First Cruise in the E. Med.
on the brand new
Celebrity
Apex

(Please scroll down to see my photographs and read my report)


Flag:	Date:	Port:	Comment:	Flag:
	17 July 2021	Piraeus Greece	On board at 6 o'clock!
	18 July 2021	Mykonos Greece	Independents not allowed ashore!
	19 July 2021	Rhodes Greece	NW Coast & Ramparts
	20 July 2021	Ionian Sea	Glorious day!
	21 July 2021	Dubrovnik Croatia	Cable Car!
	22 July 2021	Ionian Sea	Glorious day!
	23 July 2021	Santorini Greece	Skaros Fort!
	24 July 2021	Piraeus Greece	Funicular Railway!
Flag:	Date:	Port:	Comment:	Flag:

BoMoH -> LHR
Friday the 16th of July, 2021

At 9:15 I got my negative PCR test result from Dorset Private General Practitioners (DPGP 120 GBP), so I was released from self-isolation. I immediately went shopping at Roger's warehouse, the Food warehouse and the M&S food store in Broadstone, as I would normally do on a Friday morning. Back home at noon, I got a call from Sara, one of my agents, to say that Lim-ass-ol on Cyprus had been replaced by Dubrovnik in Croatia. Luckily I had lectured on the latter whilst crusing the Adriatic on Boudicca back in 2019!

After an early lunch of real fresh meat, the first time since I had got home from my last cruise, I lay down for half an hour, but was too excited to sleep. I left home at 1:50 and got to Tesco's in Ashford, Middlesex to fill up with petrol at 4 o'clock and at my B&B in Hounslow West soon after. After unpacking, I bought some sandwiches from the local Sainsbury's and then had to move my car from the front car park to the back yard. Feeling tired, I went to sleep at eight o'clock.

Heathrow (LHR) -> Munich (MUC) -> Athens (ATH)
Saturday the 17th of July, 2021

I awoke at 3 o'clock, after sleeping for seven hours, and got up at 3:45. After my ablutions, I had one bowl of Rice Krispies in the dining room. I got to the tube station ready for the first west bound train at 5 o'clock. Terminal 2 was heaving, Lufthansa had three early flights and the check-in desks couldn't cope. We were directed to a long snaking line, but after a while all Munich customers were called forward. Security and the departure area were nearly empty.

We walked out to our 100 seat plane with two rear-mounted engines. We had to give up our carry on bags to the lower cargo hold as the overhead lockers were too small. We climbed up the folding steps just like on an executive jet. We took off a little late, but had a marvellous view of Windsor Castle and Brooklands, thus seeing two Concordes within minutes of each other. We followed the M25 until we shadowed the long, straight railway track across Kent from Redhill to Ashford. In contrast Europe was cloud bound. En route we were given one small piece of milk chocolate and a bottle of water.

Munich airport (MUC) was better organised, but we did have to wait on a bus beside our plane (A319) which wasn't quite ready for us. We took off half an hour late, so I hope my bag made the transfer! En route we were also given a bottle of water with another small piece of chocolate. Having dozed on the first flight, I spent the second reading the Weekend FT and updating this blog.

The initial checks on our vax certificate and Greek locator form were painless, as was the passport control. After five minutes my bag appeared on the carousel, and I headed off for the train station. I was initially impressed with the metro ride into the city, until we had a power failure en route. After some time, the driver walked the length of train without saying a word. He opened up an electrical cabinet at the far end of the train and reset something. Having walked back to the front of the train we eventually headed off. The journey took nearly 90 minutes, the limited duration of my nine euro ticket.

At Piraeus I took a five euro taxi to the waiting ship. Whilst awaiting the result from a rapid antigen test, I had a message from my agent to say that the ship was asking after my progress. Bethany Moorhouse from Burnley the Activities Manager came off the ship to greet me. I had last worked with her on the Celebrity Edge two years ago. She had been on my South African (D1801) and South Atlantic (D1803a) cruises on Boudicca in 2018. She had also been a singer on one of my Balmoral cruises (L1412) to the Baltic in 2014 when I wrote: "After dinner I sat and danced with Christina in the Lido lounge listening to the 4th Dimension pop band and the lovely voice of Bethany Moorhouse."

I was on board by six o'clock, to find that I had a forward facing state room, just like on Saga's SofD. After showering and changing, I explored the ship. In the cafe, I began with the shrimp cocktail and finished with the Casear salad with anchovies. At 8:15 I went to the tours presentation which covered all five ports in 35 minutes. Back in my state room, I updated this blog. At 9:15 the Captain came on to the tannoy to say that the local authority in Mykonos had re-imposed Code Bubble. This meant that guests (and me!) could only go ashore on a ship's tour.

At 9:30 I went to violinist Katerina Rossa's dramatic showtime. She played mainly cross-over classical / pop tunes culminating in a Queen medley. The seven piece ship's orchestra and the huge 120 degree LED screen (which cost 20 million dollars) were impressive. The Sicilian cruise director said there were only 700 guests (out of 3200 places), but nearly 1000 crew on board! He said that Celebrity Apex was the most expensive ship to have been built, but I expect the enormous "of the Seas" ships cost more. Afterwards I toured the illuminated top deck, before having one small slice of pepperoni pizza. I went to sleep at 11 o'clock Greek time (9 o'clock BST) having done nearly 12,500 steps or five miles of walking.

Sunday the 18th of July, 2021
Mykonos, Greece

The winch capstans awoke me on Mykonos at 6:30, so I got up and showered, before updating this blog. At 8 o'clock I had one egg Benedict and one egg Florentine in the Oceanview Cafe overlooking Mykonos new port (Tourlos). I then did four and a half circuits (one mile) of the top deck serpentine jogging track. I had to walk the wrong way round so that I did the up ramp of the figure of eight in the shade and the down ramp in the hot sun!

Mykonos

Back in my state room, I updated this blog and worked on my upcoming lectures. At 10 o'clock Afif came to service my state room, so I did another four and a half circuits (one mile). At noon I had a cheeseburger & fries at the Mast Grill, before sleeping for nearly one hour. At 3 o'clock I couldn't go in the main, outside pool as they were having a water polo match on, so I did six lengths of the smaller indoor pool. I went in one of the jacuzzis here inside the solarium, before climbing two flights of stairs to the two large outdoor jacuzzis with good views of Mykonos.

At 4 o'clock I went to the Club to set up for my first lecture, but they couldn't get my HP laptop to communicate, and their HDMI sockets were playing up. Eventually at 4:50 we got their laptop to communicate directly without going through the dodgy podium electronics. At 5 o'clock I gave my 43 minute talk on "Rhodes: the Island of the Knights" without videos.

At 6 o'clock I went to the main Cosmopolitan restaurant, but the Maitre d'Hotel said that table sharing was not allowed, so I dined alone at a corner table by the window as we sailed away from Mykonos. I began with the sweet butternut squash soup and then continued with the Casear salad plus anchovies. I had the Manhattan sirloin steak, but it was a huge chunk of lean meat, not a flat slice as usual! I finished with the cherries jubilee, one of my favourite desserts. I made the mistake of ordering sparkling water and decaf coffee, without checking the menu for costs. Fortunately they didn't charge me!

At 7:45 I had to record five short snippets for Bethany's daily TV show. At 9:30 I went to the first production show "Crystallize" which was a sound and light spectacular with three amazing aerial acrobats. There was one electric violinist, three singers and nine (?) dancers in all. Unfortunately I only knew one song by the Eurythmics, their most famous hit.

Afterwards I had one small slice of pepperoni pizza with some apple juice, having already tried my favourite fruit punch and the real lemonade on offer in the Oceanview cafe. I looked in on the jazz session by the orchestra in the Club, but didn't linger, going to bed at 11:30. During the day I had done over 12,500 steps or five miles of walking. If I can't go ashore when we get back there next week, I shall have to shell out for an expensive tour!

Monday the 19th of July, 2021
Rhodes, Greece

I awoke at 6:40 and watched my brief apperance on the morning show and most of my Rhodes lecture from the previous day. At 7:45 I had TWO eggs royale, which they called eggs Benedict with smoked salmon, for breakfast as we sailed into Rhodes. Back in my state room, I updated this blog as we berthed on the eastern side of the main quay. I was off the ship at nine, walking through the old town to the new. I walked the length of both town beaches via the aquarium on the northern tip of the island. I headed south west along the coast, but failed to find a way up to the ancient acropolis of Rhodes.

At 11 o'clock I had had enough of the heat and caught the two euro bus back into the town centre. The bus driver tried to diddle me out of 5 euros! I continued through the old town to d'Amboise gate, but failed to find the ancient warehouses just west of the old town. At noon the rampart walk opened up and I was able to complete about half of the circuit of the walls.

The church in Lindos, Rhodes

Back at the ship, I had five kebabs (beef, lamb, chicken, pork and seafood) for lunch in the Oceanview cafe. I then slept for over two hours. At four o'clock I did six half lengths of the long, outside pool, before spending five minutes in one of the free-standing jacuzzis. However the sun was still intense, so I went back inside early. I watched the sailaway from Rhodes through my interestingly shaped window, as we reversed out of the berth.

At six o'clock I dined in the Cyprus restaurant. I began with the hot melted cheese on thinly sliced baguette bread, followed by the yellow sweet corn soup. I majored on the Moroccan lamb shank tagine and finished with the Greek yoghurt with honey & nuts. I was able to watch the Turkish coast sail past, but missed the north west coast of Rhodes on the other side of the ship. I need to pay more attention to which of the four restaurants has the better views at dinner time!

Back in my state room, I back upped my photos and worked on my Dubrovnik talk. For a moment I thought I was going to have heartburn, since the service for one person in a nearly empty restaurant is so fast! I watched the beautiful sunset through my window, with just the hint of a green flash as the sun disappeared.

At 9:30 I went to Magical Bones the Black Magic(ian) show time, unfortunately the video was out of sync with his words! The same thing had happened on my Transatlantic cruise on the Celebrity Silhouette. The Britain's Got Talent (BGT) finalist did a moving piece about a black American slave who mailed himself to freedom in a box! Afterwards I had one small slice of pizza, before going to bed at 11 o'clock. During the day I had done over 23 thousand steps, that's over nine miles of walking!

Tuesday the 20th of July, 2021
First Sea Day

I awoke just after seven ready for my TWO egg royales in the Oceanview Cafe, as we sailed passed the Gytheion 'finger' of the Peleponnese peninsula. We were leaving the Aegean sea and entering the Ionian sea, en route to Dubrovnik in the Adriatic sea! I had to ask for extra salt for my tomato juice to forestall any possible future leg muscle cramps! Back in my state room, I updated this blog and worked on my powerpoints. At 9:45 Afif came to service the room, so I did four and half laps which equals a mile of walking.

At 10:15 I went to the 30 minute shorex presentation on our next three ports. At the end, I won a $50 voucher for the spa in the raffle, but I was unable to redeem it for the basic shave! At 11:45 I did another four and half laps which equals another mile of walking. At noon I lunched on a cheeseburger & fries without a bun at the Mast Grill by the pool. At 12:30 I met up with Bethany Moorhouse and Harri Foster in the Club to check out my next couple of videos.

Back in my state room, I slept for just over one hour. At three o'clock I gave my 35 minute presentation on Dubrovnik in Croatia. After five minutes back in my state room, my lecture started to play on the TV, so I was able to review it. The screen in the Club had gone blank for a few seconds to my consternation, but the TV version was complete. I then went swimming, but being a sea day the outside pool was rather crowded. I made do with ten minutes in one of the tall, free standing jacuzzis, with views of the white cliffs of Kefalonia in the Ionian sea.

Back in my state room again, I received lots of positive feedback from the cruise director on my previous Silver Moon voyage. I also had to send off my Cunard bids for 2022. At 6:30 I dined in the Tuscan restaurant. Two couples, who had been to my afternoon lecture, came in and asked if I would like to join them, but I had to explain that table sharing was not being allowed. I began with the Tuscan bean soup and then continued with the Boston salad with Gorgonzola cheese. I had the sirloin steak with veg & mash, not chips for my main course. I finished with the olive oil cremeux, which we would call fruit trifle!

Back in my state room yet again, I updated this blog. At 8:30 I went to the Caravan mini-production show in the Club. This was a circus-like performance with four dancers, three incredible acrobats and two singers. Thankfully I knew most of the classic pop songs being sung.

At 9:30 I went to the Tree of Life full production show in the theatre. This made good use of the huge 120 degree screen, which didn't have the two ridges present on the version on the Celebrity Edge. I particularly enjoyed "Fields of Gold" in the summer section of a four seasons showtime. There were 8 dancers, 3 singers and 3 acrobats in the ensemble. Afterwards I had a small slice of pepperoni pizza and a glass of apple juice. During the day I had done exactly 10 thousand steps which equals four miles of walking. I was asleep soon after eleven.

Wednesday the 21st of July, 2021
Dubrovnik, Croatia

I awoke at 6:40, but it was only 5:40 on Central European Time, so I dozed for a bit, before getting up to see the sail-in to Dubrovnik. I breakfasted on TWO eggs Benedict, with a glass of tomato juice, with extra salt ready for a sweaty day ahead! I then went out on to the top deck to watch the final approach to the berth in the new port.

I was off the ship just after eight o'clock, taking an hour to walk the two miles into the old town, which I entered through the Pile gate. I went down the long main street to the two palaces and two churches at the bottom, before walking around the old port to the red lighthouse. I doubled back up the street of restaurants to the free water fountain and then worked my way down again via the back alleys.

Dubrovnik, formerly known as Ragusa

I exited the old town via the Ploce gate and then climbed up to the cable car base station. I shelled out 90 Croatian kuna (about 10 quid) on a one way ticket to the top of the local mountain. Here there were extensive views of the old town, both harbours, Lokrum island and the inland mountain ranges.

I gave the museum of the Croatian war of indepedence in the hill top fort a miss, but walked around the outside to find the footpath down. This was a stony route of 16 zig-zags down the hillside. Initially it was the famous Mediterranean scrub vegetation (garrigue or maquis), then the odd cypress tree and finally the pine forest. I then followed the high level corniche road all the way back to the famous cable stayed bridge at the new port.

Celebrity Apex in Dubrovnik new port

I had to follow the estuary a little way inland, before doubling back under the bridge to get back to the ship at one o'clock, having walked 10 miles! I lunched on the lovely roast lamb al fresco on the rear terrace with a commanding view of Dubrovnik new port and new town. I had just one scoop of the orange ice cream for dessert. Back in my state room, I had a deep sleep for one hour. I then had to respond to an email offering me four Silversea contracts next year!

As it was a port day there was room in the long outdoor pool for me to do four lengths, but I was flagging! I revived myself with five minutes in one of the free-standing jacuzzis, but it threatened to bring heartburn on, so I got out early. I wandered around the top deck admiring the view of both sides of the new port and trying to decide what to do here in a week's time!

Back in my state room, I updated this blog and sorted out the leaflets I had picked up during the morning. After changing for dinner, I went back up to the top deck to watch the sail-away from lovely Dubrovnik. At 6:30 I went to the Normandie French restaurant for the first time this cruise. I began with the enormous French onion soup, but it is difficult to eat the lovely cheese crust without spilling the soup underneath! I continued with the frisee salad with Spanish ham and cheese, followed by the proper Beef Wellington (boeuf en croute). No silly little spirals of pastry here! I finished with the decadent opera cake.

Back in my state room again, I updated this blog and back upped my day's haul of pictures. At 9:30 I went to Andrew Derbyshire's most impressive vocal show. He had been brought up in Burnley, like Bethany and one of the orchestra's guitarists. He began with two Queen numbers and finished with the Impossible Dream from Man of La Mancha. In between he covered Whitney Houston, Frank Sinatra and others. Three of his songs were in waltz time! If he is on again next week, I must make a note of all his great numbers. It is not often that I join in a standing ovation at the end of a show!

I had a quick slice of pizza, before going to the Alice in Wonderland mini-production show in the (Garden of) Eden. All the famous characters were here: Alice in green, the red queen, the white rabbit, the mad hatter, the Cheshire cat, the oriental contortionist as a butterfly and the two muscular acrobats holding hands as Tweedledum & Tweedledee! It was passed eleven (midnight on Greek time) that I got to bed. During the day I had done over 33 thousand steps, that is over 13 miles of walking!

Thursday the 22nd of July, 2021
Second Sea Day

I awoke at 6:40, but lay on the bed to watch Guiseppe & Bethany's morning show on the TV, waiting for my 30 second cameo appearance plugging my talk on Santorini. At eight o'clock I had two eggs royale and a glass of tomato juice with extra salt to make up for the sweat lost the day before. At 8:15 I did four & a half circuits of the top deck track, which is one mile of walking.

Back in my state room, I updated this blog and worked on my presentations. When Afif came at 9:45 to service my state room, I did another four & a half circuits of the top deck track. At 10:15 I went to Guisepppe's 65 minute presentation on "Ship Life: Living on a Cruise." He was interrupted by the arrival of the Captain, who said a few words, and by his laptop battery dying! At 11:30 I had an early lunch of a cheeseburger & fries with no bun. I then had a deep sleep for an hour and a half.

At 2 o'clock I went to the electric violinist's matinee in the theatre. Unfortunately I only knew two of her tunes: Ravel's Bolero and the Apple Blossom Special, so I didn't enjoy this as much as her first show. She had been given two bum slots: the first night when everyone was tired and this slot after lunch - siesta time! Having had an early lunch, I had one scoop of chocolate ice cream with extra chocolate sprinkles in the parlour mid afternoon.

At 4:15 I gave my 40 minute talk on Santorini. Halfway through the big screen went blank and then their laptop wouldn't progress. Harri came to my rescue and the broadcast boys edited out the short delay. I then did four lengths of the long, outside pool, before spending ten minutes in one of the large jacuzzis. Back in my state room, my Santorini lecture was playing, so I didn't get to the Cosmopolitan restaurant for a second time until 6:15. I began with the tomato soup, continued with the duck salad and majored on the Manhattan chunky steak. I finished with the traditional baked Alaska.

Back in my state room, I watched the ship's entertainment and on board TV channels hoping to catch my latest port talk. However, I had trouble keeping awake. At 9:30 I went to Vox Clever, an excellent quartet of young men in a close harmony vocal show time. Although British, they covered great American artists like Prince, Billy Joel and the Eagles. Afterwards I had a small piece of pepperoni pizza, before descending again to the Club for Andrew Derbyshire's late night cabaret. What a show man! He soon had the dance floor full of disco bunnies. He started singing "I will survive", before handing over halfway to the lovely Bethany Moorhouse, who used to be a singer on Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines! I didn't get to bed until nearly midnight. I had done over 12 thousand steps, nearly 5 miles during the day.

Friday the 23rd of July, 2021
Santorini, Greece

I awoke at six o'clock and got up at 6:30, ready for my complimentary PCR test at 7 o'clock. I had my tomato juice with extra salt plus TWO eggs royale as usual in the Oceanview cafe. Back in my state room, I started watching my Santorini talk on the TV again. I caught the 8:10 local tender to the shore, before paying 6 euros to go up in the cable car. I followed the cliff top path north to the Skaros fort on the point. I walked back south via the road to find the closed Folklore museum. I then descended on the zig-zag donkey track back to the tender dock.

Santorini

I caught the 11:20 tender back to the ship, ready for a cheeseburger & fries when the Mast Grill opened at 11:30. I then slept for nearly two hours, before updating this blog, back upping my pictures and working on my Mykonos presentation for the next cruise. At four o'clock I had just one scoop of strawberry ice cream with extra rainbow sprinkles. Being a port day the outside pool was nearly empty, so I could do four long lengths with ease. I then spent 15 minutes in one of the free-standing jacuzzis, two decks above the pool with fabulous views of Fira the main town on Santorini hovering over us!

At six o'clock I dined in the Cypriot restaurant for a second time. I began with the baked cheese starter, but a second different one arrived as well. I continued with the house salad, before consuming a large lamb shank tagine. I finished with the Greek yoghurt with honey and nuts. For the first time this cruise, I felt thoroughly stuffed!

At 8:30 I went to see the Caravan mini-production show in the Club for a second time. The oriental contortionist lady and the two muscular acrobats from Eastern Europe were just as good as the first time. At 9:30 I went to the Rockumentary main production show in the theatre. It began with the Rolling Stones "I can't get no satisfaction" and ended with Queen's "We are the champions". It included the Beatles, Elton John and the Who, but I didn't know some of the American artistes featured. I went to bed before eleven o'clock, as I was still stuffed and tired. During the day I had done over 21 thousand steps, equal to over eight miles of walking!

Saturday the 24th of July, 2021
Piraeus, Greece - The Port for Athens
Turnaround Day

I awoke at 6 o'clock and got up at 6:30. The view through my window included the large Norwegian Jade and the mid-sized Seabourn Ovation, which had been berthed here last week as well. At seven I had TWO eggs royale with my tomato juice in the Oceanview cafe as usual. Disembarkation was delayed until 8:30 and I had to collect my new key card from the gangway, after the initial rush had passed, so I was not off the ship until 8:45.

I walked around the harbour taking 35 minutes to get to the metro station. I passed the large Wind Star yacht, the Celestyal Crystal and the World, which consists of private condominiums! I invested 1.20 euros in a single ticket valid for 90 minutes. Changing lines at Monastiraki, I got to Evangelismos station in short time. I walked about halfway up the Lycabettus Hill to get to the funicular base station, but just missed the 10 o'clock departure, so I had to wait 25 minutes for the next. This cost 5 euros one way to get to the little church on the hill with stunning views all the way back to Piraeus.

I then descended around the north, west and south sides of the hill through the pine trees. I looked into the Roman emperor Hadrian's water reservoir at the end of his aqueduct. I ended up at the Benaki museum, at the start of museum row, which offered free wi-fi.

I then entered the impressive national garden behind the parliament building. I saw the famous horned goats and various ponds, but the botanical museum was closed off for renovation. I then crossed over the main avenue passed the tram terminus to Syntagma square.

The temple of the winds in Athens, Greece

I walked down Ermou the main shopping street to get to the Metropolitan cathedral and three little, old chapels. At Monastiraki station, I caught the next train back to Piraeus. It then took me another 35 minutes to walk back to cruise terminal B, named after the ancient Greek general Themistocles.

I was straight back on board as I had had my PCR test the previous day. I then lunched on the lovely roast beef in the Oceanview cafe, followed by just one scoop of pistacio ice cream. I had to queue up at the iLounge to get my smartphone sorted on to my second cruise. I then slept for two hours, only to be awoken by Orlan my new steward to ask me to attend the safety muster.

After updating this blog, I changed into my swimwear. Being turnaround day the pool was nearly empty, so I was able to do four long lengths easily. I then spent 15 minutes in one of the free-standing jacuzzis, without wearing a hat for the first time.

At 6:30 I dined in the Tuscan restaurant. I began with the Tuscan bean soup, followed by the Caesar salad with anchovies. I continued with the tuna puttanesca, finishing with the chocolate lava cake! At the end of the meal the ship started to move, so I rushed up to the top deck to watch my fourth sail-away from Piraeus in as many weeks! The sky turned red and there was a magnificent sunset over the Peleponnese peninsula.

At 9:30 I went to Steve Caoutte's very amusing comedy show time, where he mainly interacted with the audience to great effect. He did however pick on the late comers! At 10:45 I went to see the Alice in Wonderland mini-production show for a second time in (the Garden of) Eden. I didn't get to bed until 11:45, having done over 24 thousand steps, that's nearly 10 miles of walking!

The high points of the cruise were the cable cars (literally)!

Score card:

5 Old ports revisited:
  (Piraeus, Mykonos, Rhodes, Dubrovnik & Santorini)

4 Lunch time cheese burgers in the Mast Grill
4 USB Sockets in the state room 
4 Jacuzzis (Two inside and two outside)

3 Speciality Restaurants:
  (Cypriot, Italian & French)
3 Lunches in the OceanView cafe 
3 Destination Lectures:
  (Rhodes, Dubrovnik & Santorini 
   but not Mykonos, nor Piraeus/Athens)
3 Cable Cars:
  (Dubrovnik, Santorini & Piraeus)

2 Dinners in the Cosmopolitan International restaurant
2 Dinners in the Cyprus Cypriot restaurant
2 Pools (One inside and one outside)

1 Dinner in the Normandie French restaurant
1 Dinner in the Tuscan Italian restaurant
1 Dinner in the OceanView cafe buffet
1 Main restaurant (Cosmopolitan)
1 Free PCR Test (120 GBP in BoMoH, but free on board!)
1 Brand new ship!

0 Enrichment lectures:
  (I did offer Mamma Mia: the Greek Musical!)

Good points were:

Forward facing double state room on deck 9 with portrait picture window
Free rapid lateral flow antigen test at the start of the cruise
Choice of four restaurants (Int., Cypriot, French, Tuscan)
Serpentine figure of eight top deck walking track
Open seating any time dining in four restaurants
Freshly made egg royales in the breakfast buffet
Spiral balcony in (the Garden of) Eden
Free PCR test at the end of the cruise
Efficient steward (Afif)
Cherry flavoured soft drink
Evening turn down service
No automatic gratuities
Lecture introductions
Free soft ice creams
Hot pizza slices
Brand new ship
Dressing gown
Four jacuzzis
No muscle cramps
No headaches!
No heartburn
Free laundry
Free wi-fi
Fly cruise
Two pools

For the record ...

Food: Excellent.
Tours: None
Weather: Hot & sunny every day!
New ports: None
Sailaways: Yes, but no dancing.
Sail-ins: Yes.
Tea dance: No.
Masonics: No.
Service clubs: No.
Dinner host: No, table sharing not allowed.
Line dancing: Just 'fun' dancing by the pool.
Olde Tyme Dancing: None.
Sequence dancing: None.
Ballroom dancing: None.
Western night: No.
Tropical night: No.
British (Red, White & Blue) night: No.
Singles party: No.
Singles lunch: No.
Formal nights: Two 'Elegant Chic' evenings, but poorly observed.
Cocktail parties: None.
Captain: Dimitris the Greek, catch phrase "True Story"
Cruise Director: Guiseppe from Taormina, Sicily.
Activities Manager: Bethany Moorhouse from Burnley.
Technicians: Harri Foster & Marcus Savage.
Cabin mate: None.
Lecturer: Martin P. Lee (Destinations)
Singer: Andrew Derbyshire.
Magician: Magical Bones.
Violinist: Katerina Rossa.
Comedian: Steve Caouette.
Song of the cruise: Find me somebody to love.
Cabin: 9106 Forward facing outside double state room.
Dancing Ladies: None
Other Pax: Lots of Americans, some Brits, some Eastern Europeans.

Thirty One Cruise Ships:

Saga Rose
Saga Ruby
Saga Sapphire
Saga Pearl II
Quest for Adventure
Spirit of Adventure
Spirit of Discovery

Black Prince
Black Watch
Balmoral
Boudicca
Braemar

Celebrity Silhouette
Celebrity Solstice
Celebrity Eclipse
Celebrity Edge
Celebrity Apex

Queen Elizabeth 2
Queen Elizabeth
Queen Victoria
Queen Mary 2

Silver Wind
Silver Muse
Silver Moon

Crystal Symphony
Crystal Serenity

Seabourn Odyssey
Seabourn Sojourn

Sapphire Princess

VoD Discovery

P&O Oriana

First Cruise in the E. Med.on the brand newCelebrityApex