TigerB

I've not found myself in the same situation as you, but you can obviously access your Cruise Planner, it just won't show your cabin number. I would have thought you should still be able to make reservations, and pay where necessary, because they will be aligned to your booking reference. I would expect that, once your cabin is allocated, the bookings with be aligned to it on the My Holiday app/non-app by the time you board. Hopefully, someone with some experience of your dilemma will be along shortly to put your mind at rest.

I would agree with you, John, that there would hardly be any wheelchair users that travel alone on a cruise ship; probably none, actually. However, I will sometimes leave my wife alone in the cabin, and if she wanted to access the fridge while I'm out then she simply could not; that is not just if she is in her wheelchair, it also affects her if she is using her sticks to get around. From an upright position she cannot bend down to the level of the fridge; she would just topple over. That problem would affect many folk with mobility problems, who may be able to get around on sticks, but would not be able to bend down to the level of the fridge without risk of a fall or other injury. I would hazard a guess that some of those folk may travel alone. So Zap, to say it is not really a problem, is not really accurate, in my opinion. The same situation exists in some accessible hotel rooms we have stayed in, and many solo disabled guests use those. Now, that is a problem. And while I'm banging my drum, I often think that the designers of hotel rooms, or other areas in the hospitality sector that are supposedly adapted for disabled guests, don't fully appreciate every aspect of what a disabled guest really requires. We have yet to stay in an accessible hotel room that is absolutely perfect for its intended use, and does not create any obstacles for the disabled guest.

Firstly, what an adorable kitty🥰 Yes lad, use any of the images as you see fit. Through your transport link I would hope they would help others.🙂

Day 15 – Saturday 11th November – disembarkation A few days previous I had booked our disembarkation time for 08:30. We left the cabin for the final time an hour before that, said thank you and goodbye to John, and made our way to Pearl for breakfast. That location was chosen because it was on the same deck as the gangways and our lass wouldn’t have to bother again with the lifts; I would just pop up two decks to Sindhu in order to get the okay to leave. As we passed one of the gangways I heard a white shirt asked a couple where their cases were; they were heading off the ship. The woman said they had been collected from outside their cabin. The white shirt said they would have to wait until their allotted time. Then she said she was feeling sick and wanted to get off the ship. He was having none of it, and asked them to take a seat. I never really enjoy the last breakfast; it always feels so rushed and I have mixed feelings about being sad to leave the cruise and also about being happy to get home and see kitty; oh, and the kids. I needed to eat something though as it was a long journey home. We finished breakfast just before 08:15 and I left our lass near the gangway while I popped up to Sindhu. I was given the green light and we were off the ship just after 08:20. There was a bit of a queue along the airbridge and into the terminal, but once we were near the lift we went down in that. Surprisingly, the luggage hall wasn’t rammed and I found our cases really quickly. There wasn’t much of a queue to leave, and we were out of the terminal and at the CPS office very quickly. Our car was parked nearby in the disabled area; once we were loaded, the car was warmed up, and the sat-nav set, we were driving out of the car park by 08:45. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- That’s it for now; I hope you enjoyed reading. Sorry if it was a bit long winded, I can go on! It is just as well that I never went to university; I would never be able to get my dissertation down to the required word count.😯 I’ll be back on in a while with my post-cruise thoughts.

Day 14 – Friday 10th November – at sea It had been a very rocky night, but surprisingly we both slept relatively okay; I was dosed up with Stugeron and our lass is made of stronger stuff than I, despite her still being under the weather. This morning’s breakfast was in Coral, and it was the quietest we had seen it. Instead of seating guests from the back first, that being right on top of the back windows, they were putting most guests in the middle. Presumably they didn’t want folk, upon seeing the 9 metre waves while trying to eat their fry-up, and then return the said fry-up back onto the table or the floor. During the forty minutes or so we were in there, we heard crockery smashing at least half a dozen times. I joked with our waiter that, when we get to Southampton, someone is going to have to pop to John Lewis to get replacements. Afterwards, we went to the shops to spend the last of our OBC; some of the staff was having a job stopping some of the displays from going all over. We then sat awhile in the atrium, watching the horizon rise and fall rapidly. Even with the Stugeron, I was glad I didn’t have anything fried. Most of the day was spent chilling in the cabin or packing. The route shown on the TV had us on a course that was further east than the one when we were heading south; so we had been closer to, if not actually just in, the Bay of Biscay. Dinner this evening was in Olive Grove. I was determined that we weren’t going to have a repeat or the earlier debacle. I could see that there was a suitable two-seater table free in the alcove area, one of the tiled ones, which would be easier for the wheelchair. I asked if we could have that one; no problem. I checked to make sure he had menus with him as he escorted us to the table. Our waiting team were Ashok and his mate again; I never did catch the name of the assistant waiter. Anyway, what a totally different experience; Ashok was attentive, polite, and although not chatty, did not give us the cold shoulder. Surely he recognised us from the other night. Even when I said that I like to have a pint of Punk IPA rather than the smaller bottle, he said it was no problem; he took my card and sent his lad to Sindhu. We started again with the same starter... Main Our lass: Without the garlic bread Me... If tuna is on the menu, it’s almost a certainty that I will be ordering it. I was quite specific that I would like two steaks, but none of the extra paraphernalia, the gnocchi and all that malarkey. He said he didn’t know if chef would allow that but would ask. It’s not rocket science; cook two steaks and put both on one dish that already has the gnocchi and onions etc on it. Sure enough, this is what was delivered to our table... The couple on the nearest table could not avert their gaze. I bet they were both thinking the same thing: “Greedy knacker”. Well, if the cap fits! That’s better, all on one plate... Dessert Our lass: Me... I may have mentioned it previously, but I really love this dessert. I could probably mange at least four or five in one sitting. I may be badly afterwards, but there you go! Oh, and my coffee had ice cream, or rather gelato, with it. What are the odds? All in all, a very good final meal and with much better service from Ashok and his pal. We had originally planned to have a final cocktail before retiring, but the boss was past it. We returned to the cabin and finished of the booze we had brought with us, and I carefully packed the seven bottles I had bought into our cabin case and my satchel.

13 – Thursday 9th November – at sea Someone from the bridge, I didn’t catch who, had announced that there was a storm on our intended route; the plan was to take it steady today so we would miss it, then tomorrow we would go throttle (of sorts) as we pass by the Bay of Biscay. We were warned to expect a fair bit of motion. Time to take on more Stugeron! Four of the forward lifts were out of operation and, for the first time on either Iona or Arvia, I saw that this notice being displayed... It wasn’t so rough that we couldn’t enjoy a spot of lunch in Pearl Our lass: Me: I have to say, that was the best burger I had enjoyed onboard. Dinner - Opal It was formal night and dinner for us was in Opal, for the final time. Once again we were warmly greeted by the lovely Thandy. She apologised (no need to) that there wasn’t a suitable two-seater available; she pointed to the nearby table no. 123, a four-seater that was set for three, printed out the slip and handed it to me. “Have we to show ourselves to it”? I asked. “Where’s our escort”? She realised I was messing about, and we have a giggle. Our waiting team were once again the very efficient Elvis and Ventyl, the latter clearing the third place setting. We both had the same starters and mains... Neither of us fancied the soup course, so we each had another starter... That was absolutely beautiful; I could have easily had a couple more of those Main: Dessert Our lass: Me: What’s the point in having a nice dessert without adding a little extra?... That was definitely the best dinner we had eaten in the MDR on this cruise, and probably the best celebration meal we had eaten for a long time. The ingredients, flavours, and presentation were spot on. It’s a pity a couple of the other meals in the MDR fell quite short of the mark. There was one thing that evening that spoiled our experience, and I dare say that of other nearby diners too. On a table not far from us I saw a bloke stand up, throw his napkin down and head directly to the podium, where he directed a verbal outburst towards Thandy. I didn’t quite hear all that was said, but I got the impression that he was dissatisfied with the service from his waiting team. He was so rude to her; she though acted so professionally and tried to placate him. As he returned to his table I could see that she was visibly upset, but good for her not showing him that while he shouted at her. She walked towards the head waiter and spoke with him, pointing out the diner; the head waiter briefly spoke with the waiting time before going to speak with the diner. I do hope he didn’t offer him a bottle of wine. He then relieved Thandy so she could go off and compose herself. A little later, when the head waiter was doing his rounds, I beckoned him towards me. I told him I witnessed the verbal assault upon Thandy and that in no way was it her fault; I said she acted in a really professional manner. I said I was ashamed to be from the same country as the gentleman. The head waiter was trying to be diplomatic but I got the distinct impression that he was not at all pleased with the man’s behaviour. He then asked if everything was okay with us; I said that Elvis and Ventyl were spot on. Upon returning to the cabin, it was time for another Covid test. Negative!

Day 12 (cont'd) Dinner - Epicurean. Starter Our lass: I don't know why she orders this as she always ends up giving me the octopus. This time I said I would only take one off her; she had to eat the other one. You should have seen her face when she was eating it. "It's like chewing a dog toy", she said. Me: Main Our lass: Me: I have to confess that I forgot this dish comes with vegetables and potatoes, so with doubling up on the asparagus and chips, we had quite a table full. Dessert Our lass: Me: This dessert is not as described on the menu, with the tuile being absent; the ice cream was described to me as coconut and charcoal, and it was nice. As promised, we did have a bottle of complimentary ‘bubbles’; a bottle of Prosecco. The Assistant Bar Manager turned up to check if we were having a pleasant meal.

Day 12 – Wednesday 8th November – Lisbon This was our first visit to Lisbon, and with some folk on the ship saying how hilly it was and how it would be difficult in a wheelchair on the cobbled streets, we left the ship with a little trepidation. Ventura was parked behind us Outside the terminal passengers from both ships came together but were separated when it came to the regular shuttle buses. The accessible transport though was shared by both ships I counted two of this type, both of which had seven seats but could only accommodate three wheelchairs/scooters. Our lass’s wheelchair is 62cm wide and it was a little awkward for her to drive down the middle. Anyone in a wider bariatric chair would struggle. As it is, her special awareness is not good at the best of times, so when we arrived at our destination I had to put her chair in neutral and reverse her out; she would not have managed herself. The woman who appeared to be the chief shuttle wrangler/marshal was doing a good job at directing the transport and, with us not been able to get on the first one, she called for the second one to hurry up. As it happens, there were just us two and another couple on the minibus we were on; they were from Ventura. Going against what had previously happened at the other ports, with nobody scanning cruise cards of those on the accessible transport, the chief wrangler came on board and asked for our cruise cards. My wallet was buried deep inside the zipped bag on the back of the wheelchair, and with the wheelchair being so tight between the seats, and me being on the front seat, I had to reach around and try and recover my wallet ‘blind’. “Just a minute”, I said, “I’m trying to get my wallet out of my wife’s bag”. You would have thought she would have said it didn’t matter but she replied, “It’s okay, I will wait”. She wasn’t leaving that vehicle until she had scanned everyone’s card. Five minutes later we were on our way. The journey took about half an hour through heavy traffic on what appeared to be a convoluted route. We were dropped off at the Praça dos Restauradores, right outside a large Mango store. Given the journey in the minibus, I expected us to be a good five miles from the ship; as it happens, when I later checked on Google maps, we were only 1.2km away. The footpaths weren’t that bad for the chair, if a little uneven, and the dropped kerbs weren’t so bad. We just headed away from the drop off point, with no real sense of which way we were heading; just, as we normally do, having a bimble with the intention of stopping at a tourist tat shop and buying a magnet. We went along the Rua Áurea and when we ended up at the Praça do Comércio and could see Iona, we realised that the shuttle trip wasn’t really necessary. We walked/bouled up and down a couple of more streets, trying to avoid the beggars and fellas with menus in hand trying to get us to eat at their restaurants, and then made our way back to the ship, before it started to rain. So, Lisbon, or at least the part we saw, wasn’t so bad for the wheelchair. When we visit again, in February, we will likely sack off the shuttle and make our own way into the centre.

Day 11 – Tuesday 7th November – Cadiz A better night’s sleep was had by both of us and the boss was ready to face breakfast and the world. We both really like Cadiz, so it would be good to get off, if only for a while. The weather prospects were promising. Our captain must have won the virtual rock, paper, scissors contest with the captain of Ventura, as we got the premium berth; they were relegated to the one further away Breakfast this morning was in Coral and, as was common at breakfast, we were on a two-seater in a row of others. Luckily we were at the end, so when a woman two tables down with no volume control piped up and started asking where everyone was going today, she drew the attention of the couple next to us, who then acted as a buffer. We just looked at each other, trying not to make eye contact. While we were having breakfast my mobile signal came on and we were greeted with some more photos that cheered us both up... We got off the ship just after 10:00 and made our way to the north side, where the fortress is ...then back through the town towards the ship. Opposite the cathedral there is a small bakery called Casa Hidalgo, which sells nice tuna and onion pasties, and lots of sweet treats. After a previous visit in April, we were determined to visit again. This sweet bun with cream in the middle was as big as a small plate, and so moreish. We were back on the ship before 14:00; our lass still hadn’t got back her full appetite, so we just had a coffee in the atrium. We returned to the cabin for a rest and, after showers, got ready for dinner at the Beach House. We were shown to a table no.70, which was in a bank of three two-seaters with a four-seater at the end. This is how close we were to the next table... Luckily, nobody sat at the next table. Our waiting team were Rayu and Chrystilen. Our lass ordered a Birra Moretti, and I asked for a pint of Punk IPA. “We only have the bottles”, was the reply. “I know that you use the Crystal bar and they only have the bottles, but they do have it on draught at the Laguna bar”. “That’s the other side of the Sky Dome, sir”. “It is, but it is only a little farther away than the Crystal bar, and our waiter got me one from there the other night. No problem, I’ll go and get it myself”. “No, no sir, I’ll go and get it; I will just need your card”. Starter Our lass: Me: Main Our lass: I have to defend her here; she is not a little piggy, like me! Although that dish is listed as a sharer, she made it clear that she wanted just a half portion for herself. We were of course prepared to pay the full cost of the supplement. As you can see, she was brought the full plateful, for two, even with two baskets of fries; I was ‘forced’ to eat those! She just knew she was going to have the meat sweats for quite some time after this meal. Me: Dessert Obviously, our lass couldn’t manage a dessert. Being from Yorkshire though, and having paid for a three course meal, hers would not go to waste. Oh well, yet again I took one for the team! There were no shows that took our fancy, so it was off to bed to watch a film.

Day 10 – Monday 6th November – at sea Well, the back full of snot our lass was treated to the day before was now taking its toll; we presumed it must be that because she was fine beforehand. She had a really restless night, and that in turn disturbed me; she was sniffling and had a runny nose. She was wiped out! It was half an hour before the alarm was due to go off and there was no way she was fit enough to go to breakfast. I cancelled our reservation in Aqua. We both then tried to get a couple of hours more sleep. I awoke again just after 09:00; she was dead to the world, I roused her and she still couldn’t face getting out of bed. I was going to go to the Quays for some breakfast, but I really couldn’t be bothered to walk all that way. Instead, I just popped up one deck to Horizon. That was the first time I had eaten a breakfast from Horizon ....and it would be the last! After stepping off the stairwell, I followed seven people, all adults, who had just alighted from the lifts. On the route to Horizon we all took, we passed two sink areas and two hand gel dispensers; not one of them used them. I got my fruit and yogurt, a brew and a cup of apple juice, and found a table outside the buffet and near to the Crystal bar. I really could not be doing with the cacophony of noise from inside, including the folk coughing and spluttering. Of course, I washed my hands again before I sat down to eat I returned inside, again washing my hands thoroughly, and selected the food for my next course, being really careful not to touch my tray or plates with the same hand I used to hold the tongs. After placing my tray on the table, I went for another thorough hand wash before eating. A lot of people rave about the Horizon for breakfast, mainly about the many different items on offer; equally, many just hate it. Here’s my take on it: Yes, there is a lot of choice available. Of the items on my plate, I would not get them all in the MDR, or, if they were available I probably wouldn’t have thought to order them. By that virtue, there is a lot to be said for seeing something on a servery and thinking, “Ooh, I fancy a bit of that”. I could also have two pieces of fried bread without the glare of the missus. The only thing I had to ask for to be cooked fresh was the vegan bacon. That folks is where the platitudes cease. Everything else about the Horizon at breakfast I hated; the noise, the amount of folk pushing through to get to the serveries, with some loading their plates like they would never eat again, and a few folk touching food items and then not taking them. I had to hold my tongue, which was difficult, I have to tell you. Oh, and the coughing and spluttering. It made me think that the boss wasn’t the only one who had contracted something. While I was sat eating my breakfast, I watched folk entering Horizon; I would estimate that only about one in five used the hand gel. I’m not sure how many of those that didn’t then used the sink inside, as I could not see it; I suspect though that number would be very low. One fella, used the hand gel, and as he walked into Horizon he then sneezed into his open palms. The fact that he then wiped his hands on his shorts suggested to me that he probably didn’t then wash them once inside. So, although the food I actually ate was nice enough, I would certainly not return for breakfast. Upon my return to the cabin I caught John, told him not to bother with a clean, and just swapped out the dirty towels, cups and glasses. Sleeping Beauty was not so much sleeping but, even in her sickly state, she was still a beauty nonetheless. I got back into bed and we stayed there for at least another three hours. When we finally got up, and showered, we did a Covid test; negative, I’m glad to report. We had reservation for afternoon tea in Epicurean and it was touch and go if would actually attend. Our lass decided she would give it a go; anything she could not manage would not go to waste, not with me around anyway! Afternoon Tea It’s been over five years since we had had the paid-for afternoon tea; that was on Britannia, back when it was (sort of) curated by Eric Lanlard. I cannot help myself from referring to him as Eric Lanyard. I recall it to have been at that time, what I can only describe as a poncey affair, with the sprays and lollipops and such like. This is the menu we had... I recall that on our last visit were asked what sandwiches we wanted, which was good as I could choose ones that did not contain meat. Not this time: they were already on our table... I had the two lobster rolls, and sick-note had the chicken ciabattinas; we both had a piece of salmon tart each. The menu didn’t show if all the cakes were vegetarian, so I asked our waiter; only the blueberry cheesecake contained gelatine. He brought me an extra chocolate sphere which, if you look at the photo, wasn’t actually spherical in shape, it was more like a cup. The portions of jam and ‘clotted cream’ that wasn’t really clotted cream were paltry, so I had to ask for more; I also had to ask for butter, as I like that with my cream scone. The boss managed to eat all that was allocated her, apart from one scone and half of her chocolate ‘sphere’; her loss, my gain! I think the tea costs £17.50 each, if booked onboard. We pre-booked so benefitted from the 20% discount and the further Peninsular discount. All in all, the tea was generally okay, but we probably wouldn’t have it again. Incidentally, this is the GF version... We returned to our cabin and remained there for the remainder of the afternoon; our lass could not be doing showing her face in public areas, and did not want to pass whatever she had on to others. Dinner tonight was supposed to be in the Beach House; I had deliberately booked a late sitting, well, late for us at 19:30, because of the afternoon tea. It got to almost 18:30 and she still wasn’t ready to face the world; we were both still quite full of cake. I called the reservation line and asked if we could change the booking to the next night; no problem at all. I then cancelled our Opal reservation for the next day. We remained in the cabin for the rest of the evening, apart from a quick visit to Taste 360 for me, to grab a couple of pizza slices just before they closed.

Day 9 – Sunday 5th November – Valencia We left the ship quite early, for us anyway; we were at the shuttle pick up by 09:20, and we on our way less than ten minutes after that. We were glad that they weren’t using the same buses as were used in April, the regular buses that could only manage up to two wheelchairs. No, the accessible vehicles were actually small coaches, with a side access lift. They were using two that were exactly the same; they could easily fit six wheelchairs/scooters in, eight at a push, and had nine seats for carers/companions. They were by far the best accessible shuttles we have used at any European port. @Red Leicester, you can use the above if you want in your transport link; I will suspend copyright for now!😉 Knowing that we were to be dropped off at the Science Park, we weren’t bothered about doing what we did last time, and walking/bouling through the park and then into the city centre. There were a few newbies on our coach, so I did explain the route to them. For us, it was a gentle bimble around the Science Park area... ...and then across the road to the shopping centre. There is a huge Carrefour there, and they stock a good range of GF sweets; after buying half a hundredweight of said sweets, we headed back to the shuttle pick up. One of the shuttle wranglers was wanting to us on a large coach, one of the ones that has a lift towards the back, and only carries one or two wheelchairs. That was ironic as, when we visited in April we waited a really long time for one of the buses to arrive, and in that time at least five of those coaches came and went, all with wheelchair lifts, and not one driver attempted to operate the lift. I saw the mini coach pull up, so I told the lady that we would go down to that one. When we got back to the ship, we went to our cabin to drop off the sweetie haul; our lass also took off her top and asked me to clean the back of her neck. You see, on the first journey the guy behind her leaned forward and sneezed all over her top and neck. She didn’t say anything to him as he appeared to have special needs. DINNER – OPAL Back in Opal tonight, we were shown to a two-seater in a row of others. No, that’s no good! As it happens, there were some high chairs stacked nearby that would have caused problems for our lass getting in and out; I said it would be awkward for my wife in her wheelchair, and asked to sit at the end table. Our waiting team were Nino and Jean Paul. I think this was the most disappointing meal, for me anyway, of the entire cruise. Starter Our lass: Me: The mains really didn’t appeal, so I would compensate by having two starters... This was nice. The lady on the table next to us had the GF version of this and, from the taste of it, I think I did too; it was disappointing. I began to wish had had chosen two of the asparagus dish. Main Our lass: Me; This was a bad choice, but that was my fault. I don’t really do heat. With the description of ‘spiced’, I thought it would be mild, similar to dishes on an Indian or Chinese menu that have one chilli next to them to indicate the level of heat. No! It was spiced to the power of three; too much for my delicate palate! I left it all. Dessert Our lass had the cheese plate; you know what that looks likes. I had: and... They were okay, but nothing special Later, there was another medical emergency. While we were waiting on deck 8 to move off, there was another ambulance in attendance; the crew boarded the ship with a gurney that had a load of medical equipment on it. Not a good sign. I was back not long after 22:00 to see the ambulance crew leave the ship, with the gurney and all the medical equipment on it. I had hoped that was because the patient was fine, but thought it was likely because they had passed away. That was confirmed the next day by a couple who had a relative working onboard. It is not at all uncommon, but still very sad for all those concerned. We didn't leave until almost 02:00; it is my understanding the main reason for that was because the stevedores had gone to do other duties on the port. While we were on deck earlier, we saw a scrawny stray cat on the dockside, in and out of the marquees. It made our lass sad, and caused her to pine for our own kitty. While I still had mobile data, I messaged the owner of the cattery and asked for a photo... It cheered her up no end 🙂

Day 8 – Saturday 4th November – Barcelona As we ate breakfast, we were just parking up... Nearby was a small ship sandwiched between two much bigger ones; I couldn’t make out what hey all were, but the one nearest to us looked like an MSC one. I was aware that there should have only been Iona and MSC Virtuosa in port, so the expected storm that affected our schedule could have had an impact on the schedules of the other two. After chatting with family, we left the ship and made our way towards the shuttle minibuses. The accessible ones were the same as we had in April; they could easily take four wheelchairs, maybe a couple more if they were small, and had eight seats for companions. One was just being loaded, and when it left another one was waiting nearby, and pulled up next to us. From arriving at the kerbside to leaving was less than ten minutes. As was common in April, and also for this trip so far, nobody scanned cruise cards for anyone using the accessible vehicles. That is how it should be, in my opinion. (Light blue touch paper...) We have been to Barcelona a couple of times, and stayed for a week once, so we weren’t bothered about doing loads. This time we just wanted to have a bimble along La Rambla, and visit the Mercado de La Boqueria. As we drove away from the port, we noticed that it was the Norwegian Dawn sandwiched between the much bigger MSC ships. She was the first cruise ship we sailed on, from Quebec, an age ago. That brought back happy memories. It was spitting as our minibus pulled up at the drop off point, so I looked for some shelter before we went on our way. As it happens, before our lass and her chariot were taken off the minibus, it had stopped. We knew where we were going so made our way directly to the bottom of La Rambla; some road works made it more troublesome than it should have been. Once we got a little way up La Rambla, we started to wonder if it was such a good idea. It was less La Rambla and more like La Rammed. Now, wheelchair users and their carers/companions will absolutely get this; when open public areas are densely populated, it is extremely difficult for a wheelchair user to navigate. That is mainly because an awful lot of folk don’t look below chest height and are oblivious to said wheelchair users. That makes for one or two clipped ankles! It was very tough going for our lass, and she was getting very frustrated with ‘blind’ idiots walking across her path. When we got to near the market entrance, but didn’t even bother crossing the street to it. There was clearly no room for a wheelchair amongst that throng. Think Borough Market on a Saturday, and them some! We carried on along La Rambla; I remembered it opened up into a large square (Plaça De Catalunya) at the top, and there is a Cortes Inglés there. Near to the top, it was just a solid sea of people, and we then discovered why; people were gathering at that location for the start of a day of the dead parade. We crossed the street to get away from them. Hurray! We had reached the square at the top. And she had only taken out the ankles of six people; not a world record for her, but not far off. She did ask me to find out what the Catalan translation was for, “I’m sorry, it’s totally your fault”. When walking/bouling across the square, it struck us how many pigeons there were; there were loads of folk feeding them and putting out large plastic bottles cut in half and filled with water. In Barcelona they are clearly not treated with the same disdain as back at home. After a visit to Cortes Inglés, we headed back; this time along a less rammed street that passes the cathedral. Once we were at the shuttle pick up area, the driver that dropped us off saw us; he pointed to an area where we should wait and he drove to us. Unfortunately it was the area for the MSC shuttles, and a very officious woman with an MSC tabard on, shooed him away. We made our way to him, it wasn’t far, and as he was dropping down the lift, I said to him, “She was a right jobsworth, wasn’t she”? He laughed, but I have a strong suspicion that he didn’t understand anything of what I said. He was probably thinking, in Catalan, “just smile and wave, just smile and wave”. Once we were back on the ship we decided that if we were on a cruise that docked again in Barcelona on a Saturday, we would either stay on the ship, or take a bus to the area where the Olympic stadium is. With not visiting the Mercado de La Boqueria, I missed out on my tuna empanadas that I was so looking forward to. So, our first visit was The Quays. For the lady: a burger and some southern fried chicken. For me: the classic Catalan delicacy of... Not quite up to the standard of Whiteheads in Hornsea, but they filled a hole. Incidentally, for those of you who suffer with coeliac disease, or a gluten intolerance, and don’t already know this, the chippy in The Quays on both Iona and Arvia serve GF fish and chips. Just tell them when you are at the counter, and the fryer will wash and change gloves, coat your fish in GF batter and fry it in a dedicated fryer. The chips are already GF. I’ve passed that tip on to our eldest daughter who is sailing on Arvia. Tonight is the first visit on this cruise to Olive Grove. I’ve previously written that were prefer this one on Iona to the one on Arvia. I just hoped it lived up to expectations. Well........ I think things started to go wrong when I refused the table that the restaurant host was trying to give us. It was right at the entrance and, although it was suitable for the wheelchair, we were not going to be a side show for the folk that frequently come to the podium to have a nosey inside. He then showed us to a table for two farther into the restaurant; it had a bench seat, which I don’t much care for, but there weren’t any others that were suitable for the wheelchair, and I didn’t want to cause him any more hassle. Our glasses were filled with water by a young lad, and that was it.... Two minutes later, and no menus. Two minutes turned to five minutes, and still no menus. Waiting staff were going back and forth, but none approached our table. Upon looking around, the penny dropped. The restaurant host, when showing guests to their tables, gives out the menus. He must have been flustered by us not wanting to sit where he wanted us to be. I tried to get his attention but he didn’t see me. A couple more minutes went by and our lass had had enough. She stopped a lad in his tracks; “Excuse me, can we have menus, please”? “Would you like to order dessert, madam”? was the reply. “No, we want to order our starters and mains”. It turns out the lad was our assistant waiter, I didn’t catch his name; but, how could he not realise that we had not yet ordered anything. He returned with menus and we were left another five minutes. He returned to take our order. Whilst waiting for our food, I clocked the guy who I thought was perhaps our waiter – Ashok. It was him that delivered our starters. In doing so, he did not say a word, absolutely nothing! We saw him engaging with other diners nearby, though. The assistant waiter cleared our plates, and asked us if we enjoyed the starter. A few minutes later, Ashok delivered our mains; again, stony silence! We again saw him engaging with other diners. We concluded that he must have been embarrassed because he failed to realise that we were waiting so long and hadn’t even been given the opportunity to order. We thought that must be why he sent his assistant waiter to take our order. But why the silent treatment? All that was needed was for him, when he first approached our table, to apologise for the wait, and then we could all move on; water under the bridge! But, his actions just caused us to become more frustrated. We finished our mains, and the assistant waiter cleared the table, and brought the menus for us to order dessert. Ashok returned to take our order. Would he actually have to speak to us? I decided to break the ice, so when I placed my order, I did a very rare thing (truly) and ordered two desserts. I said to him that I was a greedy get; he cracked a smile! So, the food... We shared this starter... Oops! I forgot to take a photo! That is listed on the menu as a sharing plate; if I’m honest, it isn’t enough for two, but is maybe a little too much for one. Mains Our lass: Me: Dessert Our lass: Me: and... I really do like that Crema Catalana Well, that was an something. For us, an isolated experience of very poor service. We couldn’t fault the quality of the food though. One thing though that I noted for a future visit; I had a view of the pizza kitchen and could see the chef preparing the pizzas. I cannot be certain, but it looked like, when he was putting the toppings on, he was not changing his gloves between handling meat and vegetables. That was enough to put me off ordering a pizza in the future. After we had finished it was getting on to nearly 20:30, and we were due to leave at 21:00. We made our way to the port side of deck 8 to watch the pier runners, or more accurately for this port, the airbridge runners. One of the airbridges had been retracted. It appeared that a group of passengers were being held back from entering the one that was still connected to deck 6. There was also an ambulance and port police car in attendance The passengers were then moved back into the terminal building, and the second airbridge was retracted. A gangway was then extended from near the front of deck 3 or 4. The ambulance moved to near it, and someone was taken off the ship in a wheelchair, and then placed in the back of the ambulance. I couldn’t tell if it was a passenger or crew member, but I really felt for them. The passengers who were held back then appeared at ground level, and were escorted to the gangway to board the ship. Our lass was now past it, so wanted to go to bed. Upon our return to the cabin there was a note waiting for me; it instructed me to call the Bar Team Leader. When I called him, he asked me if I could meet him in the Glass House to discuss my problem. I said I would be down in a few minutes, after getting my wife settled. He was waiting for me in the quiet area of the Glass House. Before we got down to it, he got me a pint of Punk IPA. When he returned he had the Assistant Bar Manager with him. Two thoroughly nice chaps, who listened to my concerns. They had already been made aware of the incorrect menus being on My Holiday, and said it is a fleet wide problem and down to the IT team back in the UK. An IT problem with P&O; you don't say? They were both perplexed by the charge of £1.25 for a dash of lime on the first day. The Bar Team Leader took the print out of the transaction I had been given the day before, and said he was going to speak with the waiter concerned. He cancelled that transaction, and told me that the overcharges that have already gone through will be adjusted. He then wrote down on a chitty what I should be charged for both a pint of Punk IPA and a large soda and lime; he then signed that and said, if I get overcharged again I should show it to the waiter or bar staff. The Assistant Bar Manager asked what else he could do for me to make it right. I said that what they had already done was fine; I wasn’t looking for anything else. I said I knew the crew had no control over what was published on the app but, with P&O pushing passengers to embrace the app, it would lead others to question what they had been charged, and the knock on effect could be a long queue of angry passengers at reception on the last day. He thanked me for that, and said again that he wanted to do more for me; he asked if I drank wine. I said I did, but my wife wasn’t a big wine drinker. “Bubbles then”? “Sure”, I replied. I then said we had a reservation in Epicurean in a few days. He told his colleague to make sure we had a chilled bottle of bubbles waiting for us when we dined. I was wholly satisfied with how the situation was dealt with. I also found out something during that meeting that I wasn't aware of previously. The 10% tax imposed by Spain whilst docked or in Spanish waters, doesn't apply to all cruise lines; it's down to what can be negotiated. I joked that the Spanish government are making us have it for Brexit. The thing is, there's probably some truth in that! I then made my way, with my half-finished pint, to the 710 Club for what would be my last visit of this cruise. Tonight it was Supergroup Sound.

Day 7 – Friday 3rd November – at sea After breakfast, we had a bimble around the ship and visited the shops. Some of our OBC went on this bangle and limited charm... That’s our lass’s wrist by the way, not mine! She was determined that the only way to balance the scales on me spending £85 on duty free booze the other day was to get something from Pandora. After all, you can never have enough Pandora bracelets and charms, can you ladies? Well, my missus can’t anyway! They cost £95, so I think she won that contest. Going out on deck later, we wondered where the storm from Blighty that the captain promised us was; it was a lovely day. In the afternoon, while we sat a while in the atrium, I decided to go to the reception to ask about the bar charges. I explained the situation to Charmaine and also asked for a breakdown of our first charge; she printed that off for me. The charge of £8.85 from the Keel & Cow bar showed the following breakdown: Punk IPA - £5.55 Soda water - £2.05 Lime - £1.25 It was quite obvious the waiter/bar staff had dropped a major one there! I can get a full bottle of lime cordial in Sainsbury’s for that. Charmaine said she would get someone from the food and beverages team to call me. I said I would rather have a sit down with someone. She sent an email. DINNER – BEACH HOUSE At 19:00, the reservation here was a bit later than we normally dined in the MDRs. Truth be told, when I booked the MDR reservations on our first day, 18:30 would have been an ideal time to eat, but the 18:00 slots were the latest available. We were initially shown to a two-seater table in a bank of four; that certainly would not do, so I said it was no good for my wife’s wheelchair. I pointed to a proper two-seater, no. 12, with the nearest table being a four-seater about four feet away. Our waiting team were Kristoffer and Alex. The boss ordered a pint of Birra Moretti. The drinks for the Beach House come from the Crystal bar, and they only sell Punk IPA in a 330ml bottle. I am not paying five pound odd for that when I can get a pint for ten bob more. I told Kristoffer that they don’t have what I drink, so I will go to the Laguna bar and get it myself. He asked what I wanted. He then asked for my card, which he gave to Alex and sent him on his way. A few minutes later, my pint was placed on the table. Top service! So, the food... Starter Our lass: Me: Mains Our lass: She wasn’t keen on the crab cake, of which there was only one; she said she had eaten much better ones in the US. I was forced to take one for the team, and had the rest of it. She absolutely loved the mahi-mahi goujons. Me: Two mini tortillas? Are they having a laugh? They clearly haven’t met me before! So, I asked for two more tortillas and more sour cream and guacamole. I’m not a great lover of halloumi; it’s a wee bit rubbery for me. The only other options though were both meat. I would happily pay the £2 supplement if they did prawns instead. Surely that wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for them, as they are on a few other dishes. I think next time we eat in there, I will ask for prawns. Dessert Our lass: She’s not that keen on the mojito sorbet or the poke cake (her loss, my gain), but she absolutely loves roasted pineapple. Me: I’ve had this a few times, and it never disappoints. Afterwards, we went to the Club House for the 21:30 Yzzy slot. Our lass ordered a large lime and soda (still £2.15) and I took a walk to Sindhu for my pint, which is only served in a 330ml bottle in the Club House. I returned, and it was still another five minutes before her drink was delivered from a bar just thirty feet away. When we arrived bang on nine o’clock, Yzzy was just finishing her first set; she had gone fifteen minutes over. Anticipating the same again, I cancelled my booking for the 22:30 set in the 710 Club. Just before she performed her last song, there was a drunk guy heckling her; being a northern lass, she put him in his place. When we left after the show, the same guy was laid on a bench, sparko. One of the waiters had called over a white shirt to see to him. Right, time for bed!

Day 6 – Thursday 2nd November – Malaga This was our first visit to Malaga, so we were looking forward to it. It had the makings of a good day. After breakfast we sat near the sunset bar so we could get a good mobile signal and chat with family. Before we got off there had been a number of announcements to state that, due to the bad weather coming our way from the UK, and due to hit the Mediterranean tomorrow, the stop at Alicante was being cancelled. Instead, we would stay in Malaga into the night, and leave at 05:00; the next day we would be at sea, I suppose on a route that avoided the storm. We left the ship at about 10:30 and found where the accessible shuttle was leaving from. One had just left, so we waited with others for the next one. Our lass was fourth in the queue of wheelchairs. When the mini bus arrived they started loading up from the back, she was the last one on. I then boarded the vehicle from the side to discover that there were only three seats for carers. I was told that I would have to get the regular bus and follow. No way was that happening; I explained to the woman that I need to stay with my wife, and said I would stand in the back with her. No, they wouldn’t allow that. So I told them to take her off the vehicle. While they were doing that, I found a couple of white shirts and told them of the situation; I asked what the point is of having an accessible vehicle that easily takes four wheelchairs, but only three companions. All I got was that there were three vehicles running, and the next one was on its way. Sure enough, about five minutes later the next one arrived. It though had a side lift and could only take two wheelchairs; the rest of the vehicle was taken up with fourteen seats. The third vehicle was exactly the same! It turned out it wasn’t a great distance to where we were dropped off, and our lass reckoned we could make our own way back without too much difficulty. Malaga was nice, and was really easy for our lass to get about in her wheelchair. We did our usual thing, bimble about the city centre to get our bearings, and see what’s what, buy some tourist tat, and return to the ship a couple of hours later. Once on the port area, in only took about thirty minutes at a slow pace to get back to the ship, and that included looking in a couple of shops along the way. We had considered going back out later, but the black clouds approached, and it looked like it may hoy it down. We wouldn’t mind visiting on another cruise; and we would plan to do more next time. DINNER – OPAL We were seated at table no. 111, a proper square two-seater with no immediate neighbours, in same section we were in on the formal night; this time though there were no kids! Our waiters were Vijay and Kevin; probably because it wasn’t as busy as the other night, they didn’t split the tables between them this evening. Starter Our lass: Me: Main Our lass: She said this was lovely Me: If this fish is ever on a menu you can bet I'm always going to have it Dessert Our lass: Me: Afterwards, our lass was a bit wiped out, so we returned to the cabin. After sorting her out, I went to do my own thing. I sat a while on deck 18, making the most of the mobile data; then I went to 710 Club for the On The Rocks set. Afterwards, I went to check on our lass before attending the Club House to see the midnight set of the comedian, Ignacio Lopez; he was billed earlier as a Spaniard who grew up in Wales. He was actually quite funny. He was not impressed though that he would not make his flight from Alicante the next day, and would have to get off at 04:00 and fly from Malaga.

Day 5 - Wednesday 1st November - at sea: Not much happening today. The weather changed for the better after entering the Mediterranean Sea and lots of folks were out on deck trying to change their milky white bodies. We spent a couple of hours on deck 18 starboard side, near the Beachcomber bar. DINNER – SINDHU We dispensed of pre-dinner drinks in Tiger’s Bar, instead opting to get to Sindhu at least twenty minutes ahead of our 19:00 reservation, so we could enjoy a cocktail. Our lass had this... She said it tasted like a Yop! I have to agree I had this... All (ice) fur and no knickers! The restaurant host acknowledged our presence but, when it came to our allotted time I went to the desk to check if our table was ready. It was another ten minutes before we were called in. There wasn’t a queue, and it wasn’t particularly busy, so I don’t know why it took that long. We were seated at table no. 951, a two-seater that we had sat at before, both on Iona and Arvia; we had a good view of the kitchen area. Our server was the efficient Evalene. I ordered a Punk IPA and the boss had, yes, you guessed right, a large lime and soda. £5.55 and £2.15 respectively, so at least I now know for sure the going rate of a large lime and soda. Starter Our lass... She almost always has this; she absolutely loves crab. I’ve had it several times before, but I’m not a great lover of crab; I can take it or leave it. Me... I’ve had these before, and like them. I put a little mango chutney on each and pop them whole into my mouth. For clarification, they are really small; I haven’t got a really big mouth! Mains Our lass... Me: I don’t eat meat, but I have to admit that hers looked better value than mine; her lobster may have been a little smaller, but she the two meats also, and an onion bhaji. I started to formulate a plan for our next visit: ask for what she had but swap out the two bits of meat for lobsters! She was full after her main, so it was down to me to fly the flag with dessert. On previous visits I have been working my way down the list, so tonight it was the turn of this... I have to admit, that was not my favourite. Afterwards, we popped to the casino for half an hour on the slots; we then retired to our bed chamber, £20 the richer.

Day 4 - Tuesday 31st October - Vigo: Iona was already tied up when we went for breakfast in Coral. When we finished we went to the Sunset bar area on deck 8 to watch Sky Princess park up behind us. The skies were blue with some cloud, and it had the makings of a good day, albeit showers were forecast for later. We let the rush die down before we got off, about 11am. We walked around the harbour and into the town; it was quite hilly in parts. After looking around for the best part of almost two hours, and getting the obligatory magnet, it looked like the heavens were going to open. We made our way to the ship via a walkway into a shopping centre near the quayside; it was then that the rain started. Brollies out! I think everyone had the same idea to return to the ship before it started chucking it down, as the queue was about fifty feet long before we got under cover and out of the rain. There were a few that had joined the Sea Princess queue, and had stood in it for a few minutes before realising their mistake, and then joining the back of our queue. Read the signs, guys; they are in English to help you. It was still another fifteen minutes before we got through customs and were walking to the ship. We returned to our cabin to change out of our wet clothes. Then it was to the Quays, a burger and southern fried chicken for her, the veggie option from Fusion for me. We actually ate them in the seating area of Ripples, as it is always difficult to access suitable seating for a wheelchair user in the other area. I am an advocate of P&O having, like M&S and other cafes provide, priority tables for disabled guests. But, as I understand it, P&O claim to treat everyone the same, so why would they do that? Dinner - Opal We went down to dinner a little early, and sat in the atrium on deck 6 for a little while. We are not fans of Halloween at all; in fact, if we were at home it would be lights off, doorbell switched off, telly on loud. However, it was good to see all the kids dressed up and excited. There was to be a costume competition in the Club House; we had no intention of attending, but we could tell a few of the adults were intending on doing so, judging by the effort some of them had made. I lost count of the number of Maleficents I saw. There were certainly a lot of witches on our ship, not all in costume! For the second time, Thandy apologised for giving us a four-seater for our own use. What a lovely girl. We were seated on table no. 236, not far from the entrance; it was ideal. Given that so many folk were making an effort with the whole Halloween thing, you would have thought the chef's would have reciprocated with a decent menu. Not so; it was quite lacklustre. Starter Our lass: Me: Main Our lass: She said that was the worst pie she had ever been served in a restaurant ....anywhere! It was a pot pie with a shortcrust top (she left that), and the ratio of kidney to steak was about 2:1 Me: That was the pick of a bad bunch! Dessert The usual for our lass... ....and for me... with the obligatory... Afterwards, we sat a while in the Emerald bar; a Punk IPA for me, and a large lime and soda for the lady. £5.55 and £2.15 respectively, so looking to be consistent throughout the bars. After an hour, our lass had had enough of witch's hats and fake fangs, so we headed back to the cabin. She settled down to watch a film, and after sitting with her for a while, I headed to the 710 Club. Tonight it was The Nation's No. 1s.

Day 3 - Monday 30th October - at sea: Today was to be a day for chilling and bimbling about the ship; we had a look in the shops too, checking out the prices of booze and scent, with a view to check how much it was at home, once we got a mobile signal the next day. I checked my account and saw that the £7.40 charge for my cocktail the evening before had been cancelled; a new charge of £8.65 had been made. When we were later sat in the atrium having a coffee, I downloaded the entire bar menus to find that they were all published in May, and showed the old prices. I resolved to go and get it sorted at some point. To me, it was the principal of the thing, and something that many others would not have been aware of. P&O are pushing for everyone to embrace the My Holiday app/non-app, so if folk are using it to check bar prices, and they are wrong, that's not good. Our lass's regular drink is a large lime and soda, which is not listed anywhere. It was previously £1.95, and in June had gone up to £2.05. I wasn't sure how much it had gone up to now, but what I am sure about is that is hadn't gone up to £3.30! That is how much we were charged on our first day. Yes, that is right. When we had our first drink in the Keel & Cow bar, after boarding, I had my usual pint of Punk IPA, and she had her usual large lime and soda. On checking that charge today, I discovered we had been charged £8.85. So, after taking off the new charge of £5.55 for the Punk IPA, our lass's soft drink was a whopping £3.30. I wanted to leave it a few days, to establish what we get charged at the different bars for a lime and soda, before I raised the subject with Guest Services. During his midday announcement, the officer of the watch talked about the conditions, and said that it was a misconception that we travel through the Bay of Biscay; he mentioned a shipping lane that we used to the west of it. Well, every day is a school day! DINNER - OPAL Formal night tonight. We were greeted by the lovely Thandy and allocated table no. 103, a proper round two-seater... The trouble is, although we didn't have any immediate neighbours, it did feel like we were in the crèche; there were at least four tables near us with kids on, from babies to teenagers, some very well behaved, some not so! Our waiting team were Vijay and Kevin. We only saw Vijay though as their section was chock full, and he seemed to be giving his assistant more responsibility, as they split the tables between them. With the amount of kids nearby, with a couple of quite vocal ones, it was a given that we were going to have a bottle of wine... Starter Our lass: Me: The soup course was... The veggie one for me Main Our lass: I've just realised, now I have posted the photo, that piece of meat looks tiny. Me: I had asked Vijay for two fillets of halibut, expecting, as had happened many times before, that there would be an extra portion on the plate. I went to the toilet and this is what greeted me when I returned... So, thanks Vijay for letting everyone around us think that I am a greedy knacker! I am of course, but no need to let everyone know. I quickly slopped it all onto one plate, and asked him to take the other one away. Dessert The usual for our lass, but with different cheese, as it was a formal night... Me... and... In my defence, I did only ask for the Belgian chocolate one, but he brought me a scoop of vanilla too. At least he didn't bring them in separate dishes. Then the boss decided that she fancied the strawberries and cream one, but wanted me to order it so she didn't look greedy. I did as I was told of course, and when it arrived I told Vijay to set it down next to her; "It's for her, Vijay; I only ordered it because she didn't want to". The glare was priceless! I then thought about what we could do for the next three hours so, by the time we got back to the cabin, she would have forgotten to give me the beating that I deserved. Afterwards, we headed to the Club House to see Yzzy do her Pure Paloma show. I drank the rest of the wine and her ladyship had a lime and soda ....£2.15. We are by no means Paloma Faith fans, but Yzzy impersonated her well, even though she is from Nantwich. She certainly has a great set of lungs on her, and we told her so after the show when we had a quick chat with her as she enjoyed a much deserved brew near the Quays. Well, it was after 10pm now and our lass just wanted to get into bed and watch a film. I got out of my top hat and tails, put some casual gear on, and rushed down to the 710 Club to catch the Handwritten set. My favourite table was still vacant.

Day 2 - Sunday 29th October - at sea: I slept like a baby, despite the mild rocking of the ship. The power of Stugeron! Our lass had a restless night, so no different for her from being at home. We always like to have breakfast in one of the MDRs, and when on holiday we like to be sat down for 08:00. Consequently, on our first day I made reservations for 07:45 each morning, mixing it up between the three MDRs on Iona that serve breakfast. This morning we were in Pearl, on deck 6. We had table no. 343, a two-seater next to another one, near to the back windows. Our waiters were Jackson and Aya. The sea was a little choppy, but nothing to write home about. In the distance off our port side I could make out the shape of Ventura, heading in the same direction. Afterwards, we took a stroll on deck 8; it was a wee bit bracing. After unpacking the rest of our clothes and sorting what needed to be ironed for the next few days, we popped down to Coral for a spot of lunch. We were asked if we wanted to share a table. "No thanks". We were shown to table no. 643, a two-seater at the back, near to the windows. Our waiting team were Rexon and Benjamin. The full menu... Our lass had the Asian Platter. I asked about the salmon tarts, thinking that as they were listed under 'small plates' they would be no bigger in size than the circumference of a tea cup. Using my index finger and thumb, I demonstrated the size I was thinking of to Rexon; he agreed. I asked for two. When they came, they were the size of saucers. A real struggle for a skinny lad like me to finish! For pud, our lass had the Peach Melba. After my two tarts, I took it easy with dessert, plumping for the spiced chocolate cake ....... followed by the Peach Melba. Afterwards, we had a look in the shops and then returned to the cabin; our lass had a rest while I went to the laundry on deck 16 to do the ironing for the next few days. Dinner - Epicurean: Tonight was to be the first of two meals in Epicurean. When I went to do the ironing I also went to the restaurant to check which menu they were serving; it was menu 1, my favourite, with three fish mains I like, and of course, the Crêpes Suzette. I returned to our cabin, salivating about what I was going to have. After pre-dinner drinks, we arrived at Epicurean a couple of minutes before our 18:45 reservation, and were immediately seated at table no. 9, at the window. Our waiting team were Jenio and Vincente. Starter Our lass: I really don't know why they still serve this with the parchment bread rolls; even I don't like them, and when I've seen other folk with the same dish, I've only seen one eat them. I always end up with the cucumber mojito because she can't stand it; she calls it a shot of Fairy liquid. Me: These never disappoint but, if I have one criticism, it is that they could do with being bigger. Mains Our lass veered away from having steak or beef and decided to have the black cod dish. I tried to get her to share the tronçon of halibut with me, but she fancied the cod, even though she generally doesn't like cod. Then again, black cod, or sablefish, has a completely different texture and taste. So, we both had... Dessert Our lass: Me: I normally default to this when this particular menu is on; although in January on Arvia I threw my teddy out because they still were not back to preparing it at the table, and had something else. They are still not preparing at the table, and I don't think they will return to that on Iona or Arvia, but at least they now prepare it in the restaurant. When they served coffee, Vicente came to the table with the petit fours (chocolates if, like me, you were raised in a council house), displayed on a tiered perspex doodah; I'm not selling that right, am I? "Just set it down there, lad". Taking the hint, he then place one each of the four varieties on the plate; our lass chose two from the display. After dinner drinks were taken in the Crow's Nest, next door. It was here that I first became aware of the apparent over charging on drinks. I had my usual pint of Punk IPA, which should be £5.30, and the good lady had her favourite mocktail, the Raspberry & Almond Bakewell, at £3.75. When I checked my account a few minutes later, I noticed we had been charged £9.50. The last price hike I was aware of was just before our last Iona cruise in June. Surely prices haven't gone up again, so soon. I checked the prices on the My Holiday app and they were as I thought, £5.30 and £3.75. I picked up a bar menu from another table, and saw that the prices were showing as £5.55 and £3.95. The physical menu had a published date of September. I checked the menu on the app, which had a published date of May, the month of the last price increase. This warranted further investigation, but not tonight. Afterwards, we returned to the cabin and our lass got ready for bed; I though had a reservation at the 22:30 show in the 710 Club. I got there at five past and secured my favourite seat. I decided to have one of Gary's cocktails; surely it couldn't be any worse than his wine. My choice... The app price showed £8.25, but the physical menu showed it as £8.65. After it was delivered, I checked my account to see that I had been charged £7.40! Yup! I think I was now officially in the Twilight Zone! Anyway, it was a very nice drink; I did like the chocolate straw/stirrer. Tonight's show was American Vinyl. The band on this cruise were: Monty - piano, keyboards and lead vocals, and also MD Dan - drums and vocal Adam - guitar and vocals Ellis - bass and vocals The last two were on in June, but at the end of this cruise, there would be a new line up. I like visiting the 710 Club; as I've written before, their interpretations of songs, with a jazz/funk feel, may not be to everyone's taste, certainly not our lass's anyway, but they are just four lads having fun, and entertaining an appreciative crowd at the same time.

First evening meal - Opal. On our June cruise we tried all the MDRs for dinner, and all except Opal for breakfast; it doesn't open for breakfast. The two larger MDRs, Pearl and Coral, are okay for breakfast as they are quiet when we eat, at 08:00. For dinner though they can get really noisy, whichever one you sit in; the open design, with the balcony and stairwell, only cause to amplify the noise. The two smaller MDRs are much quieter and feel more intimate. Of the two of them, we prefer Opal; firstly, because it is not as brightly lit as Aqua, and secondly, it has less of those pesky rows of two-seater tables, where you can practically taste the food of the couple next to you. Opal appears to have more of the larger tables, for parties of four, six, or eight. The rows of two-seaters tend to be in areas where it is difficult for our lass to get to in her wheelchair. The true (no neighbours) two-seaters are in locations that are fairly easy for her to access. That suits us just fine, as it means we are more likely to be assigned one of those. See, having a wheelchair user in your party sometimes does have its advantages. After pre-dinner drinks at Tiger's Bar, we headed to deck 6 for our 18:00 reservation at Opal, arriving a couple of minutes before our allotted time. There was a single queue about thirty deep stretching from the podium to the main walkway outside the restaurant; it included those who had a reservation, those responding to the virtual queue alarm, and those who were trying for a walk-in. It went down quite quickly, and we were at the podium within five minutes. The lovely Thandy greeted us with a beaming smile. "I am really sorry, we do not have a suitable table for two, may I seat you on a table for four, for your exclusive use"? "Of course you may, Thandy". We were shown to table no. 128, a square four-seater at a corner bench, with two other chairs. I don't like sitting on the benches, so had one of the chairs, while the other one was removed for our lass's wheelchair. Our waiting team were the very efficient Elvis and Ventyl. Starter Our lass: Me: Main Our lass: Despite it looking like a school dinner, she said it was nice Me: Double fish, as I'm a growing lad Dessert Our lass: Me: with this on the side... I've not had rasins before; they tasted a bit like that dried fruit, the one similar to a sultana. Afterwards, we strolled back to our cabin to watch the rugby final; no way were we going to visit Brodie's.

Day 1 - Embarkation and Sail Away: Our embarkation time was 14:15 so we weren't in a hurry; we had a bit of a lay in and I popped to Lidl for some pastries and coffees. After chatting with the kids, and getting some travel advice on here, we set off just after 11:00; the route I inputted in the sat-nav was a leisurely fifty-five minutes, through the countryside, and avoiding the motorways and major A roads. With the expected extra traffic due to the football and three ships departing, and a planned refuel, we fully expected our journey to take longer, but without live-traffic, the licence for which expired the day before, I couldn't determine how long. As it happened, the only bottleneck we encountered was vehicles trying to get into the West Quay shopping centre. There weren't even any vehicles queuing where you turn off Platform Road towards gate 4. Consequently, we were in the CPS queue at 12:20. Just ten minutes later we were under the canopy and the luggage was unloaded onto a trolley; a porter then took it away. I hoped he had taken it to be loaded onto the ship and not his waiting mate's car. I suppose we would have the answer later. We made our way to the terminal entrance, where I told the young man we were early, but were going to sit a while inside. He looked at our boarding passes and asked if we needed additional assistance; we did not. He told us to go straight in and up in the lift to check-in. There was no queue at our check-in desk and we were through security and on the ship by 13:00. There was an orderly queue for the lifts on deck 6, stretching to where the atrium started; there were four wheelchairs/scooters ahead of us. Four lifts were out of service, so we anticipated a wait of a few minutes. By 13:20 we had checked in at our muster station on deck 8 and were enjoying our first drink near the Keel and Cow. A few minutes later it was announced that all cabins were ready. We sat, soaking in the atmosphere and chatting with family for about another hour. During that time I took the opportunity to book all my 710 Club performances. I noticed that the MDRs were also available to book for our entire cruise, just the early slots though. For the days we weren't eating elsewhere, I booked the latest sittings available for Opal; that happened to be 18:00 each night, which suited us just fine. Before we went to our cabin, I popped to reception to try my luck at an upgrade, even though there was probably knack-all chance of that happening. The young man said he would put a note against our cabin for them to check in the morning, but to be aware that it was probably unlikely as (his words), "the ship was rammed". What an excellent response; it made me chuckle to myself, despite knowing my mission was doomed to fail. When we arrived at our cabin by 14:40 and our entire luggage was waiting outside. We were in 15326, and it was identical to the one next door (15322) that we had on Arvia in April, but reversed. After taking photos and unpacking just the essentials (just in case) there was a knock on the door; it was our cabin steward, John. We chatted for a few minutes, arranged our daily ice delivery for Tiger's Bar, and told him what else we needed. He returned just ten minutes or so later with our ice for that day, two extra pillows, and a pump bottle each of body lotion and conditioner. Unlike on the last cruise, they didn't have the 'please return on pain of death' labels on them, and he didn't remind us to do so. I did say though that we would leave them out for him at the end of the cruise. Plenty of room for our lass's wheelchair, which is 62cm wide, and 84cm long... The accessible cabins on Iona, and Arvia, are great, and have many useful features, such as fully automatic main doors, bathroom doors, and balcony doors. Other good features are the sinks and toilet bars, which move up and down according to the needs of the user. However, there is one glaring mistake in the cabin design. Here's a clue... No, not the safe; our lass, when sat in her wheelchair, can easily open and close it, and reach inside. The problem is the fridge, which is almost at floor level. If a wheelchair user was the sole occupant of a cabin, it would be very likely that they would not be able to use the fridge at all. The solution? Perhaps they could remove the shelf above it, and raise the fridge to fill the gap. It would then be at an appropriate height for a wheelchair user to access it fairly easily. Another good feature is the wardrobe clothes rail, which can be pulled down to an appropriate level for a wheelchair user. The mechanism is spring loaded so, when the wheelchair user has placed items onto or removed them from the rail, they let go and the rail retracts automatically to its upright position. Unless it is broken like ours was... On each side there should be a piece of plastic that keeps the rail in an upright position when it retracts back into the wardrobe. Those pieces of plastic were missing, which meant the rail retracted too far and rested against the back of the wardrobe. Not good when you hang your clothes. When John returned I showed him the problem. He promptly called for a carpenter, who arrived within half an hour. Although he was not able to fix it properly, he bodged it sufficiently so we could use it for its intended purpose during the cruise.

Pre- booked meals: The ability to make meal reservations became available fifteen days before our cruise, a full one day earlier than expected, and the entertainment reservations one day before that. As expected, the performers in the Limelight Club didn't appeal, and neither did any of the offerings in the Headliners theatre. Of the speciality restaurants, we booked the Epicurean twice for dinner, once for each of the menus, Sindhu once, and the afternoon tea in the Epicurean for a sea day during our second week. We hadn't done the latter for about five years but, with the afternoon tea in the MDR failing to make a return after the pandemic, we thought we would give it a go. On our last Iona cruise, the Beach House and Olive Grove were not available for booking ahead of the cruise, but they were this time. We booked both twice; one of the Beach House reservations was on the same day of our afternoon tea, as a light dinner alternative to the MDR, given that we were having posh sarnies a little earlier in the day.

Why this cruise? We should have been in the Canaries onboard Britannia in September, but we ended up cancelling that. Luckily, we booked onboard earlier in the year, so the loss of the £100 deposit wasn't that painful. Our lass was still very keen to get in a warm weather cruise before Christmas, so we booked this one in August. An additional bonus was that we would avoid the trick or treaters and the cacophony of bonfire night. We chose a select fare in an inside cabin that we were happy with. Taking into account the extra basic OBC, the BLC boost, and the shareholder credit, even after deducting the £90 value of the CPS parking, we still had £520 OBC. That meant that the net cost turned out to be less than if we had booked a saver fare, even when ignoring the shareholder benefit. It's rare we see that for an accessible cabin. Of course, I got the usual patter over the phone about the partially accessible inside cabins not being suitable for a wheelchair user. "Well, they are for my wife's current wheelchair", says I. Of course, the follow up email predictably arrived within a couple of weeks, informing us that the partially accessible inside cabin we had selected was not suitable for a wheelchair user, and giving us the opportunity to choose a fully accessible cabin. It was still summer, so I didn't want to get into the panto shenanigans of, "Oh yes it is / oh no it isn't." A succinct email was promptly returned, stating that we had stayed in the exact same cabin grade, and a lower grade, on Arvia, and it was wholly suitable for my wife's needs, and for her current wheelchair. With booking so late, the price of our usual pre-cruise hotel, the Newbury South PI, was higher than what we would have preferred to pay. Looking for an alternative, I discovered that the Travelodge at Andover had been recently refurbished, with wet rooms available. Not having stayed with that chain in quite a few years, mainly because the ones in locations we had chosen were devoid of wet rooms, we decided to give it a go. At £33, it was more than half the price of our usual hotel. It was a lovely room too, a wee bit basic, but not far off what we always expect with an accessible room at PI.

Titled as such because, although I was writing more or less live, I decided not to post until we returned home. That was for a couple of reasons; firstly, I (or rather, our lass) wanted to limit my on-line time on this trip. I'm embarrassed to admit that she often says she has four bairns, with me being the youngest. Secondly, knowing that @Selbourne was going to do a live-from on Ventura, I didn't want to poach any of his readership. No chance of that happening though, given his excellent reports of life onboard, which, from what he had written in one of his posts, may have piqued the interest of the top brass at P&O Towers. It was my original intention to post on Saturday or Sunday, after our return. However, although I started writing reports on each day that waned towards the end, and I have had to catch up since we returned home. I also wanted to tidy up photos and review my posts (for political correctness), and with the boss being badly at the back end of the cruise, and only just recovered, and with having an awful lot on since we got back, it has been put on the back burner. So, many apologies for the late posting. I'll leave it up to you folks; read a bit and come back later for further instalments, or grab some snacks and binge away. Anyway, down to it...

Or just a regular size Toblerone being carried by a wee fella.

Now that Mars has bought Hotel Chocolat, you can just imagine what they'll be like in a couple of years.