Selbourne ‘Live’ from Aurora’s 2024 Grand Tour

[Selbourne]

Just now, david63 said:

And then you will have to go on another cruise - just to prove the theory😄

Well we are on Queen Anne in May but being a brand new ship I would hope that the air con would at least work properly! 

[david63]

16 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

being a brand new ship I would hope that the air con would at least work properly! 

That may be a tad optimistic😉- not sure about the green beans though🤣

[brian1]

2 hours ago, zap99 said:

Belmont pineapple. Isn't that the stuff that comes in tins. I thought the real wild pineapples would have been available in the Caribbean.

They cut short our tour of the live volcano in Hawaii to visit the bloody Dole pineapple plantation and factory.I did buy a pineapple corer,well impressed.😒

[terrierjohn]

@Selbourne regarding the MDR food, perhaps you could try and find out who is the executive chef on board Aurora, then we will know to avoid him in future.

[Selbourne]

Just now, terrierjohn said:

@Selbourne regarding the MDR food, perhaps you could try and find out who is the executive chef on board Aurora, then we will know to avoid him in future.

I’ve never seen his name mentioned anywhere and he’s not on the photo board on deck 5. Odd because some

of them, like Trevor Glass, used to have their names on the menu. When I asked earlier on in the cruise I think I was told that it was an Indian chap known as Ronnie, but don’t hold me to that. 

[david63]

14 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

I’ve never seen his name mentioned anywhere and he’s not on the photo board on deck 5. Odd because some

of them, like Trevor Glass, used to have their names on the menu. When I asked earlier on in the cruise I think I was told that it was an Indian chap known as Ronnie, but don’t hold me to that. 

Probably means that you haven't got one!

 

Who would want the job of feeding the same passengers green beans every day for 35 days?🤣🤣

[Adawn47]

3 hours ago, Selbourne said:

I’ve never seen his name mentioned anywhere and he’s not on the photo board on deck 5. Odd because some

of them, like Trevor Glass, used to have their names on the menu. When I asked earlier on in the cruise I think I was told that it was an Indian chap known as Ronnie, but don’t hold me to that. 

Maybe he's too embarassed to put his photo on the board for fear of retaliation. 😁

Avril

[Selbourne]

Just now, mrsgoggins said:

I'm sure that cost-cutting and maximising revenue efforts are widespread across the industry post Covid, especially as they try to keep the 'lead-in' prices low. 

Definitely. There’s also the issue of the enormous food price inflation. I bet they are spending more now to offer less!

 

Just now, Palaceman said:

I have never been inundated with green beans. All comments regarding menu  choice/quality/quantity of food are subjective. We all have different tastes and appetites.

It would be an exaggeration to say we have been inundated (or bean inundated 😂), but they are definitely the most prolific vegetable used. I had cottage pie for lunch, which was meant to come with ‘seasonal vegetables’. They turned out to be a spoonful of cabbage and green beans. If you have the always available steak in the evening it comes with green beans. I now try to look for meals that aren’t likely to have them, but even then I fail at times 😂.
 

I agree that comments about food are always subjective (as is everything on a cruise in all honesty, including entertainment). I always make that point at the outset of every review I have ever done. I have heard a few people say that a lot of people are commenting that the food isn’t great, but they think it’s fine. I’ve heard far more be critical though. It’s what you’re used to I guess, but all I can say is that, odd meals aside, we had no issues with the MDR food on Britannia, Iona or Ventura last year. It’s noticeably weaker on Aurora at present though.

 

Just now, zap99 said:

On Arvia we expect the MDR menu to be a bit limited, but as there are loads more places to eat with different themes, that's fine.

 

I really wish that we had an Epicurean and an Olive Grove restaurant on here!

[Megabear2]

14 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Definitely. There’s also the issue of the enormous food price inflation. I bet they are spending more now to offer less!

 

It would be an exaggeration to say we have been inundated (or bean inundated 😂), but they are definitely the most prolific vegetable used. I had cottage pie for lunch, which was meant to come with ‘seasonal vegetables’. They turned out to be a spoonful of cabbage and green beans. If you have the always available steak in the evening it comes with green beans. I now try to look for meals that aren’t likely to have them, but even then I fail at times 😂.
 

I agree that comments about food are always subjective (as is everything on a cruise in all honesty, including entertainment). I always make that point at the outset of every review I have ever done. I have heard a few people say that a lot of people are commenting that the food isn’t great, but they think it’s fine. I’ve heard far more be critical though. It’s what you’re used to I guess, but all I can say is that, odd meals aside, we had no issues with the MDR food on Britannia, Iona or Ventura last year. It’s noticeably weaker on Aurora at present though.

 

 

I really wish that we had an Epicurean and an Olive Grove restaurant on here!

Green beans are relatively easy to prepare which may have some relevance.

 

Funnily the only time i saw green beans on Britannia on my last two cruises on her were when our dining companions asked for extra vegetables.  These were the same every night a mixture of green beans, carrots and broccoli.

 

On Arvia I asked for green beans in Epicurean and was told there were none onboard but they had broad beans. When they arrived they were actually sliced runner beans.

[Selbourne]

Just now, Megabear2 said:

On Arvia I asked for green beans in Epicurean and was told there were none onboard

So that’s the reason. Arvia’s delivery of green beans went to Aurora, and they are trying to use them up before they go off 😂 I am now on a green bean protest. If I get them I refuse to eat them 😂

[terrierjohn]

On both the questions of cost and quality of the desserts, pre covid one of the best choices for desserts was the variety of ice cream sundaes that P&O offered, which I am sure must have been quite inexpensive, but always good quality and very popular, and yet none existent now.

[Ardennais]

1 hour ago, terrierjohn said:

On both the questions of cost and quality of the desserts, pre covid one of the best choices for desserts was the variety of ice cream sundaes that P&O offered, which I am sure must have been quite inexpensive, but always good quality and very popular, and yet none existent now.

They were nice weren’t they! 

[Selbourne]

I think that I forgot to post todays MDR menus earlier

 

Edited February 28 by Selbourne

[Selbourne]

 

Day 57 - Wednesday 28th February - Sea Day

 

We coped well with the first of our 3 clock changes en-route to the Azores and managed to get to breakfast at around 9am. This was just as well as we wanted to get to Paul Stickler’s next crime talk ‘The Fatal Secrets of Lord Erroll’. For reasons unknown, this had been scheduled for 10am, rather than the usual (and more convenient) 10.30am, meaning that there was then a 45 minute gap between the talk and the following port presentation. 

 

As I feared, he didn’t tell us what his thoughts had been on the previous 2 cases. I’ve heard a number of people say that they wish he would, as he does rather leave it up in the air. I overheard 2 chaps chatting in the run up to the presentation and they were saying this as well, so clearly a lot of people think the same.  

 

We usually stay in the theatre for the port talk as there is usually only a 15 minute gap between the talk and the port presentation, but as today there was 45 minutes to kill we went back to the cabin. Unfortunately we then lost track of time and only remembered the Azores port talk once it was half way through, so we ended up missing it 🙄

 

The midday announcement was made by our new Captain, which was a nice change as the previous one delegated it. MDR for lunch and I had cottage pie which I enjoyed, but I left the green beans (in the menu as ‘seasonal vegetables’) untouched by way of a protest 😂 After lunch we attended an art talk entitled ‘The World of Banksy’ in Masquerade. After the usual ‘is there nothing else on?’ comment from the art manager (which he says every time) it was a good talk. 

 

At 3pm we went to the theatre for what was called ‘Radio Play’.  This was a comedy & musical ‘who dunnit’ that was read by various members of the entertainments team and officers, including the Deputy Captain and Hotel General Manager. This was very different from the usual daytime entertainment stuff and was good fun. All credit to the officers and crew who participated, as I’m sure that they were well out of their comfort zones. 

 

Our now daily pilgrimage to Raffles for an afternoon cuppa was followed by the first performance of our new classical artist Ben Kearsley who is a guitarist. We were spoilt with our first guest musician, the outstanding pianist, so the harpist and singer that followed were a bit of an anti climax in comparison, but normal service had resumed with this chap. He was great and the mix of music was spot on to cover all tastes. We shall definitely go to all his performances. 

 

I managed to do 3 laps of the promenade deck afterwards (as a token gesture really) whilst my wife read on the balcony. We then got in our formal gear early as there was a Peninsular drinks reception in the Crows Nest. Neither of us like the plonk that they serve at these events, but it was an opportunity to hear from (and see) our new Captain, Simon Love. He comes over so much better than the previous one and seems more invested in the passengers. It’s a great shame that we haven’t had him throughout our entire voyage. 

 

MDR dinner was pretty good for both of us. My lamb was very fatty but I could trim it all off easily and, best of all, no green beans for either of us 😂

 

The 10pm show was Maurice Grumbleweed. Now we could both remember the Grumbleweeds by name only. We couldn’t recall anything about them at all and Wikipedia didn’t help much. My wife reckoned they might have been similar to the Wurzles? We agreed that if it was rubbish one of us would nudge the other and we’d slip out (an advantage of having to sit at the back). It was basically a light entertainment show of songs and gags.  After the first few minutes I thought that a nudge would not be too long away, but my wife could see me laughing at some of the gags so she held back. In the end we stayed for the whole show and enjoyed it (me more than my wife). At times I wasn’t sure what was funniest - the gag or the look from my wife that said “I can’t believe that you found that funny” 😂. Another sea day tomorrow. 

 

[david63]

5 hours ago, Selbourne said:

The 10pm show was Maurice Grumbleweed.

He must be getting on a bit by now - he has been performing on P&O since before I can remember.

[Angel57]

12 minutes ago, david63 said:

He must be getting on a bit by now - he has been performing on P&O since before I can remember.

I agree. Not my cup of tea at all, but each to their own 🤣🤣🤣

[twotravellersLondon]

6 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Ben Kearsley

 

We've heard him a couple of times... very much to our taste... a very talented musician. 

[twotravellersLondon]

On 2/24/2024 at 3:44 AM, Selbourne said:

Day 52 - Friday 23rd February - Ocho Rios, Jamaica

 

 

A very odd day in Jamaica. As a Carnival ship managed to damage the cruise pier a few weeks ago, and has apparently put it out of action for a year, we berthed at Reynold’s Pier, which the locals call the James Bond pier. It’s an industrial berth that was used in two James Bond films as the baddies lair. The local economy is going to take a big hit, as this pier can only take smaller ships (and maybe only one at a time?) so all the biggies are being rescheduled to either Falmouth or Montego Bay. The locals aren’t at all happy. 

 

I was booked on a ‘Panorama of Ocho Rio’s’ tour and it was on one of those awful Toyota minibuses that seem to be as prevalent around the Caribbean as the wild chickens are on Grand Cayman. I got in the front seat which, due to there being no door, involves a degree of contortion and dexterity to get in and out of that thankfully I can still just about manage (at a push). 

 

As we left Ocho Rio’s we climbed up through Fern Gully, which is a steep sided gully that was originally a river that got diverted as a result of an earthquake. Even though I was in the front seat it was difficult to see out as the minibus had a tinted band that covered almost the top half of the windscreen and it wasn’t well applied so distorted the view. Anyway, as we were climbing the gully, I noticed the greenery start to move at the side of the road and all of a sudden a person on stilts, absolutely covered in greenery (from their head to the bottom of the stilts), just ‘walked’ out into our path. As if this was perfectly natural, our driver just slowed down and then drove around him. A little further up the gully there was another leaf covered manned stall and our guide said that he was ‘Jack in the box’ and the chap on stilts was ‘Jack and the beanstalk’. They are apparently ‘tourist attractions’ (code for beggars). 

 

We weaved our way through some quite poor looking areas and then got to an affluent area where various music stars own properties and then stopped at a viewpoint (Shaw Park Ridge) that overlooks Ocho Rio’s. On our way back down the hill another chap dressed all in black walked out in front of the minibus and brought us to a halt. He then proceeded to do about a dozen backward flips down the middle of the road. I should at this stage say that Marijuana in ‘small doses for personal use’ is legal in Jamaica and I was beginning to wonder if I had inadvertently taken some. Anyway, it was another beggar who managed to get a few dollars from the more benevolent passengers on the minibus. 

 

We then stopped at an extremely average church (St Johns Anglican Church) with a very shabby graveyard. I have no idea why so many shore excursions on various islands do this. The average village church in the U.K. is more impressive than 90% of these. After that we stopped at the Taj Mahal shopping centre (yes, you read that correctly). Lots of shops all selling similar things - tourist tat, t-shirts, booze, cigars, jewellery etc. The prices all look astronomical to me, probably as Sterling is weak against the US dollar. Maybe the prices are more appealing to our US cousins. 

 

Next we headed out of town for a slightly pointless drive through the heavily congested village of St Ann’s (it’s Jamaica Day today so everywhere was busy), which included driving in and out of the hospital car park (I’m not making this up for effect BTW). The final stop was an outdoor eating area where they cook vast quantities of Jerk Chicken and pork. Again, I’ve no idea why. It smelt nice but wouldn’t get a food hygiene rating at home!

 

Back to the ship just 20 minutes late which seems to be better than most excursions. BTW, If booking tours don’t plan on doing two in a day. Chances are your first tour will be late back. They don’t even seem to be aware of the scheduled return times! 

 

As the tour was late back we had missed lunch in the MDR so went for a burger at the Lido Grill. The service up there is poor but the burgers are OK and are a quick way to fill a gap. 

 

We were scheduled to have a relatively short day in Jamaica with an ‘all on board’ time of 4.30pm. Then we had the added challenge that wheelchair users could not get on and off the ship between midday and 2pm due to the tides (when only stepped access from deck 5 would be available). However, by the time we had grabbed some lunch the level step free access from deck 4 had been reinstated, so we headed ashore. 

 

Thankfully, although we were further out of town than the usual cruise pier, the walk into town was very good and wheelchair friendly. It was a tiny bit more tricky in places once we got into the centre, but still better than most of the places we have visited. On the way back to the ship we had a look around Island Village, a nicely landscaped shopping and leisure area. 

 

Having returned to the ship in good time for the early departure, at 5pm the Captain announced that we would be delayed in our departure due to a delivery of provisions having arrived late. As a result, people could go ashore for another 2 hours if they wished. I doubt that many did. He also said that this would mean that we would be a few hours late arriving into Tortola in 2 days time as a result. We ended up leaving at around 8pm. 

 

Clearly there is a tight budget on fuel costs, as the journey is apparently about 720 miles and we have 36 hours to do it if we are to arrive on time. That would mean travelling at 20 knots, which is well below Auroras designed operating speed of 25 knots. I wondered if the Captain would do the same as he did with Bermuda, when he patted himself on the back for getting us there just marginally late when we had made a big diversion to avoid the worst of a storm system. However, he said that there would be a communication about the impact of our delayed arrival on shore excursions, so maybe not. 

 

At 7pm we went to Carmen’s for a Headliners performance called ‘Up all night’.  As those who cruise a lot will know, there can be big variations in the quality of the Headliners troupes. We’ve seen a few excellent ones and some quite poor ones. In all honesty, the troupe that we have is very good and it’s frankly amazing that the vast majority of them are on their very first contact with P&O. In the spirit of complete honesty, the male singers are let down a bit by one of their number being quite weak, but the female singers and the dancers are all excellent. 

 

Dinner was mediocre. We both had jerk chicken. I wasn’t terribly keen but it was a welcome change from the usual fodder. My wife enjoyed hers. My dessert was dreadful. I struggle to think of more than a handful of MDR desserts that I have really enjoyed. 

 

The 10pm show was vocal group ‘Legacy’ but we were both quite tired so didn’t go. Tomorrow is a sea day as we progress towards Tortola. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Like you we were at Reynold's Pier (James Bond Pier) when we visited Ocho Rios a few years ago and now you've jogged the memories we decided to begin a blitz of all of the Bond films from start to finish... one a week!

 

One of us (a keen reader at the time who'd read all of the Ian Fleming's Bond books) saw the first Bond film at its release in the town hall of a tiny place on the East coast of Scotland one cold, wet Saturday. It was... totally amazing... not just the Bond action bits... but being transported to the Caribbean... it was "a million miles away"... so totally different from our own rugged bit of Scottish coastline... and it was beyond our wildest dreams to ever be able to visit such a place... unless we joined the navy!

 

So last night... your post was the inspiration for the beginning of our personal Bond "season"... starting at the beginning... with Dr No... and there was the pier, "in all its glory"... complete later with what was state of the art pyrotechnics in 1962.

 

So one picture, a passing comment... will now provide us with hours of entertainment over the next few weeks and months. 

 

Many Thanks!

[Selbourne]

Todays MDR menus

 

Edited February 29 by Selbourne

[Grandad John]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Todays MDR menus

 

Is Roy Wood part of the entertainment on this cruise I wonder?

[Selbourne]

Day 58 - Thursday 29th February - Sea Day

 

I had a really bad nights sleep as my throat was hurting more than usual and it was giving me earache as well. I took some paracetamol and thankfully it seemed to ease it. 

 

After breakfast we went to Paul Stickler’s true crime talk, this time called ‘The Green Bicycle Murder’. Another very interesting talk. Nothing else appealed before lunch, which we had in the MDR. We both had a cheese and tomato panini that lacked sufficient filling so was tasteless. The chips that came with it were fabulous though. Much better than the chips they serve in the evenings for some reason and even better than the ones they serve in the Glasshouse and Beach House (which always seem slightly undercooked). 

 

After lunch there was a second music talk by Ivy Partridge entitled ‘Hello Adele, This is your song Elton’. We discussed whether to go and agreed that we wouldn’t, as we hadn’t been to impressed with her first talk, and thought that the second would follow the same format. 

 

At 3pm we went to the theatre for a staged game show called Liars Club, which is Call My Bluff (which they can’t use for trademark reasons). One team was headed by the Captain, who we’ve now seen and heard more in 2 days than we saw our last one in 55 days. It wasn’t as good as the radio play the day before but still a welcome and enjoyable interlude on a sea day and full marks to those who participated. 

 

After our afternoon cuppa in Raffles we made a gift purchase in the shop before just resting in the cabin until dinner, during which time I watched the port presentation on the Azores which we’d missed on our diddy TV. Dinner tonight was in Sindhu. This was our last of 4 visits there this cruise. For starters my wife had tiger prawns (which she enjoyed) and I had beef pepper fry (which I didn’t). In years gone by this was ground beef in a tasty sauce, but now it’s dry and doesn’t work IMHO. For mains we both had the lobster and seafood biryani. The lobster was gorgeous. My wife liked the biryani rice more than I did. Neither of us liked the paneer and pea side dish (the vegetable curry we had last time was much better). For dessert we both had Kulfi, which we enjoyed. My wife said that it was the best meal of the 4 we’ve had in there. I still prefer the lunchtime MDR curries (that are also free) 😂

 

We didn’t finish until just after 10pm so didn’t go see the new acoustic / vocal duo ‘Into the Dark’ in the theatre, but we weren’t overly bothered. If we hear that they were good we’ll go to their 2nd performance. The clocks go forward another hour tonight so we will be 2 hrs behind the UK.

[Selbourne]

 

Edited March 1 by Selbourne

[david63]

Looks as if green beans have been replaced by leeks (for one night only)🤣

[Selbourne]

 

Day 59 - Friday 1st March - Sea Day

 

Having had a poor nights sleep the previous night, I was relieved not to have had a repeat last night. My throat was a lot better, but I’ve learned to manage my expectations as just when I think I’m over the worst it comes back as bad as ever!

 

The clocks had changed, so we had a bit of rush with breakfast, partly because last entry is 0930 but also because we wanted to attend Paul Stickler’s 1000 theatre talk - The Telephone Call Conspiracy. Another excellent and very interesting true crime talk. 

 

Two things we have noticed with the theatre over the past few days. Having been nice and cool in there for the whole duration of the cruise, over the last few days it’s seemed far less so. The seat back vents are still working but it’s now starting to feel a bit stuffy. Secondly, the level of coughing amongst the audience has really picked up. It’s like a cough chorus, or a co-cough-eny (read that aloud if you don’t get it) 😂. 

 

The weather has now changed. There has been rain, wind and lower temperatures (still 22 degrees though). Most importantly, in spite of the Captains prediction that we would have calm seas all the way to the Azores, we now have noticeable movement. Not enough to make you feel bad, but if it’s like this only half way to the Azore’s it will probably get worse. In our cabin there’s a very regular ‘wobble’ where the ship makes rapid left/right movements in less than a second. I’ve never understood the physics of how something so huge can wobble so rapidly 😂

 

Before and after lunch we relaxed in our cabin. Lunch was in the MDR. I had lasagne and remembered that I’d had it at lunch before and enjoyed it, even though the one that my wife had been given a few nights back for dinner had been poor. I’m pleased to say that I enjoyed it. 

 

We almost forgot Ben Kearsley’s second guitar performance in the Playhouse at 5pm but made it in good time, unlike the couple who arrived late, sat next to me and the woman then proceeded to fidget constantly 🙄. Afterwards we went for our afternoon cuppa in Raffles but we were too late for the freebie cakes 🙁

 

After our previous nights dinner in Sindhu we were back in the MDR for a St David’s Day themed menu. I had all the Welsh recommendations other than the starter and enjoyed it all. My wife opted for the Signature dish main course (fillet steak) which is the first time that either of us have tried it this cruise. When it came it looked bigger than I recall from Ventura and my wife really enjoyed it (even though she couldn’t manage it all). Afterwards she was asked to fill in a feedback form on it. She said that it was very well cooked and nicely presented, but the menu was unlikely to become popular if it never changes (which it doesn’t). 

 

The 10pm show was a Headliner’s performance - Applause. Whilst we’ve seen this show countless times (including less than 4 weeks ago on this cruise) it’s probably my favourite show as it has a long Les Miserables segment in it and is 100% songs rather than a cheesy story line, so we went again and enjoyed it even more than the first time. This troupe of Headliners were apparently mostly brand new to P&O at the start of this cruise and, as my wife said as we were leaving, they seem to have really got into their stride. Some of them are incredibly young as well, yet carry their roles very well. They had a very well deserved standing ovation at the end. Thankfully, the theatre was back to being a nice cool temperature again. Yet another sea day tomorrow (4th of 5 to the Azores). By the amount of movement this evening I fear it’s going to be a rocky one!

 

[Selbourne]

 

Today’s MDR menus

 

Edited March 2 by Selbourne