LIVE from the Diamond Princess - 35 days Singapore to Vancouver

[Raamo]

Thanks Pia and others, someday I'll be on a similar cruise but it may be many many years... so I get to dream as you sail along!

[aaerobear]

Sheesh Pia, you know I know what the prizes are for trivia. That was a specific message for you to pass on to Bob and Meridith. We used it as our mantra on one of the cruises we were all on. Bob would say..."just remember it is all about the luggage tags" it was really a put down about why so many people get bent out of shape playing trivia.

[triple7tahoe]

Sheesh Pia, you know I know what the prizes are for trivia. That was a specific message for you to pass on to Bob and Meridith. We used it as our mantra on one of the cruises we were all on. Bob would say..."just remember it is all about the luggage tags" it was really a put down about why so many people get bent out of shape playing trivia.

Ed-Do people really get "bent out of shape" when playing trivia? Maybe "playing" is the wrong word. There can be some very serious "losers":)

[ibfern]

Hi Pia,

 

Congrats on your trivia win, love those trivia trinkets, all made in China too. We leave in 4 days and will see you a week from tomorrow, so excited!

 

I know a lady who weaved together all her trivia luggage tags and made a purse! :D

[caribill]

 

Yes, carabiners have Princess logo.

 

A carabiner (/kærəˈbiːnər/) or karabiner is a metal loop with a sprung gate used to quickly and reversibly connect components in safety-critical systems. The word is a shortened form of "Karabinerhaken", German for "spring hook for a carbine".

We have won that in the past, but we never knew what it was called until now.

 

[mississauga]

We used it as our mantra on one of the cruises we were all on. Bob would say..."just remember it is all about the luggage tags" it was really a put down about why so many people get bent out of shape playing trivia.

 

Hey guys, don't knock those luggage tags' versatility. We used ours as a small change purse in Europe last year and by buckling it to a small loop in my purse, it served very well as an anti-thief wallet for my euros and coins...lol

[generichandle]

Hey, don't laugh.

 

Back in my caving/climbing days one of the critical pieces of equipment was the carabiner. I am certain with a bit of imagination you can see why. Very versitile, I even used 3 for a rappel when my 'rack' was borrowed. Even a small one like you showed and Princess seems to give can be incredibly strong, and you could carry/support all kinds of things.

 

Princess logo would be cool too. Maybe I can get one too?

 

Doug

[mema4]

Hi Pia,

Love reading you daily events. Getting ready to leave on Sat. Can't wait.

Alice

[waltd]

Hi Pia

 

Love all the details of your cruise. Being I've never been to Hong Kong would you say that you still can get good deals on clothing? I know many years ago they claimed you could but times have changed.

 

Thanks

Joe

[cruisedreamer17]

Hi Pia,

On that next day at sea, go by the shops and let me know about the London Blue Topaz!

Laurie

(your fellow July 1 passenger!)

[sunvalley cruisers]

A carabiner (/kærəˈbiːnər/) or karabiner is a metal loop with a sprung gate used to quickly and reversibly connect components in safety-critical systems. The word is a shortened form of "Karabinerhaken", German for "spring hook for a carbine".

We have won that in the past, but we never knew what it was called until now.

 

 

 

 

ohhhhh, ahhhhh. drooling and green with envy. :D

 

Anne

[KruzPrincess]

Is there a cooler time of the year for this cruise? I am really sensitive to hot and humid weather and don't think I could do this. Sounds just too hot for me.

[ccrain]

Do they call Vietnamese clothing kimonos also? i thought it was Japanese. :confused:

 

That's what I called them. But they had Polo shirts as well!

[Pia1913]

Good Tuesday morning, April 24th. Skies look good, seas are calm, temps only supposed to reach 76, and we’re on our way to Shanghai. We left HK at midnight, though I sure wasn’t aware of it. I get the best sleeps while on board a ship. You think that could be the reason we cruise a lot? :D Also, as we cruise along the gym wait is getting shorter. Today we got a treadmill immediately.

　

Since two of the couples in our group stayed in town to do evening things, we and the other opted for dinner in HC. We then went to see the early folkloric show (shouldn’t have bothered) and then Mike and I watched “Something Borrowed” in our cabin.

　

This morning brings a Shanghai lecture at 9:45 and Happy Feet 2 on MUTS at 10:00. At 11:00 the lecture 1421: Did China Discover the World? Afternoon begins with a marzipan demo at 12:15, followed by Runway at Sea Fashion Show in Explorer’s at 1:30. Sounds interesting, so will probably attend. Afternoon movie in the theater is War Horse. At 3:00 there are 3 choices; Movie Theme Trivia, Wine Tasting, or the Muppets movie on MUTS. We will do whatever our friends decide, which most likely will be wine tasting. We don’t need or want any more shot glasses, but some still do.

Ed, I knew that. :p Time for breakfast. Bye.

[ccrain]

At Sea to Hong Kong:

 

We basically took it easy while the wonders of modern medicine did their job. Three days of on the wagon helped the bar bill tremendously. There was plenty to do. We went to see Hutch and his Hong Kong port lecture. He is the single best port lecturer I have ever seen on Princess. (The Penguin professor on the Antarctic Cruise was the best destination lecturer.) His tips and descriptions on where to go, how to go, when to go and what to avoid are fantastic and dead on. And its all practical. How far to walk, how much money to change, how to bargain, when to bargain.

 

There were lots of activities during the day. Wacky pool games were great. Went to see ‘don’t know how she does it’, IMHO a solid waste of 90 minutes of electrons and magnetic tape. It almost made Justin Timberlake’s ‘In Time’, we watched that at MUTS later, seem really, really good. ‘In Time’ was an interesting concept, just written to an old and worn script that was as predictable as telling the future…

 

And then for the first time in 24 cruises we went to afternoon tea. Sat around the table and chatted with a German couple from Australia, a couple of ladies from England and a couple of ladies from Canada. Great conversation, no politics so Judy loved it, had some tea and some munchies.

 

We also had to say goodbye to Nadia, one of the photographers. She was on our last Golden cruise in April 2011 and she was ending her contract in Hong Kong. Showed her our pride and joy picture from the last cruise (our avatar) that we’ve put on canvas.

 

IMHO Kelvin is one of the top CDs Princess has. British, funny, the kind of guy you want to go out drinking with. The morning shows are a hoot and they are getting crazier. The schedule is filled with a large variety of activities for everyone. The cruise staff is energetic, enthusiastic and a lot of fun. Matt (Deputy CD) plays off Kelvin perfectly, while his Balut (Philippine delicacy) eating on camera was pretty horrifying as I thought he was going to lose it…

 

We finally made it to the dining room for Italian Night. Got to, got to, get my Eggplant Parmesan fix. Judy just had the head waiter prepared Penne pasta and I had the brazatos. Both were really good – but I missed my lemoncello fix – oh well – next cruise…

[ccrain]

As with Bangkok, how many times during our youth did we hear about and read about such exotic and far away cities? Never thought I’d ever see it, but it was well worth the effort. We took the 100 tour which goes practically everywhere on a full day bus/sampan/tram/ferry ride all over town.

 

Hong Kong is the most intense place I have ever seen. I just could not get over the density of buildings and it is the most densely populated area in the world. The skyline is simply a marvel. Such a wide variety of modern architecture taken, essentially, straight up! Beautiful buildings. The real surprise though, was that you expected shoulder to shoulder people. Not so! It was not as crowded as I expected on the streets. Maybe everyone was at work!

 

Herman was our guide. (Yep his Chinese name was basically unpronounceable.) From the moment we left the dock he was funny, informative, constantly commenting on lifestyles, people, history – never a dull moment. He was the most enjoyable guide so far on this cruise. Really, really good. On this excursion we were joined by some new friends – Richard and Diane, from Hawaii, whom we’d met at the Conrad in Singapore. It really made for a much better excursion with friends.

 

We started driving from the container port down the Peninsula and onto Hong Kong Island via one of the tunnels. Herman relayed to us that the business venture that paid for the tunnel on a 30 year lease got their initial investment back in 3 years, and then having 27 years of almost pure profit, minus maintenance costs…

 

We drove around to the south side of Hong Kong Island to go to Stanley Market. Stanley Market was great, but I wish we’d had longer there. At least we came prepared with Hong Kong dollars from SFO when we left the states. Working in HK$ was much more simpler. We picked up a great looking magnet and a set of chopsticks. Richard and Diane got a Rainbow Calligraphy plaque with their names on it from a vendor that made Bill Clinton a personalized stamp when Bill visited 10 years ago. Oh, and I should now mention one other thing – Herman is 43 and looks to be in his late 20’s early 30’s. The “kid” doing the calligraphy was also 43, and looked in his late 20’s early 30’s. His grandfather, who trained him in the art he was practicing, lived to 104. Super friendly people. I videoed him working on the plaque for Diane and Richard. It really turned out beautiful. We just didn’t have time for us to get one done.

 

So we left Stanley Market and went to the Jewelry Factory. While the pieces were great and it was gorgeous stones, they were not exceptionally priced and there is no way anyone in their right mind is going to spend 1,000’s of dollars on jewelry in only 20 minutes.

 

After the factory, we took a short Sampan ride through the fishing fleet and houseboats in the harbor and ended up at the floating restaurant for lunch. Lunch was great. Cantonese style food served family style. More than enough for 10 of us. Eggrolls, several dim sum dishes, fried rice, vermicelli, noodles, a green veggie that was not bok choy but was really good, a sweet veggie and chicken stir fry and a couple of other things. Good food, interesting atmosphere, very expensive if done on your own.

 

A short boat ride back and off to Victoria Peak! Which unfortunately was socked in. So we targeted the Hard Rock café, a friend of mine collects hats from them, and Richard had to get some ICE CREAM from Hagen Daz, having not getting his fried ice cream fix at lunch. The ride down the peak was fast and STEEP. With the clouds, not a lot to see, but just something different.

 

Catching the bus at the bottom, we headed to a ferry dock to ride one of the older double decker ferries around Victoria harbor. We got some great shots of the waterfront, the buildings, on both sides and the new construction going on at the old airport. The place will just be getting that much more dense.

 

After the ferry ride, it was back on the bus to head back to the Peninsula via the tunnel. We dropped a few people off at the cruise shuttle stop. (Diamond Princess had to dock at the container port. She’s just too big for the cruise terminal. No private or public vehicles or walking was allowed at the container docks, so they shuttled people to the cruise terminal. About a 20 minute bus trip. But it left you off in the middle of all the activities.)

 

When we got back to the ship we had intended to go back out and watch the laser light show, but it started raining, so we nixed that in favor of seeing the local acrobatic, magic and dance show on board. Which was pretty good.

 

If we come back to Hong Kong, we definitely will do it on our own now that we know a little more of the lay of the land.

 

The itinerary on this trip is really enjoyable. We like the sea day or two between ports. These all day port tours are pretty intensive and tiring. Having a day or two in between is great!

[caribill]

We then went to see the early folkloric show (shouldn’t have bothered).

 

When we got back to the ship we had intended to go back out and watch the laser light show, but it started raining, so we nixed that in favor of seeing the local acrobatic, magic and dance show on board. Which was pretty good.

 

 

As with food, opinions on the same entertainment can differ.

[Pia1913]

No Bill, not even close. It was awful and a waste of time. You should see how many people kept walking out. We were polite and stayed.

[Gazelle2]

Pia and ccrain. We are loving the live reports so far. We are doing nearly the same trip next April (starts in Bangkok instead of Singapore). It has all the same ports of call.

 

Since you seem to have a minute to breathe, I will ask a question. Were you required to get and document any inoculations for this cruise? I think I have all the visa requirements figured out but the shot question remains a mystery. I have read in other threads that sometimes Princess itself requires proof of current inoculations prior to original check in. The CDC website is as helpful as most government agencies.

 

Thanks in advance and keep the great posts coming.

[DonahCBrown]

Pia and ccrain. We are loving the live reports so far. We are doing nearly the same trip next April (starts in Bangkok instead of Singapore). It has all the same ports of call.

 

Since you seem to have a minute to breathe, I will ask a question. Were you required to get and document any inoculations for this cruise? I think I have all the visa requirements figured out but the shot question remains a mystery. I have read in other threads that sometimes Princess itself requires proof of current inoculations prior to original check in. The CDC website is as helpful as most government agencies.

 

Thanks in advance and keep the great posts coming.

 

No shots required for this one, just the Chinese visa. There will be information on the personalizer about any other requirements.

[sunvalley cruisers]

No shots required for this one, just the Chinese visa. There will be information on the personalizer about any other requirements.

 

Donna! No fair popping in like that and not adding a few notes about the cruise. Tell us what you've been up to.

 

Anne

[ccrain]

We went to a few websites, asked some questions on CC and then talked to our family doctor, who travels a lot.

 

He asked where and we told him. He recommended DPT booster, polio booster and Hep A and B shots. Did not recommend dengue unless we were really going into the boonies. (We already had our flu shots.)

[Pia1913]

Wednesday April 25th and it is decidedly cooler. High today is not expected to reach 70, but the humidity is still present. I think we will no longer be wearing shorts until we get back home. We did in fact attend Maurizio’s show last night which was very good. We also stayed to watch the Marriage Game; not so good. One couple OK; the other two, blah. Since there is going to be another Capt. Circle party tonight (dress casual), we all four couples decided to skip formal night entirely, eat at HC and attend tonight’s party.

　

Before I “read” you the Patter, I’m finally remembering to tell you about our upcoming no internet time. My fingers will get a rest for approx. 36 hours beginning Friday night until Sunday morning. It seems that once we are in Japanese waters, due to their radio communications regulations, there will be no internet services. Whatever that means. I really don’t understand the whys and wherefores.

　

At 6:30 this morning there was a service for Anzac Day; Australia and New Zealand’s Memorial Day. This was held on deck 14 forward and I can’t tell you how many attended since I was still asleep.

　

This morning there will be a lecture on Nagasaki and the movie Dolphin Tale on MUTS. Afternoon brings us Mr. Sexy Legs Contest out at the pool, which is really surprising. I have never known Princess to do this Carnival thing. Also this afternoon is On Deck for the Cure and Under $500 Art Auction. There’s a vocalist Kwame Remy in the theater at 3:00 and also at that time the movie Push on MUTS.

　

Tonight’s MUTS movie is Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol at 8:00, and a choice at 8:30 - Lovena Fox singing in the theater, or Comedian Rikki Jay in Explorer’s. We will go to Explorer’s and then perhaps stay for a music trivia.

Ann, Donna's our friend, so we basically are together and doing the same things. Actually Donna does more on shore. I'm sure you will eventually get her full narrative. And now, it's time to meet Donna for breakfast. See y'all later.

[highheel girl]

Enjoy! :)

[ccrain]

As with food, opinions on the same entertainment can differ.

 

Most folklorics are hit or miss. Were they the best, no. Was it better than eating again, yep. Was it better than 'I don't know how she does it' or ' Larry Crowne', on a cost benefit, time of life and oxygen consumption benefit ratio - yep.

 

They were amatuers really trying to put on a good show, and while it wasn't the best, it wasn't the worst we've ever seen and they were trying their best - and we appreciated their effort.