| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
|---|---|---|---|
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15th Oct 2023 |
Royal Portbury Bristol |
On board by 15:00 |
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16th Oct 2023 |
Falmouth Cornwall |
Scenic Cornish Drive & Land's End |
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18th Oct 2023 |
Amsterdam N. Holland Netherlands |
Windmills and Edam |
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19th Oct 2023 |
Antwerp Flanders Belgium |
Historic Ghent Canal Boat |
 |
21st Oct 2023 |
Rouen Normandy France |
Monet's House & Garden Giverny |
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22nd Oct 2023 |
Rouen Normandy France |
Scenic Normandy @ Ease |
|
23rd Oct 2023 |
Honfleur Normandy France |
Bayeux & its Tapestry tour |
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25th Oct 2023 |
Royal Portbury Bristol |
Home by 11:00 |
| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
I awoke at 6:35 and left the house at 8:30 driving via Dorchester, Yeovil and Taunton to the M5 motorway. I arrived at Charmain's flat in Clevedon at noon. In the afternoon we explored the grade one listed pier and the promenade as far as St Andrew's medieval church on the headland.
In the evening we dined at the Scoozi Italian restaurant. I had the Parma ham pizza and Charmain had the classic lasagna. I finished with the cannoli and she with the sorbet. We had a bottle of Merlot wine from Chile to drink. I paid the bill, whilst Charmain contributed the tip. Back at her apartment, we watched Strictly Come Dancing before retiring at eleven o'clock.
I awoke at seven o'clock, but we didn't have brunch until ten o'clock in the Five restaurant on the prom. Here we both had the full English breakfast with Charmain giving me her black puddings and grilled tomatoes. I had a pot of English breakfast tea and she had two cappuccinos to drink. Charmain kindly paid the bill, whilst I contributed the tip. We then retraced our steps along the promenade to the Marine bathing pool.
Back at her flat, I continued walking on my own as her knee was troublesome. I walked into Clevedon town centre for the first time. Back at her apartment again, I slept for one hour, before driving along the coast to the newly built Portishead marina. I got to the Royal Portbury dock at 2:15 and was on board the ship by three o'clock. I found I had a four berth outside cabin at the rear of deck seven. Back in my cabin, I finally got around to unpacking my large suitcase. I also worked on this blog.
At the safety drill I met up with Ronald Calisin, who had been a stage manager on Saga previously. At four o'clock I had one small slice of four cheese pizza for tea. At 4:30 I touched base with the tours desk who told me to collect my back pack from Reception at 8:30 that evening. I also spoke to Emily the assistant cruise director. She had arranged a meeting after the safety drill, but none of us entertainers had received her letter. My copy eventually arrived under my door at five o'clock!
Out on the top deck I bumped into a former line dancer from Poole, who knew ukelele teacher Trevor Lewis from Talbot Woods near me. At 5:15 we transited through the large lock at the entrance to the dock basin, accompanied by one tug. A cargo ship turned around before us in order to enter the lock we had just left.
At 5:45 I had been assigned to table 77 in the Buckingham Main Dining Room (MDR). I had been given the table for six singletons on first sitting dinner that I had asked for. I was sat with Mary from Ilminster, Linda from Goodwick near Fishguard, Peter from the Chilterns and Harry from Stockport with one spare seat. Peter told us that one of his daughters was a post-operative MTF transsexual! I had the Santa Fe salad, the Balmoral chicken and the ice cream to eat with just water and decaff coffee to drink.
Back in my cabin, I started work on this blog. Another letter from Emily was under the door, deferring the meet up until the following evening.
At 8:30 I went to the excellent Night in Nashville Country & Western Show. There were classic C&W songs like Jolene, Country Roads and I Will Always Love You, but also some I didn't know. We only got one line from Quarter After One and the Gambler! The production company consisted of five girls and five boys. At the end I collected my escort's rucksack from reception.
At 10:15 I watched the show for a second time and had another chat with Ronald the ex-Saga stage manager. He told me he was in charge of the Cavern lounge upstairs, their equivalent of the Britannia lounge on Saga ships. I went to bed at eleven o'clock having done over seventeen thousand steps, equal to nearly seven miles of walking during the day.
My alarm woke me at 6:30 ready for my first instant decaff coffee of the day with real CoffeeMate whitener that I had brought with me from home. When I left the cabin at 7:35, Kus(e) was already waiting outside to start work! In the MDR I had a freshly made cheese omelette with the usual sides, sat with Karen from Nottingham and two Cornish couples who were disembarking that morning. Karen had noticed that I had trained as a dance host and hoped we might have a dance in the Cavern sometime.
I was one of the first off the ship taking the free shuttle minibus from the Queen's Wharf to the cruise terminal on the County Wharf. I then walked into town to do some photography. I bought a half-price Ginster's Cornish pasty in PoundLand. I went in the Art Gallery but the exceptional Pre-Raphaelite exhibition had finished at the end of September. They did however have a clever live video visualisation of oneself and an amusing animated model to play with.
I found the Old Town Hall and the Mystic Museum in the Old High Street, but both were closed. I went in the enormous Trago Mills emporium, but bought nothing. I found the Town Station, but declined to go on to the beaches, turning back at eleven o'clock. I caught the shuttle bus from the car park near the National Maritime Museum back to the ship.
At noon I lunched on the cream of vegetable soup and the roast beef. At 12:15 I was on escort duty on the quayside with guide Tessa and driver Gary. At 12:50 we departed for our Cornish Drive with twenty six pax. I slept most of the way to the first photo stop overlooking St Michael's Mount. This was rather closer than the similar stop here in the summer.
At Land's End it was rather breezy, so I ate my Cornish pasty on a picnic bench in the lee of a building. Inside the cafeteria, I bought a mug of cappuccino, but the machine only produced hot milk, so I had to top it up with a shot of expresso coffee. We returned via the North coast and the tin mining district around Cambourne and Redruth. I was the last person to rejoin the ship at 5:20, just ten minutes before all aboard time.
At 5:30 I touched base with the Destination Services desk, to hand in my wish list and check up on Amsterdam availability. At six o'clock I went to Emily's delayed meeting with three other supernumeraries. This only lasted a few minutes, but I had already missed the 5:45 start of first sitting dinner, so I adjourned to the Borough Market buffet. Here I had the potato and leek soup followed by the lasagna bolognese and the chicken au gratin.
Back in my cabin, I had a instant decaff coffee and then updated this blog and my Amsterdam presentation. At 8:30 I went to the Rock production show, which began with a great selection of Queen's songs. This would have been better as the finale, since the rest of the show was too much heavy metal and songs I didn't know. One of the male singers was missing, as he had only just joined the troupe and was still learning the shows. I then adjourned to my room and updated this blog. I went to bed at ten o'clock, but it was now eleven o'clock on Central European Time (CET). During the day I had done nearly twenty thousand steps, nearly equal to eight miles of walking!
I got up at 6:15, but it was now 7:15 on CET. I had a freshly made cheese omelette with a hash brown, bacon and tomatoes. I the did five circuits, equal to half a mile, of the top deck as Kus(e) was servicing the cabin. At nine o'clock I touched base with Dayanand at the Shore Tours desk.
At ten o'clock I said hello to Destination Experiences Manager Leo who then gave his forty minute talk. Adrian set me up with ten minutes to spare. At eleven o'clock Ceirios introduced me and I gave my thirty five minute Amsterdam lecture with three short Rick Steves videos.
At twelve o'clock I attended Phoebe and Ethan's line dance class with twenty six pax. She taught the Cupid Shuffle, Cowboy Charleston, Electric Slide, Slosh, Cowboy Stomp and Mamma Maria in half an hour! The music was occasionally breaking up and she only ever taught the first front wall of each dance. At one o'clock I had the fish and chips al fresco on the rear verandah.
At two o'clock I went to the Chance to Dance session, where I danced with Karen from Nottingham. We did the usual ballroom and sequence dances. However, as usual, two couples from Yorkshire requested obscure sequence dances that only they knew. I then slept for one hour, before having my mid-afternoon instant decaff coffee.
At five o'clock I went to the Captain's welcome cocktail party where I had one glass of bubbly and three canapes. I slipped out early to chat to Leo at the tours desk. At 5:45 I dined on the mushroom soup, the Caesar salad, the beef Wellington and the chocolate cake with chocolate sauce and ice cream, sat with the usual foursome in their finery. Afterwards I picked up my tour escort's rucksack from reception.
At 8:30 I went to the excellent Cirque de Luminaire production show. This included songs like The Man in the Mirror and It's a Kind of Magic, the latter whilst they did a clever magic act. The inevitable Send in the Clowns was quite moving and is far and away Stephen Sondheim's most famous solo song. Afterwards I had to do some circuits of the lounges to reach my ten thousand steps / four mile walking target. I went to bed at 10:15.
I got up just after six o'clock as we entered the North Sea Canal lock. I had awoken with a headache and a runny nose. Just after seven, I had a croissant with ham at the Early Bird breakfast.
At 7:30 I had a freshly made cheese omelette with bacon and a hash brown, but no tomatoes. I had both grapefruit and pineapple juices to drink. Out on the verandah, I chatted to both Linda and Mary as we berthed in Amsterdam.
At nine o'clock I was on escort duty in the huge coach garage on the quayside, ready for my second choice tour to Edam. Here I met guide Frank and driver Andrew from Poland with 33 pax.
Our first stop was at Simonehoeve cheese and clog outlet. We had a short talk on Dutch cheeses, followed by a demonstration of clog making machinery. Afterwards in the showroom, there were lots of different cheeses to sample. I particularly enjoyed sampling the famous syrup waffles.
Our second stop was in Edam, where we parked on the outskirts and walked in via the Great Church. We had fifteen minutes of free time, so I went in the Tourist Information Office which was inside the Town Hall. They had lots of maps and free wi-fi.
Our third and final stop was at the famous Zaanse Schans windmill village. This is a super outdoor museum with seven traditional windmills and other vernacular buildings. I had last been here twelve years ago!
Back at the ship at two o'clock, I had the chicken noodle soup followed by the Cumberland pie. I then slept for just half an hour, before venturing into Amsterdam. I got lost in the Central Railway Station, but was sorted out by the new Tourist Information Office (TIO). The old TIO was now an office for public transport queries, i.e. buses, trams, metro trains and canal boats.
I walked south along the Damrak main drag, but then realised I was better off one street to the west along Kalverstraat. I went in the charming oasis of the Begijnhof almshouses. The Roman Catholic chapel and the English Protestant church were both open. I recorded my piece to camera outside.
I continued southwards to the floating flower market, before heading east to the Botanical Garden and the Auschwitz memorial. I popped into the Maritime Museum to pick up one of their leaflets, getting back to the ship at five o'clock. Here I touched base with Dayanand at the tours desk, but found that bookings for Antwerp would be closed before my lecture would end the next day!
At 5:30 I bumped into Mary so we sat and chatted. When we were joined by Linda it was time to go into dinner, but the latter lady was dining elsewhere? I had the cream of roasted butternut squash soup, the Greek salad, the penne carbonara and the peach Melba to eat. Mary shared her can of Guiness with Harry and myself.
Back in my cabin, I had an instant decaff coffee and updated this blog. At 8:30 I went to Ray Turner's comedy show. His ventriloquism with a member of the audience was particularly funny, although I have seen this done several time before. I went to sleep at ten o'clock having done over twenty three thousands steps, equal to over nine miles of walking during the day.
I awoke at 7:45 having slept for nearly ten hours! At 8:15 I had a freshly made omelette with a hash brown, bacon and tomatoes. Back in my cabin, I updated my Antwerp presentation and this blog.
At ten o'clock I went to the Palladium theatre, but there was no stage manager present. At 10:20 I had to queue up at reception to report their absence. At 10:25 Emily arrived to introduce me, but still no technicians. Eventually Adrian & Joey arrived and I finally got started at 10:40. I then gave my thirty five minute talk on Antwerp finishing dead on time at 11:15.
At 11:30 I lunched al fresco on the chicken pasta soup, followed by the gammon with chips and cauliflower cheese. In between courses I was taking pictures as we berthed in Antwerp.
At 12:30 I was on escort duty in the car park ready for my second choice tour to Ghent with guide Johan, driver Olivier and 29 guests. It took over an hour to get to Ghent, through a rain shower on the motorway. We had a short walk from the coach drop-off point to St. Michael's Bridge for the public conveniences, but some guests struggled with the steps. We then had our one hour boat ride along the rivers with guide Alan as the sun came out. The highlight of this trip was the impressive Castle of the Counts of Flanders.
During our free time, I recorded my piece to camera and visited the cathedral. I went in the courtyard of the castle, but didn't have time to go in the keep itself. I picked up a map at the tourist information, but it was very similar to the one we had been given on the coach. Back at St. Michael's Bridge, we gathered and then walked slowly back to the coach. En route I chatted to an 84 year old vicar who had studied theology in Salisbury. There were traffic jams to get back into Antwerp, so we didn't get back until after seven o'clock.
I then dined with Peter in the Borough Market buffet on minestrone soup, roast lamb, chocolate mousse and a selection of cheeses. At 8:30 I sat with Mary and Peter to watch the West End Classics in Concert with five of the six vocalists on board. They sang mostly famous musical theatre numbers plus ALW's Pie Jesu. Most were sung by the three ladies, with only a few songs from the two men. However, I had trouble keeping awake. I went to sleep at ten o'clock having done nearly fourteen thousand steps, equal to over five miles of walking during the day.
I got up just after eight o'clock ready for my instant decaff coffee in the cabin. I then had a freshly made cheese omelette with a hash brown, bacon and baked beans. I had just one glass of the multi-vitamin vegetable and fruit juice drink. I then did five circuits, equal to half a mile, of the top deck just off of Folkestone. I touched base with Dayanand at the tours desk, but there was no last minute availability in Rouen.
Back in my cabin, I updated my Antwerp and Rouen presentations together with this blog. At 11:00 I went to David Cocks first interesting 45 minute talk on Captain Cook. At noon I went to the samba dance class with one of the professional dancers. She began with a warm up session, but taught facing us, which confused me. I didn't know if I should be using the same foot as her or a mirror image. She then taught the samba basic, the salsa basic (which she called samba walks), cucharachas and botafogoes. She didn't do samba whisks. Each figure was done four times at half speed and then four times at full speed. At the end the steps were put into a simple one wall routine, which we danced only once after forty minutes.
At one o'clock I lunched al fresco on the lentil soup and the piccata chicken with curried vegetables and chips. At two o'clock I gave my forty minute lecture on Rouen to another full house introduced by CD Ceirios. I then slept for an hour and a half, before enjoying my afternoon instant decaff coffee. I then did five circuits of the pool deck and, when the sun came out, five circuits of the sun deck, equal to one mile of walking.
At 5:45 I dined on the green pea soup, the coronation chicken salad, the turkey cordon bleu and a cheese plate. At the end of the meal we also had one of Mary's Belgian waffles each with some ice cream, kindly warmed up by the ship. At 8:30 I went to hear the Theatre at Sea production A Birthday Blunder. I had seen this previously on Ambassador's other ship, the Ambience last year when I wrote: "I went to see the not very funny farce with the cruise director playing a leading role." I retired at ten o'clock having done just over ten thousand steps, equal to four miles of walking, during the day.
I got up at 5:45, three quarters of an hour before my alarm, as we sailed up the river Seine (pronouced Sen not Sane)! At 6:30 I had TWO croissants and ONE wholemeal roll with ham, cheese, butter and marmite in the Early Bird breakfast buffet. I then sat on one of the cycling machines in the forward facing gym as we berthed in Rouen.
At eight o'clock I was on the quayside ready to escort my second choice tour to Monet's house and garden in Giverny. I had 40 guests to look after with driver Salim and guide Anne, who was late arriving. It took over an hour to get to Giverny along the autoroute towards Paris. We had a short walk to get from the coach park to the gardens. The latter were teeming with Japanese visitors which meant there was a lot of queuing at the bridges and in the house itself. After an hour and a quarter I had had enough and left the site, walking the length of the village street to the medieval church. This was open for viewing and I photographed the Monet family tomb in the churchyard. I slept on the journey back to the ship.
At two o'clock I lunched on the Malaysian laksa noodle soup and the gammon with chips and vegetables. I forewent my siesta and caught the shuttle bus into the city. As it was a Saturday all the public transport was free, so I joy rode on the trams out to the southerly terminus at Technopole de St Etienne and back to the north side of the city centre. I went in three free museums: Natural History, Antiquities and Ceramics and photographed the Joan of Arc tower.
I then caught the 5:15 shuttle bus back to the ship ready to dine at 5:45 with Mary, Peter and Harry, but not Linda. I began with the large ham and cheese croquette, followed by the cream soup. For my main course I had the fettucini pasta with rocket leaves. I finished with the mixed ice cream: chocolate and rum & raisin. Mary again shared a can of Guiness with us.
As the meal finished quickly, I headed back ashore to photograph the enormous funfair on the quayside. This included some incredibly large and/or tall rides which must take a lot of setting up. At 8:30 I enjoyed the Love is in the Air production show. We had another snippet of I Will Always Love You and lots of other great love pop songs. They sang Ed Sheeran's Perfect, which has a Viennese waltz rhythm, in both English and Italian! They finished with ALW's Love Changes Everything.
Back in my cabin I updated this blog and went to bed at 10:15 having done nearly twenty thousand steps, equal to eight miles of walking, during the day. This total includes the ramble round the funfair, which led to one of my soles becoming detached. Luckily I had brought some superglue with me on the cruise! The late night fireworks or the noise of the funfair didn't wake me up during the night.
I got up at 6:30 ready for my usual mug of instant decaff coffee in the cabin. At seven o'clock I had two croissants with ham and one wholemeal roll with smoked salmon in the Early Bird breakfast buffet. I had one glass of grapefruit juice and one of orange.
I waited until the dawn, before walking along the quayside towards the city. Unfortunately the quay was blocked off by the funfair security fence, so I had to backtrack a bit and cut through the funfair itself. When I got to the William the Conqueror bridge, I cut inland to the Old Market Place which was operating, but Joan of Arc's modern church was closed.
When I got to the Cathedral the morning service was just finishing, so I could look around and take my photographs. I continued walking eastwards to Saint-Marc's market which was in full swing on a Sunday. I climbed up Sainte-Catherine's hill to photograph the city centre and all the way back to the ship four miles away. I followed a similar route back westwards and went in the modern Joan of Arc church. I then caught the 11:35 shuttle bus back to the ship.
Just after noon I had the roast beef (it was Sunday) followed by a small chocolate mousse al fresco on the rear verandah. At 1:45 I was ready to escort my second choice Scenic Normandy @ Ease tour with guide Sabine, driver Salim again and 45 guests. The coach was nearly full and I had trouble squeezing into the central seat at the back. Sabine came and told me that there was one spare seat near the front, so I moved to sit next to Peter.
We drove out on the A13 autoroute to Bourneville & Vieux Port on the estuary of the river Seine. We were going along the Route des Chaumieres (Thatched Cottages Route). We had a photostop at Le Quesney, but there was only one half timbered thatched cottage and no river to photograph.
We crossed over on the Brotonne cable stayed bridge and had half an hour of free time in Caudebec-en-Caux. I popped in the Seine museum and the large local church. Unfortunately one lady was late back to the coach, so after waiting twenty minutes and making a series of phone calls, we drove off. Fortunately some of the guests recognised her walking along the prom, so I jumped off the coach and ran back to collect her. She had lost one hour somewhere along the way!
Back at the ship, it was after six o'clock, but Peter and I snuck into the first sitting dinner with the other threesome. I had the spinach soup, the M N X salad, the pork Parmigiana and the mixed ice cream. Back in my cabin, I had a mug of instant decaff coffee with two scoops of real CoffeeMate whitener. I spent some time FaceBooking before going to hear comedian Ray Taylor for a second time. He again picked on various members of the audience and got two men to dress up as Teddy boys to accompany his singing of Sex Bomb. He was rather ageist and sexist, and just a little bit naughty, but some of his jokes were new to me.
Out on the promenade deck I watched the Saint-Romain funfair which was in full swing, but decided not to go ashore again. Back in my cabin, I finally got around to updating this blog. I went to sleep at 10:30 having done nearly twenty four thousand steps, equal to over nine miles of walking during the day!
My alarm woke me at six o'clock only to find out that we had undocked from Rouen, sailed down the majestic river Seine and were already berthed in Honfleur. I had slept for seven and a half hours and could have gone on longer! At 6:30 I had two rolls and one croissant with ham and cheese in the Early Bird breakfast buffet.
At eight o'clock I was on duty on the quayside to escort my first choice tour to Bayeux. I had Sabine again as guide with driver Didier and just 23 guests. It took an hour and a quarter to get to Bayeux via Caen, during which time I dozed until awoken by Sabine.
We walked from the coach park to see the famous tapestry, which is actually an embroidery. The audio guide was excellent, pointing out all the important scenes in this medieval strip cartoon. At the end I went up to the top floor to watch the interesting movie, before exploring the gallery of exhibits on the first floor. We were then led to the cathedral for a quick tour and to a lace making workshop for a short demonstration of both bobbin and needle craft. During our free time, I went in the tourist information office and walked along the river side.
On the return journey I napped again, before getting back to the ship at two o'clock. I had a bowl of vegetable soup and the fish goujons with chips for a late lunch in the buffet. I caught the shuttle bus into Honfleur at three o'clock, but it was drizzling. I went in the tourist information office, but nowhere else, instead walking back to the ship, talking to a gent from Brandon in Norfolk. He has TWO electric cars!
Back in my cabin, I had my mid-afternoon instant decaff coffee with real CoffeeMate whitener, as well as two pots of UHT whole milk provided by the ship. I then updated this blog and worked on my Channel presentation ready for the morning.
At 5:45 wearing my grey formal outfit I went to first sitting dinner with the usual foursome. I had the lobster bisque, the Caesar salad, the fillet mignon in Diane sauce and the baked Alaska. The latter was introduced into the restaurant by a parade of waiters and chefs, complete with sparklers! Mary kindly bought a bottle of Merlot to share.
At 8:30 I went to the excellent A Night at the Movies production show. I went back again at 10:15 to see it again! I went to sleep at 11:15 having done over fourteen thousand steps, nearly equal to six miles of walking during the day.
I awoke at 7:15, having slept for eight hours, but it was now 6:15 on BST. At 7:30 I had scrambled egg, bacon, baked beans and a hash brown to eat and one glass of multi-vitamin juice to drink in the Borough Market buffet. At eight o'clock Kus(e) was still servicing the cabin, so I did five circuits of the pool deck equal to half a mile of walking.
Back in my cabin, I updated this blog and reviewed my Channel talk. At 9:30 Ceirios announced that I would be lecturing at 10:30, but the programme said 10:00! At 9:40 I showed the ten minute Top Gear cross-channel video twice. At ten o'clock I gave my forty minute talk on the Story of the English Channel.
At eleven o'clock I went to the CD's Audience, which she began by saying they won't be addressing all the questions about the lack of promised scenic cruising! Unfortunately the Captain, the Hotel Manager and the Executive Chef were all foreigners with broken English, so I slipped out after just five minutes.
At noon, I went to the line dance class in the Cavern with Phoebe and Ethan. She recapped the Cupid Shuffle, Cowboy Charleston, Electric Slide, Slosh and Mamma Maria which she had taught before. In addition she went through the Red Hot Salsa, but with a couple of mistakes. The music was still occasionally breaking up and she only ever taught the first front wall of each dance.
At one o'clock I had my first and only meal in the Alfresco Grill. I had a bacon bap with chips, followed by two small slices of pizza. At two o'clock I went to the Chance to Dance Session with Karen from Nottingham. We did a selection of ballroom and sequence dances, but there were again several obscure North Country requests.
I then had a deep sleep for fifty minutes, before packing. I had to do several lengths of the side promenades to reach my daily step goal. Land's End was visible on one side, but the Isles of Scilly were under dark rain clouds.
At 5:15 I dined on the crab starter, the chicken & bacon salad, the steak & chips and the ice cream sundae. At the end of the meal, I gave waiters Vijay and Taufik a £10 tip each. Back in my cabin, I had my penultimate instant decaff coffee. At 8:30 I sat with Peter at the excellent Magic of the Musicals production show. This included selections from Anything Goes by Cole Porter, Les Miserables, Half a Sixpence and the Lion King. I went to sleep at 10:40 having done ten thousand steps, equal to four miles of walking, during the day.
The thrusters awoke me at 5:30, half an hour before my alarm, as we berthed in Royal Portbury near Bristol. At 6:30 I had two cheese and bacon baps in the Early Bird buffet. Back in my cabin, I updated this blog and finished my packing. I left the cabin at 7:30 and was driving away at 7:55. I got back home by eleven o'clock after yet another super cruise!
David Cocks wrote: "I took a look at your blog. I'm seriously impressed with your level of detail. It was a really good reminder of the cruise for me. We didn't get involved with the excursions so it was very interesting to read about the places we visited. Thanks for giving my talk a mention. I have a very small repertoire compared to your outstanding library of talks."
2) Amsterdam: Venice of the North? Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the history & highlights of Amsterdam. (He has given this talk once before on this cruise as well as here. 3) Antwerp: Capital of Flanders Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the history & highlights of Antwerp. (He has given this talk once before on this cruise as well as here. 4) Rouen: Capital of Normandy Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the history & highlights of Rouen. (He has given this talk once before on this cruise as well as here. 7) The Story of the English Channel Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the natural history and human history of this great waterway. (He has given this talk four times, most recently on this cruise as well as here.
1) Falmouth: Penny Come Quick! Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the history & highlights of Falmouth. 5) Honfleur: The Port of Artists Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the history & highlights of Honfleur. 6) The Story of the North Sea Martin, who has degrees in geography, geology and theology, will cover both the natural history and human history of this great sea. (He has given this talk eleven times, most recently on this cruise. 8) Vincent van Gogh: Holland's Greatest Painter? Martin will share his love of art with you. 9) Saint-Saens: France's Greatest Classical Composer? Martin will share his love of music with you. (He has given this talk once before on this cruise.
180 Cruises 43 Cruise ships (see below) 13 Cruise lines (see below) 10 Night cruise 9 Buffet breakfasts 8 MDR dinners 7 Production shows: (C&W, Rock, Circus, West End, Love Songs, Movies & Musicals) 6 Tours ecorted 5 Ports of call 5 Continental breakfasts 4 Berth cabin 4 Lectures given 4 Dining companions 4 Cheese omelette breakfasts 3 Sea days 3 Port talks 3 Beef dinners 3 Cabin drawers 3 Al fresco lunches 2 Jacuzzis 2 Comedy shows 2 Pasta dinners 2 Buffet dinners 2 Chicken dinners 2 Shirts laundered 1 Evening play 1 Pork dinner 1 Lamb dinner 1 Turkey dinner 1 MDR Breakfast 1 New ship (Ambition) 1 New port (Royal Portbury) 1 New berth Queen's Wharf (Falmouth) 1 Enrichment lecture (English Channel)
Thirteen Cruise Lines:
* Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines * Saga Shipping Company * Voyages of Discovery * Seabourn (Carnival) * Princess (Carnival) * Cunard (Carnival) * P&O (Carnival) * Celebrity (RCCL) * Silversea (RCCL) * Oceania (NCL) * Marella (TUI) * Ambassador * CrystalForty Three Cruise Ships:
Silver Whisper Silver Spirit Silver Wind Silver Muse Silver Moon Silver Dawn Black Prince Black Watch Boudicca Balmoral Braemar Bolette Celebrity Silhouette Celebrity Solstice Celebrity Eclipse Celebrity Edge Celebrity Apex Saga Rose Saga Ruby Saga Sapphire Saga Pearl II Quest for Adventure Spirit of Adventure (Old SofA) Spirit of Adventure (New SofA) Spirit of Discovery Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) Queen Elizabeth (QE) Queen Victoria (QV) Queen Mary 2 (QM2) P&O Arcadia P&O Aurora P&O Oriana P&O Iona Crystal Symphony Crystal Serenity Seabourn Odyssey Seabourn Sojourn Ambassador Ambience Ambassador Ambition Marella Explorer Oceania Sirena Sapphire Princess VoD Discovery