Live from Seabourn Spirit, Oct 25 - Dec 20 2008

[hoya68]

I am assuming this is the same Chef Bijou.

 

From the European cradle of gastronomy - France - comes Alain Bijou who has been appointed the new Executive Chef at the Hotel Excelsior in Dubrovnik.Before joining the Excelsior team, Bijou was the Executive Chef at the luxurious 'Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates' located in the centre of Dubai.

 

The Excelsior's new Executive Chef has rich experience in the culinary business, which he has acquired at some of the most prestigious hotel chains in the world, such as Kempinski, as well as famous European restaurants such as Le Paris Latin in Verona, and large luxury cruisers.He has attended a number of professional and international culinary training programs as well as the prestigious Jean Jaures Cenon school in Bordeaux, France.

 

During these last ten years he was the Executive Chef at the 'Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates' in Dubai, the Arcotel Allegra Hotel in Zagreb, the world famous Spazio77 restaurant located in the capital of Saudi Arabia and on luxury cruises, which sailed along the Mediterranean and the Caribbean: Silver Sea Cruise Line and Sea Dream Yacht Club.He also held executive positions in the kitchen of the Norwegian Cruise Line, sailing along Alaska and the Caribbean with up to 2500 guests and 1200 crew members, and he led a team of 90 international chefs.

 

Alain Bijou was born in 1975.In addition to his mother tongue, French, he speaks English and Italian fluently and also speaks Spanish.He knows Croatian quite well, since his wife is a Croat by origin.

 

The new Executive Chef from France will apply his rich culinary experience and skills, acquired at worldwide hotels and restaurants throughout the years, at the fine dining restaurants of the Hotel Excelsior: Zagreb, Taverna Rustica and Lokrum, where, together with his team, he will be creating exquisite delicacies representing a charming blend of Mediterranean and French cuisine.The arrival of Alain Bijou at the Hotel Excelsior is an excellent introduction to the reopening of the hotel which is scheduled for the beginning of the summer holiday season: after the reconstruction of the older part of the hotel, better known as the Villa Odak, the Hotel Excelsior will reopen its doors with a new dash of splendor - a lavish and glamorous new look for the Croatian Dorchester.

[hoya68]

Linda and Steve,

 

Looks like we are joining the cruise on the same day. Are you planning a pre-cruise in Cairo? Steve and I (Camille) will look forward to meeting you. This is our first Seabourn cruise and, from the great exchanges on this board, I believe we will have a wonderful vacation!

 

We'll be arriving in Cairo on Nov 12 and are participating in the Seabourn pre-cruise program.

 

Looking forward to meeting you! cc

 

 

CC:

 

We have arranged our own guide in Cairo. We arrive their on the 11th and will go to Alexandria on the 14th to meet up with some friends who will be showing us Alexandria. Needless to say we are excited!

 

Steve

[DaveD]

Quote:

Originally posted by{

Constance331

 

 

One request, if the opportunity should ever present itself: I would love to see a shot of the Spirit alongside another cruise ship, just to get a perspective of the differences in size ...:)

 

 

Hi Constance331

 

Here is an excellent view of the Spirit taken by Captain Geir-Arne that gives an indication of size.

 

: http://www.captain-ga.com/displayimage.php?album=76&pos=22

 

I know which I would rather be on!!!!

[Constance331]

Hi DaveD - very kind of you to post the shot - thanks so much!

[cands]

Day 6 – Navplion.

We had nothing organised for today. After a leisurely breakfast we decided to climb to the fort which overlooks the town. After 900 steps we were at the top! The view was spectacular and we spent some time exploring before retracing our steps down the hill. Our legs had turned to jelly by the time we reached the bottom.

Navplion is a very pretty town and we then spent some time roaming its streets. We found a small restaurant and had a pleasant lunch of Greek Salad, Calamari, Moussaka and Chicken with rice.

 

 

 

Well sated, I headed back to the ship while Chris, the intrepid explorer, continued to ‘discover’ the town.

At 4:45pm 5 buses took most of the passengers for our ‘Seabourn Experience’. We went to a modern function centre where a sumptuous buffet awaited us. (More Greek food – and of excellent quality) Then 6 local dancers and a small band put on a show, including some audience participation. Judging by the reactions I witnessed, these type of events will be sorely missed when they are discontinued. For Seabourn to say they are under patronised is ridiculous. We had a great time.

We were back at the ship in time for dinner. I don’t imagine anybody ate much, although I do confess that Chris and I ordered room service dessert from the dining room menu. The trio of Crème Brulees were amazing.

Sail away was at 10 pm with the fort lit up in the background. This was another perfect end to a perfect day.

Steve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GrannyLorr]

:D Oh Granny is already feeling so green.:D ......just got home from our cruise an hour ago, hadnt checked the Seabourn pages for 2 weeks and now see your great reports have already started!! Thank heavens I was connected to broadband the day before we left home, so all your brilliant photos are downloading nice a quick! It looks to me like you may even be spending more time and money on internet than I usually do!! ;) Will be checking every day to see what else you two have been up too :rolleyes: It does sound as though you are enjoying the "Seabourn style" though! Our cruise on the Rhapsody was very enjoyable...but certainly wasnt ~Seabourn~....you mentioned Cruise director, Matthew......would that happen to be Matthew Brown? If so could you give him a big hug from Lorraine and John...if not, you had better not hug him as it might look a bit strange......

[cands]

:D Oh Granny is already feeling so green.:D ......just got home from our cruise an hour ago, hadnt checked the Seabourn pages for 2 weeks and now see your great reports have already started!! Thank heavens I was connected to broadband the day before we left home, so all your brilliant photos are downloading nice a quick! It looks to me like you may even be spending more time and money on internet than I usually do!! ;) Will be checking every day to see what else you two have been up too :rolleyes: It does sound as though you are enjoying the "Seabourn style" though! Our cruise on the Rhapsody was very enjoyable...but certainly wasnt ~Seabourn~....you mentioned Cruise director, Matthew......would that happen to be Matthew Brown? If so could you give him a big hug from Lorraine and John...if not, you had better not hug him as it might look a bit strange......

 

Matthew remembered you fondly! We passed on the hugging thing:eek: . He sends you his best wishes in return.

 

Steve.

[cands]

Thanks to Steve for investigating chef Alain. We spoke to him today and yes, he has worked in Croatia and Dubai.

As I've said in other posts so far the food is inspirational.

 

Someone asked how long he will be on board. I think the ususal length is 4 months on and 2 off. He has been aboard for 2 or 3 weeks already.

 

Cheers,

Steve.

[cands]

Day 7 – Piraeus

Today, the first of our five cruises ended and our second began. We said our goodbyes to some of the people we have become friendly with.

We started our port day routine as always with breakfast in the cabin. One thing that sets Seabourn apart from the other lines we have sailed is the quality and consistency of room –service. Everything is always near to perfect. Breakfast arrives on time and with the correct order every time. The room services staff will then call before coming to clear the dishes away, usually 1 hour later.

We had decided to use public transport to reach Athens. This was pretty straightforward except we should have taken a bus from the port to the railway station. Instead we walked. The station was probably about 2km from the port. After all the walking and step climbing we did yesterday this was extra walking we should have avoided.

Once in Athens we, along with what seemed like 50,000 other people climbed the Acropolis! This was not really our cup of tea. Most of the buildings were covered in scaffolding.

We had better luck with the Temple of Olympian Zeus, which was much less crowded and quite stunning. We were a bit tired and grumpy and so had a quick lunch in a garden cafe and headed back to the ship. This time we caught a local bus from the train station to the port!

Most passengers were aboard by the time we returned. We then took up prime position in the Sky Bar for the ritual of watching the Newbies go through the lifeboat drill.

We spotted Steve and Judy (Margate Cruisers) amongst the crowd. After the formalities were finished we joined Steve and Judy for drinks and also met lots of other people during the sailaway.

The port was incredibly busy with 6 or 7 cruise ships leaving about the same time we did.

We had another wonderful dinning in The Restaurant tonight. The food continues to excel.

Tonight I had:

Seared spice crusted tuna, vegetables escabeche, coriander puree, saffron

Vegetable Bouillon, fresh herb pesto, tiny pasta

Slow roasted Rack of Veal with potato gratin, sautéed haricots vert, calvados morel sauce.

Dessert was one of the chef’s chocolate inspirations. I can’t really explain it but it was wonderful.

 

 

 

 

 

[jagi]

Does that mean he will still be there in January when I board? My mouth is watering already.

[wripro]

Steve,

 

I think I was the one who asked if Alain would still be on in February. I certainly hope so from all your reports. Keep having a great time and thanks again for all the updates.

[SantaAna,CA]

Hi cands. I so love your travel "diary" and pictures. I visited Athens on my first cruise (not with Seabourn) in 2002. There was scaffolding on the Acropolis then, too! I'm surprised it's still going on, I thought they had gotten it all done for the Olympics. Nice to see the Porch of the Maidens from a different perspective; I've got a panoramic view of it, and the city, taped up to my desk at work.

 

I envy you on Seabourn for so many days.

 

Jane

[Tony & Trevor]

Hello Steve,

 

From a rainy cold England. Enjoying your cruise diary and photographs very much.

Nothing like looking at the photographs and reading the interesting accounts when its cold.

 

Do hope you have a lovely holiday.

 

Kind regards,

 

Tony

[Proper Lady]

Hi Steve, Your posts and absolutely wonderful photographs are so full of anticipation and enjoyment. Do not follow the cruise critic on a regular basis but will be reading first thing every morning until you return now, it is like watching and reading a well-made documentary. You can see by the many views that you have many others travelling with you on this journey. Thanks so much and continue to enjoy this trip. Rene'

[GrannyLorr]

Thanks for passing on that "hug" Steve...LOL. Cant wait for the next installment...only have 10 days when I can read all this, not taking my laptop on our river cruise so will have to wait till we get home again to catch up on it all! Bugger!!! :( Love the photos,....just an idea for you....one day when you have nothing better to do....we all love to see pics of the crew....nudge nudge wink wink....;) Maybe you had better not or we will all be asking you to hug and kiss everyone!! :eek: I am so glad you decided to write this report.

[cands]

Day 8 – Mykonos.

Thank you all for your positive comments. I am certainly enjoying throwing together a few thoughts each day. It’s also helping me to focus the mind a little, as the ports are coming thick and fast and the old memory is not what it once was!

A quick note about last night’s dinner. Suddenly the restaurant staff seem to know our names. This is a nice touch. Also, the first thing we were asked when seated last night was: “How is the pacing of the meals? Please tell us if you would like to slow things down a little.” We, of course, asked if we could slow the timing a bit, and ‘Voila’, a perfect 1 hour 30 minute dinner, not too fast and not too slow for us!

We have become hermits at breakfast time! We are using the arrival of room service breakfast as our wake up call. This morning it was at 8:15. We were docked a little out of town. We caught the first shuttle bus at 9:30 and were able to make the first ferry of the day to Delos. The trip was about 30 minutes and the sea was like glass. It is so close to the end of the season. The only other ship in today was the Pulmantur Zenith (ex Celebrity Zenith) and so the language most often heard amongst our fellow tourists was Spanish.

We wandered among the ruins for 2 and a half hours and then caught the 1pm ferry back to Mykonos. We then checked out the mandatory Little Venice and the Windmills, before getting deliberately lost in the shady narrow streets of the town.

We then retraced our steps and had a very nice but incredibly expensive lunch in Little Venice. I think we paid for the million dollar view! I’ve now had my fill of calamari – next country please!

We returned to the ship at 3:30, spent some time downloading and looking at the photos. Then it was nap time. The ship doesn’t leave until 11pm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[inquiring minds]

CC:

 

We have arranged our own guide in Cairo. We arrive their on the 11th and will go to Alexandria on the 14th to meet up with some friends who will be showing us Alexandria. Needless to say we are excited!

 

Steve

 

OOPS! I think you mentioned that in an earlier post on another thread. Sorry - I forgot.

 

We will look forward to seeing you on board. Hope you have a wonderful transport to Cairo and beautiful tours.

 

See you on the 15th.

[inquiring minds]

Chris and Steve,

 

We are having so much fun reading your posts! Besides the beautiful memories of places we've seen and loved, getting to know the ship a bit through your great descriptions of life on board, food, service, etc. is helping us prepare for our trip. We have only 7 days til we leave for Cairo and it cannot possibly come too quickly!

 

See you soon and hope your lovely trip continues!

 

Camille and Steve

[Constance331]

 

This is exactly what I was looking for, Steve. Many thanks, and keep the posts coming.:)

[cands]

Day 9 – Santorini.

Chris wanted to ride three types of animal while we were away; Donkey, Camel and Elephant. Today we ticked Donkey off the list.

Luckily there were no other ships around when we tied up to the buoys near Fira. We tendered to shore and found the donkey marshalling area, mostly by smell! (a nice farmyard sort of smell). The ‘donkey man’ took our 5 Euros each and then started matching donkeys with passengers. We are no lightweights and thought we would end up on the bigger beasts, but it seem there was more at play than we realised regarding temperament and stamina.

My donkey wanted to lead the group of about 15 ascending the path. She would block the path of any beast that dared to challenge the lead by weaving across the path in front of the other animal. Finally after many such challenges a couple of others managed to overtake and we finished third. It was great fun and something not to be missed.

Once at the top we headed for the bus station for our planned trip to Oia. There was a half hour wait for the next bus so we jumped in a cab with an agreed price of 15 euro one way. Oia is just stunning! We spent a couple of hours there, just walking the laneways, taking photo after photo of the myriad of postcard views of rooftops, sea and mountain vistas. Everywhere we go in Greece there are dogs and cats everywhere. The locals feed and water them and they seem in pretty good condition.

We did manage to catch the local bus back to Fira for 1.40 euro each. The route took us to the other side of the island and we were able to witness a little of the local colour. Back in Fira, I decided to head back to the ship for a late lunch and Chris stayed to take some extra photos.

We decided to skip formal night again. I promise we will eventually do one, once we finally get some sea days. We’ve just spent the evening in the cabin and had our dinner delivered course by course from room service. This is an excellent and relaxing alternative way to enjoy dinner, especially when tired.

We both had Malossol Caviar with potato shallot cake, remoulade and spiced greens. Chris had a Tossed Tomato and grilled bread salad with cucumber and toasted pine nuts and I had Rocket leaves and Crisp shallots with balsamic dressing.

For mains Chris had Chateaubriand and I had Lobster Thermidor.

We both had Grand Marnier Soufflé for dessert.

So, another day comes to an end.

Steve (and Chris)

[GrannyLorr]

Quote: "Chris had a Tossed Tomato and grilled bread salad with cucumber and toasted pine nuts and I had Rocket leaves and Crisp shallots with balsamic dressing."

 

 

Good to see you are eating a little bit healthy, with all that good stuff around you! ;) (Dont think I have even looked at a salad in 140 days on Seabourn) Love the lobster!

[cands]

Photos for Day 9 - Santorini

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cands]

Day 10 – Patmos.

What a pleasant surprise Patmos was. We again had perfect weather to visit this small uncrowded island. We were due to dock but the captain announced we would be tendering due to repairs being underway at the dock.

Once ashore we rented a car for 25 euro. It was the ubiquitous Fiat Panda and was a fairly old and clapped out version at that. The steering was loose and the brakes spongy which added to the excitement of driving on the narrow, winding bumpy and steep roads.

I think we drove just about everywhere it was possible to do on this small island. There were almost no tourists and not many locals about. We stopped at spectacular hilltop vistas and beautiful secluded bays. At one point the road was blocked by a gate. There were not any ‘No trespassing’ signs (that we could read) and so we opened the gate and proceeded, closing the gate behind us. This is a familiar feature in rural Australia, and added to the stark scenery, reminded us of home.

We had a potentially ‘interesting’ situation develop with another ship this evening before leaving Patmos. We had been anchored in the one spot all day. At about 3pm another ship arrived and set anchor nearby. We’re not sure what happened but the other ship began to move and was soon very close to Spirit. The captain came over the PA and announced that rather than discuss the situation with the other ship we were going to move. So we upped anchor and move away from the other ship. Reading between the lines there seemed to be some brinkmanship at play.

Cheers,

Steve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cwn]

Thanks so much for your wonderful posts. I am really enjoying the pictures too.

 

We will join the Spirit in Dubai in April for 24 days to Istanbul visiting Mykonos, Santorini and Patmos also. This will be our first time sailing with Seabourn. It is great to see where we will be visitng and see some of the Pride. Of the three islands, we have only been to Mykonos. That was on our first cruise (the old Vistafjord) in 1984!

 

Looks like you are having a great relaxing trip....my favoritr kind!

[katzoe]

Hi Steve & Chris,

We are really enjoying your cruise diary & wonderful photos. It is providing us with a great pre-cruise experience. We depart tomorow from Melbourne on Emirates for Istanbul. We look forward to catching up on Saturday.

Lorraine & John