May
2023
Hants
UK
11:00!
May
2023
Belgium
pm Oostende
June
2023
Norway
pm West Side
June
2023
Norway
pm 3 miles N
June
2023
Norway
pm 3 miles E
June
2023
Hants
UK
8:30!
| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
|---|---|---|---|
|
29th May 2023 |
SoToN Hants UK |
Aboard by 11:00! |
|
30th May 2023 |
Zeebrugge Belgium |
am Zeebrugge pm Oostende |
|
1st June 2023 |
Aalesund Norway |
am Aksla Mt. pm West Side |
|
2nd June 2023 |
Olden Norway |
am 8 miles S pm 3 miles N |
|
3rd June 2023 |
Haugesund Norway |
am 6 miles N pm 3 miles E |
|
5th June 2023 |
SoToN Hants UK |
Home by 8:30! |
I got up just after six o'clock and left the house in a Streamline taxi at 9:15 (£15.00). I then caught the 9:45 cross-country train to SoToN (£16.60). Here I crossed the bridge to exit from the south side of the station, but the taxi rank was being dug up. I had to be let back into the station and then let back out again on the north side (£7.60).
My name wasn't on the pax mainfest, so I was fast-tracked through to the ship by eleven o'clock. I was allocated stateroom 9401, which I couldn't find. At guest services they eventually found out that it was a dummy cabin number as the ship was full! They told me to come back at five o'clock, after we had sailed, when they would know how many no-shows they had!
At noon I lunched on the leg of beef in the buffet, followed by a chocolate flavoured soft ice cream cone. At one o'clock I dozed for an hour on one of the loungers in the child-free solarium. I frittered away the afternoon playing FreeCell and Hearts on my mobile phones.
At four o'clock we left our berth and I watched the sailaway from SoToN in the bright sunshine. I then adjourned to the Library to start writing this blog. At five o'clock my state room still wasn't ready. In fact I didn't take possession until after six. I found I had a double state room with balcony on deck ten! I was glad to have my first instant decaff coffee of the cruise with my own Sainsbury's coffee whitener, which I had brought from Blighty.
At 6:30 I touched base with the Mexican Activity Manager Nacho, who now lives in Germany! I suggested I do my new lecture on Scandinavian Pop Music, rather than the one on Norwegian Railways. I also said hello to Essex Boy Cruise Director Mike, who now lives in Montreal! At seven o'clock I went to the first house of the Intimate Broadway Cabaret show time with six vocalists and seven musicians in the Theatre. I was surprised to see Stephen Ashton, who used to sing on the Saga ships and is one of my FaceBook friends!
At eight o'clock I dined on the barbeque buffet of sticky ribs and saucy chicken. I finished with one scoop of chocolate ice cream and one of my favourite flavours: peanut butter. I topped them off with one spoonful of chocolate vermicelli and one of hundreds & thousands! At nine o'clock I watched the show again, this time from the front stalls, rather than from the royal circle.
Back in my state room, I had messages from Nacho and from my personal concierge. The former wanted more lectures from me and asked me to call by at ten in the morning, when I had planned to be ashore. I went to sleep at 10:30, which was now 11:30 on Central European Time (CET). During the day I had done nearly eleven thousand steps, equal to over four miles of walking.
Having left my curtains undrawn, I awoke to the dawn at 5:10, but it was now 6:10 on CET. I enjoyed my second instant decaff coffee of the cruise in my state room, before abluting. At seven I had TWO cool eggs Benedict in the buffet, followed by a glass of V8 vegetable juice.
I was off the ship before 7:30 taking the free shuttle to the cruise terminal for passport control. Thankfully they didn't rubber stamp my passport, as my new extra pages one is already filling up with EU in and out stamps! I walked via the redeveloped warehouses to the central dock and then across the swing bridge over the Brugges canal. I followed the road about one mile to the seaside resort area with its enormous beach of white sand. I photographed the beach railway station, the western church and the tourist information office, which wasn't going to open until ten o'clock.
Back at the cruise terminal, I caught the free shuttle to the ship at 9:30. In my state room I had my second instant decaff coffee of the day. At ten o'clock I touched base with Nacho, originally from Merida in the Yucatan, but now living with his German wife and daughter near to Cologne. His boss, the CD, had wanted all SEVEN of my Norwegian lectures, so I was given three evening slots on the Norwegian port days as well as doubling up on the two sea days!
At 10:25 I splashed out €7.50 (£6.52) on an all day coastal tram ticket. I caught the next westbound service from the temporary station beyond the central church (Kerk). It took nearly an hour to reach Oostende, where I did some more photography. I went in the tourist information office next to the famous Kursaal casino, but only came out with just one map!
I just missed the next eastbound tram and had to wait until 12:40 for the next. This was an old vehicle with steps up to a floor built above the wheels, unlike the newer low-floor tram I had come out on. Unfortunately the extensive sand dunes prevent any view of the sea and beaches along the coastal ride. I got off one stop early to photograph the main railway station situated between the seaside resort in the west and the main part of Zeebrugge in the east. In the latter area, I photographed the impressive town hall and the central church (Kerk), where I had boarded the first tram earlier.
Back at the ship at two o'clock, I had a late lunch of roast pork with chips and vegetables, followed by a rum & raisin ice cream with lashings of sprinkles! The buffet was heaving as the tours and Brugge shuttle buses got back just before the 2:30 all aboard time. At 3:30 I slept for over an hour and a half catching up on yesterday's exertions and this morning's early start. I then had my third instant decaff coffee of the day and ate my canapes, as I updated this blog.
At 6:15 I went to the Grand Cuvee Main Dining Room (MDR) where I sat with a couple from Newport, Wales and a couple from Southampton. The latter gentleman hailed from Colchester in Essex. I had the corn soup, the Caesar salad, the beef tournedos and the panna cotta with strawberry sauce to eat. I felt stuffed afterwards!
At 8:15 we had the Captain's introduction in the atrium. Back in my state room, I updated this blog. At nine o'clock I went to Matthew McGurk's magic show, but I kept nodding off. I really shouldn't bother going to see magicians! I went to bed at 10:15 having done twenty four and a half thousand steps, nearly equal to ten miles of walking during the day.
Having closed my curtains, I didn't wake until 6:20, ready for my in-cabin instant decaff coffee. At seven o'clock I had a freshly made cheese omelette with crispy bacon, grilled tomatoes and a hash brown. Back in my state room, I updated this blog and worked on my upcoming presentations. At 9:30 I went to the twenty five minute destination highlights talk by the excursions manager. This was not a hard sell and did not even go through the tours!
Whilst Bagus was servicing the state room, I did fifteen circuits of the pool equal to one mile of walking, in the warm sun, but cool wind. At the end, the top deck jogging track had reopened, but it was too late for me by then. Back in the state room, I updated this blog.
At eleven o'clock I went to Jess & Daisy's swing class in the crowded atrium. He taught the rock jive basic (S_S_QQ), the ladies turn & return and the change of places. The latter involved a gentleman going under his partner's arm, not by changing hands behind his back. I danced with Karen from Oxford who was a bit short for this figure!
At 12:30 I gave my 40 minute talk on the Fjords in the theatre, introduced by CD Mike. My audio socket wasn't working, so I played my video without its backing track. At the end I adjourned to the Entertainment court to answer some questions.
At 1:45 I lunched on the roast beef and ice cream in the buffet. At three o'clock I gave my 40 minute talk on the Glaciers in the Sky Lounge using their laptop, introduced by CD Mike. Unfortunately the programme had the next events scheduled to start at 3:30 and at four o'clock! Again I had some questions to answer as the general knowledge quiz took over.
Back in my cabin, I had my daily canapes, before sleeping for three quarters of an hour. When I awoke I had my late afternoon instant decaff coffee, whilst updating this blog. At six o'clock I went in the indoor pool for the first time this cruise, but the water was sloshing around a bit, so I spent 2 x 10 minutes in one of the jacuzzis instead.
At seven o'clock I went to the Cosmopolitan production show which included "West End Girls" by the Pet Shop boys representing London and Rolling in the Deep representing somewhere Arabic. I didn't know any of the other songs for places like New York, New Orleans or Italy. The two aerial acrobat couples were impressive and three of the dancers and one of the singers also flew on wires across the stage. I have only ever seen the latter happen on one other cruise, my previous time on the Silhouette back in 2019!
After the show I went to the Grand Cuvee MDR where I was sat with a couple from Yorkshire. They were keen Silversea cruisers, so we compared notes. They were travelling with two gents who were on their very first cruise. I had the French onion soup, the lamb in phyllo pastry and the pina colada frozen yoghurt. I shelled out $8.80 on a glass of red wine to celebrate giving my first two lectures of the cruise.
Back in my state room I updated this blog. At ten o'clock I went to the Queen singalong in the atrium led by CD Mike. I went to bed at 10:45, having done over eleven and a half thousand steps, equal to over four miles of walking, during the day.
I awoke just after six o'clock as we approached Norwegian land for the first time this cruise. I abluted after my usual in-cabin instant decaff coffee. At seven o'clock I had two eggs royale for breakfast with one glass of tomato juice. I sat in the Sky Lounge to watch the sail in to Aalesund as there was a cool sea breeze out on the open decks.
When we had been cleared, I left the ship and started doing some photography, but a short sharp rain shower intervened. I sheltered in an enormous pedestrian tunnel, which I think must have been designed as a nuclear bomb shelter. With two large cruise ships in port, the Tourist Information Office was already open at 8:45. I asked for the following Norwegian Pronunciations and Meanings:
N: P: M: By Bew Town Dy Dew Die Fy Few Phew Ny New New Py Pew Pee Sy Sew Sew Ty Tew Hush Vy Vew View
I then climbed up the famous 418 Aksla steps to take the iconic photographs of the town with the two large cruise ships berthed back to back! I continued into the woods to find three of the five dams with their little reservoirs behind. I descended by the gravel track which was easier going down than the busy steps were going up! At the bottom, I got caught in another short, sharp shower and so sheltered in the Town Baths (Bybadet) building with its FOUR swimming pools. The miracle house museum, which survived the famous fire, was not open, despite two large cruise ships being in port. I climbed up to the little fort on the hillock, but the town museum was now only open by appointment!
Back at the ship at eleven o'clock, I had my mid-morning instant decaff coffee and updated this blog. I sat out on my balcony in the sunshine for the first time this cruise. Balconies are wasted on me!
At noon I lunched on the ham with carrots, peas, green bean mornay and asparagus with no potatoes. I finished with sugar free chocolate ice cream and low fat frozen pina colada yoghurt. I then slept for two hours.
At three o'clock I walked west through the Aalesund suburbs along the south coast to the great white arch bridge over the fishing harbour, before heading back along the north coast into the famous Art Nouveau quarter. I popped in the Youth Style Centre (Jugenstilsenteret), before getting back to the ship.
Here I had my canapes with my late afternoon instant decaff coffee. I made the mistake of going to the indoor pool after five o'clock when the children's happy two hours had started. Both jacuzzis were full, so I just wallowed in the shallow end of the pool full of kids!
At 5:45 I went to the MDR where I was sat with the couple from Southampton again. The husband hailed from Colchester in Essex, so we talked about Harwich, Frinton, Dovercourt Bay and St. Osyth. I had the prawn cocktail, the roast duck with red cabbage and the strawberry cake with marzipan to eat.
At 7:30 I adjourned to the Celebrity Central cinema to set up for my third enrichment talk on Norwegian Railways. I was able to set up my laptop, but I was still having audio problems. The technician arrived at five minutes to eight, so it was too late to change to one of their laptops, so I pressed on without the audio tracks to my videos. Towards the end loud bangs were heard, so I unplugged my laptop and then my head mike, but neither stopped the noises. At the end I had a few questions to answer.
I then headed back to my state room to drop off my kit, before proceeding to the Theatre to hear the Rebel rock singers show time. This was an AUKUS (Melbourne, Blackpool and Dallas) trio. After their opening rock number, I feared the worst, but surprisingly they then sang a musical theatre number from Phantom and a country number (Desperado) from the Eagles. They continued with Beatles and Rolling Stones medleys, before singing Pinball Wizzard by the Who. They finished with some more pure rock anthems and the show was over before I realised!
Up in the buffet, I had my first slice of pepperoni pizza of the cruise with a glass of my favourite cherry flavoured squash. I went to sleep at eleven o'clock having done over twenty six thousand steps, equal to over ten miles of walking during the day.
I awoke at 6:20 to find we had already berthed in Olden. At seven o'clock I had a ready made plain omelette with crispy bacon, tomatoes and hash browns. I left the ship at 7:30 to walk into the village. Having photographed the old church, I headed south along the road to the newer church. I continued to the large waterfall, where I crossed over on to the west bank of the river. I did the complete circuit of lake Floen, before returning to the village by the footpath on the west side of the river. I had done over twenty thousand steps, equal to eight miles of walking during the morning.
Back at the ship at 10:45, I accepted my first contract on Regent Seven Seas Cruises (RSSC) - Miami to Santarem on the River Amazon in Brazil in December! I then had my mid-morning instant decaff coffee. At 11:30 I had my first cheeseburger and fries al fresco by the pool in the bright sunshine. I then slept for an hour and a quarter.
At two o'clock, I walked north for a mile and a half to photograph the top station of the Loen sky lift cable car, but it had clouded over. Back at the ship, I had my afternoon coffee with my canapes sat out on my balcony. I then finally managed six lengths of the warm indoor pool, followed by 15 minutes in one of the jacuzzis. Here a lady from Salisbury said that she had heard that Dick & Angela Strawbridge, of Escape to the Chateau fame, had been dropped by Channel 4. I taught Dick's brother Bobby at RMCS twenty odd years ago!
At 4:45 I went to the Concierge Class sailaway on the foredeck helipad, where I had one glass of buck's fizz and one cup of hot chocolate. At 5:30 I arrived at the Grand Cuvee MDR ready for an early dinner. I was sat with the couple from Southampton for a third time. The lady said her second name was Shirley and they lived in the suburb of Shirley! I had the leek & potato Vichysoisse cold soup, the sirloin steak with extra cauliflower cheese and my favourite cherries jubilee.
At 7:30 I went to the Central cinema to set up for my next talk, but the movie was running on, so I had to stand outside and ask my guests to wait. Andres eventually got me set up to start at 8:10, introduced by CD Mike, ready for my 40 minute talk on Edvard Grieg. Unfortunately my radio mike started crackling as it had done the night before and the audience told me to turn it off and just speak loudly. I was later told that they had been recording my lecture, so that had stopped it! At the end a couple from near Coleraine had a long chat with me.
At nine o'clock I went to the Life production show in the Theatre. I particularly enjoyed Jess Glynn's "Darling Hold My Hand" and One Direction's "The Story of My Life". The lead singer of the latter group, reminded me of one of the Silhouette singers. At the end Stephen Ashton blew me a kiss and waved at me in the second row of the front stalls. Up in the buffet, I had one small slice of pepperoni pizza and a glass of cherry flavoured squash. I went to sleep at eleven o'clock, having done over thirty one and a half thousand steps, equal to over twelve miles of walking, during the day.
I got up at 6:10 and found out that we were already berthed in Haugesund. I had my usual cup of decaff instant coffee, before abluting. At seven o'clock I had two eggs royale and one glass of tomato juice.
At 7:30 I was one of the first pax off the ship, walking into town. I recorded my piece to camera in front of Marilyn Monroe's statue, her father having been born here. I went in the Thon hotel to use their free wi-fi, before moving on to the open air museum, which hadn't yet opened. I got as far as the white wooden church just beyond the art gallery, before turning back.
Back at the ship at 10:45, I sat out on my balcony with my mid-morning instant decaff coffee. At 11:30 I had my second cheeseburger and fries of the cruise. After lunch, I slept for an hour and three quarters. I then had my cheese and fruit canapes with my mid-afternoon coffee, sat out in the hot sunshine on my balcony.
At 2:20 I walked back into town for one last time. I went in the Thon Hotel and the small shopping mall. Back at the ship, I updated this blog and went swimming. I did six lengths, before the pool started to fill up. I then spent fifteen minutes in one of the jacuzzis with five other people. One lady's husband and son had to go to the local police station for immigration processing. They were flying home via Oslo the next day, as the son had an exam early on Monday morning.
Back in my state room, I sat out nearly naked on my balcony. After a long wait, we finally sailed away and I could get ready for our second elegant chic evening. At 5:45 I dined in the Grand Cuvee MDR on the tomato soup, the herb encrusted lamb chops and the baked Alaska. It was the best meal so far this cruise! I was sat on the balcony overlooking the lower restaurant with the couple from Southampton again.
At eight o'clock I gave my 40 minute talk on the Story of the North Sea. Before I started I chatted to an American couple who now live in Reading. He was a Baptist pastor and she was interested in my AKC theology degree! As I had no videos to show, I was able to use my own laptop.
At nine o'clock I went to Matt McGurk's second magic show. He did several large scale illusions with a girl in various cabinets, but also the inevitable card tricks.
At ten o'clock I went to the Concierge class Speakeasy cocktail party. I had one glass of champagne and one of orange juice. I was sat with a couple from Philadelphia who like old British Triumph sports cars! When the disco started, I slipped out to the midnight buffet, where I had just one small slice of pepperoni pizza and a glass of cherry flavoured squash.
Back in my state room, I watched the second half of my North Sea talk on the TV, going to sleep at 11:45. During the day I had done nearly twenty four thousand steps, equal to over nine miles of walking!
I awoke at seven o'clock, but it was now only six o'clock back on British Summer Time (BST). I got ready with my usual cup of instant decaff coffee, before having a ready made cheese omelette with crispy bacon, tomatoes and hash browns in the Oceanview Cafe.
Back in the state room, I spent most of the morning working on this blog and my upcoming presentations. When Bagus came to service the state room just after nine, I did eight circuits of the top deck jogging track, equal to one mile of walking, but it had clouded over.
At eleven o'clock I went to the Merengue dance class in the Grand Foyer. A girl dancer started out with a warm up exercise, then a boy dancer took over but he didn't have a head mike so was difficult to hear. They taught the basic, the lady's turn, the gent's turn, the joint spiral turn and the side steps. I danced with Doreen from Sussex, until I had to slip away to set up for my next lecture in the Theatre. CD Mike introduced me at noon for my forty minute talk on Vikings without videos using my own laptop. He said that he had heard nothing but praise about my lectures and when was I coming back? At the end I had some questions to field.
I then lunched on the gravad lax salmon, the prawns and the anchovies with a Caesar salad. I followed on with two scoops of cherry brandy ice cream with sprinkles. At three o'clock I gave my 35 minute talk on Scandinavian pop music in the Sky Lounge using one of their laptops for the sound. I was set up by Mario from Mexico City and introduced by Jaz, one of the cruise staffers. I played Loreen's Euphoria music video, but cut out her 2023 Tattoo song as the 3:30 quizzers were getting impatient! Afterwards, guests told me about the Spotniks, Aqua and Brenda Lee's ancestors!
I had my afternoon coffee and canapes sitting out in the hot sun on my balcony. I then slept for just half an hour, before starting to pack. I left out a £14 tip for Bagus my state room steward.
At 5:30 I had to queue for the Grand Cuvee MDR. Here I was sat with a couple from North Wales and a couple from Limavady in Ulster. The latter man had been an officer in the Royal Ulster Constabulary, before retiring aged just 48, which beat my 53! I had the minestrone soup, the steak Diane with cauliflower cheese on the side and the cannoli dessert. I gave our two waiters £5 each.
At seven o'clock I sat by chance with Stephen Ashton the former Saga singer to watch the Euphoria show. He told me about working for Celebrity. I had to do some walking on the top deck in the setting sun to reach my daily step goal. I went back to see the show for a second time, this time sat in the front stalls. I particularly enjoyed the four aerial acrobats and the giant inflated animals. I had seen this show before when I was last on the lovely Celebrity Silhouette! As before, I only knew one song: Skyfall by Adele.
At ten o'clock I had one small slice of pepperoni pizza for the last time this cruise. I went to sleep at 10:45 having done ten thousand steps, equal to four miles of walking during my last day on board.
I awoke at 5:15 as we berthed in SoToN ready for my last instant decaff coffee in my state room. At six o'clock I had a ready made cheese omelette with crispy bacon, tomatoes and hash browns. I had just one glass of tomato juice to drink. Back in my state room, I updated this blog and finished packing. I had a bill for just £12.84 for one drink ordered and one shirt laundered. I left my cabin at seven o'clock and caught the 7:30 train from SoToN to BoMoH (£7.20, £16.60 and £10.20). I was home for six days, after another super cruise!
Guests wrote in their questionnaires:
"Martin Lee superb."
"I also went to several of Martin Lee's talks and they were fantastic too, as was Mike's talk about the Titanic."
9 Shows watched 8 Long walks 7 Night cruise 7 Enrichment lectures (F, G, R, G, NS, V, SPM) 6 Vocalists 5 Dams on Mt Aksla 4 Aerial acrobats 4 Ports (Zeebrugge, Aalesund, Olden & Haugesund) 4 Production shows (Cabaret, Cosmo., Life, Euphoria) 4 Cheese omelettes 3 Swimming pools 3 Beef dinners 2 Countries (Belgium & Norway) 2 Eggs Benedict 2 Sea days 2 Lamb dinners 2 Cheeseburgers 1 Tram ride to Oostende (€7.50) 1 Eggs royale 1 Duck dinner 1 BBQ dinner
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 One 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 Oriana P&O Iona Crystal Symphony Crystal Serenity Seabourn Odyssey Seabourn Sojourn Marella Explorer Oceania Sirena Ambassador Ambience Sapphire Princess VoD Discovery