12 days in the British Isles: Photos and info aplenty!

[ohhbother]

As much as we loved Edinburgh, I was so excited when the sun rose on our day in Invergordon. I knew we’d be seeing Loch Ness in just a few hours. How awesome is that?

 

First, a little back story: This was another port where we’d made the decision to do our own thing rather than a ship excursion. My goal was to see Loch Ness in a more personal way -- and not on a boat loaded down with 150 people. Before we left home, I spent some time searching on the Internet and came across Cruise Loch Ness. What immediately grabbed my attention was the availability of RIB, or rigid inflatable boat, trips. I decided it would be immensely cool to explore Loch Ness in a small inflatable, sitting right at water level and traveling at speeds up to 40 knots. Count me in! The cost for the 90-minute trip was 28 pounds per adult, and I bought our tickets online a few weeks before our trip.

 

Next up was figuring out how to get to Cruise Loch Ness, which is based in the village of Fort Augustus. This is all the way at the other end of Loch Ness. A quick check on Google Maps told me it would be about a 90-minute drive from Invergordon to the Cruise Loch Ness offices. I decided that was doable, so the next step was to rent a car -- which we did through a company called Ken’s Garage. (I found them in a Google search). Cost for the car was 55 pounds for the day, and I reserved that in advance, as well.

 

So, back to our day in Invergordon. Once again, things got off to a great start with breakfast at Sabatini’s. Since we didn’t have to be in Fort Augustus until noon for our Cruise Loch Ness trip, we took our time eating breakfast and leaving the ship. We finally walked onto the dock around 9:30 a.m. and, per the instructions I’d been emailed, headed to a building at the end of the dock to meet Claire from Ken’s Garage and pick up our rental car. Picking up the car was the easy part -- Claire was waiting on us and had the car ready to go, complete with maps, brochures, etc.

 

The not-so-easy part, at least for me, was the driving. You see, the last time I drove a car with a manual transmission was in college -- 20 years ago. But in the weeks before the trip, I kept assuring myself (and Mark) that it was liking riding a bike. And, to an extent, it was. Of course, this car had the driver’s seat on the right-hand side and required shifting gears with my left hand -- oh, and I had to drive on the “wrong” side of the road. Fun times!

 

I determined the best way to figure out if I could handle driving was to just do it. So I jumped behind the wheel, and off we went. The drive out of Invergordon was easy. It’s a beautiful little town, and the scenery was breathtaking. There was even snow on the mountaintops in the distance. I took it slow with the driving, and things went well for the most part. There was the one time we took a wrong turn, so I chose to turn around in a parking lot, which just happened to be a daycare center, which just happened to have an uphill driveway I had to pull out from and which just happened to be a pedestrian crossing where -- I’m not making this up -- an elderly man and a very pregnant woman walked in front of me as I did my best to remember how to let out the clutch and pull out on a hill. It’s funny now...

 

 

Anyway, I got the hang of driving and, with Mark following our printed directions from home, we left Invergordon behind and drove toward and then through Inverness. Inverness is a bigger city but still drivable -- even if there was a traffic circle every little bit. Hate those things! After we made it out of Inverness, we entered some beautiful countryside and, before we knew it, Loch Ness appeared on our left. For the next 45 miles or so, we followed a two-lane road at the edge of the loch. We stopped a couple of times to take photos -- it was just too pretty not to. Thankfully, there are pull-off spots along the road designed with photo-taking in mind. The road itself was an easy drive -- two lanes and curvy but not overly challenging. I just had to get used to locals passing me -- they drove that country road just like I drive the roads here at home. I wasn’t quite as comfortable driving as they were!

 

 

Our trip with Cruise Loch Ness was at noon, and I thought we’d get there plenty early. But I didn’t account for the slower speed I had to travel on that curvy road. Luckily, we got to Fort Augustus at about 11:50. There’s only one word to describe this place -- quaint. It looked like something off a postcard, a little fishing village nestled in a valley with snow-capped mountains looming in the background. As we came into town, we saw the Cruise Loch Ness sign on the left. So we parked our car, checked in and made our way down to the dock.

 

 

 

That’s where we met Rory, our guide, and received our clothing for the trip. Traveling at 40 knots in a small boat with no cover in 50-degree temperatures can get a wee bit chilly, so we suited up appropriately.

 

 

 

Continued in next post...

Edited June 2, 2013 by ohhbother

[ohhbother]

Once we were zipped in, we stepped onto our RIB. There were two other couples on the small boat with us. This was exactly what I wanted -- six people instead of dozens. For the next 45 minutes or so, we made our way out of Fort Augustus and up Loch Ness toward Urquhart Castle. Rory stopped the RIB every few minutes to point out interesting scenery, talk about the history of the area and, of course, to share his thoughts on Nessie. I recorded a short video of him talking about the legend of the monster. Parts of it are hard to hear (I apparently kept moving my iPhone around), but I think you can hear it. Here’s the link to the video on Youtube:

 

This trip was simply spectacular. The wind whipped our faces as the boat cruised up the loch, and occasionally spray would lightly splash our faces. Oh my goodness -- it was just perfect! My favorite moments were when he’d bring the RIB to a stop, the waves gently rocking us as we took in the silence and the scenery. I love this short video with the sound of the water:

 

Eventually, we made our way to Urquhart Castle. It was lovely to see from the water, and we drifted along slowly to take in the ruins.

 

 

Then it was time to head back down the loch toward Fort Augustus. On the way back, the clouds that had been building during the first part of our trip opened up into a rainstorm and, briefly, a hail storm. Rory had to stop the RIB so that the hail wouldn’t pelt us in the face. I may be crazy, but sitting in the middle of Loch Ness while tiny pellets of hail landed on my snow suit is one of my favorite memories of the trip. I mean, who gets to do that? It sure was better than a day at the office! It was cold, but I was prepared!

 

 

All too soon, we were back in Fort Augustus and, by this time, famished. On Rory’s recommendation, we headed to the The Lock Inn for lunch. It was a tiny, family-run place where Mark had a huge portion of fish and chips. I ordered a cheese sandwich, expecting a grilled cheese. Instead, I got cold shredded cheese on white bread. Hmmm...I think something was lost in translation. So I ate chips for lunch. Mark really liked his food, and I think the problem was my ordering and not the quality of the food itself.

 

 

 

You’d think this would have been enough excitement for the day, but it was only 2:45 p.m. So it was off to Urquhart Castle! We’d passed the entrance on the drive to Fort Augustus, which meant I knew right where it was. To make things easier, I’d purchased our tickets in advance online before we left home. It took about 30 minutes to drive back to the castle, where we met up with lots of other Princess cruisers on excursions (love those little stickers).

 

I knew I’d adore Urquhart, and I did. To me, this is what a castle should be -- weathered ruins, winding staircases and amazing views. Plus, there was a great souvenir shop with plentiful samples of scotch and delicious butterscotch cake. Yummy. I wish we could have stayed at Urquhart much longer, but we didn’t want to chance missing our ship. So we left after about 45 minutes.

 

 

 

Unfortunately, the drive back to Invergordon was a bit more stressful. For one thing, I foolishly forgot to print return directions, so we had to reverse the route on our own. Plus, it was right at 5 p.m. when we went through Inverness, and traffic was heavy. There was also major construction work being done on the bridge out of town. But we made it through, and we were back to return our rental car by 5:30. I have to admit I breathed a sigh of relief as I dropped off the keys. My driving for this trip was done, and I was happy about that!

 

Before boarding the ship, we stopped in a little souvenir shop right at the dock and bought a couple of things. Then it was back to our stateroom to order dinner. We both had the pork chop with fig demi-glace, which was quite good. Also yummy was the appetizer of pineapple with pistachio and marscapone.

 

We spent the rest of the evening in the room -- resting, reading and getting ready for the “big day” of our trip -- our one-of-a-kind adventure in the Orkney Islands. Loch Ness was awesome, but the Orkneys were even better. Stay tuned...

[Steph27]

Amy,

It is so much fun reading your posts for your days in Invergordon and Edinburgh. Kudos to you for renting the manual and having to drive on the opposite side of the road. I try to do our own excursions too. The RIB with the spray and the hail sounds like quite the adventure! You definitely dressed for the ocaission. Looking forward to the next installment.

[NFEB]

Karen and Amy,

Thank you for your responses. We're heading to London tomorrow and set sail on Wednesday.

Nancy

[marylizcat]

For anybody's future reference, no reason why a 'cheese sandwich' would be grilled. Expect what it says! If you want it 'grilled', we call it 'toasted', sometimes abbreviated to a 'toastie'.

[bigeck]

Great review.

So glad you enjoyed Scotland. We have only started getting cruise ships around these parts. Always wondered what cruisers thought. Shame our weather is a bit up and down. I think we need to tour Scotland ourselves instead of going to the Caribbean.

We had a run down to see Caribbean Princess this morning at Queensferry.

[Meme5]

We are considering the 12 day British Isles Cruise on Caribbean Princess as there are some amazing deals right now and we feel that the summer time would be the best time to go. We have sailed on Princess before and loved it. This cruise is from London and includes Cork, Dublin, Paris, Edinburgh, etc. Our main concern- are the seas rough? From the map it looks like the ship stays fairly close to the coast. Just wondering about this...... thanks. Melissa Troutman melissa.troutman@gmail.com

[melody hounddog]

I'm taking notes! Your rib trip on the Loch Ness looks fantastic. My family would love that. I'm just nervous about the drive. Didn't think about traffic heading back to the ship.

[ohhbother]

We are considering the 12 day British Isles Cruise on Caribbean Princess as there are some amazing deals right now and we feel that the summer time would be the best time to go. We have sailed on Princess before and loved it. This cruise is from London and includes Cork, Dublin, Paris, Edinburgh, etc. Our main concern- are the seas rough? From the map it looks like the ship stays fairly close to the coast. Just wondering about this...... thanks. Melissa Troutman melissa.troutman@gmail.com

 

Hi Melissa. On our sailing, the sea was the calmest I've ever sailed. Most days, it was like looking out at a lake. One day, we had four-to-seven foot seas, but even that was not an issue. My favorite word of the cruise became "wavelets" -- that's how the on-screen report from the bridge would describe the calm conditions. For no good reason, that cracked me up, and I kept walking around saying "wavelets." :-)

 

Anyway, no worries at all about rough seas -- at least from my experience. Go for it. It was the best vacation we've ever taken, and we vacation a lot!

[ohhbother]

I'm taking notes! Your rib trip on the Loch Ness looks fantastic. My family would love that. I'm just nervous about the drive. Didn't think about traffic heading back to the ship.

 

Melody, I highly encourage you to take the RIB trip. It was one of the highlights of the cruise. The whole day was lovely -- the drive through the countryside, the RIB trip, exploring Fort Augustus a bit, visiting Urquhart Castle.

 

The traffic in Inverness wasn't terrible. It took us maybe 20-30 minutes to get through, and that was with road construction. If I'd remembered to print out reverse directions, we would have gotten through even quicker. I just had to guess which way to go a few times, and I guessed wrong on one or two occasions.

 

Really, it was a very easy drive and so worth it to get out and see all that we saw.

[ohhbother]

Great review.

So glad you enjoyed Scotland. We have only started getting cruise ships around these parts. Always wondered what cruisers thought. Shame our weather is a bit up and down. I think we need to tour Scotland ourselves instead of going to the Caribbean.

We had a run down to see Caribbean Princess this morning at Queensferry.

 

Thanks, Alex! Scotland exceeded every expectation we had, and our expectations were sky high. We definitely plan to come back for an extended visit in the next few years. This cruise was just enough to make us want more!

Edited June 2, 2013 by ohhbother

[ohhbother]

Mark was 15 when the music video to Eurythmics’ “Here Comes the Rain Again” was released in late 1983. From the moment he first saw the opening scenes, he was transported far away from his home in the mountains of Northeast Tennessee to an unfamiliar, otherworldly landscape half a world away. For 30 years, he’s loved that song, that video and that band. (If you haven’t seen the video in awhile, here’s the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzFnYcIqj6I. Check it out -- it sets the stage for this entire review.)

 

Back in the 1980s, the teenage version of Mark didn’t know where the video was shot. There was no Google then to track down information with the click of a mouse. But it didn’t stop him from dreaming of seeing that place for himself.

 

Fast forward to the present. Mark and I have been married for more than 18 years now, and the thing that makes me happiest in the world is making his dreams come true. I love that Walt Disney quote, “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” So, a few years ago, I decided Mark would get to that place he’d always dreamed of. Of course, first, I had to figure out where it was. With Google on my side, I quickly learned the music video was filmed on the sea cliffs of an island called Hoy in the remote Orkney Islands of Scotland. And the sea stack in the video -- a foreboding 459-foot-tall pillar towering over the ocean -- is known as the Old Man of Hoy.

 

That, in a nutshell is why we picked this cruise on the Caribbean Princess -- the ship had among its ports of call the small town of Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands. From the moment the cruise was booked and our plans were set, I began researching to formulate a plan that would get Mark to the Old Man of Hoy.

 

I’ll say right up front this was no easy task. First, the ship was docking in Kirkwall, which is located on the main island of the Orkneys. The Old Man of Hoy is off the coast of Hoy, a neighboring island accessible only by boat. My initial thought was to take the ferry from the main island to Hoy. As I pored over ferry schedules, however, it soon became clear we wouldn’t get back to Kirkwall in time to board the Caribbean Princess before the ship departed. Next, I tried to hire a private guide. She was very helpful but confirmed that what I wanted to do just wasn’t possible because of the ferry schedule.

 

It’s no exaggeration to say I spent hours and hours trying to figure this out. I messaged users on Trip Advisor who’d posted reviews of their visits to the Old Man. I went through page after page of Google results, clicking any possible link that might have information. I emailed multiple private boat charters -- thinking we could perhaps see the Old Man from the water if we couldn’t get there on land. But nothing worked. Everything I tried was a dead end, and, frankly, I was ready to give up. I even booked a ship excursion to one of the historic sites in Kirkwall, thinking there was just no way to get to Hoy.

 

And then, one day, I found a link to an old PDF on some obscure website -- I’m quite certain I couldn’t find it again if I tried. Included in the PDF was a list of locals in the Orkneys who serve as guides. One of them was Mr. Terry Thomson, who lives on the island of Hoy. I sent Terry an email, figuring what could it hurt. He responded almost immediately -- first to tell me he was amazed the email got to him. Apparently, the email address I had was one he’d stopped using three years ago. But he also let me know he’d help me figure out how to make our visit to Hoy happen. He agreed the ferry schedule was no good, but he had another plan. Here’s a snippet of an email he sent me -- I just love this, and it sums up Terry in a nutshell.

 

“All is not lost. Phone Norman Brass in Stromness. Norman has a 7 1/2 Mtr. Rib with housing, and he does charters. Failing that, my oldest son has also got a 7 1/2 Mtr. open Rib and would pick you up in Hoy for Stromness if he wasn't too busy.”

 

Suddenly, I had hope again! I called the number Terry had provided for Norman Brass and left him a message. He called me back a day later and -- though he’d never had a request quite like mine -- agreed to transport us from the main island to Hoy. Norman even volunteered to pick us up at the ship in Kirkwall and drive us across the main island to Stromness, where his boat was kept. He also said he’d return us to our ship after our visit was done.

 

I couldn’t believe it! We were going to the Old Man of Hoy! Terry’s fee was something like 2 pounds per person (plus an agreement to join him for a guided tour of his island), while Norman charged us 200 pounds for getting us from Kirkwall to Stromness to Hoy and back.

 

So, on the morning of May 17, the Caribbean Princess docked in Kirkwall. Mark and I were lined up at the door and were among the first people off the ship at 8:30 a.m. I had called Norman to let him know we were there, and he promised to be at the end of the dock in his black Range Rover. Sure enough, there he was. After quick introductions, we climbed into his car, and off we went. The drive from Kirkwall to Stromness took about 20 minutes, and Norman was gracious enough to tell us about life in the Orkneys. He’s a native Orcadian and runs a small business there. He was immensely proud of the Orkneys. As he put it, “I’m proud to be Scottish, but I’m an Orcadian first.”

 

Before we knew it, we arrived in Stromness. We were pleasantly surprised by Norman’s boat, which offered the comfort of an enclosed cabin. He did a nice safety overview, and then we sailed away from the pier in the beautiful little village. Next stop, Hoy!

 

 

 

A little bit about Hoy -- the island is only 15 minutes away from the main island by boat, but it’s a world away in many respects. Only 450 people live on Hoy, and it’s a remote, windswept landscape with towering cliffs and unforgiving land where sheep outnumber people. As we sailed toward shore, we saw a set of stone steps rising out of the water. At the top, Terry was waiting on us in his burgundy minibus. We climbed off the boat and up the steps to meet Terry -- who, by this point, had officially become my hero. Without his help, none of this would have happened. Thanks to his kindness, Mark and I were standing on Hoy!

 

 

As we piled into Terry’s mini-bus, we watched Norman pilot his boat back toward the main island. Before he left, we agreed to call him in the early afternoon when we were ready to come back. We then set out along Hoy’s one narrow road (so narrow that cars can’t pass in many places) as Terry enchanted us with stories of growing up in the Orkneys. He pointed out prehistoric sites such as the Dwarfie Stane, a 5,000-year-old tomb carved out of stone sometime between the Neolithic and Bronze Age. And he regaled us with his tale of an ongoing battle with the equivalent of Scotland’s highway department, which refuses to make improvement to the island road.

 

 

The drive across the island was about five miles. Our destination was Rackwick Bay, which was the trailhead for our journey to see the Old Man. You see, Terry and his mini-bus could only take us so far. From the trailhead, it was a three-mile hike to the Old Man. We said our goodbyes to Terry after agreeing to meet back up with him at 1 p.m. At 9:45 a.m., we set off on our hike.

 

Continued in next post...

[ohhbother]

There are simply not enough words in the English language to describe this place, and pictures can’t even fully capture the beauty. We started out in a sheep pasture, making our way past a handful of small homes. Soon, we saw a wooden sign that pointed us toward the Old Man.

 

 

 

 

From there, we climbed. And climbed. And climbed some more. There was a clear path to follow at all times, and the hike wasn’t difficult, per se. It was just uphill on uneven surfaces as we went from pastureland to a dirt path to a path covered in small stones. As we climbed, we could look back and down over beautiful Rackwick Bay.

 

 

 

 

Soon, we’d made it to the top of the ridge and were walking along the cliff tops. This was one of those, “We’re not in Disney World” moments. There was no safety railing, and it was a long way down. By this point, we were in sensory overload -- the beautiful sights, the smells of the sea below and the silence broken only by birds calling and waves crashing against rocks far below us. It was such a strange and wonderful feeling to know we were in this remote place and completely alone. There were no humans for miles, and it was fantastic.

 

Continued in next post...

Edited June 2, 2013 by ohhbother

[ohhbother]

We kept following the path along the clifftops, and then, in the distance, we caught our first glimpse of the Old Man.

 

 

At this point, we were so anxious to get there, but we still had a long way to go. Finally, a little after 11 a.m., we made it to the edge of the cliffs with the Old Man directly across from us. What an amazing feeling -- a culmination of a 30-year dream for Mark and a sense of accomplishment for me that we’d actually made this happen. For the next hour, we drank in the sights and sounds, took a million photos and simply enjoyed precious moments together. We even stood in the bright sunshine and played the music video to “Here Comes the Rain Again” on Mark’s iPhone. Here’s a little snippet -- I love the sheer joy captured in this video:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Continued in next post...

[ohhbother]

Mark and I were fortunate to have nearly an hour at the Old Man alone. Then, as the clock drew toward noon, a handful of other people began trickling in. I realized the morning ferry had arrived, and soon we were joined by a dozen or so other hikers. One of them was kind enough to take this photo of us together.

 

 

As much as we didn’t want to leave, we knew Terry would be waiting on us. So Mark and I began the three-mile hike back toward Rackwick Bay.

 

 

 

When we arrived back at the trailhead around 1:10, Terry was right where he said he’d be -- catching a nap, or as he put it, visiting the land of Nod. As he drove us back across the island, I called Norman to let him know we were ready. By the time we arrived back at the dock, Norman was pulling up. It was bittersweet to say goodbye to Terry -- he played such a large role in making this day possible. But we promised to exchange Christmas cards, and we climbed back aboard the boat to return to the main island.

 

 

In just a few minutes, we were back at Stromness and in Norman’s car headed toward Kirkwall. He offered to drop us in the town center, but the weather had turned overcast and cold. Plus, we were starving. So we just decided to return to the ship. We thanked Norman and said our goodbyes. And we were back on board the ship before 3 p.m.

 

 

Once on board, Mark and I grabbed lunch in Horizon Court. We then spent the afternoon relaxing in the cabin. The ship was supposed to leave at 6 p.m., but the wind had picked up considerably and kept pushing us into the pier. It was quite interesting to watch a tugboat?? (not sure what kind) keep trying to pull us away from the pier. This went on for an hour, and everyone on board was beginning to wonder if we’d be able to sail that night. Up on the top deck, the whole ship was shuddering -- plates were crashing in Horizon Court, and glasses of water were vibrating like that scene in Jurassic Park. Finally, we made it away from the pier and began to sail away from the Orkneys. I know I sound like a broken record, but this is another place we plan to visit again. There was so much beauty, so much history -- one day just wasn’t enough.

 

For dinner, nothing on the menu looked appetizing, so Mark and I both ordered from the anytime items. He had a burger and fries, while I had an appetizer of fettucini with a chicken breast. We grabbed dessert from Horizon Court, where Mark had strawberry shortcake and coconut-papaya cake and I had pecan caramel cheesecake (I tried to limit desserts on this trip, but I felt like I’d earned this cheesecake!)

 

As you can imagine, it was an early night to bed. We went to sleep knowing we had a day at sea to look forward to.

 


A few final notes: If you’re headed out on the British Isles cruise and looking for something to do in Kirkwall, I strongly recommend a hike to the Old Man of Hoy. Even without a Eurythmics connection, it’s simply one of nature’s most spectacular spots and so worth seeing. Both Terry and Norman said they’d be happy for me to share their contact information on this board. Now that all the logistics are figured out, it would be a really easy trip for anyone to do. (As Terry put it, Mark and I should be in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the first Americans to get from a cruise ship to the Old Man of Hoy and back in a day!)

 

The other hikers we saw included a woman carrying an infant, a father with two small kids and couples in their 50s and 60s. So the path is very walkable for all ages and physical abilities. If you’d like to reach Terry, his email address is terrythomson55@hotmail.co.uk. Norman’s email is normanbrass@btconnect.com. Just tell them Amy sent you!

 

Next up, our second day at sea...

[jtamchay]

what a thrilling adventure and dream come true...love your review and spirit!

[SkystheLimit]

You are so kind to take the time to write this absolutely wonderful travel log. Thank you and we look forward to more. Your photos are marvelous.

[Genessa]

Mark and I were fortunate to have nearly an hour at the Old Man alone.

 

 

 


A few final notes: If you’re headed out on the British Isles cruise and looking for something to do in Kirkwall, I strongly recommend a hike to the Old Man of Hoy. Even without a Eurythmics connection, it’s simply one of nature’s most spectacular spots and so worth seeing. Both Terry and Norman said they’d be happy for me to share their contact information on this board. Now that all the logistics are figured out, it would be a really easy trip for anyone to do. (As Terry put it, Mark and I should be in the Guinness Book of World Records for being the first Americans to get from a cruise ship to the Old Man of Hoy and back in a day!)

 

..

 

what a fabulous cruise adventure!

thank you for sharing it with us!

[Alli Cruiser]

Amy,

I love your review, your spirit. I'm sure you are inspiring others to mix it up a bit and get out there!

 

We did this cruise with slightly different ports a few years back and I would love to do it again. Hoy looks beautiful. Thank you for the effort you are putting in to this review and your photos.

[ar1950]

Thanks so much for sharing your vacation with everyone. My wife and I have been vicariously living out a cruise to the British Isles through your posts! It sounds like you both had a "trip of a lifetime" experience. And I would say your husband is a lucky man for the effort you put into the trip. Especially this latest leg.:)

[pjrockman]

Amy,

 

We, too, like to go off the beaten path at cruise ports. However, when it comes to adventuring outside the norm, you are the queen. We are thinking about this cruise on the Ruby next year and your posts are crazy interesting. Thank you for your generosity. You two sound like you had a great time.

 

Sincerely, Paul

[loma linda ca a & j]

reading your posts - about the rental car day & about old man of hoy-

i sat tensely on the edge of my chair w/ my hand gripping the mouse

soooooooo afraid you were NOT going to make it back to the ship

either day but alas you DID !!;)

p.s. the stick shift & the 3 mile hike would have ended

those 2 days for me before they even began :eek:

Edited June 3, 2013 by loma linda ca a & j
add

[Go-Bucks!]

my lack of sleep caught up with me and I nodded off.

 

Maybe it was the lack of sleep

 

At this point, we wanted nothing more than to go to sleep.

 

we were just so exhausted.

 

 

Loved your review! Glad you had a wonderful vacation. We also had a Window Suite once and loved it!! They're so fabulous, along with the perks, but especially on a cool weather cruise.

 

My only suggestion that could have made your experience a little better would be to fly into the cruise embarkation city at least a day before sailing. Two reasons: first, you get rested and over the jet lag so you feel good when the cruise starts, and also so that in case there are any travel problems (weather, delays, etc) then you don't run the risk of missing the ship.

 

Thanks again for the review. :)

[ricki]

Fantastic narrative! So glad you made dreams come true!

 

 

Ricki

[melody hounddog]

Your YouTube video brought tears to my eyes. I also grew up listening to the Eurythmics. That song brings back high school.