The Empty-Nester 50th Birthday Cruise

This is the "short" version of the review of the 17th September Silhouette Adriatic Venice to Rome Cruise. The mother of all reviews, with photos and more details is still in the works.... We planned this trip to celebrate sending our youngest off to college and my impending 50th birthday. Initially we booked a Baltic cruise, then changed to to an Egypt and Holy Land one, before this cruise suddenly appeared online from nowhere and offered a safer alternative with several new ports. We have cruised many times on celebrity, and decided to give Aqua Class a whirl as we heard it offered spa features and it's restaurant Blu served food of a lighter, healthier style which we thought would suit us. We flew United to Munich in Economy Plus (well worth the extra $100) and after a 5 hour layover, braved a flight over the Alps on an Air Dolomiti propellor plane. Eek! Truth be told I was so exhausted I fell asleep before we took off and woke up to the most amazing view of the Alps out of the window. It was spectacular. "Fly low over the Alps in a scary plane" has now been checked off my bucket list! We splurged on a water taxi from VCE airport to the Hilton Molino Stucky. Again money well spent as it was an exhilarating ride and we arrived in style, rather than schlepping our bags on and off ferries and dragging them over bridges. I chose the hotel because it had it's own dock, and it's own private ferry service to Zattere and San Marco, and also because I knew I'd be guaranteed a comfortable bed and a decent bathroom, which for me are essential when I am jet lagged. We spent 3 days pre-cruise in Venice just wandering around soaking up the place. We pre-booked a guided tour of the Doges Palace and one of the Clock Tower, which it turns out is not the tall tower in Piazza San Marco! Oops, sorry DH, but at least we climbed something not many other people have ;) Ate lots of great food, paid the obligatory music fee and enjoyed a light lunch at Caffe Florian while the square flooded, ate fabulous fish and an amazing chocolate souffle at a waterfront restaurant near the Zattere ferry stop and also tried Venetian Cicchettis which I reckon are an acquired taste that I haven't acquired! Shared a water taxi to the ship, again money well spent, as our bags were unloaded right at the taxi stop and taken straight to the ship. I felt sorry for the people dragging bags from the ferry or the People Mover to the Terminal. Check in was a breeze and we were on board drinking champagne in less than 15 minutes. We had an Aqua 2 cabin, 1626, in a great location just aft of the midship elevators, and located between two decks of cabins. Our steward Jonathan was excellent and dealt with all my initial requests with a smile, even though they were a pain for him on a busy day. I have really bad allergies so the flowers, the smelly incense sticks and the feather bedding had to go. I had given this info to the CC department a few weeks before sailing but it seems it never actually reached the ship. The cabin was well laid out although a couple more drawers would have been a welcome addition, especially in the night stand. As for the over the bed storage, I am 5'2" and never had any trouble reaching it either from the floor or standing on the bed. Loved the rainforest style overhead shower, but never did quite figure out why I would want jets of water squirting at my bum or the backs of my knees... We ate in Blu and I have to confess food wise, for me,it was a bit disappointing, with less choices than the MDR menu. I don't eat a lot, and in the MDR can eat light with the everyday shrimp cocktail and the everyday caesar salad if I wish, but there were only everyday main courses on the Blu menu. I struggled to find appetisers that were neither raw, laden with cheese or deep fried. Some nights there wasn't even a leafy salad appetiser, just two different mayo based salads. I am a savory rather than sweet person and as well as a chilled sweet soup, the hot savory soup also had sweet components to it, so choices there were also limited. The mains offered more variety with a dinner salad, pasta, fish, poultry and a couple of red meat dishes, as well as the everyday plain chicken, salmon and steak. I eat mainly fish and chicken, and very occasionally red meat paired with lots of vegetables. Every night the waiters were dissuading guests from the fish and poultry dishes and recommending the meat dishes which were really heavy. The presentation was nice but there was just too much food. In the end I even ordered from the vegetarian menu. I don't expect people to jump through hoops for me but things that have been mentioned previously about being able to order from the MDR menu in Blu, about shrimp cocktail always being available, or being able to personalise dishes (even asking to swap baked potato on one dish for mashed potatoes from another was a no), were just not possible on this cruise and vegetables were just about non-existent. Having said this I certainly didn't starve. A lot of what I ordered was so so. I really enjoyed the vegetables and hummus and breadsticks that were on the table. Of the stand out dishes, on night one the fillet mignon and the dessert with berries were fabulous, the broccoli soup from the vegetarian menu was really nice and towards the end of the cruise I had the best lobster I have ever eaten in my life. Perhaps I should mention that Blu was packed every night we were there. Service was frantic and rushed certainly not a relaxing dining experience. It was open seating, they don't accept reservations, so you showed up when you were ready and hoped for the best. There was no facility to reserve a specific time or specific waiters section. We had the Premium Alcoholic Package and had difficulty getting decent wine service in Blu. The two sommeliers were stretched to the point that they couldn't do their jobs well. When we sat down I ordered the same white wine every night and my husband ordered a glass of the same white as me and a glass of red wine for the main course. We thought ordering everything at once would make life easier for the sommelier and give the red wine time to breathe. We were forever waiting for the glasses to be refilled (don't see why they couldn't have left the bottle on the table), and for the glass of red to appear, to the point one night when my husband walked to the Ensemble Bar and got a glass of red from there to enjoy with his entree which had already arrived. The Sommelier was horrified. Because our cruise was very port-intensive with lots of early tours, we only had the chance to try breakfast in Blu on disembarkation day and really enjoyed the experience. It was calm, quiet and civilised and the service was very attentive. The food was delicious too. It made a delightful alternative to the buffet! I am not a buffet person, I don't like eating food that has been hanging around, so only had a couple of late lunches there. As I was craving vegetables most of the trip, the indian section of the buffet provided a welcome selection of vegetable curries. The Aquaspa Cafe was a nice lunch venue, with several different choices of cold fish and shrimp served with salad, and an extensive salad bar. We ate at Qsine one night and Murano another. We had heard from other people that at Qsine there is too much food, especially if you go with a large group, so we went just as a couple and went with a game plan. We would order only 3 dishes. We had the Taj Mahal (indian), Chi-tinis (chinese) and the chicken skewered on a dagger. The first two dishes were great, but we struggled with the 3rd and passed on dessert. Was the food good? Yes. Was it worth $40 a head? No way. Murano was very pleasant, but I worried the food would be overwhelmingly rich and filling, and I was right. I ordered the Mushroom Capuccino soup. It was very rich and creamy, but the portion was huge, and I was full by the end of it. I had the lobster for the main course, and again it was delicious, but I could only manage a few bites and I hate wasting food. I had the thinnest sliver of cheese and we shared a portion of ice cream, much to the disappointment of the waiter who wanted to bring us two. Again Murano was nice, but this time, even though I didn't eat much, I would say it was worth the $40 cover charge because of the nice atmosphere and the impeccable service. We spent a lot of time in Cafe Al Baccio, lattes in the morning, afternoon teas and igloos and hot milks at bedtime. The lunchtime sandwiches there are small and delicious. We liked the quiet bars, rather than ones where the "action" was. The Ensemble Bar, Michaels Club and the Passport Bar. I mentioned we had the Premium Alcohol Package. People often wonder whether you get your monies worth. I certainly did. If you figure in a couple of large bottles of Evian per day (the complimentary Aqua Class water was not premium), a latte, some nice tea, a couple of non-alcoholic drinks a day, four glasses of $11 wine (the Pouilly Fume and the Italian rose were excellent!), the drink package was a bargain. So how about the entertainment? I am a quiet person so tend to avoid the things everyone else goes to, the shows, the pool parties, the guest entertainers etc. I have no idea what the cruise director looked like! However I was never bored. The musicians around the ship were excellent. I particularly enjoyed the strings an piano ensemble and the classical guitarist. The guitarist singer was OK, but had a limited repertoire, and the jazz ensemble were decent bust best listened to from a distance as the drummer had the tendency to overwhelm the vocalist close up. I never heard the party band and was fortunate enough to never bump into the accapela quartet the entire 12 days, which must be something of a record ;) British Pub Night in Michaels was fun with trivia and name that tune. We visited the spa and had a couples hot stones massage. It was fantastic, but was absolutely, completely and utterly ruined by the hard sell afterwards. No thank you should be sufficient to end the hard sell. Having to say it over and over again for five minutes was beyond annoying and ensured the masseuse, despite being really good, did not get any additional tip, and also meant that I didn't make a second booking because I was so fed up when I left. While we are discussing hard sell, this is the first cruise where I have been accosted on my way to dinner in Blu, sitting in a bar enjoying a pre-dinner drink and resting by the pool, by waiters from the Specialty Restaurants trying to drum up bookings and offering a discount. I don't like having to say no and I particularly dislike having to say no to someone who invades my personal space when I am relaxing, to sell me something. Celebrity please take note, this is really, really tacky. While my blood pressure is up, I may as well touch on some other hot-button topics... Smoking - I love the new smoking policy. The ship smells fresh and clean. I stayed away from the smoking areas, the smokers stayed in them and everyone was happy. Never smelt any cigarettes on the balconies. Blu Dress Code - Everyone always looked clean and nicely dressed. On formal night dress went from tuxedos to jeans and nice shirts and from long gowns to capris. Everyone wore what they wanted and didn't care about other people. I liked seeing the lovely outfits but was also glad I didn't have to drag all my formal gear with me. Tendering - We were Elite so got priority tender tickets. In Split we reported to the Ensemble Lounge and were sent immediately to the tender station. On our tender were people with tender tickets 1 and 2 as well as the Priority ticket holders. Tendering seemed to go pretty smoothly. Loud Music: I can't say I noticed that the music was loud. What I noticed was how limited the playlist was. By the end of the trip I knew exactly what song would be coming up next. There is certainly room for improvement here. Elite Perks - We used the free laundry coupon, the $20 a bag laundry coupon, the $49.95 internet coupon, the free pressing coupon and the 20% off a bottle of wine coupon. We never went to the elite breakfast or the cocktail hour as we had the drink package so weren't following the free drinks around the ship ;) I think the nicest perk was that the Elites were invited to the helipad to see the Venice sailaway. That was amazing! I suppose at some point I should mention the ports! This was a great itinerary with several new ports and some old favourites. Koper: We toured with Tina Hiti and did Ljubljana and Lake Bled. I put the tour together and made sure that we would have enough time to go to out to the church on the island, climb the steps and ring the bell. A lot of other tour groups didn't have time to do that. Ravenna: We toured by ourselves. We took the ship shuttle, $14 each, for a 20-25 minute ride, so walking to Ravenna was not really an option, even though people seemed to be giving it a go! There were also taxis at the port. Saw lots of mosaics. They sold a combination ticket for 5 different mosaic sites so we visited all of those. Split: We did a walking tour of Split arranged by another CCer. Very pleasant port. Be careful if you climb the clock tower of the cathedral - I heard the stairs were very rickety! Dubrovnik: We paid $12 for the ship shuttle into Dubrovnik. A fellow CCer had organised a walking tour and as we were there early we decided to do a quick walk round the walls to take some photos before it got crowded. FYI it is possible to walk quickly all the way round in approx 35 minutes, although you will look sweaty and bedraggled at the end of it :) They accept credit cards for entry to the wall and also Croatian Kuhne cash. The official tour around the walls was very informative. Kotor: My least favourite port, probably because we just wandered aimlessly around and were harassed a fair bit by people begging. We had planned to climb up to the fort, but overslept and by the time we tendered ashore it was too hot. There was a hop on hop off bus available. I think we would probably have enjoyed it more had we taken some sort of tour. Sail in was meant to be spectacular. Unfortunately we missed it, but sailaway was also pretty darn good! Valletta: We booked a private tour through Touring Malta. We visited the Hypogeum, which was spectacular, a fishing village, an overlook that looked down on the Blue Grotto, Mdina and Valletta. Our guide Brigitte was very informative. The Hypogeum and seeing a couple of Caravaggios were on our "must do" list, the fact that we came across a British sweet shop selling proper British chocolate was a bonus, and made this British expat very happy! Catania: This was our ship tour and was meant to be an off road convoy of 4x4 jeeps and some hiking up Etna. We were a bit wary of booking a ship tour, but needn't have been as there were only 4 of us on it in one jeep with our own volcanologist guide! We had an incredible day hiking up Etna, going down lava tubes and offroading where the lava had hardened. A very nice lunch was included too. Naples: Day 1 of Naples I put together a tour through Mariano of Pleasant Tours (who we had previously toured through) to visit Herculaneum, The Villas at Stabia and Pompeii. Mariano provided a driver and hired a guide for us, Daniella, who would accompany us to all 3 sites. We were the first people to arrive at Herculaneum. It was amazing. So many buildings had survived intact. The Villas at Stabia were luxurious villas perched high on the hills. Pompeii was getting crowded by the time we arrived after lunch. Because of funding cuts only a few of the buildings were open to visitors, so it way well have seemed more crowded than it actually was because everyone was crammed into a small area of the vast site. Naples: Day 2 I put together a low key walking tour of Naples to see for myself if it really was as horrible and scary as people said. I booked with Fabrizio B of Tours With Locals. Naples was a great city. We saw both the touristy and the non-touristy spots and the Veiled Christ statue. Don't let people put you off. Get out there and explore Naples, you won't be disappointed. Disembarkation was pretty painless, apart from me turning 50 that day :( We had transfers to Rome booked with Stefano of Romecabs for 9am so asked for an 8:30am disembarkation. At the said time we got off the ship, found our bags and as there was no customs or passport control, we were in our car by 8:45am. It doesn't get better than that. In Rome we had booked the Albergo del Senato hotel for four nights post-cruise. I had booked a Pantheon View room and had shamelessly mentioned that the trip was for my birthday in the hope of getting an upgrade. I think someone was smiling down on me as not only did I get my Pantheon View, the room was the only one with a balcony on the front of the hotel. It was fabulous. I felt like I should stand out there and deliver a speech... "Friends, Romans, Countrymen..." The hotel was very charming, and despite being in the thick of things, an oasis of quiet. We have visited Rome several times before so we just ambled around the city, taking photos and eating and drinking and having a marvellous time. At the end of the trip we were ready to come home, not yet ready to go back to work, but after 3 weeks it was time to come home. We booked transfers to FCO through Romecabs again and as always the driver was punctual, courteous and very safe. I would highly recommend them. We flew home non-stop on United from FCO to IAD. I have to say that the humidity on the plane was the driest I have ever experienced. On the plus side, the food was remarkably good! Overall this trip was a great and memorable way to celebrate a milestone in our lives. Would I choose Celebrity again? Most certainly. Would I choose Aqua Class again on an itinerary like this? Probably not.

The Gradubirthday Cruise

The Gradubirthday Cruise

Just got back from the 1st July sailing of the Summit to Bermuda. It was fabulous! Most reviews focus on all the things there are to do on board, the activities, the shows, the get togethers. I am a quiet introvert. I tend to avoid those things, but still thoroughly enjoy cruising. I like eating, reading, people-watching, drinking wine and listening to music. I don't like loud people, crowded places, smoking, shows, shopping or the casino. Here's my warped take on things! As a family, we have cruised 15 times on Celebrity, this time was a little different as our son is a SHA summer intern and couldn't come with us, so we offered this trip to our daughter and two of her best friends who have all just graduated high school, as an alternative to "Beach Week" which is every parents nightmare. Bermuda or Ocean City, MD? We knew "The Triplets" would choose the cruise! We spent a couple of days in New York pre-cruise in the heatwave. Stayed at the Millennium Broadway Hotel in Times Square and visited the Empire State Building, Top of the Rock, Liberty Island and Ellis Island. I love the anonymity of big cities and loved having two whole days of not being asked where I was from. (23 years in the USA and I still have a british accent!). Having had a hectic 2 days of sightseeing we were looking forward to "chill time" on the cruise. We booked a van through Dial 7 to drive us to the port, and the driver and van were right on time. We were at the port by 11am and on board drinking champagne by 11:15. We were bus number 2 so one of the first on board. Had lunch in the buffet, sorted out spa appointments and extra cabin keys and our cabins were ready at 1pm on the dot. We had C2 cabins 8045 and 8047, and the former had the coveted larger triangular balcony. Our bags arrived promptly and we were unpacked well before muster drill. As I knew there wouldn't be the old style drill with the wearing of the life jackets, I had the Triplets practice putting theirs on in the cabin and took the obligatory photo! Last year on the Summit we were unfortunate enough to have a rather naff cabin steward. This time our cabin steward, Derrick, was brilliant. Nothing was too much trouble for him. Our requests are pretty simple, extra towels, no flowers or feathery things because of allergies, and gowns for formal night that needed sending for pressing. All were taken care of immediately and with a smile. We had Select Dining and I made reservations online before the trip, some nights for a table for 2, sometimes for the 5 of us, always at a table to ourselves. (Don't want the accent question coming up again!). We were usually seated within 5 minutes. The Triplets went to the dining room a couple of times without reservations and never had longer than a 10 minute wait. We sat in different areas every night and each night the food wait staff were excellent. I had the Premium Alcoholic Drink Package and was hoping to have a DIY wine-pairing with different wines with each course, but it was so hard to get a wine waiter that I rarely got more than 1 glass of wine in the dining room. it wasn't that the sommelier was ignoring me, but he had so many tables that he was stretched beyond the point at which he could provide good service to everyone. Last year the food on the Summit was very disappointing. This year the food in the Main Dining Room was amazing. I couldn't believe the difference. I am not a picky eater but prefer quality over quantity, and small plates of exquisite food over mounds of stodge. I typically ate an appetiser, a soup or salad and a main course. I had been looking forward to trying the crab stuffed mushrooms but escargots were back on the everyday menu in their place. The everyday Shrimp Cocktail was good, as was the Shrimp Louis and the Spinach Turnover. Soups were nice but there were fewer consommes than in the past. Salads were varied and all pretty decent. I had some good fish, Hake in Papillotte, Tilapia Putanesca and an amazing Trout. Meats were nicely cooked too, and the Tournedos of Beef, Beef Wellington and the Bacon-Wrapped Pork Loin were all excellent. I am not a dessert lover so I never ordered one. We didn't try any of the pay dining venues this trip as the food in the Dining Room was so good. Many negative comments have already been made elsewhere regarding the buffet, but I am not a fan on buffets at the best of times, and apart from embarkation lunch and one late breakfast to avoid the crowds eating at the Brunch Buffet in the dining room that day, I steered clear of it. I would have liked to try the Aquaspa cafe, but as the Thalossotherapy area was "standing room only" most of the time, I didn't want to get food and then have the hassle of wandering round aimlessly trying to find somewhere to eat it. We tried room service breakfast once, but as I got pastries instead of plain croissants and the fixings for a smoked salmon breakfast, but no smoked salmon, I didn't bother again. Did I starve? No way! The dining room was open for lunch and breakfast on sea days. Have I mentioned Cafe al Bacio, the best place on the ship, yet? It was my home from home. I went there first thing in the morning for a couple of lattes, a croissant and a pain au chocolat, sitting in my favourite chair by the window. I went back later for tea and mini sandwiches at lunchtime, then late afternoon for non-alcoholic cocktails, early evening for a glass of nice chilled french rose while I listened to music, and then after dinner for one last glass of wine, before getting a bottle of evian and a hot milk to take back to the cabin. I was in heaven, no lines, no looking for tables and great waiter service and I worked my premium alcohol card very hard! One other little tip.... the dining room waiter on the last night mentioned that people tended to get angry at breakfast in the dining room on debarkation day because there is a long wait for food and he suggested to us very strongly that we would be much happier at the buffet. Really? I don't think so. Anyway I had a cunning plan... I discovered that not only is Cafe al Bacio open for business on the last morning, it still offers pastries and the drink package still works! It was highly civilised and I got off the ship a happy person! I never tried Bistro on 5 as the menu looked very carb heavy. The Triplets did however try it and didn't think it was worth the money. They went for breakfast on a port day, were the only patrons there and the food came out cold. I wonder where the galley for this restaurant is? We didn't frequent too many of the bars. Michaels Club was nice, I think they are aiming for a pubby feel, but it's still a work in progress. Perhaps they could have trivia in her occasionally to get the "Pub Quiz" feel? Michaels had a good selection of beers for DH and they did carry my french rose. One night they ran out and the barman went to another bar to get one for me. That was service above and beyond what was expected as I could easily have chosen something else. The martini bar seemed to be hopping most nights, a very popular spot. We walked through Cellarmasters a couple of times and it was deserted, dark and unappealing. I don't get the point of the half-opened bottles in the dispensers. No one seemed to use the place, so anyone who did could be drinking 2 or 3 week old wine! I don't see why Cellarmasters can't be the same way as the Martini Bar. All the wine bars I've been in have been vibrant and lively, with music and happy chatting people. This was like the Marie Celeste. The Sunset Bar on 10 Aft used to be a favourite place, but now that it is one of the few places smoking is allowed, it naturally attracted a significant number of cigarette and cigar smokers, so was smelly and lost it's appeal for me. However I believe that losing a nice bar to smokers is a small price to pay compared to the benefits of the interior of the ship, the cabins and balconies all being smoke-free. Other than the "Welcome Aboard" show and the comedian (hilarious!), we didn't bother with any of the organised entertainment. We did listen to some of the lounge acts and they were pretty decent. The singer guitarist was at his liveliest at the Welcome Aboard Show and then became more and more maudlin as the week went on. It wasn't helped by people constantly requesting American Pie and John Denver. "Music to slit your wrists to" we thought, and expected to hear Leonard Cohen by day seven. At the other end of the happiness scale were the accapella quartet, not really my cup of tea, but quite accomplished and unbearably cheerful. There was a south american singer guitarist, Nestor, who played rumba, samba and flamenco songs, and had developed quite a fanclub by the end of the cruise. Last but not least was a pianist I came across just the once, late one afternoon. He was a pianist singer with the motto "why play one note when you can play ten, and if you can play them badly, even better"! He reminded me of Les Dawson. He murdered Coldplay and Radiohead, Elton John and Oasis with unbridled enthusiasm. No one was spared and I had to stifle a giggle. He wasn't however so bad he was good! We had a couples hot stones massage at the spa. It was a tad pricy but fabulous and I was really pleased that the masseuse read my note that requested no pushing of products afterward, and respected my wishes. We are Captains Club Elite and one of the benefits was a nightly pre-dinner cocktail party in Michaels Club, hosted by Aurora, the Captains Club hostess, who was charming. We tended to go later so that all the people who like to find people to "chat to" (talk at) had already selected their victims and we could enjoy our free drinks in peace! They had a very nice selection of available drinks and also served hot and cold hors d'oeuvres. It was all very nice. They also did something similar in the morning with a continental breakfast, but we never checked it out. We did go to the Elite Afternoon Tea which was nice, but there was way too much food, and I had to turn down cake after cake after cake until finally they bought out the tray of scones. I do have to question the logic of having the Elite Wine and Cheese Tasting immediately after the Elite Afternoon Tea. I would have preferred them on separate days and had to pass on the wine and cheese. Much has been negatively said about the Elite coupons. I thought the free $49.99 internet package was great and it lasted me all week. We also took advantage of the free laundry, so no complaints from me We had the Premium Alcoholic Drinks Package and The Triplets had the Premium Non-Alcoholic Packages. We more than got our moneys worth and it enabled us to have the best of everything, teas, coffees, water in the nicer parts of the ship instead of always heading to the buffet for the free stuff. However the wine service in the dining room was miserably slow, and I am not sure whether the drink package had anything to do with it. I do think that the sommeliers were more attentive people ordering bottles than wine by the glass, and probably it worked better with traditional dining because a good sommelier would remember which tables would be looking for wine. New this time was the Photo Package. They were offering an all inclusive package where everyone in your cabin and anyone in your party under 21 could have prints of all the photos taken of you onboard and a disc of the same thing for $249.99. Bear in mind we always buy photos, and that ship photos purchased individually are usually quite pricy, and that we had The Triplets with us who were game for jumping in front of every camera they came across, and you will see what a bargain this was. We came home with 65 different photos, which at a conservative price of $10 each would have run us about $650. We beat the bank on this occasion! The Triplets are 18, so too old for the organised Teen Programme. The only other activity aimed at their age group was the 18-30 Meet and Mingle on the first night. They went along but felt very intimidated as there were people drinking and people who were much older than them, so they left after 5 minutes. Perhaps Celebrity should look at a separate alcohol-free18-20 Meet and Mingle for those guests that they don't allow to drink, and who really don't have any reason to be hanging around with people who are almost 30! They were invited to a "Newlyweds and Anniversary Party", I assume in error, as the Travel Agent had noted they were celebrating their 18th birthdays and graduation! They didn't really make any friends this trip but were happy to enjoy one last vacation together. They played board games in the library, sunbathed, worked out, attended beauty seminars, went out for dinner, saw The Newlywed Show and generally amused themselves and had a really good time. Bermuda itself is fabulous, clean and safe with exceedingly polite helpful people. It's a bit like the Caribbean but without the hassle! Our first day we took the ferry to St George, walked around the old town then over to Tobacco Bay and Fort St Catherines and had lunch at The Beach House. Day 2 we took a taxi, (1352, Lestew Wilson, what a nice man!), to Horseshoe Bay. We arrived early enough to get to our favourite secluded area, (hint: walk and walk and walk!), and left at 1pm when it started getting really hot. We explored the Dockyards in the afternoon and allowed Triplet 1 to order herself her first alcoholic beverage, which she can't do in the USA! Day three we booked a ships tour, a snorkel excursion to 2 wrecks on a glass bottom boat. Unfortunately on the day conditions were unfavourable, and although we got to see one of the wrecks, the snorkelling had to be done at an alternate location. Disembarkation was smooth and well organised. We had an 8:30 departure from the theatre as we had private arrangements. Our number was called at 8:20 and by 8:40 we were getting into the car that was picking us up. All in all this was a great trip. The ship did seem rather crowded at times, and with some dare I say rather loud, vulgar people on board. I mean who in their right mind would consider it appropriate to go shirtless to a muster drill in the theatre? Someone had to sit next to their oozing flabby body during the drill and someone else would have to sit in the chair they had sweated on later. Come on people, this really is gross. There were also some great quiet places, Cafe al Bacio any time of the day, Thalassotherapy pool late in the day, any of the empty bars during the day and of course, my balcony where I could go for some peace and quiet! If I have any suggestions to make to Celebrity it would be to have a rethink on Bistro on 5 and Cellarmasters. They need livening up. How about a tapas style restaurant with a small cover charge and lots of small plates, (like a mini Qsine which I didn't try because there seems to just be too much food), with a lively spanish themed wine bar beside it with Nestor playing rumba and flamenco? It has to be better than what's there today! My second thought is that they should do something about the thumping techno dance music that is playing all the time in the shopping area. Perhaps Corporate have done research that shows that young people buy more when that sort of music plays, but it drove me away. Finally, over the years we have seen the Baked Alaska parade dwindle to a shadow of it's former self. This time there were no Baked Alaskas held shoulder high, no sparklers or glowsticks, no parading around the dining room, just the staff walking down the staircase and if you weren't anywhere near it you didn't get to see anything. It hardly seemed worth it, and perhaps it's now time to kill it off for good.

Lunch at the mystery cafe, Paris

Lunch at the mystery cafe

Jul 13, 2011

    

Having traipsed round the Musee d'Orsay for what seemed like hours, we came out to look for a lunch place, but found everywhere on the map was either closed or full, as it was raining. This cafe, whose name we never knew, had one free table, outside but under a canopy and unbelievably with an outdoor propane heater on!

Tom had a croque madame with salad and frites and I had a salmon, tomato and mozzarella tartine. The food was OK but hardly inspiring. I think I'm getting tired of eating out.

I should though mention the frites, as this was the first time we had seen thin frites since we arrived in Paris. However as these were limp and soggy, we wished we hadn't bothered!

Safran, Paris

Safran

Jul 12, 2011

    

Our initial plan had been to go to L'Ambiance de l'Inde, which we'd seen just around the corner from the hotel, but after checking out reviews of the place, and not finding a single one recommending the place, we widened our search and came up with a place called Safran, about 10 minutes walk from the hotel and which got rave reviews.

The hotel was located in the St Michel neighbourhood, among a hub of restaurants and tourist shops.

The restaurant was made up of several rooms and we were seated upstairs.

The menu had all the usual dishes on it. We chose lamb seekh kebab and onion beignet to start, chicken makhanwani and shrimp madras as mains, pulau rice and plain naan. To drink we had a bottle of rose de provence.

Our appetisers arrived unsizzling on a sizzle plate, and we got the impression that they had been waiting around for a while before being brought to the table. The kebab was good but the onion beignet was like an american onion ring, which was a bit disappointing. Among the sauces served with the appetisers was lime pickle, which I haven't had in years and which was fabulously tart here. Oddly they brought the naan out with the appetiser not the main, so by the time we really wanted to eat it, it was cold.

The main courses were only OK and warm rather than hot. The chicken makhwani was very creamy and boring and the madras leant more to the cream than tomato side, and if there truly were 24 spices in the dish, (as the menu said), I certainly couldn't taste them. The madras wasn't spicy in the least.

The waiter said they had mango and that it was ripe, so we ordered it for dessert. It was nowhere near as ripe as the one "specially flown in from new delhi" that we had in Nice.

This meal verged on OK, but overall was pretty disappointing considering thenpositive reviews we had read.

La Gueuze, Paris

La Gueuze

Jul 12, 2011

    

We spotted this place on our way to the Jardins de Luxembourg, and as Tom still had Moules Frites on his to do list, we decided to stop back there for lunch. It was a pretty unassuming looking place, with classic beer adverts on the wall.

Tom ordered the set lunch for 14,90€, which included plat, glass of beer or wine and a coffee. He chose the Moules Marinieres with Frites and a beer. I had the mixed salad and a glass of rose. The salad was nice, assorted lettuces with a light vinaigrette, and tomato and hardboiled egg. The moules went down well as did the frites.

A note on "frites" - they are now more reminiscent of thick english chips than the thin fries we used to get as pommes frites. I like the new style,especially as they come unsalted so you can actually taste the potato.

We finished with a cafe au lait each, probably the best cup of coffee we,ve had so far in Paris.

Brasserie des deux Palais, Paris

Brasserie des deux Palais

Jul 11, 2011

    

Having just been underwhelmed at Saint Chapelle, we spotted this place across the road and decided to stop for lunch.

We ordered Orangina and the waiter asked if we wanted small or medium. Thinking we were in Europe and not the USA we opted for medium and got half a litre of orangina each. Yikes, this was going to severely challenge my public loo phobia!

I decided to go with saucisses frites (sausage and chips) and Tom went with the cheval burger, yup, burger made from horse. The saucisse was more a hot doggy thing in an nice orange skin than a sauage, and Tom said the horse was remimiscent of something gamey, like venison.

Le Perraudin, Paris

Le Perraudin

Jul 11, 2011

    

We really fancied ethnic food tonight and asked reception if there was anywhere good nearby. She recommended her favourite Thai restaurant, but said that it was a 10 minute taxi ride, but if we wanted somewhere closer she recommended a french bistro, Le Perraudin, just round the corner.

With de rigeur red and white checked tablecloths and a €30 prix fixe menu with items we could not only translate, but also manage to eat, we decided to give it a try.

We knew to give tete de veau, rignons and escargots de bourgoigne a wide berth, and tentatively made our choices. For entree Tom had "Terrine de pot-au-feu et sa compotée d’oignon" (Pot-au-feu pate with onion marmelade) and I had "Saumon cru mariné à l’aneth" (Marinaded raw salmon with dill). They weren't too bad although Tom found that a piece of my toast helped his pate down and my salmon, a little less cured and a lot thicker than I anticipated, was more easily swallowed with a liberal amount of vinegary salad piled on top. So far, so good, nothing coming down the nose yet!

Main course, and I went for safety with - "Bœuf bourguignon" (beef stew with red wine), which I reckoned should have been festering in the oven most of the day, and Tom went for "Gigot d’agneau rôti à la fleur de thym et son gratin de pommes de terre" (Roasted leg of lamb with potatoes gratin), taking comfort in the reassuring presence of "roasted" in the description. My boeuf was nice, albeit a bit gristly and fatty, but I was able to put my surgical skils to good use and pull off a few slivers of delicious beef. The sauce with bacon, mushrooms, pearl onions and of course wine, was just like the one I make at home. They must use Delia Smiths recipe here as well! Tom loved his roast lamb. It smelt just like Sunday lunch in an english pub. For the most part it was well done, nothing flapping, except for the last very rare piece which the chef had cunningly hidden under the other pieces! The lamb came with scalloped potatoes which were delicious.

We were then expected to order dessert. I can't imagine why we thought a 3 course menu was a good idea with our appetites! Tom chose the "Tarte fine aux pommes, glace vanille" (apple tart with vanilla ice cream), and I diced with a 3am date with the loo and went for the "Assiette de fromages -Brie de Meaux, reblochon , fromage de chèvre", (cheese plate). The cheese was fantastic. I as really disappointed I was too full to finish it. Tom's apple tart was great too.

We shared a chilled bottle of the house rose and a pitcher of water, served nicely at room temperature.

It was a great meal and the proprietor as kind enough tonlet us pay with the 500€ bill we had been trying to uae for the paat two weeks!