mrsgoggins

You have my full sympathy. I was awake, and so got up, between 3-4 am. I made a drink, ate a banana, listened to a radio programme which celebrated Tony Blackburn's 80th birthday and did today's Wordle and Quordle. I don't normally get more than one night a week like this so tonight should be okay - I hope 🤞

I have seen, and enjoyed Mrs Caldecott’s Cabbage War 👍 and also the 2 Mamma Mia films and the Bridget Jones ones. I too only enjoy happy films! There is plenty to depress me in real life events and so for entertainment I generally want ‘light’. Do try Seaside Hotel, I’m sure you would love it.

Avril is quite correct. Romantic comedies - the sort of thing that DH would not choose to watch, or if he went along with it (which he would do) could be guaranteed to nod off during the film! I have been saving pre-recorded Shirley Valentine for such an occasion and was hoping for Pretty Woman, The Proposal (Sandra Bullock) or Overboard (Goldie Hawn) to be on somewhere, but I think I'm out of luck. I'll find something though. The documentaries can wait ....... 😉 What I would really love to do is binge watch 'Seaside Hotel' on 4+ (channel 4's free streaming service). I won't though, because DH likes it too, and as we are on series 7 of 9 series, I want them to last. If you have not heard of Seaside Hotel, a Danish hit series, I can recommend it as both charming and interesting. The Times said that it would be appreciated by fans of Downton Abbey, which I didn't watch, but I pass that along in case it is of interest to others. The fashions from the 20s and 30s are fabulous IMHO. I may just have a go at Avril's custard tart recipe, but because I love a good custard tart and I will be alone.... maybe I should wait! 😋

Against my better judgement, I clicked on the link to the Lancashire Hotpots 😉. I only say that because I have a good friend who is a really keen uke player and Lancashire Hotpots fan - and this gets sung at every opportunity! I like the line in it about chips and peas being known as 'a split' in St Helens (where I grew up). When I taught in Wigan, not many miles away, I had to learn a whole new language, including the term for chips and peas being 'a mixture'. 'Overslept' became 'overlied' in Wigan. It always fascinates me how language and dialect changes within a few miles. A sunny morning here in West Lancashire, but not expected to last. We are going out for lunch to my favourite Italian 🥂. DH is leaving me for a couple of days from Sunday morning so I shall be gloriously alone for 48 hours or more well, apart from visits to some old folk I see to deliver Easter eggs. My family have all gone off to France and good for them. Time for the romcoms to get an airing methinks and very easy food. I certainly won't be faffing making a proper Sunday lunch for one, Easter Sunday or not 😉. I wish you all a pleasant Easter weekend.

Thank you so much. I’ll report back 🤞

I'm jealous! I've never yet made a really good custard tart - and because of failures, it's a few years between attempts 😔. Do you have any tips?

What is a 'dying green' please?

Very clever, thank you 😊

I'm hearing you about staying by the lake in Como pre Brexit 😉. Your post made me take a look at a favourite hotel overlooking Lake Lucerne that we stayed at a couple of times back in the day, on full board. For accommodation only (but with breakfast) it's £530 a night 😱. Blimey! You are possibly home by now, so get booking those trips and cruises at the start of the next phase.

You may be right Avril, but it's some weeks since he posted on either of those threads and I've 'nudged' him a couple of times with the @Harry Peterson inclusion. I just hope he is okay and is merely having good political debates elsewhere 🤞

I'll miss those journeys and the photos you posted. Good luck with the trip back - I bet your car will be packed for that one. Looking at the places you stopped on the way down made me think that I'd quite like another European touring holiday, so with that in mind, we went to view Motorhomes at the weekend, with a view to hiring one in Switzerland and visiting some of my old favourite places next year. We're off to Germany (driving) in the summer and will take also take a look at those held at a large Hymer dealership we know as they are going to similar/same as those for hire in Switzerland. When we were first married, and poor, we'd go camping in Switzerland and take along tins of M&S beef stew, chicken in white sauce etc so we didn't have to buy too much at Swiss prices! Then we progressed to eating in supermarket cafes and department stores in subsequent years 😁

My experience is that they will amend to your chosen TA if you insist. My recent 35 night cruise was booked direct. They were going to make my next booking direct also, saying ‘but that’s how you booked this one’. I pointed out that was true, but my next booking was through a TA I wanted the new booking sent to. They complied.

When on board our 35-night Caribbean cruise in January we booked for January 2026 for the 10% discount (only offered on Select and 21+ day cruises) and double OBC. Our January 2025 cruise I had booked some time ago with a well known TA who deals with P&O a lot and got a large discount, meaning I am paying a similar amount for the 2025 and 2026 35-night cruises - cabin in same area on same ship. The deposit was smaller by booking on board however, which I like. Agree about going armed with prices and details of cruises you are interested in.

Good luck for this afternoon Josy; I hope you get the result you want. We're on Sky Princess again later in the year.

@Eddie99 I hope your break serves its purpose and thanks for sharing the delightful photo. It's such a good idea when folk on here do announce they are taking a break because it is disconcerting when people you 'know' just disappear. Still concerned for @Harry Peterson! I'm tired this morning because I stayed up last night to watch The Shamrock Tenors on BBC4 at 10.40 pm. I'm normally in bed by that time, so even though I was recording it, I was keen to see them again. We have been lucky enough to be on 3 cruises (Celebrity - one of them is also a Vocal Director for Celebrity cruises in Miami) when they have been the guest performers and were just brilliant. I'm going to watch it again tonight with DH who sticks to his earlier bedtime come what may. If you are a fan of stuff like Danny Boy, Black Velvet Band, Whiskey in the Jar etc, it might be worth a look on the BBC iPlayer. I've seen some excellent acts on cruise ships but they are one of the best, any suggestions for other acts you would actually pay to see? There are also quite a few they would have to pay me to watch again! Because DH always likes to sit at the front (leg room) I always feel obliged to do the whole 45 minutes 🥺 Hope everyone has a good day. I'm off to meet a friend at Bents Garden centre for coffee this morning. The challenge is not to spend too much; it's one of those 'destination' garden centres!

How very sad. I had an uneasy relationship with my (very difficult) dad and my overriding feeling when he died was of relief that he wouldn't be my responsibility in his old age - I'm an only child. My saint of a mother deserved, and had, some peaceful years without him. What a pity that Sarah's relationship with her mother is also bad, but what a blessing that she has you and Pauline in her life.

I just read this out to my husband 😂😂. He won’t be following suit based on his horrified reaction; I’ll just have to keep attacking him with scissors every now and then since he seems to ‘forget’ the nose hair trimmer that our son bought him some years ago 😁. Hope you have a great time and that the ‘lift genie’ is with you on your cruise 🤞

Great round up! Not long to go before your US road trip. We’ve done quite a few road trips in the US and Canada, but never in an RV and would be really interested to know how you find it ……. please ……… 😊. Plenty of space for a few comments over in the ‘What’s it like where you are’ thread; just sayin’ 😉.

Thanks Graham. In our case though, we are up on stuff like that - European airport codes could be my Mastermind subject 😉. DH for years would fly out on Mondays and (usually) back on Fridays to different European countries. The Jet2 flight that arrives on the day of the Celebrity cruise we are looking at is definitely BCN.

I'm normally cautious and fly in/drive down the day before, but I'm considering flying into Barcelona on the day of a Celebrity cruise next year. Much to my surprise, there are not daily flights into Barcelona from Manchester in November (based on this year's timetable), but there is an already available Jet2 flight which fits the bill, including the return flight on disembarkation day. The next port of call after Barcelona is Alicante and so we've decided it's worth the risk, as I'm sure we could get ourselves there if need be.

That really made me laugh! Oh how true. Frozen haddock in batter, a potato, can of mushy peas and a Ninja .... this retiree's feast done in 15 minutes 😁

I'll join in with the birthday good wishes for Pauline and hope you both enjoy the celebrations, despite other non joyous events in your family, no doubt still very much in the forefront of your minds @grapau27 In the spirit of many of your posts which I enjoy, here's my yesterday's lunch at our favourite restaurant. It was belly pork, from which I had taken a delicious mouthful before deciding on a photo ☺️

I hope someone comes along who can give you an informed answer. The only thing I would say that if I check P&Os website when in the USA, it is impossible to do a dummy booking through to the final stages, and gives me what I have always believed to be a US number to call. Is that not the case, and if so, have you tried it? By the way, Celebrity is the line we use most often and I suggest you read @Selbourne's excellent blog of his 65 night recent trip on Aurora if you have not already done so. Good luck.

Very informative and entertaining! 'Chapel hat pegs ......' 😂😂 - a long time since I've heard that expression, but I'm sure it described a part of your anatomy perfectly 😁. I do hope that P&O can be nudged in the direction of making 'Companion seats' in the theatre obvious with some sort of label, or at least a request in the daily bulletin, because I confess, it was a few cruises in (many years ago) that I cottoned on. I just hadn't given it a thought, as I am sure is the case for many of the 'offenders'. The lift etiquette is another matter however, because you just never know how many people actually need them just by looking (although yes, it is often possible to make an educated guess!), but well done for taking the initiative and making a request for space for your 'lass' and yourself. I hope Coco has now truly forgiven you 😉

I’ve looked it up and see that you are in the Alsace area of France - very close to where our car was broken into some years ago 🙁. Another overnight stop before you reach your place? Safe travels.