Saga Rose Greenland Voyager August 2007

[Druke I]

Actually I mis-spoke when I said Osaka to Vancouver via Honolulu.

 

We sailed from Kobe (across the bay from Osaka), before that big earthquake devasted Kobe. That was on Sea Princess, nee Kungsholm.

 

I think Kobe is a much prettier city than Osaka.

 

We did sail from Osaka in Apr 97: Osaka to Vancouver via Pusan, Vladivostock, the Aleutians & Gulf of Alaska, on Sky Princess.

[Druke I]

Over on the Celbrity board, in a "sticky" at the top of the forum, there is a thread on the new ship, Celebrity Solstice.

 

Included are some pictures of it, being towed down the River Ems, from the shipbuilder's, to the sea.

 

Rather an ugly ship, particularly when viewed from the rear.

 

Don't think I could bring myself to sail on such an ugly monster.

[Kapricorn]

Michael, you'll probably be flamed on the Celebrity board for referring to Solstice as an ugly ship. For some strange reason a majority of the posters are excited about that thing. Me? Nah!

 

Donald.

[Druke I]

Yes, several of the Celebrity loyalists are very upset with me and my comment re Solstice being ugly. The stern view of that ship reminds me of a platypus!

 

That's life. I have my opinions, and have no problem making them known.

[Saga Ruby]

Mine is so heavy now I am having to unpack it on the floor as I can't lift it onto the spare bed! Must learn Ruby's knack of packing light!!

 

My "knack of packing light" was partly inspired by this scenario - in Gare du Nord in Paris, standing outside the Eurostar, and looking up above my head at the luggage rack inside the train and no porters. THAT's when you get serious about packing light!

 

Highlights: Being allowed to enter the Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Odessa during Sunday service, Eagels soaring high over the Bosphorus, Sitting in on a violin class at the Odessa Music Academy (plus we got a short concert just for us), standing on the battlefield at Sevastopol and Balaklava.

 

These memories sound wonderful, especially sitting in on a violin class. Can you tell me how your group was received by the locals in Sevastopol and Balaklava? Were you stared at, sent ugly glances, or welcomed? I'm thinking beyond the tour guides and more about the locals.

 

About the new, ugly apartment barges (Solstice et al.) and their customers - modern-day cruisers have no clue about the past beauty of life on the water, they look for stimulation and fun, fun, fun. They have no reference point about the ageless beauty of the ships we have fondly remembered on this thread. My thought is wondering what will happen when this new generation of cruisers ages out and wants some peace and quiet?

 

Which, in my opinion, is why my classic beauties are few and far between - little demand and higher tariffs. [heavy sigh]

 

Ruby

[Host Sharon]

 

 

These memories sound wonderful, especially sitting in on a violin class. Can you tell me how your group was received by the locals in Sevastopol and Balaklava? Were you stared at, sent ugly glances, or welcomed? I'm thinking beyond the tour guides and more about the locals.

 

 

Ruby

 

Ruby - I have to confess I failed your assignment. We berthed right beside the lighthouse's opposite number, painted in green and white stripes, but nowhere could I see a red and white one on either the Asian bank, or the other side of the Golden Horn. I even asked an officer if he recognised it.

 

We were welcomed everywhere and I was not aware of any ugly glances at all. Facilities are very basic in Odessa (I won't descibe the restrooms but I am sure you get the general idea). We were told before we went that dollars were the preferred currency but in Sevastopol they would only take the local (unpronouncable) currency (change booths were around) and elsewhere euros were the preferred currency to dollars, and although they were accepted, the exchange rate was not so good. I loved the Ukraine but next to the UK landscape it was very dramatic. If you live in Canada etc, you may not appreciate the difference so much. My photos are all uploaded but need severe editing as I have over 1000!

[Host Sharon]

Here are some photos of the ship Artemis in the meantime.

 

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

[Saga Ruby]

Ruby - I have to confess I failed your assignment. We berthed right beside the lighthouse's opposite number, painted in green and white stripes, but nowhere could I see a red and white one on either the Asian bank, or the other side of the Golden Horn. I even asked an officer if he recognised it.

 

I loved the Ukraine but next to the UK landscape it was very dramatic. If you live in Canada etc, you may not appreciate the difference so much. My photos are all uploaded but need severe editing as I have over 1000!

 

I had small hope that you would be able to find the red-and-white lighthouse Asian-side in Istanbul but thanks so much for trying. Could you expand on your comment about Ukraine being a dramatic landscape or shall we wait for the next set of pix?

 

For everyone's amusement - I have found the most elemental computer user ever. He is my retired stockbroker and he and his wife have recently discovered cruises. I was telling him about the joys of information and communication on CCritic and he wanted to look it up on his ancient computer which he barely knows how to use.

 

On the phone I was telling him the URL (web address) of CCritic, was slowly walking him through the menus and finally realized that it was easier and faster to talk about the "orange ribbon at the top of the page" or the blue "User Box." It was slow going because he has never looked at or known about a "message board." But now he is excited about finding CCritic and he knows my screen name and this thread.

 

If "Bondman1" pops up somewhere, give me a shout so I can read the miracle of his first post!

 

Ruby

[Druke I]

Hooray! You know someone who is less computer literate than me.

 

I no longer have to feel like the Village Idiot!

 

Ships Cat - Artemis (the former Royal Princess) is a lovely ship, and remains one of my favorites. She was quite a trend-setter when she first came out.

[CGTNORMANDIE]

Yes, several of the Celebrity loyalists are very upset with me and my comment re Solstice being ugly. The stern view of that ship reminds me of a platypus!

 

That's life. I have my opinions, and have no problem making them known.

 

HI GANG!!! I think I am with Druke...I am not crazy about Solstice either. I do not like the interior style...too modern for me.

 

Ross

[Host Sharon]

Could you expand on your comment about Ukraine being a dramatic landscape or shall we wait for the next set of pix?

 

Ruby

 

We drove along a coast road from Yalta to Sevastopol and the deep blue/black of the Black Sea was on one side, whilst on the other were towering mountains. I was very taken with (please don't laugh) Ukrainian bus shelters. These were built regulalry along the road, every one different, all in Soviet 1950s space age concrete designs with cantilevered roofs, mosaics etc. Wonderful. Unfortunately by the time I spotted one it was too late to photograph it!

 

I should also add that, in respect of blending in and not attracting resentment etc, we were asked to dress conservatively and leave any jewellery on the ship. I also kept my camera in my bag rather than round my neck, and just brought it out to photograph something. The poverty and ghastly housing people had to live in was a sight to behold and one didn't want to rub in our apparent wealth. Having said that Odessa was beautiful and a lot on money has been spent restoring old buildings.

[Conte Di Savoia]

 

 

Plus, where is Conte? He has disappeared after embarking on Eurodam a month ago. Is it a matter for Hercule Poirot?

 

Donald.

Hey Donald

It’s not a case for Poirot or Miss Marple. I’ve been on The Road to Morocco. Following on the heals of the Eurodam cruise I flew off to Barcelona for a transatlantic crossing on Celebrity Constellation with stops in Spain, Morocco and Portugal before returning to the Port of New York (actually Bayonne, NJ…ugh). I think Ruby has me well indoctrinated now because I’ve come to the conclusion that with the exception of Queen Mary 2, these megaships are not for me. HAL and Celebrity have changed the quality of the product they offer and have become mass market with a resulting decrease in the standard of service. The crew tries and at times succeeds in delivering quality service, but often they seem overwhelmed by the mass of humanity on board. The last time I took a Celebrity cruise was nine years ago on board Galaxy, an elegant ship which I very much enjoyed. Celebrity Constellation offered a very different type of experience. While the food was good, the loss of Michel Roux as their consulting chef, has had an adverse effect. The marketing on board ship was continuous and included numerous art auctions, wine tastings and now acupuncture treatments. What’s next, colonoscopy-at-sea? Still, we did have a very good time and particularly enjoyed the ports we visited. We met several interesting passengers on board and had the opportunity to chit chat with Bill Miller who gave a series of excellent and entertaining talks on ocean liners and cruising. There was a very active scene at the Martini Bar where we became regulars, but we’ve also seen the future of megaship cruising and it’s not a pretty picture, at least not for this old time cruiser who just completed his twentieth transatlantic crossing. Where's my Marco Polo II brochure?

[Kapricorn]

Welcome back, Conte! Thanks for the feedback on your experiences. Do you include Constellation as one of the megaships to be avoided in your future travels?

 

When Mercury is eventually gone from the Celebrity fleet (I suspect after the 2009/2010 Caribbean season), there will be only the Millennium-class ships for me, if I wish to stay with Celebrity. No way will I try a cruise on the Solstice-class ships.

 

Donald.

[franu]

Where's my Marco Polo II brochure?

 

Conte Di Savoia I am so glad that you have returned safely and I hope healthy. We look forward to hearing more about your trip.

 

Have you signed up for your brochure? The following link will assist if you so desire.

www.orientlines.com/forms/Brochure_Request.htm

 

or call 1-(800) 333-7300

 

Mine took forever because as I believe Canada Post stores it for a while. This should not be a problem for you unless someone believes that Long Island is a foreign country.

Fran

[Druke I]

Well, perhaps Canadian Post stores your brochures for you; the US Postal Service carrier on our route censors my Cruise Travel magazine for me. I always get it a week after everyone else on Cruise Critic.

 

I do hope he enjoys reading it as much as I do.

[Saga Ruby]

Well, perhaps Canadian Post stores your brochures for you; the US Postal Service carrier on our route censors my Cruise Travel magazine for me. I always get it a week after everyone else on Cruise Critic. I do hope he enjoys reading it as much as I do.

 

Well, the carrier's got to read something at lunch-time. Did you check the pages for greasy fingerprints?

 

Ruby

[Conte Di Savoia]

Do you include Constellation as one of the megaships to be avoided in your future travels?

 

When Mercury is eventually gone from the Celebrity fleet (I suspect after the 2009/2010 Caribbean season), there will be only the Millennium-class ships for me, if I wish to stay with Celebrity. No way will I try a cruise on the Solstice-class ships.

 

Donald.

Unfortunately I do have to include Celebrity Constellation on the ships-to-avoid list on the basis of size. I also found it to be a dark and gloomy ship in need of some renovation. Many of the soft fittings were worn and/or stained...not up to what Celebrity was in the past. Solstice is to have an additional 900 passengers!!

 

Fran, I sent for the Marco Polo II brochure before I left on my trip and found it in the mail upon my return. What timing!! I'm studying it closely for the future. The itineraries are very port intensive which isn't bad so long as I have my sea days.

[franu]

Fran, I sent for the Marco Polo II brochure before I left on my trip and found it in the mail upon my return. What timing!! I'm studying it closely for the future. The itineraries are very port intensive which isn't bad so long as I have my sea days.

 

I too like my sea days, On my last cruise, although it was transatlantic, I designated some of the ports as "Sea days" I will most probably add a few on my "Path of the Vikings" itinerary where there are already 5 real sea days out of 32.

 

On my NCL Jewel cruise (the free cruise) I don't know whether or not to remain on board and tolerate the cacophony of colour or get off and see another palm tree. Whoops, I am finding myself a bit crusty regarding this cruise and I had promised myself I would use it as a learning experience. I will try my best.

Fran

[Kapricorn]

I also found it to be a dark and gloomy ship in need of some renovation.

 

"Dark and gloomy'? It sounded as if you had stumbled onto the set of the motion picture Wuthering Heights, with Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon appearing any time from behind the worn fittings. LOL!

 

I've never been on Constellation, but was twice on Infinity and once on Summit. Perhaps these two ships were in better condition than Constellation.

 

Donald.

[Host Sharon]

Review of my Black Sea Cruise (finally)

 

I have always liked Artemis and she did not disappoint me this time. There have been a few changes since I was on her last December. There were new computer systems being installed. These mean you can now purchase foreign currency on board on your cruise card (if you have registered a credit card) and at no additional cost.

 

With Artemis you usually walk up the gangway to board at Southampton, as you do in ports. This means you have to negotiate a stepped gangway so beware with hand luggage. I had to carry my wheeled cabin case. I boarded about 1pm so went straight up to lunch at the Conservatory whilst the cabin was still being prepared. A new Cruise Director was on board and was making some changes. I liked having a big show at 7pm for second sitters, as you could then go to another event or dance after dinner. There is also a Wii Fit on board and people were playing bowling, golf and tennis on it in the mornings in the Horizon Lounge.

 

Food

I enjoyed the food mostly, although I did feel the standard began to drop a bit after the third week. The variety was excellent and I didn’t notice any meals repeated even in a 26 night cruise. Some of my fish was bony though. I particularly enjoyed a medley of rabbit and ostrich medallions with wild boar sausage.

 

The Cruise.

This was a 25 night cruise through the Mediterranean to the Black Sea. The weather throughout was sunny (aside from a couple of torrential downpours in Istanbul) and hot (except in Odessa where an icy wind was blowing in straight off the Russian Steppes).

 

Palma

Having been on an excursion the only time I have visited Palma before, I wanted to explore a bit on my own so caught the shuttle bus. This drops off by the big lake in front of the Cathedral. It is then an easy walk around the Cathedral area. I also walked to the medieval Arab Baths, whish are tucked away down some old alleyways. There is a new duty free shop at the cruise terminal, but I didn’t think the prices all that good.

 

Athens

I set off on a new tour to the Acropolis (but not up to the top), free time in the Plaka and then lunch in the Spirit of Athens that serves food that the ancient Greeks would have eaten – the outside temperature was 38.5! I enjoyed the restaurant – goat’s cheese, salad leaves, portk and lamb with apple, honey and yoghurt sprinkled with poppy seeds to finish. Jugs of wine were included as was mineral water.The terminal was a bit fraught as we had to walk to and fro through it to the ship, but two other ships were disembarking and embarking passengers so there was masses of luggage and people.

 

On Day 9 we began to enter the Dardanelles on our way to Istanbul. We passed the two war memorials high above the cliffs at Gallipoli as the Captain read out the numbers of casualties 1915-1916. It was very moving and sobering. We embarked our pilot at 4pm for the sail into Istanbul. The sun was just setting over the St Sophia Mosque, which we had a lovely view of from the ship. We were there overnight, sailing the following evening.

 

Instanbul

The following day I set off on the Imperial Istanbul excursion to St Sophia and Blue Mosques and Topkapi Palace. It was Ramadan and we were told we would not be able to see the Hippodrome because of all the food stalls, however we started there and walked to all the other places. The queues were very long to enter the Blue Mosque mainly because at breakfast MSC Poesia sailed in and berthed right behind us. We had a couple of torrential rain showers during the morning, but fortunately we were by then in the Topkapi Palace, which has lots of places to shelter.

The skies cleared at midday and we left at 6pm for a perfect early evening sail through the Bosphorus. The setting sun threw all the buildings - palaces and summer homes - on the eastern shore into a lovely rosy golden glow. It was quite magical.

 

Sochi, Russia

Sadly the swell was too much for a tendering operation and so we had an extra day at sea. Sochi looked much nicer than I was expecting. The town spread up the hillside, with a beautiful Russian Orthodox church on the top of a hill, it's golden domes glowing in the morning light. Behind the town were stunning views of the forest-clad Caucasian Mountains - acres and acres of thick forest, home of bears etc.

 

Yalta, Ukraine

The sky was cloudless and the sun rising as we berthed right in the town centre. I had booked an excursion to Sevastapol and Balaklava, which was excellent. We drove along a coastal road past people setting up roadside stalls of sweet red onions, then firstly stopping at an amazing three dimensional panorama of the Crimean battle and siege of Sevastapol. Then for some free time in the town - a very beautiful place of white limestone buildings, parks, fountains and waterfront. We stood and surveyed the "Valley of Death", had a Ukrainian lunch in a harbourside restaurant in Balaklava - five courses including a salad, meaty soup, pike/perch stuffed with mushrooms and cheese and a delicious desert of poppyseed pie with icecream. The meal was also served with Ukrainian wine - a very dry white with a slight resinous taste a bit like Retsina. Lastly we visited a huge underground complex built in the 1950s as a secret Russian submarine repair base and missile assembly base. This was in tunnels blasted under the mountains at Balaklava.

 

Odessa, Ukraine

I had booked a walking tour of the city and it is beautiful. A lot of money has been spent in recent years restoring old buildings wrecked by the war but one thing eclipsed all others that morning - being allowed into the Russian Orthodox Cathedral during the Sunday service. It was a magical experience and I defy anyone not to moved whether religious or not. It was like being bathed in a golden glow from the gold leaf, painted walls and ceilings, icons and candles, and most of all the music.

In the afternoon I had booked a new tour. For the first time ever, foreign tourists were being allowed into the Music Conservatoire. We had a short concert by some students, and then we able to sit in on classes - piano, singing or violin. We then had free time at a craft market close to the Cathedral so were able to purchase Russian dolls, laquer boxes etc. The people were reserved but friendly. Odessa was a great city. The ship berthed virtually at the base of the Potemkin Steps so it would be easy to walk ashore and wander at leisure.

 

Constanta, Romania

There was a brand new smart cruise terminal, but we were also surrounded by piles and piles of rusting heaps of scrap metal - not exactly a welcoming sight. I had booked an afternoon excursion which was a walking tour of the town – not much to see, the ruins of Tomis, another Orthodox Cathedral which smelt overpoweringly of petrol inside, and some interesting architecture that had survived Nicholi Ceacescu’s time in power. We then drove an hour into the countryside to a winery. The wine tasting (5 different ones) was accompanied by folk song and dance.

 

Nessebur

The town looked extremely interesting and is a World heritage Site, but we sailed in, sounded our siren at the pilot boat coming to meet us and performed a u-turn in the bay and kept going out again. The bridge crew had noted a boat anchored off and the swell again was much too big for tendering.

 

That night we had a spectacular thunderstorm at 2am. The lightning was intense and the thunder deafening. Goodness knows what it was like out on deck. I got up at 6am the following day to see us sail back through the Bosphorus east - west this time. The sun was just rising and making the buildings on the northern shore look as if they were on fire. The Captain kept up a running commentary and said it was the first time he had sailed both ways in daylight. On arriving in Istanbul, we stopped in mid channel for about an hour to offload a sick passenger onto a port agent's boat and then set course back towards the Dardenelles.

 

Kusadasi

We sailed in at sunrise, following the heels of Windstar. It was the first time I had seen one of these sailing cruise ships and we berthed next to her. I went on a half day trip to the Shrine of the Virgin Mary and St John's Basilica as I have been to Ephesus before. I then spent some time browsing the bazaars and shops before eating a light lunch outside on deck with the turquoise Aegean lapping the sides of Artemis.

 

Santorini.

It was clear blue seas and skies with flying fish in the caldera. Santorini is much larger than I expected and my tour covered the whole island from Oia to the black grit beaches of the north and Thira. I should warn anyone coming here though - do NOT land if you do not like heights. I spent a lot of time with my eyes tight shut clinging to the seat! The roads are narrow and our coach sometimes had to reverse back, overhanging huge heights. We sampled some Santorini wines and had a lovely Greek lunch with stuffed vine leaves, and superb battered fried tomatoes.

 

Cadiz

Some early rain as we arrived, but it soon stopped and the afternoon was once again scorching. I hadn't booked a tour as I have been here before and wanted to explore the city on my own. The narrow cobbled alleys and Moorish architecture are delightful – you do need a good map though.

 

Southampton

We had a perfect morning for a sail up Southampton Water. As we had not made up our time due to a force 5 headwind through Baiscay, we had a rare daylight sail up the Solent. The sun was just rising as we passed Oriana in the QEII terminal and exchanged horn salutes. An hour later Arcadia followed us in and again the horn salutes.

 

Would I do it again…YES!

[Kapricorn]

Ships Cat - thank you very much for the interesting report! The coach tour on Santorini sounded really thrilling, even if heart-stopping. The drivers must know what they are doing.

 

Donald.

[Host Sharon]

The coach tour on Santorini sounded really thrilling, even if heart-stopping. The drivers must know what they are doing.

 

Donald.

 

I guess, but I would still rather have got out first while they did it!

[Druke I]

Great review - interesting read.

 

Thanks.

[franu]

ships cat, Thank you for sharing your cruise with us. It always interests me to hear someone else's review of somewhere that I have been. It has occurred that I have read reviews of the same trip and excursions as I was on with them and we had very different experiences.

 

If driving around Santorini was frightening then do not go to Cephalonia ( Kephalonia ). It is the lovely place where the story of "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" took place. It is breathtakingly beautiful but we actually had the back wheel (1) over the cliff. Yes, I have my fear too. When we returned to the port. I dropped to my knees and kissed the ground. Of course the bus driver laughed at us when we were frightened and again when we were relieved.

Fran

[Kapricorn]

These Greek drivers must be better than Greek captains, because I have never heard of a bus disaster on either Santorini or Cephalonia.

 

Donald.