forgap

In January as we cruised on Explorer through the canal, we got a text from our neighbor that water was running down the hill from our house. During the January freeze in ATL our outside hose big shot off (yes, I turned the cut off the wrong way in the basement and didn’t check to make sure the bib was drained). Water ran for four days until our neighbor used a tool he had to cut the water off at the street. Fortunately, the water company reimbursed us for the $400 bill. Since we are leaving again in a couple of weeks for a Voyager cruise, I got our handyman to check all the pipes in the basement only to discover a rusty spot in the main circa 1935 waterline BEFORE the cut off valve. He described it as a “disaster waiting to happen”. Our plumber agreed so that repair is happening tomorrow. I guess it’s wise to shut off the water completely before a long trip.

It’s always something, isn’t it? On our cruise in August, we came home to the house in complete disarray. A squirrel had somehow gotten into the house, and in his desperation to get out, he chewed the wood around the kitchen windows. Debris was everywhere but no evidence of the squirrel himself until I caught a whiff from under an easy chair. Not a nice welcome home!

Wonderful read this morning in anticipation of our 2024 cruise. Thank you!

I think it also depends on the ship. Our only SS cruise was on Whisper. It was one of their oldest ships and the common rooms looked like they had not been updated since the ship was launched. I reviewed all aspects of the cruise in the review section of CC if you want more details. Finally, SS is definitely more formal than Regent, but on our cruise, the jacket requirement was not enforced consistently.

It may be helpful to list the cities as itineraries seem to be in flux.

Which is why I initially suggested the thermos.

Full disclosure....I hate the coffee on Regent. I like my Starbucks French Roast in a French press. One year, not only did i bring my coffee but also a camping french press (stuffed with socks in my suitcase) and a collapsible kettle made from neoprene which I bought on Amazon. It worked really well but I carefully hid it everyday.

No tea kettles in the room, but there is an Illy expresso maker if you are concierge level or above. Devices such as that are not allowed as they can be fire hazards if not attended. Perhaps you can bring along a thermos and fill it with hot water from the coffee connection?

So funny! We were in pirate territory on Voyager and we had Israeli commandos on board. Very easy to spot, shades, black cargo pants, tight T-shirts over buff pecs, easy on the eyes. A girl can still dream…..

I’m convinced it is a legit learning disability. It took my husband ten years to be able to navigate from our house (Virginia-Highland in ATL) to Lenox Square - not three miles away. I always drive now, even with Siri patiently giving directions. It makes me nervous that he has no idea where he is. I’d chalk it up to age but I have known him fo 47 years and he has always been that way. Cognitive mapping skills are definitely something you are born with!

They can also keep track of food allergies.

We have sailed the most on Voyager and I like the ship a lot. Splendor and Explorer have more dining venues and the beautiful outside dining area at la Veranda. However. Voyager has an outdoor lounging space on the back of the ship off one of the lounges which is our favorite place to have a cocktail or just read during the day. I think the rooms are comparable and, of course, only one sink in the bathroom. The balconies in concierge level suites are smaller than on Explorer (our last two cruises were on Explorer). Keep in mind we haven’t been on Voyager in four years, I think, and we may be spoiled by the Explorer! We will sail on Voyager in January, so I will give an updated report.

It was dreadful, wasn’t it? I’m not sure why destination services is such a weak link for Regent. Since all excursion seem identical for identical cruises year by year and our excursion choices are on the computer, why not create individual excursion surveys? We could rate them and add a narrative explanation. Both the excursion desk on the ship and the corporate excursion “Wizard of Oz” could then readily see where the clunkers are and act accordingly. In surveys there are always those who are excessively positive and negative but that would be fairly easy to sort out. And, on another note, the system of collecting in the theater has got to end. It is inefficient and annoying. We have tickets. Meet on shore. Collect the tickets. Easy.

@GeorgiaPeach51 further pic instructions: Before you post your entry I assume you have uploaded all your pics. If you touch the pic, you will see “insert” in the bottom right corner. Let’s say you want to insert the picture here. Make sure your cursor is positioned here and then scroll town to the pic you want to insert and tap insert. and say you want to insert another picture. Repeat the process like this: i usually will write my whole post and correct spelling and grammar then decide where I want the pics and insert them. Or, you can insert as you write. Whatever is easier for you! Cheers to you!

Just an editorial note….if you want to post pictures as part of your narrative, all you need to do is upload your pics and then tap the part of the narrative that describes the pic, scroll down to the uploaded pics, tap the picture and tap insert. This way you don’t have all the pictures at the end of the post. I’m really enjoying your writing! We have two cruises booked on Splendor, London to Barcelona in 2023 and Lisbon to Cape Town in 2024. We have been on all the other ships, so your descriptions are most welcome!

I appreciate your diligent reporting! I know, first hand, that you can get “caught up” in your obligation to your devoted readers! We can wait. I like to do ongoing trip reports so they can jog my memory when we return home and I transform them into a digital blog. We will sail on Splendor next year so I eagerly anticipate your observations. PS - it continues to be cold in ATL but sunny and dry weather.

We were on Lufthansa to Frankfort in August and I agree the plane was too hot! The seats were odd as they were sort of inflatable and mine kept deflating so my hips hurt more than they usually do. But, the service was lovely. The Frankfort airport, on the other hand was not so lovely - huge and difficult to navigate. By the way, I found that when pics randomly post upside down, delete the upload from CC and go back to your photo library. Then exit the picture by rotating it to the side, upside down, to the other side until you are in the original right side up position. Upload again and it should work. Your pic:

I’m curious how Regent handled the awful return trip home. Are you able to give us an update? I thought of you as we flew home from Istanbul last week. We were flying in UA points so we didn’t have a TA ticket number. Wasn’t too paranoid as our outgoing flight to Istanbul was uneventful but our ordeal was very much in my mind as we checked in. I hope that time will make this an engaging travel story as you gain distance from the nightmare I’m sure it was. i just read an article about an Australian couple whose 18 month old baby was booked on a different flight after a flight cancellation. It took them two weeks for the three of them back to Australia. KLM blamed Quantas…Qauntas blamed KLM.

Yes! Small world, isn’t it? We have two booked for 2023, too. Buenos Aires to Santiago on January and London to Barcelona in September.

Can’t wait to follow along! We booked this itinerary for 2024. I’d love to see your notes and your “lessons learned”!

In January we were on a half full Explorer cruise so we had the opportunity to go through most of the menu in multiple visits. Recently we were in quarantine with the ability to order from Pacific Rim through room service, which we did for a couple of nights. We love Asian cuisine and, other than the miso black cod, I found most of the dishes just OK. It seemed that the chefs were “dialing it in”. I realize that corporate wants consistency in preparation and presentation but this handcuffs a creative, passionate chef. Perhaps daily specials would increase the wow factor.

@SusieQft you are correct that the quarantine is the CDC required “5” days which is really 6 days but you are actually set free on the 7th day if you have two consecutive negative tests. The first of the tests are given the morning of the 6th day. I guess that in my mind, the 7th day counted as still in quarantine even though we were se free after the negative results came in. @peribit I think quarantine requirements depend on the country you are in if you are still positive when disembarkation comes around. In our case, Turkey, it didn’t matter,

Ha! Quarantine is 7 days and two negative tests OR the end of the cruise - whichever comes first!

Quarantine has ended!- Debarkation Early morning Covid test that was once again negative. What a relief to leave the room! It looked a little worse for wear given that we had no housekeeping for six days. We could have requested it but why not keep the standards I’m accustomed to at home! But then again, at home I’m not knocking around in two rooms. Debarkation was a breeze but Galataport in Istanbul is large. We booked the Novotel which is very nearby and managed 3000 steps. Many of the steps were accomplished by walking the length of Galataport three times before we surfaced from the underground labyrinth. Once in open air we walked the length of it again to get to the hotel. As we were waiting to leave the ship, I spoke with a fellow passenger we met before boarding. She said that there was a mean upper respiratory infection circulating the ship that is not Covid. One member of her traveling group is quite sick. She was surprised that our quarantine was so strict. She was even more surprised that I opted to stay with my husband! Actually, we did quite well in isolation. One of the things I liked about the early days of Covid lockdown was the lack of obligation. In quarantine, I wore comfortable clothes, barefoot the whole time, no makeup until debarkation, hair in a scrunchie on top of my head. Best of all, all I had to do was pick up the phone to get anything I wanted delivered to the cabin. We are in Istanbul for two days and fly home on Wednesday. Thank you for all the support you gave us during this cruise. It was very encouraging. Our captain was good managed to give me a room with a view on our overnight in Istanbul. Enjoy! And a restaurant, right outside our cabin in Galataport!

You were not on out side of the ship but see you on the navigation cam. Nice horn blowing!