Circumnavigation South America Mariner Jan 6

[s2000drvr]

The BBQ was held at dinner time and the pool deck was decorated with balloons, fronds (palm tree leaves, not sure what they are called). There were tables of food along the pool. There was everything from pasta station, cold meats, salads, ribs, steak, sausages, lamb, pork. The display of food was fantastic. The staff had set up tables all along the outside area of the pool. There were plenty of tables for two if you wanted to dine without others. The tables were set with the white linen cloths. It made for a magnificent night.

 

After the dinner, there was a local entertainment group from Cartagena. They were fantastic. Tons of energy these young performers had. We enjoyed the evening thoroughly.

[Threechicks]

I wish we would have had a deck barbeque on Mariner last week. I don't recall ever being on a warm weather cruise that didn't have one before. The night before our forced second day in Cozumel would have been the perfect time.

I have never had a deck BBQ on a Caribbean cruise. I have enjoyed wonderful BBQs on Asian, Australian and Mediterranean cruises if the weather was warm enough. The type of event seems to have a lot to do with who the Cruise Director is.

[Hambagahle]

Last January when we had to miss that beach in the Bahamas - Princess Island? something like that and anyway Ken and I weren't planning to go ashore! - an announcement came from the Bridge as they were trying to get the anchor in place so they could tender. Not possible!! And further announcements would be made "SHORTLY". Within 20 mins Dionne Lachner, CD came on the loudspeaker. The "beach BBQ" would be transferred to the Pool Deck. And would start at noon. It was wonderful! Then on another day (sea day) we had a Tex Mex. Now I know that people who live in the SE USA think (are sure!) their own Tex Mex is great. But for us Europeans, what the Navigator chefs did was amazing! I ate too much!! And I think we had at least one other Pool Deck BBQ another time. Most likely on our last sea day...

[Threechicks]

I have never had a deck BBQ on a Caribbean cruise. I have enjoyed wonderful BBQs on Asian, Australian and Mediterranean cruises if the weather was warm enough. The type of event seems to have a lot to do with who the Cruise Director is.

After reading my post I realized that I wasn't very clear about what I meant. I have had deck BBQs at noon on Caribbean cruises but not in the evening. The evening events are quite special. On the Asia cruise there were Chinese lanterns strung over the pool deck and everything was decorated. The pool was covered over and the actual cooking was done right on the deck. The tables were as elegant as in the restaurants. A group played music and there was dancing. A lovely evening.

[chicagogal]

They didn't have that festive,special lunch time BBQ either. This is what I meant by no festive feeling.

 

Little to no holiday decorations either, although we boarded Dec 27th. We boarded same day last year on Celebrity Equinox and the ship was GORGEOUS!

[chicagogal]

The BBQ was held at dinner time and the pool deck was decorated with balloons, fronds (palm tree leaves, not sure what they are called). There were tables of food along the pool. There was everything from pasta station, cold meats, salads, ribs, steak, sausages, lamb, pork. The display of food was fantastic. The staff had set up tables all along the outside area of the pool. There were plenty of tables for two if you wanted to dine without others. The tables were set with the white linen cloths. It made for a magnificent night.

 

After the dinner, there was a local entertainment group from Cartagena. They were fantastic. Tons of energy these young performers had. We enjoyed the evening thoroughly.

 

Sounds fabulous! We expected something similar - one of our "little" disappointments.

[PaulaJK]

We've cruised Regent on New Year's for a decade. This was the first time that the decorations were down. Other years, they were retained until New Years. I've been on Regent when they do the evening BBQ and it's very nice and fun too w. the music/dancing.

 

I really don't know what to ascribe all of the differences to. The circumnavigation sounds much more like the Regent I've known.

[WesW]

Patty, Paula, thanks for posting your candid views of your recent Mariner cruises. Especially helpful considering your Regent, and other Lux line cruising experience.

[s2000drvr]

Today was an absolute great day. We woke to sunny, blue skies, warm to hot and humid. Rich and I like it this way. We are from MA and will take the heat any time.

 

We started our day in the La Veranda for our breakfast, mainly fruit, yogurt, cereal, muffin.

 

Then off we went on our tour of Old Cartagena Walking tour. We took a coach to the San Felipe Fortress. Along the way I saw donkeys pulling wooden carts laden with stuff, not sure what the stuff was. The fort is just amazing, huge. We only viewed it and did not walk around it.

 

We did stroll down some beautiful narrow streets and saw gorgeous flowers hanging from the balconies. We visited many plazas. One thing we all noticed was the presence of the police force everywhere. I never felt threatened even though the street vendors are a bit pushy but that is what I expected. We had an excellent tour guide and he provided a good presentation of Cartagena. I would definitely come back here.

 

Terry Breen presented a great talk on the Panama Canal. We will arrive around 5:30a to the Canal and will not be able to go through until about 7:30a.

 

Dinner tonight was in Compass Rose. Rich had the tenderloin and I had the prime rib. Both were excellent. The service continues to amaze me.

[chicagogal]

The thing that Regent likes to hear above all else on those comment cards is which particular staff/crew are doing a good job and why. By name. They take this very very seriously. Of course they also want to know when something is not right... and normally will come back to you on it at once.

 

 

We praised several people by name on our final evaluation cards, including our cabin stewardess. I know this is important.

[Hambagahle]

Terry Breen is terrific! She was on our Alaskan cruise and then the LA cruise Lima to BA. Very informative and very very nice!!

 

I suppose you are now enjoying the canal transit. One of the highlights of my cruising experience and something I hope to do again! Look forward to hearing about it.

 

And we, sadly, have never had a chance to have an evening deck BBQ. What a great idea!!

[s2000drvr]

Day 8 Transit Panama Canal

 

The morning found us with bright, sunny skies. It was not as hot as previous times that we have done the transit. There were alot of people on bow of the ship watching the action. We decided to go to the stern of the ship and watched the gates close. It was a fantastic day, but we finally arrived in the Pacific. Again, the seas are very calm.

 

We dined again in Compass Rose and again, had a fantastic dinner. I cannot say enough about the staff, they really are exceptional.

 

Tonight is the Liars Club with Terry Breen, Bruce Smirnoff, and Brian O'Brien. Ought to be an entertaining night!

[s2000drvr]

Day 13, Salavery, Peru

 

Today we awoke to gray skies, gray desert, gray water. However, once we started our excursion to Chan Chan City of Palaces, the sun started to shine, there were blue skies, a bit windy, but warm.

 

We boarded our bus and the geographic landscape is unbelievable. There are mountains way off in the distance, but up close is the dessert, mounds and mounds of sand.

 

The tour we took to Chan Chan and the Dragon Temple was fantastic. There were 39 of us aboard one double decker bus, but when we arrived at Dragon Temple, we were divided into two groups. Our guide, Grace was fantastic in explaining everything. We saw the impressions of birds, monkeys, snakes. If you would like to see pictures of this, please let me know and I can link them. At one point you could walk up this ramp and get to the top for an overview. You could see for miles.

 

The next stop was Chan Chan City of Palaces. This place was so amazing. Chan Chan is a city of palaces. The palaces contained many rooms and were surrounded by their own walls. The walls are decorated with birds or other animals. The walls surrounding the palaces were very high. There has been reconstruction of the walls as they are trying hard to preserve them. This whole area is open, no roofs.

 

Although the sun was bearing down on us, there were gentle breezes to cool us off. Also, the shade was considerably cooler if you chose to stand there.

 

We enjoyed this tour very much.

[cwn]

Thanks for posting...your reports are bringing back memories of our trip last year! I didn't know there were so many shades of gray...that is until we looked out the window at Salavary that morning!

 

It is an interesting place!

[s2000drvr]

Thanks for posting...your reports are bringing back memories of our trip last year! I didn't know there were so many shades of gray...that is until we looked out the window at Salavary that morning!

 

It is an interesting place!

 

We really enjoyed that port, but what was so interesting was the geography of it. You are so right about the many shades of gray! Have never seen anything like that before.

[electra2008]

Am on same trip as you in Sept can you post on the role call ;)

[lkakers]

Little to no holiday decorations either, although we boarded Dec 27th. We boarded same day last year on Celebrity Equinox and the ship was GORGEOUS!

 

We've cruised Regent on New Year's for a decade. This was the first time that the decorations were down. Other years, they were retained until New Years. I've been on Regent when they do the evening BBQ and it's very nice and fun too w. the music/dancing.

 

I really don't know what to ascribe all of the differences to. The circumnavigation sounds much more like the Regent I've known.

 

That is SO interesting! I was on Mariner at the beginning of December, and 2 nights before we disembarked (12/14), the little elves were out late at night putting up all the trees, garlands, etc. On the way to breakfast the next morning (a sea day) we were greeted with an enthusiastic "Merry Christmas!" from a staff member... :)

 

Seems so odd to me that the decorations would be down before New Year's!

[s2000drvr]

Day 14, Lima, Peru

 

Cloudy, then the sun broke through

 

Our day began with breakfast in Compass Rose. What a delight it is to start our day there. Service was quick as we had to get ready for our tour: Lima Highlights.

 

We got onto modern buses with seat belts. The guide handed out little goodie bags: 3 lemon hard candies, 2 Nestle chocolates, one wetnap, and one bag of awful chips. There was plenty of bottled water available on the bus.

 

This guide was fantastic. He talked about the global warming and about the fear of earthquakes. (I made a mental note of this). We passed by alot of traffic, people on the move, and you could tell this was a city. We did see one person dressed from head to toe in a protective suit, with only his eyes showing. He was a street cleaner. I wondered what was so contaminated that he need all this protection.

 

The first stop was Lima Cathedral. This place was amazing. The mosaics were beyond description. The guide gave an excellent description of Pizzaro. We toured all around.

 

We then walked to the oldest colonial mansion in the Western Hemisphere. We were treated to a cola or an Inca drink that was a yellow/green. Rich had it and it was good.

 

From there we trekked onward to the San Francisco Monastery. This building was in dire need of restoration. There were cracks in the walls and it just looked like it needed some loving care. We were invited down to the catacombs and I was not sure I would like to see all the bones, skulls, etc, but off I went. I am tall so there was alot of ducking my head in several areas. I did not like being down there. It was just a narrow walkway, sort of dark and all these bones in bins. I was glad when we left that area. I know this place has survived many an earthquake, but I did not want to be a casualty.

 

We then proceeded onto Miraflores to Lover's Park. Again, mosiacs wall, a huge sculpture of two lover's which overlooked the ocean. This park had lush green lawns, and plenty of beautiful flowers.

 

Loved this tour (but maybe not so much the monastery, although I was glad that I did go), our guide was fantastic.

 

Had dinner again in Compass Rose and cannot say enough positive things about the food, service. We loved it.

 

Tomorrow will take us to Colonial Homes Tour.

[cruzndiz]

s2000drvr: I am loving your posts as they bring back such wonderful memories of my being on the same itinerary last year! And, it's especially neat that so far you have taken the exact same excursions at each port that we did!

 

Enjoy the rest of your voyage and I look forward to hearing about all of your stops.

 

Oh, and in case you are wondering, I am one of those "wonderful people" cwn and Travelcat alluded to traveling with last year :p

[Travelcat2]

s2000drvr:

Oh, and in case you are wondering, I am one of those "wonderful people" cwn and Travelcat alluded to traveling with last year :p

 

Yes Linda -- definitely one of the wonderful people:D

[cwn]

Day 14, Lima, Peru

 

...Our day began with breakfast in Compass Rose. What a delight it is to start our day there. Service was quick as we had to get ready for our tour: Lima Highlights.

 

We got onto modern buses with seat belts. The guide handed out little goodie bags: 3 lemon hard candies, 2 Nestle chocolates, one wetnap, and one bag of awful chips. There was plenty of bottled water available on the bus......Loved this tour (but maybe not so much the monastery, although I was glad that I did go), our guide was fantastic.

 

We did this tour also...one of the best of the trip. The President of Equcador was visiting and they were giving him a full dress military review in the square. The chips were bad weren't they!

 

We ate breakfast in the CR every chance we got...loved the attention and peace.

 

Hi cruzndiz and travelcat....to bad you didn't stay on...things got really dull after Lima.

[s2000drvr]

We did this tour also...one of the best of the trip. The President of Equcador was visiting and they were giving him a full dress military review in the square. The chips were bad weren't they!

 

We ate breakfast in the CR every chance we got...loved the attention and peace.

 

Hi cruzndiz and travelcat....to bad you didn't stay on...things got really dull after Lima.

 

Cwn: I traveled with you last year through your blog. I learned so much from you! Your blog was fantastic.

[cwn]

Cwn: I traveled with you last year through your blog. I learned so much from you! Your blog was fantastic.

 

Thanks for the kind words...glad it was of help.

 

Doing that trip blog and the others we have done is the best thing we have ever done for ourselves...it is do much fun to relive the trips years later reading through the blogs. I actually copy them into hardback books so we don't have to go back to the computer.

 

Have a good time, this is a great itinerary and really, for us, the best parts were still ahead of us....

[s2000drvr]

We are spending two overnights in Lima. So we again woke up to gray skies and a bit cool. Off to the La Veranda for our breakfast which was not bad at all today. The first segment has ended and today the ship will be filling up with new passengers. We saw a lot of the people leave the ship, luggage in hand.

 

Our tour today was Treasures of Colonial Lima. We were shocked to find out that there were only 7 of us on this tour. Because this is a transition day between new people arriving, others departing for home and still others taking a side trip, our tour group was small.

 

We again received the goodie bag with the same type of treats as yesterday. Off we went, with morning traffic and people. Talk about crowded narrow roads. We first stopped at San Macros University. The courtyards were amazing, fountains in each courtyard. Also stopped by the Jesuit Convent of San Pedro. This was like a huge cathedral. Each alter was different from the other in style, some were from the Baroque period. These alters almost reached the skies they were so tall. They were built in the 1700's and survived the earthquakes. Really amazing.

 

We walked and walked all around Lima, felt like I was going to be a target for some cars at times as they drive really nuts here.

 

Lunch was suppose to be at a colonial home called Casa de Aliaga, but somehow another group had reserved the room, so we went to a private home for our luncheon. Upon entering we were given a short tour of some of the rooms by the lady of the home. Out on the courtyard we all were served Pisco Sours. It is a very refreshing drink, not sure you can buy this type of liquor at home. We were served canapes that were brought to us by white-gloved servants. The little cocktail napkin was linen with the embroidered initials of the owner.

 

Next we were brought to a small dining area where a large round table was set for us. There was brioche and butter on the small plates. The napkins again were linen, same for the tablecloths. The silverware was Sterling (I checked this out, but discreetly). Wine, both red and white, was served. We had the first course of an avocado, fava beans, tuna in a cheese sauce with polenta. It was so good. Next the main meal was a sliced beef with tomatoes, onions, peppers with a red wine reduction, along with both rice and french fries. It seems the main staple for vegetables/grain is to serve both rice and potatoes at mealtimes. This was followed by cut up mango and a native fruit in I think an orange sauce. Next was another native fruit made into a puree with little, tiny, teeny meringue cookies. We were filled to the gills.

 

Our tour ended and it was time to say goodbye to our guide. We really enjoyed this tour.

 

Tonight we are dining in Signatures, the French restaurant.

[Travelcat2]

Your lunch sounds wonderful! You can get Pisco in the states but it is difficult to find. It is definitely a yummy drink:)