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Azamara Quest - Mediterranean Cities, October 28-November 4 2021


Bimmer09
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Norris

Pat and I are glad to see that you are back cruising and reviewing again . It's funny that Quest's ships Captain is from the Isle of Man . We have some friends and shipmates from there that we visited with our grandson back in 2015 . The Thomas the Tank Engine Books and TV series were based on the island and it's steam trains and featured Ringo Starr as the story teller in the UK . In the US Ringo was the conductor on the Shining Time Station program featured on PBS . We did get to ride the steam train on the IOM with our grandson and it was a great thrill that we still treasure . Pat & Joe

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Norris, you are quite correct in saying a visit to the Carrara marble hills is not what one usually associates with Tuscany.

Would you believe I had that excursion booked on a cruise cancelled due to covid!

 

After a couple of trips to Pisa (widely spread) and Lucca (not so widely spread), one on my own and a brief guided visit as part of a tour also encompassing a winery and a visit to a villa including a long lunch with entertaining host, also about half a dozen trips to Florence (mostly on my own) I was ready for something different. Perhaps I will get there in another year or so.

 

Meanwhile, I am enjoying your discourse and photos.

On the subject of potentially dangerous places, my son-in-law was lucky while having a picnic in a Barcelona park. He was unaware his camera backpack had been lifted until my grandson (aged about 8 at the time) called out "look Dad" as two men were tackled to the ground. The tacklers were plain clothes police who had been watching members of a gang. They were thrilled to know they had stopped the theft of several thousand dollars worth of camera equipment!

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1 hour ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

Norris

Pat and I are glad to see that you are back cruising and reviewing again . It's funny that Quest's ships Captain is from the Isle of Man . We have some friends and shipmates from there that we visited with our grandson back in 2015 . The Thomas the Tank Engine Books and TV series were based on the island and it's steam trains and featured Ringo Starr as the story teller in the UK . In the US Ringo was the conductor on the Shining Time Station program featured on PBS . We did get to ride the steam train on the IOM with our grandson and it was a great thrill that we still treasure . Pat & Joe

Pat and Joe, I'm glad you found me here!

I lived overlooking a harbor in Co. Down , N Ireland and our trawlers used to fish and deliver catches to Peel in the Isle of Man. On a summer's day I could see the island plainly from my bedroom window. I have never been there but have watched 4K videos of it on Youtube. Very beautiful. Famous for the TT Races (motorcycle) . The BBC show Top Gear would film there as there was no speed limit.

Thanks for joining the group here!

Here's an aerial shot of Portavogie showing the harbor. My harbor home is in the bottom left (row of white houses)

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Norris

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One thing that attracted Carol to the Quarry was the fact that apart from being educational about something that as a finished product is simply beautiful and this was the quarry that Leonardo (call me Lenny) da Vinci personally went to to choose his stone, this tour was under 5 hours long and we were back to the ship while the Florence tour was just halfway through and taking turns to use the toilet in a leather shop.

 

Tidbit: there are 65 different companies currently working the stone. The dynamite is only used for new road building, never for the marble. Graveyards also use a lot of marble. It's no good for making shoes or slippers and you definitely couldn't run in a pair of marble sneakers. Just a thought.

 

As with all excursions by coach the trip home is more subdued with less chat and some take a nap. My eyes were glued out the window as I am passing through Tuscany. At one point Cincia came on the mic to tell us to look across the fields tour left...maybe 4 miles away was the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the large dome of a Basilica. Cool.

 

We crossed the River Arno for the 2nd time that day and the large American Base-Fort David? Remember don't take my word for it when I mention names-we figured out who Rafael was-he was the bellman who brought our luggage up to our room in the Majestic Hotel in Barcelona and was very impressive with his English and helpfulness.

 

We are coming back to Livorno about 1 pm which means its time for lunch and I'm itching (possibly hives)

for a snack at the Patio, the place for eats by the pool.

Back at the drop-off on the dock. Through the metal detectors, show ship card to the gangway guard, up the short gangway to deck 3, scanned back aboard, through the metal detector and up to deck 9. Carol enjoyed the hot Ginger Tea on the dock. Really wakes you up!

 

Oh before I forget- I have all the Daily Insiders=the ship's daily list of events, which I will scan soon and include with each day's goings on in the cruise lives of Norris and Carol.

 

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Grouper sandwich with fries. Two things wrong with this picture;

Is that enough fries for a man or have I been given the kiddie portion. If so why no high chair/crayons?

That's focaccia "bread" which is the equivalent of wrapping the fish in a thick bundle of cotton wool.

No flavor, no texture and way too much of it vs the filling. Best to order without bread as Carol did but they still brought the bread. Even the seagulls turned their beaks up at it.

The dictionary describes it as "cottonwoolius" and I agree.

 

Harumph!

 

 

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Tis a lazy afternoon on the Quest. Some are in the pool, some in the twin hot tubs. Some napping in those thick padded loungers. Many are on long excursions. Some are sunbathing, shirts off, shorts on.

 

The bar waiters are antsy as they don't have enough to keep them busy. They'll come out and stand in front of the bar, looking for a potential customer to greet and chat with. Time goes slowly when you are not kept busy. I hope the numbers come back for the staff and for the future of this great little cruise line-"the cruise line who could".

 

A two hour nap was enjoyed at some point and as there was a version of an Azamazing Evening onboard tonight we had to have an earlier than usual dinner. Seven p.m vs our normal eight. 

 

See you for dinner. Tonight's World Cuisine is Moroccan which is right up my casbah!

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Norris,

Thank you for your in-depth and very entertaining journal which we are following. After many years cruising on Celebrity we decided to book our first  Azamara cruise on Journey for New Year.  We live in France so no long haul flight or dare I say hopefully no lost luggage! Our AZ roll call has been very quiet so we feared that returning to cruising after the last two years would never be the same. So I was quiet cheered up reading your journal, your insight on life aboard etc. Do you have cabin pics?

Geraldine …..Munster Abu!

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2 hours ago, Baynanno1 said:

On the subject of potentially dangerous places, my son-in-law was lucky while having a picnic in a Barcelona park. He was unaware his camera backpack had been lifted until my grandson (aged about 8 at the time) called out "look Dad" as two men were tackled to the ground. The tacklers were plain clothes police who had been watching members of a gang. They were thrilled to know they had stopped the theft of several thousand dollars worth of camera equipment!

 A cautionary tale!

I wear a money belt under my clothes.

With the camera I always have the strap over my shoulder and around my wrist and my right hand holds onto a metal thing called an L bracket so the camera can't get away from my hand.

 Both Rome and Barcelona are renowned for people taking advantage of tourists-many scam videos on Youtube, a great resource.

I only carried one camera and lens in the streets which would have been a $3,000 loss if I wasn't so conscious . I download my photos each night so that I don't lose the pictures if I lose the camera.

Sad world we live in.

Norris

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Just now, peyroutous said:

Norris,

Thank you for your in-depth and very entertaining journal which we are following. After many years cruising on Celebrity we decided to book our first  Azamara cruise on Journey for New Year.  We live in France so no long haul flight or dare I say hopefully no lost luggage! Our AZ roll call has been very quiet so we feared that returning to cruising after the last two years would never be the same. So I was quiet cheered up reading your journal, your insight on life aboard etc. Do you have cabin pics?

Geraldine …..Munster Abu!

Geraldine I do have cabin pics. Hopefully I will get them up soon. I will have some indoor photos which give you a flavor of the decor, maybe later this evening.

I never rush around the ship, as some do, on the first day or two, taking photos. I know I have a week to cover the ship, or at least the bits I am interested in. In the case of my favorite ship-Celebrity Silhouette- I covered every inch of it I believe but spread over the week and much of it when all the passengers were asleep. This trip I never took pictures in the spa nor the gym.

Our visit to Nice and to Avignon were special to me as I love France and the French language.

 

Thank you for joining us here. I will be saying lots of nice things about Azamara (but am also a realist)

By the way- check out my Journey review of our Cuba cruise (in my signature below)

A bientôt !

Norris

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NORRIS SCREWS UP RENAISSANCE MASTER'S NAME. IS IT FINALLY  TIME FOR HIM TO RESIGN?

 

So Leonardo (call me Lenny) da Vinci  went to Carrara to choose his marble huh?

WRONG!!

It was Michaelangelo (hey, just call me Mike, my friends down the Shore call me Mikey)

 

Norris

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After the nap a quick look out the back door. Yes we were still in Livorno and happy to be here.

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There were other ships in port also

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Norwegian Epic

 

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Seven Seas Voyager

 

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Ferry reversing into the basin 

 

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standing on tiptoe, hanging out of a window to take this

 

Magic light

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Another apology before we get to the dinner photos...

I am so out of touch with my former cruising life that whereas I used to sit down, accept the napkin, order the wine I would take a photo of the menu so that I could identify our dishes later and share the food offerings with the people reading my reviews.

 

I will have menus for you soon but for the first couple days they went clean out of my head in all the excitement. Note from my Mother etc etc

DINNER IN DISCOVERIES

Sir Norris and Lady Carol was the greeting tonight and we got a window table near the entrance. Wine was ordered. Pinot Noir as I recall. Ginger ale for the lady

 

I began with a nicely presented shrimp dish

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Moroccan spiced soup

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Carol's salad

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Carol's Pork Roulades 

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 Beef  slow cooked in a Tagine

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Dessert Menu

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Pistachios in Phyllo dough

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6 hours ago, Bimmer09 said:

Some are sunbathing, shirts off, shorts on.

 

Glad it wasn't the other way round. 😉

 

Came across from the Princess board. I'm really enjoying your unique retelling of your adventures.

I might be coverted to a Azamara cruiser, just keep those food photos coming.

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THE INCANTO QUARTET

AZAMARA has great ideas-the staying overnight being the one that attacts us most.

Azamazing Evenings based on the stellar one we attended in Havana are another slam dunk to use a popular golfing phrase (I'm not really into sports). In Havana a fleet of buses drove us to a concert venue (partially outdoors) where we were treated to a fantastic music and dance show-Lizt Alfonso- then returned to the ship.

(photos and video in my Cuba review)

 

The World has since changed and now the guests stay onboard and the entertainers

visit.

 

Tonight in Livorno there was an 8.45 p.m show, not on the pool deck stage as I had hoped but in the Cabaret Lounge. The Incanto Quartet is an Italian group of vocally-rich ladies who sing Opera and pop songs. They had a young pianist who also played an electric keyboard hung around her neck in the pop numbers. They also used some backing tapes.

The opera sections were extremely well done. Carol and I are very long time Opera goers.

Particularly gratifying for me in the pop field was a brief medley of Abba classics including Dancing Queen which still holds its magic 45 years later. Toes were tapping.

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I didn't have my zoom lens with me, which is needed to see through the gaps in front of me. The Cabaret Room isn't one with a raked floor so you can see over those infront of you and it's too late to do anything to remedy that now. The sound is good and the lighting effective. Azamara make the best of what they have to work with. It's a 20 year old ship.

 

The show was energetic and exciting. The room was packed which is great  for the group who can't have been doing many shows over the past year. They did that classic Andrea Bocelli/Sarah Brightman cruise ship anthem- Time to Say Goodbye (Con te Partiro). Always moving.

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5 hours ago, sewgood said:

 

Glad it wasn't the other way round. 😉

 

Came across from the Princess board. I'm really enjoying your unique retelling of your adventures.

I might be coverted to a Azamara cruiser, just keep those food photos coming.

A new reader-welcome!

Aye-aye skipper on those food photos. Looks good, tastes good and by golly it does you good!

Each night we would look at the menu and Carol would say there's at least 6 dishes I could eat here.

An eclectic menu but no matter what came to the table it was enjoyed. I've only sailed 3 lines, the other two being the very worthy Princess and Celebrity but Az has the best MDR offerings. It reminds me of the quality found in Murano on Celebrity but without the stiff cover charge.

Norris

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Only by following the trail of photos I leave behind can I remember what I was doing at a given moment.

It appears that after the show I was in the buffet (closed for service for the night)

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Help Yourself

 

Then I was on the pool deck

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We had changed some excursions as I mentioned so I stopped down to Guest Services to get an update on our OBC. Here are some pics from there that show the beautiful and elegant decor found around the ship. Hard to believe this is a 20 year old ship. "Can I see some I.D. please?"

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Mission Accomplished, it was time to retire and look out upon the harbor before I entered the Land of Nod.

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ZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

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On 11/8/2021 at 10:13 AM, Bimmer09 said:

Then I put a link on the Princess board so that all my Princess readers could find this-but they transferred it to the Az board.

 

Norris

Norris,

 

thank you very much for posting the link on Princess board. i've missed your review... it's been a long time since the last one.

always enjoying your storytelling style, humor, sharing experience.

 

Marina

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27 minutes ago, manunia said:

Norris,

 

thank you very much for posting the link on Princess board. i've missed your review... it's been a long time since the last one.

always enjoying your storytelling style, humor, sharing experience.

 

Marina

 Thanks Marina and welcome aboard!

It's been 2 years since I had a cruise to write about. I am hoping more people visit from the Princess Board where I am best known. I'd hate folks to miss some of the stuff I have stashed away here. Today we will be off the ship among the hills of Tuscany for instance.

Norris

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29 minutes ago, RNRcruisers said:

The food looks amazing! I love the ship decor too. You are making it tempting to give Azamara a try.

 

I'll reveal more about the ship and the Azamara experience as I go. It looks expensive compared to say Princess which has been great value to us but you can always re-fare when you see a better price.

Thanks for the comment!

Norris

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13 hours ago, Bimmer09 said:

 A cautionary tale!

I wear a money belt under my clothes.

With the camera I always have the strap over my shoulder and around my wrist and my right hand holds onto a metal thing called an L bracket so the camera can't get away from my hand.

 Both Rome and Barcelona are renowned for people taking advantage of tourists-many scam videos on Youtube, a great resource.

I only carried one camera and lens in the streets which would have been a $3,000 loss if I wasn't so conscious . I download my photos each night so that I don't lose the pictures if I lose the camera.

Sad world we live in.

Norris

Scary about the thefts. I’m interested in how you carry your camera. I can’t quite picture it. Maybe Carol could get a shot to post. Won’t be vacationing for quite sometime but I can always practice. When travelling I have a couple of main cards I change up once during the trip and lots of secondary cards that I switch up and put away more frequently. I don’t have a laptop and backup to my iPad. I’m thinking some quality might be lost there. I did drop my camera in the ocean on one trip. Recovered undamaged. My secondary card was ruined though. 
 

Maris

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19 minutes ago, Bimmer09 said:

 Thanks Marina and welcome aboard!

Norris

i've read all your reviews as soon as it appeared and loved each one of it but have been a silent reader (not really - you should hear me laughing), i even shared some of your posts with my son.

i was so excited today (saw link on Princess board) that could not resist to thank you.

i've learned a lot from your reviews, went with you and Carol to places i've have not been yet. 

your writing style accompanied with pictures making me feel that i am there with you - i hope you do not mind especially that it does not happen in real time.

also my thanks to Carol who is making sure we know the correct name for the drivers, waiters, ets and looks great at the same time.

have a great time in Tuscany today,

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One more question Norris. You food photos are amazing. Something else I must practice. I notice you use your camera, not your phone. So generally wide angle, M setting? Do use auto ISO? Your camera obviously handles noise really well. Any noise reduction strategy? 

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I have a busy day today away from the computer involving a repeat of yesterday's 160 mile round-trip over to Michigan. Before then I have to look at my next batch of photos and get them ready to post later today.

This is one of the places we will be visiting....

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