Live from the Emerald Princess 10/08/07

[edste]

Wonderful reading your posts. Thanks for doing it. Edna

[sharonmae]

Ann & Dobie, Thanks for the info, you make it so exciting, but also sounds exhausting. So much to see and do and so little time. Dobie, with all the wine you took back to the ship was there any problem with taking it aboard. Can't wait for the next post. ( Also can't wait for next year!!!)

sharonmae

[sharons]

Ann and Dobie,

I want to add my thanks for the fantastic trip review you're giving us. It sounds like you are loving every second. It's such fun living it thru your reviews.

All of us on next years trip are eating up every word,

Continue to have a great time,

Sharon

[kruisey]

It is so kind of you both to take time out of your busy vacation schedule to write on Cruise Critic

I myself am booked for the 2008 edition of this most interesting cruise......... Happy sailing to you all aboard Emerald Princess.......Heather

[dobie]

Once again I am just going to copy for you all what I emailed to my friends and family:

 

Don't Go to Barcelona on a Sunday!!!

 

Subtitle: Set your alarm clock so you don't sleep until 10 AM!!

 

When we got off the ship we decided to walk into town. We were pointed in the right direction from the pier and off we went, past locals having coffee at the pier, buses dropping off folks with luggage, past all of the other ships, past the giant construction area, walking, walking.....till we saw a giant overpass overhead and it dawned on us that we should be up THERE, not down where we were. So we walked all the way back and got on the Princess ripoff shuttle bus. Mind you, we had already been walking for an hour! Got on the bus, which charged us 20 Euros each for round trip. Once we were already underway, they told us that the last shuttle to the ship would be at 4 PM.....our all aboard wasn't till 5:30! The trip took 4 and a half minutes. We got off and wandered down to the Christopher Columbus statue, where we had decided to take the hop on hop off bus. Bought tickets, waited half an hour for a bus to come by that had open seats! It was quite entertaining while waiting, however, the guy behind us had his pocket picked (almost). He was a really old guy stupidly carrying his Euros in his front pocket. The young pickpocket guy put his hand in there and the old guy started hitting him with his camera, chasing him into the busy street in front of the buses, all the while he and his friends screaming something in some language I didn't understand.....the pickpocket didn't get away with anything but in the meantime our bus driver just took off without loading anybody on!! We finally got on the top, and it was very beautiful, but Barcelona was very very crowed, just a wall of people everywhere. You couldn't walk anywhere with any speed, because thousands of people were just thronging about. We made it La Sagrada Familia, the cathedral that Gaudi worked on for over 40 years before he passed. It is still being worked on, is in a constant state of construction. We didn't get inside because there was an hour and a half wait. We decided to walk back to the ship, which we were told would take an hour. I then spotted a metro station, and these 2 Arizona bumpkins figured out how to get onto the 2 right trains to take us back to where we needed to go, for only 1.25 Euros! There is some lovely architecture in Barcelona, the buildings are really something. Many have rounded corners, turrets, the obligatory wrought iron railings, they are quite something. All of the shops except the tourist shops are closed in Barcelona on Sundays. Next time we come here we're going to have a plan that begins with turning on the alarm clock!

Today has been a wonderful relaxing day at sea. Rog and I sat out by the Spa pool and Jacuzzi all day....literally.....since 9:30 AM. My mom and her roommate went to some kind of seminar this morning, to a line dancing class, to breakfast and lunch, shopping, where Mom spent the onboard credit I had given her for her birthday, even though her birthday isn't till Sunday the credit showed up in her stateroom already. Last I saw them they were headed to high tea, expecting the waiters to be wearing white gloves!

Tonight Marty Allen (is he still alive? he and all of that hair......) is performing, along with his wife. We saw them on a cruise many years ago. He must just do the "cruise circuit"! If I am still awake at 10:30 we may go see him.

Tomorrow is Cadiz, Spain. Most folks are going to Seville, but we are setting our alarms and going on a walking tour around Cadiz. I have done ZERO shopping, so anyone hoping for Popeners...they do not exist any more in Rome, and I seriously have not set foot in anything except the supermarket. Maybe tomorrow......

After Cadiz our last stop will be Lisbon.

Off for now, I'll check in again!

 

 

For you CC folks, I'll have to check when I get back home and have my fast Internet as far as prices, etc. The Internet on board is very slow.

 

The food and service have been wonderful, no complaints there at all!

 

We got put in a quad cabin, E503, which has some faults. The bed is under the window, there is a lifeboat outside of the window, and a spotlight on the lifeboat at all times, so you need an eyeshade to sleep. The 2 upper bunks stick out 12 inches at least on both sides of the bed, meaning you either have to do a semi limbo to get around them or a swan dive into bed from the bottom of the bed. The extra side chair we have put into the closet, because there is no space for it, and you'd trip over it in the middle of the night. So, if you can avoid it, don't get put into a quad. My mom and her roommate have the same category cabin we do, E414, and their room is great! It is set up like the typical Princess cabin with the desk and fridge under the window along with the chair.

 

Spent the day out at the Spa Pool and Jacuzzis. We got there at 9:30 and never left except to run out and grab a sandwich and bring it back. There are only 10 chairs there. One side of the pool was constantly in the sun, so eventually we moved my chair over to the other side. Nice swim against the current feature.

 

Off for now.....very slow Internet!!

 

Will report in from Cadiz.

[Sunviking]

Hello All,

 

We took the tour to Montserrat yesterday. We loved ir. The views were fantastic and it was worth the ride just to see the parking at the top of the mountain. Talk about a traffic jam! The monastery and basilica are beautiful.

 

Someone asked about bringing wine onboard. In Barcelona and Naples the scan machines were ashore before you even boarded. Nobody checked any liquors or wines being brought on board. In fact, yesterday in Barcelona there was a Duty Free shop which was probably sold out of everything before we left.

 

Today was a lovely day at sea. We spent the afternoon in the Sanctuary. There were only about a dozen people here but it was wonderful. The chaises are super comfortable and the quiet is so relaxing. My husband went and got stoned - he got a hot stone massage. Now he tells me that I must do this too. We'll see.

 

Seas were very calm. This evening close to 9:00Pm we passed through the Strait of Gibraltar. Nice views seeing the lights of Africa and Europe on either side of the ship.

 

We ate for a 2nd time at the Crown Grill. The food and service were excellent. We tried the lobster tails and they were cooked to perfection.

 

Tomorrow we're off to Sevilla. Unfortunately, that means a wake up call at 5:45AM.

 

More later.

 

Ann

[frankathy]

Hi Ann,

 

Thanks for the updates we will be sailing on Oct 27. What Suite do you have? How was your husband's stoning? I always get a hot rock massage when sailing.

 

Thanks again

 

Kathy

[barante]

Great reports.Congrats to all.

I have a question, not that this is of any real significance since weather constantly changes. W'll be on next year's Emerald TA from Venice to St. lauderdale. How's the temperature on your trip? Can you swim comfortably in the ship's pool, or the Mediterranean?

No need to answer now. I'd also like to know whether the weather is swimmable after the Azores on the way to Fort Lauderdale.

[galelynn]

Great reports.Congrats to all.

I have a question, not that this is of any real significance since weather constantly changes. W'll be on next year's Emerald TA from Venice to St. lauderdale. How's the temperature on your trip? Can you swim comfortably in the ship's pool, or the Mediterranean?

No need to answer now. I'd also like to know whether the weather is swimmable after the Azores on the way to Fort Lauderdale.

 

Ann I see where you are joining all of us next year on the TA, it will be good to have some experience travelers on the Emerald, to help us out on what to see and do. This will be our 1st time to Europe and 1st TA.

 

Lynn:)

[sailaway5]

Ann & Dobie:

 

Am enjoying reading all of your posts. Will look forward to learning more about your "private tours" or "on your own" when you return.

 

Thanks for sharing and enjoy your cruise.

[AliceS]

Ann and Dobie,

 

We hope that you had a relaxing sea day. Just want to keep this thread going so that we hear more from you. Have fun.

[Sunviking]

We took the tour to Sevilla today. The weather was wonderful.

We visited the Alcazar Palace, the Cathedral and saw the expo sights of Sevilla. The tour was quite nice but there are people who shouldn't take it because it involves a lot of walking.

 

The weather was excellent. Seas are extremely calm. Tomorrow is Lisbon.

 

We're pooped.

 

Ann

[pablo222]

Maybe I missed it, but can you tell us who the captain and

cruise director are?

 

Thanks.

[Anne Funnell]

The Captain is Captain Giorgio Pomata, the cruise director is James Lay.

[Anne Funnell]

whoops - sorry, double post!

[Evilgrin72]

I don't want to send anyone running around the ship or anything, but if one of you could pop your head into the Speakeasy Cigar Lounge and just let me know if : a) there are TVs on in there and b) they are tuned to sports, I would be eternally grateful.

[cruizecrazygramma]

can you tell us any other members of the activities staff. I heard that a young man named Josh was on the emerald. He was from Canada, vancouver i think and was on the caribbean in 2006. we loved him. lots of fun.

[Sunviking]

We had a lovely day in Lisbon today. One of our group (JoyK) had arranged lots of vans for private tours (thank you Joy). We went to Sintra, the palace of Pena, Cascais, Estoril, the Cap de Roca and back to Lisbon. The sights were wonderful, the country was clean and the people were very friendly. We look forward to coming back to Lisbon. The sailaway under the bridge that is like the Golden Gate Bridge with the exact replica of the Corcovada nearby is magnificent.

 

Tomorrow we hope to have a relaxing day at sea.

 

Ann

[Colo Cruiser]

can you tell us any other members of the activities staff. I heard that a young man named Josh was on the emerald. He was from Canada, vancouver i think and was on the caribbean in 2006. we loved him. lots of fun.

 

Not sure if he is on the Emerald but I think you are talking about......

 

Josh Daybol, looks like Doogie Howser MD. Great CD, we had him onboard the Diamond last March.

[JanMD]

I watched the web cam as the ship was going under the bridge- I still remember going under that bridge- it was amazing. The Golden first sailing- 5/01.

 

Jan

[curiouscat]

I don't want to send anyone running around the ship or anything, but if one of you could pop your head into the Speakeasy Cigar Lounge and just let me know if : a) there are TVs on in there and b) they are tuned to sports, I would be eternally grateful.

 

 

How are we gonna get to see if they have tvs for sports...gee this has been a tough one.

 

GO STEELERS... how do we look against Denver on sunday???

 

Curious Cat a die hard steeler fan:D

[AliceS]

curiouscat,

A Steeler fan in Georgia? We live in Pittsburgh and my grandson loves the Bulldogs! I am drinking Seattle's Best right now, I won it on the Steeler game from a niece in Seattle, thanks Steelers. It's good. We'll see how we do in Denver, our boys seem to be a little more fit.

[Evilgrin72]

How are we gonna get to see if they have tvs for sports...gee this has been a tough one.

 

GO STEELERS... how do we look against Denver on sunday???

 

Curious Cat a die hard steeler fan:D

 

 

I have conflicting reports on whether the cigar bar on Emerald doubles as the sports bar. Whether or not we end up sailing her for my honeymoon may depend on it, but I haven't had much success confirming anything.

 

Pittsburgh 27 Denver 14 Sunday night.

[choochella]

Yes, I would be interested in knowing if there are any sports (especially Steeler games) shown in the cigar bar. I have been told that they sometimes show football games on MUTS. But, with the satellite feed, not sure what you're going to get. We will miss two Steeler games while on board the Emerald this year. I sure would like to see at least the Monday night game against Baltimore!!

[1 cruise]

:eek:

How are we gonna get to see if they have tvs for sports...gee this has been a tough one.

 

GO STEELERS... how do we look against Denver on sunday???

 

Curious Cat a die hard steeler fan:D

 

I am a Broncos Fan and have been one ever since I can remember, but now with the Rockies....the Broncos have taken a back seat...That is very rare for the Broncos to be a distant 2nd .....

 

The weather report for Sunday Night is Cold, with the possibility of rain changing to snow...35 to 40 degrees. The way the Broncos have been playing...you guys should win with no problem. Broncos are still about 2 years away....Also, you should be able to run on us all night, we have no defense, no linemen or linebackers, saftey Lynch and Cornerback Champ Bailey are both hurt.......This should be an ugly game...but I'll still be there cheering them on...

 

Later, Alexis...see you all on the Emerald next year....I also would like to know if there are places to watch Sports, hopefully someone will check on this for us......