of walking and just got back to the ship 15 minutes before all aboard.

The promised get ahead of the crowds never happened as Giants Causeway was packed.

The causeway bus from visitor centre we would have relied on couldn’t access because of an ambulance blocking path resulting in hour long waits

We would have been in trouble.

Our Mr Rude Driver continued to show his true colours by parking his bus across a row of cars and when one of the owners came back needing to be out he refused to move his bus until he had loaded all his passengers back on-What a Charmer!!!!   

[fabnfortysomething]

Sunday July 28 Holyhead’

Cloudy 13C 55F

I woke before 7am and we were already docked,however 7.30 there was a tannoy announcement that the ship was not yet ready to clear as no shuttle buses there .

8am we headed up to Raffles for breakfast and look over side of ship at docking area and can see why you cant walk yourself off he pier.

 A ramshackle looking concrete strip linking ship docking area to mainland only wide enough for one bus at a time.Tendering would probably have been quicker at this port!

According to the information board in the Atrium Holyhead is famous for being……..A Ferry port!

Seriously nothing much to see here folks

Ships excursions were to places further afield such as Snowdonia National park or castles on mainland or along Anglesey coastline such as the excursion we cancelled .

Went back to room to fill 2^nd free laundry bag whilst 6 was having another fuzzy spell

He lay down waiting for it to pass-he was not as panicky this time.

Our balcony was facing out to the much more picturesque harbour  so watching the Sunday morning yacht club out there.

 

Feeling peckish we nipped up to Raffles for lunch and a cup of tea

Unfortunately someone had mistaken the cardboard box of PG tips tea for the rubbish bin as there was a used tea bag with string attached  contaminating the fresh tea bags-ugh!

Passed box over to buffet staff to exchange.

I went down to Charlie1pm for origami lily making-lets just say mine bore  little resemblance to the instructors.

As I was finishing got a text from 6 he was feeling a bit wobbly legged but no panic!

I went to meet him and guide him back to the room to sleep for a few hours.

Sailaway was on time at 6pm and Captain announcement that would be getting to Dublin several hours earlier than planned so repair work could be done on the propulsion system that had caused our late disembarkation from Southampton.

We were due to be 2 days in Dublin anyway so the amended 12.3am arrival time would give a good repair window.

 

We met K and D for food 8pm

6 decided to take it easy and went back to room

I stayed out for few drinks with Kand D but retired early anyway as the singalong with Ian West to Dean Martin songs was hardly rocking!

[KeithJenner]

I have taken the ferry from Holyhead before. You are right, there really is nothing there.

[fabnfortysomething]

Monday 29 July Dublin

Cloudy 13C 55F

However actually feels warmer than that and some sunshine.

We are here for 2 days but had already decided to stay on board as have visited before.

7.30 announcement that ship cleared and complimentary shuttles available to port gates as no walking through port allowed.

It’s a big industrial area with lots of shipping crates being loaded onto cargo ships and lots of noise from the reversing vehicle alarms.

No picturesque views anywhere here!

Lots of coaches and taxis lined up and 3 HOHO buses

However they were for the ships arranged tours at probably double regular cost.

To access regular HOHO our friends took shuttle to port gates and walked into Dublin from there-it was a long walk!

By 9am it was blue skies and pleasantly warm.

I took part in morning trivia 9.30 but decline to give my score!

I went back to childhood by taking part in Arts and crafts activities-Mandala Colouring otherwise known as colouring in for adults and creating a travel journal.

Raffles aft area was closed off from lunchtime for a private party aka staff BBQ so had to find somewhere else to sit out as our balcony facing the port was noisy.

The sun was out but a bit too cool to sunbathe but with a sweatshirt pool deck was fairly quiet.

 

We had our second platinum meal booked tonight with K and D in la Trattoria

It is effectively a corner of the buffet which is screened off from mid afternoon not a separate restaurant as on other ships-assume this will be changed post dry dock.

Service was pretty prompt unlike other experiences in past and food was OK but wouldn’t have paid out of my own pocket for it.

6 stuck out the meal but had an early night again now the activity on dock had finished for the day.

 

 

[fabnfortysomething]

Tuesday 30 July Dublin

Cloudy 16c 60f

Definitely not sun bathing weather.

People in elevator heading ashore in hats and gloves

Well they were from  the Bahamas!

I bought a map of the UK and Northern Europe from Guest Services costing $8.95 and signed and route map from Captain

Have framed it and makes a good addition to our hallway at home.

 

We were chilling out in atrium with a couple of Latte coffees when the waiter recognised us from Med cruise in 2016 when he was working Raffles bar.

6 was reading manual on his tablet for camera settings so obviously feeling more clear headed .He found photos from that cruise and yes indeed a photo of our waiter.

I headed for the days Art and Craft workshop-origami tulips

Unfortunately our expert from the other day had substituted another crew member armed with step by step instructions

All went well till final critical stage but result no tulips miraculously appeared!

We gave up and managed to make our way through a simple heart.

For lunch we tried wings and soup at Blue lagoon and got chatting to a couple from Meet and Greet who were on the large coach at Giants Causeway.

Their driver and guide were having an argument over whether the large coach could get down a narrow road marked unsuitable for large vehicles.

Guide said she had been on loads of coaches that got down but driver wasn’t sure  what  .However he was overruled and guess what the bus got stuck and had to reverse back ½ mile

Not a fun experience for the passengers along narrow twisty roads along coastline!

We spent most of afternoon sitting Raffles aft people watching and dark clouds approaching

Lots of people on shore got very wet!

It’s not the most scenic of ports but 6 was fascinated watching demolishing of a concrete pier[more interesting for him that old Castles lol]

Thought could send them way of Holyhead to demolish their decrepid pier!

7pm for sailaway and the pier staff removing the bridge support.

High visibility jacket and gloves but no hard hat and 6 was wincing with thought of the brain injury that could be caused by it swinging just a little off course!

A few drinks with newfound friends in Charlies for the evening then bed as plan to get off ship tomorrow.

 

 

[fabnfortysomething]

Wednesday July 31 Cobh

Cloudy 15C 59F

I had set up a half day coach trip with e coach a subsidiary of Butlers buses

Butler tend to run private tours where you hire entire vehicle whereas e coach you buy seats on large coach on individual seat basis

Cost 39euros pp as opposed to ships tour costing 96 euro

It was a trip to Blarney castle and gardens and again had extensive communication with company re walking and had prepaid for a mobility scooter to be on bus.

There was a slight delay in disembarking but 8.15 we found driver with clipboard.

Good news we were on his list

Bad News they knew nothing about a mobility scooter!

6 was prepared to get back on board but Niall our driver showed excellent customer service.

He persuaded 6 that the half day tour was completely possible and although nowhere was open yet to source a mobility scooter he rang head office who had a wheelchair available and we wouldn’t be charged for it and would refund the mobility scooter hire.

As a result we were the last ones to board the bus but Niall got on microphone and explained that due to a mix up the wheelchair that should have been on the bus wasn’t so would be doing a short detour to pick one up.

In other words he made it clear to the other passengers that we weren’t the one at fault for being last.

Actually we still set off at agreed time of 30 minutes past disembarking ship.

Niall was a brilliant and entertaining driver.

He apologised to the mainly American bus load about driving on the “wrong” side of the road in Southern Ireland same as the UK.

He then told us all in a very convincing way that in 6 months time they would be switching to driving on the other side along with America and rest of Europe………..starting with buses and trucks only

 

That got a good laugh and as he commented good to know people were awake !

He kept us entertained with anecdotes and songs for the hours drive to Blarney Castle where we arrived 9.30 and to meet back at  bus by 11.50.

He also suggested that as we had beaten the large ship excursion buses there if anyone wanted to climb the hundreds of stone steps to kiss the Blarney stone to do so first as once crowds arrive can be over an hour in line.

Niall unloaded the wheelchair which turned out to be brand new and still in the plastic.

K had volunteered to push 6 which brought back memories of last year in Peterhof gardens

As then going down slopes it can get difficult to stop wheelchair running away so 6 was applying the brakes accessible to him on the wheels.

I had no desire to climb the castle and certainly wasn’t going to hang upside down to share saliva with lots of strangers who were prepared to plant their lips on an old stone

And 6 certainly  already has “the gift of the gab”

There was no line at this point so K and D decided to climb to top but started heading in wrong direction to entrance

I called them back just in time as a crowd from an arriving coach wearing NCL was approaching so they got to correct start place

 

It was starting to rain so I took over wheelchair pushing duty to head for local café area under a canopy.

I discovered the wheelchair had cycle type brakes attached to the handles so I could control down slopes-K had completely missed that

So 6 felt a lot safer in my hands!

We met up with Niall around 11.30 and had good “craic” ie conversation whilst waiting for last passengers to arrive.

We headed back via a  Cork town centre drive through and then to the Cathedral in Cobh for a 5 minute photo op.

We were back at ship for 1.40pm

As all aboard wasn’t till 3.30 many people wandered round Cobh including K and D

It’s a pretty place  but very hilly!

There is a Titanic museum there as Cobh was the last port of call before its ill fated journey across the Atlantic.

We headed back onboard for lunch and then relaxed around ship.

US citizens had their passports  collected at Check in at Southampton and this afternoon was the process to collect them from theatre.

As UK citizens we had kept ours throughout.

 

4pm sailway it was warmer than had been all day and there were lots of people on the pier to wave us goodbye.

 A very picturesque sail out to open sea

 

A very quiet evening on ship-think most people were exhausted by this time as only 1 sea day at beginning.        

 

[fabnfortysomething]

Thursday 1 August Portland

Sunny 16C 60F

We had arranged to meet our tourmates at Cagneys 9am so less crowded than atrium

They consisted of K and D and couple and mother who we should have been on Invergordon tour.

I had booked Dorset Day trips last year after rave reviews on trip advisor and good email communication.

Daren runs tours in his Volkswagen camper van and books out very quickly for good reason.

We were 7 of us at £100 per person and well worth it.

We met Daren just off gangplank as he has license to enter port and piled into Snowy the camper van.

Daren also had a goody bag for us with bottle water ,pack raisins map of area and a postcard of Poole harbour where he lives.[about an hour away]

The camper van is actually only 6 years old as was one of last to be built in Brazil so benefits from more modern engine but still traditional features such as AC consists of winding down the window with a door handle!

We set off 9.30 for a full day of craic and Dorset scenery.

We started with a drive along coast to Durdle Dor famous rock formation.

You drive through a holiday caravan park to reach the car park.

Daren explained that 90% of tourists use steep long path and only get to see the formation right at end-that would definitely have been no use for 6.

Instead he led us along a high path along cliffs where had wonderful sweeping views of coastline

And yes once he pointed out it looks like a dinosaur drinking you cant unsee that image!

Well they call it the Jurassic coast.

Coming out of car park the big tour buses were passing other way so good timing.

We drove just round coast to Lulworth cove a pretty coastal village with more rock formations and the bay. Very popular with holiday makers

We spent about an hour here before heading inland to Corfe castle and the village.

Daren managed to park in middle of small village square whereas tour buses had to park on outskirts and trek in.

To say this is a popular tourist spot is an understatement

we had just over an hour here for lunch and to explore.

Daren again told us best points to get good views of Castle without paying entrance fee to enter the National Trust property.

3 of our tourmates had lunch in pub recommended by Daren, the rest of us grabbed a Cornish pasty from local bakery and explored slowly[no other option in 6 case]

Then piling back in van driving through pretty villages with lots of thatched roof cottages .We had a side trip to the tiny village of Steeple which has a Saxon church with links to George Washington .This was of interest particularly to our American friends.

Heading to Dorchester for another hidden gem.

Daren told us that the County Hall building where local government has its HQ is dated from 1930s and they wanted  to build a new one on land adjacent

However when they started to dig the foundations they came across remains of a Roman townhouse with intact mosaic floors so that plan had to be scotched.

It is free to visit but downside is that no money for keeping it intact

Worth visiting.

Heading back toward Portland he took us to Hardys monument.

Not local novelist Thomas Hardy  but Admiral Nelsons mate who he addressed his famous last words to

Whether they were “kiss me Hardy” or Kismet Hardy” is up for debate

Hardys family were rich locals and wanted a monument to commemorate which could be seen by ships passing coast.

So on top of a high patch of moorland there is what is supposed to be a statue of an old fashioned telescope.

However those of us with less than clean minds associated it with something else.

There are wonderful sweeping views to be seen from there and our ship in the background.

Back to ship 4.30 after a wonderful day.

Last evenings are always a bit sad so got packing done as quickly as possible and cases outside room so could enjoy last evening ending up taking a final drink out to enjoy on balcony and listen to sound of the waves.

 

[fabnfortysomething]

Friday 2^nd August Southampton

Sunny 18C

Disembarkation announcements stated 7am

Our Blackberry service back to London wasnt until 9 so had room service breakfast 8am then met with others sharing ride back outside Cagneys 8.30

I had already had text from Blackberry confirming vehicle details including registration.

It was very quick to get off ship and we grabbed our bags and waited for our ride in the terminal

9.05 I got a phone call from our driver-he was waiting for us at Ocean terminal not QE2-head office mis communication.

No problem 5 mins later he pulled up in an 8 seater Mercedes Vito which easily accommodated 6 of us and luggage

Total cost £175 with 3 drop offs

Our Daughters home near Heathrow, a Heathrow hotel and a final drop off at Hilton Paddington central London

We were the first drop off in just over an hour.

 

DD was papering bedroom and had just had fridge and washing machine delivered.

She had taken week off work to start work redecorating new house but had been living on takeaway with no fridge until today.

I headed to local shops for bacon butter and milk whilst 6 supervised DD installing the washing machine[with the nice new valve she had installed week before with remote help from her Dad]

Son in law had sensibly headed to Poland for a few days with work.

We had planned to stay with her for weekend and travel back home on Sunday.

We had off peak return tickets for train so choice which one to catch but I rang passenger assist as 6 would require help and they secured seat reservations for the 3pm train from Kings Cross on Sunday.

Blackberry cars were fully booked due to a major cycle race in London so booked with local taxi firm to take us hour journey direct to Kings Cross.

Saturday 6 again supervised DD changing broken sockets and repairing floorboards in the bedroom-she getting use out of her new tool kit

I did a flower arrangement

 

Our friends K and D arrived just before lunch from their Heathrow hotel having negotiated the local bus system.    

It was their 45^th wedding anniversary and they chose to spend it with us!

Well they did want to meet up with DD anyway as she was with us on the cruise we first met nearly 10 years ago.

We celebrated with fish and chips from the local chippie at end of road and a bottle of prosecco

And an IPA for D.

We discussed future plans for next year when doing transatlantic on QM2 Southampton to New York then fly to visit them in Indianopolis.

Fond farewells and 6 and DD carried on with DIY

6 had done a bit too much however and felt fuzzy headed again so retired to bed early whilst DD and I caught up.

Sunday 6 slept most of morning and we had taxi booked 1pm to take us to Kings Cross.

However 12 o clock he comes downstairs baby fashion ie on his bum 1 step at a time and obviously in no state to travel home.

I phoned passenger assist and the taxi company to make same arrangements 24 hours later.

Monday he was feeling better and taxi turned up promptly 1pm and pulled up outside Kings Cross just before 2pm.

I led way to info desk in middle of the station but 6 was having difficulty keeping sight of me in crowd-obviously another sideeffect of stroke.

There is a quiet waiting room in Kings Cross which ironically is right next to the busy Harry Potter shop and the platform 9 ¾ trolley photo op.

We were directed to wait there until 2.30 when rail employee collected us and helped us on to train ahead of other passengers so we could get settled .

Then came train announcement that super off peak tickets were not valid on this train-guess what we had!  

Not an issue for the original plan on Sunday but Monday to Thursday not valid between 3 and 7

I frantically tried to find train staff and located the train manager. Fortunately she said that as had had passenger assist would not make us get off. She said fault lay anyway with passenger assist who amended journey that they should have picked up on it

Back home 2 ½ hours later

We were due to take another cruise in October round Greek Isles and final payment due in few days.

We decided to cancel and give more time for convalescence

Instead we booked a similar itinerary for next April where  hopefully will see some of you  .

 

[goldmom]

Thank you for the wonderful review.  Looking forward to hearing about your next adventure.  Happy and safe travels to you and 6.

[Sauer-kraut]

Lovely review.  Sorry you missed Angelsey, my 2nd cousin had his wedding there at Beau Maris.  We spent a week there and had fun. 
I hope 6+ has a great convalescence and you have more wonderful trip reports to share.  Thank You