Selbourne ‘Live’ from Aurora’s 2024 Grand Tour

[brian1]

2 hours ago, Selbourne said:

I’d like to go again, but have been before, albeit around 20 years ago. I have also been fortunate enough to attend a nighttime space shuttle launch, an experience that I shall never forget, especially as I took my late Dad who also loved it. 

Fantastic,that was on my ultimate bucket list .In the 60s.how they got to the moon  with a computer the size of a cruise ship suite and a lunar lander like a giant galvi dustbin I'll never know.Best of luck with your immigration experience.

Edited January 15 by brian1

[Selbourne]

 

Day 13 - Monday 15th January - At Sea

 

As I’ve mentioned before, we are sleeping with the curtains open on this cruise, so we were pleased to see sunshine first thing after quite a few dull days. By the time we were dressed and heading down to breakfast it was somewhat hidden by cloud, but still feeling warm outside. 

 

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this before, but last entry to MDR breakfast on this cruise is 9am on port days and 9.30am on sea days, which is what it used to be on all ships pre Covid. However, on the other 3 P&O ships that we’ve been on this last year we were pleased to see that it had changed to 9.30am on port days and 10am on sea days, which we find to be much better (we are on holiday, after all). I had mentioned this on our ‘First Impressions’ form, and rather oddly a restaurant manager came to our dinner table last night with my form in his hand, with the comment highlighted, and tried to tell me that room service breakfast is available later. This somewhat irritated me, firstly because that was completely irrelevant to the point I was making (which I don’t think they had understood) and he chose to engage in a conversation just as my main course had been placed in front of me. These earlier times will be increasingly problematic on the return home when we are losing an hours sleep each night. 

 

Having mentioned that yesterday’s entertainment (or lack of it) was dire, I was both pleased and relieved to see that it was as good today as it had been on our run to Bermuda. After breakfast we headed to the Playhouse for the first of a number of Space talks from our new lecturer William Joyce, which is right up my street. He doesn’t have the presentation skills that Dick Taylor had, but he certainly has excellent knowledge and I will enjoy attending all of his talks. 

 

We had our Caribbean loyalty tier lunch at midday, so were unable to squeeze in the Key West port talk, which we shall have to watch on the TV (shame they aren’t ’on demand’ as you have to be lucky to catch them). Whilst always an enjoyable event, this was probably the weakest one that we have attended. Drinks service was plentiful and, as always, we enjoyed the company of fellow cruisers, but it was different to the Caribbean lunches we had on Britannia and Ventura last year. 

 

There were some officers at the entrance to greet us, but they scarpered very quickly afterwards. Just like at the welcome aboard drinks, there seemed to be no genuine desire to interact with their most loyal guests. It was also the first Caribbean lunch where the Captain, or a designated senior officer, didn’t say a few words. I know that there are supposedly around 1,000 higher loyalty tier passengers on this cruise, but with the fact that priority embarkation had been a shambles and we have yet to see our complimentary champagne (which others on our table have had), this is the first cruise that we’ve been on where our Caribbean loyalty status hasn’t felt like something that P&O appreciated. The food was OK but I chose lamb and was served a very fatty portion which, after I’d trimmed off all the fat, was tiny. 

 

At 3pm we went to the theatre so see Christopher Biggins first talk. As expected, he was very engaging and interesting and went down very well with the audience. We returned to our cabin and then 15 minutes later decided to go for a few laps of the Promenade deck, and as we went to the lift lobby Christopher Biggins and his husband Neil got out of a lift. They greeted us and we said that we’d enjoyed his talk. They then proceeded to stop and have a good chat with us. As it was a private conversation I won’t repeat anything that was said, but I can confirm that they are both really pleasant guys and Biggins is as nice on a one to one as he is on stage. 

 

After a number of laps of the promenade deck (only just over a mile this time, but I was pushing my wife in the wheelchair) we went to the first of 5 classical piano recitals from our second guest musician - Roman Rudnytsky. Wow! This guy is amazing. He performed 3 very long, very fast and complex pieces (each over 15 minutes), all without any sheet music. What an incredible talent. 

 

Afterwards we went to a deserted Raffles for a drink before returning to the cabin. As we’d had a fairly full day we decided against going to see Pulse in Carmens for their ‘I believe in a thing called Rock’ performance.

 

For dinner I decided to have the ‘always available’ sirloin steak and it was cooked extremely well. We all had a smile at the advertised ice cream ‘Honey and Comb’. Unfortunately we have smelt cigarette smoke the last few nights and can only assume that it’s drifting in from the deck 7 smoking area with the door opening and closing as people go in and out. 

 

The 10pm theatre show was The Lavelles - a female trio of Motown singers who we have seen on previous cruises. We went to the theatre but couldn’t get a suitable seat where I could sit near my wife, so we didn’t bother to stay for the show. Tomorrow will be the last sea day before Nassau. 

 

Edited January 16 by Selbourne

[Purdey16]

Thank you selbourne for yet again a lovely write up which I know can take a lot of your time up . We would of loved to see Christopher Biggins talk & I remember watching him in the jungle a few years back and he was funny and a great all round person.

Hopefully this immigration problem will be resolved for you both and you get to go on your excursion.

Edited January 16 by Purdey16

[david63]

5 hours ago, Selbourne said:

sirloin steak and it was cooked extremely well

Do you mean it was cooked to perfection or was it incinerated?😇

[Beckett]

@Selbourne Once again, thank you for the time and effort you're putting in to your daily updates, and once again it is my 'go to' read with my morning coffee. I really feel I'm there with you and Lady S. You are such a good writer.

 

I felt quite affronted on your behalf that the Restaurant Manager challenged you in the MDR with your form in his hand. That was very bad behaviour. A phone call to your room with a gentle "by the way, are you aware of the room service times" was the the correct procedure and his approach was bad form. Mini rant over.

 

Keep on enjoying and I look forward to your next instalment.

 

With best wishes. Jane xx

[TigerB]

Another good read; thanks young man.👍🏻

 

If we were to host a dinner party, like the posh folk do, Christopher Biggins would be one of our invited guests, as would Stephen Fry.

[Harry Peterson]

11 minutes ago, TigerB said:

If we were to host a dinner party, like the posh folk do…….

Abigail’s Party? 

[TigerB]

5 minutes ago, Harry Peterson said:

Abigail’s Party? 

I'm only Abigail on a weekend, I'll have you know!🤭💃🏻

[Harry Peterson]

3 minutes ago, TigerB said:

I'm only Abigail on a weekend, I'll have you know!🤭💃🏻

The Alison Steadman character Beverly might be more locationally relevant to your neck of the woods! 🙂

[Adawn47]

1 hour ago, Beckett said:

I felt quite affronted on your behalf that the Restaurant Manager challenged you in the MDR with your form in his hand. That was very bad behaviour. A phone call to your room with a gentle "by the way, are you aware of the room service times" was the the correct procedure and his approach was bad form. Mini rant over.

 

I agree Jane. If they don't want an honest opinion, they shouldn't hand out the forms. As for approaching Selbourne in the MDR the way he did, that was totally unacceptable, and I'm afraid I would have told him so.

Avril

[Selbourne]

Just now, david63 said:

Do you mean it was cooked to perfection or was it incinerated?😇

Thankfully the former 😂 

[TigerB]

2 hours ago, Harry Peterson said:

The Alison Steadman character Beverly might be more locationally relevant to your neck of the woods! 🙂

 

Ah! You'll be thinking of the hamlet of Lower Steadman, between Hornsea and Rise.😉

[Ilovemygarden]

Selbourne - thoroughly enjoying this thread but am becoming a bit apprehensive about the Iona 35 nighter I’ve booked on for next January as you seem to have now had a fortnight without any really hot and sunny weather.  🤔

[Selbourne]

Just now, Ilovemygarden said:

Selbourne - thoroughly enjoying this thread but am becoming a bit apprehensive about the Iona 35 nighter I’ve booked on for next January as you seem to have now had a fortnight without any really hot and sunny weather.  🤔

It’s true that we have been unlucky so far, as we had two sunny days early on (22 degrees) but the sea was rough, and today is the first sunny day since. However, keep in mind that we tracked West for 5 days from Madeira as our next stop was Bermuda. On Iona you will track more south westerly so will reach warmer weather far quicker. We don’t actually reach the Caribbean until the last day of January!

[TigerB]

9 minutes ago, Ilovemygarden said:

Selbourne - thoroughly enjoying this thread but am becoming a bit apprehensive about the Iona 35 nighter I’ve booked on for next January as you seem to have now had a fortnight without any really hot and sunny weather.  🤔

 

We sailed from Southampton on 6th January last year and it was warm and sunny, and the sea was like a mill pond, almost every day from Tenerife to St Maarten.  As @Selbourne writes, your cruise will track a different route, closer to the west coast of Africa.  

Don't let the weather he, and @mrsgoggins have experienced on their respective cruises put you off; you can really never predict just what it will be like.

[Selbourne]

Todays MDR menus

[TigerB]

For dinner I would try the tiger prawns; from what I understand, it may be a baked dish.

 

At lunch I would be happy with a couple of tarts!😉

[Selbourne]

Just now, TigerB said:

 

At lunch I would be happy with a couple of tarts!😉

As would I, but we are doing the first Sindhu Tiffin lunch 😂 

[mrsgoggins]

2 hours ago, Ilovemygarden said:

Selbourne - thoroughly enjoying this thread but am becoming a bit apprehensive about the Iona 35 nighter I’ve booked on for next January as you seem to have now had a fortnight without any really hot and sunny weather.  🤔

 

Not Selbourne obviously, but we did a similar course for the first week. There are lots of repeat passengers on my 35 night Ventura Caribbean cruise and they all say the conditions have not been what they normally experience, so you will probably be fine.

 

We've had warm sunny mornings in both Barbados and St Lucia with showers (sometimes heavy) in the afternoon. I'm writing this having a welcome rest in the Grenada port terminal where it is hot, sunny and humid outside. Sure that would appeal to you 👌

Edited January 16 by mrsgoggins

[Selbourne]

Just now, mrsgoggins said:

 

Not Selbourne obviously, but we did a similar course for the first week. There are lots of repeat passengers on my 35 night Ventura Caribbean cruise and they all say the conditions have not been what they normally experience, so you will probably be fine.

 

We've had warm sunny mornings in both Barbados and St Lucia with showers (sometimes heavy) in the afternoon. I'm writing this having a welcome rest in the Grenada port terminal where it is hot, sunny and humid outside. Sure that would appeal to you 👌

Yes, I should have added that most on this cruise seem to have done multiple Caribbean trips, and all those we have spoken to have said that conditions are usually better than we have had.
 

There have definitely been plenty of periods when it’s been warm enough to sit outside, but today is the first very warm day. My wife is currently on the balcony ☀️ 

[yorkshirephil]

2 hours ago, Ilovemygarden said:

Selbourne - thoroughly enjoying this thread but am becoming a bit apprehensive about the Iona 35 nighter I’ve booked on for next January as you seem to have now had a fortnight without any really hot and sunny weather.  🤔

I wouldn't worry about it, I know weather is what it is but we usually get decent weather when we do the round trips. The worst we have had is following the route Selbourne is now on via Bermuda which is a more northerly route which gets the Atlantic swells and depressions.

[Ilovemygarden]

22 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

 

Not Selbourne obviously, but we did a similar course for the first week. There are lots of repeat passengers on my 35 night Ventura Caribbean cruise and they all say the conditions have not been what they normally experience, so you will probably be fine.

 

We've had warm sunny mornings in both Barbados and St Lucia with showers (sometimes heavy) in the afternoon. I'm writing this having a welcome rest in the Grenada port terminal where it is hot, sunny and humid outside. Sure that would appeal to you 👌

Thanks - it seems that the Caribbean has experienced more rain than usual this season too.  In fact I spoke with a friend this morning just back from a round Australia cruise and stay and she said the weather there had not always been what is expected either.    

[jh1809]

1 hour ago, TigerB said:

For dinner I would try the tiger prawns; from what I understand, it may be a baked dish.

 

At lunch I would be happy with a couple of tarts!😉

One on each knee?

[TigerB]

17 minutes ago, jh1809 said:

One on each knee?

 

Now that would be silly; they would be hot, mark my trousers, and it would be a waste of good food!

 

Oh, wait a minute! I've just realised you were perhaps being a little bit saucy.  Such a thought was the farthest from my mind when I wrote what I did, a good Catholic boy, like me. You've made me blush!😳

[zap99]

4 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Todays MDR menus

Another day that would suit us fine. Prawn cocktail and roast beef. What's not to like.😉