RachelG

Queluz palace—just noticed my autocorrect changed the name in the previous post

October 2, 2023-Lisbon, Portugal After another night of very smooth sailing, I was awakened at 6:15 by our doorbell. I ignored it at first, but it rang again, so I got up. It was a waiter with a tray of food. Now George NEVER orders room service for breakfast. I told the waiter, he looked at his ticket which said our room number, so someone apparently wrote the wrong room number and would be missing a breakfast. At any rate, I stayed up as the alarm was set for 6:30 anyway. As the sun rose, it was pretty foggy. We were just sailing under the bridge into Lisbon. We have been to Lisbon many times. Unfortunately today being Monday, our favorite restaurant is closed. The excursion for the morning was to Quevas palace, Cascais and Sintra. The cruise ship port is totally changed since we were last here. Back then you just walked down the gangway. Today there is a large port building with shopping, etc. We had to walk a long way to go through this to the buses. Our guide was really good. She spoke excellent English and talked just the right amount. We went first to the Quevas palace which is sort of a mini Versailles, modeled on it. It is very nice though it was crowded. The rooms are interesting and well preserved, and the gardens and fountains are great. One of the rooms was like a mini hall of mirrors. Next we went to Sintra which is a hilly town with steep steps and mazes everywhere. Unfortunately we only had 30 minutes, which is way to short to really see much. It was so crowded, sort of like Santorini on a 8 ship in port day. We just walked around a little, but no time to eat lunch or really shop. It would be a nice place without the crowds, but not today. Next was Cascais which is a flatter seaside town, more high end. We didn’t see anything here as George saw a Mac Donald’s and had to eat something. Very disappointing. Back to the ship, we hiked up into the city to a restaurant which was traditional Portuguese. The entire check for lunch, a bottle of wine which was good and big bottle of water was 22 euros! We wandered back to the ship in time for trivia and again came in 3rd. We seem to be stuck on that number. I went out to walk and get the few remaining steps needed for the day. It was very pleasant, not hot, with a light breeze. Tonight’s dinner was in Chartreuse. We started with the beet salad which was different than we have had before, same ingredients, just a different presentation as the beets were in chunks rather than thinly sliced. Next up was the famous mushroom soup. Then I had chicken, which I had never ordered before, but it was really good. George’s steak was awful though, so much so that he sent it back. It was dry and tough, definitely over cooked as was the foie gras on top. Terrible really. They brought him some of the same chicken that I had to replace it. The show was a flamenco dancer and violinist. They were good, particularly the violinist. Flamenco dancing isn’t something I normally would just sit and watch, but her costumes were great.

They change up some of the pasta dishes, mains, and soups every few days. So some things are always there but some come and go. Last night, they had a beef tenderloin which had not been available last week. And it was delicious. Some of the pasta dishes were different as well. The appetizers served at the table and the breads are always the same. The buffet portion has slight changes night to night.

Guimaraes

Guimaraes castle

October 1, 2023-Porto, Portugal What with the time change, George and I were up early, and up to La Veranda in time to witness a beautiful orange sunrise through the haze, just spectacular. Seas were completely calm all night. We could hardly tell we were on a ship. Forecast for today—warm and sunny. We had not been to Porto before, so had a hard time knowing what excursion to chose. We settled on the medieval city of Guimaraes as it featured walking and free time. We sailed in to a pretty ugly industrial port. Then out of nowhere a thick fog descended. Which was a blessing as we couldn’t see anything. We exited the ship through a very Guggenheim-esque white tiled circular like a snail port building. We drove through the city then hilly countryside with large forests of eucalyptus trees planted by the previous dictator. We arrived at Guimaraes which is an old medieval city. We walked all over seeing the old castle, churches, the city gates, lots of shops. Prices were very cheap, so we bought some souvenirs. Then we had a great pizza lunch, for very little euros. Back to the ship, there was still fog, weird as it was very warm and in the afternoon. We took a walk through the town, found a nice wine bar. I tried some vino verde. George had some port. We walked all over the went back to the ship. The fog had finally dissipated. The area around the cruise port actually looked nice. We just hadn’t been able to see that part. Again 3rd at trivia. We are stuck on that number. Dinner was in Sette Mare. The menu has a few changes. I had a very nice beef tenderloin. The show was a supposed duel between country and rock and roll. The singers and dancers were great, but the theme was very contrived. If they had just sang country or rock and roll, I would have been happy.

Good question . I think it was part of one of the Portuguese sections, but not totally sure.

We heard those bagpipes, and I thought the same thing.

Santiago de Compostela pics

St James path

Not sure why everything is underlined on the last post. Very strange.

September 30, 2023–La Coruna, Spain We had a nice sleep with the ship gently rocking. Waking up, it was kind of hazy outside. Tamps again in the low 80s. The haze quickly burned off, and it was a bright sunny day again. We have been to La Coruna before, years ago. My memory is of glass encased cafes, sort of like terrariums for humans, as it rains here a lot. We sailed into the harbor, again past a huge MSC ship, and were soon docked pretty much downtown, easy to walk if not going on an excursion. Our plan for the day was to do an excursion which involved hiking 4 miles of the St James trail, the famous pilgrimage path to Santiago de Compostela. This hike is one I have wanted to do for many years, so I figured the 6 mile portion would give us a little taste of it. We were 45 minutes late getting off the ship as all the tours were delayed. We drove through beautiful hilly forest to the beginning of our hike. Our guide told us it was impossible to get lost, just follow the markers, so we set off. The first part really was well marked, pretty flat and paved in places. There were lots of pilgrims, so we just followed the herd. There was a sign that said to turn right, so we did. We hiked quite a ways then realized there were only a few others on this trail, just the 10 of us in our group. We turned around and tracked back to the sign. Turns out, there were two trails going right, and we had taken the wrong one. We hiked on, now on the edge of a road Into a town. Lots of pilgrims were there, so we kept going, until we again realized no one else was around. This time, I could ask for help as there were shops around. We soon got back on the right trail and hiked through beautiful forest. Along the way, a cute little dog decided to join us. We eventually turned up at the bar where our guide was waiting. The little dog tried to get on the bus with us. We drove to Santiago de Compostela, but had very little time due to our late start, just enough to see the outside of the cathedral and get a snack. Disappointing. We drove back to port. I felt like a pillar of salt, so took a nice shower. We met up with friends in the Meridian Lounge then went to dinner in Compass Rose. They had a fresh local fish, a type of sea bream, on the menu which was outstanding. George ordered a ribeye, but I could tell as soon as it came to the table that it was not properly trimmed. And as a result, was very tough. He sent it back and got a filet which was perfect. The show tonight was Martin Kaye doing an Elton John tribute, and it was really good, particularly when he had his dad come up and play the piano. Very touching. Clocks go back an hour tonight, for whatever reason. I thought we were done with that.

Basque countryside

The bridge

Hiking to the lighthouse

September 29,2023–Bilbao, Spain We slept well again, and when I awoke, sun was shining brightly under the curtain. I was cooler than yesterday, with the high to be around 80. I could see some hazy mountains in the distance. We were a little late getting into port, a proper cruise port, beside a huge MSC ship. Our excursion today was to hike to the Gorlitz lighthouse. We boarded the bus. The guide, Joseph, was excellent, knowing when to talk and when to stay quiet. We drove past some huge mansions, then through beautiful countryside to a trailhead beside a beach. The trail was paved though a bit steep in places. We took off hiking though the fields. There were lots of nice looking cattle grazing. When we got higher, there was a sheer cliff to the ocean on one side. It was a great hike. Part two was to experience the Vizcaya bridge which was built in the late 1800’s by a student of the man who designed the Eiffel Tower. So lots of steel beams. There are two levels. The top, 160 ft above the river, is pedestrian. The lower, 30 ft, above the water , is a gondola which carries cars and pedestrians. We got todo both. It was a great view. The upper part is a little daunting as it is VERY high. Going back to the ship, we asked the bus driver to drop us off at the marina where there are restaurants. We found one and tucked into a huge tapas lunch. Fresh tomatoes, green peppers roasted, good bread, mussels, shrimp, cheese, octopus, and dessert of very different thick ice cream and a chocolate lava cake. Totally delicious. We walked back to the ship, arriving just in time for trivia, again coming in 3rd place. You would think that after all that eating at lunch, we couldn’t possibly have room for dinner. And you would be wrong. We had Prime 7 reservations. I decided to go light and had a salad and shrimp which were quite good, followed by berries. George had salad and a steak which he says is one of the better steaks he has eaten on the ship. I went to the show which was the 2nd performance by Foggy Flax who is an impressionist. He is a really talented singer as well. I regret not seeing the first show as he was excellent.

Fort Medoc

The moving bridge—only 12 inches to spare

We are onboard now. I should have brought more warm weather clothing. I didn’t bring a single pair of shorts. The past couple of days have been quite warm. Of course, that could change.

September 28, 2023–Bordeaux, France Another quiet night (since we aren’t moving), and a great sleep. The weather for today was forecasted to be same as yesterday, sunny with highs in the mid 80’s which is just about perfect as far as I am concerned. Our excursion for the morning was to the wine museum which is new since we last visited Bordeaux. We set off and drove around a for an hour, apparently wasting time until the museum opened . Very annoying. Just start the tour an hour later. But the museum, which really isn’t a museum, but rather an interactive experience, was great. We loved it. Could have easily spent more time there. But our excursion for the afternoon was to start at 1 pm. So we had 20 minutes between. We were off for Fort Medoc and Chateau Lagesson . The fort was really interesting. It was started by King Louis 14. It was to defend the entrance to the estuary. Not much remains but George and I hiked all around . We found a fruit orchard with fresh pears. And had a snack. Then on to the château where they produce very nice red wine. We had a grape tasting which was really nice, tasting the different grapes right off the vine. Back to the ship took forever due to a huge traffic jam. We eventually arrived and joined forgap and hubby in time for the sailout. There is a bridge in Bordeaux which rises and lowers as needed for ships. So it rose for us, and with only inches to spare. Very impressive. Dinner in CR was great as ever, then the show, Bohemian something, was really good.

Interesting sign

Bordeaux cathedral

St. Emilion

The wine estate

846, and yes, the problem seems solved for now. We will see when the ship sails again and is on rougher seas.