Live from 35 nights on Ventura, what have I done?

[mrsgoggins]

4 hours ago, toad455 said:

I see the ship is anchored off the harbor in St Kitts today. Anyone know why she didn't dock? Looks like there's two small boats alongside it.

Too high winds.  Even with the aid of a tug, unable to stop sideways motion.  Ship anchored off St Kitts because refuelling here and expecting tanker.

[Clodia]

I can't  share tables at breakfast and always have to see the Head Waiter on day one to request a solo table. The reason is my severe allergy to baked beans, or rather the virulent additive laden processed sauce in which they are cooked. I can't share a table because if someone orders them the sight and smell will make me ill and I will have to flee the table. Great for having a quiet restaurant breakfast. 

Edited January 25 by Clodia

[Bill Y]

18 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

Too high winds.  Even with the aid of a tug, unable to stop sideways motion.  Ship anchored off St Kitts because refuelling here and expecting tanker.

 

3 minutes ago, Clodia said:

I can't  share tables at breakfast and always have to see the Head Waiter on day one to request a solo table. The reason is my severe allergy to baked beans, or rather the virulent additive laden processed sauce in which they are cooked. I can't share a table because if someone orders them the sight and smell will make me ill and I will have to flee the table. Great for having a quiet restaurant breakfast. 

Are the two posts connected or just a coincidence?

[Guest]

On 1/24/2024 at 2:09 AM, mrsgoggins said:

 

No, it's an infinite veranda stateroom and yes, the top window comes down (push button). Essentially what is your 'balcony' becomes part of your room, but can also be closed off if that makes sense.  They are lovely rooms but I missed a traditional balcony.  I believe the suites at the back of the ship have 'proper' balconies.

We were on Beyond last year and had a Sunset Verandah (normal balcony!) there are only about 30-40 of them so they sell out! Each corner has a sky suite, but the rest are all normal balconies (no aqua or concierge class on the aft like on Solstice class)

(spot Captain Kate in this one!!)

Edited January 25 by Glitterati

[toad455]

45 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

Too high winds.  Even with the aid of a tug, unable to stop sideways motion.  Ship anchored off St Kitts because refuelling here and expecting tanker.

 

Odd since the Anthem was able to dock.

[Somerset Cruiser]

25 minutes ago, toad455 said:

 

Odd since the Anthem was able to dock.

A different location perhaps, there are 2 cruise ports in St Kitts.

[mrsgoggins]

Thursday 25th January, bobbing around off the coast of St Kitts as a previous post explained. We’ve heard guest speaker David Bennett’s fill-in talk this morning about how he came to be a ship’s guest speaker - his subject is graphology (handwriting) - along with some interesting anecdotes that filled 45 minutes pleasantly.  Otherwise we have spent time on the balcony reading and snoozing.  Along with additional fit steps classes etc, they also, by request, put on another showing of the film Oppenheimer, which we would both like to see, but as it’s 3 hours long, are minded to await its TV debut when we can watch it over 2 days.

 

I’ll do a brief, cough cough (I’ll try!), run down of the last few days.

 

Tuesday, 23rd, Guadeloupe 

As previously posted, I had already cancelled my eagerly anticipated Death in Paradise tour largely because of my fear of the amount of walking (1.5 hours) they cautioned in the blurb. I had wrestled with this decision however, but the final push to cancelling came by the BBC’s weather service forecasting rain for much of the day in Guadeloupe - and they proved to be so very right!  It rained for most of the day with just a few brief let-ups and many passengers on tours got soaked.

 

However, about 10 am, it had stopped for a while and so we went out to explore the port, about which we had heard not one good thing.  Mrgoggins found it fascinating 😀, whilst I thought it merely lived down to expectations.  He said ‘it’s just like the back streets of so many scruffy parts of some French towns’ and asked if I didn’t think it resembled the back streets of Calais for instance, where (thanks to his job) we spent much time back in the day.  Anyhow, we found a good supermarket, purchased some pear juice, a packet of palmiers biscuits and a supermarket cool bag with Guadeloupe writ large on it, which DH will look after.  He asked if he resembled Roy from Coronation Street as we made our way back to the ship.  He did.

 

 

When we got back to the immediate area by the ship, the tour group we should have been with approached, and judging by the passengers with walking sticks and walkers going for the bus, others obviously didn’t worry about it the walking as much as me.  Had it not been for the forecast weather, we would have taken private transport (modern looking vehicles) to do the Death in Paradise tour, for which the going rate seemed to be 40 euros per person - one hour to get there, an hour’s stay and an hour back to the ship.  For anyone considering this in the future, I have been told that independent travellers must pay to enter the police station/jail, but not on the ship’s tour.  Here’s hoping I make it in January 2026 🤞.

Wednesday, 24th January

 

I’m failing to be brief again so I’ll try with Antigua, where we have visited 3 times previously and done tours, so we had nothing planned, it supposedly being the day after a trip and a ‘chill day’.  Enchanted Princess was already docked in pole position when we arrived and so we had a long walk in blistering heat, with no shade or seating along the way from our berth to the port’s shopping area.  For fit people, probably little more than a 5 minute walk, but as you may have gathered, that’s not me so by the time we returned to the ship after a walk around said retail area, I was ready for a snooze after lunch; something I very rarely do back in real life.

 

Up to date again now, and I’ll go quiet again for a few days, especially since tomorrow is a sea day en route to Tortola.

 

Captain James Brown (no singing that song as you read) has just been over the tannoy to announce that he is now preparing to lift anchor and set sail and he did a recap of why we were not able to make it into port when 2 others did - they proportionally had more power; Anthem of the Seas has 50 knot capability and she made it in.  The combined wind and current was 40 knots and this ship only has 30 knots capability so even with the aid of a tug, was unable to make it.  It will please a few people from breakfast who weren’t getting off anyway, and have ‘missed port’ insurance cover.

 

I’ll attempt to add a photo of Guadeloupe now, but for balance I must say that those I have spoken with who did tours, say it’s an island with much beauty.

 

 

 

 

 

[mrsgoggins]

37 minutes ago, toad455 said:

 

Odd since the Anthem was able to dock.

See the Captain’s explanation in my long post.

[toad455]

22 minutes ago, Somerset Cruiser said:

A different location perhaps, there are 2 cruise ports in St Kitts.

 

St. Kitts' piers can hold four ships.

[TigerB]

35 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

He said ‘it’s just like the back streets of so many scruffy parts of some French towns’ and asked if I didn’t think it resembled the back streets of Calais for instance, where (thanks to his job) we spent much time back in the day.  

 

When I read that I had a vision of your old man's job involving daily trips between Dover and Calais in his Tranny van, and then later selling his cheap plonk and stubby bottles of beer at a Sunday market, with you keeping a lookout for Customs & Excise. 😂

[mrsgoggins]

Anthem now leaving St Kitts, whilst a Marella (stopped predictive text from changing to Marbella in time this time!) ship is still in port ….. smirking 😉

Edited January 25 by mrsgoggins

[Somerset Cruiser]

1 hour ago, toad455 said:

 

St. Kitts' piers can hold four ships.

My thinking was a difference in docking conditions,  ie a stronger wind at one berth. @mrsgoggins has now clarified the reason so my speculation was pointless!

[carlanthony24]

Last time we went St Kitts they had 2 ships at the main pier and us dock a bit further away and had to get a shuttle. Looking at google maps looks a bit tight to dock where the other 2 where. Just watched Captain Kate update explaining her decision to miss a port and what factors come into play. 

 

Edited January 25 by carlanthony24

[terrierjohn]

2 hours ago, toad455 said:

 

Odd since the Anthem was able to dock.

She has Azipods, so maybe her extra maneuverability was the reason.

[toad455]

2 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

She has Azipods, so maybe her extra maneuverability was the reason.

 

probably. I've been there when they had 4 ships. it's a zoo. I also remember back in the day they built the second pier to get more ships in. I don't think St. Kitts could handle more than 4 ships.

[mrsgoggins]

A brief update on last night’s meal in Epicurean which was really good again, with the exception of the potatoes (or chips for that matter, as selected on last visit).  I had already decided to mention them, when, lo and behold @Selbourne mentioned them first.  Everything else tasted freshly prepared, but the potatoes and chips have a reheated taste, one piece of boiled potato was firm to the bite.  It was no matter since there is more than enough food without potatoes.

 

My starter is obvious from the photo, but DH had a cheese mousse (menu B).

 

 

We both had the lamb next which we both enjoyed but DH thought the lamb cooked two ways on menu A had the edge, so I’ll be trying that next week.

 

 

I didn’t photograph my dessert, which was a pleasant, if unremarkable panna cotta accompanied by a tasty black charcoal coconut ice cream.  DH had the cheese plate, which is huge and I reckon that must contain in the region of 1000+ calories alone!  We brought the fruit cake back with us to have with afternoon coffee.

 

The evening was rounded off nicely with a visit to the theatre to see the MacDonald brothers, who had apparently done very well on the X Factor 18 or so years ago.  Again, by 8.10 pm it was standing room only so I remain puzzled as to why they do not bring the timing of both shows forward by one hour so that a 9.30 pm performance would be more appealing to most, than the current 10.30 pm performance!  They were excellent by the way, and rounded off their show with a great Audience participation rendition of ‘I’m gonna be (500 miles)’ although in my head I was singing ‘Bobby Davro’ as in the Peter Kay version done for Children in Need 😁

 

 

[Thedonkeycentrehalf]

15 hours ago, carlanthony24 said:

Last time we went St Kitts they had 2 ships at the main pier and us dock a bit further away and had to get a shuttle. Looking at google maps looks a bit tight to dock where the other 2 where. Just watched Captain Kate update explaining her decision to miss a port and what factors come into play. 

 

That's really interesting but my inner teenager had to laugh at the prospect of doing donuts in a cruise ship in the Caribbean rather than in a battered old Ford Fiesta in a supermarket car park

[TigerB]

Ventura...

 

Iona...

 

Isn't it funny how the presentation of same dish is interpreted differently by whoever prepares it.

I prefer how my salmon is on the plate, but I do like how you have half a lime in muslin.

[lincslady]

I am no artist at food presentation,   but even I could have done better than the first plate of smoked salmon.  No doubt it tasted good, but it looks as it was plated up by a small child.

[mrsgoggins]

7 hours ago, lincslady said:

I am no artist at food presentation,   but even I could have done better than the first plate of smoked salmon.  No doubt it tasted good, but it looks as it was plated up by a small child.

 

Interesting. It is a Duo of smoked salmon (hence the difference in appearances) with rye bread and was carved very delicately table-side from 2 distinctly different sides of salmon. It was very carefully placed, so I assume that is the way it is meant to look. It was delicious.

 

Edited January 27 by mrsgoggins

[lincslady]

The being carved at table explains the not very attractive appearance of the dish, of course.  Glad it tasted good.

[TigerB]

My was hand carved near to our table too, but totally different presentation.

[mrsgoggins]

24 minutes ago, lincslady said:

The being carved at table explains the not very attractive appearance of the dish, of course.  Glad it tasted good.

 

Eye of the beholder and all that .... It looked fine to me!

[smokey01]

4 hours ago, mrsgoggins said:

 

Eye of the beholder and all that .... It looked fine to me!

And me, my impression was mrsgroggins was the better presentation

[Ardennais]

3 hours ago, smokey01 said:

And me, my impression was mrsgroggins was the better presentation

Me too! The second plate looks like someone just opened a pack and shook the contents onto the plate!