Singapore

Well here we are in Singapore.

Arrived late yesterday afternoon after a hassle free trip from Dover to Heathrow and the most fabulous flight from London.

The plane was beautiful,so comfortable and so much space, the bed was the best we have had by far and we both slept well.

Gloria had at least 10 hours Tony maybe 6.

The hotel at Marina Bay Sands was an absolute nightmare. People everywhere, we have never ever in all our travels seen so many people.

It was Singapore National Day yesterday so lots of celebrations. Fireworks and Helicopters, Jets flying so low. The helicopters flew past lower than we were on the 57th floor of the hotel. Whacko.

We had a few drinks at the Club at Marina Bay and some nice bites and were in bed very early.

Stupid we had only been awake about 8 hours and of course spent most of the night awake.

Off to do some HOHO today and then see what happens after that.

Fowey to Dover

July 28

Well the last day has arrived and we struck a real gem!

Fowey pronounced Foy on the SW Coast of Cornwall where we tendered as there is no pier and obviously not enough water for a big ship.

This beautiful fishing village with houses all built around the cliffs is absolutely stunning.

We walked it from head to toe through all its narrow streets, up hills and their tiny shops barely high enough to stand up in.

Lots of yachts and boats coming and going and the people are so friendly.

What a lovely finish to a wonderful cruise.

The weather has been good and the seas smooth, we’ve come to terms with some of the policies of Ociania and although we doubt we would cruise with them again, it has been a nice itiniery and we’ve seen many places we have not seen before.

Tomorrow we dock in Dover and make our way to Heathrow to catch the plane to Singapore and then home on Aug.2 late.

Holyhead - Cork

July 26

Holyhead didn’t appear on our itinery as a very hectic point as it is more commonly known as the port where all the ferries from ireland dock in the UK.

It is however on the island of Anglesea which is now more important because it’s where William and Kate live.

We decided as it is only a small place to play a game of golf and croquet (which Tony won)whilst we were at it this massive RAF helicopter flew very low over, with the crew waving at us.

Someone suggested it was William piloting the chopper but we’re not sure. But it still sounds okay.

Their base is only 6 miles from the town which is quite pretty with a very nice promenade and very quaint houses.

A nice day,very laid back. 

July 27

Today we arrived in Cobh (pronounced Cove) the seaport for Cork, Ireland 24 kms. away.

Cobh is a beautiful little town so colourful, built on a cliff face with lots of gaily coloured cottages and dwarfed by a massive church St. Colman’s Cathedral which is home to the largest Carillon (49 bells) in Ireland and the UK.

Cobh is also famous for the last port of call for the Titanic before she sailed on her disastrous voyage.

The terminal here is adjacent to the railway station so we caught the train into Cork to see what it was like. We had been here before and kissed the Blarney Stone but had little memory of the City.

Cork was so disappointing compared to the other places we’d been, parts of it weren't bad but most of it is dilapidated and quite dirty.

Walked around the City saw a nice market, but decided to catch the train back to the ship to spend some time in Cobh.

Unfortunately it started to rain but we had a good look around and visited the Cathedral which was very good.

The local town here had an Australian day last Sunday as Dawn Princess was in town and many of the shops were still decorated as they had a competition for the best window.

My old boss and mate from LJ Hooker and his wife are doing a 104 day world cruise Sydney to Sydney on Dawn, so just missed them.

Isle of Man - Dublin

July 24

Its so nice to have smooth seas and over the last 5 days or so its been quite flat.

Makes so much difference to a cruise, the staff are better, the passengers are happier and so too are G $ T.

This morning we arrived on the Isle of Man and the City of Douglas.

Its so nice, has a massive bay about 2 miles long with lots of old multi storeyd hotels and guest houses. Very pretty.

All along the concrete board walk are beautiful flower gardens, all of a different variety and all in flower.

There is a little horse drawn cart that takes people to the electric railway that runs over the island.

There is a population of 80k on the Island.

We didn’t go on the train to see the lookout on the mountain as we were a bit tardy getting off the ship and then spent some time on the computer posting, sending emails and catching up on footy scores. 7 this week Freo let me down by 1 point. Bugger!!!

.We walked the promenade in sunny weather although the wind had some sting in it.

Then walked through the Town, most shops closed on Sunday.

We then went to a pub for a Guinness and got talking to some fellows from Liverpool who had been cycling the island and were waiting for their ferry.

They told us about a little town 11 miles away called Peel and how wonderful it was.

So we caught a local double decker bus, took about 35 minutes and was ushered around by  a local fellow who had lived in the town for 74 years. He was so funny but full of knowledge and so proud of his Peel.

A beautiful day was had by all. Remember the Isle of Man. “To die for” 

July 25

Dublin dear Dublin

A big City of 1 mill. we arrived to a cloudy cold day, but it improved slowly and was reasonably okay later on at least 18 degrees.

Shuttle bus into town, we decided to walk and not do the HOHO.

Had a tour through Trinity College which dominates Dublin with its historic buildings and beautiful gardens.

We then trudged onto the Christ Church Cathedral and through the antique district which looks like its had a severe case of death, lots of empty shops and many in a bad state of repair.

Discovered a market of not much subsidence and then found our way to Temple Bar the guppy area of Dublin, lots of pubs and restaurants all very colourful and decorated so nicely.

Decided to do our Guinness bit and found a lovely beer garden in the Temple Bar hotel.

It was so nice, quite crowded but very cosy. the Guinness in Ireland sure makes our product taste like soapy water.

After our little rest our feet almost recovered to battle on.

Walked through Grafton Street a pedestrian street full of upmarket shops pots of buskers and heaps of people. A great experience and obviously the place most tourists like to be.

The onto St Stephens Green a 25 acre park that was very crowded as well, no doubt about the English and Irish you only need a sniff of sunshine and they all get their gear off. We’re all rugged up in jeans and fleeces.

We then walked onto the museum (closed on Mondays, as are most things), with 2 great cruise ships in you’d think everyone would be open.

Walked through the area Merrion Row known for their upmarket Georgian style homes that have a plaque with all previous residents names on them.

Then onto O’Connell St where the 395 foot spire is located. Dublin’s streets are badly signed and we had great difficulty following our maps as they blend from one to another even though its the same street.

As we crossed the famous bridge over the Liffey River here was a young man on bended knee proposing to his girl friend. Well what a performance they were bawling their eyes out and it seemed like a very bad experience, but they soon cuddled up and were quite happy!

By this time our feet were screaming out “ no more! no more! so we caught the shuttle back to the ship and that was Dublin, a City that is obviously in great need of some financial assistance.

Norway Fjords - Belfasat

July 21 - 22

Unfortunately for the rest of the passengers the weather in Geiranger/Hellysylt was shitty.

We were very fortunate to have seen them at their best in sunny smooth conditions on the previous cruise.

We were going to do a trip from Hellysylt to Geiranger which is supposed to be really something, but we thought the chances of the weather being cloudy and misty that we decided  not to book. What a pity.

The stop at Hellysylt was just a brief stop to allow those passengers off to do the above tour, so we were only there for an hour or so before we sailed back to Geiranger a journey of less than an hour.

We went ashore for a little while, but there were two other ships in the fjord, P&O Aurora a similar size to ours and Costa Deliziosous a huge ship with 3500 plus.

The little village was chockers to say the least so we walked to the waterfall again, it was running a little faster than last time and then went back on board.

The sail away was much better weather wise and the beauty of the Fjords was just fantastic as we sailed away from them for the last time on this ship.

A huge recommendation for anyone to see some magnificent scenery, the fjords of Norway should definitely be on the “bucket list”.

We don’t get into Belfast until midday so we’ve had almost 2 days at sea.

Mrs North Sea decided to give us a break and we’ve had relatively smooth seas and enjoyed some golf putting, Tony won one set indoors and came third in another, so we’ve built up our points trying to win a T shirt or something similar.

The meals on this ship have been really good, there are a number of specialist restaurants on board last night we went to JAcques  (French style) it was great and the company was good. We haven’t met anyone yet that we could say  would become friends.

Went to the Show last night to see the pianist a young Russian girl who is really really good. Tony actually kept his eyes open for once. 

July 23

Oh Oirland dear Oirland.

After our pleasant 2 days at sea we arrived in Belfast. Captain took a long time to dock due to the size of the Port and narrow berthing lanes.

Woo Hoo sunny skies, what a difference the sun makes. Everyone seems so different and smiling. All on deck for the arrival. Unfortunately we missed brunch and if Gloria hadn’t taken the time to go to the dining room to take some photo’s,we would not have known about it. What a spread.

Went ashore caught the shuttle into Town and caught the HOHO what a saviour they are.

The HOHO gives you an overall idea about the City in a short time.

Belfast is a great City. So vibrant and the gardens and trees so green,look so beautiful.

A long drive out to Parliament House, set on acres of land and very well looked after, wonderful place.

People are very friendly. Drove past the Titanic Memorial they are building. It is where the ship was built in  1911 and although not finished is going to be  a very good attraction for Belfast.

It has the biggest dry dock in the World and the massive cranes are quite an eye opener.

Passed all the murals on the buildings in the suburb of Shankill, mostly of the protest of the liberation of Northern Ireland.

After the HOHO finished we had a Guinness Stew and a pint of the wonderful black liquid.

Oh to die for!!!! ( a very groupie saying on this ship).

We then caught the local bus back to Shankill where all the protests were held and walked down Lanark Way where a huge fence has been erected and the local community has painted all the murals, almost graffiti like but it was a great experience.

Then walked back to Town taking all the local scenery and to catch the shuttle back to the ship.

A very lovely day in Belfast. So good and so pleased to see it . High recommendation to all.

We had an email message from our friends Bill and Sylvie from Brisbane who are on a 6 month holiday in a camper van through Europe. It was from Oslo where that tragic occurrence was and where we were two weeks ago. We hope they are safe and well, sent a text message last night but no response so far.  

Invergordon - Alesund

July 18 

Invergorden is known for its rich naval history and servicing of oil rigs. On our way in to port passed a huge couple being maintained.

The town is very pretty and the first impression you get are the greystone brick homes all along the harbour.

Many of the shops have murals painted on their walls, all painted by locals and representing some type of activity in the town. 

Before we departed a local Scottish group came on board and did some highland flings, sang and there was a Piper in full garb.

It was a very enjoyable session.

As we sailed away we had the Pipe Band playing. 

A lovely day indeed.

July 19

Happy Birthday Lesley.

After another fairly rough passage we arrived in Lerwick, Shetland Islands (4500) to a grey foggy, rainy day but the stay was anything but dismal.

Once again the houses and buildings a built of grey stone and although not bright in colour have their own style which we liked.

We managed to do a few important chores here. Tony had a long awaited haircut, 6 pound 50, we managed to book our coach from Dover to Heathrow (it was becoming a worry) and Gloria posted a card to her mother.

Lerwick is hosting a tall ships race and there were a few in but not many. Guess they will turn up in the next day or two. The town is very busy with quite a few people around.

We combed the neighborhood, went into the local Town hall which was featured with quite a lot of stained glass windows. Very nice.

July 20

Well if the last cruise was in smooth seas, this has been the opposite. Last night was the roughest we’ve had by far, so stayed in, had some room service to ride out the what felt like a very bumpy ride in a bus over a very badly potholed road. Boom crash boom crash.

Not a problem, know it will be ok for next couple of days, because we are back in the Fjords of Norway and quite a big city called Alesund (40000)

This is another magnificent place very Norwegian, buildings with high pitched rooves and very colourful. 

We climbed Mt Aksla which is right in the middle of Town.

After climbing up some quite steep streets we then navigated 418 steps to the top but the view from there was well worth the effort. 

By the time we got back to the bottom it was raining, so after exploring the Commercial side of the City we went back to the ship for lunch and decided we would go back out in the afternoon as we don’t leave for Geiranger/Hellysylt until 11 pm.

We should make some comments about the new ship Marina.

It is a beautiful ship, But; it is not nearly as personable as Insignia.

Obviously 1250 passengers compared to 580 makes a huge difference and so too does the weather which has not been kind.

Firstly “We don’t print an Australian newsletter”, because they only print three based on the population on board. I threw a “wobbly” and now we get a full photocopy of The Australian everyday. Nice to see Gold Coast had another win.

The Cruise Director, (who) is rarely sighted, there are few announcements made (the guy on Insignia was very informative) and has no personality whatsoever.

We did see a very good pianist the other night who was first class.

We have not met anybody on board that we could say we’d keep in touch with and in all fairness, we haven’t plastered ourselves around all over the place to get to meet many.

We miss our mates from Insignia.

There are a lot of badly trained (or untrained more likely), staff on board, we seldom see our cabin steward, however the service is good the food is much better than Insignia and the new specialised restaurants are very good indeed.

Hope this doesn’t give the impression we are not enjoying the cruise because we are and looking forward to seeing Geiranger/Hellysylt again tomorrow.

So as not to bore you again our next post will be from Belfast and hopefully the North Sea will be kinder than she has for the last few days.

Oceania Marina - Edinburgh

July 15

Our bus ride back to Dover was without incident except for quite a bit of traffic on its way to Sandwich for the British Open which is only about 10 miles from Dover.

Soon spotted our new ship on our way in to Town and had a very painless embarkation.

It  is a beautiful ship and our cabin is quite a bit more spacious than Insignia. Set about exploring her after lunch and found some really beautiful features all around the ship.

Set sail that night and after our hectic time in London needed no rocking to get to sleep.

July 16

Our first Marina sea day and it has been the roughest by far. Not really a drama and it didn’t affect too many people as there were plenty on hand for the Captain’s welcome.

This followed a meet and greet for a function with fellow cruisecritic.com followers a web site that monitors all cruise ships. Over 100 turned up so it gets a good checkout.

There are 23  Aussies on board not nearly as many as on Insignia.

July 17

This morning we arrived in Leith, the port that serves Edinburgh about 30 mins away.

It was raining and quite overcast.

A very strange thing happened early this am. I was awake early as usual at around 5 am when I heard this enormous racket.

Wondering what it could be I stepped out onto the balcony and spotted this massive RAF rescue helicopter hovering over the ship.It was there for a half hour or so.

When we went to breakfast I asked what was going on.

Answer: “ What helicopter?” After several queries it was obvious that the crew was told to keep quiet. No one wants to talk about it. STRANGE !!!

We tendered here and caught a train into Edinburgh where we discovered a beautiful historic City full of tourists, but the nice thing was the sun came out.

Did the usual HOHO which was short and sweet but good.

We then walked the Royal mile that stretches from Edinburgh Castle with lots of beautiful shops but the buildings are really something to see. Amazingly untouched there is hardly any modern buildings amongst them which really stands out.

The castle is all set up for its annual Tattoo next week and they have a huge grandstand set up that unfortunately takes away the look of such a famous landmark.

A most enjoyable trip to Scotland

London London London

July 13

We set off early today to do as much sightseeing as we could, familiarise ourselves with London so we didn’t have to do much on Thursday before we head back to Dover on Friday.

Walked to Kensington, about 25 mins. to catch the HOHO which takes about three and half hours to do it’s trick.

Towards the end of the tour we hopped off to take a river cruise back to Westminster where we lined up for an hour or so to ride “The Eye”.

It was a great experience takes about half an hour and not nearly as daunting as we expected. A great view over London. The trees in Hyde Park, Green Park, Kensington Gardens and others are so beautiful, it was a delight to see them.

There are people everywhere in London. It is the tourist season, so to be expected, although I think we’re over it now.

Jumped back on the bus and arrived home about 7,  it got colder as the day progressed and Gloria with her shorts on, but did have the red jacket! Didn’t feel like going out again so bought a pizza and demolished that.

July 14

We decided to do a bit of walking today and set off to walk through Hyde Park then onto Harrods, then Buckingham Palace.

It was quite nice weatherwise, Hyde Park is at it’s beautiful best and a couple of people who do voluntary tours, asked us to join their little golf buggy to explore some of the area.

Went a lot further than if we had been walking. It was good and we learnt a little more than we knew.

Harrods is a beautiful store, the way they set up their displays is truly fabulous and even though we’ve been there many times before it was great to see it again. Of course we were in the food sections!

The same with Buck. Palace many people about and good to see it again.

“Queenie” wasn’t about to talk to us so we went to a pub for lunch instead.

Another long walk to the coach terminal to pick up our bus tickets back to Dover tomorrow.

By now we had had walking, had tourists, we must have walked 10 k’s or more,so we caught a train back to Earls Court where  Gloria ironed my shorts and shirts and then we packed our clothes ready to leave tomorrow.

I think we said before we didn’t really ever want to go back to London, we’ve done it and I don’t think we will ever again. Its a lovely City and so historic, but oh so busy. But Gloria says seeing we had to buy an adaptor for UK as ours broken will need to come back and use it!.

Oslo - London

July 9

This morning we cruised into Oslo through a very wide Fjord comprising lots of nice Towns with homes right to the waterfront and then docked right in the middle of the City.

Gloria copped a bit of a bug and wasn't feeling too bright so Tony walked into Town to get some free WiFi to post the last blog and catch up on emails etc.

When I got back to the ship Gloria was much better so we took the HOHO bus for a very nice tour around Oslo.

Such a beautiful City, very green, unfortunately we didn't have a lot of time in Port so was very rushed. In fact we were late getting back on board and almost missed the ship

We jumped off and spent some time in the Vigeland Sculpture Park which covers 80 acres and features 212 bronze and granite sculptures.  The images are mostly of family scenes, fathers, mothers and children in all different poses.

An incredible sight we raced through in such haste only had time to take a few pics. and then to get back on the bus to get back to the ship.



July 10

Last sea  day today before we get to London.

Very quiet today,but once again lucky we had such perfect seas throughout the voyage.

Had a final dinner with our Florida friends and Chris and Claire the Biologist. Very nice night, a sad time when we had to say goodbye.

July 11

Well woke to the White Cliffs of Dover and as sunny day to begin our stay in the UK.

Had a hastle free disembarkation and taxied into Town to catch a bus to London.

Arrived at our accommodation the Think Hotel in Earls Court about midday and were able to get access which was good.

A nice modern hotel pretty much in the middle of Earls Court and next to a supermarket. Had a pub lunch and then bought some supplies to get our body familiar with ordinary food after such a gastronomical feast for 18 days.

Pub tea of fish and chips and mushy peas Yuk but nice.

July 12

Today was a fantastic day.

A few years ago we met David and Sandra an English couple on a cruise on Seabourn. We've sort of kept in touch over the years and arranged to have lunch with them

David kindly suggested we catch a train to Wimbledon where he would pick us up and take us back to their home in Dorking a beautiful area in Surrey about 45 minutes from London. Arrangements went perfectly we had morning tea caught up on all our cruises over the years.

Their beautiful acreage property has a lovely home with the most delightful English garden and has a great view over the rural valley below.

Very nice place the address is The End House which is exactly right, at the end of a picturesque lane.

 We then went to a beautiful little restaurant at Kinghams in the village of Shere.

Shere is the village where they filmed the movie called Holiday and it was very interested to hear how they transformed the town to create a the scene for the film.

Had a beautiful meal and then went back to David and Sandra's house for afternoon tea and then back to Wimbledon to catch train back to Earls Court and bed.

What a fabulous day, so pleased to catch up with them again.

Honningsvaag - Geiranger Fjord - Hellysylt

Thurs. July 7

Days are ticking by far too quickly, this has been such a nice cruise and the weather being so kind helps we guess.

This morning woke to see such a beautiful sight. Cruised Into the Geiranger fjord some time overnight and an hour or so before we actually anchored, we had mirror waters and the mountains of the Fjord were just 50 - 100 meters off either side of the ship.

There were countless waterfalls crashing down and now and again a slight mist and snow on the mountain tops that created the most amazing scenery. 

Geiranger is a small village of about 250 people, but welomes about 160 cruise ships during the season. Multiply that by an average of about 1500 per ship and see the number of visitors each year. We hadn’t been there long before we were joined by a  much larger ship the Grand Mariner from Italy. 

The central attraction was the huge waterfall that crashes down thru town and ends up in the fjord. We walked up quite a steep hill to watch from its best point and was rewarded with a delightful view over the Town. 

We tendered to shore and back and spent about 5 hours there before setting off for just a short cruise up the Fjord to a little town called Hellysylt a similar size to Geiranger but not quite as nice and again the feature was a waterfall right in the middle of town. 

We only had about 2 hours here but it was enough.

We come back here again on the next cruise and hope to do a seven and half hour bus trip over the mountains that is supposed to be a remarkable experience according to some fellow passengers aboard.

The entertainment on board has been reasonably good considering it is not renowned as being such.

There was a good magician and his partner is a contortionist and is incredible, the types of 

twists and different positions she could get into are amazing. Reckon she’ll suffer late in life. We actually spent some time with her at dinner last night and is a lovely girl from Mongolia.

There are a couple of good singers on board and the lecturers on board have been very good.

One is named Vern Lundquist who is a sports Commentator on the CBC network in America and he’s been very good. 

We have become quite friendly with the Marine Biologist and has wife and are having dinner with them in the Polo Lounge tonight, it’s a Beef and Seafood restaurant  separate to the dining room. There is also an Italian place which is quite good. 

Must say the food on board hasn't  been up to standard although it can’t be too bad we’ve eaten enough and having trouble controlling the waistline. The gym is of a high standard and Tony visits it each morning.

July 8

Another sea day on the way to Oslo.

Not much to report as there is not much on today, apart from a very special afternoon tea with the band playing so it will be a bit of a hoot I suppose.

A good entertainer tonight called Helen Jayne who has a huge voice and sings all the good songs of our era.

We’re both feeling okay and only a few more days before we finish in Dover.