Live from MSC Bellissima B2B from Barcelona 25th feb to 11th mar

[Itochen33]

We just got a rough seas warning!

We are asked not to walk around on outside Decks and please not to open doors to the outside.

 

Looks like I will make a quick detour to the med bay to get some seasickness remedies…

[Itochen33]

I am so sorry! We lost the internet connection yesterday shortly after I posted about the warning…

 

now it’s 7 AM and we are rapidly approaching Genua. 
 

the weather was REALY bad last night. 
thankfully the concierge desk at the YC enclave could give me some Seasickness meds as I forgot mine at home… stupid me…

 

All pools were drained for security reasons but they left the hottubes filled… haven’t found out yet what sense THAT made…

 

Dinner was a quick affair:

 

my starter:

 

The octopus carpaccio

it was really pretty to look at but man… it was bland…

 

the main:

 

the monkfish

 

that was VERY good and made up for the bland octopus!

 

since I was already a bit on the bad side I skipped dessert and went to bed. 
 

hence why I am now awake since 5 AM…

 

The highlight of my dinner though was that I got a Tablemate!!!

 

Everyone please meet Yusuf!

 

 

he is a very pleasant tablemate! Doesn’t talk much and did not steal from my plate. He did eye my wineglass the entire time though…

[Itochen33]

Sea has calmed down but are still a bit rough and the ship is still rocking a bit

 

This was the sea yesterday shortly after I posted the warning

 

thats the sea now

 

 

it has rained all night and stopped just now.

[Itochen33]

Genua! Busy as always! And nothing has changed since my last visit 6 months ago…

 

i still desperatly wish for a sponge and some soap… who else knows that feeling and would like to give that city a little rinse?

 

i popped down to a little supermarket to get my fix on SUGARFREE energy drinks since, despite having them on the menu, MSC does NOT have sugarfree Redbull on board…

but it’s cute that they always offer me a espresso instead… GUYS I DON’T DRINK COFFEE! That’s why I ORDER redbull!!!!!!!

 

This morning I went to breakfast.

The buffet was a bust once more… no chance to get a seat… so I went back to the YC restaurant and ordered the MSC Express with a side of Banana pancakes.

 

 

for some reason the Pancakes came first and I was pretty confused about the missing bananas…

 

AAAH! Found them… and yes… the Pancakes were almost raw… tasted okay though and so I ate them…

 

 

after 20 minutes the MSC Express arrived too… I guess it was made by Deutsche Bahn because Express is different but okay… the Germans here know what I am talking about…

 

after that I went down to the city for the 5 minutes it took me to go to the supermarket and now I am back on the ship again!

 

no clue what I am going to do today other then enjoying myself!

Edited February 27, 2023 by Itochen33

[Itochen33]

Cooper of the day:

 

😛

[Itochen33]

There are several student/school classes on board on… whatever they are doing here…

 

it’s quite funny to see how manny of them are running around in PJs… and how they get kicked out of the smoking room constantly…

 

it’s noon by the way… lunch is served now…

 

Pad Petty… making photos of people without them knowing 😱😱😱

Edited February 27, 2023 by Itochen33

[Itochen33]

You won’t belive it…

 

I MADE IT TO THE BUFFETT!!!

 

 

 

 

everything was quite tasty, except of the meatballs… they were bland…

 

But I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised! Even the pasta was good! 
 

Now that people return from the excursions though it’s starting to get REALLY full in here again. LOTS of kids running around.

[Itochen33]

 

Hello teeny tiny MSC Lirica!

 

you are so cuuuute…

[Itochen33]

 

first time I see someone up there!

 

PAAALLLEEEEAAAASEEE don’t get blown off by the wind!!!!

[Itochen33]

 

and the production has started

[Itochen33]

Good afternoon!

 

i decided to take a nap… just got up again and URGENTLY needed my obligatory nicotine fix…

the smoking room was HIGHJACKED!!!

 

feels like an entire Italien school is in here…

and Jesus Christ, they are rude!!!

 

one of those KIDS just smashed 2 BURGERS on MY table and then WENT OVER TO HIS FRIENDS???? The heck???

 

[Itochen33]

AND it’s dinner time!!!

 

Today:

 

 

because I have it as a perk as Diamond member

not going to waste it…

 

 

just got the breadbasket. I LOOOOVE the bacon and cheese bread

 

and while I tipped this my starter arrived:

 

the Burrata and beets salad.

 

Love the presentation!!!

[Itochen33]

Starter was great! The garlic in the pesto underneath the Buratta gave it a nice touch

 

now it’s time for the main though:

 

 

the 14oz. NY Sirloin with a side of Asparagus and onion rings!

Of course the 4 sauces are not to be missed!

[Itochen33]

Resume of the main course:

Steak- PERFECT! Exactly as I like it! Perfect Medium roast with a nice sear and a juicy pink middle! 10 of 10!

 

Asparagus- I almost ordered a second portion… still a bit crunchy and not cooked to dead! The seasoning was spot on! 12 out of 10!

 

Onion rings- oh dear… not the chefs fault… they were absolutely tasteless… and went back to the kitchen. I ate just one and then couldn’t have cared less about them anymore. 1 out of 10… and just because they arrived here hot…

 

waiting for dessert now…

[Itochen33]

And there it is already!

 

the COOKIE!!!!!

 

oh my god it’s so good…

i love that damn cookie… LOOOOVE it!!!!

[L1211]

Meal looks amazing!!

[perakcruiser]

On 2/25/2023 at 5:58 PM, Itochen33 said:

Because it was FREAKING cheaper to fly Lufthansa BUSINESS CLASS then direct flight in economy with Ryanair and Easyjet… seriously…

When I looked for flights the direct flights would have summed up to 420 € with luggage… and without food or beverage… flight time in total 2 hours 30 minutes.

 

Lufthansa connecting flight over Munich? 380 € including a total of 64 Kilograms of Luggage, 2 pieces of Handluggage, a personal item, Lounge access, Food and drink on board, flight time 3 hours 30 minutes with connecting time… do I have to say more?

That is the most crazy thing I ever heard about flight prices. Business Class on the most expensive airline in the world is cheaper then economy with Ryanair or Easyjet 😄

 

Great you found it, when we come over to Europe we just book Ryanair without comparing. Because we think when Ryanair is expensive that just means than all others definitely will be crazy expensive. Next time I check a Lufthansa business class flight as potential alternative 😛 

[Itochen33]

8 hours ago, perakcruiser said:

That is the most crazy thing I ever heard about flight prices. Business Class on the most expensive airline in the world is cheaper then economy with Ryanair or Easyjet 😄

 

Great you found it, when we come over to Europe we just book Ryanair without comparing. Because we think when Ryanair is expensive that just means than all others definitely will be crazy expensive. Next time I check a Lufthansa business class flight as potential alternative 😛 

Do! Definitely do! It’s crazy! Wasn’t the first time that happened to me. Since I always fly in a day earlier, I don’t much care about the flight times. If you are a bit flexible with when you start you can find CRAZY deals like that a lot. I mean… seriously??? Ryanair and EasyJet more expansive then Lufthansa business???

i shake my head every time I have that. 
flown like this 4 times now… when you look at the prices you just have to remember what you have to add versus what is already included in the price and voila! Lufthansa can sometimes be cheaper!

[Itochen33]

9 hours ago, L1211 said:

Meal looks amazing!!

Best thing is that it was TASTY too!

 

except of the onion rings… they were a letdown…

 

the cookie made up for them a thousand times though!!!

[Itochen33]

Good morning!

 

We are in La Spezia!

 

the last time I was here was 16 years and 110 lbs less ago.

 

we are just reversing into our parking spot. In the dark… hands down to the captain!… I would have hit SOMETHING already… repeatedly… and if it’s just my head against a wall…

[Itochen33]

Some expressions from La Spezia

 

[Itochen33]

 

 

 

as you can see I was at the buffet again for lunch and once again everything was pretty good! 

[Itochen33]

During lunch I got the Cooper of the day!

 

 

why get up when you can stretch perfectly fine while snoring on the couch?

 

very hard that Chihuahua life…

[Itochen33]

The last photo I took from La Spezia

[Itochen33]

The DRAMA of the smoking room part: the continuation!

 

 

the room was once again CLOGGED with teens! Since lunch! At 17:30 the Diamond party started in the sky lounge and since the smoking room is part of the sky lounge… well. 
Securety came and almost started to cry when they saw the state of the room. 
cigarette butts everywhere. Ash all over the carpet. I don’t have a clue what they spilled on the couches… seriously… I don’t…