lincslady

I suspect with this kind of people if you suggested they were being rather selfish they would just say 'everybody could do it if they wanted to'. Other people just don't exist in their mindset.

More understandable as it was her first (and no doubt last) cruise on Regent. Most of you know what to normally expect, the OP would I am sure be expecting the sort of cruise you are usually writing about on here and what the advertising suggests, and the very bad start would be more of a nasty surprise. But, yes, she was too hopping mad to describe it in detail at the time, and could have come back later.

Yes, thanks Jane. I did know what it involves, as I took my husband for one some years ago, and went in with him. That is really the reason I hope to have it soon, as it shows up so much more than an ECG or any other simple tests. I am going to ring the surgery to see if he will refer me to this other hospital with a view to having it done sooner.

Not an ECG in the usual sense - an echocardiogram, which I know some of you will have had. I I had a 24 hour ECG a few months ago ,which did show up all sorts of things, mostly not important, but they were concerned about atrial fibrillation, which many of us have , and that is being treated with the usual medication. The echo test is more complicated, a bit like a baby scan I believe and takes longer and needs more special equipment. (I know many of you already know this). It is all a bit confusing when you have been lucky enough not to have heart problems.

Thank you everyone for your replies. I plan to ring the GP as because the surgery is in a different NHS area to where I live I could probably get an earlier appointment in this area, where I believe the waiting time is much shorter. Once I can get past the waiting time on the phone! And yes, Avril, it was not down as urgent otherwise I think my GP would have made sure it got dealt with more quickly. I feel OK, just would like to see if the echo shows up anything the 24 hour ECG did not.

But please not at the expense of enjoying yourself and getting enough rest! We can survive a few days without hearing from you. Lola

Hello Graham I've been here since 2, having had a couple of good nights back to the odd poor one. It is fairly cold here too, but the forecast says a dry day. Not sunny and warm, however. Just had a n email from my friend currently in their house in the western Burgundy area, there for a few weeks, and it has been and is very cold there. Not what they were hoping for. I think I forgot to mention that on phoning as suggested to find out about appt. for an echocardiogram, it turns out to be a 7 month waiting list! I am two months into it at present. I suppose I might have guessed it would be like that. However, not as bad as 24 hours waiting in A and E, though it is good to feel you have been thoroughly investigated, and can then have any necessary treatment. I hope everyone else going through medical stuff is getting what they need, and feeling well today.

Some people are lucky enough to have the sort of temperament that enables them to 'make the best of it' easily; others unfortunately find it difficult. I have found as I have got older I am more able to become one of the former - it is certainly the best way to not get overly stressed about things which go wrong.

Having read Pacificview's post, it is easy to see why the OP was so angry. If all the things that could have gone wrong did so for them and some other passengers, especially those who had never cruised with Regent before, it would indeed seem like a disaster. I would have been pretty cross too, and so would many of you, I think. A bad start is almost the worst thing that can happen; it affects how you feel for the rest of your trip.

Good morning everyone. Not a very nice morning, and looks like a dampish week. Two things for me to be thankful for this morning; about 7 hours sleep last night, and no horrific news headlines on breakfast tv, which makes a pleasant change.

Or maybe were aware that they had gone somewhat over the top at the time, and have decided to say no more. If anyone else on board has read this, it would be good if they came in with their opinion.

We have got another Jeff on here!! Let's cherish them, they are few and far between. Lola

That looks like a really lovely experience, it is great that you were on good form to enjoy it all.

I can assure you that you would not be the centre of attention , nor would you have a photo taken with the Captain or any other staff - unless you asked them for one of themselves, which some people who find their waiter/barman/suite attendant particularly charming do sometimes.

Madeira is an attractive island, not well known in the USA, maybe, but much loved by lots of Brits. A bit more 'posh' than the Canaries, if I am allowed to say this, though slightly lower temperatures in the winter, which is one of the reasons Brits. like the Canaries in the winter months so much. Love your pictures; the fruit and veg and fish market towards the far end of the town from the cruise dock is interesting and attractive too. Some ship shuttle buses go that far.

I have got some of them - nos. 1 to 4, 6, bluetits in nest box, and surprise invitation to a friend for afternoon tea today.

Can I just ask what dirty fries are? (I know, the rest of the world knows, I am just an old lady living in a backwater). I imagine it does not mean chips fried in dirty oil.

Well done! Lovely photos too.

Hello members of the Wideawake Club, if you are around. Having slept from 10 until 2, can't really complain, but hoping the mug of tea laced with a drop of the hard stuff may work to put me back to sleep after a while. My current reading does not help, as it is a page turner but about a missing wife with a convoluted plot. I have enjoyed the Vera novels; believable plots and interesting characters, plus the atmosphere of Northumbria as I remember it from visits to relatives in Whitley Bay many years ago. I will start reading them again soon! (Old age has the advantage of not quite remembering the plot when you tend to speedread.) I have the joy of phoning the nhs today as I have not yet had a date for my echocardiogram , and was given today's date to remind them.

Sorry, no idea and they weren't published. It was just a quick scan, and there are quite a lot of things to consider, depending on what is important to you. Some of us want more formal evening dress, more restaurants to choose from etc. But if perhaps doing three cruises as against two per year appeals, say, price can be the most important thing.

Out of curiosity, I have just compared offers from probably the best known luxury TA in the UK, which have just arrived in the post, and the difference in cost is quite illuminating. Very similar Mediterranean cruises, this summer, cost approx. £540 per night on Seabourn Ovation, and almost £700 on Silver Ray, both including flights and transfers. SS of course includes butler service and some excursions, and is a much newer ship. Passenger space ratio almost the same, and both for veranda suites. SB is western Med., SS eastern Med., so perhaps more interesting for many people. But if price is important, worth thinking about?

Not knowingly, and the drag race programme for possibly 5 minutes? Not really my 'scene'.

That is the dose I take, and did definitely slow my heart rate down and cut down on palpitations.

I know it is being a bit impolite, but until I saw her photo I assumed Vikki van Tassel was a drag artiste.

It may or may not be a comfort to Indiana, but when I was younger I lay awake for hours at night unable to go to sleep, churning stuff around in my head. Now, I usually go to sleep quickly but sometimes (not always now) wake after three hours and can't get back to sleep. It is actually a better situation, IMO, and I think is somewhat to do with getting old! So maybe old age has a few advantages.