Cruisingcouple22

Hi! No problem. You don't need to speak much italian, most of the people we've come across speak pretty good english, and if not then pointing and waving normally does the trick. There are a number of trains that go to cinque terre, we were just unlucky with the fire! i think there is also buses that go to porto venere but i'm not sure if the go further. This website was super useful for planning - https://www.cinqueterre.eu.com/en/ I think bringing some earplugs along would be a good idea, but i think the noise insulation is pretty good. We are next to the aquatheatre and with the door open the bass was shaking the picture frame, but when you shut it is really cuts it out. unfortunately i can confirm that they make the HDMI ports very difficult to access and there is no button to switch source on the remote control. I've heard people mention bringing a universal remote but their software seems pretty locked down. There is an option to stream to the TV though like a chromecast, although this might require VOOM internet Magnetic hooks are a must! We always travel with a little pack of 8 of so! And with regards to mobile service, our uk provider automatically switches over to a local one so i'm not sure. Sorry i can't help Have a good day!

When we got back on the boat we headed to the suite lounge to have a couple of non-alcoholic refreshments. After all the walking and the heat I think I would have been ok the floor after one drink if I hadn’t! We then went back to the room to freshen up before heading back up to coastal kitchen for dinner. This was our first trip here this cruise as we have been making full use of the dining package but it did not disappoint. We had a lovely crab cake to start, then lamb loin with a lamb meatball (double lamb!) with a small portion of the truffle cheese tortellini and a chocolate and olive oil cake for dessert. All very tasty and with a beautiful view to boot! After dinner we made our obligatory evening trip to the mason jar for some country music and moonshine. The band got one of the bartenders to come up for a song today and he was brilliant, so much fun. I had a quick wander around the ship for some night time photos and then we had the Hector is magic show at 2200. also spotted the stowaway pianist a couple of times today! Hector’s tricks are incredible and I really don’t see how some of them are done, and he also does a little hand shadow show in the middle too. Then it was back to our room to catch a bit of the Aqua show before collapsing into bed knowing that we would be doing all again in Rome tomorrow! Shouldn’t complain though 😁

We planned on catching the Frioul express, their timetable and prices can be found on the website https://lebateau-frioul-if.fr There’s no need to pre-book you can just buy your tickets at the kiosk in the centre of town. You’d have to catch the shuttle bus from the cruise port to the town first though. And the website will show if D’If is open or not, there is usually a red banner if it’s shut, like this Hope that helps your planning

After popping in the shops and getting our christmas ornament, we caught the ferry back to Porto Venere and had some lunch and a walk around town. We stopped in one of the many restaurants along the harbour and had some excellent, and reasonably priced, pizza. This dog seems fairly happy with his lot in life though! We took a walk up to the church and fortifications overlooking the village and then came back down and dangled our feet in the harbour whilst waiting for our boat to take us back to La Spezia. There are a lot of stairs around Cinque Terra so bear that in mind By this time we were pretty tired, so the wait for the boat seemed to take quite a while! We snagged some top deck seats and were soon speeding back to our big boat, Wonder of the seas. We didn’t mind the movement of the ferry, but heard a few people note that it made them a bit queasy, so if you are prone to motion sickness, be prepared! IMG_6225.MOV IMG_6210.MOV

What an eventful day! Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men! We started off with room service breakfast on the balcony again with the plan of getting our train just before 10 this morning. If you are stopping in La Spezia, keep in mind it is an industrial port so you have to take a complimentary shuttle bus from the ship to the cruise terminal, it’s only about 5 minutes but you have to wait for it to fill up before it will leave. We were running a bit late, which is normal for us, so had to pick up the pace on the walk. As we were nearing the train station we noticed what appeared to be a plume of smoke go up into the sky. Whilst this was a bit strange, we didn’t think too much more of it until we got out front of the train station and there were a lot of people milling about outside. And then the fire engine came into view! It turns out one of the electric engines had caught fire in the station! The police and fire service didn’t seem to be too worried about this, but it was obvious that the quoted 30 minute delay was not going to be accurate, as the engine was still actively burning!! So we went to our back up plan, which was to catch the ferry into Cinque Terra instead. The only problem with this was the ferry pick up point was a 15 minute walk away, we had 17 minutes until it departed and we needed to buy tickets too! Cue speed walking round two! We made it with a little time to spare, but needn’t have worried because they waited around a few minutes to pack as many people as possible onto the ferry, it was literally standing room only by the end. Whilst i do enjoy a good ferry ride, this one did take quite a long time. From La Spezia to Porto Venere, the first stop, was only half an hour. But then to get to the next stop, Riomaggiorie, which is the first stop truly in Cinque Terre, was a further 45 minutes. If you wanted to go all the way to Monterosso, the furthest stop, it was 2 hours and 10 minutes. With the loading and waiting times a lot of the day was spent on or about the ferry. The rides in and out of the villages are pretty special though. We took the ferry to it’s third stop, Manarola, and had a walk around town. We went in a geletaria that had dairy free and vegan options which were delicious and then took a walk the short distance you are allowed down Via dell' Amore, lovers lane, at present. There was a landslide about a decade ago and they are taking their time in repairing and reopening it. Apparently the new date is summer 2024 so not long now! these two dogs did not want to get back on the boat!!

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We debated going to the boardwalk for the show, but instead decided to watch from our balcony. It was a really interesting angle, and we got to see a few little “behind the scene” bits, like them changing out the trampoline etc., which would be hidden from the rest of the audience byt the fountains. Also it started raining very heavily during the show and and lot of people either covered up with umbrellas and towels or huddled under the overhangs. The show was an amazing exhibition of talent, the aerialists, divers, tight-rope walker and slack liners were all incredible, but there didn’t really seem to be a story it. Great fun though and we’ll definitely be catching bits of it again. people sheltering under towels 😟 We had to leave slightly early to make our comedy reservation (no-one wants to be late for stand up comedy!) so we need to catch the end of the show next time. The comedian, John Moloney, was really good. I think we’ve caught him on another ship in the past and he seemed to be having fun. He started off by highlighting this was an adult show, and if you were easily offended then you should leave, and he lived up to his billing. Everyone seemed to enjoy it which was good. And with that it was bed time. We are catching the train the Levanto tomorrow morning, booked on the Trenitalia website today, and then planning on wandering around the villages and catching the ferry on the way back. Join us tomorrow to find out how it goes!

After our pre-dinner drinks we headed down to the culinary experience that is wonderland. If you haven’t been there before, think Heston blumenthal’s molecular gastronomy mixed with the wild imagination of Lewis Carroll! You have to come hungry though as there is a lot of food, but it is all delicious. A particular standout was the short rib, which literally does not need a knife to eat. The crab cones with avocado and wasabi as well as the liquid lobster with bone marrow are also superb. We had a couple of cocktails with dinner, including the smoke rings and down the rabbit hole (where you get to pick the blue or red “pill”) and then pretty much had to roll out of there to Mason Jar. love the decoration crab cone liquid lobster crispy prawn and smoked eggs tuna with yuzu sorbet in a lime tuna shasimi and yoghurt chicken short rib mushroom garden smoke rings down the rabbit hole We grab some rocking chairs in the window and enjoyed a few songs before heading down to watch the aquatheatre show.

Marseilles day for us was an opportunity to sit, relax and enjoy all the ship has to offer. We’ve been to Marseilles a number of times and the thing we still want to do here is visit chateau D’if, of count of Monte Cristo fame! However, of our 3 cruise stops here, we are 3 for 3 on it being shut due to unfavourable weather! This is what must have made it such a good prison, no boat could get close enough to rescue anyone! The impenetrable chateau! No matter though, as there is plenty to appreciate on the ship. Although it may not be as interesting for you guys reading! Sorry about that. if you look closely you can see the stacked boats in the background. Crazy way to park then! We had a relaxed start to the morning and headed to the windjammer for breakfast. I like the layout of this one, and the seating in the middle at the back is really nice as you have windows in the roof and a view down to the boardwalk. We just had a light breakfast as we were preparing for our Wonderland dinner, but more on that later. We tried out most of the activities the ship has to offer today, starting off with the flowrider and water slides. A port day in the morning is the best time to try the flowrider, as there were only about 5 other people waiting to use it, and it was a mix of body boarding and stand up surfing. I was speaking to the sports manager and found our you can do semi-private lessons for 69 USD for one hour with a minimum of four people, or rent the entire flowrider out for an hour for 550 USD. Thats a bit steep for my taste but we have enquired about a semi-private lesson on the sea day. After the surfing we tried out the different slides, and although i got slightly stuck in the blue one and had to scoot myself down (tip: don’t wear a tee shirt as they slow you down!) they were a lot of fun. Then it was time for some hot tubbing and relaxing in the sun, the weather was really lovely in the middle of the day. Lunch was at playmakers where we had the Poke nachos again (so much closer to finishing them today, but still not quite) and an interesting tasting stout. It said chocolate milk, but i didn’t really get those flavours, just the stoutness. The afternoon was spent rock climbing, mini-golfing and trying out the dry slide, Ultimate Abyss! This is great fun and you should definitely try it when you are onboard. Whilst it is fast, it isn’t droopy at all, so its really not scary. We relaxed in central park for a bit and then headed back to the room to get ready for dinner. Thanks to cloud_nine asking about the drinks in the suite lounge, we headed up there before dinner. Lo and behold, we discovered that not only beers, wines and soda area included 11-11, but 5-8 is happy “hour” so you can have anything off of there menu. NEedless to say we tried a couple of the cocktails, including “cool as a cucumber”, “thyme for gin” and “kentucky summer”. They were all delicious, but the kentucky summer was a delicious mix of bourbon, mango and mint! weather took a bit of a turn 😟 lovely rainbow in Marseilles.

Day 4 cruise compass - La Spezia

Day 3 cruise compass - Marseilles

Had a chat with the bartender in the suites lounge today, and he confirms that soda, wine and beer are free for sky class between 11-11 👍 also there is daily happy hour from 5-8 where EVERY drink is free! Thanks for asking this because we had no idea!! Now we have even more free drinks to enjoy 😉

got the one on the boardwalk for you 😜

And here are a couple of shots of the room I didn’t upload yet

This is where this morning’s entry was written from, sunny Marseilles. Last night was nowhere near as rough and the captain led us to believe, which was a nice surprise there are some nice seats along the running track if you are looking for a quiet spot, as well as shuffleboard and table tennis central park views are impressive it’s nice to see the crew get some deck space up top on wonder too. This is just up and behind the solarium. beautiful sunrise coming in to Marseilles Now, this is very much a first world problem, but the walk from the elevator lobby to our cabin seems sooooo long sometimes. We have to walk past 32 other cabins (yes, we counted 😂) before you get to ours! Shouldn’t complain too much though I guess 😜

Yep, I will see if we can find out 👍

Alas, we had reservations for the tap show though so could not stay listening for as long as we wanted. We will definitely be returning another night though. We headed to the main theatre and discovered that there was reserved seating for the key, suite and pinnacle guests up on the balcony on deck 5 in the main theatre. Cruise director introducing the show. Amazing how fluently he can speak so many languages! The show was very interesting, similar to Stomp i believe if any one has seen that. There was a mixture of percussion, gymnastic, contortionist (which really freaked me out!) and tap dancing of course. Everyone was very talented in the show, but i don’t think it is to our particular tastes. After the show, it was time for a quick change of footwear (for me as well as my wife, those dress shoes are NOT comfortable!) and off to the silent disco in the solarium. First towel animal of the cruise. I love these little touches! The captain had made an announcement earlier that they were expecting very strong winds and the open decks were going to be closed, and whilst it was windy, the decks remained open. The disco was a lot of fun, they had two channels going, but my favourite bit was taking the headphones off and listening to a crowd of people singing two different songs! Amazing fun if you get the chance to go. I love how the ship looks at night, they do such a great job with the lighting. Teens get their own outdoor space with Christmas lights! And then it was off to bed. A busy day but a lot of fun. We have a lie in tomorrow as we are not planning on getting off the ship and are going to enjoy a (hopefully) quieter ship for a bit. Many thanks for following along! Please let me know if you have any questions or want me to check anything out!

After a nice relax on the balcony it was time for dinner. Tonight was formal night and we had booked 150 Central Park. If anyone is wondering, there was a real variety of outfits tonight, from full black tie and cocktail dresses, to short and tee shirts. So if you are worried about what to wear, don’t be; there will definitely be someone dressed smarter and more casual than you! Dinner was delicious, I could have just eaten loaf after loaf of their bread. It had a lemon garlic butter that it was absolutely soaked in and it was delicious. For starter I had the pork belly and my wife had the short rib, both were delicious. The short rib just melted in your mouth. We both had the lamb wellington for main and it was excellent. And desserts were the passion fruit mousse bar and the deep fried cheesecake, which was surprisingly quite light. Highly recommended. We were worried that we were going to be left feeling very full, especially after our lunch escapades, but the portion sizes were perfect. fun statues abound around this ship! This little fella was just chilling in Central Park After dinner we took a jaunt up to Mason jar to catch the country trio performing there and they were brilliant. The lead singer was very funny and humble, saying how surprised he was when asked to perform country music on a ship travelling around the mediterranean and how happy that made him to know country music had spread so far! They were really engaging and took a number of requests from the crowd. This bar is really popular so make sure to get there early or be prepared to wait for a seat. A number of their cocktails have smoke in them (and one has candied bacon! Yum!) so if you sit at the bar it can get smoky, but i love that smell. In fact, when I commented on this, one of the bartenders took my non-smoked cocktail and smoked it for me! Now that's service 🙂 and it doesn’t look like they will run out of whiskey/bourbon any time soon! There was a nosy dragon peering in the elevator

I tend to do the posts in the morning as I get up a bit before my wife. Hope you like today's update!

Now back to the ship for lunch! We dropped our stuff back in the room, including our Christmas ornament (something we get from each location that we visit!) and then headed to park cafe for lunch. I’ve forgetting how good the Kummelweck sandwiches are. I don’t know what they do to the beef to make it that juicy and tasty but I really want the recipe. We chilled out in Central Park for a bit then headed to playmakers to make use of our diamond drinks (another $21 saving) and dining package. We had the poke nachos and the campfire cookie and can heartily recommend both of them. The poke nachos are one of the best things we’ve eaten on the ship, just a hint of heat in the sauce balanced out by the avocado. Mmmm, delicious. We will definitely be ordering them again. Also the portion is huge. We’d been eating for what felt like 20 minutes and barely seemed to make a dent. before after! Barely looks like we touched them! we also saw them practising for the Aqua theatre show After that we headed up to the pool deck to the infinity hot tubs and watched cat and dog videos on the big screen 😁 got to love the choice of videos Royal put up. We then had a wander round the solarium, it was lovely but there weren’t any seats available, so got a drink at the vue bar (lime and coconut and watermelon rita, both tasty and refreshing) and headed up to the suite sun deck to relax waiting for sail away. We enjoyed watching the flow rider and basketball form the suite sun deck then sat on our balcony for sail away. Blissful! Sail away from palma

Sorry about the quality, this was surreptitiously filmed. Don’t tell anyone 🤫 IMG_6022.MOV

There was a short concert from a quartet which was beautiful. If you get the chance to see it I highly recommend it. There was also a short boat ride if you wanted to do it, although there was a bit of a queue if you weren’t right at the front. There’s also a walking path instead and the boat ride was only about a minute or so. There are a number of steps down and then back up again, but there are a couple of benches to have a seat on if you need it. this is the boat the musicians play from. Very talented! all the lights turn off and the boats come sailing from around a corner. It’s beautiful. Back up in the daylight there is a small shop, cafe and facilities. We had 1 and a half hour where overall. It’s quite a long drive there and back but it really is a beautiful location that is rare to be able to see. On the way back, we had the obligatory gift shop stop, this time a pearl factory, but there were a number of other shops about that you could go in instead. slightly better shot of wonder!

First view of wonder from off of the ship. We had a great time at the caves today. The drive there was pretty long, just over an hour, and whilst the scenery was pretty, it was quite repetitive. Our tour guide did a good job of giving us facts and letting us know where we were etc. I learnt that Rafael Nadal grew up in Manacor in Mallorca and now has an tennis academy/school/ museum there. He also has a very nice black catamaran that cost just over $5 million. There was a slight hiccup on our route as they were digging up the road, but with a bit of help we made it through We had about a ten minute wait until our tour group was due to go in, and if this happens to you I recommend being nearer the front if possible. You get to go through the caves at more of your own pace and also get better seats for the concert, and nearer the front if you want to do the boat ride. The caves were incredible. The formation of caves like these always astounds me and this one was no different. The length of time for them to form is incomprehensible and the variety of forms that come about is amazing. The clarity and stillness of the water is also beautiful. this was looking up at the ceiling. It’s a bit disconcerting and luckily none of them fell whilst we were in there 😁 I have no idea how this column broke in the middle like this!

No, we are in a one bed Aqua theatre suite, so sky class. There are a lot of amazing amenities though, especially as it’s our first time in a suite.

Day 2 cruise compass