Now for something completely different

[NSWP]

On 2/13/2022 at 4:13 PM, By The Bay said:

Speaking of Sigrid Thornton, she is easy on the eyes. Have you seen her in the TV series "Sea Change". Very popular when it came out a few years back?

They look like brochure people for Princess Cruises, lol.

[Blackduck59]

37 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

Enjoy your chowder.  Seafood chowder is my favourite winter food overseas.  I discovered there are two kinds.

 

For the most part there is "Manhattan" style which will have tomatoes and "New England" style is a cream base. I always stick with the cream base when making it at home, Lynn is allergic to tomatoes.

The very good clam chowder on the BC Ferries is a Manhattan style, I enjoy that when dining in te Buffet (hopefully that will reopen some day). For now I avoid the ferry as best I can, I haven't left the Island since the road trip at the end of summer; next time we leave the island we will fly.

[MMDown Under]

27 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

 

For the most part there is "Manhattan" style which will have tomatoes and "New England" style is a cream base. I always stick with the cream base when making it at home, Lynn is allergic to tomatoes.

The very good clam chowder on the BC Ferries is a Manhattan style, I enjoy that when dining in te Buffet (hopefully that will reopen some day). For now I avoid the ferry as best I can, I haven't left the Island since the road trip at the end of summer; next time we leave the island we will fly.

When you fly from the island will that be for your cruise?  I love the creamy New England style.  I got a shock when I was served my first NY style, as I didn't know chowder could be tomato based.  When we stayed in a cottage in Prince Edward Island, I was able to buy all the ingredients to make a memorable New England style chowder.  They also had enormous oysters.

[Blackduck59]

14 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

When you fly from the island will that be for your cruise?  I love the creamy New England style.  I got a shock when I was served my first NY style, as I didn't know chowder could be tomato based.  When we stayed in a cottage in Prince Edward Island, I was able to buy all the ingredients to make a memorable New England style chowder.  They also had enormous oysters.

Yes we fly out on the 8th of April. It's a short hop to Vancouver with a very short connection window and then fly to LAX. We have a room booked in San Pedro where we will board Viking Orion on the 9th

[OzKiwiJJ]

2 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

When you fly from the island will that be for your cruise?  I love the creamy New England style.  I got a shock when I was served my first NY style, as I didn't know chowder could be tomato based.  When we stayed in a cottage in Prince Edward Island, I was able to buy all the ingredients to make a memorable New England style chowder.  They also had enormous oysters.

I first had chowder in San Francisco and it was tomato based. I've since had thr creamy version. When it's well made it's amazing but if you strike a bad version it's really horrible.

[MicCanberra]

I don't like food cooked badly either, apart from the taste it may make you sick.

[OzKiwiJJ]

11 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

I don't like food cooked badly either, apart from the taste it may make you sick.

Not bad in that sense but made on the cheap. Watery broth with very little flavour and a token few pieces of seafood etc.  Not worth eating.

[Bubbeh]

On 2/10/2022 at 1:54 PM, Blackduck59 said:

get vaccinated, problem solved.

As, Todd Sampson, one of my favourite men in the world had on his t-shirt on a  Gruen  last year; Trust Scientists, Not Morons.  No more accurate sentiment!

[Blackduck59]

Speaking of seafood.

 

I finally got around to trying out my stone grill. Those are local spot prawns and fresh king crab (definitely worth the $$$$) it was quite a treat.

[MicCanberra]

A feast to be sure.

[Blackduck59]

1 minute ago, MicCanberra said:

A feast to be sure.

 

I have to say, the crab was better than what we got in Alaska. I'm not sure what they did up there but the shells were soft and the flesh almost mushy. These ones were very nice the shells were hard and the flesh firm and delicate.

[MicCanberra]

2 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

 

I have to say, the crab was better than what we got in Alaska. I'm not sure what they did up there but the shells were soft and the flesh almost mushy. These ones were very nice the shells were hard and the flesh firm and delicate.

Much nicer, perhaps the others were frozen (too long)?

[NSWP]

3 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

Speaking of seafood.

 

I finally got around to trying out my stone grill. Those are local spot prawns and fresh king crab (definitely worth the $$$$) it was quite a treat.

Crikey Lyle you live well over there in Canuckland, would you care to join me for dinner at my joint?

 

[Blackduck59]

48 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

Much nicer, perhaps the others were frozen (too long)?

Perhaps, it just seemed strange how the shells were up there. They didn't crack they just collapsed, I asked the server to take them back and ask the cook to cut them. She refused so I destroyed one of their forks levering open the shells. What we had today was $8.95/100g it was very tasty.

[Blackduck59]

10 minutes ago, NSWP said:

Crikey Lyle you live well over there in Canuckland, would you care to join me for dinner at my joint?

 

 

If by chance we ever get to Oz, and meet up with you Les I doubt the meals will come in a box. You know the good eateries and I know how to cook.

[lyndarra]

53 minutes ago, NSWP said:

Crikey Lyle you live well over there in Canuckland, would you care to join me for dinner at my joint?

 

Cardboard cuisine. Nothing like the real thing.

[mr walker]

47 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

 

If by chance we ever get to Oz, and meet up with you Les I doubt the meals will come in a box. You know the good eateries and I know how to cook.

Oh Les definitely knows the good places & is a great host. We are hoping to dine with him again next month when we have 2 nights in Batemans Bay.

Lyle, I really hope you do make it over here someday & we can all catch up 🙂 

[NSWP]

3 hours ago, lyndarra said:

Cardboard cuisine. Nothing like the real thing.

It went in the bin, never buy it again.

[NSWP]

3 hours ago, mr walker said:

Oh Les definitely knows the good places & is a great host. We are hoping to dine with him again next month when we have 2 nights in Batemans Bay.

Lyle, I really hope you do make it over here someday & we can all catch up 🙂 

We might give Donegans a go been there a 100 times, owners are friends of mine. You can have chips instead of the spud, also oysters, fish, pork, chicken. They got it all just like Ronnie Donnies, lol.

I

Edited February 22, 2022 by NSWP

[NSWP]

OK frequent flyers and expedition cruisers some of you many be interested in my son's adventures. So he gets dispatched to Ushuaia to board the Ocean Victory to get to know the company product and staff.    Now in a Force 8 gale, 6 metre seas and 40 knot winds in ye olde infamous Drake Passage, on way to Antarctica.

 

Anyway, epic trip to get there...Sydney to Dalla on Qantas - 16 hrs. Transit at Dallas then American Airlines to Buenos Aires - 10 hrs, transit at BA then American Airlines to Ushuaia - 3 hrs.  Total 41 hours in flights and transit time. Not for me. After 11 day working adventure, flies to Copenhagen - Albatros Head Office via BA and Frankfurt. Week there then fly home. Bit of an adventure.

Edited February 22, 2022 by NSWP

[NSWP]

Taken yesterday in Ushuaia. She looks mean.

 

[OzKiwiJJ]

13 hours ago, NSWP said:

OK frequent flyers and expedition cruisers some of you many be interested in my son's adventures. So he gets dispatched to Ushuaia to board the Ocean Victory to get to know the company product and staff.    Now in a Force 8 gale, 6 metre seas and 40 knot winds in ye olde infamous Drake Passage, on way to Antarctica.

 

Anyway, epic trip to get there...Sydney to Dalla on Qantas - 16 hrs. Transit at Dallas then American Airlines to Buenos Aires - 10 hrs, transit at BA then American Airlines to Ushuaia - 3 hrs.  Total 41 hours in flights and transit time. Not for me. After 11 day working adventure, flies to Copenhagen - Albatros Head Office via BA and Frankfurt. Week there then fly home. Bit of an adventure.

Yikes! I hope they flew him business class where possible. That would be a nightmare trip!

[NSWP]

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Yikes! I hope they flew him business class where possible. That would be a nightmare trip!

He got business class on Qantas, Syd-Dallas, the company booked him premium economy but with his loads of status credits and ff points he got an upgrade to pointy end.  But economy on other two flights. Not sure about flights to Copenhagen.  Too long for me.  He had two nights rest in hotel in Ushuaia before boarding ship. I just spoke to him, he said the ship with its X bow handles the seas well, reduces pitching and stabilsers reduce roll. Still a few crook people on board though, .🤢

 

90 crew and 170 pax on board, pax 90% Americans, handful of Brits and Canadians, only Aussie is him. They are close to Ponant's L' Austral on way down to ice, they often have two ships travel together for safety reasons.

Edited February 23, 2022 by NSWP

[OzKiwiJJ]

At least he had a couple of days to decompress from the flights before boarding the ship.

 

When Rolf used to travel a lot on business he would often fly into the US or Asia on an overnight flight and have meetings the day he arrived. Initially it was all business class flights but later on they tried to cut costs by trying to insist on economy class. Rolf and his other Aussie colleagues pointed out that having exhausted senior staff members meeting with clients or attending important internal briefings wasn't actually a very good idea. They backed down but did cut back on travel in other ways.

[NSWP]

30 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

At least he had a couple of days to decompress from the flights before boarding the ship.

 

When Rolf used to travel a lot on business he would often fly into the US or Asia on an overnight flight and have meetings the day he arrived. Initially it was all business class flights but later on they tried to cut costs by trying to insist on economy class. Rolf and his other Aussie colleagues pointed out that having exhausted senior staff members meeting with clients or attending important internal briefings wasn't actually a very good idea. They backed down but did cut back on travel in other ways.

God points there Julie...The profit margins in the travel industry these days are slim, hence the executives are not always at the pointy end. ✈️ However he is in a passenger cabin, not in twin share crew cabins.  I will try and get a cabin photo.