FreedomSeeker

why, yes, it was. I was desperately worried I was going to lose my glasses overboard looking straight down the side!

 

Enjoying the cruise so far?

 

If u wanna meet up, give us a call.

Few days into the cruise and we haven't crossed paths.

 

We are on 12009, if you happen to see this.

 

Mike

Final post before packing the Paris/Barcelona bags.....

 

It's been real fun talking and swapping stories and information on here these past few months, and I am really looking forward to meeting everyone in person onboard ship 9 days from now.

 

Safe travels and see everyone soon.

Now there's an idea! Congrats btw... Only two more weeks of drudgery to go..!

 

 

Five days til we leave for Paris. It's so close I can taste it.

 

That could also be acid reflux as my stomach is all aflutter.......

Spooky we are deck 12 too - me thinks this area of the ship might have a a big following!

Have a safe trip and look forward to meeting you all in a couple of weeks. Have started packing!

 

 

Cool. Deck 12 is the gay ghetto.....Maybe we can get Oceania to have room pass cards in "rainbow"? :D

Perfect! That's two excuses for a party at sea now....Iain & I have been together ten years as of Halloween & this was our celebration cruise.......Stag/Hen night anyone???!!!

 

This is a great idea. Not sure how to organize - would that be a "butler thing"?

 

Also I'm not sure either of us qualifies as a hen or a stag. We have been together for 12 years....just finally able to "tie the knot" here in California....

 

Congratulations on 10 years! Did you meet at a Halloween party? Were you in costume?

Hello,

 

Looks like Deck 12 has been designated a "family-friendly" zone! ;)

 

It's getting closer now! We look forward to meeting on board.

 

Iain

 

Ed and I are looking forward to a meeting everyone. And it certainly is getting closer now.....we leave in 10 days for Paris. Suitcases are out, ready for packing and shipping to Barcelona (I am not carrying everything across three continents, no way no how!).

 

Today we had our Christmas lights put up on the roof and house. Next weekend, all the trees get done, and then while we are away, the lawn stuff goes out. And its 82F outside. Most everyone else still has their Halloween decorations up. But we had to get a head start....we're not back home 'til two weeks before Christmas, and we'll have literally 9 days to get ready for the family arriving.

 

Two days AFTER Christmas, we're getting married.

 

I think we're probably trying to cram too much into the next eight weeks, but too late to change it now!

 

Time for a deep, deep breath!

 

I NEED this CRUISE!:D

I forgot to ask, did you get the O suite on Deck 11 which you requested, they look amazing!

 

I.

 

 

Unfortunately not....we got a "regular" O Suite on deck 12.

 

We will just have to suffer the reduced circumstances. LOL. :)

I was beginning to wonder how much longer it would take!!!

 

 

As the actress said to the bishop.

 

LOL

 

Anyhoo, the LGBT presence (at least the "G" and possibly "B" presence) for this cruise has grown exponentially in three days. If this continues, by sailaway this could turn out to be Gay Days at Oceania.

[quote name='Desert Boys']

There will be a large group from Palm Springs and Europe to add to the
fun this trip. Looking forward to the Voyage![/quote]

Great! The more the merrier!

[quote name='PS Caledonia']We've done worse, once flying from London to Barbados arriving late afternoon for a 11pm sailing. We even had time for dinner before departure...

I will be in the office until late on Tuesday night so no rest for me, and probably packing when I get home! It's only a short flight and as were the first one out of LHR, no delays either. I will have some fizz with my full English though....

It makes life more interesting this way...

Seriously, we are both looking forward to the trip and meeting you both.

Iain[/quote]

I know that I have my head up by behind a lot, but surely I should have realized this before....but PSC and LCS are two halves of one couple? Or is it a coincidence that you're both on the same flight out of LHR?

Enjoy the fizz! Have six for me.

[quote=LaCroisiereS'amuse;40391951]We're on the first BA flight from Heathrow at 0620 :eek: and have a car booked to take us directly to the ship, so we'll probably be boarding as soon as they start at 1100. Neither of us can wangle any more time off work, so we figured that if anything did go drastically wrong, we would still have time to board in Cartagena or Gibraltar.[/quote]

:eek::eek::eek:

Up until now, I hadn't even thought of what happens if you miss the ship.

I'm pretty pale to start with, but I think that I just turned the color of uncooked halibut.

I'm extremely lucky to be able to take a full month off, so we have time to get to the ship in a leisurely way. Of course, the chances of my doing something completely stupid at the last minute and missing the ship anyways are always quite high.....

Ed and I are really looking forward to this trip, and we hope to meet up with you guys too.

[quote name='PS Caledonia']I will give Trivia a miss..... I agree, not much point when the questions are based on one culture!

Cape Verde is a bit of a hole so we'll be staying on board. We've been to the Canaries before so mostly shopping in Santa Cruz.

Brazil looks interesting, We're still planning what we do there, but will be just as happy doing as little as possible and leave the tours to the crowds...[/quote]

Are you guys going to be in Barcelona before the cruise, or just flying in and heading to the port?

[quote name='PS Caledonia']Sounds good, we're "doing our own thing", mostly. Really looking forward to Gib and Cartagena.

As for Trivia, oh yes, it's deadly serious. NOTHING seems to get in the way of Trivia. On Regatta last year, as we were leaving Lisbon, the teams had their various "scouts" on deck recruiting the unwary and the unwise.

If you do a search on the Roll-Call, you can see just how serious it is...

It's not for me, but people do enjoy it, so I can't pass judgment, ahem...

:)[/QUOTE]

I enjoy Trivia, but it's amazing how exclusive it can be......here in the States it's like the rest of the world barely exists, especially when it comes to political and cultural information. Makes it a little difficult to take part when there is no common point of reference to a lot of the topics.

In terms of shore excursions, if you have any great ideas for Buzios or Cape Verde, we'd love to hear them. Buzios seems like a great place to do a beach day, but Cape Verde?

[quote name='PS Caledonia']I hope your trip was good, albeit with big closed signs everywhere and the excitement of a mad driver shutting down what had remained open.....

One quick point, with regard to shore excursions, have you booked though the ship or done your own thing. I had a look on the roll call and it's full of either Trivia or people hiring mini-buses at every port.

It's creeping up fast... :eek:[/QUOTE]

Thanks, good trip. Visited the International Spy Museum - more an interactive role play experience than museum, but fun.

We booked a few excursions thru the ship, since we didn't really know much about most of the places. However, we left everywhere in Brazil, except Rio, and Cape Verde completely open. We are planning to "decide" when we arrive.

We have Gibralter, Tenerife and Lanzarote booked. Walking tour of the Rock, Submarine Adventure and "Canada's del Tiede", and in Rio we have "The Best of Rio".

Getting closer......getting twitchy feet.

BTW is Trivia that big a thing?

[quote name='PS Caledonia']Paris sounds lovely!

I'm sure you will find something to amuse yourselves in Washington whilst the "Closed" sign is up..

Is ATC a Federal service??

;)[/quote]

Yes, they are, but they're "mandatory spending" along with most everything else except the national parks service and most other "discretionary" spending depts.

So we will be able to fly to DC, but not actually visit any of the monuments or museums that are run by the Federal Govt.

We'll find other things to do.:D

Our cruise documents were sent out by UPS last night. So that's one thing to check off the "worry about" list.

We're spending three days in Paris and three days in Barcelona before the cruise, and then two days in Rio at the end. With travel days and what not, we'll be away for a month.

I cannot wait.

[quote name='PS Caledonia']I understand that Cunard do everything as an "e-doc" these days, you even have to print out your own luggage tags... (A bit like Ryanair I would imagine). Yikes.

At least O still does it properly.

Mind you La C'mse is correct, I don't ever remember showing any papers or documents when checking in, just name and passport.

I hope your book and tags have arrived.[/quote]


Thanks both, but our book and tags have not arrived yet. My TA says that she'll notify me when the she has a tracking number from her documents department.

We leave for Paris six weeks from tomorrow, and bags are being shipped directly to Barcelona in 5 weeks.....it's all getting closer and very exciting.

Right now, however, I'm trying to work out what we're going to do to amuse ourselves in Washington DC on Friday this week....going to the national fundraising dinner for the Human Rights Campaign, and we always like to visit one of the Smithsonian museums the day before....but if the government shuts down, they won't be open. Arrgghh.

Our documents have not come yet....I'm seeing posts on the Oceania Roll Call as well as your's here that documents have been arriving.

Should I be worried?

[quote=LaCroisiereS'amuse;40053133]Canadian bacon is a definite.....:)

Coffee makers are a no, but Baristas isn't too far away.....

Or last year on Regatta (no Baristas) we got the Butler to bring us a thermos of hot water so that we could use this great little gadget [URL]http://www.handpresso.com[/URL]

The one we have takes the ESE standard espresso pods, but you can get models that take loose ground coffee, or both.[/quote]


Wow, that's a cool gadget, and its available in the US too! I'd forgotten about Barista's though, and that's one deck up from our suite....so not a slog of a walk. Good news on the Canadian bacon. I like the deep fried brittle burnt American version in a BLT, but with a full English breakfast, not so much.

[quote name='PS Caledonia']Nooooooooooo, mushy peas are the work of the devil! I can't look at them without thinking of Linda Blair.... lol

Seriously though, the food on board is mostly excellent, there is a reason why passengers are referred to as "self-loading-cargo"!

There are three exceptions, they don't boil the water for tea, so it's like dishwater, the bacon is that nasty brittle salty stuff and the filter coffee they serve in throughout the ship is basically coloured water..... It's truly revolting, weak doesn't come anywhere near the taste.... Oh and you have to ask them to bring the coffee AFTER dessert. :eek: Tut tut.... (Not that I'm fussy.......)

Apart from these minor issues, :rolleyes:, and people discussing how much lobster they can eat etc, it's a pleasant experience.

He he![/quote]

We got a bit off topic didn't we? This is a roll-call, after all....:)

Is there a coffee maker in the suite? Is it worth bringing our own coffee?

I'm assuming that the bacon is the US variety. Do they offer Canadian bacon, which is more like a cross between ham and UK bacon? That's preferable.

[quote name='PS Caledonia'][I]"How VERY dare you"[/I], as Miss Tait would say! I thought it would make you feel homesick.... ;)[/quote]


I knew nothing of her until my mother started saying "am I bovered, am I, am I bovered?" and doing some strange thing with her fingers under her eyes.

I don't get homesick for the place....but I get nostalgic for the things that are gone. I suppose that happens to us all as we get a bit older.

There are times, though, I would kill for a chip butty, smothered in mushy peas and vinegar, wrapped in newspaper.

Of course, my more contemporary head immediately adds "sure, would you like 300 sit-ups with that?"

Ugh!

[quote name='PS Caledonia']It gets worse, just wait till you see the "Air Dorises" on this Hale & Pace sketch, prepare to travel "Air Yorkshire" style... Look out for "Alan Bennett" class, the ferret and the outside loo...

[URL]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm6VC5gdaFA[/URL]

Lets hope the Oceania welcome will be as warm....

PSC[/quote]

Are you a Tyke?

Great clip by the way.

[quote name='PS Caledonia']I'm afraid they do, but they are kept to a minimum. I had a look at the film I took when we left Istanbul on Marina several years ago. All I can hear are the mid-Atlantic tone of the CD telling us "to raise a glass......" as we left the quay. It still makes me want to heave... Sooooo, we will probably stay "oop-front" for the sailaway in Barcelona and pretend it's Blackpool.

As for the interiors, I fully agree, the Owners Suite looks like a tart's Boudoir. The VS and OS although still pretty severe are less of a shock to the occular senses. The hallway in the OS with the piano is truly ghastly and is a waste of space unless you have half the ship over for a drinks party.

I hope Ralph Loren doesn't live like that.... AND to my shame, I thought Dakota Jackson was the name for an old drag queen doing the Northern working men's club circuit......:D

Strangely, the PH grades are a very very pleasant way to travel and make the best use of space. They are VERY well designed and are streets ahead of a Q5-7 suite on QM2.

However, if I had a time machine, I would transport myself to the L'Atlantique in 1931, her interiors were beyond compare!

[URL]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF8CQ8EMoiQ[/URL]

PSC[/quote]

Ah yes, sail away at the bow like the winds across Morecombe Bay - bracing. Need a "coop o tee" and a Scotch Egg now.

The best rendition of a tannoy announcement ever was Not the Nine O'clock News doing the in-flight announcement:

"In the event of a landing in water, take the lifejacket out from its packet under your seat, place over your head, tie the yellow straps anti-clockwise around your waist, pull the red toggle hard and yell inflate you stupid bugger".

or

"Before exiting the aircraft, please remove any sharp objects, such as eye glasses or fragments of red hot engine casing, from your body"


Paraphrasing, but it was 30 years ago.

Thank you PSC for giving me a really good belly laugh this morning before I go to work. I haven't heard the phrase "tart's boudoir" since I left the UK in 1994

Mike

PS I think I saw Dakota at Batley Variety Club in 1983 doing her double act with Julie Goodyear.

[quote name='PS Caledonia']I've only seen a few photos of the room, I think there are three machines, which if nothing else will be useful as secondary hanging space...

[URL]http://0.tqn.com/d/cruises/1/0/h/I/6/Riviera-VS-7300.JPG[/URL]

As for Sue Pollard, that takes me back to childhood and Sunday evenings... Just imagine the confusion on-board if it were like Maplins.....

Mindyou, I can see the similarities with some Cruise Directors when you look at this clip... :eek:

[URL]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C3ZwNEte3Dw[/URL]

PSC[/quote]

It seems that, when it comes to the larger suites, Oceania is having a hard time finding use for the space. It's either the strange telly room in the OS, the odd gym in the VS or the baby grand piano bar in the Owners.....

I'm really hoping that Oceania doesn't do ship-wide announcements, but if they do, I really hope that Ruth Madoc is doing them. It would be hilarious. Just keep Paul Shane as far away from the ship as possible.

Just as long as Sue Pollard isn't on the ship, and nobody is bothering me at sunrise to do calisthenics next to the Olympic sized swimming pool.....

 

I did not order any sweaty videos.....what equipment is there in a VS gym?