Saga Rose Greenland Voyager August 2007

[Kapricorn]

Conte, thank you very much for a well-done report on the Britannia! These photographs were my first-ever look at the interiors of the yacht. Now I am able to visualize the royals relaxing or entertaining in these rooms. The Queen in front of her vanity mirror, with a mud pack on her face and her hair in curlers in the Hairdressing 101 basic style created 60 years ago.

 

Donald D'Maniac of the Kapricorn.

[Saga Ruby]

Conte - I have reviewed your Britannia photos several times simply because I was caught completely by surprise. I assumed that Lilibet’s bedroom would be on the order of Marie Antoinette and I was dead wrong. Good on them for keeping it simple onboard as much as possible, being royal and all that. What excellent photos and such informative comments. Now I’m sorry I haven’t been to Leith to see Britannia.

 

That Rolls and the Barge - what beautiful antique pieces. The next time I tender into a port, I’ll remember the Barge and the porpoise. And yes, the sitting room and the electric fireplace are lovely, just what I would expect on that Royal Yacht.

 

The Queen in front of her vanity mirror, with a mud pack on her face and her hair in curlers in the Hairdressing 101 basic style created 60 years ago. Donald D'Maniac of the Kapricorn.

D’maniac of Kapricorn - you bad boy! The Queen in mud packs and hair curlers - egad! It is my understanding that the Queen dons a wig most of the time for public appearances. I wonder if I have seen her real hair in the past 30 years? Remember when that nutter got into her bedchambers and she chatted with him while pushing the emergency button and no one came? The man was caught and convicted but his cheery remark was how much he had enjoyed his chat with the Queen and admired the wigs lining her dresser.

 

Donald, I have Canadian Thanksgiving questions. Do y’all do the turkey, stuffing, pie thing or is there a Northern skew to your celebration? I must admit that I am crushed. I assumed we would be seeing a photo of you from Vision of the Seas with a holiday hat on your head or gnawed turkey leg bones in each hand.

 

To Graham and D’maniac - I stumbled into the HAL board because a posted title caught my eye. There is a discussion raging about holds being put on credit cards onboard ship at the level of $60/day, evidently to keep the deadbeats from running up an astronomical bill and then walking the check. Many HAL passengers are upset. Is this a new management policy or is it standard for your cruises? Color me curious.

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

Ruby, if the Queen has a plethora of wigs, then that would explain a few things, such as I wondered when did she ever have the time to sit under a hairdryer? BTW, did the Queen scurry over to fling on a wig when the intruder came into her bedroom?

 

Yes, we do Thanksgiving the way that Americans do. At the dinner that I went to, there were turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, potatoes, yams, brussels spouts, and both pumpkin and apple pie. I carved the turkey.

 

Oh, I wouldn't have booked a Thanksgiving cruise anytime ... too many families, and kids running around! For some reason, children NEVER walk, they run.

 

I wasn't aware of this HAL policy regarding the $60/day holds on credit cards. If this was the policy on the Zaandam, I didn't notice it (or paid no attention). I don't splurge aboard ships anyway. What about you, Graham?

 

D'maniac of Kapricorn.

[bcscot]

I am not sure but I do not think it is anything new. I think other companies do it too. They do not bill your card, they only put a hold on it. You have the option of giving them a cash deposit. I think that hotels may do the same.

 

Graham.

[Saga Ruby]

Yes, we do Thanksgiving the way that Americans do. At the dinner that I went to, there were turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, potatoes, yams, brussels spouts, and both pumpkin and apple pie. I carved the turkey. D'maniac of Kapricorn.

 

Gosh, if I were going to draw a picture of a Canadian Thanksgiving, the festive sideboard would be groaning with filet of polar bear, grizzly bear's trotter, salmon cheeks, and rare dried grasses. And an Inuit choir dressed in native costumes singing Canadian holiday songs.

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

Gosh, if I were going to draw a picture of a Canadian Thanksgiving, the festive sideboard would be groaning with filet of polar bear, grizzly bear's trotter, salmon cheeks, and rare dried grasses. And an Inuit choir dressed in native costumes singing Canadian holiday songs.

 

Ruby

 

For all we know, maybe that's how it's done in Nunavut, the region next to the Arctic Sea.

 

D'maniac of Kapricorn

[Saga Ruby]

D’maniac - tell me about your Mexican Riviera cruise(s) on Vision of the Seas. I assume it is one week out then one week back to Vancouver. What is the itinerary as you bop around along the coastline? Do you usually go into the ports or stay onboard?

 

Is the Vision a "b" word? The dreaded behemoth? Do tell.

 

Ruby

[Saga Ruby]

[Kazoo salute]

 

I see that the Nostalgia Cruise sailed through the "15,000 views" level during the night. I am truly surprised and touched at the reception of this Saga Rose Greenland thread which has evolved into our loverly Nostalgia Cruise, the best voyage on the Seven Seas.

 

Thanks to all you stalwarts for keeping this thread active, and welcome to those of you who visit us occasionally.

 

Kind regards to all from Admiral Ma'am,

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

Ruby, the Vision of the Seas does one-week cruises from Los Angeles to the Mexican Riviera throughout the winter. As a one-week cruise to sunny climes is practically a mini-cruise for me, is not worth the time and expense of air travel, and also is not sufficient time for me to work up a decent sun-tan, therefore I am staying on the ship for two consecutive cruises. :D

 

I've been to the Mexican Riviera often enough to simply stay aboard and relax at the ship's outdoor pool while the ships are in the ports. With most of the passengers ashore doing tours and shopping, the ship is largely empty and quiet, and I can pick and choose a poolside lounge chair, read a book and drink cold beer while not swimming. The buffets are less crowded, too. On at least three cruises I never once stepped ashore.

 

The itinerary? Well, um, er, ah, I didn't really pay attention when I booked these cruises. Checking the RCI site, it's Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan & Puerto Vallarta.

 

The Vision is not a behemoth. Its 78,491 tons is slightly larger than the Mercury's 77,713 tons.

 

D'maniac.

[Druke I]

Funny - ships in the 70,000GRT range are now considered by many to be small.

 

Princess' Sun class fits right in that range at 77,000GRT, and we thought Sun

Princess to be a very nice size.

 

Princess' Coral & Island are somewhat bigger at 92,000GRT, and strike us as very well-laid out ships.

 

Ruby, I consider any ship to be a behemoth if it can't fit in the locks of the current Panama Canal. Those ships I mentioned above do all fit in the Canal.

 

Like Kapricorn, I usually don't get off ships in Mexican ports - the country just does not hold my interest. On those occasions we have taken a Mexican Riviera cruise, it is to check out a ship that is new to us, and it is very convenient for us, particularly when we can do it out of San Francisco, although we have sailed out of Los Angeles. We haven't done it yet from San Diego, which has been attracting a lot of ships lately.

[Saga Ruby]

I've been to the Mexican Riviera often enough to simply stay aboard and relax at the ship's outdoor pool while the ships are in the ports. With most of the passengers ashore doing tours and shopping, the ship is largely empty and quiet . . . Checking the RCI site, it's Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan & Puerto Vallarta. D'maniac.

 

The last time I was in the Caribbean - and I do mean the last - I stayed on the ship in St. Thomas and watched the tours leaving the ship. I sat on the shady side of the Constellation's promenade deck and read a book while soaking up the peace and quiet. I too like the changeover from cruise to cruise - the staff is busy getting the cabins ready and perhaps have a bit of shore leave. I try to stay out of their way.

 

Once you've seen Cabo and Los Arcos, walked around Mazatlan, and "done" PV, that's about it. I do enjoy the sailaway out of the bay by PV; it is 95 miles tip-to-tip and lingers in sight for miles.

 

My family used to travel to Mexico when I was quite young and my most lasting memory of Mazatlan is that it was the "mother of pearl" capital of Mexico. Every single stationary thing was mde of abalone, decorated with abalone, or embedded with abalone.

 

I was shocked down to my shoes to learn that Playa del Carmen now has a Wal-Mart and a Home Depot. I remember it as a shining white-sand beach, palm trees swaying in the tropical breeze, and few people. One of these days the Seychelles will be overrun. [heavy sigh]

 

I'm so envious that you live in a beautiful port city and can manipulate your weather by cruising.

 

Ruby

[Saga Ruby]

Funny - ships in the 70,000GRT range are now considered by many to be small.

 

Ruby, I consider any ship to be a behemoth if it can't fit in the locks of the current Panama Canal. Those ships I mentioned above do all fit in the Canal.

 

I find it amusing that the Connie at 92,000gt is considered small. But I keep hearing in the wind that passengers are liking the "smaller" behemoths better. Is it possible that cruisers are tired of walking a quarter mile from their room to the pool?

 

There will always be the partying crowd which is drawn to the true behemoths but I am mildly encouraged that there may be an identifiable group of cruisers which is tiring of the "apartment house on a barge" ships. The new QE is "small" - does this mean that RCI's Project Genesis may be the tail end of the megaships?

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

[Kazoo salute]

 

I see that the Nostalgia Cruise sailed through the "15,000 views" level during the night. I am truly surprised and touched at the reception of this Saga Rose Greenland thread which has evolved into our loverly Nostalgia Cruise, the best voyage on the Seven Seas.

 

Thanks to all you stalwarts for keeping this thread active, and welcome to those of you who visit us occasionally.

 

Kind regards to all from Admiral Ma'am,

 

Ruby

 

I love statistics! There are three posts with considerably more views than ours in this section, but ours has a much more active participation rate, with less lurkers and "silent" members. Consider the following data:

 

Viking China: 1,472 posts, 62,111 views = a message is posted once every 42 viewers

SuperStar Virgo: 830 posts, 41,449 views = once every 50

SuperStar Gemini: 1,058 posts, 36,648 views = once every 34

Saga Rose: 911 posts, 15,097 views = once every 17!

 

In my opinion, this kind of participation rate is much more meaningful than total views.

 

D'maniac.

[Saga Ruby]

I love statistics!

 

Ah, a Nostalgia Cruise member who loves statistics. Whew! Admiral Ma'am does not do well with numbers formed like Playdoh into various shapes.

 

At TCU, it was suggested that I take statistics in my 2nd or 3rd year but I had heard about the difficulty of the course so I ran for the door to creative writing.

 

I will notify the Purser's Office that we have a statistician onboard. Perhaps you could work with the Chief Engineer on x amounts of Bunker C required to propel the ship for y days (she's a classic old ship). And how many tonnes of artichokes will be required by the galley for these many days. Wonderful.

 

Ruby

[Druke I]

Artichokes!!

 

I've never seen an artichoke on a ship. As I sit here typing, I can smell them cooking - my wife did say we will be having them tonight. In season, we have them at least once a week.

 

I am curious why you, a Texan, used the British spelling "tonnes" rather than the US "tons". When I see "tonnes", I think of the 2200 pound variety, rather than the standard 2000 pounds.

[Saga Ruby]

Artichokes!! I've never seen an artichoke on a ship. As I sit here typing, I can smell them cooking - my wife did say we will be having them tonight. In season, we have them at least once a week.

 

I am curious why you, a Texan, used the British spelling "tonnes" rather than the US "tons". When I see "tonnes", I think of the 2200 pound variety, rather than the standard 2000 pounds.

 

Now see? A few hundred posts ago I think I talked about my Stella Solaris cruise out of Galveston in 1979 before there was even a cruise terminal. And how we had artichokes for every meal, in every manner possible, and that I was vaguely surprised the Captain didn't have an artichoke hanging from his hat brim. You don't remember? Admiral Ma'am is shocked - shocked!

 

When we passengers caught onto the artichoke abundance, we decided that a truckload of artichokes had been delivered to the ship and the galley staff had strict instructions from the home office to use every single one of those veggies before we returned to Galveston in 18 days.

 

I said "tonnes" because I was supersaturated in all things British on Saga Rose. During my daughter's recent visit to Dallas, she was gigging me about saying "whilst." Yawn. I did not know there were different measurements for different spellings. To quote Cloiseau, "Very interesting!"

 

Ruby

[Druke I]

I must admit that I had forgotten that post re artichokes long ago!

 

Now that I think further about it, I think it is the Imperial Long Ton that is 2200 pounds. And isn't the Imperial Gallon different than the US Gallon?

 

Regarding using whilst, I also type that occasionally. Perfectly good word that is not used too much in the Lower 48.

[Saga Ruby]

In my opinion, this kind of participation rate is much more meaningful than total views. D'maniac.

 

I like the way you're thinking. If you look at the industrial-sized threads, a lot of them have Aussie participants who post during our night. So it all works out - they chat about SuperStars and Vikings during our "night," we chat during the US day. I have always been impressed with the travelers' contingencies from Oz and O Canada. Y'all are travelin' fools and more power to you. On Nautica last year, 1/3 of the passengers were from the US, 1/3 from Canada, and the remaining third was the dreaded "Other."

 

I am impressed with your statistics of threads, views, and all that jazz. Now, about the Bunker C we're going to need for the next itinerary . . . .

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

Speaking of statistics, before you left on your cruise on the Saga Rose, you warned us that you would write a post-cruise report that would put us all to sleep. I had visions of you informing us of the daily mileages made by the ship, the average revolutions per minute of the propellers, the total number of eggs consumed daily by the passengers and crew, the capacity of each lifeboat, and so on. I was relieved when you did not do so. :)

 

D'maniac.

[Saga Ruby]

D'maniac - I wanted to back up for a mo'. So you are saying that a ship can cruise from Vancouver to PV and back again in one week?

 

On Saga Rose or almost any ship I sail on, we make very slow progress. It took forever to get from Cobh (Ireland) to Greenland. Give or take the constant churning, we sailed about 500 miles plus/minus per day.

 

So I'm mildly surprised a ship can easily do a round-trip from Vancouver to Down Yonder and back . But it obviously works.

 

Darn! I knew I was forgetting something in my cruise diary - average revolutions per minute of the propellers. My face is red.

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

D'maniac - I wanted to back up for a mo'. So you are saying that a ship can cruise from Vancouver to PV and back again in one week?

 

Ruby

 

Nope. I said that the Vision of the Seas does one-week cruises from Los Angeles (not Vancouver) to the Mexican Riviera. There are no cruise ships departing from Vancouver between October and April, though the Mercury is in port today on her three-day Pacific Northwest cruise out of Seattle.

 

D'maniac.

[Saga Ruby]

Nope. I said that the Vision of the Seas does one-week cruises from Los Angeles (not Vancouver) to the Mexican Riviera. There are no cruise ships departing from Vancouver between October and April, though the Mercury is in port today on her three-day Pacific Northwest cruise out of Seattle. D'maniac.

 

Whew! Thanks for clearing that up! My mind was running amok with thoughts of Saga Rose and all my other ships being slow versus the larger ships, or maybe the Captain on the Vision puts the pedal to the metal on the run to the Mexican Riviera thereby burning up tonnes of fuel. Now it all makes sense. Los Angeles.

 

A digression - my son the pilot says "they" could fly lots faster in any commercial jet but the companies won't let 'em because of fuel costs and more sympathetic I could not be. Ah for the good old days of pilots taking commercial jets out for a test ride after an overhaul in the maintenance base. In a BAC 111, they would tell the engineers to stand in the aisle in the back, make a severe dive over farmland and let the techies get airborne. My ex the mechanical engineer did exactly that with Braniff back in the day.

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

Ruby, speaking of air travel, I read in this morning's newspaper that the world already flies about 18,000 jets that are regional-size and larger, and that a Boeing regional director of product marketing says that the world will need 28,600 new jets over the next 19 years. Boeing believes that point-to-point travel is the way of the future and that, instead of stopping in hubs, people increasingly want to fly directly from City A to city B.

 

Gosh, flying from City A to City B was the norm in the 1950s and 1960s! I'm sure that airlines are now realizing the inconveniences of gathering planes in congested hubs, and lengthening travel for customers who would've preferred to go a much shorter route than via a hub.

 

D'maniac.

[Saga Ruby]

My family started flying in DC-3s in the early 50s. The planes flew across the US and made stops for passengers along the way. It was for the convenience of the plane not the passengers, and "on time" was not a discussion. We were glad to get on any plane at whatever time it showed up.

 

As a young child, I remember the closet light going on in the middle of the night, our parents awakening us for the drive from Fort Worth to Dallas on city streets (no highways) to the old Love Field, and off we would go to Mexico or wherever. Years later, I was thrilled when I got on a plane and it was level, you didn’t have to walk uphill to your seat.

 

My son calls a regional jet an "RJ" and "we" never say 757, 767, 777, we say 75, 76, and triple 7. The pilots love the 75 because it is overpowered and they can do loops in it (just kidding, folks!). I like any plane that has more than one aisle for those international flights where the serving carts are clogging the aisles and I need to go to the toilet.

 

I'm sure that airlines are now realizing the inconveniences of gathering planes in congested hubs, and lengthening travel for customers who would've preferred to go a much shorter route than via a hub. D'maniac.

The crucial question to me is which City A to which City B for a profitable route? The legacy airlines (majors) are flying profitable and unprofitable routes while the discount airlines cherry-pick major cities and brag about their profits. It’s like health insurance - there must be a better way. Give me your thoughts, I’m interested.

 

Ruby

[Kapricorn]

I've never flown a DC-3, but I remember flying with my mother on a Convair 440 in 1958. The seats were comfortable and we flew low enough to see farmhouses, animals and people looking up at us. I also liked the Viscounts for their large oval windows.

 

I used to be able to recognize aircraft - DC-8, 707, Constellation - but now with all the MDs, Airbuses and 7-somethings, I no longer do so (except for the 74). I don't care for RJs, as I am six feet tall and the cabin is rather confining. I have to be a contortionist to fit into the washroom.

 

As for my thoughts, what I'm interested in is a direct route. If that wouldn't be profitable to a particular airline, then I'll look for another which offers it. If no luck, then I will look for a route that will give me the least traveling time, including waits in other airports for flight changes. Last week I booked flights to and from Palm Springs for the first weekend of November. There are no direct flights. I was surprised that some airlines offered a total of 8 or 12 hours of traveling time for that route. I selected Alaska Airlines because it offered 5 hours to Palm Springs (via SFO) and 4 1/2 hours back to Vancouver (via SEA).

 

My flight from hell was four years ago. My friend and I had gone to Albuquerque. Returning home, we arrived at the airport at 9:30am for a 11am flight which would have gotten us home at 5pm via Salt Lake City. However, that flight was cancelled due to maintenance. Offered the next flight at 5pm, we didn't want to sit in the airport for eight hours, so we declined and switched to a flight to Los Angeles via Phoenix. However, the flight in Los Angeles (a direct to Vancouver) was also cancelled, and we waited for a later flight home via a change of plane in Seattle. Of course, in Seattle the plane from Acapulco was late, and we waited three hours for it. We didn't land in Vancouver until 1am, nearly 16 hours after we had stepped into the airport in Albuquerque. Am I fond of air travel? Gee, NO. I avoid flying whenever possible.

 

D'maniac.