TigerB (not at all) live from Iona (G404 - Portugal, Spain, and Canaries)

[TigerB]

Day 10 - Monday 26th February - Cadiz, Spain

 

 

The kids had a trip to Seville booked so were up and off the ship fairly early.

After the excesses of the previous day, our lass wanted a lie in; I was happy to oblige, so the alarm was not set. I woke about 08:40; she was awake and reading her Kindle. "You're alright yet, hunny", she says, giving me permission to close my eyelids again. They opened again at 09:30.

We couldn't be bothered to leave the cabin for something to eat. I suppose we could have ordered a room service breakfast, but neither of us gave it a thought before retiring; we weren't that hungry anyway. So we had a brew and started on the birthday cake. How cruising rock 'n roll are we?😎

 

I then went outside to catch Sugar and tell her we didn't need a full clean; I just swapped out dirty mugs, glasses, and towels, and got some biscuits.

 

Our lass decided that we hadn't bought enough chocolate to take home, so we would need to pop out for some; she recalled getting some on our last visit from the Carrefour near the market.

First, we would have a spot of lunch in the MDR, so at midday we headed to Pearl. We were seated at table number 395, a two-seater near the windows on the starboard side, and about 100cm from an empty four-seater.

Our waiting team were Haston Peter and Christian 

 

Today's menu...

 

We both had...

 

Our lass then had...

 

followed by...

 

I had...

 

 

followed by...

I really love those gel pearls and the way they burst in my mouth.😋

 

Today's lunchtime ice cream chaser was Belgian chocolate...

Just one scoop today; I was watching my figure!😉

 

 

 

We then set out into the town to get our bits. It was much quieter than the previous day. We weren't out more than about forty-five minutes.

While we were out I received a couple photos of our supreme leader...

 

 

 

Upon our return we chilled out on deck 18 for a couple of hours, and the kids came to see us when they got back from their trip.

 

 

Me and our lass ate alone tonight, in Opal again. We were given a four-seater for our sole use, number 128, with no immediate neighbours. 

 

Our waiting team yet again was Nixon and Valentino.

 

Tonights menu...

 

 

We mostly ate...

 

Starters:

 

Our lass...

 

Me...

 

 

Mains:

 

Our lass...

 

Me...

 

 

Desserts:

 

Our lass...

 

Me...

 

Tonight's ice cream chaser was...

I just asked for a couple of scoops (honest) but he brought me three; he must have thought I was wasting away!🤭

 

 

There wasn't anything we particularly wanted to see tonight, and the kids were eating later than us; we returned to our cabin and watched a film before retiring.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 5 by TigerB

[Selbourne]

In 63 nights and counting we’ve never had Banana Butterscotch ice cream on Aurora. I’m off to register a complaint 😂 

[TigerB]

@Selbourne, not to rub it in, but it was absolutely delicious 🤤🤭

[Eglesbrech]

@TigerB again the cheese looks truly inedible. Dry and shrivelled up.
 

I don’t tend to eat pudding so cheese is important to me and your pictures, which I thank you sincerely for, look dreadful.

[TigerB]

@Eglesbrech, our lass used to have it almost every night we were in an MDR, but hardly had it on this cruise, saying that it has gone right off.

[Eglesbrech]

3 minutes ago, TigerB said:

@Eglesbrech, our lass used to have it almost every night we were in an MDR, but hardly had it on this cruise, saying that it has gone right off.

How hard is it to get some decent cheese. Not very!

 

I’m with your lass in this.

 

[sandancer]

We sent the cheese back at the Chefs Table. It was disgraceful. Our lovely waiter Marcus went to the buffet and made up a replacement with decent cheese. 

[TigerB]

Day 11 - Tuesday 27th February - Lisbon, Portugal 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scheduled arrival: 09:00

All aboard: 16:00 (28th)

 

In today's Horizon was another map, the second one this cruise...

 

The kids joined us for breakfast, which was in Pearl; we were seated in the middle of the restaurant at table number 441, a four-seater that was about 50cm from a two-seater and offset slightly. Our waiting team were James and Joel.  

The couple at the two-seater next to us had a different waiting team, and they ordered their breakfast. As James was taking our orders he was stood between the tables with his back to the couple. We then heard, "Excuse me, excuse me", from the woman at the two-seater. Rude! Not receiving an immediate response, she then tapped James on his side, determined to get his attention; "Excuse me, can I have some orange juice? I forgot to ask".  Even ruder!  The lad was much nicer than I would have been as he turned his head towards her, "Ma'am, I am serving these guests, I will tell your waiter".  Not even a thank you!  I rather hoped he didn't tell her waiter.😉

After my usual fruit salad, I wanted to follow up with a single Eggs Benedict with no ham (they are still a bit hit and miss), and a single poached egg with no muffin or toast, a vegan sausage, two pieces of vegan bacon, and some mushrooms.  I got this...

The eggs though were as they have been each time I've had them, except for one day only, with cooked whites and beautiful yolky centres.  Ordering the vegan bacon is often a lottery; sometimes it is lightly cooked and edible, sometimes it is cooked a little longer and on the verge of inedible, and sometimes it is well cooked, has a dark mahogany colour and is totally inedible, like shoe leather.  As you may guess from the photo, today I had two pieces of shoe leather.🤢

 

The kids were asking what time were were getting off, and what we were doing. We said we didn't know.  I did say that if the accessible shuttle bus was in, and there was no queue, we may get it into the centre of town and bimble back towards the ship. They said they would walk around and get a feel for the place. 

During breakfast the DC had been on the tannoy to say that, although we made a quick exit from Cadiz, once we rounded Cape Saint Vincent, we sailed into strong gusts and five metre swells; therefore, our arrival into Lisbon would be an hour late.  

After breakfast we went onto deck 8, near the Sunset bar; we had already passed under the 25th of April Bridge, but I did get some photos of the rest of the journey towards the cruise terminal.

 

Those of you that have read this blog from the beginning will know of the surprise guests on our first day on the ship, and will know about what happened after we disembarked in Lisbon.  For those of you that haven't read from the beginning, or can't remember, the drama in Lisbon is in post #63.

Here's the less dramatic retelling...

 

Me and our lass got off at 11:20 and started walking towards Black Horse Square when we were surprised by our eldest daughter and her husband, pretending to be pickpockets. They weren't able to book the cruise and surprise us, like her brother did, so instead paid just under £500 to fly to Lisbon, stay two nights, and be with us for the two days we were there.

 

We had a great first day, and a wee bit of alcohol was imbibed.  Our daughter insisted we try the sour cherry liqueur (ginjinha) shots, so we visited here...

 

 

Three of us had the shots in the chocolate cups, and the other three had the regular ones. I had the former and, after the refill, was told that the done thing was to put the whole thing in your mouth and bite down. I duly obliged, and nearly choked!  When we left the shop, our lass, who couldn't get inside, said she had become the focal point for a passing tour group; as she was necking hers, the guide pointed towards her and said, "...and this lady is trying the sour cherry liqueur, a must when in Lisbon".      

 

While we were out, our lass insisted on visiting yet another Ale-Hop, and yet again, discovered they sold the same stuff as the ones in Madeira, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, and Cadiz!  She really wanted one of those toys that mimic you but, with a very rare victory for the husband, I dug my heels in and won👍

 

 

Due to the circumstances, we got back to the ship later than we would have done had we not been ambushed.

 

The four of us ate dinner together, again in Opal, and on table number 128 again, and with our usual waiting team of Nixon and Valentino.

 

Tonight's menu:

 

Starters:

 

We all had...

Not the best I've had; the rice was too gelatinous

 

Mains:

 

Our lass and the kids had...

 

I had...

 

 

Desserts:

 

Our lass...

 

Our daughter-in-law...

 

The lad...

 

with a chaser of...

 

@Selbourne, have they served up Dulce de Leche up on Aurora yet?🤔

 

 

Me...

I also had the crème caramel.  And true to form, I had an ice cream chaser, the same one as the lad

 

Apart from the sushi, that was another good meal, served up by a great pair of waiters 

 

Afterwards, the kids went to get ready as they were meeting the other two for drinks, and with no curfew! The pair of awld f@rts were left on the ship. Just as well because I would have shown them all up with my moves!

 

We sat in the Keel and Cow bar a while. To test if Mladen's instructions had filtered down to the bar staff, we ordered a pint of Punk IPA and a large lime and soda.  Sure enough, we were charged £3.40 for the lime and soda. I went to speak with the Bar Team Leader, Dilap. He confirmed that the instructions had been passed down, and that we should be charged £1.35 for a lime and soda. He adjusted the charges there and then.  He said we should tell the waiters each time we order so they can override the price. It was my understanding that, the price was to be automatically altered when the system recognised our cabin number.  That was obviously too much of a stretch for the IT system.🙄

 

It was long before we retired to our cabin to watch a film; it had been an exhausting day, especially for our lass.

 

[TigerB]

On 2/28/2024 at 9:11 AM, terrierjohn said:

@TigerB how far uphill, and how steep was the slope to get to those parks you visited. We have only been up that main shopping street to the first road crossing, but might be tempted to try it, if it's not too tiring for a doddering octogenarian pushing a wheelchair.

 

@terrierjohn, I've just done a map for you, then reread the above and realised you have been as far as the pedestrianised shopping street, Calle del Castillo, before. I'll still include it.

 

 

As you've been before you will know the easiest route to the start of Calle del Castillo, and also that the Fred Olsen terminal has lifts to the rooftop, which means you don't have to push your good lady up those spiral ramps.

You will know also that Calle del Castillo has a good surface on which to push a wheelchair. The incline to the top of it is not much at all.  Check out the below, and you will be able to judge it from the bottom of the shop buildings...

 

 

At the top just cross the road to Plaza Weyler and turn left and then right to get to the level access.

 

The route from there to Parque Garcia Sanabria couldn't be easier. Just walk/bool along Calle Méndez Núñez for about 300 metres; it is fairly level and you will cross at five junctions. This is the typical dropped kerb you will encounter...

 

 

If you or your good lady need the toilet while you are in Parque Garcia Sanabria, they are next to a terrace cafe, as marked on the first map.  The accessible toilet is locked but you get the key from the cafe. It is really clean.

 

From there it is an easy walk/bool downhill back to the terminal.

 

 

[terrierjohn]

59 minutes ago, TigerB said:

 

@terrierjohn, I've just done a map for you, then reread the above and realised you have been as far as the pedestrianised shopping street, Calle del Castillo, before. I'll still include it.

 

 

As you've been before you will know the easiest route to the start of Calle del Castillo, and also that the Fred Olsen terminal has lifts to the rooftop, which means you don't have to push your good lady up those spiral ramps.

You will know also that Calle del Castillo has a good surface on which to push a wheelchair. The incline to the top of it is not much at all.  Check out the below, and you will be able to judge it from the bottom of the shop buildings...

 

 

At the top just cross the road to Plaza Weyler and turn left and then right to get to the level access.

 

The route from there to Parque Garcia Sanabria couldn't be easier. Just walk/bool along Calle Méndez Núñez for about 300 metres; it is fairly level and you will cross at five junctions. This is the typical dropped kerb you will encounter...

 

 

If you or your good lady need the toilet while you are in Parque Garcia Sanabria, they are next to a terrace cafe, as marked on the first map.  The accessible toilet is locked but you get the key from the cafe. It is really clean.

 

From there it is an easy walk/bool downhill back to the terminal.

 

 

Thank you @TigerB that is most helpful, I think we will give that a go later this month.

Not sure about the lift though, that's where I had my wallet lifted last year.

[V9vix]

On 3/7/2024 at 12:10 AM, TigerB said:

Day 11 - Tuesday 27th February - Lisbon, Portugal 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scheduled arrival: 09:00

All aboard: 16:00 (28th)

 

In today's Horizon was another map, the second one this cruise...

 

The kids joined us for breakfast, which was in Pearl; we were seated in the middle of the restaurant at table number 441, a four-seater that was about 50cm from a two-seater and offset slightly. Our waiting team were James and Joel.  

The couple at the two-seater next to us had a different waiting team, and they ordered their breakfast. As James was taking our orders he was stood between the tables with his back to the couple. We then heard, "Excuse me, excuse me", from the woman at the two-seater. Rude! Not receiving an immediate response, she then tapped James on his side, determined to get his attention; "Excuse me, can I have some orange juice? I forgot to ask".  Even ruder!  The lad was much nicer than I would have been as he turned his head towards her, "Ma'am, I am serving these guests, I will tell your waiter".  Not even a thank you!  I rather hoped he didn't tell her waiter.😉

After my usual fruit salad, I wanted to follow up with a single Eggs Benedict with no ham (they are still a bit hit and miss), and a single poached egg with no muffin or toast, a vegan sausage, two pieces of vegan bacon, and some mushrooms.  I got this...

The eggs though were as they have been each time I've had them, except for one day only, with cooked whites and beautiful yolky centres.  Ordering the vegan bacon is often a lottery; sometimes it is lightly cooked and edible, sometimes it is cooked a little longer and on the verge of inedible, and sometimes it is well cooked, has a dark mahogany colour and is totally inedible, like shoe leather.  As you may guess from the photo, today I had two pieces of shoe leather.🤢

 

The kids were asking what time were were getting off, and what we were doing. We said we didn't know.  I did say that if the accessible shuttle bus was in, and there was no queue, we may get it into the centre of town and bimble back towards the ship. They said they would walk around and get a feel for the place. 

During breakfast the DC had been on the tannoy to say that, although we made a quick exit from Cadiz, once we rounded Cape Saint Vincent, we sailed into strong gusts and five metre swells; therefore, our arrival into Lisbon would be an hour late.  

After breakfast we went onto deck 8, near the Sunset bar; we had already passed under the 25th of April Bridge, but I did get some photos of the rest of the journey towards the cruise terminal.

 

Those of you that have read this blog from the beginning will know of the surprise guests on our first day on the ship, and will know about what happened after we disembarked in Lisbon.  For those of you that haven't read from the beginning, or can't remember, the drama in Lisbon is in post #63.

Here's the less dramatic retelling...

 

Me and our lass got off at 11:20 and started walking towards Black Horse Square when we were surprised by our eldest daughter and her husband, pretending to be pickpockets. They weren't able to book the cruise and surprise us, like her brother did, so instead paid just under £500 to fly to Lisbon, stay two nights, and be with us for the two days we were there.

 

We had a great first day, and a wee bit of alcohol was imbibed.  Our daughter insisted we try the sour cherry liqueur (ginjinha) shots, so we visited here...

 

 

Three of us had the shots in the chocolate cups, and the other three had the regular ones. I had the former and, after the refill, was told that the done thing was to put the whole thing in your mouth and bite down. I duly obliged, and nearly choked!  When we left the shop, our lass, who couldn't get inside, said she had become the focal point for a passing tour group; as she was necking hers, the guide pointed towards her and said, "...and this lady is trying the sour cherry liqueur, a must when in Lisbon".      

 

While we were out, our lass insisted on visiting yet another Ale-Hop, and yet again, discovered they sold the same stuff as the ones in Madeira, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, and Cadiz!  She really wanted one of those toys that mimic you but, with a very rare victory for the husband, I dug my heels in and won👍

 

 

Due to the circumstances, we got back to the ship later than we would have done had we not been ambushed.

 

The four of us ate dinner together, again in Opal, and on table number 128 again, and with our usual waiting team of Nixon and Valentino.

 

Tonight's menu:

 

Starters:

 

We all had...

Not the best I've had; the rice was too gelatinous

 

Mains:

 

Our lass and the kids had...

 

I had...

 

 

Desserts:

 

Our lass...

 

Our daughter-in-law...

 

The lad...

 

with a chaser of...

 

@Selbourne, have they served up Dulce de Leche up on Aurora yet?🤔

 

 

Me...

I also had the crème caramel.  And true to form, I had an ice cream chaser, the same one as the lad

 

Apart from the sushi, that was another good meal, served up by a great pair of waiters 

 

Afterwards, the kids went to get ready as they were meeting the other two for drinks, and with no curfew! The pair of awld f@rts were left on the ship. Just as well because I would have shown them all up with my moves!

 

We sat in the Keel and Cow bar a while. To test if Mladen's instructions had filtered down to the bar staff, we ordered a pint of Punk IPA and a large lime and soda.  Sure enough, we were charged £3.40 for the lime and soda. I went to speak with the Bar Team Leader, Dilap. He confirmed that the instructions had been passed down, and that we should be charged £1.35 for a lime and soda. He adjusted the charges there and then.  He said we should tell the waiters each time we order so they can override the price. It was my understanding that, the price was to be automatically altered when the system recognised our cabin number.  That was obviously too much of a stretch for the IT system.🙄

 

It was long before we retired to our cabin to watch a film; it had been an exhausting day, especially for our lass.

 

I'm with your lass! I cant resist Ale-Hop! Have to go in every single one I see much to the annoyance of our lad but saying that, he always comes in with me! Lol!

[Ranchi]

On 3/5/2024 at 7:49 PM, sandancer said:

We sent the cheese back at the Chefs Table. It was disgraceful. Our lovely waiter Marcus went to the buffet and made up a replacement with decent cheese. 

What is it about cheese in the MDR? It used to be really good (ok, 20 odd years ago) but more recently has been satisfactory. The last couple of years on P&O the ‘choice’ (actually Hobson’s) has been poor. We were on a Princess ship last summer and their MDR cheese was even less inspiring than P&Os but here’s the point; wander up to the Princess buffet and there is an excellent selection of well prepared and presented cheeses. They had the stuff on board but just didn’t serve it in MDR. 

[TigerB]

Day 12 - Wednesday 28th February - Lisbon, Portugal (Part 1 - daytime)

 

The kids didn't join us for breakfast, they had a late night with the other two, and didn't get back onboard until about midnight. The lad later told me that loads of crew were getting off as they came back on.

We ate in Pearl at table number 344, a two-seater about one metre from a six-seater, and close to the rear windows, with a view of the 25th of April Bridge. 

 

We only saw one of our waiting team, John.

I ordered boiled eggs and, as I always do, asked for them to be served soft boiled. For the second time during this cruise they were hardly cooked...

 

 

I asked John to change them. He said that is what a soft boiled egg looks like; sorry John, but me and my soldiers disagree!🤔  He suggested I ask for them as medium; I did so, in the knowledge that they would come hard boiled. Guess what; they did.

 

After breakfast, we sat for a while near the Sunset bar at the aft end of deck 8. It had the makings of a lovely day.

 

We left the ship just before 10:00 and met our daughter and son-in-law at 'Black Horse' Square; the other two joined us about an hour later. We took a steady bimble uphill towards the centre, trying to avoid the blokes offering us the 'best meal in Lisbon', and the all the beggers.  Talking of beggers, there was one who had two small dogs with him, and was asking for money and food to feed his 'starving dogs'.  I looked at our daughter-in-law, who is a Vet; "Well Veterinary, do those dogs look starving to you"?   The expert medical opinion was, "From here, those dogs look well nourished and cared for".

During that trek to the centre our son-in-law was offered weed no less than four times.

 

We had lunch at a McDonald's in the centre of the city, as our daughter can guarantee getting a GF meal there.  Why is that in most European cities there are good GF options at McDonald's, and you can even get a beer, but back home you can get neither; she can't even have the fries here due to the risk of cross-contamination. 

 

Our son and daughter-in-law wanted to visit a particular shop and a museum, so they left us. Our daughter wanted to try another establishment selling ginjinha shots, this time with cherries in the glass. My goodness, they were extremely sour!😝  A great scam I thought too; place three or four practically inedible cherries in the shot glass and that will mean the tourist will get a smaller measure of the liqueur.  Kerrching!💰

 

On our way back downhill towards the water our daughter was lagging behind. We looked back and saw her talking to a 'beggar'; his sign read 'Insulina?'  He was thanking her as she walked to join us. She had given him one of her insulin pens and some pen needles.

 

Near to the ship we said our goodbyes and, while we headed back to the ship, our daughter and son-in-law went to the nearby metro station to head back to their hotel then to the airport. It was really great that they flew over to spend time with us.

 

After passing through security and making our way towards the air bridge we heard, "Hello Mr and Mrs ########"  We looked up to see Arman, our waiter from Epicurean, who was making the most of the WiFi.  He approached us and asked if we had had a good day. We told him the tale of our daughter surprising us, which he said was a 'really beautiful thing'.  He was having a video conversation with a young lady, and I asked him it she was his girlfriend; he crossed his fingers and whispered, "I hope so, soon".  He introduced us to his lady friend, which prompted my matchmaking missus to say to her, "You're a bonny lass; this is a lovely lad this one, don't let him slip away".  I bet she wondered what the hell was going on, poor lass.

 

Once onboard, after visiting our cabin to freshen up, we visited the Beachcomber bar on deck 18 for a drink and to relax before we set sail.

 

I ordered a Doom Bar, and a large lime and soda for the lady. Remembering the advice of the bar team leader the day before, I explained to the waiter about the pricing situation for us. He showed me the button for lime and soda, pressed it twice and it showed a price of £2.15. Well, at least they had rectified the problem with the tablets and were now charging the correct price. I said that was great but we had been told that the price for us for the remainder of the cruise was to be £1.35, and that came from the F&B Manager. He said he would sort it out. A few minutes later, after we had received the drinks, the correct charge was shown on my account.

 

The kids joined us in time for us breaking our moorings and sailing away. Decks 18 and 19 were teaming with folk who wanted to experience the passage under the 25th of April Bridge. The DC, in his address the morning before, did say what the clearance was, but I can't remember other than it was just a few metres; it looked though to be hardly anything at all.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Right, back to the cabin to get ready for dinner.

[TigerB]

Day 12 - Wednesday 28th February - Lisbon, Portugal (Part 2 - evening )

 

 

Tonight's dining venue was Sindhu, for just the two of us; the kids had been once and weren't bothered about going again, so they went to an MDR.

 

 

We were about fifteen minutes early so sat and had a drink in the bar area. I ordered a pint of Punk IPA, and our lass wanted a large lime and soda; this is going to be fun, I thought.🤔 Sure enough, I explained the situation to the waiter, and that the price for us was £1.35. He said that wasn't the price and went to great lengths to show me the single button on his tablet, which he pressed, and then he pointed to the price on the screen that showed £2.15. I said to him that it was good that the prices charged are now correct, but the price for us, as approved by the F&B Manager was £1.35, and it was my understanding that, when our card was scanned and our cabin number came up, the price would come up as £1.35. Again, he pointed to the screen and showed me our cabin number and the price of £2.15. Our lass then said to him, "Mladen has supposed to have sorted this, and it was supposed to be passed to all the bar staff". The waiter ignored her, which I thought was a bit rude, and turned back to me; he cleared the transaction and started it again, showing me what He was doing. "If I press the key for a large lime and soda it charges £2.15; that is your cabin number and that is the price". I have never lost my temper with any crew member before, and didn't want to this time, but I was really close; our lass could tell I was too, telling me to leave it. I looked at the waiter and just said to him, "Go and see your bar team leader and tell them to override it". 

 

 

When we entered the restaurant we were seated at table 951 in Evalene's section; it was the same table and waiter we had last October/November. This time she was assisted by Pravin.

 

We had...

 

Mini poppadoms and dips...

 

 

Starters:

 

Our lass...

She almost always has this

 

Me...

 

 

Mains:

 

Our lass...

 

This dish was recommended by our daughter-in-law; they ate in here the week before.

 

Me...

I've had this several times before, and the pieces of monkfish seemed to be larger than when I previously had them. I still don't get crushed peas!

 

 

 

Desserts:

 

Our lass was full. I was too but, as our future son-in-law always says: you have two bellies, a savoury belly and a sweet belly, so no matter if your savoury belly is full, there's always room for dessert. Too true, lad.

There's only two desserts I have not had in Sindhu on Iona and Arvia; one of them is Boondi Ladoo. I chose the other one...

 

 

That was another good meal, which cost us £8 on the night, after our 20% discount and, with the pre-payment, a total of £26.50 for five dishes.

We both agreed though that the menu needs refreshing and expanding; we miss the two menus of the older ships.

 

 

Afterwards we sought out a photographer. We never have our photos taken by the onboard photographers but, seeing that we were getting a print as part of our lass's birthday package, we decided to have sessions over three or four nights. If I had thought about it, with the knowledge of the impending birthday package, I should have suggested having photos done earlier in the cruise, then we wouldn't have felt so rushed; but that may have raised suspicion with my inquisitive spouse.

I forgot to mention in the post for the 27th that we had our photos taken that evening; our chosen location was closed though, so we had them done infront of the spiral staircase on deck 6. Our lass didn't enjoy the experience as she felt all eyes were upon her. The photographer wasn't that good either; it felt like she was going through the motions in telling us how to pose, and when she told us to make the shape of a gun with our hands, we both looked directly at her, and in unison said, "Err, no"! Session over. When we viewed the photos the next morning they were just awful.

This evening we were able to access the location we wanted, infront of a screen near to the Harbour shop on deck 6. It was a much more relaxing experience, and the photographer was great with us. He had me sitting on a stool so I was at the same level as our lass, not like the night before, where I was crouched or stood leaning over her.

When asked by the photographer what we were doing next, our lass simply said to him, "I'm off to bed, I'm knackered"!

We headed back to the cabin to watch a film.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 10 by TigerB

[P&O SUE]

How lovely to be surprised by your daughter in Lisbon! Great having an overnight in port too.

[jh1809]

After reading that, I'm hungry! Luckily I'd already planned to be going to my local Indian for lunch in a couple of hours time. Though it's pretty good, it's not a patch on Sindhu, though.

[July morning]

What a lovely family you have surprising you for the cruise/Birthday 🙂

[TigerB]

SHUTTLE BUSES 

 

Before I get back into the swing, and post the last couple of days, here's a shuttle bus detour (pun absolutely intended!)

 

 

On this cruise there were just two ports where shuttle buses were provided, and for the majority of passengers they weren't really necessary.

 

Those two ports were Funchal in Madeira, and Lisbon in Portugal.

 

In Funchal the tannoy announcement described the walking route as taking about ten minutes, thus discouraging passengers from using the very limited shuttle service. When we disembarked we could see that the initial route away from the terminal meant our lass would have to travel over cobbles and a footpath made up of broken tiles; the latter being a better surface than the former, but still not wholly suitable for her. 

The regular buses were the type you find in municipal areas, what I refer to as 'service buses', with centre doors and a space for as least one wheelchair.

We decided to take the accessible shuttle; this was a long wheelbase Mercedes van, which could accommodate at least two large wheelchairs or scooters, and a third smaller one at a push. There were five fixed seats at the front, and three fold down ones in the back, the wheelchair space. We had the sole use of it and, as we have found many times previously , our cruise cards weren't scanned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The journey took about eight minutes and it dropped off here...

 

*** @Red Leicester, feel free to use the above photos and description on your map ***

 

 

In Lisbon the shuttle buses are right outside the terminal and drop you off in the centre of town at the Praça dos Restauradores; well, they did in November 2023.  At that time there were roadworks and you have to negotiate a one-way system; the journey took about 35 minutes.  The walking route, for someone who is not infirm, would take about 25 minutes 

I have previously posted about the accessible shuttle in Lisbon here...

 

 

[TigerB]

Day 13 - Thursday 29th February - at sea

 

So here we are... homeward bound; the first of two full sea days before we reach Southampton. We had been warned after leaving Lisbon that we would meet some stormy weather, with large swells. Time to take the Stugeron back out of the first-aid box. 

 

It was just the two of us for breakfast this morning, and that would be in Coral. We were shown to table number 736, a two-seater about 80cm from another one, and not far from the podium. Just as well, as neither of us would have fancied sitting near a window this morning, watching the swell.🤢

Our waiting team were Alex D'sa and Raymund.  

 

Afterwards, we collected our duty-free booze and had a bimble through the shops. We visited the photo section and reviewed the photos from the previous evening; we were pleased with them, more natural than from the other night, and our lass favoured one in particular.

We then touched base with the kids before heading back to the cabin; I wanted to do one last wash, iron a few things, and try to pack at least one case. Our lass wasn't that bothered about spending time in public areas; anyway, most decks were closed due to the weather.

 

On our way back we passed through the casino, where we decided to cash in our winnings; after all, any financial contribution towards the next cruise would be welcome. 41p for our lass, and a couple of pennies less for me. Better in our pockets than Carnival's! #Yorkshire!

 

 

When I later visited the launderette on deck 9 it was out of service, so I went up to the one on deck 10, expecting it to be busy. There was a middle aged guy outside, just minding his own business, and when I opened the door I could see the reason why; there were about ten women in there, all watching their respective machines, and talking amongst themselves; there was hardly any room for anyone else. I thought I had happened upon a WI meeting, and wondered if I should have brought a Victoria sponge for judging. I looked back at the guy outside and asked him if he was scared to go in; "What do you think?" he replied. I took a deep breath and entered.😬  I made reference to the fella outside being scared to enter, and that I wasn't scared. Silence, apart from a single voice that said, "You should be". I was just about to put my bag down infront of an empty machine when a basket was dropped in the same location. I guess that means she was having that machine. I chose the next one along instead. As I loaded the machine and put in the detergent and conditioner I heard the oft-used phrase, "Someone's well trained". I responded with, "I know my place in our marriage." I bid farewell to the ladies and as the door closed behind me, I said quietly to the chap outside, "You do right staying out here, fella". As I walked back to the cabin I set the timer on my phone; I wasn't going to be even a few seconds late, anticipating that, if I was I would either be lynched or would find our undies in the sink.

When I returned half an hour later, there were two different fellas outside; I gave them a knowing look. The WI membership appeared to have swelled in number. Luckily, my machine had just that second stopped spinning. A couple of others still had two or three minutes to go. I loaded my washing into the empty drier above it, and as I did so I heard a quiet disembodied mumble, "I was going to use that one". I turned it on and beat a hasty retreat. I said to the two guys outside, "Stay safe, fellas".

When I returned for my drying a little later, I took some ironing with me on the off chance that it may be safe to press them. It was now an oasis of tranquility, with just one lady in it. I said to her that I had come earlier and there were guys outside, too scared to come in. She said that she was here too, in a corner, and was herself scared of the other women.😂

 

 

Lunch today was a visit to Taste 360° where I got a veggie burger for our lass, and a couple of pizza slices and fries for me, and walked back to the cabin with them.

 

In the afternoon I did get a small case packed and sealed, and wasn't far off finishing one of the large ones.

 

 

It was the last formal night tonight and we would again be in Opal. The kids were due to join us for drinks in Tiger's bar before setting out.

Our reservation was for 18:00, so we left ten minutes before that; it's only three decks down and usually takes us five minutes. Not today! It turns out that, due to the weather no doubt, the four outer lifts in our bank of eight were out of action. Lifts opened on their way down, lifts opened on their way up; all either full or with folk in wheelchairs, or on scooters already in them. Some lifts even bypassed our deck, which is really annoying! This is the first time on this cruise that we have had serious problems with the lifts. Fifteen minutes went by and we were still unable to board any of the lifts, either going down or up. Now, I get that it was rough and many folk were hesitant to use the stairs because of that (although I had no problem walking down six decks with a plate full of food earlier), and for that reason I was reluctant to ask if anyone felt fit enough to use the stairs. However, nearly everyone was dressed for dinner, so wouldn't have been going down more than three decks. Is it too much to expect any of those folk who were able to do so, to look at the woman in the wheelchair and think, "You know what, it's only a couple of decks down, I'll get out and use the stairs the rest of the way". We despatched the kids to go to the restaurant and make sure they didn't give our table away at quarter-past.  

 

Incidentally, these appeared near the lifts today...

 

Finally, after waiting twenty minutes, a lift going up had space in it. We travelled all the way up to deck 18, stopping at every deck, with smokers joining us on deck 16 and, I kid you not, even one getting in on deck 17. Of course, it would have been extremely dangerous for them to walk up one or two decks while holding their fags and lighters!🙄

Then, the slow journey down, with the obligatory smokers boarding to go down two decks to deck 16.

 

We finally arrived at Opal at 18:25, where I apologised to the restaurant host for our tardiness, blaming the lifts. The kids were already seated, but not at the table in Nixon and Valentino's, section, which was still showing on my reservation, and was still empty. We were on table number 151, a four-seater round one with no immediate neighbours.

Our waiting team were Alphen and Karl.

 

It were proper mafting* in Opal tonight and, with the stress of the lifts, and the rushing, I was sweating like a....(fill in the blank with a word of your choosing, mine is too vulgar for this forum). So, the jacket came off! I still had my waistcoat on, but that didn't stop one or two sideways glances from some!👀

 

 

Tonight's menu was curated by Marco Pierre White...

 

 

 

Amuse bouche...

 

 

Starters:

 

Our lad...

 

Our daughter-in-law...

 

Me and I lass both had this...

I recall this being really tasty, and it being a 'two mouthfuls and it's gone' affair; had I thought about it beforehand, I should have ordered two, or maybe three!🐷🐯

 

 

Soup course...

Sorry, I didn't take a photo. To help you visualise it, it was wet, oniony, and soupy, and served in a bowl.

 

 

Mains:

 

Our lad...

 

Our daughter-in-law...

 

Me and I lass both had this...

 

Hers...

 

Mine...

Well, what else would you expect?

 

 

Desserts:

 

The kids both had this...

 

The lad had the obligatory ice-cream chaser; white chocolate...

 

...and in a very rare excursion for her, our daughter-in-law also had an ice-cream chaser; raspberry ripple...

 

The matriarch and I had...

That was absolutely delicious. 

 

Not to be outdone by the kids, I was obliged to also have a couple of scoops of the white chocolate ice-cream.

 

 

That was a really nice meal, and one of the better formal night meals we've had for a long time.

 

 

Afterwards, the kids went for a bimble before retiring back to the cabin to pack a case or two; we went to have our third lot of photos taken, by the same guy as the night before, before going back to the cabin to watch a film.

 

 

 

*Hull speak, that.  I've used it before, and I know at least one of you (northern folk) knows what it means.

 

[Red Leicester]

6 hours ago, TigerB said:

SHUTTLE BUSES 

 

Before I get back into the swing, and post the last couple of days, here's a shuttle bus detour (pun absolutely intended!)

 

 

On this cruise there were just two ports where shuttle buses were provided, and for the majority of passengers they weren't really necessary.

 

Those two ports were Funchal in Madeira, and Lisbon in Portugal.

 

In Funchal the tannoy announcement described the walking route as taking about ten minutes, thus discouraging passengers from using the very limited shuttle service. When we disembarked we could see that the initial route away from the terminal meant our lass would have to travel over cobbles and a footpath made up of broken tiles; the latter being a better surface than the former, but still not wholly suitable for her. 

The regular buses were the type you find in municipal areas, what I refer to as 'service buses', with centre doors and a space for as least one wheelchair.

We decided to take the accessible shuttle; this was a long wheelbase Mercedes van, which could accommodate at least two large wheelchairs or scooters, and a third smaller one at a push. There were five fixed seats at the front, and three fold down ones in the back, the wheelchair space. We had the sole use of it and, as we have found many times previously , our cruise cards weren't scanned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The journey took about eight minutes and it dropped off here...

 

*** @Red Leicester, feel free to use the above photos and description on your map ***

 

 

In Lisbon the shuttle buses are right outside the terminal and drop you off in the centre of town at the Praça dos Restauradores; well, they did in November 2023.  At that time there were roadworks and you have to negotiate a one-way system; the journey took about 35 minutes.  The walking route, for someone who is not infirm, would take about 25 minutes 

I have previously posted about the accessible shuttle in Lisbon here...

 

 

Thank you @TigerB, all updated and credited to you.  Funchal has moved since I visited a couple of years back.  This could be the first update / move I've done.

[carlanthony24]

10 hours ago, TigerB said:

The journey took about eight minutes and it dropped off here...

 

*** @Red Leicester, feel free to use the above photos and description on your map ***

 

 

 

 

 

Seems a lot better than it was on Azura at least its near the cable car station again.

[grapau27]

10 hours ago, carlanthony24 said:

Seems a lot better than it was on Azura at least its near the cable car station again.

In January on Iona we were dropped off near the cable car station in Madeira.

In November on Iona in Madeira we were dropped off next to a small shopping centre at the other end of the promenade.

[Ilovemygarden]

Looks like they’ve all moved to near the cable car station - the Azura drop off was there a couple of weeks ago.  Much better although I think the price had gone up from £4 to £5! 

[Dermotsgirl]

I've been enjoying reading your reports.

 

As someone who struggled on Saga due to the closeness of some of the tables in the dining room and buffet, I've appreciated the comments about the distance between tables, and I don't think I'd have had any problems with your Iona tables ! 

[TigerB]

@Dermotsgirl, I recall from your comparison blog how the gaps between the tables on your Saga cruise were of particular annoyance; they would be to us. 

I know someone had a giggle about me giving the approximate distances between tables, and that is fine, but that is the information I would want from a report.

As I had written, the likelihood of not getting a table right on top of another one was one of the main reasons we preferred to dine in Opal of an evening.