Our Cruise on Snake in the Grass,ah, Splendor in the Grass, no, Splendour of the Seas

[kruzkid]

BEST. REVIEW. EVER. Why doesn't CC just hire you so you can cruise all the time and we can get these more often?

[SailorJack]

Thank you SailorJack for a fab review! You've kept me qand my workmates very entertained this afternoon :)

 

Glad to be of assistance!:D

 

The beverage of choice was a prune brandy. I still have huge gaps in my memory and violent flashbacks..

 

Hopefully not due to the prune brandy.:eek: If so, I am headed for a foregetful future!:D

 

 

Jack, have you considered a Canada/New England cruise next fall? You could hit up both RoofingPrincess and I for payment in champagne (or beer).:p

 

I am calling my travel agent even as I type!:D

[SailorJack]

I have finally been able to upload pictures!

These three are of the main waterway entrance into Venice in the early morning...taken from our balcony.

 

 

 

Edited May 26, 2011 by SailorJack

[SailorJack]

Our gondola and gondoleer!

 

 

 

Riding in a gondola is so much fun people wound up taking pictures of other people taking pictures of people riding in gondolas!

 

 

Our gondola on the Grand Canal. In this photo you can see the slight difference in the sides of the gondola.

 

 

Yes, Ladies..there really was a Cassanova - and this was his house/palace during one of his stays in Venice..taken from our gondola. The gondola ride is structured so that it takes you by many of the hisoric sites in Venice and the gondoleer points them out at no extra fee!

 

Edited May 26, 2011 by SailorJack

[SailorJack]

This picture shows the Grand Canal in the foreground and the Doge's Palace on the far right. In the middle is St Marks Square and St. Marks Basilica. The crowds - if you don't get there early in the morning - can be overwhelming.

 

 

St. Marks Basilica as seen from the square. This is easily the most magnificent of all the cathedrals and basilicas we have ever seen. It is a must see!

 

You are not allowed to take pictures inside the Basilica, but the artwork inside is just unbelieveable - especially on the ceilings. This art - just above the entrace to the Basilica is but an example.

 

One final picture from Venice - an example of the fantastic architecture you see throughout the city.

 

[jt1120]

Thanks, again, for sharing, SailorJack. I've decided that I want to be at your table on my next cruise. Your approach to writing is quite entertaining and well worth reading. If I'm the Travel Channel, you and I are having a talk about hosting a cruise TV show. With your unique view on things, I would think a viewing audience would find a show most entertaining.

Edited May 26, 2011 by jt1120

[SailorJack]

Thanks, again, for sharing, SailorJack. I've decided that I want to be at your table on my next cruise. Your approach to writing is quite entertaining and well worth reading. If I'm the Travel Channel, you and I are having a talk about hosting a cruise TV show. With your unique view on things, I would think a viewing audience would find a show most entertaining.

 

Thanks for your comments. I would be delighted to share a table with you. Our next cruise is on the Diamond Princess and there are staterooms available!:D

Edited May 26, 2011 by SailorJack

[sea-cruise]

Thanks for taking the time to write such an interesting review!

It made me LMDO!!! (laugh my donkey off) :D

[SomeBeach]

Sailor Jack, another wonderful review.

 

SailorJill is adamant that we spend a sizable portion of our daughter Alexis’s inheritance on a gondola ride (we named her Alexis because if we hadn’t had her we could be driving one).

 

Would that be this one?

 

It's a Lexus LFA, base price of $370,000, lots of horsepower.

 

I could just imagine your review on getting around town in this car! :D

 

I saw someone mentioning "prune" brandy in an earlier post but I prefer to call it plum brandy. My uncle (by marriage) use to make it, it's called Silivovitz. When I visited Montenegro, I walked up the mountain where he had his plums growing while he tasted the plums for ripeness. Most store brands are pretty harsh but my uncles Silivovitz went down smooth. Course the results were still the same! ;) That stuff can hold its own up against any strong booze, even moonshine.

On the plus side you can also use it as turpentine and for grease removal. :D

[d4nigirl]

That's it! I'm reading all of your other reviews! Bravo!

Well written sir!

[SailorJack]

Sailor Jack, another wonderful review.

 

SailorJill is adamant that we spend a sizable portion of our daughter Alexis’s inheritance on a gondola ride (we named her Alexis because if we hadn’t had her we could be driving one).

 

Would that be this one?

 

It's a Lexus LFA, base price of $370,000, lots of horsepower.

 

I could just imagine your review on getting around town in this car!

 

 

:D

 

Now that was just plain MEAN!:D

 

 

Thanks for taking the time to write such an interesting review!

It made me LMDO!!! (laugh my donkey off) :D:D

 

LMDO...now that was just plain funny.:D

 

That's it! I'm reading all of your other reviews! Bravo!

Well written sir!

 

Hope you enjoy the others. Links, if you haven't seen them, are in my signature.

[DeepWaterMariner]

Another great review! Dave Barry would be proud.

[SailorJack]

SailorJack, I have one question. When did SailorJill wear her "I Married an Idiot" T-shirt on this cruise? Or does she now have multiple copies to wear every day.;)

 

 

For those of you new to the delights of a SailorJack review, I recommend reading all of them, but definitely start with Dream or Nightmare!

 

SailorJill likes to wear her mother's t-shirt to the meet and greets.:) But my original review was so long that I had to cut out about five pages -which included the stuff about our meet and greet. The good news, however, is that I did not have to write about the quizzical stares I received after people saw her shirt.:D

 

Another great review! Dave Barry would be proud.

 

As Dave was my favorite columnist I take that as a compliment. Thank-you.

[SailorJack]

Kotor. Kotor is tucked way back into the mountains and is surrounded by black forests. This pictue is of one of the many turns the ship had to make as in threaded its way into the harbor.

 

 

The medieval town of Kotor.

 

 

From outside this ancient walled city.

 

Inside the town, narrow tiled pathways led even deeped into the town center.

 

Edited May 27, 2011 by SailorJack

[SailorJack]

It rained briefly in Kotor and SailorJill had her hood up as she took pictue of another narrow passageway.

 

 

This once once the water supply for the town. You can also see the outlines of the fortress high above the town.

 

 

Lest you thought I was making it up..I give you Nitsicko beer.:)

Edited May 27, 2011 by SailorJack

[SomeBeach]

Thanks for sharing the pix.

[SailorJack]

Thanks for sharing the pix.

 

You are welcome.:) I am trying to post some pictures from each of the ports on this cruise. Next up (as soon as I can upload them) are Ephesus, Bodrum, Santorini, Myconos, and Split.

Edited May 28, 2011 by SailorJack

[dzcruisers]

Thanks for your usual great review.

We are waiting for those Ephesus pictures. Thanks.

[dln929]

You're so funny! And I love the photos, too. My daughter's going to be working in Bodrum this summer so I'm looking forward to seeing (drooling over) those pics.

[SailorJack]

You're so funny! And I love the photos, too. My daughter's going to be working in Bodrum this summer so I'm looking forward to seeing (drooling over) those pics.

 

Your daughter is going to be working in Bodrum...what a real treat is in store for her! I will post the Bodrum pictures after Ephesus. I would go back to Bodrum in a heartbeat!:)

 

 

Thanks for your usual great review.

We are waiting for those Ephesus pictures. Thanks.

__________________

Happy Cruisin'!!!

Dianne (and Doug)

I will try to upload the Ephesus photos this evening.

[rubrrick]

I have no idea of what it is that you do in real life, but if it's not writing, you have missed your calling.

 

This was one of the best written reviews that I have read in a long time.

 

Dave Barry would have a hard time keeping up with you!!:D;)

 

Rick

[kerrytens]

Thanks for the recommendation! I am laughing/crying all over again! :D

 

"We had actually made it a mile or so out to sea before we rear-ended the Suzuki Grand Vitara."

 

Classic!!!!! A MUST read!

Do read the camel story too:D

 

Thanks Jack for yet another great tale, err review!

 

Edit: I'm caught up on all of the pages now too - great photos!!!

Edited May 29, 2011 by kerrytens

[SailorJack]

Do read the camel story too:D

 

Thanks Jack for yet another great tale, err review!

 

Edit: I'm caught up on all of the pages now too - great photos!!!

 

My missives do tend to muddy the distinction a little bit between "review" and "tale", don't they.:D

 

I have no idea of what it is that you do in real life, but if it's not writing, you have missed your calling.

 

This was one of the best written reviews that I have read in a long time.

 

Dave Barry would have a hard time keeping up with you!!:D;)

 

Rick

 

As I have mentioned before, Dave Barry was one of my favorite columnists and I wounldn't be surprised if some of his style rubbed off on me. Thank you for the kind words.

 

Jack

Edited May 29, 2011 by SailorJack

[kerrytens]

My missives do tend to muddy the distinction a little bit between "review" and "tale", don't they.:D

 

Jack

That is why I love them all so much:D Thanks again Jack for supplying my entertainment today!

[SailorJack]

Our first stop on our tour of Ephesus was the Virgin Mary's house - the last purported residence of the mother of Jesus. Only the foundation existed when excavated, but the house was reconstructed based on all available research. People file in through the front door and exit through the rear door. A security person is inside to prevent talking and to maintain a constant flow. Notice the pews in the foreground. Religious services are held here.

 

 

The alcoves contain faucets that are fed by the natural spring - said to have provided water to Mary. People are permitted to not only drink from the fountain, but to take some of the water with them. Note the people holding bottles filled from the fountain.

 

 

This board is overflowing with prayers that people write down and affix to the board. Our tour guide said that she prayed for good grades so she could graduate from college. She said her prayers were answered.

 

 

Apparently Turkey has very strong "truth in advertising" laws. This stand is just outside the entrance to the ruins at Ephesus.

Edited May 30, 2011 by SailorJack