Live From Voyager - June 14 Baltic CruiseA

[pingpong1]

Live From Voyager - June 14 Baltic Cruise before I get logged off. So far, everything has been fine. Arrived at the cruise ship terminal around 2PM on Saturday afternoon. Check-in went like clockwork. Hardly anyone seemed eto there - we took a separate limo to the ship from our own hotel. Sailed through the security. Walked up the gangway onto the ship, got the glass of champagne, and went into the theater. Gave them the credit card, got the mug shot, and then sat down for about 5 minutes with a second glass of champagne. At 2:30PM, they announced that the staterooms were ready and walked directly to ours. All the suitcases were in the room, our butler (Alin) introduced himself along wth our housekeeper (Mayleen), and we started unpacking.

 

Alin had already put bottle of Glenmorangie (for Dad and I) in the room, along with a bottle of Myers dark rum (for Mary). Dinner in Sette Marie. Perfect. Antonia was the Maitre D' (SP?). Lasagna for Dad, Sea Bass for me, and mushroom in alfredo sauce over pasta for Mary. All delightful. no crowds and no wait line. Prosecco for starters, followed by a nice Valpolicella later one (I know, the snobs will say "a red with fish"? Hey, it's what I like, so "butt out"). Tiramasu and Panna Cotta for desert. All wonderful.

 

Then, up on deck 12 to see our sail away from Stockholm through all the islands out to the Baltic. 10PM at night and still light out. A little cool on deck so down to the Observation Lounge for more single malt (for me) and Bailey's Irish Cream for Mary (Dad back in the stateroom snoozing on the sofa). In the Observation Lounge, met great new friends from England. Had good conversation and cocktails for the next 2 hours. Life is great!

 

Sunday - Buffet breakfast in La Veranda. Wonderful. Scrambled eggs and champagne. Can't beat it! Arrived in Helsinki around 2PM (after a well-deserved nap). Baltic was as smooth as glass all night/morning. Tour of Parvoo and downtown Helsinki. Back to the ship at 6PM. Veggies and dip waiting for us in the room (along with the Glenmorangie). Mary went down to the Captain's reception -not my cup of tea. We'll probably do dinner in CR. Haven't met up with "tnjgotts" or "Raiderette" yet. Will work on that.

 

Any questions, just ask. So far, everything is great, but I will not hesitate to tell you if it's not! :) Best Regards.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[RJ2002]

Thanks for your report. Looking forward to more.

 

(We drink white wine with beef sometimes... :eek: )

[Mr Rumor]

Glad your Stockholm-Copenhagen cruise is off to a great start, pingpong1! Really enjoyed your newsy first post and look forward to more!

 

Rich

[tallship]

Thanks for your report. Am on Helsinki now and in a lovely hotel but wish it was on Regent. Thanks for your update and look forward to reading more.

[Wrigleybear]

Love your report! Dad and I are getting ready for Alaska in August - I can't tell you how much I really miss your wonderful advice to help navigate the trip! I have spent a few quality hours on CC this morn - forgot what a wonderful group of folks and resource this is. Hope you, Mary and Dad have a wonderful trip - I'll be watching for your reports. : )

Cheers! Jennifer & Tom

[pingpong1]

Hello Everyone - Just got back from dinner - CR. We were seated around 6:45PM. The place was nearly empty. By 7:30 it had started filling up. Dad had a very nice "creamy" onion soup that he really liked, then had two rack of lamb chops for his entre. He reported that they were very good. DW had the souffle apettizer, caeasar's salad (she said it was nice), the onion soup and the lobster tail on a bed of risotto. I had the mozzarella du buffalo and ham wrapped in pastry with a nice tomato sauce for an appettizer, tomato and basil in oil/vinegar for a salad, and the lobster tail on risotto, as well. It was all good (lobster at our house is better). Nothing to complain about. service was good and never lagged. We selected a nice complimentary Reisling to have with dinner. Very nice.

 

We seem to have a somewhat different demographic than experienced on past cruises. A little younger, many more Asians and eastern Europeans, and the whole passenger compliment seems to be a bit younger and a little less formal in dress. At dinner, maybe 40-50% of the men showed up with a sport coat on (no ties). One man showed up with jeans on and was reminded of the dress code at the door (he went to his room and put on slacks). Yet another guy "got through" with a "Henley" shirt on (no collar). BUT the only reason I know this is because I was specifically "looking for it" and was facing the entrance. Otherwise, it is of no matter of normal concern for me. It's now about 9:20PM and fully sunlight outside. We're steaming toward St. Petersburg. My DW informed that I WAS going to the Broadway Review with her in the theater in about 10 minutes. Lucky Me! All for now. Regards.

[RachelG]

Love reading your reports. I probably will just catch at fits as we are currently on Mariner, but enjoying them. Hope your wifi is better than mine!

[pingpong1]

Hello Everyone - I'm on my 3rd attempt to send an update on the cruise. Got knocked off two other times just as I was about to hit the "send" key. Grrrr!

 

The Baltic was very calm last night as we sailed towards St. Petersburg. It will be a very busy day for everyone today.

 

I'm glad I went to the theater last night. The JAR group and the ship's band did a wonderful job of "On Broadway". They all danced, sang, and played their hearts out. The audience was very appreciative.

 

After the show, we went up to the Observation Lounge for a nightcap, saw the sun setting on the horizon with a spectacular light show of reds, golds, and purples. Listened to a wonderful young pianist knocking out some Andrew Lloyd Weber on the Steinway. And then went to bed (around midnight).

 

We're now pulling into St. Petersburg harbor.

 

WrigleyBear - Great to hear from you. I'll send you a separate E-mail. Regards to all.

[pingpong1]

Hi Folks - It's about 8:45PM and the ship is nearly empty. This is our first night in St. Petersburg and I would guess most everyone is out to the ballet. DW went to the "Russian Folk Songs and Dancing Festival" (or something like that), and Dad went......to bed. I went up to Sette Marie (which was almost empty) and had the "Russian Buffet" (Comrade - You vill like dis meal or der vill be consequences).

 

Thought I'd drop everyone a line to stay in touch. It was a little overcast and raining this morning, but by 12:00PM things had cleared up and we had sunshine all afternoon. The 3 of us went to the Yuvaspo (or something like that) Palace tour and boat trip along the canals and river. It was very enjoyable - other than the fact that I've been dozing off for the entire day.

 

I still don't think I've caught up with jet lag yet. Tomorrow, the 3 of us are off to the Hermitage.

 

To be honest with you, I've been in far more beautiful parts of the world than St. Petersburg, with far more beautiful cathedrals and palaces. The tops of many cathedrals had their original roofs torn off, with the buildings turned into dance halls and "workers" party meeting rooms by 80 years of socialism. Ughh! And the "gorillas" at the customs/border crossing act like they're doing "us" a favor by letting us spend money here, instead of the other way around. What's with that?!

 

Political Comment to follow - - I believe the Communists absolutely "trashed" their country in a disgraceful manner for over 80 years (both socially and physically) and it's going to take a long time for Russia to get things "straightened out". When the Bolsheviks assassinated the royal family and took over, they used the palaces, cathedrals, and overall countryside as a garbage bin. The country is an ecological disaster and the communists did a lot of long term damage. Glad we saw it, but don't need to do it again. End of commentary.

 

All for now. More tomorrow. Best Regards to all.

[bamadad]

pingpong,

 

My daughter and I just returned from the previous Baltic cruise. We left Saturday as you boarded in Stockholm. We agree completely with your assessment of Russia and St. Petersburg. It was the one disappointment of the entire cruise. If you see Ferdinand in Compass Rose, please tell him Emma and Tim say hello. Also, the singers Eric and Stephanie are excellent - try to catch all their shows.

[raiderette]

Hello ping pong. Have been looking for your family but as yet no success. I did wish Caty happy birthday at the lifeboat drill. I also was surprised Park West was still here and they said they had no intentions of leaving.

 

As far as St. Petersburg we enjoyed the cathedrals and especially the Church of the spilt blood.

 

The ship is very empty. We had dinner in Prime 7. Best meal so far on this cruise we ordered a special wine to compliment our meal. Everything was fabulous.

 

Hope we can meet up before cruise is over.

[Mudhen]

Thank you all for posting! We're on the June 28th Baltic and looking forward to it, as we've not spent much time in that neck of the woods. We've been to Oslo (lovely!) but that's it. Interesting comments about St. Petersburg. Will be interested in seeing how that shakes out. In the meantime, enjoy your cruise and keep up the good work!

Linda

[RJ2002]

With regard to pingpong1's comments on St. Petersburg, it should be noted that the city was under siege for 2 1/2 years by the Germans during WWII. Tremendous destruction, especially to Tsar's palaces outside of the city. Much of what we see today, as tourists, are restorations by the government.

 

Enjoying the reports very much!

Edited June 16, 2014 by RJ2002

[cruiserj12]

Pingpong1,

 

I will be on Voyager next week and am wondering if you could help with some packing advice. I have checked the weather for the week, but am wondering what most people are wearing during the day. It's kind of hard to put it into perspective since it is in the mid 90s where I am in the States. Something just doesn't seem right packing long sleeved shirts and a jacket for the summer. Any suggestions would be very much appreciated.

 

Thanks!!

[tallship]

Pingpong...your sentiments do not make me regret that I chose not to do this sailing. Why does Regent spend 3 days in St. Petersburg? I plan on doing a Fjord cruise but avoiding Russia if I can

[nw500005]

Hi there.

Love your updates, thanks so much. We are taking our first Regent cruise in July - same basic itinerary except 10 day vs. 7.

We are in a penthouse on the 10th deck. Do you mind sharing the location of yours? Port or aft side and what deck?

 

How would you rate bedding and towels, etc?

 

Keep up the great posts!

 

Thank you.

[nana541]

Beds are heavenly sadly no matter what I did I could not stuff it in my suitcase. Linens, robe and towels are Frette....

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[pingpong1]

I'll try to answer all the questions. First, let me say that I was finally able to meet up with Jenny/Carolyn/Caty (TNJGOTTS) and Cheryl/David (RAIDERETTE) - all delightful people. One of the things we enjoy most about our cruising is meeting all the nice folks in person, who we've previously "met" on CC.

 

I also want to beg your forgiveness a bit for some of the (perhaps) strident comments I made regarding "St. Pete" (and Russia, in general). I spent 38 years of my life in a direct and active role of "fighting the "Cold War" with this country and that probably clouds some of my observations a bit.

 

On a happier side, everything is still going "top notch" for us on Voyager. I spent an enjoyable hour last night in the Conniseur Club with the ships Safety Officer - a wonderful and interesting gentleman from Greece. Both of us having been sailors, we had some great conversations about a whole host of topics. Thank You, Commander!

 

NW500005 and Nana - Yes, the beds wonderful! Like being rocked in mother's arms. The linen, towels, pillow, and napkins throughout the ship are of the highest quality. Like Nana said, I'd also like to take the be home with me.

 

NW - When we first booked, we arranged to have a Penthouse A on the 10th deck (I think it was 1007), but 4 weeks prior to sailing Regent called and offered us an up-sell to a Voyager Suite (822) and we jumped at it. With 3 of us in the room, we'll take every square foot that is offered (and affordable). We are on the port side and in the forward part of the ship. The ride is as smooth as glass (but remember, both Dad and I have ridden out many typhoons in our Navy years onboard ships, so almost anything that we encounter on Regent will still seem like a "calm day" :p)

 

Tallship - I think some of the longer Baltic itineraries being offered this summer are able to spend time in different Norwegian and Swedish ports, as well as some very scenic fjords - all those places will be far prettier (and the inhabitants probably friendlier) than St. Pete. I would gladly do the Baltic cruise again,"if" there were an itinerary to did NOT go to Russia. (("IMHO", as TC would say :)

[pingpong1]

Fortunately, I was typing this in the computer room and went to hit the send key on my last post and found that I had been logged off - we know it happens but that doesn't make it any less frustrating. :eek: fortunately, I'm by myself in here and the very nice system administration was here and showed me how to "save" everything I had written. Whew! I then logged back in and it was all still there. Thank You, Mr. Administrator. ((Using my own pad to type all of this and connect to Voyager's WiFi would be cause for "self-destruction" :mad:

 

CruiserJ12 - Both days here in St. P. have started out as rainy and a bit chilly, but by afternoon, it was warm and sunny. So go with some light layering. Jeans/slacks for pants and maybe short sleeved blouse/shirt (or long sleeves that can be rolled up) and a button-up sweater or light jacket that can be taken off and tied around the waist. That has worked out fine for us. On the harbor boat tours, you can either sit down below in a glassed-in area or up on deck. For excursions that include bus rides, they are enclosed and not subject to weather conditions. visits to the palaces and the Hermitage are inside. There is no need for a heavy coat this time of year. Regent also provides umbrellas in all the staterooms that you can carry off the ship with you, but they large, If you have a small/collapsible umbrella that you can stick in a purse or just carry on rainy days, I would recommend that.

 

RJ2002 - You're absolutely correct that WWII caused a lot of destruction in Russia (as well as the destruction from bombing in Germany AND the V1/V2 attacks on downtown London). But in Russia, the rebuilding was done using Post-war communist architecture and building methods - drab concrete, poor quality plumbing/electrical standards, and most/all done with forced labor. Any money or resources that the government actually had to spend on anything was put into their "cold war" effort and not to create anything of lasting quality or beauty. (Whoops! another political comment.)

 

I would point to the modern, beautiful, fully functional, and comfortable architecture of England (specifically London), (west) Germany, Holland, and Scandinavia that was embarked upon after WWII to replace the destruction. That same philosophy did not take place where the Communists were "in charge".

 

To all. Our total Regent experience has been quite positive (and usually is) so far. Positive enough that we have just booked our next cruise (fall of 2015) on Navigator up to New England and Canada! More later. Best Regards.

[RJ2002]

More great reports, keep them coming! Thanks for sharing your experiences.

[pingpong1]

Well, we just finished dinner in CR and are waiting for the nightly show to start in the theater. Tonight's show is supposed to be "Dancing To The Hits" with the ship orchestra and the JAR group. Should be fun. Dinner in CR was fine. We got in there around 6:30. Mary and I had the scallops with bacon, mashed potatoes, and savory cabbage. Dad had the poached Dorade (like Dorado?) with squash and pumpkin. Both entre's very good and not too heavy. Dad had his favorite Key Lime Pie for desert and I had the warmed bread pudding w/macadamia nuts and drizzled with hot fudge sauce and rum & raisin ice cream. Yum.

 

We sailed away from St. Petersburg about 1 hour ago. It was very windy during the day (with sun and huge white puffy clouds). The wind has now died down so the sea is only slightly choppy. We're having a smooth ride. We're heading for Tallinn, Estonia. I'm looking forward to seeing this town/country. They are still recovering from the "yoke" of Soviet/Russian rule and are in the process of building an independent country for themselves. It should be interesting.

 

I found out today that the large number of Asians onboard (Korean, I think) are a contingent of "top sellers" for Mary K, who "won" this trip (or were awarded it) based upon their successful selling of the products and bringing on new sales members (below them). Many/most of the ladies seem to have their husbands with them. As I mentioned before, we also have a good many young kids and pre-teens along with us. All extremely well-behaved, well-dressed, and well-manners. It is a joy to see them. I hope they will take these good memories of "elegant sailing" with their parents into their own adulthood.

 

All for now. Off to see the evening performance, with a "nightcap" afterwards in the Observation Lounge. Best Regards.

[Mudhen]

I, along with the rest of the "gang" am enjoying your posts. Love the low down on the menu, what you had, etc. Also like hearing about the children/kids. Our daughter (now 31) went on her first cruise with us to Bermuda on the Royal Viking Star. She became immediately addicted! She still loves to cruise and enjoys "dressing" for the evening. She and her husband Bob had their honeymoon on the QM2. It wasn't a perfect fit, but never killed the draw of the open ocean......but I digress. I better watch myself for going off topic. I know there will be demerits........haha!

[sarawithanh]

Tomorrow, the 3 of us are off to the Hermitage.

 

To be honest with you, I've been in far more beautiful parts of the world than St. Petersburg, with far more beautiful cathedrals and palaces.

.

 

in 1998 I was in high school (sophomore) and taking Russian language for my foreign language requirement. I was able to go on a trip to Russia with my class and it is still a memorable experience.

 

It is amazing seeing Moscow and St. Petersburg in person. I love the Hermitage and st. petersburg is gorgeous (at least it was in 1998...).

 

Would love to go on a baltics cruise sometime. lucky you!

[Joanandjoe]

We're on the 7/10 Oslo to Copenhagen North Cape cruise. We received offers to go on the Baltic cruises immediately before and after our cruise. I don't have sufficient vacation time to take a longer cruise than the 16 days I've already booked; but the offers would seem to indicate that Regent is having trouble filling the cruise. Apparently a lot of people simply don't want to give their cruise money to the Russians in light of what they're doing in the Ukraine.

 

Is your cruise relatively empty, or are there lots of passengers? Maybe they've filled the cruise with Mary Kay cruisers.

 

Meanwhile, the Voyager sounds great, and we look forward to cruising on her.