LIVE from the Ocean Princess - 28 days from Rome to Singapore 10/15 - 11/12/2011

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Currently in transit in the Canal just now entering the the Great Bitter Lake.

As we will anchor here for a while

 

Looks like quite a few ship waiting in the Lake.

 

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

I am sure you would have found out by now Pia but Gaddafi has been killed. Libya is free of this tyrant finally.

[Pia1913]

I am sure you would have found out by now Pia but Gaddafi has been killed. Libya is free of this tyrant finally.

 

Yes, Eileen. We have had Fox News all along.

[DonahCBrown]

Interesting aspect of our transit of the Canal-throughout people we passed were waving and this afternoon, as we moved to the front of the convoy leaving Bitter Lake, people on the shore were frequently shouting "Welcome" and waving. We're in the Gulf of Suez now, and have picked up speed since exiting the Canal and will be in Sharm el Sheikh in the early morning tomorrow. A number of us are going to be going out into the desert for "Rhino" rides - sort of dune buggy affair, for a couple of hours, then back into town for some exploration and shopping I expect. Nice and easy, since our next two days are going to be really strenuous and long going to Petra and to Luxor and Karnak - both will be 10 or 12 hour days with lots of bus travel.

[Pia1913]

Just checking in to tell you we really didn’t do much today. It was trivia and eating and watching the scenery go by as we cruised through the canal. Then again, trivia today was very important inasmuch as we won both of them. Yay! Got water bottles in the AM which we promptly disposed of by giving them to the runnerup team. Yes, it was another tiebreaker. This afternoon however, it was just us; score of 19. The one question we missed, as did every other team, was; “what is in the center of a Sussex Pond Pudding?“ The prize is something new; Princess magnetic clips. They are now holding up the map on our cabin wall.

 

　

We are now having our pre dinner wine and I think we’ll go to the show tonight. See you tomorrow; either before or after our excursion.

[High C's]

Pia or Donna:

 

Are you taking ships tours in Egypt, or did you make your own arrangements?

 

BTW, I just love when "we" travel along with you both! :)

[wineforhealth]

Just checking in to tell you we really didn’t do much today. It was trivia and eating and watching the scenery go by as we cruised through the canal. Then again, trivia today was very important inasmuch as we won both of them. Yay! Got water bottles in the AM which we promptly disposed of by giving them to the runnerup team. Yes, it was another tiebreaker. This afternoon however, it was just us; score of 19. The one question we missed, as did every other team, was; “what is in the center of a Sussex Pond Pudding?“ The prize is something new; Princess magnetic clips. They are now holding up the map on our cabin wall.

 

　

We are now having our pre dinner wine and I think we’ll go to the show tonight. See you tomorrow; either before or after our excursion.

 

Well done Pia & team

 

Win or lose pre diner wine is always a winner

[coo359a2]

Can you ask Peter (CD) if he will be on the Ocean for the Sydney to Singapore cruise in March 2012? If not, does he know who will be the CD. Keep having fun.:)

[Kiwi Kruzer]

[Pia1913]

Pia or Donna:

 

Are you taking ships tours in Egypt' date=' or did you make your own arrangements?

 

BTW, I just love when "we" travel along with you both! :)[/quote']

 

Private for both of us tomorrow in Sharm, private for Donna in Safaga (been there, done that for us) and ship for both of us in Petra.

[Aloha 1]

Yes, Eileen. We have had Fox News all along.

 

Oh, thank G-d! We are on the Pacific Princess next August to Israel and were afraid we'd be stuck with CNN :D

[paul929207]

Pia,

 

I assume the correct answer is Lemon?

[Rockymountainsparky]

Pia,

 

I assume the correct answer is Lemon?

 

I had to look it up. Yes, it is a whole lemon. Talk about tangy.:D

[lovevacadays]

I'm really enjoying reading about your cruise Pia and Donna. It's so interesting!

[zahav1]

Your trip to Petra. We were there two years ago in November. Long bus ride even from Eilat or Aqaba, about 2 1/2 hours. Take lots of tissues for the toilets, all 4 stops at bathrooms were lacking or short on toilet paper. Otherwise Petra is awesome, take rubber bottom walking shoes, the rocks on the ground can be slippery. Lots of walking.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

 

[Pia1913]

Good Morning from Sharm El Sheik, Egypt, where I already can tell it’s going to be a hot day. We need to leave for our dune buggy excursion at 8:45, and since the gym doesn’t open until 7, I decided to get up at 6:00 and walk the deck. Capt. announced it was 73 and I can attest to the fact that there’s no breeze.

 

　

There is absolutely nothing going on today for those who will remain on board. All I see is the movie Secretariat at 3:00 and of course there’s a morning trivia. Other than that……………nada.

 

　

I’m going to try and post this now, but we have internet problems so don’t know how successful I will be. Donna couldn’t get on at all 1/2 hour ago.

[Pia1913]

What fun! Our Rhino Desert Buggy expedition. We were picked up at the port (4 couples) shortly before 9:00 and traveled about 15 minutes to the dune buggy depot. One buggy per couple and for us I was the designated driver. We needed to wear scarves, ala Arafat, though ours were black and white. They had to be purchased for $4.00 per, but I had brought my own scarf from home and that was sufficient. They were wrapped to cover our hair and faces; only eyes exposed. And we had to wear a helmet. I have no idea how many kilometers we covered, but we did make two stops; the first at Echo Valley and the 2nd at a Bedouin camp for tea. Our guide called it a Bedouin Starbucks.

　

I am not going to give any additional information, since Donna will take over from here and she is so much better with in depth descriptions. Right now she went to pick up a DVD that they took of us during our desert encounter. We will then burn copies for everyone.

 

 

Tina: Peter will not be on; he's going to the Sea. And he does not know as yet who will be on this ship.

[kruisey]

Look forward very much to the detailed report Donna....I leave for UK tomorrow afternoon so hope it will come on line before I leave.......Heather:)

[DonahCBrown]

Sharm El Sheikh – which means the Sheikh’s Beard. We were booked for a “Rhino” (dune buggy) tour in the Sinai Desert with SinaiSafari, an excursion company very highly rated by Trip Advisor. They offer Rhino vehicles, ATVs, camel rides, watersports, etc. chiefly to the resorts in the area. We had to do a little negotiating by email to arrange for the port pick up and drop off and working out all those details, so I gathered that they don’t have a great deal of experience in doing tours for cruisers.

 

We were met at the port gates with a nice vehicle with plenty of room and good air conditioning. However, there was some initial confusion over the price that had been agreed upon via email, so those using the company may want to be sure and have a printed copy of any correspondence on hand. We ended up paying the agreed upon amount, but not without some confusion about currencies and exchange rates. Next up was a little bit of a hard sell on scarves that were meant to keep the sand and dust from your nose and mouth. My DH felt they were unnecessary – I found mine helpful, though and it is an interesting souvenir of the trip, too. These were priced at $4USD. It is advisable to have current exchange rates for Egyptian Pounds to whatever you are using (our party had Euros, USD, and GBP available) and credit cards are also accepted although with a service charge. You will need some small bills in whatever currency you are using in any event, for tips, purchase of water or other beverages at the “Bedouin Starbucks” and so on. There’s also a bit of a hard sell on still and video photos and the videographer and photographer are ever present.

 

We received a brief explanation of how the vehicles worked (they’re automatic and pretty simple to operate) and had our scarves tied on and were given helmets, and off we went into the desert. There are clearly trails for ATVs and the larger (and safer) Rhinos. Our guide preceded us on an ATV, and another followed at the rear, ready to provide any assistance should it be needed. The videographer moved up and down our little convoy in a pickup truck and took his film as we went along.

 

There were two stops on the way – the first at a rock formation that produces echos, and the other at a Bedouin camp that our guide described as the ‘Bedouin Starbucks’ where tea was provided and other beverages (sodas, water, beer) were available for purchase – prices were a little steep with bottled water running $4 USD, and sodas and beer $8. At both stops, the guide, Amar, provided some commentary on the culture, history, and current events in Egypt and the Sinai, which elevated the tour well above a bumpy dusty ride in the desert. On a sad note, the desert area has been or is being used as a garbage dump for the resorts around Sharm. Amar indicated that there are attempts to ban this now, but there hasn’t been any effort to clean up what has already been dumped and it is very sad to see as the area otherwise has a stark beauty. In conclusion, we had a good group, a good guide, and good time. In retrospect, or for prior planning if you are contemplating this tour, bring a written confirmation of your quote, a current idea of what your exchange rate is with the Egyptian and British Pounds, and adding a scarf, and bottled water will save you some money.

 

On our return, we were offered a choice of drop off points – the Old Market or the port gate – our party split at this point with one couple picking the Old Market drop point and the rest returning to the ship (to immediately hit the showers and wash off the pounds of dust and sand that we’d accumulated) In the end, we decided to purchase one copy of the DVD, which was delivered a couple of hours later to the port gate. It was $25 US. The still photos had been offered initially at around $15 US and were universally turned down, but as we left on the bus, the price suddenly dropped to $1, so we took one as did at least two other of our total of 4 couples.

[DonahCBrown]

Look forward very much to the detailed report Donna....I leave for UK tomorrow afternoon so hope it will come on line before I leave.......Heather:)

 

Hope it got to you before you left Heather!

[TracieABD]

Amazing "Live from". I am so glad that you are doing this, Pia!

TimTams to you!:)

[Waynetor]

My wife and I are also currently on the Ocean Princess. We are staying on after Singapore for an extra 20 days sailing to Sydney.

I thought I’d add some extra comments to give an additional perspective from what Pia has done. My wife has some trouble moving around so our activities and excursions are not as active. We have been to Rome and Sydney before but nothing in between so this is all a new experience. We are Princess Elite but not as high as many on board here. Combining 4 vacations we will of sailed the around the world in 144 days. This is our first ‘small’ Princess ship experience.

One of our concerns going into this cruise was the lack of ‘anytime dinning’ but so far it has worked out very well. We have a table for 8 right against the aft window so have had several nice sunsets. Our 6 table mates are all American and within 10 years of age of us. Four of them are also staying on until Sydney. The smaller size of the ship makes it easier for someone with mobility issues to get around. The library on the Ocean is bigger than on many of the larger ships. There are only 4 elevators and the staircases are narrow but this has not been a problem. The single pool has a large lip area about 4 inches ddep and the main part is marked at 5 ffot 6 inch but is a few inches less so if you are short and can’t swim you will be stuck with the hot tubs. With only 5 production shows in 28 days the singer/dancers have lots of time so they act as the general cruise activity staff. The Cabaret lounge is an excellent setup with nearly all seats having a good view. We have enjoyed the entertainment very much and are told that except for the production shows there will be all new shows for the Singapore to Sydney segment. There will also be a new Cruise Director. Service in the dinning room has been great and the meals mostly very nice. The buffet area is fine with a nice area outside offering great aft views although the first several days were too cool to enjoy it. Our taste buds miss having the cookie lady that comes around the pool area on the larger ships but no one here is going hungry.

At the captain welcome aboard there was no breakdown by nationality but it seems Americans are about 50%, followed by Canadians, Australians, British and then other Europeans. The majority of guest appear to be in the 55 to 65 age range. I doubt if there are 20 people under 30. There is only 1 family on board (children boy 9 and girls 16 and 17). They are from Oahu and spent a couple weeks getting to Rome and are sailing to Singapore, then Sydney, then Tahiti and then Hawaii. If they had never sailed on Princess before they would be Platinum at the end of first cruise. I trust their home schooling includes a lot of ancient history and eastern cultures.

We have a port lecture giving help on what to do in each port as well as lecturers giving historical talks. I’ve only been to a couple. The talk on the development of the Suez was standing room only.

Wayne

[Waynetor]

The tours we have done so for include: In Sorrento 6 CC members did a very nice tour with AP Tours of the Amalfi coast which is incredibly scenic. This is certainly a place where a tourist should not be driving as it would be extremely difficult to keep your eyes on the road. Being in a small van, it was able to drive right up to the tender area.

In Athens we did a half day ship tour that included several stops at the major ruins. This is a relatively easy tour for someone with some mobility issues.

In we did another CC group tour that included an ancient Mosque, the Ephesus Museum where a lot of the relics are stored (our guide gave a great review of the history of any items) and a trip to the countryside to the village of Sirince where we had a very nice lunch.

Going through the Suez was interesting but the flies on the deck area were a major nuisence. The west side of the canal is much more green than the east side.

In Sham El Shiek today we arranged for a tour that included a glass bottom boat tour. The reefs were interesting but not exactly world class. I contacted a couple tour companies that would not do a ship pick up without a large extra cost before arranging with Memphis tours that charged $49 each and we were gone about 3 hours. The dock was made of large rubber blocks attached together that bounced around a lot when you walked on them. They were very helpful with getting my wife onto the boat.

Wayne

[Dorset Cruiser]

Good Monday morning at sea, where the ship wiggled last night and then about 4:00 AM all hell broke loose. Cabinets opened and things flew out. The wind was howling and the ship was rocking; big time. I tried getting up to go to the gym at 7:00, but Mike yelled at me so I stayed in bed. A little past 8 the captain made an announcement into all cabins telling us that elevators cannot be used, and no access to decks 8 and 10 either. Deck nine is open, but right now we’re not going up there. Seas should calm down by midday, and seems better now. The sun is trying to come out, but wind is still at 50 knots. Nothing that will make us majorly uncomfortable; so far. Coffee is brewing, so all’s well right now.

 

　

We did attend the Dan Hodge show last night; most of it anyway. The man is a good pianist, but he really should stop trying to be a comedian. He told us he’s been aboard for 12 weeks and he’s still staying on. So I guess we will see him again. Karen, I will try to look at the Youtube link, but not until I know I’ll have enough minutes. Otherwise, will see it when we are home.

Our Scholarship at Sea program will be featuring two different lecturers. One is William Roberts who is billed as a cultural historian and is a retired Lt. Commander in the US Navy. He also recently retired from a second career as a litigation and trial attorney. The second gentleman is Dr. Bradley J. Rowe whose subject is cultural anthropology. He has lived and traveled all over Asia and Latin America and his Ph.D is in the area of Applied Eco-Psychology and Integrated Ecology. Today’s lecture by Mr. Roberts is “The Ancient Mediterranean: 5000 years in a nutshell. From the Great Flood to the Minoan, Hitites, Philistines to the Persians.” Dr. Rowe’s topic this afternoon will be “The Psyche of Italy: a dynamic discussion of the people and culture of Italy.”

　

Our Meet and Greet is scheduled in the Tahitian Lounge at 11:30 which will conflict with the port lecture on Athens and Kusadasi. I wonder how many of our Roll Call people will be choosing the lecture instead.

　

Also on the agenda today is the first art auction, a future cruise presentation on Alaska and a boat building competition. Of course there are 2 daytime trivias as well.

　

Tonight is our first formal night with a Captain’s Welcome cocktail party at 5:15 for early seating and 7:30 for late. Following that is the first production showtime: “Stardust.” We are going to attend even though we’ve seen it many times. I don’t recall whether or not we’ve ever seen it on a small ship and a lounge performance is always different than a theater performance.

 

 

One of us wants breakfast so will try to navigate up to deck 9. See you. :)

 

 

Exact same thing happened to us on Ocean Princess last year. I was actually physically thrown out of bed by the strength of the seas - scariest night of my life!!!!!