Tothesunset

One thing I don't understand. You get off the ship at, say, 9.30 for the 3 hr trip home. The other passengers need a loo stop after a couple of hours. Fair enough. But do they really need to spend 45 minutes having a cup of tea, a faceful of food and a wander round the retail outlets? They've only just had breakfast for crying out loud. L'enfer c'est Les autres

Even that is too difficult for those turning into McSilversea.

What eclipse? I'm in the dark about it.

She has a right to unlimited stays in the EU as long as she is accompanying an EU spouse (me!) but it would be much safer to have an exit stamp. Your response is most reassuring.

On 17 May we arrive in Lisbon by air from where we take a cruise ship calling at ports in Portugal, Spain and France before arriving at Tower Bridge to disembark. Now, I'm Irish so can enter and leave the EU freely; however, OH is a British Citizen and will have her passport stamped on entry - the problem is will she also acquire an exit stamp at some point? Does anyone have experience of a similar situation?

He may well be recounting the same story on the Chinese site Tourist Critic.

I invoked the wrath of the Shanghai police when we visited 10 years ago. Walking along the Bund there was a statue of Mao affixed to the plinth of which was a small plaque written in Chinese characters with a small-type translation (I assumed) underneath. So I strolled over to look at it which provoked high-pitched whistling, everyone - the locals at least - stood still and a Chinese copper came running towards (at?) me furiously blowing his whistle. I was given a good old dressing down (actually he was shouting in Chinese so for all I know he might have been giving me his favourite pulled pork recipe). Apparently, I had commited the offence of approaching the statue. But how else to read the plaque? Top tip for Mysty. Take binoculars.

That makes me feel so homesick as an erstwhile New Territories resident. The best place we ever lived. 😢

Was the email issued 2 days ago, perchance? Around the start of the spaghetti harvest?

Whatever time of year you visit...

At what point can Covid still be considered to blame for inadequacies of the current product? Covid and the sellout to mothership occurred, to all intents and purposes, at the same time. I'd posit that current deficiencies owe more to the latter than the former.

Nooo.... Dont go spoiling this thread by stating something verifiable.

So.... As I read it from the conjecture so far: Saga will be taken in hand by an existing cruise operator, a non-cruise operator or someone else. That clears it up, then.

It's the hardest, but kindest, decision you can ever make.

Colourful and smart. 👍

You are very fortunate when a "home" vacation can offer so much geographical variety.

I think the only thing SS is stretching is customers' patience.

I suppose it's not surprising that once SS was sucked into the mothership that changes would come along. I'd expected some sort of alignment with the new company's core values - ie fleece the customer to the last cent - what has surprised me is the slow dribble of nicks and cuts and tweaks that are slowly transforming SS into a very expensive mainstream line. SS is now, seemingly, a branding exercise rather than a unique product. It's so sad.

So it seems, the way things are going, SS is less M&M, more like S&M.

It's weird the way they do that. When we lived in Hong Kong it would be 40 degrees and 100% humidity in summer but if you went downtown to eat you had to carry a sweater. Glad I wasn't paying the energy bill.

Is there ever a time when it isn't?

Another true story: Around the turn of the century I was part of a group that examined candidates for postgraduate qualifications from the Royal College of Surgeons of England. On the final evening the dozen or so of us would go for a group meal and each examainer's individual food allowance would be pooled for one big blow-out. Sadly, alcohol could not be claimed against this allowance but there was no limit (within reason) for food. So at a Chinese restaurant somewhere in London the chief examiner asked for the bill but said to the waiter: "When you make up the bill, instead of itemising the beer and wine can you put it down as food?" "Of course, Sir." When the bill came the final lines were: 6 bottles red food - £xxx 6 bottles white food - £xxx 12 pints draught food - £xxx

They've sent it out early. Its another couple of weeks until 1st of April.

Truly shocked.

By that argument should the cruise line also pay the staff properly so that tips are unnecessary and don't only favour the few at front-of-house?