Mini Blog - Live from Voyager - Barcelona - Miami

[Travelcat2]

3 minutes ago, susar said:

We’re having our first cocktail at the bar in the observation lounge. 

 

Glad that you are onboard and hope that we'll see you after muster in the Observation Lounge.  We will be there with 100 strands of Mardi Gras beads😁

[Hambagahle]

Welcome on board you two!!

In "another incarnation" I am a Destination Expert for Switzerland on Trip Advisor - CCs "sister" site.  I have asked my Barcelona colleagues to comment on smoking indoors in Barcelona and hope to get some clarification from them.

Wish I were sailing with you!!

Gerry

[Hambagahle]

So - one of my Spanish colleagues replied to my question and this is what he wrote:

"The legal situation has not changed. Smoking is NOT allowed indoors in public places."

 

Probably it was a tourist who thought it was OK to smoke indoors...  but clearly not legal.  (Which is a relief!!)

 

Cartagena was my favourite port in Spain.  It is "drop dead gorgeous" - we took an archeological tour and the arena there is a total surprise.  The archeological museum is also really really interesting.  Hope you get a chance to see that!

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Maybe it's like Greece (the smoking issue, that is):  lots of EU rules, but more often than not completely ignored or openly flouted.

[eliana]

I trust the smoking rules on Voyager are adhered to or enforced, not like it appears to be in Spain.

[Travelcat2]

5 hours ago, Hambagahle said:

So - one of my Spanish colleagues replied to my question and this is what he wrote:

"The legal situation has not changed. Smoking is NOT allowed indoors in public places."

 

Probably it was a tourist who thought it was OK to smoke indoors...  but clearly not legal.  (Which is a relief!!)

 

Cartagena was my favourite port in Spain.  It is "drop dead gorgeous" - we took an archeological tour and the arena there is a total surprise.  The archeological museum is also really really interesting.  Hope you get a chance to see that!

 

Gerry, thank you for giving us the final word on the subject.  Very happy to hear that one cannot smoke inside of pubic places!  

 

We are doing a tapas tour in Cartagena. We have been there previously but do not recall much about it.  Our favorite port in Spain in Malaga due to the food.

 

eliana - the smoking rules on all Regent ships are strictly adhered to and/or enforced.  No smoking issues at all.  Must say that Explorer has the best area for smoking on the pool deck.  It is a "mostly" enclosed glass cage (I like to think of it as a cage😉) that keeps the smoke away from other passengers.  As someone that has not smoked since I was 35, this is an important factor in cruising on Regent.

[DocJames]

25 minutes ago, Travelcat2 said:

 

Gerry, thank you for giving us the final word on the subject.  Very happy to hear that one cannot smoke inside of pubic places!  

 

We are doing a tapas tour in Cartagena. We have been there previously but do not recall much about it.  Our favorite port in Spain in Malaga due to the food.

 

eliana - the smoking rules on all Regent ships are strictly adhered to and/or enforced.  No smoking issues at all.  Must say that Explorer has the best area for smoking on the pool deck.  It is a "mostly" enclosed glass cage (I like to think of it as a cage😉) that keeps the smoke away from other passengers.  As someone that has not smoked since I was 35, this is an important factor in cruising on Regent.

I travel to Spain often, both the mainland and the Canaries. And, we have immediate family members who live in Spain.    If you ask a Spaniard about the smoking rules they will tell you that there is a "collective disregard" for the anti-smoking law that was enacted in 2011.  Yes, there is no smoking allowed in public places which includes restaurants, workplaces, hospitals, etc.  Hotels can designate a fair percentage of their rooms as smoking and smoking is allowed on terraces of hotels and restaurants as long as it has 3 open sides.  In certain regions of Spain, the restaurant owners seem to think that they can comply with the law by designating one of two areas as non-smoking which means they might decide that smoking is inside and non-smoking is outside.  It really isn't compliant with the law but most Spaniards seem not to care and there also does not seem to be much enforcement of the law although monetary penalties can be applied. 

[Hambagahle]

Our Destination Expert was catagoric.  BUT if locals flout the rules what can one do?  Would not happen here...

 

Cartagena - is amazing!  Enjoy it.

[boblerm]

Jackie, TahoeTraveler, Susar, and all the other CC members on this cruise,

Wishing all of you a wonderful cruise, no doubt it will be, and very much looking forward to your impressions and photos.  While there are not a whole lot of ports, sea days on the Voyager are never boring, and somehow I have the feeling that notwithstanding Jackie's first remark , there will be lots to say!😃

Bob

[Travelcat2]

Bob - you are probably right....... nothing I post is "mini".  I'm just happy that others are posting on this thread.

 

Our casual Meet and Greet last night was fun.  The beads were a great suggestion - I managed to get Davor and David to wear them for a while.  There were so many beads that they will be used at the Meet and Mingle as well (still have no clue when that will be).  We have a really good group of congenial people from Roll Call and the rest of the passengers seem happy as well.  

 

For those of you that are aware of our relationship with Zaldy, we are thrilled that he is on Voyager - working during the day in La Veranda and at night in Chartreuse.  He is a great example of what can be accomplished for families when you work on ships like Regent.  He raised his children, sent them to college and now they have made him a grandfather.  He has a great life - thanks to his many years on Regent.  We feel like his "adopted" parents - keeping in touch throughout the years.  We truly love him and consider him a part of our family.

 

Also want to mention a "rising star" that we met last night.  Roxanne was our server in CR and she is delightful.  Many of you know Risky (recently promoted and currently on Navigator).  In our opinion, Roxanne is similar to Risky in many ways - her sense of humor, warmth and great service.  Whenever we dine in CR, we will definitely sit in her section.  As I've posted before, although there are many great servers, when you stay in the same section, they get to know your preferences. This makes it easier for them to make recommendations for you and you develop a rapport with them.

 

Going on a tapas tour in Cartagena this afternoon.  It should be interesting.  While I will likely never be a fan of included excursions, when they involve food and are not very long, I'm happy to go.

 

I was finished with this post and hit "submit reply" when the system went down.  Assumed that I lost everything.  Lo and behold - after the system was rebooted and I logged on again, everything that I posted was still here.  Probably should get off the system before it goes down again.

 

P.S. Regarding new champagne -- Dennis and I took one sip of the champagne offered upon embarkation and we looked at each other and placed the glasses on a tray to be disposed of.  Yuck!  The only way Regent will change champagnes is if customers complain.  So, if you do not like the champagne served upon embarkation, in the lounges and on Sundays for the caviar and champagne breakfast - let Regent know.

 

 

Edited November 13, 2018 by Travelcat2

[Mudhen]

Found you! Just sent off an email, but lo and behold found your blog! A little late to the party, but we made it!

Sounds like you're having a great time already! Enjoying your take on it all, as well as everyone else's. I'll be 

interested in the "new" champagne(s)? What kind was it that was so bad? Any other choices? Sure hope

so!  Any new cocktails? Who's tending the Ob bar?....ok, done with questions!

We'll continue to ready your adventures......carry on!

L&J

[Travelcat2]

25 minutes ago, Mudhen said:

Found you! Just sent off an email, but lo and behold found your blog! A little late to the party, but we made it!

Sounds like you're having a great time already! Enjoying your take on it all, as well as everyone else's. I'll be 

interested in the "new" champagne(s)? What kind was it that was so bad? Any other choices? Sure hope

so!  Any new cocktails? Who's tending the Ob bar?....ok, done with questions!

We'll continue to ready your adventures......carry on!

L&J

 

Glad that you found us (will email you shortly).  Just returned from a tapas tour in Cartagena.  Really enjoyed the walk but the tapas were not to our taste (but the sangria was great).  We had an egg and potato omelette in one place and some fried thing in the other (the pigeons loved it).  Returned to the ship and had a tiny (really tiny) salad and a hot dog.  Dennis had a big salad - we both had Mexican Butterfly's made with Don Julio tequila.  

 

Now we are going to shower and rest until our dinner tonight in CR - not going to attend the Captain's Reception.

[Hambagahle]

Sounds like you had a "tortilla" on your Tapas trip - in Spain they make them with cooked potato, onion and eggs.  Normally very tasty.  And very typical...

 

Too bad about the champagne.  Perhaps Regent drank up all the Montandon or whatever the previous one was!

[JPR]

Is the new champagne too sweet? What is it?

[Zqueeze1]

Jackie/Dennis: 

I am so glad that you decided to run a thread about your current cruise and will look forward to reading it daily. We are home from our Montreal to Miami cruise on the Navigator and are in cruise withdrawal. 

Enjoy your cruise and hope to read lots from you and your fellow cruisers. Safe travels. 

Z and TB

[Travelcat2]

3 hours ago, JPR said:

Is the new champagne too sweet? What is it?

 

Sweet with a bitter after taste.

 

 

[Travelcat2]

On 11/13/2018 at 7:51 PM, JPR said:

Is the new champagne too sweet? What is it?

“Germain” (not Saint Germain that sounds petty nice). I have yet to find one person that likes this champagne.

[Travelcat2]

Big news........ two ports have been cancelled which leaves us with 9 sea days.  While I’m not upset since I love sea days, many passengers are livid.

 

Apparently, there would have been 35 foot waves if we had gone to Funchal and there are serious storms in Bermuda.  While the Mainer can take 40 foot waves, I doubt that Voyager or Navigator could.  So we will stop in the Canary Islands and then will go directly to Miami - arriving the day that we were expected to be in Miami.

 

This and the Mariner cruise that had two port cancellations and 8 sea days are a perfect example of what can happen when you are at the mercy of weather and high seas.  If one cannot take it, perhaps cruising isn’t for them.

 

We are fortunate to have met lovely people on board and they will be a joy to be with during this time

 

On another note, we had delicious food in P7 tonight (P7 can be hit or miss but tonight was a definite hit).

 

As always, we feel very blessed to be on the Voyager and know that we are in capable hands.  More news as it becomes available.

 

 

 

 

[boblerm]

12 minutes ago, Travelcat2 said:

Big news........ two ports have been cancelled which leaves us with 9 sea days.  While I’m not upset since I love sea days, many passengers are livid.

 

Apparently, there would have been 35 foot waves if we had gone to Funchal and there are serious storms in Bermuda.  While the Mainer can take 40 foot waves, I doubt that Voyager or Navigator could.  So we will stop in the Canary Islands and then will go directly to Miami - arriving the day that we were expected to be in Miami.

 

This and the Mariner cruise that had two port cancellations and 8 sea days are a perfect example of what can happen when you are at the mercy of weather and high seas.  If one cannot take it, perhaps cruising isn’t for them.

 

We are fortunate to have met lovely people on board and they will be a joy to be with during this time

 

On another note, we had delicious food in P7 tonight (P7 can be hit or miss but tonight was a definite hit).

 

As always, we feel very blessed to be on the Voyager and know that we are in capable hands.  More news as it becomes available.

 

 

 

 

Sorry that you have to miss the ports, but you are so right , if you cruise, you have to be prepared to be disappointed if conditions do not cooperate.  Those who are "livid", would not be pleased if they were recklessly placed in a dangerous situation.  I never second guess the decision made to but safety first.  The key is to know how to enjoy additional days at sea, and I know that you will.

 

What did you have in P7?

 

Bob

[Travelcat2]

1 minute ago, boblerm said:

Sorry that you have to miss the ports, but you are so right , if you cruise, you have to be prepared to be disappointed if conditions do not cooperate.  Those who are "livid", would not be pleased if they were recklessly placed in a dangerous situation.  I never second guess the decision made to but safety first.  The key is to know how to enjoy additional days at sea, and I know that you will.

 

What did you have in P7?

 

Bob

 

I had the double lamb chops and Dennis had Dover sole.  The sommelier found some great wines for us. Mine was a Sterling Cabernet (hope that I remembered that corrrectly) and Dennis had Rose that was delicious.  

[rcandkc]

1 hour ago, Travelcat2 said:

Big news........ two ports have been cancelled which leaves us with 9 sea days.  While I’m not upset since I love sea days, many passengers are livid.

 

Apparently, there would have been 35 foot waves if we had gone to Funchal and there are serious storms in Bermuda.  While the Mainer can take 40 foot waves, I doubt that Voyager or Navigator could.  So we will stop in the Canary Islands and then will go directly to Miami - arriving the day that we were expected to be in Miami.

 

This and the Mariner cruise that had two port cancellations and 8 sea days are a perfect example of what can happen when you are at the mercy of weather and high seas.  If one cannot take it, perhaps cruising isn’t for them.

 

We are fortunate to have met lovely people on board and they will be a joy to be with during this time

 

On another note, we had delicious food in P7 tonight (P7 can be hit or miss but tonight was a definite hit).

 

As always, we feel very blessed to be on the Voyager and know that we are in capable hands.  More news as it becomes available.

 

 

 

 

We were on Voyager in 35 foot waves in the Tasman sea and had to miss Milford Sound.  It was quite a ride and 2 windows in Compass Rose broke out.  The Captain has no choice but to divert in these circumstances. It can be disappointing but safety first. 

[mrlevin]

1 hour ago, Travelcat2 said:

Big news........ two ports have been cancelled which leaves us with 9 sea days.  While I’m not upset since I love sea days, many passengers are livid.

 

Apparently, there would have been 35 foot waves if we had gone to Funchal and there are serious storms in Bermuda.  While the Mainer can take 40 foot waves, I doubt that Voyager or Navigator could.  So we will stop in the Canary Islands and then will go directly to Miami - arriving the day that we were expected to be in Miami.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cancelling Bermuda more than a week out would upset me, too.  Who knows what the weather will be there a week out.  Me thinks that Regent (and/or the insurance company) is concerned about the damaged hull and avoiding any weather at all.  I wonder how long this hesitance will last.

 

Maybe the ship's top speed is compromised thus the need for shorter distance and more time at sea.

 

Marc

Edited November 14, 2018 by Marq

[2012_Alaska_bound]

1 hour ago, Travelcat2 said:

 

I had the double lamb chops and Dennis had Dover sole.  The sommelier found some great wines for us. Mine was a Sterling Cabernet (hope that I remembered that corrrectly) and Dennis had Rose that was delicious.  

 

TC2,

 

Was the Sterling Cabernet an included wine?

 

I will definitely try the lamb in P7 at the end of the month!

 

Martha

[Keith1010]

Jackie, I just caught up with these thread.

 

Enjoy every minute on board and nice that you are doing live posts from your current cruise.

 

Keith

[Travelcat2]

7 hours ago, 2012_Alaska_bound said:

 

TC2,

 

Was the Sterling Cabernet an included wine?

 

I will definitely try the lamb in P7 at the end of the month!

 

Martha

 

Yes - it was included in P7 but am not certain if it is available anywhere else (definitely not in bars but maybe other dining venues.