OnTheJourney

This is the EXACT situation we have! Only one neigbor across from our 1+ acre property and nothing to break the wind, so, yeah, we get blasted. There can be 3 inches on the road but 3 feet of solidly packed, drifted snow in our driveway! So...I know of what you speak. The apartment sounds much more convenient for traveling in general.

Nor me...that's just insane but I suppose falls under the general classification of sometimes "doing what you have to do"! True enough. I just worry about having bad weather when it's time to get to the airport moreso than what's taking place at home since I always contract someone to take care of any snow removal.

Good points. There are still lots of people traveling who never buy insurance.

Of course, but admittedly it's dicier in terms of potentially inclement weather that could affect being able to get to the airport, let alone flight cancellations.

Absolutely, and then throw in a bomb cyclone yet to make things even worse.

I agree with this. The airline situation should be covered. Can't speak to the costs incurred with the cruise fare. At the least, the airline should make good on the cost of the missed flight, although might well be returned in the form of a penalty-free voucher. This is a very unfortunate instance, and one reason I try my best to avoid travel during winter months. Unless it's some sort of itinerary that I desperately want to do and not available other times of the year, I avoid December through February, though here in PA snow and ice can come right on into April. Climate change = stronger storm systems so we'll likely see more of what are often designated as "once in a lifetime" events. Hope things work out as best as possible for the OP.

I have a differing opinion. Being a musician, my ears are very attuned to any music that is taking place in pretty much any situation. During the Chairman's cruise awhile back, there was definitely music playing most of the time around the ship. Surely noticed it in World Cafe and the dining room. However, it was all very 'new agey', subdued, and totally unobtrusive - totally unlike the brash and loud arrangements of pop tunes that I've often cringed at when on RCCL. I remember hearing music on Viking very well because certain pieces really caught my interest and was even considering contacting Viking to find out what some of the playlists are that they might be using. I'll have to give a listen next month and see what's playing.

I tend to agree. I've never gotten out of a museum even close to a 'minimal suggested time' to allow for a visit. Hope so. It'll be a quite a contrast from having to do a daily PCR test for the Chairman's cruise to not even needing a pre-embarkation covid test. Not sure that's the best decision and surprised that Viking did such an about-face on their protocols. I think we'll test at home a few days or so before leaving. With numbers ticking up again, we'll probably play it pretty safe, i.e. frequently masked in larger public settings, until the cruise.

The private tour refers to having lunch there...sounds like that'd be a nice experience. This also sways me towards keeping the additional time with a private guide. Very likely to not ever back to Greece again, so might as well spend as much time as possible at Acropolis and the Museum, both being top attractions.

This is interesting in light of my recent postings. We have the Athens extension booked, but also have a private full-day tour booked (with driver and guide), so hopefully Viking doesn't mess around with changing the days as you refer to. The Viator tour does not include admission costs- we pay the guide when the day starts -, and they said they'd be willing to revise the tour so as to do something different if we'd feel we'd have had enough at the Museum and Acropolis with Viking, but somehow I'm thinking the two experiences probably aren't even very comparable. Group tour with other people also disembarking, doing the extension and then heading to the hotel versus a more leisurely and extensive private tour at both Acropolis and Museum are likely very different experiences. So probably best to pay the Viator guide and go from there. Looks like a good bit of time could be spent at the museum.

Thanks! I'll check it out.

Hi, I have a post-extension booked for Athens. The first day description says, 'Head to the Acropolis to view the Parthenon (etc.) before continuing to the new Acropolis Museum. Then enjoy a lunch on your own and stroll around the Plaka district before transferring to your hotel'. Now, besides that, there is a free day in Athens. For that, I booked an all-day Athens tour with a private guide. It sounds great, but their tour does not include admission costs for the Acropolis and Museum. I'm told that the total time spent at both (with a guide) is about 3 hours. Not having any clue how in depth the Viking tour will be (I assume pretty much a half day based on the description), I'm not sure how much more time we'd need. Like any museum, one can spend a great deal or a minimal amount of time. Typically, at any museum, we're there much longer than, for example, the average trip advisor suggested time. Flip side of the coin, of course, is that since I already paid for admission through the Viking extension, it'd wind up like paying twice for those sites. The Viator agent indicated that the itinerary of the tour is flexible, "so there are other sites you could visit instead of the Acropolis & Acropolis Museum. For example the National Archaeological Museum, Ancient Agora and the Plaka District." She said to let them know at least the day before if I want them to rearrange the day's schedule. Any thoughts on either how extensive (or not) Viking's tour of the Acropolis and Museum are, plus any thoughts in general on how much time should be allotted (plus any additional advice) would be much appreciated. In my reply to Viator I told them that I probably can't make the decision till after we do the first day with Viking. I know from previous extensions it's usually not real in-depth sightseeing between disembarkation and transfer to the hotel, so if it'd be worth it to simply keep the Viator as is, that's fine. The beginning of their tour refers to 90 minutes visiting the Acropolis "and it's associated temples" including the Parthenon, Temple of Nike and Erechtheion, and also stopping at Herodes Atticus Theatre, followed by the Museum (allowing 1 hour). Then, the rest of the day continues on to several different places, lunch at Cape Sounion, and ending the day at the Temple of Poseidon. Thanks for any suggestions....

John...that truly is an amazing photo. I recall seeing the exact same one before at some point when we were sharing pics back and forth. Happy Holidays!

Mine too! The whole movie is just too funny. We also watch every year. Cracks me up every time even though by now we all know exactly what's coming next with probably most if not all of the script memorized. Some of my favorite scenes are with the neighbors. "I don't KNOW Margo..."...too much!!!

Clark Griswold to his Dad: "Our Holidays were always such a mess". Dad: "Oh Yeah, I know". Clark: "How'd you get through it?" Dad: "I had a lot of help from Jack Daniels" 😁

This is Marzi, wishing everyone a Merry Christmas...

Speaking of my Dad recently (relative to dementia), today 78 years ago he was captured in the village of Honsfeld during the 2nd day of the Bulge and spent the remainder of the war as prisoner. My Mom was expecting (with my older brother) at the time and had no idea if he was alive or killed. Can't imagine. May we continue to honor all still-living WWII vets and keep the memories alive of those no longer here.

True that. My Dad died from complications associated with dementia. It was a long and tough haul, with my Mom bearing the worst of it - she did her best for years - was his sole caregiver till she knew it was time for outside help. Would try to jog his memory with showing him picture albums, taking him places they frequently visited, doing simple math problems on paper (he was always a wiz with numbers), etc. It's so weird the way it works - like throwing every scrap of memory or knowledge from your brain into a big pot, stirring it all around till they're all mixed up. Then often totally unrelated and disjointed scraps of all that sometimes come forth as a partially coherent thought. Like a jigsaw puzzle where none of the pieces actually fit together anymore. My Dad once asked my daughter where she's living now, so she told him (she was still in High School), and then after he thought about it a bit he said, "I have a son that lives out there". NO connection between who she was and who I was. He used to say to me, "you're my buddy"...and, you know what? That became good enough. I think about him every day and simply know - from things that have happened since his passing - that it just seems he's watching over me. Some very uncanny things have happened over the years. He was a WWII vet, and German prison camp POW for the last 5 months of the war. One time he was at the dinner table and had that very thoughtful look on his face. Then after a good many minutes finally said, "well, I'll tell you one thing...war is hell". That was it. Nothing else. I guess that said it all. To this day I wonder exactly what memory he was experiencing right then.

It's true. I always think it's so strange to look at pictures of my parents or grandparents when they were far younger than I am now. Somehow, when looking at them, I still think of them as always being older than me. Weird. Oh my! How very tragic and sad.... I've heard it said, "Every day is a day of grace".

LOL...my Mom has been saying the same sort of thing relative to her recent 100th birthday. "Where did all the years go?" In the general scheme of things, e.g. the natural order and progression of the cosmos, geological time, etc., the span of a human life is so infinitesimally short. To quote the movie "Hearts in Altantis" (based on the Stephen King novel), "we're all just passing through..." So then I paraphrase another line, this one from the movie, "Titanic"....''make it count".

I suspect nobody does things quite the same way Disney does. Probably always at the cutting edge of what can be done with illumination, effects, etc.

JD....well said! BTW...Just noticed some really nice pics posted by "Radiationman" during a Northern Lights cruise. You probably saw them too - they come up on the sidebar of "new photos". Better pics than I got but then all I had (that worked to get much of anything) was my iPhone. Have a good one...Merry Christmas!

Thanks for keeping track of this. It will indeed be interesting to read a final report. Wouldn't it be cool to do another (far more informal) 'reunion' cruise at some point - not implying, of course, that Viking would be directly involved - since they've done way more than enough for us - but it'd have to start with a group of interested 'survivors' simply planning to choose and meet up on a cruise that would work for everyone. Likely turn out to be a fairly small group I suspect - much like a typical CC 'meet and greet'. I could see it now....the 2029 10th anniversary cruise of the Sky Survivors 😁 Get matching shirts for everyone..."we survived"..... My best to everyone and wishing you all a Happy, safe, and healthy Holiday season!

I thought so. Hope ours goes well. A bit longer trip than we typically do, after adding pre and post extensions. Just hoping for good weather (and good health...especially after getting covid during our most recent cruise). Not fond of traveling during the winter months. Getting snow and ice today but hopefully not much accumulation.