Whispering Around The World 2019

[mysty]

6 minutes ago, turtlemichael said:

I'm admiring your confidence at getting a reservation!

 

I am an optimist Turtle!  I prefer to think that the universe will conspire to make wishes come true.  And you did mention that there are other very interesting alternatives.  I am confident that now matter what, the good times will roll! Laissez les bons temps rouler  ! 🙂

[mysty]

We have a restaurant here that sounds like it might be something like The Test Kitchen.  We have enjoyed meals there on a couple of occasions.  It is called Atelier.  Here is a link to their site:

 

http://www.atelierrestaurant.ca/

 

And here are pictures of some of their creations:

Down By the Bay Oyster, Caviar, Seaweed 

 

Tomatrix Revolutions 40 different ingredients including tomato

 

High Five

Edited November 17, 2018 by mysty

[turtlemichael]

Here are three more restaurants we have eaten at in Cape Town in the last couple of years. I think it gives away the sort of restaurants we like!  All I thought were excellent though The Short Market's TripAdvisor rankings have declined, for what that's worth.  We loved it for lunch earlier this year so I'd try again.  It is owned by the same people as The Test Kitchen.  It has the plus that it is very close (a short taxi ride) to the cruise terminal. None of them look as if they need to be booked too far in advance. Probably a couple of weeks would do.   La Colombe and Greenhouse are in Constantia on the other side of Table Mountain and a 30+ minute taxi ride away. A nice outing would be to combine a lunch with a visit to the fantastic Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens which are nearby.  Both Constantia restaurants are outstanding.

 

http://theshortmarketclub.co.za/home/

 

https://www.lacolombe.co.za/

 

https://www.greenhouserestaurant.co.za/

 

 

[mysty]

Turtle, those restaurants look amazing!  Thank you!  I'm sure whatever the universe comes up with it will be spectacular!

[threeforthree]

Smart casual is my recollection.   Had a great meal at La Colombe, in addition to the fine food, the ambiance was spectacular...

[mysty]

Thanks 343!  La Colombe does look enticing!  This will be our first visit to Cape Town so it's extremely helpful to get input from people who have trod that path before us.  🙂

[mysty]

I just made a New Year's Wish for all of us on this grand adventure.  It will be added to the confetti that flutters down in the heart of Times Square on New Year's Eve! Each year, people from around the planet include their wishes for the new year on pieces of official Times Square New Year's Eve confetti, either digitally or in person.  And now one of those pieces of confetti is a wish from me to you all.  I wished for a safe sail with fun and merriment mixed in.  Here is the link if you want to add wishes for yourself or your family and friends.

 

https://www.timessquarenyc.org/whats-happening/nye-wishing-wall

[mysty]

In case anyone is interested.....I looked on the San Francisco Port website and it has the Silver Whisper on January 6, 2019 at Pier 27.

 

https://sfport.com/sites/default/files/Cruises/Docs/2019.pdf

 

James R Herman Cruise Terminal at Pier 27, The Embarcadero San Francisco, CA 94111

 

https://sfport.com/james-r-herman-cruise-terminal-pier-27-0

[Emtbsam]

We are now at 120 days prior to our departure from Singapore, and we made shore excursion and a few restaurant reservations today.  The excitement builds!

[Bluebelle14]

Don't forget to have a Singapore Sling at Raffles Long Bar!

[mysty]

Yes Emtbsam.....excitement is building!  You mentioned that the Brisbane Wine and Beer tour was disappointing.  No meal provided but food to purchase was available.  Do you (or anyone else for that matter) know if Silversea would provide a box lunch?  And if so, would there be an unobtrusive place or time on the tour to eat it?  Thanks for any info!

 

Bluebelle14.....a Singapore Sling at Raffles is classic!  Hopefully we can at least fit in a visit to the Bar.  Thanks for the suggestion!  I haven't had one of those since I was in my 20's.  🙂 

Edited November 19, 2018 by mysty

[Bluebelle14]

Silversea has always provided a box lunch...anytime.

[threeforthree]

La Colombe reservations are open, Mrs.3 secured one.  

[mysty]

Thanks Bluebelle14!  If I may (to save keystrokes 🙂 )  may I call you BB14?  I appreciate your help here!

 

343.....Good work!  Mrs 3 is on the case!  Thanks!

[mysty]

Currently working on plans for Waiheke Island while in Auckland.  According to the port schedule there will be a very large cruise ship at anchor on the day we are there.  This might complicate things a bit.

 

 

[HunEBear]

Hello everyone!  My husband (DCCruiser57) and I are on for the full world cruise and looking forward to meeting all of you.  We have just registered for the January 6th Meet and Mingle.  See you onboard (or perhaps the Gala dinner).  

[mysty]

Greetings HunEBear!  Thanks for registering for the Meet and Mingle!  Looking forward to meeting you both!

[Emtbsam]

4 hours ago, mysty said:

Yes Emtbsam.....excitement is building!  You mentioned that the Brisbane Wine and Beer tour was disappointing.  No meal provided but food to purchase was available.  Do you (or anyone else for that matter) know if Silversea would provide a box lunch?  And if so, would there be an unobtrusive place or time on the tour to eat it?  Thanks for any info!

 

Bluebelle14.....a Singapore Sling at Raffles is classic!  Hopefully we can at least fit in a visit to the Bar.  Thanks for the suggestion!  I haven't had one of those since I was in my 20's.  🙂 

I am sure someone else from Oz can answer this, but I do not believe that you can take food off the ship and into Australia.  I would have a chat with the Concierge desk to see if they could provide food for everyone on the tour, but I have to believe that the vineyard would not be happy.  I don't mean to throw cold water on the tour, but it really wasn't to our taste.  While the brewery tour was fun, we did not care for the beers.  The wine was definitely not close to Penfolds quality in our opinion!

[mysty]

Thanks Emtbsam!  That does seem like a sterling recommendation for the tour.  And I had not considered the issue of taking food off the ship.  Really appreciate your input here!

[frantic36]

5 minutes ago, mysty said:

Thanks Emtbsam!  That does seem like a sterling recommendation for the tour.  And I had not considered the issue of taking food off the ship.  Really appreciate your input here!

 

Hi Mysty, Emtbsam is correct re no food to be taken off the ship unless it is it is lozenges or processed like chips in a bag. Even those we say just let customs know you have them in case the nice doggies come and sit by you and your handbag. 😊

 

On the sailings we have done here they made an announcement at each port stop regarding this. We are very thingy about protecting our agriculture. We even have restrictions taking food across state lines.

 

Maybe my bias is showing, coming from a state with some great wine growing regions, but Brisbane and Queensland are not places I think of re wine tasting.

 

Julie

[mysty]

Hi Julie!  Thanks so much for your input!  It really seems like this tour is not worth the money or the effort.

[mysty]

24 minutes ago, mysty said:

Thanks Emtbsam!  That does seem like a sterling recommendation for the tour.  And I had not considered the issue of taking food off the ship.  Really appreciate your input here!

I apologize for my mis-keying!  I meant to say that it does NOT seem like a sterling recommendation for the tour.  Big OOOPs here!  😞

[turtlemichael]

Queensland is not a prime area for wine production. (I am being polite!) However, they are making an effort.  On this cruise it is the nearest we get unless anyone plans a long day or overnight trip from Sydney to the Hunter Valley. That would be interesting. I mentioned elsewhere in this thread that if anyone was interested in the XXXX Brewery this could easily be done under your own steam.

 

Taking food off the ship is a no-no. As Frantic36 says, it is a great way to meet a  cute sniffer dog and maybe get a fine. The Australian authorities will let you bring it on to the ship (some good cheeses etc) if anyone feels the urge. On a long cruise doing things like picking up a decent bottle of wine, or some unique local cheese etc adds to the variety at least for me.

[threeforthree]

We are regged for the Meet/Mingle.  

[Bluebelle14]

mysty...BB14 is great!