buchhalm

For those interested, Celebrity just put on a "Flash sale", with pretty good discounts on some 'upgrade' products. I upgraded from Classic to Premium beverage package at 35% discount

They'd pack everything in 15 minutes. Chucked into your bags. Unless you travel with Sikverseas. They won't be neatly folding your undies.

"I won't belong to a club that accepts me as a member " (Oscar Wilde)

I was looking for some juicy gossip on the NCL pages, but couldn't find the appropriate thread...

I just heard on some radio station that 8 passengers were "left stranded" by NCL on the island nation of Sao Tomé, after missing the last tender following a private tour. Various version of the story with more or less in-depth reporting or sides of the story on news websites. 6 Americans and 2 Australians. I am feeling very mildly sorry for these people...

Well, (fee paying) members of the European Broadcasting Union, actually. Anyway, Eurovision was a lot more fun when they had to sing (at least in parts) in their national language. I remember when they even had a live orchestra which EVERYONE had to use. They only used their own conductors. Then countries started to split up and Yugoslavia turned into several separate countries. Then the ...stans and Baltics came along and we had several dozens of entries. With pretty much interchangeable techno doof-doof music. And don't get me started with convoluted and incomprehensible, and ever-changing voting systems . Still. Infuriatingly addictive to watch.

Yes. It's now the embarrassing drunk uncle you HAVE TO invite to the wedding.

Ok, bite me. But ONE Elvis (or any other) tribute act per cruise is fine. But an entirely impersonater cruise sounds like hell to me. Something for the die-hard fans only. That said, I would have booked the Eurovision Song Contest cruises in Europe, had I known about those.

Gosh. Costa Victoria! The. Worst. Cruise. EVER. So bad, it was hilarious. Rolling delays meant we arrived in Bali, not at 9 am, but at 7.30 pm. In pouring rain. And they still insisted to conduct sightSEEING tours of the Balinese countryside in pitch darkness.

1. Commercial food items are generally ok. 2. Leave everything in originally sealed packaging. 3. DECLARE anything you can consume. Apart from the forms you will be given, Quarantine agents will ask if you have anything to declare, and then you tell them what you have. They will be very nice and polite about it. You can basically tell them you have half a dead cow in your bag, and they will very politely say "sorry, not allowed ". But since you have declared it and ticked the Yes box, there will be no fine. But try to sneak in a banana, and they could get agro and fine you. (And fines have at long last significantly increased). 4. If you would get upset about having to give up your food items at Quarantine, don't bring it. (Unlikely, judging by what you describe). 5. We DO sell nuts in Australia. (and bubble gum and nylon stockings) 😉

Sorry, but City Extra is now overpriced slop (but in large-ish portions, at least). They USED to be decent, but not any more. A last-resort food place when everything else is closed or you missed the last train home at 2 am.

https://morrisons.sydney/ On George Street. Never had a bad meal there. Great selection of beers and wines. For a larger group you may have to pick up the phone to book. And as for many other places, a security deposit may be required AND you may be charged an automatic gratuities of 5 to 10% (which CAN BE REMOVED!)

Ok, I'm going to say it: I don't care a whole lot about emissions when I go on holiday. I don't attend or support such nonsense as car races, but I do not feel any guilt for taking an occasional flight or a cruise every now and then. I get annoyed when airline reviews talk about "carbon emissions " before they mention the service or - God forbid- a price. To be asked to pay a "carbon offset fee" myst be the biggest scam in history. A "white, middle-class problem. WE should "do something about it". Meanwhile, most of Asia and Africa (with probably a handful of exceptions) don't give a damn. Don't care, or say they can't afford. Let the rich Europeans, Americans and Australians deal with it. Sorry. Rant over.

It's not the size that matters. It's what you do with it...