Silversea Water Cooler: Welcome!

[TLCOhio]

Son seems to be ok. I know that dash cams are popular in Europe, but not many Americans have them. I guess in this case, it will support the fact that the other person was at fault, although he has already been charged with the accident. Millie, we are going to the Baltic. The highlight of the cruise is the stay over in St. Petersburg. Its only a 12 day cruise, so quite short for such a long series of flights to get to Copenhagen and then not much time in any one place. And yes, we are excited. I have been reading and researching Russian history in order to get a better picture of the development of the country and what we must see in the short time. If anyone has thoughts of what to see, besides the Hermitage, please let me know.

 

spinnaker2: Terry' date=' those grandchildren are just beautifully handsome. The littlest one looks [b']like a real imp![/b]

 

Great to see more fun, tasty and interesting food pictures from Jeff. Keep it coming!! BUT, it will not help me in my desire to keep the weight off. Helps build my interest in eating . . . and eating!! Appreciate these posts and pictures. Plus, all of the other insights, experiences, etc.

 

Glad to know that Candy's son is doing well. Interesting background on dash cam technology. Did not know it was available for use in the cars of "regular people". Was the other driver drinking?

 

For St. Petersburg, have lots and lots of ideas, tips and visuals from there. More to come later.

 

Got back late last night from historic and scenic Charlottesville, Va. Actually returned about 12:50 am today. Sunday turned nice and sunny down there. Great fun with our two grandsons. Have a few floral samples of my "eye candy" captures to share here. Plus a few more grandson visuals to share later. Then, folks can judge more if our youngest grandson is "like a real imp!". Inquiring minds need to know!!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 176,737 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

From our weekend visit in Charlottesville, Va., here are a few visual samples featuring the colorful floral "action". First is a dogwood tree looking good and showing off in a nice way. Next are a series of pictures highlighting some of the varied flower potentials from a garden store there. Fun and exciting to be thinking about getting that wonderful spring and summer flower excitement.:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[findacruise]

Jeff: I read your comment about Singapore being your home ground. As we get closer to our Cruise February 13 I would like to ask you for some tips, as we will be there a couple of days before we board Silver Shadow. We will also have turnaround day, as we are then doing the Singapore to Hong Kong February 25.

 

On another note - the food pictures are killing me, too. I just had lunch an am again hungry. I'll take your restaurant quality food with some of Terry's flowers on the table and then go for a walk in the woods among the bluebells! Life is good.

 

Joanna:)

[UKCruiseJeff]

Jeff: I read your comment about Singapore being your home ground. As we get closer to our Cruise February 13 I would like to ask you for some tips, as we will be there a couple of days before we board Silver Shadow. We will also have turnaround day, as we are then doing the Singapore to Hong Kong February 25.

 

On another note - the food pictures are killing me, too. I just had lunch an am again hungry. I'll take your restaurant quality food with some of Terry's flowers on the table and then go for a walk in the woods among the bluebells! Life is good.

 

Joanna:)

 

Thanks for your kind word about my humble grub. :)

 

Happy to help if I can .... we will just miss you as we're in Singapore from just before Christmas this year until the end of January ...... and we're looking forward to our next trip in a few weeks time. The distance we'll travel for a decent bowl of food. If you wish to extend your trip to a bit earlier .... we'll buy you a bowl of pho in January ....

 

Suggest you do a quick search on this forum with just "Singapore" and you'll see a bit of advice left for other posters and then of course if you have any further questions happy to help.

 

Jeff

[UKCruiseJeff]

Fettuccine Bolognese with too much Parmesan Reggiano for many.

 

[TLCOhio]

Fettuccine Bolognese with too much Parmesan Reggiano for many.

 

Appreciate the wonderful pasta visual. Not quite lunch time in Ohio, yet, but it makes me hungry.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 106,428 views for this posting.

[jpalbny]

too much...Parmesan Reggiano

 

 

Jeff, those words do not belong in the same sentence!

[UKCruiseJeff]

Thanks Terry!

 

Jeff, those words do not belong in the same sentence!

 

Another sufferer! :D

 

Anyone eating my pasta always finds it odd that less sauce is more but more cheese is more ..... As with pizza all being about the dough to me pasta is all about the pasta .. I'm going to have to make another batch of sauce for the freezer soon.

 

This is a funny old week here in the UK with the strangest and most alarming election in living history. I wish I were somewhere else.

 

Jeff

[Travelcat2]

UKCruiseJeff: Just have to comment on your bangers and mash -- they look amazing!!! Actually, all of your food looks amazing but this was particularly so. As you probably know, very few place in the U.S. can get "proper" bangers so I rarely get to taste one of my favorite foods.

[UKCruiseJeff]

UKCruiseJeff: Just have to comment on your bangers and mash -- they look amazing!!! Actually, all of your food looks amazing but this was particularly so. As you probably know, very few place in the U.S. can get "proper" bangers so I rarely get to taste one of my favorite foods.

 

 

You really mustn't encourage me ... as you know I don't need much to stick a food piccy up!

 

I can't imagine life without our sozzies. We are so lucky now. Just twenty years ago sausages were really poor in the UK but now even the supermarkets have dozens of different types, and as you can guess I use to have to make them myself before we had the sozzy renaissance. I even use to take wifey on what I'd call Sozzy Safari to Vienna for the wurst stalls. A TA Vienna expert and I once put a web guide to all the stands .....

 

That was wifey's meal. My one was no beans but extra cheese on the mash mix. I'm not allowed beans for reasons I won't dwell on. I'm not blown away by them anyway. ;)

 

The wife has also asked me to stop buying her flowers ...... is it not a bloke thing to buy his missus flowers? I just love spring flowers .....

 

 

 

 

[Travelcat2]

You really mustn't encourage me ... as you know I don't need much to stick a food piccy up!

 

I can't imagine life without our sozzies. We are so lucky now. Just twenty years ago sausages were really poor in the UK but now even the supermarkets have dozens of different types, and as you can guess I use to have to make them myself before we had the sozzy renaissance. I even use to take wifey on what I'd call Sozzy Safari to Vienna for the wurst stalls. A TA Vienna expert and I once put a web guide to all the stands .....

 

That was wifey's meal. My one was no beans but extra cheese on the mash mix. I'm not allowed beans for reasons I won't dwell on. I'm not blown away by them anyway. ;)

 

The wife has also asked me to stop buying her flowers ...... is it not a bloke thing to buy his missus flowers? I just love spring flowers .....

 

 

 

 

 

May I ask how you get the beautiful "brown" on the outside? (Lovely flowers).

[UKCruiseJeff]

May I ask how you get the beautiful "brown" on the outside? (Lovely flowers).

 

Hi,

 

If you mean the sausages ..... I use (as with so many things ...) an Airfryer. They are perfect for sausages. Cooked slowish at around 150c until done.

 

Airfryers are wonderful.

 

These are them doing their job with some Crispy Chinese duck. I have my own idea of what veg goes with Crispy Duck ...

 

And what it did recently to my pork char siu. I love pork char siu.

 

Jeff

 

Edited May 1, 2015 by UKCruiseJeff

[MillieRyan08]

Gosh Jeff, your foodie pics are absolutely amazing. Are you a chef? If not you should be! Cant believe wifey has put in a request to stop the flowers. Surely she is joking??

 

I could not help but notice in one of the pics you were drinking a lovely red out of a thick glass with a handle (a clear mug!). Now thats quirky. Wouldn't happen in OZ but I'm all for it if it improves the wine....

 

So looking forward to your 2015 cruise on the Cloud in July. Im not expecting a day by day blog, just a detailed review at the end would satisfy me.

 

Terry, your photos are always sensational.

 

I now only have a million and one days to my July 2016 cruise.

 

Cheers, Millie

Edited May 1, 2015 by MillieRyan08

[UKCruiseJeff]

Gosh Jeff, your foodie pics are absolutely amazing. Are you a chef? If not you should be! Cant believe wifey has put in a request to stop the flowers. Surely she is joking??

 

I could not help but notice in one of the pics you were drinking a lovely red out of a thick glass with a handle (a clear mug!). Now thats quirky. Wouldn't happen in OZ but I'm all for it if it improve the wine....

 

Terry, your photos are always sensational.

 

I now only have a million and one days to my July 2016 cruise.

 

Cheers, Millie

 

Hi Millie,

 

I am not a chef by any means .... I just like to learn how something is made when I eat it ... particularly when we travel.

 

I was ordering too many flowers and she was running out of vases .... but we have some lovely yellow tulips arriving in the next few minutes .... tee hee heee ......

 

The mugs started because I love my white wine really cold and most glasses allow the wine to warm to quickly. We use to go to Vienna three or four times a year and during our wine of choice has always been Gruner Veltliner which is often served in quarter litre mugs like the ones I now use. I sort of got into the habit and never really stopped. I am also an anti-snob when it comes to presentation. I like food "to speak for itself" and hate chefy presentation. A simple white plate with stuff neatly placed on it. That overlaps to wine. I like a rustic approach in everything.

 

I am now of course a world class expert on being truly Oz. ;)

 

You may recall me talking about my Oz cousin (sadly now gone) a popular Oz called Zelman ... you may recall him .... He was a down to earth man who also liked rustic and I reckon all true Ozzers should drink their wine from a mug and their beer from a bucket ... anything else is cissy isn't it.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=38343658&postcount=65

 

:D

 

Jeff

[spinnaker2]

Jeff.

You have more gadgets than Dixie has songs. Honestly. You must have a pantry comparable to one of the parish priest's manse.

I just wrote a response regarding the failed inspection. Ok not this thread subject matter, but the darned Apple iPad ate it before it went.

Maybe my hands were on fire as I typed it. The iPad put the fire out instead of sending it.

Grrrrrrr. So much else in the world deserving of my ire and attention. I watch the news and am in disbelief. My father would say I have no right to complain unless I am willing to take action to correct the situation.

Rhetorical question, at what point do we get to pass the baton to another generation? Do we wait until they reach for it? Do they know that the baton has multiple uses, by its very duality it is a complex modality,it can be used as a truncheon or a stick to lead?

Ok ...rant over.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Your dad was wrong Spins. If you can't grumble as you get a bit older what would be left?

 

Today has been some Ras el Hanout chicken with presrved lemon and apricot with some tabbouleh and we've found some nice Picpoul de Pinet which we have made a forward investment .......;)

 

[spinnaker2]

Jeff.

I have two gallon jars of preserved lemons I made.

Too bad I can't send them to you.

I will never use that much.

Can't even make lemonade...

[UKCruiseJeff]

We have had a little girl!

 

:)

[mysty]

And we celebrate with you in spirit! :)

[UKCruiseJeff]

I'd like to think she is as much your as she is ours.

 

:)

[spinnaker2]

And her name is ?

[TLCOhio]

Terry, your photos are always sensational. I now only have a million and one days to my July 2016 cruise. Cheers, Millie

 

Appreciate the nice and kind comments from Millie on my photography. In looking more at your upcoming July 18-29 2016 cruise from Venice to Rome, you have lots of good options and super potentials. We have not stopped or done anything at Rab or Split in Croatia. Nor, for Corfu or Igoumenitza, Greece. We have done much, as noted earlier, for Dubrovnik. Plus, also Kotor in 2011. See my link below, plus a couple of my pictures from below. And as a real "sweet-spot" from our experiences has been the whole Amalfi/Sorrento area. So charming and amazing will be this region of Italy for you. See more on Venice, if you have notice my posting on this great city earlier.

 

We did four days in that region during a land trip in 1999. Plus, during our 2011 cruise, we had a wonderful day to enjoy much in and around Positano and Ravello, plus visiting Herculaneum. Below are more notes and details on the many options in this area. Then, there is Capri!! So amazing and spectacular.

 

Amalfi is a key and historic town that gives its name to this famed and scenic coast surrounded by dramatic cliffs and spectacular scenery.. Between 839 and around 1200, the Duchy of Amalfi existed as major maritime and trading power. It rivaled Pisa and Genoa in domestic prosperity and maritime importance, before the later rise of Venice and Amalfi’s defeat by the Republic of Pisa. The Amalfi Coast is known for its production of limoncello liquor. Its lemons are grown in terraced gardens along the entire coast. In the 1920s and 1930s, Amalfi was a popular holiday destination for the British upper class and aristocracy. In 1997, the Amalfi Coast was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site as a cultural landscape.

 

Ravello sits high above the water overlooking the great views of the Amalfi Coast. This charming town of 2500 people has many interesting buildings. Shown is a sample of its structures, flowers and views to nearby, terraced hillsides. In the summer months, the "Ravello Festival" takes place in Ravello. The Festival started in 1953 in honor of Richard Wagner, who did inspired writing at this location. Ravello was founded in the 5th century as a shelter location against Barbarian invaders at the end of the Western Roman Empire. In the 9th century Ravello was an important town of the maritime republic of Amalfi. In the 20th century, many famous artists, including Virginia Woolf, Greta Garbo, Joan Mirò, Truman Capote, Tennessee Williams and Leonard Bernstein, visited and stayed in Ravello.

 

For those challenged by the question of Pompeii versus Herculaneum, here is some of my background info to consider.

 

For us, fortunately, we had four days in this spectacular area in 1999. We saw Pompeii, Capri, Sorrento, Positano, etc. at that time. From my wife and the other couple who traveled on this June Med 2011 trip with us and had seen Pompeii previously, the clear conclusion is that Pompeii as the more famous city would be our first choice if we had not visited the area previously. Why? Pompeii was a much larger and more diverse city. Pompeii is so unique and historic. It gives you a keen insight about how people lived and operated during that long-ago era. My most memorable moment was in walking into Pompeii and noticing certain grooves in the stone pavement. I asked what caused that. Our guide replied: "That's from the chariots." WOW! It became very, very visual for where we were walking and what had happened here . . . so long ago!!

 

There is more to see there and a wider range of options, including BOTH residential and commercial stores/shops/services. That included Pompeii's house of "ladies" or women who offered, commercially, the men different "positions" for "services", etc. You know what I mean, right? In visiting this brothel house, our guide pointed to the seven different visuals on the wall that provide "customers" a choice on what position they wished to choose. They needed to use visuals there as sailors from all of the world visited Pompeii and its port in that era. They didn't speak the local language!!! But, had "needs"!! The visuals solved the translation challenges. Our guide in 1999 said on one of the wall visuals that it was the "Monica Lewinsky position". He noted that people from all over the world touring this site knew what that phrase meant, regardless of their language spoken. Interesting!!!

 

Another unique part with Pompeii was seeing some of the bodies that were "frozen" in place when volcano erupted and they died. You could see the facial experience at the time of that tragedy. The downside with Pompeii is that it is much more crowded and busy. Our 1999 visit to Pompeii was not too crowd for us, but it can get hot and busy there, especially during the summer and with multiple large ships in port.

 

For Millie, what else will be helpful??

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Wonderful Kotor and nearby Montenegro? Check these postings. Have had over 23,716 views on this posting and appreciate those who have tuned-in and commented.:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439193[/b

 

 

From going high above Kotor, this is a little of the view of the fjord bay on a spectacularly sunny day. Getting up early to do the sail-in for these dramatic scenery was great fun and interesting. Here’s our bus driver going to up, back and forth, through twenty-seven serpentine twists and turns to rise up the 4000’ high mountain above Kotor as we headed to the old Royal Capital of Cetinje. You can see our cruise ship down below tendered in the scenic harbor.:

 

 

 

As you sail in and out of Kotor, you see these two island with church built on them. Near Perast there are two small islands: one is called St. George island, and the other called Gospa od Škrpjela (Our Lady of the Rock), and each has a picturesque chapel. Gospa od Škrpjela is particularly interesting given that it is the only artificially built island in the Adriatic These are not natural island, but built up there over the years. Spectacular sighting.:

 

 

 

For Ravello overlooking the Gulf of Solerno, this is the town church tower with flowers in the foreground:

 

 

 

Ravello has many nice ceramics shops with locally-made pieces of many sizes. Here is the owner making a welcoming toast to come in and shop.:

 

 

 

Overlooking Positano along the Amalfi Coast, this is the view as we dined, family-style for lunch, at La Tagliata. The views here were super and the sun came out in strong force as we enjoyed our three-course lunch with local wine and drinks. Their website is http://www.latagliata.com.:

 

 

 

Driving up from Positano to our dining place, this was one of the many great views of this charming town, its buildings and the water.:

 

[TLCOhio]

We have had a little girl! :)

 

Initially, until the other, later post by mysty, I was totally "dumb" in not getting what Jeff was expressing. Dah??!! Not, I understand, fully. Yes, congratulations to the Windsors, the UK, the Empire, etc.

 

BUT, in order to "stir the pot", I cast a strong, strong vote for Prince Charles to hang up his dream for being King and let Prince William to be next in line to the British crown. My view is that William and Kate are much more "with it" in the Twenty-First Century and have more of the understanding for real people in this world of today and the future. Both of them seem much more "grounded", working hard as good parents, etc. Less "baggage" with my plan to skip Charles and let him continue to play with his personal projects. Doubt that Prince Charlie and his wife are following my thoughts on this posting board. BUT, we can hope!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Dozens of nice visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc. We are now at 198,304 views for this live/blog re-cap, including much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[Seafairer]

What happy news! Congratulations to the wonderful young couple, and best wishes for the little princess' long and happy life.

 

A toast is in order!

[UKCruiseJeff]

Terry ... thanks.

 

I must admit to being surprised at your comments and think your theory although not completely impossible, very highly improbable unless the Queen has a welcome very long life and if for example Charles was infirm or ill when she passed. I must admit I'm surprised anyone would wish otherwise.

 

The age gap between William and his dad makes it reasonably certain both can have a shot. I don't know why you would think that Charles is out of touch with the real people of the world and I hope they both reign when they must.

 

Charles is a lovely passionate man who would be a lovely King and give William a crack at a more ordinary life he clearly wants for his family for as long as possilble whilst probably giving him a crack later. I'd put my money on him wanting his dad to do the job first and not wanting it before it became unfortunately his role. Tradition is a very powerful component of the British monarchy and it is a component of it's very strength.

 

Charles would make a wonderful job of transiting the role in preparation for his son. The presumption he is some how out of touch is totally incorrect and perhaps based on the illusion caused by his more old fashioned formality and natural shyness compared to the relative informality and outwardness of his son and wife. It is the type of wish that British citizens who weren't particular supporters of the Royal family would tend to have.

 

Anyway .....bets on.

 

 

Elizabeth Alexandra Charlotte in any order ........

 

:)

[mysty]

I'd like to think she is as much your as she is ours.

 

:)

We'd like to think so too! George will be getting a run for his money with her I think! :)