Day 4 - At Sea

 

Date:  Jan. 12, 2007

 

Location:  At Sea – Going Down the Lesser Antilles

 

Next Port:  Bridgetown, Barbados, Jan. 13

 

Quick Summary:  Cloudy with spots of sunshine and a couple of showers, still quite windy and rough waters. First formal night.

 

Report:  Larry went down to the gym early and got in his full exercise routine. Karen also spent some time there. We still were able to enjoy breakfast outside behind the La Veranda where few cruisers have realized how sheltered and protected it is.  We also enjoy our lunches out there.

 

Larry spent some time with Marco in the computer room. He is still having some issues, but apparently much of it has to do with the slowness of AOL’s service. We still haven’t been able get pictures to load into our AOL journal.

 

Then it was off to the second South American lecture. Niki Sepsas highlighted some of the geography and history of the four ports in Brazil we will be visiting next week. Karen stayed for a follow-on presentation by Joyce Middlebrook on the 12 movies that have been done on the Phantom of the Opera. Larry may have stopped by the Casino enroute to get his book…and just might have pocketed $80 of winnings on the slots…nice to start out the trip playing with the ship’s money.

 

After lunch, we found some lounge chairs on the wide protected deck behind the Horizon Lounge.  There we read and napped.

 

Last night was the Captain’s Reception and our first of 19 formal nights. It was held in the 7-deck high Atrium. Capt. Dag was in good form. He handles his “protocol” duties as smoothly as he “drives” the ship.

 

He did explain that we might be forced to by pass St. Helena, the island in the middle of the South Atlantic, as we head towards Africa. It is quite out of the way and is only a planned four-hour stop. He says we will be bucking the currents over to Africa and doesn’t want to get in late to Walvis Bay, Namibia.  Regent has planned a special dinner in the desert there for everyone.

 

We enjoyed dinner in Compass Rose with Sherry and George, from St. Petersburg, a couple we had met in Miami earlier in the week. Then we saw the show, “Lullaby of Broadway,” with the ship’s singers and dancers.

 

Afterwards, I tried to get Skype to work…but was not successful in reaching our kids by either a computer-to-computer connection or by computer-to-phone. It appeared the connection was being blocked by the ship’s Internet connection. I will have to talk to Marco.

 

We passed by St. Kitts and Nevis as we were dressing for dinner…we’re in Barbados tomorrow.

 

Karen and Larry

Day 3 - Sea Day

 

Date:  Jan. 11, 2007

 

Location:  At Sea – East of Cuba and the Dominican Republic

 

Next Port:  Bridgetown, Barbados, Jan. 13

 

Quick Summary:  Rough weather, rain showers – no chance of sunburn. Unique change of clocks procedure.

 

Report:  Larry got his workout in the gym early and Karen took a Pilates class. Later we enjoyed a light breakfast on the 11th deck outside La Veranda. It is sheltered from the wind and although the sun wasn’t out, the temps were in the mid-70s with the humidity about 55-60%.

 

We decided to join the Intermediate Bridge group for a lesson at 9:00 a.m. in the Observation Lounge.  While we haven’t played much in recent years but aren’t real beginners, we were still out of our league! Don’t know if we will attend further classes; might just find some folks who want to play social bridge, with the emphasis on “social.”

 

Then it was then off to two 45-min. lectures. The first was by

Niki Sepsas, our South America destination lecturer.  His lecture was an interesting general survey of South America, country by country. He will be presenting four more lectures before we arrive in Rio de Janeiro next week.  We look forward to hearing him again before he leaves us in Rio.

 

Next up was Daniel Silke, a South African and former Member of Parliament.  He was most engaging with his lecture on Globalization. He shared some interesting theories on McDonalds, Wal-Mart and Starbucks.

 

The Pool Grill fish fry was cancelled due to the high winds and rocky seas, but we still were able to enjoy delicious pan-broiled salmon and salad in La Veranda for lunch.

 

Capt. Dag announced a unique time change procedure he plans to use on our eastward trek. In order to ensure people get a full night’s sleep, he plans at 2:00 p.m. to advance the ship’s time one hour or even just 30 minutes as we sail across the Atlantic.  At 2:00 p.m., it magically became 3:00 p.m. What power you have when you are the CAPTAIN!

 

We had a restful afternoon, reading books in the Observation Lounge, napping and working on our journal. I am having some computer problems with the slow transmit speeds and with our Outlook program. I plan to work tomorrow with Marco, the whiz who staffs the computer room, to see if I can get things sorted out. I was able after dinner to get Day 2 of the journal posted, but was unsuccessful uploading the photos. I will try to add them tomorrow.

 

We had dinner in Signatures, the Cordon Bleu restaurant. Though there is no added charge, it is by reservation only, seats about 70 or so and normally only turn the tables once. It is very elegant, multi-course, candlelit dinner. We like the room, presentation and food even better than our experience on the Seven Seas Mariner in Alaska. This reservation had been made by our TA…thanks Joyce for setting it up. We’ve already made a reservation for next week for four and will ask some of our new friends to join us.

 

The entertainment last evening was a singer named Jamie Michael Stewart. Back in the 1970s, he was the original singer of the Love Boat theme song on the popular TV show. Originally from Britain, he has performed for years on the BBC, in musicals and before live audiences.

 

We enjoyed another fun day!

 

Karen and Larry

 

Confessions: What did we leave behind? Larry forgot his studs and cufflinks. He borrowed some from the ship's store.  He also left his wireless mouse in the Four Seasons Miami. Marco in the computer lab gave (loaned) him one from the "closet." So all is well with the world.

 

We have found that AOL is a very slow service, so we are having trouble uploading this journal reports. Sorry for the delay. Hopefully I will fix the photo problems in the next day or two,

                        -- Larry

                             ( Friday evening)

Day 2 - Princess Cays

Date:  Jan. 10, 2007

 

Location:  Princess Cays, Eleuthera, Bahamas, Jan. 10, 2007

 

Next Port:  Bridgetown, Barbados, Jan. 13

 

Quick Summary:  A fun day with our sister ship, the Seven Seas Mariner; a pristine, sunny beach day with a lobster BBQ and a corridor “block party.”

 

Report:  Karen and I enjoyed early morning walks on the upper deck shortly after sunrise. Temp in the low 70s. Seven laps equal a mile. Then we ate our buffet breakfast on the covered deck at the back of the ship off the La Veranda Restaurant.

 

Due to our late departure from Ft. Lauderdale, we didn’t arrive at our anchorage off Princess Cays on the tip of Eleuthera until about 10:30 am.  Before dropping anchor, Capt. Dag closely circled the Seven Seas Mariner and spun our ship before settling alongside. This was all while both ships were blasting appropriate beach party music at each other, much of the time in sync, and with the crews waving to their friends on the other ships.

 

We were the only two ships at this private “beach playground” owned by Princess Cruise Lines. It has its own small tender harbor, tons of beach chairs, water sport activities, bars and buffet areas. The chefs and crew from both our ships brought all the liquid refreshments and BBQ provisions off our ships and seemed to really enjoy working together to ensure everyone had a great time. And those crew members who had the day off got to spend it together on a private beach.

 

We enjoyed our lobster (passing on the hot dogs, ribs and burgers…we do have some priorities!) with two wonderful “southern” ladies from Savannah who were off the Mariner. They are on the first 11-day segment of the Mariner’s 60+ day circle of South America. I hope I am still as spry and full of life at 81 as our two new friends. They were both delightful and inspirational. (More about them later.)

 

Within the past year, Regent was re-branded from Radisson Seven Seas Cruises. (The cruise line and Regent and Radisson Hotels, as well as the Wagonlit Travel Agencies, are all owned by Carlson.) So RSSC chose to get some aerial publicity video and stills of the two ships with the new Regent logos on their smoke stacks. After pulling up our anchors, both ships steamed off together in close proximity while a photo helicopter circled overhead – again with musical accompaniment, including the included love songs from several movies, including Titanic. Again, many of the crew enjoyed waving and shouting to each other. I am quite sure we spotted our Savannah ladies in their bathrobes waving heartily from their balcony. (If they were on the starboard side just aft of midship, they should send me an e-mail and I will send them the photo.)

 

Karen slipped down to the gym for an initial Pilates class. She was back in time for our “block party.” Everyone was invited to bring the wine classes from their suite and join their fellow cruisers in the hall. The two stewardesses from this section of about 22 cabins served as wine stewards. Since we are just about in the middle of the forward section, and the wine cart was parked outside our door, almost everyone congregated just outside our door. (If you’ve read my other reports, you know that there are no inside cabins on both the Mariner and the newer Voyager.  On our Voyager (in most areas) there is just a single aisle (no center service area). So we have cross-the-hallway neighbors.

 

Dana Logan, the Social Hostess, is married to Jamie Logan, our Cruise Director. They both do a terrific job. It’s easy to see why they are beloved by so many returning guests. Dana started the block party in our section…in fact I had to loan her a wine glass. James and Capt Dag…or “Captain Gorgeous” as some have been known to call him…also stopped by. Jamie instituted this hugely successful mixer last fall.

 

Another interesting touch: Each of the world cruisers has a 4x6 brushed “brass” magnetic plaque on the door with their first and last names citing that they are on the 2007 Voyager World Cruise. These are magnetized souvenirs that can be taken home at the end of the cruise. And you’d be surprised how suite doors have similar plaques on them from previous world cruises. This is Regent’s (Radisson’s) sixth annual world cruise. At the welcome show after dinner last evening, Jamie asked for how many folks had been on the line’s previous world cruises. There were some folks who had been on all of them and many for which this was the second or third RSSC world cruise. I think that in itself speaks highly of the quality of the RSSC experience.

 

We enjoyed dinner in Compass Rose with Larry and Dodi from Oregon and Carol and Faye, the on-board team teachers of water color painting and crafts.

 

After the show, we used Skype to have a computer-to-computer audio conference call with our daughter in NYC and our daughter and son-in-law San Diego. Though there was some delay echo, it was great to hear their voices. We believe it’s going to enable us to keep somewhat in touch during our adventure.

 

Seas are quite rough this evening…tomorrow is the first of two sea days.

 

Karen and Larry

Departure Day

Date:  Jan. 9, 2007

 

Location: Fort Lauderdale

 

Next Port:  Princess Cays, Eleuthera, Bahamas, Jan. 10, 2007

 

Quick Summary:  We are on our way!  All of our luggage arrived and it fit easily in the stateroom.  We cast off from Ft. Lauderdale at 7p.m., saying goodbye to the USA for 111-days. 

 

Report:  We enjoyed breakfast at the Four Seasons with Joyce Kliger, our travel agent.  She had flown down from Detroit to see clients off who were traveling on both the Voyager and the Mariner. We were joined by Joan and David form Hilton Head.  We thank Joyce for the beautiful Italian leather journal with our names embossed on it. It’s a beautiful keepsake in which to record our experiences.

 

Then it was just a fairly quick mini-coach ride to the Voyager in Ft. Lauderdale. The embarkation was a breeze. Since we had all been checked in the day before at the hotel, we just had to pass through a magnetometer, take an escalator up to the gangway and be greeted on to our new home with a glass of champagne.

 

Though the staterooms weren’t ready, we took a quick peak – and liked what we saw. It is quite roomy, the marble bath is very nice and the walk-in closet very accommodating.

 

We did a bit of exploring on the way down to reception.  There 20 minutes later we met two friends from Chicago, Sue and Tom, who were able to join us on the Voyager for lunch. They are spending this winter in a high-rise condo that overlooks the port where they watch the comings and goings of all the cruise ships.

We explored the ship with them and then had a delightful lunch from the buffet on teak tables around the pool. It was really nice to be able to share this departure-day experience with them.

 

Then it was off to our stateroom to unpack. We were relieved to find that all six bags from Chicago had already been delivered. As we were unpacking them and stowing things away, the bags that we brought on our flight were delivered from the hotel.

 

The Captain came on the address system to tell us that our departure was being delayed two hours until 7 p.m. It seems after arriving early that morning the ship had been locked down for some time for its annual Coast Guard certification inspection. That delayed the provisioning and luggage delivery for a time. Plus, because of the extended nature of the cruise, there was just a lot of stuff to put on board. In fact, earlier in the afternoon, we saw them putting on a dozen on so large 8-9 ft. crated trees or ficus plants. The live flower arrangements and plants throughout the ship are amazing.

 

After we got everything put away, our stewardess (yes they still use that term), Cecilia, took our three largest suitcases to store them until they will be needed again in April. The others fit under our bed.

 

We enjoyed our last cell phone calls with our daughters and son-in law – Kristin in New York and Heather and Ron in San Diego.

 

Then it was off to the Observation Lounge for a celebratory glass of wine as we pulled away from the dock just a couple of minutes after 7p.m. Finally, after more than 12 months of anticipation and planning, we were underway! It was really good to feel the sea swells once again.

 

We had dinner in Compass Rose with two other couples – Jerry and Nancy from Florida (friends from the day before) and Norm and Shirley, from Philadelphia. We turned in shortly thereafter, with the balcony door open and the bow waves lulling us to sleep. Guess the bottle of champagne that was in our suite will have to wait for another day!

 

Karen and Larry

D-1 We're Here!

 

Date:  Jan. 8, 2007

 

Location:  Miami

 

Next Port:  Departure from Ft. Lauderdale on Jan. 9, 2007

 

Quick Summary:  Everything is “GO” for launch (cast-off) tomorrow. 

 

Report:  We enjoyed an uneventful, on-time flight today down to Miami from Chicago. Regent reps met us at the airport and escorted us to a waiting limo for the short ride to the Four Seasons Hotel. They had a special desk set up where we turned in our passports and actually checked in for the cruise. We have our cruise ship cards, so after the complimentary breakfast, we transfer by mini coaches to the ship and just walk on.

 

Tonight, Regent hosted an excellent reception and dinner at the hotel. We met several new couples during the check-in process, the reception and dinner. Many of the people we met had Chicago connections. It promises to be a fun group.

 

We also met the Voyager’s Capt. Dag, RSSC’s President Mark Conroy and several people from the company. Everything so far has been very well done…we are impressed that Regent seems to have things well in hand.

 

Now, if our shipped luggage shows up….

 

Larry

Almost Ready to Go!

 

Date:  Jan. 6, 2007

 

Location:  Chicago

 

Next Port:  Departure from Ft. Lauderdale on Jan. 9, 2007

 

Quick Summary:  Luggage gone, last minute details taken care of and good-byes being said. 

 

Report:  IPS picked up our six pieces of luggage on Tuesday. And even with some last minute additions, we came in under the allowable weight.  Now, let’s hope the bags show up at the ship on Tuesday….

 

The last few days have been occupied taking care of last minute details such as figuring out 2006 and first quarter 2007 estimated tax payments to have filed by April 15 with our Federal and states extension requests, refining and checking the details for all our electronic bills, completing our Christmas thank-you notes, getting the details for handling our mail and condo maintenance in place, etc.

 

Plus, we’ve spent time on the phone with family and well-wishers and have enjoyed lunches and dinners with close friends here. We will miss everyone, but are very excited about the wide world of adventure, sights and experiences that lay ahead of us for the next four months – and the opportunity the voyage will give us to make new friends.

 

We depart O’Hare on Monday for Miami at 10:30 am and have a Regent party there that night.  We board the ship on Tuesday.  We have arranged for friends from Chicago, who are wintering in the area, to join us onboard for lunch. Then we cast off at 5:00 pm. Our “grand adventure” will be underway.

 

Larry

 

D-7 All Packed. One More Week!

 

Date:  Jan. 1, 2007

 

Location:  Chicago

 

Next Port:  Departure from Ft. Lauderdale on Jan. 9, 2007

 

Quick Summary:  It’s New Year’s Day and one week to go.  Packed and ready for the shippers tomorrow. 

 

Report:  Wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

 

This afternoon we finished up our packing of six pieces of luggage of varying size.  And the other good news is that we are under the total weight limit allowed for this complimentary shipment direct to the Voyager in Ft. Lauderdale.  IPS is scheduled to pick it up tomorrow (Jan. 2) from our Chicago condo and deliver it directly to the ship where it will be in our stateroom when we arrive on the 9th.

 

One week from today we depart for our overnight and party at the Four Seasons Hotel in Miami – with the opportunity to meet our fellow world cruisers.

 

Cheers,

 

Larry