Live: Iberian Explorer Jan 3 - 10

[Peregrina651]

Yes, I know I am a day early but I wanted to get things up and running before we board.  We are so excited about being on board again that neither of us can sleep, like 5 year olds who can't wait to see what Santa has brought them. 

 

We are doing our own pre- and post- adventures.  We arrived in Barcelona on Wednesday and immediately flew to Bilbao, to check out the Guggenheim Museum and to see an area of Spain that was unfamiliar to us.  Our little hotel has a wonderful view of the Musem.  Spent a few hours in and out of the Musem and then spent the rest of the day walking around the city.  Connecting out of Barcelona was a breeze, too -- if you don't have to reclaim any baggage in Barcelona.  Post cruise we have 3 nights planned in London.

 

So, looking forward to a week of pampering and visiting a few new places on the Iberian Penninsula -- and reporting on what I learn. 

 

 

[OnTheJourney]

Have a great time! Will check in on this thread from time to time....

[Peregrina651]

  Arrived around 9:30.  They had not even finished disembarking the departing passengers. However, they collected our bags for delivery to the ship and we headed into town to the Carrefours and to find a bank. Every bank we stopped at charged a fee. Don't know if that will hold true for all users-- Santander, BBVA and Sabadell, were the three we tried. 

 

As we were walking into town, we ran into a couple who have seen on previous cruises; they boarded in Rome.  So, Iberian Explorer is also a segment of a longer voyage.

 

We timed our return to the ship poorly, and managed to arrive with a bus full or 2 of fellow arrivees. Still everything went smoothly and we were on board very quickly. 

[JenRonn1104]

Peregrina, have a wonderful time.  I got my Facebook reminder this morning that 1/3/2019 we were on a plane flying to Barcelona to spend a couple days before our Iberian Explorer cruise.  Wish we were there again today.  Barcelona is one of my favorite cities.  And of course being on Viking is wonderful.  Enjoy the cruise.  I hope you have nice weather like we did.

Jen

 

[Peregrina651]

 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, JenRonn1104 said:

Peregrina, have a wonderful time.  I got my Facebook reminder this morning that 1/3/2019 we were on a plane flying to Barcelona to spend a couple days before our Iberian Explorer cruise.  Wish we were there again today.  Barcelona is one of my favorite cities.  And of course being on Viking is wonderful.  Enjoy the cruise.  I hope you have nice weather like we did.

Jen

 

 

LOL. Last  year you were embarking in Barcelona as we were disembarking. I love Barcelona, too, but we wanted to see more of the country, so we spent two nights in Bilboa. We left most literally before dawn this morning, watching the sun rise as we flew east.  We loved Bilbao. The Guggengeim is really neat and the city itself  is relaxing and very different from the Spanish cities I already know. 

[jimbri]

Have a great time!

[Frenchberet]

Looking forward to your report.  Hope you have a wonderful trip!

[Krisval]

So happy to see you off and cruising again! I know you’ll find some great adventures and looking forward to reading about them.

we are currently sailing to New Zealand after having been in Australia. Our first New Zealand stop, in Dunedin, was canceled due to high seas. Passing that by and going to Christchurch. 
Look forward to seeing you onboard sometime!

[Peregrina651]

4 hours ago, jimbri said:

Have a great time!

Just try and stop me! 🙃

[OnTheJourney]

Interesting about this cruise being part of a longer itinerary.

 

What ship are you on? I never saw any Iberian Explorer dates other than those listed for 2021-22. Easy enough to check your ship's long range itinerary and see where she's been before Barcelona. 

Edited January 4, 2020 by OnTheJourney

[Squawkman]

On 1/3/2020 at 7:10 AM, Peregrina651 said:

Every bank we stopped at charged a fee. Don't know if that will hold true for all users-- Santander, BBVA and Sabadell, were the three we tried. 

 

Our local Wells Fargo branch (East Brunswick NJ)  has Euros in stock - just walk in and get some as a withdrawal. I’m sure other banks do this as well. One less thing to do when you get to your destination.

[Peregrina651]

53 minutes ago, Squawkman said:

Our local Wells Fargo branch (East Brunswick NJ)  has Euros in stock - just walk in and get some as a withdrawal. I’m sure other banks do this as well. One less thing to do when you get to your destination.

 

This is the first time we have had this problem. Since we are wondering on our own, stopping at a bank is no problem and the fees are still cheaper than buying euro in the US.  

[Squawkman]

8 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

This is the first time we have had this problem. Since we are wondering on our own, stopping at a bank is no problem and the fees are still cheaper than buying euro in the US.  

not true about fees - again, this could be because we’re depositors,

[Peregrina651]

You lucked out. My experience has been US banks overcharge and I no longer bother to buy currency in the US. 

[Dauntless]

58 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

This is the first time we have had this problem. Since we are wondering on our own, stopping at a bank is no problem and the fees are still cheaper than buying euro in the US.  

 

The card I use for travel refunds any fees, if charged.

[Squawkman]

33 minutes ago, Dauntless said:

 

The card I use for travel refunds any fees, if charged.

 

Same here - but there's usually a need for some cash - especially if you're doing time on your own or want to buy something from a street market or food vendor. 

[Peregrina651]

Today in Cartagena we wondered on our own. We had a short list of things we wanted to accomplish that were not on any one tour: the Roman theater, a paella and some window shopping.  Mission accomplished.  

 

I picked up some helpful hints along the way.  It is very easy to get there on your own if you DO NOT follow the route we took.  Do not go up the staircase at the far end of the pier.  It will only make the entrance to the Roman Theatre Museum, which is how you get into the theatre itself, more difficult to find.  

 

The most direct way to get to the theatre is to follow the edge of the yacht basin on your left until you make the left to continue following the yacht basin, keep walking until you get to the Tourist Boats. Turn right and follow the marble esplanade until you get to the Ayuntamiento building. It looks like this, the building with the black dome:

 

 

One of two peach colored buildings just opposite it is the Museo Teatro Romano and the entrance into theater itself.

 

If you continue straight through the town hall square there is a nice shopping area with nice bars where you can park the husbands for beer and tapas while you shop. 

 

The Roman Theater exit is two blocks from where you went in.  If you turn left as you walk out the gate, it will take up to the top of the theatre but outside the paid area of the Musem.  If you have the knees and the lungs, it is worth it for the panoramic view of the city. 

 

If you continue straight and then make either of the first 2 lefts, it will take you back to the Ayuntamiento. 

 

We did not do any of the tours. Hopefully others from our roll call will chime in with their reports. 

[Ebart01]

We switched our excursion from the included tour to the Segway tour.  It was a lot of fun, although I think we experienced a lot more of Cartagena in our walkabout before hand.  
Overall first-time cruiser impressions:

1) embarkation was a cinch- so easy I will probably forget how we even got on the ship.

 

2). Our DV cabin on the 6th deck is good, although storage for clothes is lacking.  We love the view and bathroom.  
 

3).  Meals are a bit of a mess- felt like nothing has quite gone as planned with any of them so far- either no silverware, no drinks, slow service or no service for our first 4 meals.  Sat next to a very aggravated couple in The Restaurant for dinner whose angst at the service kept our attention.  We have avoided The Restaurant today because of that.

 

4). Staff is friendly, but seems pretty novice (maybe explains the service at meals).  Our cabin attendant is wonderful.

 

5).  Entertainment is understated and not well attended.  The informational talks aren’t concise enough- they go on too long and attendance is very low.  
 

6). Best thing is how uncrowded the ship is- you can find a quiet spot to sit back and relax- except maybe the spa!  Looking forward to the rest of the cruise.

[Peregrina651]

1 hour ago, Ebart01 said:

Meals are a bit of a mess- felt like nothing has quite gone as planned with any of them so far- either no silverware, no drinks, slow service or no service for our first 4 meals.  Sat next to a very aggravated couple in The Restaurant for dinner whose angst at the service kept our attention.  We have avoided The Restaurant today because of that.

 

There is NO reason to be stuck sharing you meal with aggravating dinner companions of any ilk.  Just walk away, Renee!

 

DH and I have an escape plan. One of us excuses ourself from the table, quietly and with no fuss. Go back to podium. Explain the situation and asked to be moved to the other side of the dining room.  Then ask them to fetch our spouse.  So far, we have not had to use it. 

 

It is our vacation and we aren't going to spend it listening to complaints. So there!

 

Really, there is no reason you should feel the need to avoid any venue.  In fact, come join DH and me for dinner tomorrow in the  MDR after the M&M and you won't be stuck eating with the Downers or the Bohrs, I promise to be on my best behavior and DH promises to save his worst jokes for last. 

 

[-Lew-]

On 1/3/2020 at 7:10 AM, Peregrina651 said:

Every bank we stopped at charged a fee. Don't know if that will hold true for all users-- Santander, BBVA and Sabadell, were the three we tried. 

 

Check out Schwab and Capital One debit cards for getting cash from foreign ATMs.  Neither charges international transaction fees and both reimburse all ATM fees.  We always save foreign currency as seed money for our next trip.
 

Thank you for the lIve from...enjoying it very much.

 

 

[OnTheJourney]

May I ask again what ship this cruise is taking place on? 

[Ebart01]

8 hours ago, OnTheJourney said:

May I ask again what ship this cruise is taking place on? 

Viking Star

[Peregrina651]

Today we are in Malaga and again we have taken off on our own to explore the Picasso Museum and the Carmen Thyssen Museum. Along the way, we found a bonus at the Cultural Center by the Cathedral -- an exhibition by one of our favorite Spanish painters, Joaquin Sorolla. Big parade in town tonight plus it is Sunday on a three-day weekend, so the streets have been very busy. 

 

Viking has been running shuttle buses from the ship to Plaza de la Marina, every half an hour from 9 am until 5:30 (too early a return for us to see any of parade).  The Plaza de la Marina is right at the gate to the port road and a very convenient jump off point to the city. 

 

2021 lurkers take note that the big parade will not be an issue for you.  Christmas vacation will be over by the time you sail and all of the ports will be very quiet in comparison. 

[OnTheJourney]

1 hour ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

 

2021 lurkers take note that the big parade will not be an issue for you.  Christmas vacation will be over by the time you sail and all of the ports will be very quiet in comparison. 

 

Works for me!!   I still don't understand why your sailing was (at least apparently) not listed on the website. 

Edited January 5, 2020 by OnTheJourney

[Ebart01]

Did the included tour in the morning (Málaga) and then the optional Mijas Mountain tour. Both were very informative and Mijas is a great place to spend an afternoon.  The crowds were not an issue.

 

Ate dinner at the main restaurant- best service yet, and only to one side did we have unpleasant company!  Win!