Mr Rumor

Ginny and I have been happily ensconced in our Albuquerque hotel room for several hours now, with Ginny already at work on her craft project for this cruise, a beaded amulet bag.  

Only 6930 more miles to Beijing!

Marc, big thanks for confirming we’ll have an internet connection in Japanese waters.  Good on Regent for taking the necessary satellite steps to make this happen.

Jennifer/Georges, Rachel, Jackie, Gerry, Jean, ronrick, Gilly and Sheila, thanks for the good-trip wishes and great to have you traveling along once again.  Especially happy, ronrick and Gilly, to be able to further stoke your excitement as you do your final Mariner countdowns.  I’m already looking forward to continuing our adventure via your live reporting once we disembark.

Wishing you a great crossing, Sheila!

Mikenbob, Ginny and I are looking forward to meeting you and, yes, please do chime in all you’d like on this thread.  This goes for all my fellow CCers on this cruise.  I’ve loved the joint blogs I’ve participated in and feel the more voices the better!

Rich

To live-blog or not to live-blog?  I didn't ask that question of myself between 2013-2018 when I wound up blogging all of our Regent cruises.  But I've been tossing that question around since reading of Japan blocking or restricting the internet in its territorial waters.  If still true today, that would be quite the live-reporting impediment on a cruise such as this one, with seven Japanese ports!

I did take heart Thursday when a Mariner staff member got back to me on the subject:  "All is good, don't worry."   So while I'm not ready just yet to burst into "Hakuna Matata,"  I've decided to take the china and silverware out and give this blog a shot, starting with a little table-setting.  But don't be surprised if my Notes become even more Random than usual as soon as we hit Japanese waters!

Ginny and I booked Shanghai-Tokyo with its choice of included pre- or post-tours a little more than two years ago (we included pre-"Shanghai and the Great Wall" and paid for post-"Tokyo and Hakone").  We each visited Japan in our 20s, Ginny as the guest of her U.S. soldier boyfriend at the time, me as the Royal Viking Sea's shipboard editor on the Sea's maiden Circle Pacific cruise.  But we have never touched foot on mainland China or South Korea soil.  So we're excited to cross this itinerary off our bucket list.

We've had nary an upgrade or cancellation offer from Regent these past two years, but I have amassed a small collection of Regent "Important Information" communiques, relayed to us by our TA.

The first one, in July, 2018, concerned fairly substantial "adjustments" to our itinerary due to the fact that "Currently the Ministry of China is not authorizing ships to sail directly between China and South Korean ports."  (Goodbye Dalian, China and Nagasaki; hello, Jeju, South Korea.)   The second one, this past January, concerned a four-hour later departure from Shanghai than originally scheduled, due to "tide restrictions."   I understood the significance of this change when, a couple of weeks later, we received communication No. 3 stating that our subsequently delayed arrival time of 5 p.m. in Beijing would preclude the four afternoon excursions from operating.  (Goodbye, "Chinese Folk Art.")   Why Regent's planners didn't know about Shanghai's tides on March 29 when creating our itinerary escapes me--and, yes, there was grumbling on our Roll Call.

But these matters are in our wake now as we look forward to making some very special memories on this our eighth Mariner cruise, and first since the refurb.  The excitement will start on the first day of our pre-cruise tour next Tuesday, when we will celebrate our joint birthday (it's true!) with a jaunt on the Great Wall. (By the way, Happy Birthday to our friend Rachel, a fellow March 26 celebrant!)

Ginny is also thrilled to be seeing for the first time in decades a friend she made in Japan half a century ago. Yasuo and Ginny have stayed in touch all these years and in Kobe--after what we know will be an amazing day in Kyoto--we will host him and his wife Hiromi for dinner in Compass Rose.  According to Yasuo, our visit couldn't come soon enough:  "We old now!"  (Say, Yasuo, aren't we the same age?  Speak for yourself!)

We're also looking forward to hosting other special dinner guests on the last night of the cruise, in Tokyo. I met Hozumi on the Peter, Paul and Mary website message board more than a dozen years ago, but this will be only the second time we've seen her and husband Yuki in person.  We finally met them in the Land of Enchantment in 2015 when they came to visit with a special request that we attend  Strauss' "Salome" at the Santa Fe Opera.  (Hozumi explained:  "We can never see that opera in Japan.  Japanese people don't like violence!")  We also have a dinner date with our Yokohama friends the last night of our post-cruise tour.

Well, with the table set on what will be our 19th Regent cruise, it's now time to pack the car!  We'll soon be driving down to Albuquerque, where we'll overnight due to our 6:20 a.m. flight to Los Angeles tomorrow.  We'll be traveling with a number of our fellow Roll Callers on AA Flight 181 to Beijing.  I'm hoping one or more will want to join in on this blog! 

Great as always to have you along and, OK, here goes:  Hakuna matata!

Rich

Another great report!  Can't wait now to read about your encounter with the Terracotta Army.

Jennifer, you and Georges sure made the most of your time in Saigon!  Ginny and I did the same excursions on our 2017 Voyager cruise and it was great reliving our experience via your terrific commentary and photos. 

Ginny just popped in to say hi!  (Our tour guide tried to rush us by this photo op, but Gin would not be denied.  It took several of us to lift her out!)

Happy Birthday, Dennis, from Ginny and me!

53 minutes ago, forgap said:

Rich, doesn’t  seem one workng in the CC format.  I think you can attach old pics from “insert other media” but not new pics.  

Hmmm, we’re sitting in the car and I just tried a dummy post, with a photo I took of our fresh snow this a.m. and another I took just now, and each posted where I placed the cursor ( below a line of dummy type).  Puzzled!

On 2/21/2019 at 4:04 AM, WesW said:

btw, when on board you could book next July's Explorer Copenhagen to Reykjavik voyage and join Rich, Ginny, Ida and I

Yes, please!

1 hour ago, forgap said:

On a a technical note, I am posting from my iPad and I am unable to embed pics as I go along.  They show up at the end of the post.  Does anyone know how to fix this?  

 

Jennifer,  assuming you're cutting and pasting, paste your entire post, then: 1.) move the cursor to a desired insertion point (cursor should start a new line),  2.) choose your file,  and 3.)  click "+"  on the uploaded photo(s).  Repeat  this process to your heart's content or for whatever the maximum numbers of photos per post is, whichever comes first!

Rich

Wonderful news--Captain Serena is a Regent treasure!

Jennifer, it's hard to believe that it was a year ago today that our Singapore-Sydney cruise aboard the Voyager came to an end!   Hope you and Georges have the time of your lives on this one.  I'll be relishing your words and pics while daydreaming of another Jennifer, Georges, Ginny, Rumor cruise some day.

Rich

Jackie, I just did a catch-up dive into your "Almost" Live thread--phew!  Now with all that stuff in your wake, hope you and the milestone birthday boy have a great cruise!

Rich

Rachel, even when Ginny and I are not cruising with you and George, I feel like I'm cruising with you via your wonderful writing and pics--thanks!  And please relay my congrats to George for making it through this cruise, sartorially speaking, by the seat of his (one pair of dress) pants!  

Rich

2 hours ago, RachelG said:

Don’t know why the font is so big on some of my posts, and not sure how to change.

Rachel, when I pasted from Notes, the type would show larger.   All you have to do to decrease the size is click the bar at the bottom of the posting window that states, "Pasted as (your name) text.  Paste as plain text instead." 

Loving your descriptive prose and pics!

Rachel, think of that nasty hacking episode as being in your wake now and have a fabulous cruise with George!  We haven't been to any of these ports so I'll be avidly following along.   Hi from Ginny!

Rich

Portolan, thanks so much for taking the time to keep the live Voyager reports coming!  Sounds like you made the best use of your time in Havana--would have love loved those two walking tours.

Thank you, Sheila.  I still have a vivid memory of dining next to you at that Cannes outdoor cafe on the Explorer maiden voyage, and our being served those ginormous crepes!

Thanks, too, Bob.  You and your DW keep cruising Regent and DW and I will keep cruising Regent, and hopefully we’ll get to ply the seas together one day.  I’d love to joint-blog with you!

I woke up this morning recalling a conversation I had with a staffer on this cruise.  Her words are resonating with me with because they go to the heart of what keeps Ginny and me loyal to Regent, namely the warmth with which we’re always welcomed back onboard and the friendly, personable service that warms us throughout.  And, oh yes, those smiles. 

The staff member noted that every new crew/staff member goes through a training called “Regent Care.”  “Nowhere in that training are we told to smile,” she said.  What is stressed, she said, is that crew/staff think of each other, and passengers, as family:  “The warm feeling on Regent ships stem from that teaching.”

The staffer went on to talk about how she had found the love of her life working in another department aboard and how Regent works to accommodate each Regent crew couple by scheduling them to sail together whenever possible, in essence practicing what it teaches about family.

That led me to recall a comment from a stewardess six for seven cruises ago whose husband, she said, was also working onboard as a steward:  “Regent is smart.  It knows it is hard to be happy and welcoming when you are missing your husband or wife every day.”

Because I like “photo finishes,” I’d like to close with a photo that a new cruising friend, Janet, Air-Dropped to me as we stood in the Reception Area on Thursday morning waiting for our luggage tag color/numbers to be called.  Janet had taken this wonderful sunset shot the night before.

A final thanks to all,  and “sea ya” around!

Thanks, Jackie, Portolan, Rick and gnomie!  Gnomie, Shauna loved that pink hat so much that she insisted on wearing it at dinner in CR the last night (it was “Relaxed Casual,” so why not).  

Rachel, I’m glad this was one of my shortest cruise live-blogs for you to have to catch up on in a binge-read.  We’re sitting on a Future Cruise Deposit Certificate plus already have three future cruises booked, so I didn’t feel the pressure to make an onboard booking this time.  But if I had had a little more time to settle on an itinerary with Ginny. . .  (A ten-day cruise goes by too fast!)

Needless to say, we’ve made it back safely to the much chillier climes of the Land of Enchantment.  On our first leg, MIA-DFW, there was a “change in equipment” at the last minute, from the scheduled Boeing 757 to a 767.  I don’t think we’ve ever traveled in an emptier main cabin!

We may have to bundle up now, but we’re still feeling warm and fuzzy this morning from our absolutely wonderful cruise.  We were blessed by great weather and interesting ports. Onboard, the service and food were tops.  Regarding the latter, my exercising (3534 calories burned) was once again out-paced by my eating.  I can’t bring myself to list the number of pounds gained—I’ll just say that Merle Travis once sang about a hammer that weighed as much!

It especially did our hearts good to see Shauna enjoy herself so much from her first “Com’n, mom—get up!” in the morning until her last post-show giggle of the day.  And we know this cruise will also live on in the sense of new friends made.

Thank you for keeping me company on this blog, and for all your kind words and support.  Ginny and Shauna join me in wishing you peace and joy this holiday season!

Thank you, Gerry!

According to Shauna, she is not waving to Miami but rather “the bus” (the imaginary bus).  Next to the shows, the bus rides have been her “thing” on this cruise!

Thanks, Jackie, and good morning from Miami!  We’re nearing our berth as I type this.

We journeyed 2938 nautical miles, and are finishing our longest stretch at sea now, 1093 NM from Gustavia.

The Voyager got terrible gas mileage, 100 feet per gallon.  A total of 180,000 gallons of gas was consumed, enough to fill the swimming pool nine times over.

And, oh yes, we drank a lot:  4,608 bottles of wine and champagne.  Captain Stan:  “And you’re proud of yourselves!” 

We’ve been keeping quite a pace the last few days + there was this little requirement today called packing, so by earlier tonight we were in need a bit of a jolt.  We got it at “Soul Rockin’ Nights,” the new Voyager Production Cast’s frenetic second production.  Thanks, guys!

Afterwards Shauna posed with her fellow front-row stalwarts for a farewell shot. We’re going to miss Kristi and Karen!

I’m happy to reclaim the hour we lost a day at the beginning of the cruise, plenty of time to thank you for your thanks, Jan, Jennifer, Jean, Portolan and HonTri.  Jan, I hope you will post about the Australia Circumnavigation as it’s a cruise that’s on my bucket list, while, Portolan, you can find the Voyager Blogging Baton with Kushal, the computer guy, in case you’re motivated to live-blog. (I’m joking, just wanted to work Kushal’s name in because he is a great internet manager.)

Sue, it was my pleasure to read your greeting to Bagus this morning.  He remembers your family well, and has a message for you:  “Thank you for still remembering me.  I wish you happiness.”  By the way, Bagus turned 28 today.

Jackie, thank you again for recommending Roxanne to us. I can’t praise her enough, not only as wonderful server—but also as a hip-hopper who had all the right moves in Krew Kapers!

Peggy, we are fans of the bamboo stick dances, too.  Here’s one more photo from Krew Kapers:

Well, I may know how to set the table for a blog, but I’m not too good at knowing when to remove the plates and silverware.  So for now. . . good night!

Rich

7 a.m., Portolan, so set your alarm!  Off to our last dinner in CR with Roxanne now.

There is one benefit to a short cruise  (I’m trying to cheer myself up at the moment):  Prices are great at the Regent Rewards Points redemption.  Several cruises back, a “Glitter Thermal Mug” set us back 40 points! (We are very happy with our haul:  matching white Polo sports tees and a pink “R” hat for Shauna, a new design.)

Sous Chef Eric has his way with a tuna, the Seafood Buffet’s featured attraction.

I woke up thinking the best thoughts of CD David carrying on with Beatles Night last night.  He is at the tail end of his first CD contract with a lot of loose-ends tying to do. Plus the new Production Cast members weren’t available to participate due to their crazy rehearsal schedule (they were rehearsing for tonight’s “Soul Rocking Nights” production until the wee hours today).  That meant it was just him and Nell (and members of the Regent Signature Orchestra) blasting their way through 22 Beatles tunes in 60 minutes.  Thank you David and Nell. . .

. . . You packed the dance floor and made Shauna very happy!

Good morning from the Pool Deck.  Clockwise it is for walkers and joggers!

Tonight’s Beatles Dance Party was fab for a very special reason:  Shauna got to share the dance floor with her new friends—and fellow Beatles lovers—Karen and Kristi.  It has been a joy cruising with them and their wonderful families!