| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
|---|---|---|---|
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26th Dec. 2021 |
BoMoH --> LHR |
SkyLark MoTeL |
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27th Dec. 2021 |
Bridgetown Barbados |
Nine hour Virgin flight |
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28th Dec. 2021 |
St. George's Grenada |
Relaxing day with 1st Lecture |
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29th Dec. 2021 |
Bequia Grenadines |
Relaxing day with 2nd Lecture |
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30th Dec. 2021 |
Castries St. Lucia |
Aerial Tram Adventure Tour |
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31st Dec. 2021 |
Roseau Dominica |
Trafalgar Falls & Chocolate Estate |
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2nd Jan. 2022 |
Jost van Dyke B.V.I. |
Enrichment Lecture on Elton John |
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5th Jan. 2022 |
Port Everglades |
Taxi to MIA |
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6th Jan. 2022 |
LHR --> BoMoH |
Home by noon |
| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
I awoke just after seven o'clock and left the house at 10:15. At 10:35 I met my friend Mark outside the Regenerative clinic ready for my GBP169 PCR fit to fly test. The young man who tested me said he also works for Regent Seven Seas! We then drove up to town via Fleet services, where Mark bought me a decaff cappucchino. I dropped him off at Acton Town tube station, since the Piccadilly line was terminating here for Twixmas engineering works. I then parked by Hounslow Central tube station to pop into SuperDrug to buy a L'Oreal spray for Katerina the international hostess already on board the lovely Silver Whisper!
I got to the SkyLark MoTeL just after two o'clock, but the car parking had gone up from GBP 3 to GBP 3.50 per day, but still much cheaper than LHR! I then slept for three quarters of an hour, before walking into Hounslow West, but both the Iceland and Sainsbury's supermarkets were closed. I went in the tube station, where I found out about the free rail replacement bus service.
Back in my B&B, I had a banana that Mark had bought me in the morning, plus some sugar-free chocolates and a date fruit bar for supper. At 19:35 my negative test result came through. I watched the old Top Gear Burma special adventure followed by the first part of the Argyll Divorce drama. I went to sleep at ten o'clock.
I awoke at 4:30 and got up at five o'clock, half an hour before my alarms. After showering, I broke my fast with some cereal and a pain au chocolat. I only had to wait ten minutes for the free rail replacement bus service to LHR Central. This stopped just once at Hatton Cross tube station.
The Virgin Atlantic terminal was well staffed with no queues, so I was quickly checked in ($1,147 one way). I sat outside in the mild, but dark atmosphere, before braving security. This too was quick, so I found a seat with a power socket and began to write this blog. I then worked on my Leonardo da Vinci presentation, which will be part of my first cruise giving enrichment lectures on art history in September!
At 8:10 the gate was displayed and I was able to board the half empty Airbus 330 immediately. I was the only seat in a row of four, but I was next to one of the toilets. We took off at 9:25 just fifteen minutes late in a heavy rain storm. One of the air hostesses offered me a window seat with no one next to it, so I moved places.
I began the refreshments with a glass of apple juice rather than alcohol, but no nuts were forthcoming. The first film I noticed on the TV was on the Lost Leonardo, so I had to watch this 90 minute documentary about the (in)famous Salvator Mundi painting. At the end of the film, I had the lovely roast turkey dinner, followed by Boursin cheese on crackers and a rich chocolate orange mousse. I had a can of beer, but declined the tea or coffee. I then slept for an hour and a half.
Half way through the flight, I woke up with the clear air turbulence as we skirted around a storm over the Azores. I then updated this blog and continued working on my Leonardo PowerPoint. We were served two chocolate digestive biscuits with our mid flight drink. I watched the latest film version of Noel Coward's Blythe Spirit starring Judi Dench as the medium, followed by another Apollo 11 documentary. The final meal served was a cheese roll and a scone with jam and clotted cream.
I was quickly off the plane as half the pax were staying on for the forwarding flight to Grenada. I had to show my vax certificate, my PCR test result and my Barbados immigration form, but not my Barbados customs form. Outside I waited with the transport lady for fifteen minutes, until Matthew my chauffeur arrived in a BMW limousine. It was an easy 30 minute ride through the city centre of Bridgetown as it was Bank Holiday Monday. For a tip I gave him an English tenner as I only had a hundred dollar bill with me.
At the cruise terminal, I had another fifteen minute wait for my lateral flow antigen test to come through. I then had a very short bus ride to the ship, getting aboard at 4:40 five minutes before my first advertised lecture, which had already been cancelled! I touched base with cruise director Adam Wright from the West Midlands and gave him my list of possible enrichment lectures. I was given a vista suite on deck four with two wash basins, a shower AND a full sized bath. As my case had yet to arrive, I slipped into my cossie, which I had bought in my hand luggage, to do six lengths of the cool pool. I then spent ten minutes in one of the jacuzzis as the sun went down.
At 6:30 I met up with International hostess Katerina and gave her the L'Oreal spray I had brought her from England. I then gave my brief introduction to the guests on the pool deck. After me came the Shorex manager who said that all the islands, bar Jost van Dyke, would not allow independents to go ashore on their own, so I popped down to the desk to book my tours as an escort. I then went back up to the pool deck to get to the Panorama lounge, where I hosted the solo travellers: Ken from Cheshire, Larraine from Little Rock, Arkansas and Cathy from Philadelphia. Katerina and Adam also stopped by, the latter saying that he would like me to do my Elton John and Story of the Musicals talks on the sea days.
At 7:45 I led them down to the Restaurant. I began with the oxtail consomme, followed by the duck salad, which was actually a starter and not a salad at all. I continued with the Kansas rib eye steak, followed by the Philadelphia pineapple cheesecake. The other three guests had the featured red wine, but I stuck to the sparkling water, having been a little dehydrated on the plane coming out.
At 9:15 I slipped away and was in bed by 9:45, which was 1:45 according to my body clock! During the day I had done over eight and a half thousand steps, equal to more than three miles of walking, in spite of being stuck on a plane for nine hours!
I awoke at 4:30, as I had done the previous day, and got up at five o'clock, which was nine o'clock according to my body clock. I finished unpacking and updated this blog. At 6:30 I had a glass of grapefruit juice and a Danish pastry sat outside the Panorama lounge as the sun came up. I then did nine laps (one mile) of the top deck jogging track, as we passed the north coast of Grenada. At 7:30 I had one glass of tomato juice and TWO eggs Benedict al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza). I then sat out on the top deck to watch the sail in to St. George's sat with two gay guys, Kevin & Doug from Chicago. After they had gone, Cheshire Ken arrived and I chatted to him.
I spent most of the morning working on my current cruise port talks, unable to go ashore to this 'bubble' island. At noon I had my first burger and fries, with out a bun, of this cruise by the pool in the hot sun. I then slept for an hour and a half, so that my jet lag was effectively over. I continued working on my up coming presentations until 3:30, when I did six lengths of the cool pool and spent a quarter of an hour in one of the hot tubs.
At 4:45 I went to the theatre, where the Future Cruise Manager was just finishing his talk to five people. I introduced myself to Donald the stage manager, who set me up with no hassles, including an HDMI cable which meant I could use my own lap top. At 5:30 Adam introduced me and I gave my 35 minute talk on both Bequia and Castries. I had had to take all the sights and walks out of the two talks as these are 'bubble' islands, where you are not allowed to go ashore independently. At the end of my lecture, assistant stage manager Craig Smith from Cardiff closed me down again.
At seven o'clock I got a call from Natalia at the Shorex desk to say that Silversea HQ had forbidden lecturers to be tour escorts! I gave the Captain's cocktail party a miss and went up to the Panorama lounge in case any solos turned up.
At 7:30 Ken, Katerina and Noprada arrived, so I persuaded Ken to join me at the Hot Rocks Grill, not with standing our formal attire! I had the Caesar salad, the rib eye steak, cooked well done at my request by them, and the cinnamon ice cream. Even though we weren't cooking on the hot lava stones, we both wore the giant bibs!
At 9:45 we went to the Blues Brother / Soul Sister production show, but we both had trouble staying awake! I went to sleep at eleven o'clock.
I got up at six o'clock and watched my Bequia talk on the TV, before abluting. At seven o'clock I bought my tour ticket from the tours desk, before having my TWO eggs Benedict al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza) with views of St Vincent and Bequia. I went up to the Observation Library to see the sail in to Admiralty Bay, as the St Vincent ferry went passed. Back in my cabin I updated this blog.
At 7:45 I got another call from Natalia at the Shorex desk to say that Silversea HQ had forbidden non revenue guests from going ashore at all, so my tour ticket was now in valid and I had to spend all day on board. I did nine laps or one mile before the sun got up, worked on my Leonardo lecture all morning and did another nine laps at noon. I then had my lunch of a burger & fries with out a bun beside the pool with a view of Bequia. When I got back to my suite I had a message from Natalia saying the Silversea HQ had changed its mind and I could be a tour escort and go ashore after all, but too late for Bequia my only new port of the cruise!
I then slept for an hour and a half, before resuming my power pointing. At three o'clock I did six lengths of the cool pool and then spent twenty minutes in one of the jacuzzis. At 4:30 I touched base with Natalia at the Shorex desk to re-instate my tour escorts and prepare for my next lecture. At 5:30 I gave my 40 minute lecture on Roseau: Capital of Dominica and Jost van Dyke: British Virgin Island. I had thus completed my contract, having flown three thousand miles to give just two lectures!
At 7 o'clock I hosted the solo travellers. At 7:30 I led Cathy from Philadelphia and Ken from Cheshire down one deck to La Terrazza Italian restaurant. We began with a glass of rose prosecco and continued with the red chianti wine from Tuscany. We had the anti pasti sharing plate, where I enjoyed the hard cheeses and the Parma ham. I began the meal proper with the lentil soup and then continued with the Catherine de Medici salad. I covered the latter with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, so needed a piece of bread to wipe the plate in French style. I main coursed on the escalope of veal and then finished with my favourite Casatta Siciliana!
Slipping away from the table, I had to collect my escort's bag ready for the next day's tour. At 9:45 I thoroughly enjoyed Martin Calvert's excellent country cabaret with lots of classic songs from both male and female singers. I went to bed at 10:45, having done nearly nine thousand steps, equal to three and a half miles during the day.
I awoke to the dawn at 6:30 with a view of the two famous Pitons as we cruised up the west coast of St. Lucia. At seven o'clock I broke my fast with TWO eggs Benedict sat out al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza) as we entered Castries harbour. I stayed here for over half an hour as we turned around and then docked. I was off the ship at 8:30 photographing the large cruise terminal area.
At 10 o'clock I escorted the Aerial Tram Adventure with ten guests ($109). Driver Tim drove us up into the interior of the island in his minibus. After waiting at the base station for fifteen minutes, we ascended in the Dopplemayr cable car through the tropical rain forest. The cars turned around at the top and came back down on top of the ones coming up.
We saw hummingbirds and white butterflies, but it was eerily quiet. At the end Kenny the guide led just one guest and me around the little botanical garden near the base station. We all had one fruit squash to drink, before returning to the ship. I had last done this tour eleven years previously and it hadn't changed!
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At 1:45 I had another beef burger and fries with out a bun at the Grill by the pool. I then watched my second pair of port talks on the TV, before having a deep sleep for an hour and a half. Having returned my back pack to the shorex office, I did six lengths of the cool pool and spent half an hour in one of the jacuzzis. I watched a small container ship turn around in the harbour to leave and a small aircraft take off from the city airport as it grew dark.
Back down on deck four, I was told to go quickly into my cabin and not come out again until advised! At seven o'clock I phoned reception to be allowed out. It turned out to be a problem in the crew section of deck four just beyond my suite. I gave the Venetian Society cocktail party a miss and went straight up to the Panorama lounge in case any singles turned up.
When the cocktail party finished, I was joined by Katerina and Ken, the latter of whom joined me for dinner in the main restaurant. We began with the minestrone soup, continued with the Silversea salad and main coursed on the rack of lamb. We had the Monterey red wine from California to drink. I had the chocolate opera cake for dessert, whilst Ken had something else. At 9:45 we went to the excellent Elvis tribute production show, where I knew every classic song of his. I went to bed at 11 o'clock, having done seven and a half thousand steps, equivalent to three miles of walking, during the day.
I awoke at six o'clock to views of the southern most tip of Dominica. At seven o'clock I broke my fast with my usual TWO eggs Benedict sat out al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza). It started to rain, but the canopy protected me from the liquid sunshine!
Unfortunately Seabourn was berthed at the City Pier and so we headed for the container terminal at Woodbridge Bay Port just out of town instead. At 8:30 I was on dispatch duty on the pier sheltering under the marquee from the drizzle. I had just four guests in my minivan with guide Sierra and driver Glen on the Falls, Forest & Chocolate tour ($89).
We drove along the coast through Roseau to Scotts Head, the southern most tip of the island, where the rain stopped. Here we had a photo stop on the gravel bar which separates the rough Atlantic Ocean from the calmer Caribbean Sea. Next we headed back through Soufriere and then up into the hills to get to the Bois Cotlette estate. Here we had lemon sage fruit squash to begin followed by a long explanation about chocolate production. Then we had three delicious chocolates to eat, followed by cheese and/or tuna deep fried pastries. Need less to say I tried both with two more different fruit squashes, one of which was laced with a generous portion of rum poured by pianist Aleks from Macedonia!
At the end of the estate visit, we toured the vegetable garden to see their mint, cannabis and cocoa plants, but not their coffee bushes. One lady struggled through out with her husband and a multi footed walking stick for support.
We then drove back in to the city to the Morne Bruce view point and a slow passage through the botanical gardens. Driving up into the hills, it began to rain again. We then had a ten minute walk up to the majestic pair of Trafalgar waterfalls: the taller Papa and the wider Mama! One gent with two Nordic walking poles for support struggled both going up and coming down.
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Back at the ship at 2:30, I slept for three quarters of an hour, before having a diet coke to keep me awake this evening. At 4:30 I did six lengths of the cool pool, but despite waiting half an hour neither jacuzzi came free. I watched the sail away from the pool deck wearing just my damp cossie!
Back in my vista suite I updated this blog. At 6:45 I went to the solo travellers get together in the Panorama lounge, where I was joined by Katerina & Ken. At 7:10 the latter and myself descended to the theatre to hear the operatic duo sing their Voce dell'Opera show. They sang in Italian (Verdi etc), German (Mozart), Latin (Schubert) and English (musicals). They ended inevitably with Time to Say Goodbye!
Ken and I then adjourned to the Hot Rocks Grill to bag our seats for the dinner, late show and New Year celebrations by the pool. I had the New York salad to begin, followed by the large veal chop cooked well done by the chef with jacket potato and vegetable skewer. I had the Spanish red wine to drink, wearing the large bib over my formal out fit. I fore went the desserts, saving myself for the Death by Chocolate at 10 o'clock. I loved the strawberries dipped in different coloured chocolates and the nutty nougat. At 10:45 we had a complimentary raffle with $1000 and $2000 prizes!
At eleven o'clock the six Voices of Silversea did their Fiesta Beats: Latin & Pop Extravaganza, which degenerated in to a mass disco carried on by DJ Craig from Cardiff. I had one short dance with Katerina, but didn't boogie with the young people by the pool. At midnight I wished Ken Happy New Year and immediately went up to the top deck to see the disappointing Guadeloupe fireworks.
At the front of the ship some of the flood lights had been turned off, so I had a magnificent display of the stars, which we never get in England. The seven Pleiades, Orion the Hunter and The Plough / Great Bear were all very prominent, but I couldn't make out the Milky Way. I went to sleep at 12:30, having done seven and a half thousand steps, equal to three miles of walking during the day.
I awoke at 6:40 to the bright dawn and showered at seven. Despite wearing long trousers in the tropical rain forest yesterday, I had several insect bites which needed some hydrocortisone cream. I could see trays of food outside the isolation ward cabins behind the air lock doors on my corridor. At 7:40 I had a cheese omelette with crispy bacon for a change, sat out al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza) in the hot sun. At 8:30 Julie came to do the room, so I did nine laps, equal to one mile of the top deck jogging track.
Back in the cabin, I listened to an enrichment lecture on Stephen Sondheim which had several songs on video, but only one poor photographic slide! I started work on my new Michelangelo lecture during the morning. Just before noon, when I was about to go to lunch, I had a phone call from reception asking me to change cabins, which they said was due to water supply issues! I threw my stuff into my cases and awaited the move. After ten minutes my hanging clothes were hung on to a trolley which took my bags up two decks to where I had been given a verandah suite with balcony!
At 12:30 I went to the jazz session by the pool, where CD Adam was singing and drumming with the trio. I had two small lobsters with chips, followed by two small profiteroles for lunch, but the sun was awfully hot. I then slept for an hour and a half.
At four o'clock I plonked my things down on the sun bed next to Kevin, whilst I did six lengths of the cool pool and spent ten minutes in the one hot tub operating. Back in my new suite, I sat out on my balcony nearly naked in the warmth. I then worked on my Michelangelo presentation.
At 6:45 I adjourned to the Panorama lounge, where I was joined by Katerina, Noprada and Ken. At 7:30 I led the latter down one deck to La Terrazza Italian restaurant. Here we began with a glass of prosecco. We had the rich tomato soup and the Catherine de Medici salad to eat. Ken had the lasagna as his main course, whilst I had the thinly sliced beef. We finished with chocolate ice cream.
At 9:45 I sat with Ken at Stephen Clark the flautist's excellent show time. He began with John Denver's "Annie's Song" in the style of Sir James Galway, but we had trouble staying awake. He finished with "Lord of the Dance" by Ronan Hardiman, so I wanted to get up to do the line dance Coastin' by Ray & Tina Yeoman from Poole! I went to bed at 10:45, having done six and a half thousand steps, equal to two and a half miles of walking during the day.
I got up at 6:15 ready to break my fast with TWO eggs Benedict sat out al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza) as we cruised from Tortola to Jost van Dyke with views of the USVIs. Just before eight o'clock, CD Adam announced that the BVI authorities have upgraded their alert status and only told the ship last night that independents can no longer go ashore on their own. I rushed down to the Shorex desk, but the three ship's tours were already full.
At 8:10 Paul came to service the suite, so I did nine laps, equal to one mile of the top deck. Back in my cabin, I up loaded the photographs I had taken on my two tours on St. Lucia & Dominica. I also started work on my new Picasso lecture ready for my first cruise as an art historian lecturer on FOCL's Bolette in September. At 10:10 I did another nine laps. Back in my cabin again I had a sleep for an hour and a quarter.
At 12:15 I had lovely lemon sole and chips for lunch by the pool. I then dozed for another hour, still catching up from New Year's Eve! At three o'clock I gave my 35 minute talk on "Elton John: Rocket Man!" In the audience was Elton's former publicist for over twenty years, Patti Mostyn, so we had an interesting chat at the end!
I then did eight lengths of the cool pool followed by ten minutes in the shady jacuzzi and ten minutes in the sunny one. I enjoyed watching the gannet like sea birds and a single, majestic frigate bird over head. Back in my suite, I sat out on my balcony nearly naked. I then updated my PowerPoint photo albums for both Castries on St. Lucia and Roseau on Dominica, the two islands where I had been a tour escort. At 6:45 I went to the Panorama lounge, where I was joined by Katerina, Noprada and Ken.
At 7:30 Ken and I moved down to the main dining room for dinner. I began with the lobster bisque, continued with the goat cheese salad and main coursed on the filet mignon. I finished with the sugar free strawberry panna cotta, washed down with Spanish Tempranillo red wine. I slipped out to catch the start of the James Bond Movie "No Time to Die" at nine o'clock. I only stayed for 40 minutes as I was appalled by the violence. I went to bed at 10 o'clock, having done nearly nine thousand steps, equal to nearly four miles of walking during the day.
I got up at 6:20, having slept for over eight hours! I then worked on my Musicals talk ready for later this morning. At 7:30 I broke my fast with a cheese omelette with crispy bacon al fresco on the Terrace (La Terrazza). Up on the top deck I did nine laps of the jogging track, equal to one mile of walking. At 8:40 Paul came to service the suite, so I went up to my favourite seat in the shade at the front of the ship.
At 10 o'clock I gave my 30 minute talk on "The Story of the Musicals". The last time I had given this lecture I over ran slightly, so I hid too many of the slides for this time! At 11:15 I went to the Indian carrot dessert (Halwa) demonstration in the theatre. At noon I lunched on the frankfurter & chips followed by THREE pieces of baklava by the pool. I then had a deep sleep for TWO hours!
Having started to price day two PCR tests in the UK, the phone went and the doctor said that one of my dining companions had tested positive! I had to stay in my suite until she arrived to PCR test me! She said that Ken had suffered some chills this afternoon and when PCR tested two hours ago, he tested positive. He had been a close contact of another positive case on the previous cruise he had been on, but the incubation period can be over one week! I then watched my Musicals lecture on the TV.
The doctor arrived to PCR test me and phoned back only one hour later to say that I was negative, but must self isolate for 24 hours. She would then come back tomorrow afternoon to give me another PCR test which she would document for my journey home. I spent the next hour sat out on my balcony playing FreeCell as the sun went down. At 6:55 I ordered a filet mignon with French fries, vegetables, bearnaise sauce and a sugar free dessert. I think that this was the very first time that I had ordered from room service in my 157 cruises!
The food arrived after half an hour with an extra bowl of chips! During the evening I watched the BBC News Channel followed by my Musicals & Elton John talks again. I went to sleep at eleven o'clock, having done only five and a half thousand steps, just over two miles of walking during the morning.
I awoke just before seven o'clock, but it was now six o'clock on EST, having slept for nearly eight hours. I broke my fast with room service at 7:10, unfortunately I had ordered TWO eggs Benedict, but got FOUR eggs! Bagels were not available, so I was given an English muffin with my smoked salmon and cream cheese, which I had for my lunch at noon. I then slept for an hour, before starting to pack.
During the afternoon I worked on this blog, as it was overcast outside. I also had to prepare bids for Viking and Cunard last minute cruises. At four o'clock I rang the medical centre to ask for my PCR test to release. Fifteen minutes later the lady doctor came to swab my nose. An hour later she rang to say that I was negative again and could go out. I was lucky to have avoided the lurgy having dined with positive Ken for seven consecutive evenings!
I immediately went to reception to get some baggage labels. I then did nine laps, equal to one mile of the top deck, before it got dark at six o'clock. At seven o'clock I went to the Panorama lounge and chatted with Katerina & Noprada, to whom I gave my business card.
At 7:30 I adjourned to the Hot Rocks Grill, where I began with one of the speciality salads. I then cooked a filet mignon on the lava stone with a jacket potato and a vegetable skewer. I finished with the New York cheese cake, all washed down with the Spanish red wine. At nine o'clock I joined one other person in the theatre to see the biopic "RESPECT" on the life of Aretha Franklin. I slipped out just before eleven to put my case out and go to bed.
I got up just before six o'clock ready for my ablutions. I then updated this blog. At 6:30 I had a glass of grapefruit juice in the Panorama lounge hoping to see the sun come up. Here I gave Kevin from Chicago my business card.
At seven o'clock I moved down one deck to the Terrace (La Terrazza), where I had TWO eggs Benedict with a tomato juice for one last time on the lovely Silversea's Silver Whisper as we berthed. Back in my suite, I did my last minute packing and up dated this blog.
At eight o'clock I adjourned to the Observation Library, where I just played FreeCell for an hour. I said goodbye to Cathy & Noprada at the gangway and was off the ship by 9:15. Unfortunately my US ESTA waiver had expired in September and I had to pay a $545 (GBP 435) fine! This involved a lot of paper work and they couldn't get their printers to work.
I eventually got through immigration at 10:45, just before the positive guests were coming off the ship to be bussed to their isolation hotel. By this time my complimentary transfer bus had long since gone, so I had to pay $85 (GBP 64) for a taxi to Miami International Airport (MIA). We had a ten minute traffic jam on the I95 freeway and arrived at MIA at 11:50. Document check took fifteen minutes, when they wanted to see my UK locator form and my vax certificate, but not my PCR test result! Check-in proper only took another fifteen minutes, so I could off load my large case and could go walk about!
I caught the rubber tyred MIA Mover train to the Inter Modal Centre, where I bought a MetroRail all day ticket for $6 (GBP 4.20). I travelled south all the way through the city centre to South Dadeland. I wandered around here for ten minutes, before getting back on the train going north. I alighted at Coconut Grove, where I had a chicken & bacon Subway submarine roll at $6 for lunch.
Back on the train, I got to the Government Center, where I transferred on to the free, rubber tyred Metro Mover. I did the inner loop around the city, before transferring back to the MetroRail. I had to change from the green line to the orange line, before getting back to the airport interchange and then the MIA Mover back to the airport proper. I had done eight train joy rides during the afternoon! Security took twenty minutes and I was then able to find a recharging station and so up date this blog. We took off twenty five minutes late, but made up the time crossing the Atlantic (AA38 $797 one way) The plane wasn't quite full, so I had a spare seat next to me. I was lucky to get my flight home as there was widespread disruption to flights in the USA!
After take off, I got my lap top out and up dated this blog. One hour into the flight, I had the lovely chicken cous cous for supper, with two lots of apple juice to drink! I managed to sleep for most of the flight, which was shorter than the one going out.
I was awoken for the in flight break fast consisting of granola yoghurt, a fig roll and a cup of tea. I whizzed through LHR in one hour, including having to wait 12 minutes for the tube train. I had a cold walk back to my B&B in the bright sunshine. My car was heavily frosted, so it took a time to defrost it. I had an easy run home, getting there at noon.
It proved to be an interesting cruise, what with my 24 hour isolation and my US fine, but still lots of good points too! I was lucky to have avoided the lurgy having dined with positive Ken for seven consecutive evenings! I was lucky to get my flight home as there was widespread disruption to flights in the USA!
11 Cruises since June 10 Silversea cruises 9 Night cruise 9 Dinners 8 Lengths of the cool pool 7 Lunches 6 Islands (Barb., Gren., Beq., StL., Dom., JvD) 5 Silversea ships (Wind, Muse, Moon, Spirit & Whisper) 4 Port talks (Cast., PE, R, GH) 3.5 Sea days 3 Dinners in the Restaurant, main dining room 3 Dinners in the Hot Rocks Grill 3 In suite telephones 3 Solos hosted at dinner (Ken, Cathy & Larraine) 2 Dinners in La Terrazza Italian restaurant 2 Enrichment lectures (Elton John & Musicals) 2 Tours escorted (St. Lucia & Dominica) 2 Complimentary PCR tests 1 New berth (Woodbridge Bay Port, Dominica) 1 New anchorage (Great Harbour, JvD)
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 Silver Wind Silver Muse Silver Moon Silver Spirit Silver Whisper Celebrity Silhouette Celebrity Solstice Celebrity Eclipse Celebrity Edge Celebrity Apex Black Prince Black Watch Balmoral Boudicca Braemar Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) Queen Elizabeth (QE) Queen Victoria (QV) Queen Mary 2 (QM2) Crystal Symphony Crystal Serenity Seabourn Odyssey Seabourn Sojourn Sapphire Princess VoD Discovery P&O Oriana