LIVE Norwaylady sails on Edge World Cruise from Rome to Singapore 30.10 to 25.11.23 , 26.night

[hcat]

Sounds like alot of planning went into this..you are experienced so I expect all will go well. Hope no disruptions !

[Norwaylady]

3 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

So happy to see your post.   Really looking forward to it as we know so many aboard with you.  I will definitely pick up where you drop off (32 days from now- but who's counting).   I was hoping that you would continue you journey so we could finally get to meet you.

 

 

it would be fun to continue down under🇳🇿🦘🌏 And meet you in live🥰

 

I have a confession to make for NZ….

 

What I can say is that we ❤️ NZ❤️ Kiwis are great! 
 

Well you know we have cruised for a longer time then I have posted live from….

 

In 2020 we were supposed to sail 14-nights from Auckland to pacific islands. Fiji etc. Sailing 1.April 2020 on Solstice. 
 

Due to moving last year and a search in a box, these tags showed up during the weekend🥹

We had sailed on Solstice from Sydney to New Caledonia, Vanuatu etc and loved it a few years earlier. 

 

We had planned it as a land and sea adventure⚓️🚙✈️ So we were booked to be away for 7 weeks. And the cruise was the last post before departure home. 
 

We left from home, Norway 🇳🇴 before covid was a big concern… 

So we were in NZ when everything was locked down in the world… as far away from home as possible! 
 

We were outside in Fjordland national park when we received the push alarm notification from the NZ government that everyone was quarantined…. And all international flights was cancelled. 
 

Well, you have 2 choices in this situation. 
Have a panic attack and lay down to die….

 

OR

make the best of it and try to get a plan you can survive…

 

We decided to go for number 2….

 

So we decided rapidly that we couldn’t stay at current location and that we had to make a quick move to be able to travel to final destination for a longer stay at the South Island and to find a okey house to stay in until we were able to take the next step in the situation.

 

We did find a beautiful cottage close to Motueka (Tasman)  But that’s a decent car drive from Te Anau…. 
So it was a good drive in the car. 
 

We had a great time during lockdown at our location. Walking in the neighbourhood by the ocean, picking fruit from the farm and just enjoying life in the sun. 
 

We were “stuck” in NZ until mid August. 
The Norwegian government didn’t attend the digital meeting in Nz for agreement that said we were allowed to travel home. 
So when international air was open for return flights, we were not allowed to book our new return flight…. 
It was space and our ticket was valid on the SQ flights. But they were not allowed to book and confirm the seats for us. 
 

But we had over holiday of a lifetime! 

When Nz opened up inside, we could travel around, visit sites that usually was super crowded alone and we had extremely good time to travel around. 
So we have traveled and tested almost everything in NZ❤️

 

We were lucky 🍀 our job can be done from remote. Just need internet and a laptop. 
And due to the time difference NZ are 12 or 10h different than Norway winter/summer. So that means you have the daytime to explore and you go to work at 18.00 if you need to be real-time. 
 

Did we suffer in any way? NO

We had a great time and don’t regret anything🤩👍🏻❤️

We drove our rental car 20.000km during our stay😂😂😂🚙

 

We just notified the Norwegian embassy in Canberra, Australia (they cover Aus and NZ) of our location. Other than that, we were on our own. 
Since we had our incomes as usual we managed fine. 
 

It was a very happy family waiting in Norway when we arrived back home after a very long time away! 
They had a minor hear attack when we called in March and said all international flights are cancelled for a unknown time and we are “stuck” until further notice…

But we are all good, don’t worry about us😘
 

Mr was saying repetitive the cats won’t remember you😂😂

Well guess what! 
The second I arrived home and the cats saw me they were purring loudly and miau for mom🐈🐈‍⬛ I could not move for week, I had cat pants on🥰🥰🥰

 

Do we still dream about the 14-nights pacific island cruise? YES

 

We want to travel back to NZ and do a cruise to the islands⚓️

NZ is a fantastic place if you like to hike, be outdoor and drink wine 🍷 

 

 

[DaKahuna]

1 hour ago, Norwaylady said:

 What Mr is drinking of beers I have no infiltration on... it all smells beer and really dont tempt me. What I have learned is that the IPA is one of the more smellier beers😵‍💫 I have tried to train him to be a better wine drinker, but I have failed..... aiaiaiaia😬

 

For the elite/ elite pluss status, we are not concerned... 4 bags of Landry is the golden award! The perfect thing for me🤩 aka the laundry keeper, chef and housekeeping...... And people still wonder why I like to go cruising??????🙈

IPA’s were originally called ‘skunk beer’ for their smell.  Tried as I like, I cannot bring myself to take a liking to it. 
 

We pretty much feel the same way about becoming Elite +.  We use the laundry about once a cruise, if more than 7 days.   I have no idea what we would ever do with four bags each.  You can always save anything that does not fit into the two bags in your first leg, you can save for the four bags in your second leg.  
 

 I assume you have already made arrangements with the CC Concierge to get your elevated status on your second leg. 


 

 

[Jim_Iain]

Sounds like quite an adventure on your New Zealand cruise.   Hope we never have to deal with another Pandemic.   I now many people that got out on the last flights from Australia.

 

We will be doing the Sydney to Vancouver B2B in April.    I ended up buying a round trip Air Fare from Sydney to San Francisco and got a much better rate than a Round trip in the opposite direction.   We were able to get a Non-Stop that makes it a little better.

[abbydancer2003]

Hi!

 

You had quite the 2020 adventure.  

 

Some of these are on my bucket list, so I'm following.  I don't get on a ship again until December, so will sail vicariously through your trip.    Have a blast.

[mac_tlc]

I'll be following along, although grudgingly. We were booked on the first two legs also and had to cancel. I would have loved to chat with you and your husband about our wonderful visit this summer to your gorgeous country. 

 

 

Enjoy the Edge.

 

 

mac_tlc

[kabmab]

Very happy you and Mr. Norwaylady can enjoy this wonderful cruise, and enjoy your live review very much!

 

Hoping your brother will will improve.

 

Have a great trip!

[soccermommy]

I am looking forward to following your adventures. This is a fabulous itinerary and we looked at it, except we already booked a cruise…we are now in Yokohama waiting to board Millenium. Have a wonderful time. Your blog is so much fun to follow!

 

[theopup]

That is a very interesting list for organizing your current cruise, and an equally interesting description of your NZ  adventure.

 

We were in NZ a few years ago, and absolutely loved it. Beautiful land, people, food and wine. We would love to return some day.

[Kelownadon]

I noticed you said you would not be doing Petra as you would like to do it on a land vacation that would give you more time to see it. We did almost the same cruise you are doing about 4 or 5 years ago and did Petra and then spent 4 days in Dubai before flying home. We have been telling ourselves since being absolutely blown away by our day in Petra that it would be nice to go back and see it again. But it now appears that is not going to happen. I guess what I am trying to say is you never know what curves life is going to through at you, it would be a shame that you didn’t take a day trip to Petra now as you never know what the future holds. Believe me seeing Petra is so much better than anything else you could have planned that day and you can always go back to see some of the things you missed. Petra is so big, you could spend a week there and not begin to see it all.

[Redking]

5 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

it would be fun to continue down under🇳🇿🦘🌏 And meet you in live🥰

 

I have a confession to make for NZ….

 

What I can say is that we ❤️ NZ❤️ Kiwis are great! 
 

Well you know we have cruised for a longer time then I have posted live from….

 

In 2020 we were supposed to sail 14-nights from Auckland to pacific islands. Fiji etc. Sailing 1.April 2020 on Solstice. 
 

Due to moving last year and a search in a box, these tags showed up during the weekend🥹

We had sailed on Solstice from Sydney to New Caledonia, Vanuatu etc and loved it a few years earlier. 

 

We had planned it as a land and sea adventure⚓️🚙✈️ So we were booked to be away for 7 weeks. And the cruise was the last post before departure home. 
 

We left from home, Norway 🇳🇴 before covid was a big concern… 

So we were in NZ when everything was locked down in the world… as far away from home as possible! 
 

We were outside in Fjordland national park when we received the push alarm notification from the NZ government that everyone was quarantined…. And all international flights was cancelled. 
 

Well, you have 2 choices in this situation. 
Have a panic attack and lay down to die….

 

OR

make the best of it and try to get a plan you can survive…

 

We decided to go for number 2….

 

So we decided rapidly that we couldn’t stay at current location and that we had to make a quick move to be able to travel to final destination for a longer stay at the South Island and to find a okey house to stay in until we were able to take the next step in the situation.

 

We did find a beautiful cottage close to Motueka (Tasman)  But that’s a decent car drive from Te Anau…. 
So it was a good drive in the car. 
 

We had a great time during lockdown at our location. Walking in the neighbourhood by the ocean, picking fruit from the farm and just enjoying life in the sun. 
 

We were “stuck” in NZ until mid August. 
The Norwegian government didn’t attend the digital meeting in Nz for agreement that said we were allowed to travel home. 
So when international air was open for return flights, we were not allowed to book our new return flight…. 
It was space and our ticket was valid on the SQ flights. But they were not allowed to book and confirm the seats for us. 
 

But we had over holiday of a lifetime! 

When Nz opened up inside, we could travel around, visit sites that usually was super crowded alone and we had extremely good time to travel around. 
So we have traveled and tested almost everything in NZ❤️

 

We were lucky 🍀 our job can be done from remote. Just need internet and a laptop. 
And due to the time difference NZ are 12 or 10h different than Norway winter/summer. So that means you have the daytime to explore and you go to work at 18.00 if you need to be real-time. 
 

Did we suffer in any way? NO

We had a great time and don’t regret anything🤩👍🏻❤️

We drove our rental car 20.000km during our stay😂😂😂🚙

 

We just notified the Norwegian embassy in Canberra, Australia (they cover Aus and NZ) of our location. Other than that, we were on our own. 
Since we had our incomes as usual we managed fine. 
 

It was a very happy family waiting in Norway when we arrived back home after a very long time away! 
They had a minor hear attack when we called in March and said all international flights are cancelled for a unknown time and we are “stuck” until further notice…

But we are all good, don’t worry about us😘
 

Mr was saying repetitive the cats won’t remember you😂😂

Well guess what! 
The second I arrived home and the cats saw me they were purring loudly and miau for mom🐈🐈‍⬛ I could not move for week, I had cat pants on🥰🥰🥰

 

Do we still dream about the 14-nights pacific island cruise? YES

 

We want to travel back to NZ and do a cruise to the islands⚓️

NZ is a fantastic place if you like to hike, be outdoor and drink wine 🍷 

 

 

My goodness Alexandra, I had no idea this happened to you. What a very unusual way to experience our country.

 

Hopefully one day our paths will cross either on sea or land.

[Norwaylady]

3 hours ago, soccermommy said:

I am looking forward to following your adventures. This is a fabulous itinerary and we looked at it, except we already booked a cruise…we are now in Yokohama waiting to board Millenium. Have a wonderful time. Your blog is so much fun to follow!

 

 You are in for a treat❤️ 

We did a Milli Japan cruise just before she went into the big dry dock for renovation in April 2018👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 

She was very worn and ready for service then. 
But the cruise and crew was really 10/10👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

It’s one of our favourites! 
 

We are very ready for a new cruise in Japan/Asia. It just needs to be the correct ports of call for us😉🤓

 

[BridgeMates]

10 hours ago, Kelownadon said:

I noticed you said you would not be doing Petra as you would like to do it on a land vacation that would give you more time to see it. We did almost the same cruise you are doing about 4 or 5 years ago and did Petra and then spent 4 days in Dubai before flying home. We have been telling ourselves since being absolutely blown away by our day in Petra that it would be nice to go back and see it again. But it now appears that is not going to happen. I guess what I am trying to say is you never know what curves life is going to through at you, it would be a shame that you didn’t take a day trip to Petra now as you never know what the future holds. Believe me seeing Petra is so much better than anything else you could have planned that day and you can always go back to see some of the things you missed. Petra is so big, you could spend a week there and not begin to see it all.

ABSOLUTELY!   You can get a good local tour company to take you to Petra early, before the crowds, and then go to Wadi Rum.   It was the highlight of our Suez cruise.   With so many places to see in this world, you may never get back there.   All the best and have a wonderful cruise.  One of our favorites!

[Norwaylady]

@BridgeMates and @Kelownadon i can give a reason for why we are planning like this.... 

First, originally our port stop in Aqaba was to short... YES you reading correct! 

So it wasn't time to do Petra. But some very good soles on our Roll Call and on the blue page.... called and emailed X one million times to tell them to prolong our stay by 1/h so it was possible to do Petra. But they will have the express version of Petra, belive me😅

 

Both me and Mr was very clear from the beginning, that we would not do Petra on this cruise. We want to go back as a land holiday and have decent time to discover Petra. 

Our original booking on AZ had an overnight. So then things were very good for discovering Petra. 

 

We are still young and we are very safe in saying we will be back on a land tour! 

My appetite for travel and historical sites are still hungry🙌

 

[Norwaylady]

Oh my, is it just me or is it getting hot🔥

 

I have some great news to tell you🥳🥳

 

On our roll call and on the blue page it has been an angry debate about a price drop on the cruise. Really angry and upset people.

I have monitored the cruise to have a price check now and then.

For us, the price has not been lower than what I booked the cruise for on Dubai/Singapore.

On the segment from Rome to Dubai I did get a lower price when I booked the 2 part of our adventure.

So we saved a decent amount of 7000NOK. We were very happy and satisfied on this change.

 

The price for Dubai to Singapore has been stabil and really nothing to cheer for…..

But 14 days before final payment for Nordic guests I did a price check.

What do I spy whit my little eye?

We can get a GTY suite, for the same price as our Concierge Cabin!!!!!!

The Concierge and Aqua cabins was more expensive than GTY Suite.

 

Well, what to do?

Make that call to X and say: I want to upgrade my stateroom please😇

 

The cruise consultant said, YES, no problem! Halleluja🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

 

So we pay the same price but are moved to a GTY Suite and receive Premium Drinks, WIFI and some more OBC.

El Cheapo Norwaylady was dancing thru dinner cooking that evening……….💃🏻💃🏻💃🏻

 

SO HAPPY!

And the best of it, we will have a real balcony on this part of the sailing.

So if we dont enjoy the infinity veranda, we will get a proper balcony on the last part of our cruise.

 

We have not received our stateroom yet, but we will be happy!

It’s the first time we try out a suite🥂🥰

We always sail in balcony.

 

I haven’t told Nr Norwaylady about it yet….

I think I will keep it as my secret🥰🤭🤫

[Norwaylady]

When I sailed on Infinity in May/June I spoke to some of the offisers. Some of them were going to the dry dock that Edge is having before departure from Europe.

She’s in for 14 days.  It’s the 5 years inspection and some smaller things that being fixed. 🧽🪣🧽🛟⚓️

So hopefully she’s looking smashing and shiny for us on boarding day!

 

Remember, she has a full garden onboard outside on deck🌳🌿🌸🪻🌳. Just not a lawn…..

For someone that has been to Australia and NZ, you know this is a serious thing….⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️

So I will not be surprised if I see a full garden of fake plants and trees…..

 

Time will tell if it’s fake or real deal onboard for us!

[Ciaranaman]

What a great stroke of luck on your new suite!  Enjoy!!

~Bernadette

[clochette]

so glad to have found your trip report and really looking forward to it.  I love your optimism and how you guys made the very best out of a pretty bad situation in 2020.  

 

[Norwaylady]

12 hours ago, Redking said:

My goodness Alexandra, I had no idea this happened to you. What a very unusual way to experience our country.

 

Hopefully one day our paths will cross either on sea or land.

Thank you🥰

NZ is 🤩🤩🤩 it’s everything I like. It’s like a Kinder egg 🥚 Outdoors activities, warm baths, mountains and fjords. 
But the best are the people! It’s a perfect❤️

So of all places to be stranded, this was definitely the best place! 

We did spend the most time on the South Island and loved it🥰

 

The only places we need to seek more into and visit it South Island :

Stewert Island 

(I gladly take a new trip in Fjordland national park. Kayak and overnights on the water also) 

Fox/Franz Josef glaciers (we did not go back due to winter ❄️) So we missed out the stretch from Haast to Graymouth. 
 

On the positive side, we went skiing in the mountains in July in Queenstown😁

not to bad😎 and we could do Queen Charlotte track almost all alone😊

 

on the north island we “missed” out on the corner New Plymouth-Whanganui and the corner Manutuke-Opotiki. 
 

Other then that, we were all over the place😅🚙

 

We even managed to attend a 100years flood in northern north island💦💦💦

Holy smoke it rained and washed away the roads! 
We were waken by the fire alarm, the lightning ⚡️ hit the building and the fire alarm went down and screamed. 
 

So when we are old and need something to look back to, we have something special to think about…..
 

[DaKahuna]

10 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

 You are in for a treat❤️ 

We did a Milli Japan cruise just before she went into the big dry dock for renovation in April 2018👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 

She was very worn and ready for service then. 
But the cruise and crew was really 10/10👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

It’s one of our favourites! 
 

We are very ready for a new cruise in Japan/Asia. It just needs to be the correct ports of call for us😉🤓

 

 

Really glad to hear you say this.  We are on Millie for a 13-day Best of Japan in May.  Looking forward to being back in Japan, if only for a short while. 

 

p.s.  Congratulations on the upgrade to a suite guarantee.  Just be careful.  Once you experience the suite life, it's hard to go back.  

Edited October 24, 2023 by DaKahuna

[Norwaylady]

3 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

p.s.  Congratulations on the upgrade to a suite guarantee.  Just be careful.  Once you experience the suite life, it's hard to go back.  

 

I can promise you one thing! El Cheapo Norwaylady accounting will still apply in the future😅 Or they have to show off at max to make me never want to go back to my balcony😇 No pressure🤣

 

I pay attention to what Charla is typing on the new suite life🤔

 

[Norwaylady]

So, after around 24h we received our stateroom notification⚓️

We are booked to a magic carpet Sky suite on deck 11🤩👍🏻🥂

 

It will be fun to try out the suite lifestyle🥳

 

I know it has been drastically changes in Sky Suite services….( we haven’t tried it before, so nothing to compare it to🤭)

But we will try and see if we enjoy it.

We are easy going people….. (unless you find my habits to be demanding…)

 

So as longest they will empty my minibar (since it’s not for free), so I can stock up on water and club soda,  Im a happy camper😂🤩💃🏻

I need my daily steps, so I can collect my own coffee in the morning at Al Bacio and empty the bar in the retreat and drag it back to my fridge😉😂🤭

 

Account El Cheapo Norwaylady will not continue booking suites….

My taste for good price and value for money will continue to rule the choice of cabin.

Unless we get the same deal again🤩

[Norwaylady]

So today, dinner needed to be in a rapid edition. So no time for longer cooking and big preparations.

So I ended up making classic Bruschetta and mozzarella for dinner. I always have homemade bread, tomatoes and fresh herbals in my kitchen.  Nothing fancy, but it’s tasteful and quick.

 

During dinner I was discussing our cruise by Mr.

We know MSC has cancelled the Red Sea season and that MSC Viruosa has changed the itinerary.

They have taken away Aqaba, Jordan and Safaga, Egypt. As a substitute, they have added an overnight in Muscat, Oman.

So we were discussing how the odds of keeping Aqaba are….. Mr is 20/80 visit/cancel, Im more negative… 5/95.

 

Out of the blue, Mr says: Wow, think if we could book an inside cabin….

I was like? What? What do you mean?

 

Mr :How fun wouldn’t it be if they offered inside cabins whit a view to the engine of the ship?

 

I replied, do you mean like a screen, like the virtual cabins at Rcl?

 

Mr: No, like a glass wall into the engine. So you can see it moves and working during your cruise….  That would be fun for geeks like me.

 

Well Hello there! I know I hit a home run when we did Bergen Heritage Tour earlier this summer…. You can walk into the engine (its a steam boat, working museum) Mr is like a kid in a candy shop🤩

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Speaking of the Devil…. My fellow travellers from abroad has tonight Norwegian time received emails and phone calls from X.

I have not yet received email or anything…. But it states that Aqaba is cancelled.

But we get a stop in Oman, Muscat as a substitute.

Its not Petra for those visiting, but its better then an extra sea day. Muscat is a beautiful place.

 

One thing to do before I go to bed tonight….. Email JHT to cancel our tour……. I spoke to them yesterday about this.....

[Redking]

6 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

Thank you🥰

NZ is 🤩🤩🤩 it’s everything I like. It’s like a Kinder egg 🥚 Outdoors activities, warm baths, mountains and fjords. 
But the best are the people! It’s a perfect❤️

So of all places to be stranded, this was definitely the best place! 

We did spend the most time on the South Island and loved it🥰

 

The only places we need to seek more into and visit it South Island :

Stewert Island 

(I gladly take a new trip in Fjordland national park. Kayak and overnights on the water also) 

Fox/Franz Josef glaciers (we did not go back due to winter ❄️) So we missed out the stretch from Haast to Graymouth. 
 

On the positive side, we went skiing in the mountains in July in Queenstown😁

not to bad😎 and we could do Queen Charlotte track almost all alone😊

 

on the north island we “missed” out on the corner New Plymouth-Whanganui and the corner Manutuke-Opotiki. 
 

Other then that, we were all over the place😅🚙

 

We even managed to attend a 100years flood in northern north island💦💦💦

Holy smoke it rained and washed away the roads! 
We were waken by the fire alarm, the lightning ⚡️ hit the building and the fire alarm went down and screamed. 
 

So when we are old and need something to look back to, we have something special to think about…..
 

Sounds like all you missed was an earthquake 😱

[Norwaylady]

New itinerary was waiting in my mailbox 

 

 

Have we visited Muscat before? Yes😂

By our first cruise, MSC Lirica in 2011. 
We went on a shore excursion to Nizwa Fortress. 
 

Muscat is a very classy Arabic style city. 
So this is a very good and decent trade off to an extra sea day😇