RachelG

Going there today.

Correct and yes, same wine estate

September 27, 2023–Bordeaux, France We had a perfectly calm night sailing, and I slept like a rock with the alarm clock waking me up, a rare occurrence. It was still dark, but we were pulling up to the pier in Bordeaux which is right in the middle of town. We had been here before about 17 years ago, but it looked much as I remembered when the sun rose with a riverside trail and joggers and bicyclists passing just outside the ship. The forecast for the day was to be clear with a high in the upper 80s. Our excursion for the morning was to St Emilion. We boarded the bus and drove through the city, across a very high bridge over the Gayonne River, and through lush countryside with grape vineyards on both sides. Shortly we arrived at a family run chateau where we were greeted by an American lady who is married to one of the sons of the owner. She gave a great tour of the property and had lots of useful information, particularly about the science of wine production, which I found very interesting. Then came the tasting, which involved two of the most spectacularly bad wines George and I have ever tasted. We were pretty disappointed, as we usually buy a couple of bottles when we visit a vineyard. We moved on the short distance to the town of St Emilion by bus. George and I had been there before as well, and it didn’t appear to have changed much. Steep and narrow cobblestone streets with wine shops and restaurants all around, plus some great views. We walked all over and settled on a wine shop offering tastings. And found absolutely delicious wines. George spent a small fortune and is having a case shipped back to home. Back to the ship, we ate lunch by the pool. I had a hamburger minus the bun, and it actually was pretty good, better than I have previously had on Regent. George had a hot dog, pizza and salad, all which he said were good except his hot dog needed more spicy mustard. For the afternoon, I did a walking tour of Bordeaux while George worked. The guide was the same as we had had in the morning, and she was very good. She knew when to talk and when to shut up. She walked at a good pace, and she would walk and talk at the same time. We saw the cathedral, the law school, the criminal court, city hall, the stock exchange, as well as a bunch of squares, cafes and shops. Most of downtown is pedestrian, so it was easy to walk safely as long as you paid attention and avoided the electric trams. I made it back to the ship just in time for trivia, and we came in 3rd. What British actress starred in the West End production of “Cabaret”? I don’t think any team got it right. We had dinner scheduled in Pacific Rim. This is a place I always over order. Tinoght would be no different. We had potstickers, spring rolls, soup. I ordered the lobster tempura which was great. George had some pork ribs. We were stuffed. Entertainment was a local traditional dance company. It was what I would expect.

September 26, 2023–at sea en route to Bordeaux We have a very rocky night. The seas were really rolling. With that and the time change, we were the only guests in La veranda at 8 am. Others began to straggle in, but it was really empty for breakfast. We had a leisurely morning, just catching up on emails, reading the paper, etc. there was a lecture and a future cruise presentation, as well as a cooking class. We just goofed off. The weather was partly cloudy, in the mid 60s with a bit of wind, and seas were still moving a bit. Fortunately we are not prone to seasickness. Those who are might have had a problem. We had a sea day lunch in Chartreuse with our friends. On seadays, they open up Chartreuse and Prime 7 for lunch. The menu is different than the dinner menu. Highly recommend. Our friends had gotten little sleep because they were awakened by a loud persistent noice in their suite about 3:30 am. It would not stop all night. Engineers and maintenance people were trying to figure out the source and were tearing out the ceiling while we ate lunch. After lunch, the sun had come out, and the seas and wind had calmed. It was perfect for one of my favorite activities onboard, walking on the walking track outside. The track on Splendor is probably my favorite on any ship. It is purpose built with a good walking surface and no obstructions, nice and wide. . I walked for about an hour while George went for a massage which he pronounced was the worst he had ever had. The lady put no effort in at all, even when he told her to use more pressure. He has complained. Trivia was a bust. Questions were really difficult, and there were no medical questions. So we did poorly. Tonight was the captain’s welcome. We had dinner and a special birthday celebration for one of our friends in Compass Rose. I would say they did a great job considering we were a table of 12. George’s lobster was perfectly cooked.

Ship from our hike

September 25,2023–St Peter Port, Guernsey, UK The ship did a bit of rocking and bouncing through the night as we cruised toward Guernsey. Nothing bad, just enough to know you are on a boat. My iPhone did some weird time zone shifting and woke me up at 6:30 am, except it was really only 5:30 am. But I was up for the day, and also now had to listen to George complain about me waking him up too early. We had a leisurely breakfast in La Veranda, seeing as we had all that extra time. Our friend Helen turned up. Her iPhone had done the same thing as mine. I was somewhat vindicated. Our excursion for the morning was pepper pot ramble. It was a hike. First we took the tender to the pier. It was really windy, and the tender was moving quite a lot. I was happy to have lots of experience getting into zodiacs. This was still challenging, but doable. A lot of people had difficulties. We boarded a vintage bus which was manufactured in 1954 and drove through nice neighborhoods to a spot near the coast. We began hiking, first to a “pepper pot” which was one of a series of lookouts used back in the 1700 and 1800s when the French kept trying to invade. The views along the coast were quite beautiful, very lush green vegetation on cliffs. It sort of reminded me of Hawaii. The temperature was supposed to be in the 60s, but it was definitely warmer. The hike was pretty steep at times, but there were steps on the steepest parts. The guide got annoyed with George as he was getting too far ahead. Eventually we ended up at a cemetery where over 100 German soldiers from WWII are buried. Guernsey was occupied by the Germans in WWII. There weren’t any major battles there, but a lot of the soldiers committed suicide because they feared being sent to the Russian front. We hiked on to an old battery on the coast with some old cannons and newer installations from WWII, then on down to a big swimming pool complex built in the ocean where our hike ended. George and I had lunch reservations at a restaurant in town, the Fat Rascal. The food was ok,but the best part was a blueberry crepe brûlée which was one of the best I have ever tasted. We shopped for awhile, buying cute expensive outfits for the grand babies, then took the tender back to the ship. Trivia was at 4:30, and our team came in 3rd,missing only 2 questions. There was an early evening lecture about various musicians, such as Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Carole King, by a guy named Bob Ray. It was pretty interesting. He has interviewed all these people, and I found his interview with Paul McCarney particularly fascinating. We went to Sette Mare for dinner, which was excellent. I have a hard time not over eating in this restaurant as everything just looks so good, and tonight was no exception. The appetizers fill you up, but who can resist more pasta and a main, then dessert, because the tiramisu is outstanding. I tried to eat reasonably, but it is difficult. George and I finally met forgap and husband on the elevator of all places. We will have to actually get together again soon. The entertainment tonight was a magician. We were tired and actually do lose an hour tonight, so decided to give it a miss. As soon as we were tucking into bed, the seas really started moving.

Picking grapes in Southampton

Sky museum. Sorry about the upside down flying. Don’t know how to fix it

They did have black pudding. I just tried to ignore that.

September 24, 2023–embarkation, Southampton England We had a great nights sleep. I have started taking melatonin when changing time zones, and that, plus being really tired, worked well. It was very overcast when we awoke, looking like it could pour rain at any moment. Temperature was 62F with some wind. We went down to breakfast which was a traditional English buffet with eggs, sausages, English bacon (yuck), tomatoes, baked beans, mushrooms as well as several different breads, cereals, smoked meats and cheese, and canned fruit. Only fresh was watermelon, and they had some sliced avocado. Fortunately there was good plain yogurt, so I had that plus tomato, avocado, and one bite of some enedible vegetarian sausage, while George did the full English thing, minus the bacon. Check out was at 11 am, so we packed up at a leisurely rate. The Uber arrived, and we were off to the port. There was a lot of traffic because they are having a huge boat show right next to the cruise port. Once at the port, check in was very fast and efficient. We arrived a little before noon. Lots of people had already boarded, and we were through checkin in less than 10 minutes. Our plan was to just check in, do the muster station check in which took less than a minute (you just go to the muster station, and they scan your keycard), drop our hand luggage in the suite, and go back out. And it worked perfectly. As we were heading off, we met friends Ed and Michelle, who we have sailed with many times before. They were up for a walk, so we joined up. We walked and walked. First stop was the Solent Sky Museum, which has a lot of old planes and tells the story of the manufacture of spitfires in Southampton. Today is the anniversary of the bombing of Southampton during WWII, an interesting coincidence. Even when the factory was bombed, most of the equipment inside was undamaged, so the industrious Brits moved the machines to multiple different locations throughout the city and surrounding area and kept producing spitfires. The Germans were enraged, so just started bombing the entire city, and it was pretty devastated during the war. A very interesting and unique museum which I would highly recommend. We then went to the Tudor House museum and gardens which is exactly what it says. Not much to see in the house, but the gardens had a grape arbor with ripe grapes, so we had a snack. Our final stop was the boat show which was HUGE. We are definitely not in the market for a boat (been there, done that), but they had every type of boat or boat accessory you can imagine. George just likes to look at them. Back onboard, I quickly unpacked. We have been on Splendor a couple of times before, and I am always astounded at how much storage space there is in the suite. I don’t pack light, and we still maybe only used half of it. All crew are wearing masks. Apparently covid is going around. There was a letter in the suite about taking precautions, etc, etc. We met up with friends in the observation lounge then moved on to compass rose for dinner. Everything was really delicious. I had a beet dish and the filet with asparagus. George had a salad and a seafood medley with shrimp, scallops and lobster. (Sorry, I didn’t take pictures). Then I tried to go to the show which was an introduction to the performers onboard, while George went to the casino. George ended up winning in the casino, but I got an urgent call from our son about an issue at the ranch, so had to leave the show. What little I saw was good.

View from our room

September 23, 2023–LHR to Southampton Our flight landed at LHR early, but you know what that means. We had to wait for a gate, so we arrived right on schedule. Getting through immigration and baggage claim only took about 30 minutes, so our driver wasn’t there. I called him, and he was actually in the car park, so turned up quickly. It was a pleasant bright sunny day, a little cool, but nice. This meant very heavy traffic on the freeway heading south as, according to our driver, everyone was headed to the seaside. A bit chilly for the beach IMO, but I’m not British. After 2 hours, we arrived in Southampton. I had booked a room at the Hilton at the Ageas Bowl which is a cricket pitch. The hotel is actually built into the stadium, and our room has a big balcony which overlooks the field. It would be very cool to stay here during a match, even though I know virtually nothing about cricket. Unfortunately, no match was on for today. The room is large and comfortable but no USB ports, and I had forgotten adapters. The front desk kindly loaned me two. While things recharged,we took a nap. We went down for an early dinner to the restaurant, Beefy’s. It is, as expected from the name, a steak place, but has a lot of other options. We had drinks at the bar first along with some of the best hummus I have ever eaten, and good pita bread. I am somewhat a hummus connoisseur, and this was really good. Then we moved over to the restaurant. We started with splitting a pomegranate and quinoa salad which was spectacular. All the stuff I love. George even commented to the waitress about how this was something I would make. George ordered a filet, while I had the fish of the day. My fish was excellent, perfectly cooked. George had ordered the steak medium rare, it came out raw dripping blood in the center. They were apologetic, took it back and cooked some more, and the second round was good. I had a bite, and it was a perfectly acceptable steak. Probably not as good as ours, but close. Then an early night in watching movies on tv as we were still tired from the journey.

September 22, 2023–en route In the family tradition of drama before a trip, we were on the way to the airport when I received a notification that our AA flight from Tulsa to Charlotte was delayed 45 minutes. This would be a big problem as we had only 30 minutes in Charlotte before our flight to JFK was to take off. Then from there we were to be on BA to LHR. I had a moment of panic and started researching options. You might ask why we are on a such a convoluted route—money. I had searched and searched for flights in business class using miles. I could find options from Tulsa to LHR but nothing at all coming back from Barcelona for any reasonable amount of miles. I considered using Regent air, but they wanted an additional $1000-$3000 per person depending on the route. So with major research, I finally found tickets for approx $3500 per person, and took the air credit, making it not so bad, plus we earn the miles. Most other flights I found were in the $6000-$7000 range, so I was happy. Anyway, while I was frantically searching,I received another message from AA that we had been rebooked and would now be flying to Charlotte, but then to Cincinnati then on to LHR. This was actually a better option for us than the original as we avoid JFK and we would get to LHR an hour earlier. I quickly emailed the driver we had booked with the change in arrival time, and we were set. Flight from Tulsa to Charlotte was fine, except that the plane’s temperature was that of a meat locker, and I am not joking. Even George, who never gets cold, was shivering. The flight from Charlotte to Cincinnati was only refrigerator temperature. I should have brought my parka. The Cincinnati airport was deserted with the BA flight being one of the few left to depart, a much better connection than JFK. I will keep this in mind for the future.

Jumping in here, George and I will be flying out tomorrow afternoon. See you soon!

Boarding in Vancouver has been chaotic every time we have done it, whether on Regent or Oceania, but this sounds awful. Forgap, so excited we will finally meet. George is the guy with the cowboy hat. I have grey hair now--that picture of me is old.

Have a great voyage! We fly out Friday heading to LHR to then board Splendor in Southampton.

At home, I do reformer pilates at least 5 days a week. The classes onboard are mat classes (no reformers), and not offered every day They usually offer either yoga or pilates, one or the other, every day, but time varies between morning and evening. So you really have to pay attention to the schedule. You are supposed to sign up the day before. But I have just shown up and been able to join in on occasion as most classes aren't full. The instructors vary in expertise but are mostly good. On our last cruise, it was a guy from India who was quite good with the yoga part. He had never done reformer pilates so had lots of questions for me.

you are off to a great start. We have been to the Galapagos 3 times, twice with Silversea and would gladly return. The new ship is amazing.

I don't typically read the reviews. My experience has been that people with an ax to grind are more likely to post reviews in general. I see this in my medical practice. About the only people who post reviews online are people who are upset about something--in my line of work, usually because they want more narcotics than are appropriate. I see about 100 patients a week and there are maybe 2-3 reviews a month.

We have disembarked at the Manhattan terminal a few times. Most recently was last October. Be aware that, as stated by others above, cars, car services, taxis, ubers, etc can't wait in the terminal. You have to cross the street. Barring unexpected complications, you should easily be able to make a 2 pm flight from La Guardia.

We have been both to Egypt and Israel and just used US dollars. They seemed happy to take them.

There is a shuttle bus to downtown. There is a huge mall downtown which is really nice. after our excursion to the WWII sites, we took the shuttle there and it was not a long distance. We had lunch and actually got some nice shopping done

The Battle of Okinawa excursion is a great one. Not sure why they couldn’t add more buses as it is an area. My husband could literally have spent all day at the park, so an option is just to get a taxi to take you there and wait for you.

We have dodged hurricanes a couple of times on cruises. Annoying to miss ports, but obviously no one can predict weather that far ahead.

InIstanbul, the port is right downtown in the middle of the city. Don’t really need a shuttle, and I don’t think there was one provided last year when we visited.