Reef Knot

Following this. Thanks.

The office of National Statistics in the UK today published the latest figures:

Only 59 double vaccinated people without underlying conditions died from COVID out of more that 50,000 total deaths this year.

Think that sums up the vaccination debate  pretty well. 

4 hours ago, zqtchas said:

It sounds like an interesting place. There are supposed to be some very good remains of Roman ruins there. Is it safe enough for tourists? 

Sure is, there sure are Roman ruins all over the place.
Tunisia has quite a history dating back to 800 BC when was then known as Carthage, capital of the Phoenician empire .The most famous Carthagean being Hanibal .
The Romans finally took the city around 140 BC and rebuilt it over the next six hundred years or so. I read somewhere that at one point Carthage was the 2nd largest Roman city in its empire.

Is it safe ? Well I'm not aware of any security issues but I'm sure the Embassy websites would say proceed with caution.

8 hours ago, lincslady said:

Good morning, coolers

 

Reef Knot - you are very intriguing:  maybe you move for work reasons?  Obviously do not want to pry, but is that the reason?  I think French is the second language in Tunisia

 

Lola

Hello Lola  

Yes we are here for the job and yes French is pretty much a second language here especially in the main cities.  The French had and still have a huge footprint in Africa, French shopping chains and supermarkets are always visible and French schools an Alliance Francaise to promote French culture.

7 hours ago, zqtchas said:

You moved to Tunisia now?

Yup, getting closer to Europe.

Tunis really is a gateway between Africa and Europe a great mix of cultures evident everywhere,  bars and clubs, coffee shops and mosques, hijabs and mini skirts, it's a very cosmopolitan city but it's also an Arab city at heart.

And something Madagascar didn't have... traffic lights.

1. A chicken crossing the road is poultry in motion.

2. I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island, but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian. 
3. She was only a whiskey maker, but he loved her still.
4. A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a weapon of math disruption.

5. The butcher backed into the meat grinder and got a little behind in his work.

6. No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.

7. A dog gave birth to puppies near the road and was cited for littering.

8. A grenade thrown into a kitchen in France would result in Linoleum Blownapart.

9. Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.

10. A backward poet writes inverse.

11. When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.

12. Don't join dangerous cults: Practice safe sects.

So true

4 hours ago, les37b said:

 

I wonder who will be sailing on if if the restrictions on "foreign arrival ships" quarantine is still in place and non US citizens still not able to sail to the US? I've a feeling that tourist restriction which was allegedly going to happen in October isn't going to happen. The whole day by day checking for restriction changes is getting tedious now. Ive got another UK seacation this weekend, which I'm confident will happen (and will be my third), but my first "proper" cruise is in 28 days time from Malta sailing to Montenegro and then Croatia. Since booking, the no cruise restriction got lifted and the "quarantine for 10 days" on return from Amber countries removed, so all looked like it was going well..... But this week, Montenegro is possibly going to red. If that happens, no one will go (or very few) because of the 10 day hotel quarantine bill..... and I suspect the next port of call wont accept you either. (I guess viking will have a sea day instead to avoid.) 

 

The prospects of the Dawn sailing beyond FLL to South America just isn't going to happen. The sooner SS come clean on this and their plans for the ship, the better IMHO. Of course, that suggestion is an opinion - but I'll wager anyone its right. When the itineraries for the Moon doing this a year previous were scuppered, I got the info direct from a SS VP, they would look for alternatives and the Caribbean would be the likely outcome. I see nothing that would change this scenario and suspect, this is being done in the background right now for the Dawn.

 

That said, I noticed some the Caribbean Islands are now red. Maybe bookings will become magical mystery tours decided a day or so before arriving!

That's the other issue I have , if SS were to go ahead but I can't travel due to coming from a restricted country would I get refunded?. I would be staring and finishing my trip from Africa, will there be any restrictions in place to enter Brazil,  Caribbean countries, flying back from Miami to London and then onto Africa etc. 

13 hours ago, seaver said:

Or just let SS drive and if they cancel you get 100% refund or 110% future cruise credit.

And by the way we are on the same cruise!

Fair point Seaver, I'll probably let it ride. Hopefully see you in Manaus. 

I'm on the Manaus to FLL segment in March next year. Think I have until end of October for the 100% refund cancellation.  Can't see SS taking any decisions by then then so its going to come down to gut feeling and at the moment its not feeling good😒

Food porn at its very best.

17 hours ago, zqtchas said:

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

Alternatively 

I like to wear a jacket regardless,  usefull to have pockets for my glasses, phone, pen  etc. So putting a tie on is no big deal. So by extension formal is not much of an inconvenience .

3 hours ago, cruiseej said:

 

Or that parts of the world important for cruising will be slower to r-open to travel than was earlier hoped/expected, which will slow the return to "normal" capacity for the cruise lines?

 

Or that the added costs of retrofits to ship ventilation systems, medical facilities, etc., and the added costs for PPE, cleaning supplies, etc. will increase operating expenses and dampen profits for awhile?

All good points 👍

I was surprised also, would of assumed that with countries  opening up the travel stocks would gain. Airlines are also taking a hit.

Can only think that maybe the rise in the oil price will affect operating costs?

Over on Facebook there is a Silversea passenger group. I know plenty of photos are posted, you might want to ask over there maybe videos are uploaded also.

3 hours ago, CruzinFeraBruzin said:

Do you think it might have something to do with currency fluctuations?  Doesn't Silversea set their fares at USD/CAD?  Not sure, just a possible guess.  Others on this forum who reside outside the US and Canada may know if they have noticed the prices going up and down depending on the exchange rates.

It's the same decrease in US dollars

I’ve been tracking prices for the Silver Dawn sailing  Manaus - Fort Lauderdale next March.

Started in August 2020 at £6390 then the price increased to £6840 through to Jan this year when it went up to £7290, then last week the price dropped to £6540 

I’m guessing the the drop in price is due to lack of bookings?  or is it normal to play with the price . 

With the current Silversea cancellation policy, I would think that anyone who booked in the first half of this year at £7290 will likely cancel and rebook for saving of £750 per person?  Or am I missing something?

3 hours ago, mysty said:

This is Canada Day.  For the first time in my life I am torn over the thought of celebrating this day.  On May 27, 2021 a dark part of our country's history rose up, grabbed us by the collar and gave us a seismic shake.

"Preliminary findings from a survey of the grounds at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School have uncovered the remains of 215 children buried at the site, the Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation said Thursday.

The First Nation said the remains were confirmed last weekend near the city of Kamloops, in B.C.'s southern Interior. "

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tk-emlúps-te-secwépemc-215-children-former-kamloops-indian-residential-school-1.6043778

 

On Thursday came the second heart-breaking announcement.

"The Cowessess First Nation announced a preliminary finding Thursday of 751 unmarked graves at a cemetery near the former Marieval Indian Residential School.

The Marieval Indian Residential School operated from 1899 to 1997 in the area where Cowessess is now located, about 140 kilometres east of Regina. Children from First Nations in southeast Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba were sent to the school."

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskatchewan/cowessess-marieval-indian-residential-school-news-1.6078375

 

For an explanation of this horror.....

"In Canada, the Indian residential school system was a network of mandatory boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. The network was funded by the Canadian government's Department of Indian Affairs and administered by Christian churches. The school system was created to remove Indigenous children from the influence of their own culture and assimilate them into the dominant Canadian culture. Over the course of the system's more than hundred-year existence, around 150,000 children were placed in residential schools nationally. By the 1930s about 30 percent of Indigenous children were believed to be attending residential schools. The number of school-related deaths remains unknown due to incomplete records. Estimates range from 3,200 to over 30,000."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Indian_residential_school_system

 

I am proud to be a Canadian.   I do, however, recognize that our country has made grievous errors and has been reluctant to address and atone for the horrors visited upon the indigenous peoples.  Like the rest of Canadians I don't feel comfortable celebrating this day.
 

I like many people around the world have been following this incredible story with bewilderment . I hope that these poor children can be put to rest with dignity love and the respect of the nation.

47 minutes ago, brimary said:

We have never been asked to return the certificates to obtain free laundry,it has happened automatically  up to and including our last cruise in 2019 when we passed 850 days.

850 days... respect 👏

12 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

From one can of worms to the next... For me, it's the Ukraine girls who really knock me out. Of course.

JP,                                                             Ukraine are currently playing North Macedonia  in their 2nd game if the Euro 21 tournament. For the moment they are leading 2-1 . 

1 hour ago, Elginjock said:

Sorry Reef Knot I read your comment after watching some Sports News where England dominated the coverage and hardly a mention of Scotland and Wales.

Lincslady totally agree with you the last time I called BA about cancelling a flight I got someone with a strong accent and all I will say is it was not a British accent and I had huge problems understanding them.

Apologies for me being over sensitive.

Have to agree with you there Elginjock. Sports coverage in UK is pretty biased toward any English team. 

Good luck for Friday night, get the win and they won't be able to ignore Scotland. 

Elginjock,

Sorry you take offence to a bit of light hearted banter that was not my intention, but I and many others really do notice and sometimes have difficulties understanding a broad Scottish accent.  I find the Northern Ireland accent to be quite strong also and please I apologise in advance if any offence has been taken from that comment.

attached is a link to a clip from a very funny Scottish comedy duo with a funny take on voice recognition.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAz_UvnUeuU

I have an Uncle from Kirkcaldy in Scotland who has lived in London for 60 years and still has lost none if his accent... zero. 

1 hour ago, jpalbny said:

 

It is! It's not just the accent.

 

We were riding the train once from Edinburgh to Greenock. Could not understand 75% of what our fellow pax were saying. We wondered if there was something wrong with our ears.

 

Now I understand why.

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scots_language

And they say that the Edinburgh acent is a little softer than those from Glasgow.

But I'm with you JP it's all foreign  to me.

1 hour ago, Fletcher said:

We are currently taking our first break away from home in 18 months when we went to Scotland. Now we are in Wales, touring some of the major sights.  It's all very busy with vacationers and not a foreign accent to be heard anywhere.  Yesterday we visited one of the UK's finest gardens, Bodnant, and I thought you might like to see a photo:

 

Scottish always sound foreign  to me😏