Silversea Water Cooler: Part 3, Welcome!

[Joc123]

JP - as you know I don't post often but I'm a dedicated lurker. I'm currently in Italy enjoying a wonderful holiday with family at Tremezzo on Lake Como and I'm just catching up with the Cooler.

You mentioned your trip to Adelaide (not many people even know we exist) March next year. I must say, you have picked the best time of year to come. The weather is usually lovely with the extreme heat over. As this is my home town, if I can help with any questions you may have please ask. We also have a hobby vineyard in the Barossa and know that area well. Very happy to help.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Lovely food JP!

 

Must admit I'm looking forward to getting back to a decent kitchen.

[TLCOhio]

March 2018 - I have a big birthday coming up with one of those annoying zeroes after it. Chris is planning a 2+ week Australia trip. Given the time of year, we're concentrating on the South. Preliminary itinerary is to fly into Sydney and spend a day recuperating. Since we've already been there for a few days we'll lay low and do whatever we have the time and energy for. Then we'll fly out to Adelaide for a few days in Barossa. From there, we'll go to Kangaroo Island for 2 nights at Southern Ocean Lodge, then come back to Adelaide for a few days drive along the Great Ocean Road, ending in Melbourne for a few days. From there, we'll head to Tasmania to meet up with one of our cruise buddies for a few nights at her beach house in the North of the island. Then back to Melbourne for the long flight home. Looking forward to a little more in-depth visit to Oz, as we've only been there for a few days back in 2008 before our AU/NZ cruise. There were only 3 days to spend in AU, and the rest were in NZ. So much more to see there. Any other suggestions? Keep adding to my list?

 

Great updating and summary from JP. Lots of wonderful plans and options. So glad you mentioned your thoughts for "down under". Since you mentioned Kangaroo Island, I will offer some ideas and options based on our time there in early 2014.

 

KI is a totally wonderful and truly amazing "experience". It was one of the top, best highlights from that trip. How much are you seeking the "luxury" versus "nature" approach? Southern Ocean Lodge is clearly "top-end" luxury. Partly for budget and other reasons, we went a little different direction. In my view on Kangaroo Island, the guide and firm giving you the visit there is the super-priority. We had an excellent guide who had lived his whole life there, really knew the places, its secrets, etc. We stayed in an older, larger family home in a B&B style that really allowed learning more about this unique island, its people, life there, etc. Plus, great food and people. Tell us as to what you seek, desire and need while on KI.

 

Clearly, it's your choice as to what you want. In my view, plus from so many different articles read, talking with others who have visited there, etc., the BIGGIE is discovering an island that represents what Australia was before the white settlers came. PLUS, getting close to the animals, nature, wildlife, dramatic settings, etc. Below are a few of my sample visuals for what is there on Kangaroo Island. Below are a few of my visuals. Plus, many more on the live/blog. Reactions? Happy to chat more by phone if that is easier.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 182,630 views for this posting.

 

From amazing Kangaroo Island, 70 miles south of Adelaide in South Australia, here is a picture of two kangaroos doing what they do best on the open plains of this island while we observed at a distance.:

(Open your screen/viewer wider to see these pictures larger!)

 

At Flinders Chase National Park, first is a longer view as we approached the Remarkable Rocks that dramatically overlook this coast region of Kangaroo Island. These are naturally-sculptured formations sit atop a base of granite. This rock formation appears like sculptures of the UK's Henry Moore.:

 

Here is an overall coastal/beach view within Flinders National Park.:

 

Here is a view at Admiral's Arch with an amazing angle through that famed stone arch outward towards sea/rock/coastal scenery.:

 

With Craig Wickham, the operator of Exceptional Kangaroo Island on this famed Australian island near Adelaide, he took us on a "hunt", successfully, to find more Koalas out in the wild. Here is just one example of these Koala finds that we enjoyed so much. Aren't they cute? So lovable?:

 

Here is one simple from my many pictures of these interesting and playful Australian Sea Lions at Kangaroo Island's Seal Bay. Fun!!:

[Camillus112]

Terry, your photos of the natural fauna in KI rare wonderful. Thank you for sharing.

[the_dylaness]

Thanks all for your good wishes. Daughter and family will celebrate with friends at their camp in Cayuga Lake, and we will hike the Baltimore Woods nearby. Later, steak on the grill and lots of wine. Recuperated, at last!!

 

I went to school on the shores of Cayuga Lake... swam in the lake so many times (many of them naked- the benefit of attending a women's college I guess). Looked out on the lake every single day of my college career. Worked at a winery on the weekends and still friends with the owners today. What a beautiful part of the world!

 

Have had a nice holiday so far. Took my kids (2 and 6) to the pool, introduced my daughter (the 6 year old) to my own 30 year old Tinkertoys which she ADORED, got them in bed by 745 and am now watching my husband grill some bison steaks and fennel with cherry tomatoes, which we'll serve with a little tabouleh on the side. While having an Aperol spritz and checking out cruise critic. Yeah, freedom!

[jpalbny]

Terry, thanks for coming back with your comments and pictures on KI. Now I'm even more excited that we are planning to go there. SOL looks amazing, and we've already booked it. So I think we'll enjoy both the Lodge and the Island. You only hit the half-century mark once, and Chris is pulling out all the stops for this trip. :hearteyes:

 

I will have to review your blog for more information. Thanks for offering your experience; let me see what other questions I have.

 

Joc123, thanks so much for the offered help. I will probably come back with a few more questions later, as we plan our time more precisely. Right now we are not sure when we fly in from Sydney, and where we'll concentrate our touring (or whether we'll be guided, or on our own, etc). We will spend most of the time in Barossa, and a bit in Adelaide proper - though from what I've read so far it's a small city. Right now we're planning to arrive in SYD on a Friday morning, fly to Adelaide on Saturday, spend two nights (Sat and Sun) at Lanzerac Country Estate in Barossa, then work our way back to Adelaide for a stay in town on Monday night, flying out to KI on Tuesday (Regional Express). Back from KI Thursday, then hit the road towards Melbourne. So we'll have a Monday afternoon / evening in Adelaide, I think.

 

One thing that would be very helpful - do you have any specific wine tour operators to recommend in Barossa? Hotels in Adelaide? Also what do you think of Hahndorf - touristy, or cute? I like the idea of visiting a "German" town in Southern Australia, but some places say it's not that exciting, and we've spent lots of time in Germany proper.

 

Enjoy Lake Como...another place on our list! No rush to answer.

 

Fletcher, you asked about specific safari operators. IMO it was impossible to beat the experience we had at a private game reserve near Kruger in South Africa. Lion Sands had phenomenal hotel and restaurant facilities, and the game sightings were amazing. We followed a pride of lions for three days, watching them fight among themselves, (not) share a kill, and then the next day the male of the pride had been driven off by two rivals who claimed the kill. It was amazing. We saw leopard, rhino, tons of elephants - all up close and not crowded. It was quality over quantity.

 

We did the Serengeti in 2015 and also Ngorongoro, Tarangire. It was a bit more crowded but we had two great experienced guides through Thomson Safaris (a Boston based outfit). We would have preferred better accommodations - we were in tents - but the camp staff were so eager to please, and the food that they served in tent kitchens was surprisingly very good. The wildlife density, in Ngorongoro especially, was much greater than near Kruger, so the sightings were more frequent and more spectacular. But we were in different areas every day so we lost the continuity that we had in Lion Sands. Both were worth doing. Botswana is probably next if possible.

 

Zanzibar may have been a victim of unrealistic expectations. I expected an exotic tropical paradise and instead we saw a lot of poverty. Not surprising I guess. We never felt unsafe, and on the whole it was not unenjoyable. The Ras Nungwi resort on the northern tip of the island was an oasis which we really enjoyed. I'd tell you to book the Ocean Suite for a special treat - I upgraded us (for our 20th) and Chris wasn't expecting it. :cool: Big win. But the place burned down a few months ago... So sad!

[jpalbny]

I went to school on the shores of Cayuga Lake... swam in the lake so many times (many of them naked- the benefit of attending a women's college I guess). Looked out on the lake every single day of my college career. Worked at a winery on the weekends and still friends with the owners today. What a beautiful part of the world!

 

Have had a nice holiday so far. Took my kids (2 and 6) to the pool, introduced my daughter (the 6 year old) to my own 30 year old Tinkertoys which she ADORED, got them in bed by 745 and am now watching my husband grill some bison steaks and fennel with cherry tomatoes, which we'll serve with a little tabouleh on the side. While having an Aperol spritz and checking out cruise critic. Yeah, freedom!

 

Wells? Don't try that now; it's coed.

 

My little brother and his family are in Lansing not far from there. He works at Cornell.

 

What winery? I know the Seneca ones much better than the Cayuga ones, but you never know.

 

Enjoy your dinner. Sounds very nice!

[the_dylaness]

Wells? Don't try that now; it's coed.

 

 

 

My little brother and his family are in Lansing not far from there. He works at Cornell.

 

 

 

What winery? I know the Seneca ones much better than the Cayuga ones, but you never know.

 

 

 

Enjoy your dinner. Sounds very nice!

 

 

 

Long Point Winery...

 

The transition to coeducation was not terribly long after I left. It caused a major rift in the campus, and many alums including myself do not donate at all because of how everything went down. It's a real sore spot for me. I'm not against coeducation, but I think that Wells ruined 150 year plus legacy of quality women's education and turned themselves into just another small liberal arts college.

 

 

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[Lois R]

Good morning:).......had a nice dinner at my sister's;;;;;;;she is an excellent cook and always has been:)

The burgers were a 3 meat combination of BEEF, TURKEY AND SAUSAGE:D.........then melted cheese

of course:D...........cole slaw and potato salad and it was all soooooooo good.

And yes, we had cherry pie too!

[TLCOhio]

Terry, thanks for coming back with your comments and pictures on KI. Now I'm even more excited that we are planning to go there. SOL looks amazing, and we've already booked it. So I think we'll enjoy both the Lodge and the Island. You only hit the half-century mark once, and Chris is pulling out all the stops for this trip. I will have to review your blog for more information. Thanks for offering your experience; let me see what other questions I have.

 

Say it ain't so, J.P.!! When mentioned earlier about a birthday coming up with a zero on the end, I assumed it was your 40th birthday upcoming. NOT, your 50th!!?? Time does fly by fast! No wonder Chris is working on making this one, the BIGGIE!!

 

Let me know any other questions on Kangaroo Island, etc. Yes, Adelaide is very nice, too. We spent some time there before and after our K.I. visit, but would have liked to have had more time there. That's part of the overall challenge with both Australia and New Zealand. You need lots of time there. So much to see and do. That's why smart research and planning is so vital.

 

Back to Kangaroo Island, just make sure you have some good local guiding help. Some like to just "wander around" on their own. Sounds good, but at K.I. you end up missing so much and/or not knowing what you are seeing and why it is so significant.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

From our Jan. 25-Feb. 20, 2015, Amazon River-Caribbean adventure that started in Barbados, here is the link for that live/blog. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, etc.):

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

Now at 51,757 views for these postings.

[tgh]

Lots of advice on Orstraylia already JP , happy to contribute from a local perspective if you need more…

Do stay at Cradle Mountin Lodge if you can manage it..

There is nothing like a knock on your door turning out to be a local nocturne seeking a snack.. :-)

 

Do you have any advice on time filling/things to see on the road from Boston to New York?

I have probably allowed too much time leaf peeping and I am having trouble filling the days..

[Camillus112]

I went to school on the shores of Cayuga Lake... swam in the lake so many times (many of them naked- the benefit of attending a women's college I guess). Looked out on the lake every single day of my college career. Worked at a winery on the weekends and still friends with the owners today. What a beautiful part of the world!

 

Have had a nice holiday so far. Took my kids (2 and 6) to the pool, introduced my daughter (the 6 year old) to my own 30 year old Tinkertoys which she ADORED, got them in bed by 745 and am now watching my husband grill some bison steaks and fennel with cherry tomatoes, which we'll serve with a little tabouleh on the side. While having an Aperol spritz and checking out cruise critic. Yeah,

freedom!

 

Hello the_Dylaness,

Wells College was indeed a high level, nurturing, college for future women professionals. Many of the reknown women CEO's and CFO's of 15-20 years ago graduated from Wells. The village of Aurora is a gem!! I always take visitors to the Aurora Inn and a walk in the village. My daughter's camp is a bit north of Aurora and we always enjoy visiting the village.

 

Had fun remembering my children's tinkertoys. Now my grandkids are too "grown up" for them!

[jpalbny]

Lots of advice on Orstraylia already JP , happy to contribute from a local perspective if you need more…

Do stay at Cradle Mountin Lodge if you can manage it..

There is nothing like a knock on your door turning out to be a local nocturne seeking a snack.. :-)

 

Do you have any advice on time filling/things to see on the road from Boston to New York?

I have probably allowed too much time leaf peeping and I am having trouble filling the days..

 

I think we'll be at our friend's beach house for our time in Tassie but thanks for the recommendation.

 

Lots to do between Boston and NY. You can head out westward and enjoy the Berkshires (mountainous, rural, with a summer arts and theater scene). Then cross into NY state, turn South, and go down the Hudson valley for wine tasting, more cute small towns, hiking, etc.

 

Or take the southern route through Providence (RI), then the Connecticut shore. Mystic, CT is a classic stop. Cape Cod on eastern MA is another classic summer shore stop but it's a bit out of your way, and totally overrun with tourists all summer from May to Sept.

 

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[MissSophia]

Hi All......so lovely to read about everyone's exciting travel plans and also the big weekend celebrations.

 

I travelled to Australia and New Zealand back in 1971 so guess it's all changed a bit since those days!

 

Very busy week here with another heatwave to enjoy....

 

Happy Evening 😊

[jillyf]

I took my husband to Kangaroo Island in 2015. We stayed at Southern Ocean Lodge and loved it.

It had been a busy time for us so although we enjoyed the excursions, we loved the casual relaxation of the place.

The beauty of the coastline from our room was an ever changing scene.

The food and wine they presented was top class and we enjoyed the fellow guests.

We really relaxed and the blog suffered so not much written, and no pictures of the wonderful food.

http://thefletchers.com.au/The_Fletchers/Kangaroo_Island_2015/Archive.html

[jpalbny]

Say it ain't so, J.P.!! When mentioned earlier about a birthday coming up with a zero on the end, I assumed it was your 40th birthday upcoming. NOT, your 50th!!?? Time does fly by fast! No wonder Chris is working on making this one, the BIGGIE!!

 

Let me know any other questions on Kangaroo Island, etc. Yes, Adelaide is very nice, too. We spent some time there before and after our K.I. visit, but would have liked to have had more time there. That's part of the overall challenge with both Australia and New Zealand. You need lots of time there. So much to see and do. That's why smart research and planning is so vital.

 

Back to Kangaroo Island, just make sure you have some good local guiding help. Some like to just "wander around" on their own. Sounds good, but at K.I. you end up missing so much and/or not knowing what you are seeing and why it is so significant.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Yes, the years do keep adding up. I still think I'm about 23 but the passport tells another story. Thanks for offering to take a decade off; much appreciated!

 

SOL seems to have great guides and their basic tour package seems to include what we're interested in for a short visit. We'll see as the time gets closer.

 

Did you fly there or take the ferry? The flight to/from Adelaide is convenient in some ways but coming back to KI, we want to head east towards the Great Ocean Road, so the ferry return point at Cape Jervis is actually much closer to where we want to be. I'm debating just taking our car on the ferry (have to check to make sure that's OK), driving to/from SOL, and then taking the ferry back.

 

I took my husband to Kangaroo Island in 2015. We stayed at Southern Ocean Lodge and loved it.

It had been a busy time for us so although we enjoyed the excursions, we loved the casual relaxation of the place.

The beauty of the coastline from our room was an ever changing scene.

The food and wine they presented was top class and we enjoyed the fellow guests.

We really relaxed and the blog suffered so not much written, and no pictures of the wonderful food.

http://thefletchers.com.au/The_Fletchers/Kangaroo_Island_2015/Archive.html

 

Loved the pictures that you did post. The room and setting looks incredible. Can't wait to experience it firsthand! Thanks for the sampler!

[the_dylaness]

Hello the_Dylaness,

 

Wells College was indeed a high level, nurturing, college for future women professionals. Many of the reknown women CEO's and CFO's of 15-20 years ago graduated from Wells. The village of Aurora is a gem!! I always take visitors to the Aurora Inn and a walk in the village. My daughter's camp is a bit north of Aurora and we always enjoy visiting the village.

 

 

 

Had fun remembering my children's tinkertoys. Now my grandkids are too "grown up" for them!

 

 

 

Pleasant Rowland for one! Quite the controversial figure in Aurora, at least when I was there.

 

Never want to be a C blank anything but I'm satisfied with my professional career :-)

 

 

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[UKCruiseJeff]

Good Morning Coolers ..... and a bigly welcome to our exlurkers who have promoted themselves to full blown voting members! We'll have to buy some more stools soon and extend the bar and add more optics and expand the cocktail list!

 

We finally got back from Seaside to Civilisation today ..... but what a palaver. A few days into the trip the washing machine broke. A Miele with a ten year guarantee. I splashed out and bought wifey one for Seaside and one for here. Well the repair date wouldn't fall within the visit so that cheered wifey up. And when I went to fire Helga up to head for home she folded her arms and kept shtoom. Mobilife produced a Mercedes truck with an engineer smelling of booze with slurred words and the results was a dud starter battery. Helga is blessed with two batteries one in the front and one in the back, the logic being that all the electronics doesn't impact starting. In theory. Anyway a jump start and we headed back to Hampshire. I want to ditch Helga, but wifey who is besotted with her and points out rightly that we have already lost around £80k depreciation on her feels that we should keep her and nurture her for the rest of her natural life. Next week are new shoes at around £1k for four. She says "we've lost all we're going to lose so let's enjoy her". She has only done 24k miles and I could have used a limo driver for all those miles and saved cash. £80k plus annual costs and petrol divided by 24k miles ....

 

Anyway, I digress. Remembering not to turn the ignition off we arrived on our Hampshire drive to move Elsa out of the way to make way for Helga. but ... yes ... her battery was dead. So we conclude that with Miele and Merc the Germans have it "in for us" and so do those pesky Swedes.

 

It is remarkable how two homes within the same country can be in environemnts of two different planets.

 

Att Seaside it is clear that Helga and us brings out the worst in some. It is a scenic but deprived area because it relies on elderly holiday makers and I guess a fairly direct person in a second home that is only used for twenty or so nights per year is going to bring out the worst in some down there. I have heard under the breath "rich barstewards". One neighbour who we use to ply from our Gaggia suggested that we bought her property for more than it was worth so she could move. We had no thought of buying her property, but she had got it into her mind that we could afford it and that we should do it. When we gently said "no" she cut us from then on. In your dealings with people at Seaside they operate in completely different modes to 130 miles away in Hampshire. It is as though they are completely different planets. And the surface when scratched is rarely attractive.

 

Anyway, we're back home now and wifey and I being bored to a terrible degree are trying to work out what changes we need to make to be unbored.

[mysty]

Wow J! Interesting experiences! Not fun by any stretch! And an existential crisis to top things off! Easing boredom is a challenge and one I have been dealing with as well. It is an issue that both Myster and I will need to address now that he is retired. I'd be very interested in what you and Mrs J come up with.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Hi M,

 

Yes I realised there were paralells in your search and ours. i'm not grumbling but we were fortunate that our business became a vehicle to provide us with all the travels people normally do when they retire. Our work was also really unusual in that it was mostly advice, and mentoring and therefore extremely enjoyable and rewarding because our dlients were wealthy and could afford our fees, paid from their businesses. Clients were also friends. So we travelled with them. We retired at around 50'ish but then had none of the things left to do that others look forward to.

`

What to do.

Edited July 6, 2017 by UKCruiseJeff

[Tothesunset]

You keep the SL Jeff. We ran one in Germany for a while and it really was rather special (I must admit, though, we bought it tax free and sold it at a profit back in UK after a year). It was replaced with a Range Rover - not the same at all. I can see why people buy them if they live atop Ben Nevis but otherwise just a lot of metal to move around and, especially, park. Do keep the SL- just knowing someone owns and loves one makes me both a little comforted and a little envious!

[UKCruiseJeff]

Hi, envious you made a profit. I bought mine when at a premium.

 

It's the R230 period which I think was much more elegant than the replacement ranges which to me didn't look at all special. It's the only car I ever really looked at and thought special and we felt that having taken the risk of leaving the corporation a justified indulgence. It sounds strange but I felt it under priced compared to say Lambos and Ferraris etc It is clearly a testing bed where all their techology comes together. And it's still basically a new car .....

[Camillus112]

Dear Jeff, got up early today to go to the gym, and the first thing I read put a smile my face to last the whole day. I do hope you are collecting your writings for the future pleasure of others...our Whirlpool fridge is stuttering and giving up, but I would not be able to find any humor (humour) such as yours! Thanks for your sharing and your talent, Jeff.

[Tothesunset]

Hi, envious you made a profit. I bought mine when at a premium.

 

It's the R230 period...

Ah ha! Mine (actually OH's) was the previous iteration SL 320 bought, if I remember right, in 1998 - anyway we paid £42k ran it for a year and 10k miles and sold it for £49k. At that time each NATO member stationed in Germany or their spouse or dependent child could buy one tax free car per year and sell it after 6 months with no further tax charge but it was easier just to swap each year. We got through a lot of decent motors - M-B, BMW, TVR, Jaguar, Range Rover and if it taught us anything it was that none of them were worth the premium.

 

We now have a Ford Focus ST3 estate (need room for the dog). Very quick, comfy, 5 year warranty and 35mpg. What's not to like? I really can't justify buying a badge but would make an exception for a 3rd, 4th or 5th gen SL!

 

Of all the cars we had the most memorable was a TVR Tuscan 2001 build with 420bhp. Faster than a fast thing from Fastland. Got up to 175mph on the autobahn then ran out of nerve. At the time it was also the only Tuscan on German roads and unlike in the UK where you are an object of hate for having a decent motor, I could never stop for petrol or whatever without having at least a dozen conversations with admiring people.

 

One day I'd popped into the local bank and came out to find a guy really giving it a good look over. As it happened he was a presenter on a motoring show on German TV and not only knew what the car was but also asked if he could borrow it for a piece on the show. Er, no! Sadly it spent only 12 of the 32 weeks I owned it actually on the road - it was returned to Blackpool when it munched its camshafts after 1500 miles and then again to a dealer in Ghent shortly after for a new alternator amongst other things. 49 seperate faults eg steering wheel came of in my hand (scary), front section of bonnet would come unclipped above 120 mph (but the air pressure held it down), leaked like a sieve in the rain, exhaust fell off etc etc etc.

 

Stick with the SL.

[jpalbny]

That Tuscan sounds like a beast. I had to Google it to read about what it was but that's some impressive 0-60 numbers.

 

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