Saga Rose Greenland Voyager August 2007

[Host Sharon]

Arh - the book! Well aside from part time work for Social Services, I am a freelance writer of history books. I was commissioned to compile a book of photos and memories of the Grand Pier in Weston-super-Mare, the pavilion of which burnt down last July. It will be my 14th published book and I now have a contract for another one next year on a different local history topic. They are fun to do and I enjoy them a lot. Unfortunately they don't pay enough to live on though!

 

We are the same by the way - a few flakes of snow and everything grinds to a halt!

[Host Sharon]

Photos of my cruise are now at

http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/sharonp40/AuroraCruiseWinterWonderland#

including the fabulous gingerbread village the chefs built for us.

[Kapricorn]

Ships cat - as usual, beautiful photographs! Thanks for sharing.

 

The ship's crew sure knew how to put on festive decorations. How was your experience aboard Aurora?

 

Donald.

[Druke I]

You have some neat photos there - thanks for the share.

[Host Sharon]

The ship's crew sure knew how to put on festive decorations. How was your experience aboard Aurora?

 

Donald.

 

Thanks Donald.

It has been four years since I last sailed on Aurora so I had forgotten a great deal about her. My first impression was that it was hard to find a public room, other than the Crows Nest, from where you could see the sea. After several cruises in between on Artemis, I was used to seeing the water on both sides of the ship from every public room. However, she is a lovely ship and I soon grew used to that. All the Christmas decorations were up and twinkling with little blue lights, and there were wreaths on all the dining room tables. Other Christmas touches included Carols sung to us at dinner on the last formal night by the crew, led by the Captain and Cruise Director and a wonderful Gingerbread village built in the atrium. There was also an on-board Christmas Market on one day, where you could buy alcohol and reduced prices and even order a Christmas cake to take homeThe seas were calm, but she is an exceptionally stable ship anyway. At the virtual bridge tour the officer commented that if you took everything off the ship, passengers and fittings, it would still be hard to destabilise Aurora. My upgraded balcony cabin was lovely, with loads of storage and in a good position for the Riviera Pool, Orangery, Spa and Theatre. The food was good, although not exceptional, other than the meal we had one night in Marco Pierre White Café Bordeaux. I would happily sail on her again, but still prefer Artemis of the two.[/font]

Edited December 23, 2008 by ships cat

[Kapricorn]

Ships Cat - thank you very much for describing all that was done on board Aurora. The crew certainly went all out to instill a festive Christmas atmosphere that was appreciated by passengers. It's terrific that you were upgraded to a balcony cabin!

 

Donald.

[Saga Ruby]

According to my calculations, each of you is sailing in the Caribbean starting on January 9th. Fran will be taking her free cruise and doing guard duty so no one falls overboard during the NCL itinerary and I assume Donald will be soaking up the sun?

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

Fran, please remind me on what ship and itinerary you will be sailing next month. If it is in the Caribbean, might it be possible that our ships will cross paths? I am sailing out of San Juan on January 9.

 

Ruby, you surmised correctly ... indeed I will be soaking up the sun. This was the first time in 37 years that all of Canada - Atlantic to Pacific to Arctic - had a white Christmas. I haven't ventured outdoors since the morning of December 24. For the first time in ten years, I'm battling a sore throat and cold. :(

 

Donald.

[franu]

Merry Christmas and Healthy &Happy New Year to All

Fran, please remind me on what ship and itinerary you will be sailing next month.

 

Donald, I am sailing from the Port of Miami on the NCL Jewel. Although we go to Tortola and Barbados I have verified that it will not be on the same day. It would have been a wonderful opportunity for us to say "hello" in real time. In fact a downright pleasure.

 

DayPortArriveDepartFri Miami - 4:00 PMSat At Sea--Sun Samana 10:00 AM 6:00 PMMon Tortola 10:00 AM 6:30 PMTue Antigua 8:00 AM 5:00 PMWed Barbados 9:00 AM 6:00 PMThu St. Lucia 8:00 AM 5:00 PMFri At Sea--Sat At Sea--Sun Miami 8:00 AM-

 

I too have been nursing an illness. It is probably a stomach virus. I am a lot better and just somewhat weak. My son thinks that I may be dehydrated. A diagnosis made via phone but it is most probably correct. Better now than too close to the cruise.

 

I must confess that I did not feel comfortable with my Azamara reservation. I am not the type to have a butler nor a concierge. It was too short for all of the travel. I cancelled that reservation and made another two.

 

Friends of mine in AZ have invited me to cruise with them to Hawaii in February 2009. We will be on the Zandam circle to Hawaii. My friend is Hawaiian by birth and raised there too. My decision to join them was made partly by that.

 

 

I will be doing a 40 night cruise in South east Asia in Jan. 2010 on the Voyages of Discovery's ship Discovery. This time I believe it will be "da solo" again.

Fran

 

We should plan a group cruise so that we all meet each other.

[Saga Ruby]

Friends of mine in AZ have invited me to cruise with them to Hawaii in February 2009. We will be on the Zandam circle to Hawaii. My friend is Hawaiian by birth and raised there too. My decision to join them was made partly by that.

 

I will be doing a 40 night cruise in South east Asia in Jan. 2010 on the Voyages of Discovery's ship Discovery. This time I believe it will be "da solo" again. Fran

 

I hope you are feeling better after your recent health roundelay. I am curious about your 40-night cruise in Southeast Asia. Where do you start and finish? Do you have a visit to Halong Bay in Vietnam?

 

I am excited about my Prinsendam cruise because, since booking it a year ago, I have enjoyed price reductions which now total $2,617. I book directly with cruise lines but can anyone tell me how travel agents handle these decreases with their clients? Do they wait until final payment and announce a large savings or do they keep their clients updated as the prices drift downward?

 

Ruby

[Druke I]

Reference Travel Agents and reductions in fares: some do keep their clients updated, and then there are the others who don't.

 

A good agent can be a treasure - and you know about the others.

 

Happy New Years to all who frequent this thread.

[Kapricorn]

Are you feeling much better now, Fran? I hope so! Today was the first time since December 24 that I ventured outdoors. It has warmed enough to once again be over zero Centigrade (32F), and I made two shopping trips within a block radius. My sore throat is gone, and I'm OK as long as I don't sneeze, in which case I use up a couple of Kleenex. I'm hoping to be more or less back to normal by tomorrow evening, in time for my birthday/New Year's celebration at a local restaurant with two friends who are treating me to the event.

 

Fran, indeed it would have been a pleasant occurence to "bump into" each other in a Caribbean port. At least both of us will be enjoying the same Caribbean sunny weather!

 

When are you doing the Zaandam circle to Hawaii? I'll be doing the Mercury circle to Hawaii on February 28. It's really amazing that we will be cruising in the same areas during the same months!

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR to all!

 

Donald.

[franu]

I hope you are feeling better after your recent health roundelay. I am curious about your 40-night cruise in Southeast Asia. Where do you start and finish? Do you have a visit to Halong Bay in Vietnam?

I am doing better. the biggest problem was the after effects. Dehydration and fear.

 

My SE Asia cruise begins and ends in Singapore. We will overnight in Halong Bay. Is there a special reason that you ask? Scroll to the bottom of the page to get the itinerary.

http://us.voyagesofdiscovery.com/voyage_details.php?cruise_id=18326

 

When are you doing the Zaandam circle to Hawaii? I'll be doing the Mercury circle to Hawaii on February 28. It's really amazing that we will be cruising in the same areas during the same months!

 

Happy Birthday Donald. What is the date of this special occasion? Mine will be in Miami for my pre-cruise overnight.

I am going to Hawaii on Feb.5. It is a 15 day circle.

 

Happy New Year to all. Have a wonderful cruising year

Fran

[Kapricorn]

Happy Birthday Donald. What is the date of this special occasion? Mine will be in Miami for my pre-cruise overnight.

 

Today - December 31 - is my birthday. So, Fran, you're also a Capricorn!

 

I'm feeling much better this morning - nose is less stuffy. I should be OK for tonight's fun!

 

Happy New Year to all!

Donald.

[Host Sharon]

Today - December 31 - is my birthday. So, Fran, you're also a Capricorn!

 

I'm feeling much better this morning - nose is less stuffy. I should be OK for tonight's fun!

 

Happy New Year to all!

Donald.

 

And me too - 16th Jan. I hope you both have lovely birthdays. Strangley all four of my best friends, met over many years, have consecutive birthdays 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th February. How strange is that?

 

Happy new year everyone.

[Kapricorn]

Strangley all four of my best friends, met over many years, have consecutive birthdays 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th February. How strange is that?

 

That sure is interesting about your best friends! In my family four members have birthdays every second day: niece on Dec. 27, brother-in-law's brother on Dec. 29, mine on Dec. 31, and nephew on Jan. 2. The niece and nephew actually were born in the same year!

 

Donald.

[franu]

Happy Birthday Donald and many, many more filled with delightful cruises.

 

As Donald and I will both be away for your birthday, we will have to send our wishes for you Sharon a bit early. May your year be filled with joy and a camera in your hand.

My birthday is just in the middle between your birthdays on the 8th.

Fran

[MMDown Under]

My SE Asia cruise begins and ends in Singapore. We will overnight in Halong Bay. Is there a special reason that you ask? Scroll to the bottom of the page to get the itinerary.

http://us.voyagesofdiscovery.com/voyage_details.php?cruise_id=18326

Fran

 

We have just arrived home from our travels, via Singapore which was being decorated for Chinese New Year celebrations, starting on the 3rd.

 

You will be able to enjoy these decorations because Chinese New Year is 14/2/2010.

 

Your planned 40 day cruise of SE Asia sounds just wonderful - enjoy the anticipation.

[franu]

You will be able to enjoy these decorations because Chinese New Year is 14/2/2010.

 

That will be great to see,however I would have liked to see the actual New Years celebration. I will be back in Canada by then. I guess that I need to really comprehend how fortunate I am to see all of these ports.

Fran

[MMDown Under]

That will be great to see,however I would have liked to see the actual New Years celebration. I will be back in Canada by then. I guess that I need to really comprehend how fortunate I am to see all of these ports.

Fran

 

You may get to see some celebrations, as they celebrate for a period. This year Chinese New Year is 26/1, yet Singapore celebrations start this weekend on the 3rd.

 

We visited a church where people were praying and leaving gifts in celebration of the Year of the Ox.

[franu]

You may get to see some celebrations, as they celebrate for a period. This year Chinese New Year is 26/1, yet Singapore celebrations start this weekend on the 3rd.

 

Thank you for that information as now I can look forward to seeing it. I will not put myself into researching it until I come back from my other cruises in Feb.

Fran

[Saga Ruby]

My SE Asia cruise begins and ends in Singapore. We will overnight in Halong Bay. Is there a special reason that you ask? Scroll to the bottom of the page to get the itinerary. http://us.voyagesofdiscovery.com/voyage_details.php?cruise_id=18326

Fran

 

Ha Long Bay is touted as the Vietnamese version of Phang Nga Bay outside of Phuket. As you may remember from this vast thread, I talked about the thrill of seeing those famous geologic oddities after a lifelong desire to travel to those Thai islands. I have not seen, in person, Ha Long Bay, but I have made a point of watching travel shows that feature Ha Long. So I'm interested in hearing your input.

 

I enjoyed reading your Asia itinerary - what a lovely cruise that will be. I had no idea there was a Sihanoukville - I wonder what its original name was?

 

Ruby

[Druke I]

According to google, Sihanoukville is also known as Kampong Som.

[franu]

I have just noticed that we are rapidly approaching 2500 posts. That is a lot of communication. I still do not feel as though I was leaving soon. By now I usually feel so hyped that I can't calm down. My MIL used to call it "reiser fever", the state of anxiety that occurs before a trip. It often keeps you awake or your sleep becomes sporadic.

 

This trip the need for my alarm clock will be strong especially as I am being picked up @ 3:30AM for a 6:30 AM flight to Fort Lauderdale.

Fran

[Saga Ruby]

I have just noticed that we are rapidly approaching 2500 posts. That is a lot of communication. This trip the need for my alarm clock will be strong especially as I am being picked up @ 3:30AM for a 6:30 AM flight to Fort Lauderdale. Fran

 

This thread has been quite enjoyable and informative over what is now years. Amazing that we're at 2,500 posts. Since January 2007 when I first started this thread, it is interesting to look back down the years and cogitate on the many changes in the cruise industry. Just today, I read that RCI will be charging a delivery fee for post-midnight snacks to cabins. Today $3.95 per order, tomorrow $12.00.

 

At this time, I have not had to "greet the dawn" due to a plane res. Many people do. Is your flight an NCL arrangement or did you choose to make the early flight to arrive on embarkation day?

 

Ruby