CineGraphic

Here are screen caps of our current position, and this morning’s internet speed test. Uploads were at a snail’s pace yesterday, and it looks like they won’t be good today either. Those that need to telework won’t be pleased.

It’s been raining pretty much all day, but thankfully there’s plenty going on to keep everyone occupied. They even debuted a new game today, “Double Trouble”, Virgin’s spin on the marriage game. It was lots of fun, and well attended. The wind just kicked up as I’m typing this in our cabin. Up until now, we’ve been pretty lucky weather-wise.

Pam and I hosted a $50 group slot pull this morning, and Lady Luck made her presence known. There were 21 of us, and with the date being 11/7, you can’t blame her for feeling generous. Everyone had five $10 spins, and thanks to 4 bonuses, everyone doubled their money. Thanks to everyone who came out to play and to the casino staff for being so accommodating.

Last night was Scarlet Night. Carlos the Diva announced at one point that this was the first TA that’s been able to have the party outdoors. More people ended up in the pool than I can remember seeing on previous sailings. Everyone was clearly having a great time.

All TVs, tablets and the app have been unusable since the false alarm earlier today. Their “brilliant” IT team is working on it. (their adjective, not mine)

FALSE ALARM! We didn’t hear anything in our cabin because our VV apps weren’t open, but those who did see it, are not happy. Some folks panicked and raced to their cabins for life jackets. A ship-wide announcement was made apologizing for the notification and explaining that it was a mistake made during a drill for all of the new crew on board.

The seas get smoother every day. There’s at least one reported case of Covid on board, and she’s isolated in her cabin for a few days, and states that they are taking great care of her. Dinner last night at Pink Agave was fantastic. It was our 2nd time there this sailing and we have reservations there again on our last night on board. They’ve tweaked the recipes just a bit on a few items. The chocolate tacos for dessert used to be good, now they’re great! Internet for the most part has been good. Here’s today’s speed test.

Yesterday we attended Bingo With The Diva for the second time, and it was packed! The jackpots were more than doubled than the earlier session a few days ago. The jackpot for the final game yesterday was over $2300.00. Carlos the Diva is fantastic and seems to have endless energy. (Whatever she’s on, I want it!)

I would fly to a larger gateway city like Boston, where you can get a great deal on premium economy with Level Airlines. Their PE seats are just like, if not better than domestic first class. It was half the price of us flying Delta out of our hometown of Atlanta, and both the flight and service were excellent. https://youtu.be/FXLbJhhmh8M?si=ojYzo62SRaZQPYIm

We had a wonderful day in Madeira yesterday. Here’s a shot from a local website of our sail-away. Although the seas were a bit rocky last night, things have really smoothed out this morning. Here’s our current position, and internet speed test results. (Premium WiFi)

I cure and smoke bacon at home, and find the RD bacon to be way too sweet, almost candied.

Well, the Wake is 0 for 2 for dinner, which is sad because it has such potential based on the theme and prime real estate. They had French Onion Soup as a special, which was nice, and our main courses were “ok”. I heard several tables mention the meats were dry….sure wish they had a nice demi-glaze sauce for the lamb or an au poivre sauce for the steaks. For me, “American steak sauce” is a step up from ketchup. I've learned that the ship has more new servers than usual, because many previous crew had to be transferred to other ships because they couldn’t get US visas. When we arrived our server was clearly in the weeds with 6 tables, so we didn’t try to make things any harder for him. Our dessert and coffee course was the worst of all. Tepid, watery coffee and a vanilla latte that had no flavor at all.

10 to 15 ft swells today on our way to Funchal.

This was our first Halloween at sea, and it was great. The costumes ranged from simple tee shirts like ours, (mine said, pretend I’m an octopus) to very extravagant outfits. Some people put a lot of thought into their outfits. The weather in Malaga is outstanding today. Pam and I did a private wine tour booked through Viator. They took us to a lovely vineyard and family owned winery where we sampled quite a bit, including one wine from 1970. This is our first time in Spain and we’re looking forward to returning next September when we sail on the Resilient Lady.

Dinner at the Wake last night was just “meh”. Filet was dry, fish over-seasoned, and you’d think it would be possible to get your coffee and dessert served at the same time in this sort of setting but we stared at our desserts for 10 minutes before our coffees arrived.

Day one is in the bag and there were only 2 problems we had to deal with….first, our sliding door to the balcony wouldn’t lock. A quick look showed that both latches had been snapped off. They were quickly replaced by a crew member. Our other problem hasn’t been corrected yet, and they’re waiting to hear back from Miami. It seems that in some parts of the system it shows we get deep blue extras, while in other parts it doesn’t. They are unable to remove the premium internet charges ($650 for the two of us) until they get it approved from Miami. Currently docked in Ibiza, time to grab some breakfast.

It’s great to be on-board the VL again. So far we’ve bumped into 5 crew members who were on our last cruise this past February. Tonight we’re chowing down at Pink Agave….corn, papas, and of course the fabulous ribeye.

Barcelona has filled up today thanks to the big soccer match later today. I’m glad we came a few days early to avoid most of the crowds. Pam and I are just strolling around, soaking it all in. Looking forward to boarding the ship tomorrow. She will not be in her usual spot near the World Trade Center, instead she’ll be at Terminal A.

We requested a specific cabin. Just like real estate, location is everything. My TA just informed me that we now have our original cabin back. Let’s see if that hold true. We’ll know for sure at check-in.

Oof….we book a particular cabin for its location, and I just noticed that they moved us much farther forward than we care to be. My TA is on the phone with them trying to get our original cabin back.

One of the bartenders at the hotel gave us a fabulous recommendation for a wine bar, “Cellarer”. We were delighted with the food and service, and plan to go back on Saturday. It was an excellent first night in Barcelona.

The leg room and recline were better than domestic first class. We were both actually able to sleep. It’s sad that people are afraid to stray from the brands they know, despite the reduction in quality & service. Thank G-d We strayed from Princess and found Virgin last year. It’s the best thing we’ve ever done.

Our flight on Level/Iberia just landed, and we cleared immigration in less than 5 minutes. The flight was fine. Great crew, ok food. Premium Economy is the way to go….loads of legroom.

Packing for a trip these days is a lot different from when we were kids.

We dropped the dog off at the sitters, and he ran right into their house, never once looking back. It's nice to know he's in such good hands. We're in the northern burbs of Atlanta, and I thought I'd try to snag a last-minute Priceline bargain on a hotel near the airport for tonight, but the odds were not in my favor. It's a long day tomorrow. We're flying up to Boston in the morning. We have a day-room near the airport, and will probably drop our stuff off and take a water taxi into town. Then it's back to the airport for a late-night flight to BCN, arriving shortly after noon on Thursday.