So at long last the day arrived and we set off at 8am to drive to Southampton. There was no traffic to speak of, due to it being a Sunday probably, and we arrived at the port at 12 after a stop for coffee as we were too early. Check in was as easy as usual and we were on the ship by 1 pm having a snack in the buffet. At 2 the call came that our cabins were ready and we duly went to cabin c401. We picked this one as it is mid ships, near to the middle lifts and with the bigger than average balcony. We were not disappointed it is a spacious cabin with plenty of storage space although as usual a very tiny bathroom with the shower with a plastic curtain. Our cabin steward Alex, came to introduce himself, and asked if there was anything we needed. He took our order for our soft drinks (for me ) and beer ( for hubby ) and 6 bottles of water which then means you get 1 free. We had a lovely bottle of baron de marck champagne and a bouquet of flowers waiting for us as our children had ordered the 'welcome on board ' package for us as it's our anniversary and my birthday on the 16th.
We could not unpack as our luggage had not arrived yet so we just sat out on the balcony with a nice cup of coffee until the call came to go to our muster station. After that our cases had arrived so we un packed ( me that is ) and then went for a walk around to remind ourselves where everything was. Nothing has changed since we were last on board, everything still looks clean and tidy. We are freedom dining this time but I just couldn't be bothered to change and go to the meridian so we just went to the buffet which had a 'best of British ' buffet. The food is adequate, nothing special, just typical pub grub, but thats fine for me as I have to stick to plain food.
There wasn't much on in the way of entertainment during the evening, an introduction to some of the entertainers for the cruise by our entertainment manager , Benne and the resident band catch 22 were playing in malabar for the welcome on board party. They were good , we listened for a while but then the early start caught up with me and I couldn't keep my eyes open so we retired for the night.
Monday 15th September
After a nice leisurely breakfast we had a wander around to see what was happening , there was a line dancing class going on in the atrium, guest speaker David Russell was in manhattens talking about the Royal Navy at war, not a subject that appeals to me but I guess they have targeted the mostly elderly passengers on this cruise ( I don't include myself in that obviously ) we stopped off at costa for a latte but I wasn't impressed with it , being a costa coffee connoisseur ! It tasted like they were using long life milk, and if that's the case I won't be drinking much. I have to take it really easy on this cruise as I am going in for a hip replacement operation a week after we return., so we went back to the cabin and ordered room service for lunch. There is a small selection to choose from and we both had a ham ,tomato and lettuce baguette, which comes with a small bowl of salad and crisps, and Apple pie with cream to follow.
After lunch I discovered that I had foolishly forgotten to pack sufficient naproxen tablets for the whole cruise, plenty of my other drugs but the pack I had thought was full turned out to only have half in. I was not sure what to do about this but wondered if the medical centere could help . It was open between 4 and 6 so at 4 we went to see if they could do anything. I had to fill out a form saying what my health problems were , ( that took a while ! ) and what drugs I was on, and then wait to see a nurse. After a short wait a nice young nurse took me in to a cubicle and took my blood pressure, temperature, and pulse. Everything was fine so then I had to wait again to see the doctor, - a very young lady who looked young enough to be my granddaughter ! I explained my problem and she looked in their pharmacy but they didn't have any of my tablets on board so she said they would have to get some when we docked at Gibraltar . All this was going to cost me £36 for the consultation and then whatever the cost of the tablets were. I will never do that again ! My husband had been sitting outside waiting for me and he said that the next 4 people to come in had all forgotten some of their drugs too !
It was a formal night and the captains welcome on board dinner so we returned to the cabin to shower and get ready . At around 6.30 we went into the dining room and got a table for 2 immeidiately as most people were taking advantage of the free champagne (!) etc. The menu seems to have changed since last year, on one side there is a recommended menu and on the other the normal starters, soup, mains etc. there is definitely not as much choice, - the starters were either asparagus spears, a game terrine or salmon, nothing that appealed to me and the always available section was not on this menu, then there was a mushroom soup or petit marmite, again not to my taste, so I went straight to the main , and this time there was plenty of choice, - either sea bass, cannon of lamb, lobster, duck, beef, or a veggie option. The trouble is if you are not eating every course the portion sizes are pretty small, I had the lamb which was very nice but hardly enough for a 5 year old child ! Plenty of choice of desserts too and I had the pear tart tatin . The service was quick as the waiters do not have to bring separate veg any more but I think more vegetables would be good, only dauphinoise potatoes and green beans with this main, and in fact with all the mains ! So they are not choosing appropriate veg for each dish.
The entertainment for the evening was Ben Makisi a vocalist singing melodies from the South Pacific, - didn't appeal to us, or there was a comedian called Rudi West in manhattens and we tried to get a seat in there but it was packed so we just sat in the blue bar with a cocktail, listening to the pianist Frankie. He is a good pianist but his voice is interesting to say the least ! And so to bed and unfortunately we had rough seas overnight which kept me awake a bit, needless to,say hubby slept through it all, 'rough seas? What rough seas ? '
A424 Azura to the med
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
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Kenmo1
- First Officer
- Posts: 1963
- Joined: January 2013
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Jacknian, after reading this I'm just off to double, double check my husband's tablets in our hand luggage. Looking forward to the rest of your review.
Maureen
Maureen
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Tuesday 16th September
Today was my birthday and our wedding anniversary and our children had ordered us the champagne breakfast in bed, and very nice it was too, loads of food - we put the muffins and pastries in the fridge for later and ate the rest. It was cloudy and foggy with quite rough seas so we decided to stay inside. As it's my birthday we went to look at the new pandora shop,and hubby ended up buying me 2 new charms for my bracelet, result !! There was lots going on around the ship and we opted to go and watch 'saving Mr Banks' which is about Walt Disney making the movie Mary Poppins, and is very good. When we returned to the cabin there was a card from the captain and our cabin steward had put balloons in the cabin. We had booked to go to seventeen tonight and it was amazing! Very attentive service and lovely food, only problem was the sea was still quite rough and I was feeling a little queasy ! I did the best I could and hubby finished off anything I couldn't manage. Even he couldn't eat the chocolates at the end but the Waiter very kindly wrapped them in foil for us to take away with us. We then went to the theatre to see Peter Corry a vocalist. We went early luckily as due to my hip problem I have to sit on the end of a row so I can stick my leg out ! Well by 8pm the place was packed and by 8.15 there wasn't a seat to be had anywhere. People were standing at the sides and back and others were sitting on the stairs, every inch of space was filled. Peter Corry was good he sang a wide mix of songs ranging from Danny boy, - beautiful, to songs from musicals, and some older ones too. The sea was still rough and after the show I decided to retire as I knew I wouldn't get much sleep again.
Wednesday 17th September Gibraltar
Bad weather again, cloudy and cool to start with although it did brighten up later. We have been to Gibraltar lots of times before so we stayed on the ship .lots going on again and I really fancied the art class but with my hip I can't sit in one position for very long so decided it probably wasn't a good idea - next year maybe. We watched the dance class and read our kindles for a while and then I went to the medical centre to get my tablets, it cost me £3 so that wasn't bad. It was a casual night so we decided to go to the buffet for the Italian night and very pleasant it was too. There was a ventriloquist on in the theatre and I didn't really fancy it but hubby wanted to go and I'm so glad we did. His name was Gareth Oliver and if you ever get a chance to see him ,do go. He was absolutely hilarious, his act is comedy and chat and a bit of ventriloquism and audience participation. I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen him yet but he was brilliant.
Today was my birthday and our wedding anniversary and our children had ordered us the champagne breakfast in bed, and very nice it was too, loads of food - we put the muffins and pastries in the fridge for later and ate the rest. It was cloudy and foggy with quite rough seas so we decided to stay inside. As it's my birthday we went to look at the new pandora shop,and hubby ended up buying me 2 new charms for my bracelet, result !! There was lots going on around the ship and we opted to go and watch 'saving Mr Banks' which is about Walt Disney making the movie Mary Poppins, and is very good. When we returned to the cabin there was a card from the captain and our cabin steward had put balloons in the cabin. We had booked to go to seventeen tonight and it was amazing! Very attentive service and lovely food, only problem was the sea was still quite rough and I was feeling a little queasy ! I did the best I could and hubby finished off anything I couldn't manage. Even he couldn't eat the chocolates at the end but the Waiter very kindly wrapped them in foil for us to take away with us. We then went to the theatre to see Peter Corry a vocalist. We went early luckily as due to my hip problem I have to sit on the end of a row so I can stick my leg out ! Well by 8pm the place was packed and by 8.15 there wasn't a seat to be had anywhere. People were standing at the sides and back and others were sitting on the stairs, every inch of space was filled. Peter Corry was good he sang a wide mix of songs ranging from Danny boy, - beautiful, to songs from musicals, and some older ones too. The sea was still rough and after the show I decided to retire as I knew I wouldn't get much sleep again.
Wednesday 17th September Gibraltar
Bad weather again, cloudy and cool to start with although it did brighten up later. We have been to Gibraltar lots of times before so we stayed on the ship .lots going on again and I really fancied the art class but with my hip I can't sit in one position for very long so decided it probably wasn't a good idea - next year maybe. We watched the dance class and read our kindles for a while and then I went to the medical centre to get my tablets, it cost me £3 so that wasn't bad. It was a casual night so we decided to go to the buffet for the Italian night and very pleasant it was too. There was a ventriloquist on in the theatre and I didn't really fancy it but hubby wanted to go and I'm so glad we did. His name was Gareth Oliver and if you ever get a chance to see him ,do go. He was absolutely hilarious, his act is comedy and chat and a bit of ventriloquism and audience participation. I won't spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen him yet but he was brilliant.
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Thursday 18th September Sea day
Sun at last ! And we were determined to make the most of it, luckily our balcony was facing the sun so,after breakfast we sat out reading our kindles with frequent breaks for coffee or water or just a bit of the air conditioning ! It was hot ! We stayed put and ordered room service again and later on in the afternoon we spotted lots of dolphins jumping around the ship. Tried to catch a photo but it's impossible they are so quick, all I got was splashes . We decided to try the glasshouse for dinner and it was really nice. I had the 'catch of the day ' which was a salmon gujon, a piece of plaice, minted mushy peas, 3 pieces of buttered bread , a stack of chunky chips, a pickled egg! And some pickled gherkins. Hubby had the rosemary and lamb sausages with cheddar mash and onions. It was all very tasty and we then shared a dessert of ice cream and fruit with various sauces , nuts, cream etc. as it's the glass house which specialises in wines we obviously had to have some , it would be rude not to ! - I had some lovely Zinfandel rose and hubby had a glass of prosecco. Overall a very good value £28 for everything. We will definitely try the other menu later in the cruise. It was the first headliners show and we knew it would be busy so we went to the theatre at 8 and it's a good job we did as there were very few end seats left and soon after the whole theatre was packed. It was destination dance which we have seen numerous times before and this was the new troupe of headliners first ever show so we didn't expect much but it was very good, as good as any others weve seen . After the show we couldn't be bothered to rush to manhattens for a seat to see Antony Adams as Frank Sinatra, so instead went to watch catch 22 in malabar. They were very good and quite a few people were up on the dance floor, due to my hip I can't dance at the moment, hopefully next year !
Friday 19th September sea day
A nice sunny morning again, We didn't go to breakfast as there's a barbecue today so we were saving ourselves for that, we left the cabin for an hour to let Alex do his job and just had a stroll around the promenade deck and then a quick look at the handbag sale, nothing appealed to me much to hubby's relief , and then we went to the barbecue which was very nice although very crowded and no where to sit outside so we ended up in the buffet with our plate of barbecue. In the afternoon the weather began to deteriorate and we were rocking a bit. I began to feel a bit queasy again and took a sea sickness tablet. I was fine but didn't want to eat too much , just in case ! So we went to the buffet which was 'country and western ' night hubby had hot dogs and burgers - again ! And I stuck to a salad. In the evening it was the second show of Gareth Oliver and we went early to make sure of a good seat. He was just as good this time and completely different. After that we went to malabar to see Ricky Zalez another vocalist , he was ok, but not really to our taste.
Sun at last ! And we were determined to make the most of it, luckily our balcony was facing the sun so,after breakfast we sat out reading our kindles with frequent breaks for coffee or water or just a bit of the air conditioning ! It was hot ! We stayed put and ordered room service again and later on in the afternoon we spotted lots of dolphins jumping around the ship. Tried to catch a photo but it's impossible they are so quick, all I got was splashes . We decided to try the glasshouse for dinner and it was really nice. I had the 'catch of the day ' which was a salmon gujon, a piece of plaice, minted mushy peas, 3 pieces of buttered bread , a stack of chunky chips, a pickled egg! And some pickled gherkins. Hubby had the rosemary and lamb sausages with cheddar mash and onions. It was all very tasty and we then shared a dessert of ice cream and fruit with various sauces , nuts, cream etc. as it's the glass house which specialises in wines we obviously had to have some , it would be rude not to ! - I had some lovely Zinfandel rose and hubby had a glass of prosecco. Overall a very good value £28 for everything. We will definitely try the other menu later in the cruise. It was the first headliners show and we knew it would be busy so we went to the theatre at 8 and it's a good job we did as there were very few end seats left and soon after the whole theatre was packed. It was destination dance which we have seen numerous times before and this was the new troupe of headliners first ever show so we didn't expect much but it was very good, as good as any others weve seen . After the show we couldn't be bothered to rush to manhattens for a seat to see Antony Adams as Frank Sinatra, so instead went to watch catch 22 in malabar. They were very good and quite a few people were up on the dance floor, due to my hip I can't dance at the moment, hopefully next year !
Friday 19th September sea day
A nice sunny morning again, We didn't go to breakfast as there's a barbecue today so we were saving ourselves for that, we left the cabin for an hour to let Alex do his job and just had a stroll around the promenade deck and then a quick look at the handbag sale, nothing appealed to me much to hubby's relief , and then we went to the barbecue which was very nice although very crowded and no where to sit outside so we ended up in the buffet with our plate of barbecue. In the afternoon the weather began to deteriorate and we were rocking a bit. I began to feel a bit queasy again and took a sea sickness tablet. I was fine but didn't want to eat too much , just in case ! So we went to the buffet which was 'country and western ' night hubby had hot dogs and burgers - again ! And I stuck to a salad. In the evening it was the second show of Gareth Oliver and we went early to make sure of a good seat. He was just as good this time and completely different. After that we went to malabar to see Ricky Zalez another vocalist , he was ok, but not really to our taste.
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Gill W
- Senior First Officer
- Posts: 4897
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Kent
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
So I've now been into hospital and had my long awaited hip replacement operation, everything seems to be going well so I will continue with my reports in the next few days
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Friday 19th September - sea day
It was a lovely hot sunny day and we had the sun on our balcony again, so after a quick trip to the buffet for breakfast we returned to sit out in the sun for the morning. We had room service for lunch and then hubby took himself off to the adult quoits leaving me to read in peace. After I'd had enough sun for one day I went to have a look at the guess and radley bag sale, there were some nice ones but nothing I really wanted. It was a formal night so I went back to the cabin to prepare, - well it does take a while to make myself presentable ! By now hubby was back and asleep on the balcony so I left him to it and went for a shower. The only thing I don't like about these cabins is the plastic curtain round the shower, I've read that Britannia is having glass screens so that will be nicer. We were ready by 6.30 and made our way slowly to the restaurant ( slow is my only speed at the moment ) the man who books you in knows me by now and that I need a table with a bit of space around it and this time gave us a table for 10 but with only us sitting on it ! Lovely ! After a very nice meal of braised lamb shank and orange curd meringue tart we went straight to the theatre for Gareth Oliver's second show. He was as good this second time and we had a very entertaining hour. After that we went to malabar as there was going to be a singer later on , and I had a lovely chocolate banana cocktail. ( or two ) finally at 10.45 Ricky Zalez came on and sung some Michael buble songs and some from the musicals. He was good and we actually managed to stay awake until midnight !
Saturday 20th September - Messina
We've been here before but not managed to see the famous astrological clock , so we set off at 11 aiming to get there by mid day when it strikes and all the figures move. It was very hot and my walking is very slow but we made it just in time to see it all happen. It is very amusing and well worth the walk. The shops seemed to be mostly shut, don't know if it's too late in the season for them or we were too,early but we made our way back to the lovely air conditioning of the ship and had some lunch. There was some football match or other on in brodies so hubby went off to watch that and I relaxed on the balcony in the shade. It was 60's and 70's night but we don't really do dressing up and it seemed no one else did either as only the entertainment team seemed to have bothered. Lovely dinner again of pork loin with apricot stuffing, followed by baked apple with calvados. And then we went to the theatre to see P P Arnold, a soul singer who I remember from the 60's. Trouble was she had been told to sing a selection of 60's and 70's music but not the soul she is known for and she was frankly terrible ! She actually apologised for the type of songs she was singing ! Lots of people walked out which is very rude and I would never do that unless I was desperately ill or something. We tolerated it for the whole hour but were glad when she finished. We then made our way to malabar where catch 22 were playing 60's and 70's songs but they were really good. We have really liked catch 22 , go and see them if you can.
Sunday 21st September - Corfu
We have been here many times before so decided to stay on the ship, we went up to the retreat but they are fully booked this time with people who have booked the whole cruise , so no day passes. We sat instead just next to the pool which is not now part of the retreat so meaning that they have less sunbeds. It was very hot and I only lasted till 12 and then I'd had enough. It's a shame there's no parasols or any shade any where. After lunch in the buffet we went back to the cabin and read our kindles for the afternoon, I've got through 4 books already. There was nothing on the menu in meridian that I fancied so we went to the glasshouse again which is very nice but the service was a bit slow tonight and we didn't have time for dessert as we had to get to the theatre by 7.45 to make sure I got an end of a row seat. The show was 'blame it on the boogie ' and was really good, we've seen it before but it's always slightly different depending on the team doing it. There is a particular number in it that I love, where they roll giant silver balls around and a very athletic girl does acrobatics on top of one, all to pinball wizard. There didn't seem to be much else on after that so we just sat in the blue bar with a nice glass of prosecco and listened to the pianist , Frankie Gliksman, he is a good pianist but I wish he didn't sing !
Monday 22nd September. Dubrovnik
We had booked a trip to cavtat so had to meet on the quay side to get on a coach,. After only about 20 minutes we arrived at the little town of cavtat, it is a really lovely little place , very oldie worldy with a gorgeous picturesque cove with lots of yachts and a promenade with tropical plants, benches, flowers and a fountain. We sat and just watched the children swimming in the sea and the boats coming and going for about an hour , it was so peaceful I could have stayed there all day. But we had to go to a nearby cafe where we had some refreshment of juice and local biscuits and cake. Then the coach took us back to Dubrovnik for an hour and a halfs free time. We wandered through the town,looking in the shops and bought quite a few gifts to take back with us. Everything seems quite cheap and there are lots of lovely oils, wine , olives and other foody items to buy. After a huge ice cream we returned to the meeting place , only to find that the coach wasn't there. We were definitely in the right place as we recognised other people who had been on the coach but it didn't turn up for another 20 minutes and then it stopped in the middle of the road and everyone had to take their lives in their hands and dodge the traffic to get back on the coach. We were back on the ship for lunch and then had a relaxing afternoon on the balcony. Dinner that night was slow cooked pork belly with crackling, yum ! And baked bramley apple crumble and then we went to the theatre to see Andrea Dickinson who we thought looked familiar , and then we read that she had played the part of scaramouche In 'we will rock you' which we had seen her in. She has an amazing voice and we really enjoyed her choice of songs, some from musicals of course but also some recent pop songs and some older stuff. After a very enjoyable hour we retired for the night. Well we went to the cabin but during the night the wind was getting stronger and the ship,was rocking around so badly that the drawers kept banging open and the glasses fell over ! There
was a terrific thunderstorm with lightning that flashed across the whole surface of the sea, it was an amazing sight but quite scary when I saw on the t.v. That we were having a hurricane ! Needless to say I got no sleep till about 4 am when things quietend down a bit.
It was a lovely hot sunny day and we had the sun on our balcony again, so after a quick trip to the buffet for breakfast we returned to sit out in the sun for the morning. We had room service for lunch and then hubby took himself off to the adult quoits leaving me to read in peace. After I'd had enough sun for one day I went to have a look at the guess and radley bag sale, there were some nice ones but nothing I really wanted. It was a formal night so I went back to the cabin to prepare, - well it does take a while to make myself presentable ! By now hubby was back and asleep on the balcony so I left him to it and went for a shower. The only thing I don't like about these cabins is the plastic curtain round the shower, I've read that Britannia is having glass screens so that will be nicer. We were ready by 6.30 and made our way slowly to the restaurant ( slow is my only speed at the moment ) the man who books you in knows me by now and that I need a table with a bit of space around it and this time gave us a table for 10 but with only us sitting on it ! Lovely ! After a very nice meal of braised lamb shank and orange curd meringue tart we went straight to the theatre for Gareth Oliver's second show. He was as good this second time and we had a very entertaining hour. After that we went to malabar as there was going to be a singer later on , and I had a lovely chocolate banana cocktail. ( or two ) finally at 10.45 Ricky Zalez came on and sung some Michael buble songs and some from the musicals. He was good and we actually managed to stay awake until midnight !
Saturday 20th September - Messina
We've been here before but not managed to see the famous astrological clock , so we set off at 11 aiming to get there by mid day when it strikes and all the figures move. It was very hot and my walking is very slow but we made it just in time to see it all happen. It is very amusing and well worth the walk. The shops seemed to be mostly shut, don't know if it's too late in the season for them or we were too,early but we made our way back to the lovely air conditioning of the ship and had some lunch. There was some football match or other on in brodies so hubby went off to watch that and I relaxed on the balcony in the shade. It was 60's and 70's night but we don't really do dressing up and it seemed no one else did either as only the entertainment team seemed to have bothered. Lovely dinner again of pork loin with apricot stuffing, followed by baked apple with calvados. And then we went to the theatre to see P P Arnold, a soul singer who I remember from the 60's. Trouble was she had been told to sing a selection of 60's and 70's music but not the soul she is known for and she was frankly terrible ! She actually apologised for the type of songs she was singing ! Lots of people walked out which is very rude and I would never do that unless I was desperately ill or something. We tolerated it for the whole hour but were glad when she finished. We then made our way to malabar where catch 22 were playing 60's and 70's songs but they were really good. We have really liked catch 22 , go and see them if you can.
Sunday 21st September - Corfu
We have been here many times before so decided to stay on the ship, we went up to the retreat but they are fully booked this time with people who have booked the whole cruise , so no day passes. We sat instead just next to the pool which is not now part of the retreat so meaning that they have less sunbeds. It was very hot and I only lasted till 12 and then I'd had enough. It's a shame there's no parasols or any shade any where. After lunch in the buffet we went back to the cabin and read our kindles for the afternoon, I've got through 4 books already. There was nothing on the menu in meridian that I fancied so we went to the glasshouse again which is very nice but the service was a bit slow tonight and we didn't have time for dessert as we had to get to the theatre by 7.45 to make sure I got an end of a row seat. The show was 'blame it on the boogie ' and was really good, we've seen it before but it's always slightly different depending on the team doing it. There is a particular number in it that I love, where they roll giant silver balls around and a very athletic girl does acrobatics on top of one, all to pinball wizard. There didn't seem to be much else on after that so we just sat in the blue bar with a nice glass of prosecco and listened to the pianist , Frankie Gliksman, he is a good pianist but I wish he didn't sing !
Monday 22nd September. Dubrovnik
We had booked a trip to cavtat so had to meet on the quay side to get on a coach,. After only about 20 minutes we arrived at the little town of cavtat, it is a really lovely little place , very oldie worldy with a gorgeous picturesque cove with lots of yachts and a promenade with tropical plants, benches, flowers and a fountain. We sat and just watched the children swimming in the sea and the boats coming and going for about an hour , it was so peaceful I could have stayed there all day. But we had to go to a nearby cafe where we had some refreshment of juice and local biscuits and cake. Then the coach took us back to Dubrovnik for an hour and a halfs free time. We wandered through the town,looking in the shops and bought quite a few gifts to take back with us. Everything seems quite cheap and there are lots of lovely oils, wine , olives and other foody items to buy. After a huge ice cream we returned to the meeting place , only to find that the coach wasn't there. We were definitely in the right place as we recognised other people who had been on the coach but it didn't turn up for another 20 minutes and then it stopped in the middle of the road and everyone had to take their lives in their hands and dodge the traffic to get back on the coach. We were back on the ship for lunch and then had a relaxing afternoon on the balcony. Dinner that night was slow cooked pork belly with crackling, yum ! And baked bramley apple crumble and then we went to the theatre to see Andrea Dickinson who we thought looked familiar , and then we read that she had played the part of scaramouche In 'we will rock you' which we had seen her in. She has an amazing voice and we really enjoyed her choice of songs, some from musicals of course but also some recent pop songs and some older stuff. After a very enjoyable hour we retired for the night. Well we went to the cabin but during the night the wind was getting stronger and the ship,was rocking around so badly that the drawers kept banging open and the glasses fell over ! There
was a terrific thunderstorm with lightning that flashed across the whole surface of the sea, it was an amazing sight but quite scary when I saw on the t.v. That we were having a hurricane ! Needless to say I got no sleep till about 4 am when things quietend down a bit.
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Sorry, think I've repeated myself a bit but it's been 6 weeks since we returned from our cruise and I've forgotten some of it already. Anyway to continue .....
Tuesday 23rd September, - Venice
I got up really early to see the sail in, our balcony was on the starboard side and the right side to get the best view as we sailed in. It is an amazing sight with all the lovely old buildings ,statues, st marks square, and all the boats whizzing around. They don't seem to have any system and weave in and out of each other and in front of the ship. We had purchased launch tickets, but they were leaving from a place that was about a 15 minute walk from the ship, so I was worn out by the time I got there ! The trip only took about 15 minutes and dropped us all off just a little way from st marks square. I was surprised to see that the square was partially flooded and there were wooden walkways across the water. These were packed with people all,trying to keep their feet dry but we walked next to the shops which hadn't flooded luckily. Everything is very expensive here but there are some little market stall type places which have a bit cheaper things. We bought a few of the Venetian masks, and some stripy t shirts for the grandchildren, and walked for hours until I could go no further and had to have a sit down. The cafés around st marks square are very expensive but we may never go there again so we stopped at one and had coffee and cake with a band serenading us. We caught a launch back to the ship and collapsed exhausted on to our balcony. After a couple of hours we had recuperated enough to go up on deck to watch the sailaway with a glass of free champagne, the sun was setting and it was a lovely sight as we slowly sailed out of Venice. It was the tropical night and the only dressing up we are willing to do, well it only involves a tropical shirt for hubby and a flowery dress for me and they give you a flower garland at dinner. There was a party on deck but as usual it was very windy and got so cold we only stayed to see the headliners vocalists sing a few songs and then went back inside in the warm.
Tuesday 23rd September, - Venice
I got up really early to see the sail in, our balcony was on the starboard side and the right side to get the best view as we sailed in. It is an amazing sight with all the lovely old buildings ,statues, st marks square, and all the boats whizzing around. They don't seem to have any system and weave in and out of each other and in front of the ship. We had purchased launch tickets, but they were leaving from a place that was about a 15 minute walk from the ship, so I was worn out by the time I got there ! The trip only took about 15 minutes and dropped us all off just a little way from st marks square. I was surprised to see that the square was partially flooded and there were wooden walkways across the water. These were packed with people all,trying to keep their feet dry but we walked next to the shops which hadn't flooded luckily. Everything is very expensive here but there are some little market stall type places which have a bit cheaper things. We bought a few of the Venetian masks, and some stripy t shirts for the grandchildren, and walked for hours until I could go no further and had to have a sit down. The cafés around st marks square are very expensive but we may never go there again so we stopped at one and had coffee and cake with a band serenading us. We caught a launch back to the ship and collapsed exhausted on to our balcony. After a couple of hours we had recuperated enough to go up on deck to watch the sailaway with a glass of free champagne, the sun was setting and it was a lovely sight as we slowly sailed out of Venice. It was the tropical night and the only dressing up we are willing to do, well it only involves a tropical shirt for hubby and a flowery dress for me and they give you a flower garland at dinner. There was a party on deck but as usual it was very windy and got so cold we only stayed to see the headliners vocalists sing a few songs and then went back inside in the warm.
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oldbluefox
- Ex Team Member
- Posts: 11331
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cumbria
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Enjoying your reports so far Jacknian and looking forward to the rest of your holiday.
Hope the hip is working well for you.
Hope the hip is working well for you.
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
Wednesday 24th September. Sea day.
We have noro virus on the ship, or ' a gastro intestinal bug ' as the announcement put it, we will have some restrictions put in place , such as no self service in the buffet, every available surface is being wiped down with antiseptic and constant reminders to wash hands frequently. Whether it's coincidence or not we both feel a bit dodgy today, could be the sea of course but it doesn't feel too rocky and hubby usually doesn't feel the movement at all and im ok (ish ) Anyway we decided not to risk it and stayed in the cabin for a few hours until we both felt reasonably alright again. The sun was on our balcony all day so after a very small lunch , and a very slow one due to the waiters having to dish everything out, we sat outside in the sun with our kindles for a couple of hours. In the evening it was supposed to be Josh Adams but apparently he was held up at the airport yesterday and wouldn't arrive until the following day when we will be in Malta. So Andrea Dickinson filled in for him in the theatre and gave a brilliant performance. She sang songs from Les Mis , some from We will rock you, Rent, Wicked, etc etc, we loved it and so did the majority of the audience judging by the standing ovation she got. Both of our stomachs still feel a little bit dodgy , - we haven't been sick or had any 'toilet problems' so it can't be the dreaded Noro , but we both decided an early night would be good.
Thursday 25th September Malta.
It was a lovely sail in to Malta, the sun was shining on the pale stone buildings and it was quite warm already at 10am. We waited an hour to let the organised excursions get off and then went for a walk around. There is a new lift to get up to the town, as there is a large stone wall around it and the town is very high above the port area. We were going to use the lift but there was a very big queue waiting so we just walked around the port area. There are lots of lovely shops and new cafés that have appeared since we were last here, and some more still being built. It will be a very nice area eventually. After purchasing lots of souvenirs for the family we walked slowly back to the ship. It was very hot by now and I was exhausted and my hip was becoming increasingly painful so we returned to the cabin and ordered a nice baguette for me and a pizza for hubby. We had a wander round the ship in the afternoon and I had a look at the handbag sale but didn't see anything I wanted , much to hubby's relief ! It was so hot outside we stayed in the air conditioning and tried the costa coffee again. It is definitely not as nice as the ones on land, I think it is the long life milk they use, it's drinkable but not that good. Dinner was a lovely pork cutlet in calvados, but my tummy is still a bit upset so I didn't eat a lot of it , much to the waiters concern who wanted to bring me something else. There was a lot on in the evening, the chapman brothers in the theatre, Motown magic with catch 22 in malabar, and Steve Tandy a comedian in manhattens. I didn't really fancy any of it and sitting in the theatre makes my stomach worse due to its position so we just sat in the blue bar and listened to the pianist Frankie Gliksmans original take on some classic songs !
Friday 26th September sea day
It was a lovely sunny morning again, the weather has been very good so far, the sun was not on our balcony so after breakfast we went to our favourite spot at the front of the ship and bagged a couple of sun beds near the pool before it got too busy. The water was lovely and warm in the pool and I had it to myself for the first hour and swam lots of lengths . Hubby stayed with the sun beds as it worries me what happens to them if both are unoccupied for a while ? By lunchtime we'd had enough sun and it was getting very busy and noisy so we returned to the cabin and both slept for an hour. There was a message on the interactive T.V. about booking disembarkation time , this is different to last time as there was a message in horizon paper last year. Luckily we had checked, so,after a bit of a rest we went down to reception and booked the earliest time which was 8.30 , meeting in the meridian restaurant. It's sad to be thinking about disembarkation ! There was nothing on the menu that really appealed to me that evening, and my stomach is still not right so I just had a plain chicken breast with 6 chips and a few peas, it is nice but a few more veg would be good. It was a Headliners show ' curtain up' in the evening and it was good, although not one of my favourites, they all work extremely hard and seem to love what they are doing.
Saturday 27th September sea day
It's warm but cloudy today so we stayed inside and watched the line dancing, I would love to join in, but not with my hip. Maybe next year, - I keep,saying that so I hope I'm fit by next year ! In the afternoon it was the crew talent show in aid of McMillan cancer support so we went along to that and it was packed , managed to get a seat on an end luckily and it was quite good. Funny in places and some good singing. Finishing with the obligatory ' if I were not upon the sea ...' And then there was a collection at the end which raised a large sum although I can't remember the exact amount . We watched the captains interview on the T.V. in the afternoon and he was quite entertaining. That night we went to the 'best of British ' buffet. There was quite a good selection of supposedly British food, - fish and chips of course, gammon and pineapple, Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, some various pies, but CURRY ! Might be popular, but not British. A comedian called Tucker was on in the theatre and he was ok, a bit tame but only a few walked out so must be good ! I tried to stay awake to watch us pass through the straits of Gibraltar but there was a terrific thunderstorm again with lots of sheet lightning and I didn't see anything of Gibraltar.
We have noro virus on the ship, or ' a gastro intestinal bug ' as the announcement put it, we will have some restrictions put in place , such as no self service in the buffet, every available surface is being wiped down with antiseptic and constant reminders to wash hands frequently. Whether it's coincidence or not we both feel a bit dodgy today, could be the sea of course but it doesn't feel too rocky and hubby usually doesn't feel the movement at all and im ok (ish ) Anyway we decided not to risk it and stayed in the cabin for a few hours until we both felt reasonably alright again. The sun was on our balcony all day so after a very small lunch , and a very slow one due to the waiters having to dish everything out, we sat outside in the sun with our kindles for a couple of hours. In the evening it was supposed to be Josh Adams but apparently he was held up at the airport yesterday and wouldn't arrive until the following day when we will be in Malta. So Andrea Dickinson filled in for him in the theatre and gave a brilliant performance. She sang songs from Les Mis , some from We will rock you, Rent, Wicked, etc etc, we loved it and so did the majority of the audience judging by the standing ovation she got. Both of our stomachs still feel a little bit dodgy , - we haven't been sick or had any 'toilet problems' so it can't be the dreaded Noro , but we both decided an early night would be good.
Thursday 25th September Malta.
It was a lovely sail in to Malta, the sun was shining on the pale stone buildings and it was quite warm already at 10am. We waited an hour to let the organised excursions get off and then went for a walk around. There is a new lift to get up to the town, as there is a large stone wall around it and the town is very high above the port area. We were going to use the lift but there was a very big queue waiting so we just walked around the port area. There are lots of lovely shops and new cafés that have appeared since we were last here, and some more still being built. It will be a very nice area eventually. After purchasing lots of souvenirs for the family we walked slowly back to the ship. It was very hot by now and I was exhausted and my hip was becoming increasingly painful so we returned to the cabin and ordered a nice baguette for me and a pizza for hubby. We had a wander round the ship in the afternoon and I had a look at the handbag sale but didn't see anything I wanted , much to hubby's relief ! It was so hot outside we stayed in the air conditioning and tried the costa coffee again. It is definitely not as nice as the ones on land, I think it is the long life milk they use, it's drinkable but not that good. Dinner was a lovely pork cutlet in calvados, but my tummy is still a bit upset so I didn't eat a lot of it , much to the waiters concern who wanted to bring me something else. There was a lot on in the evening, the chapman brothers in the theatre, Motown magic with catch 22 in malabar, and Steve Tandy a comedian in manhattens. I didn't really fancy any of it and sitting in the theatre makes my stomach worse due to its position so we just sat in the blue bar and listened to the pianist Frankie Gliksmans original take on some classic songs !
Friday 26th September sea day
It was a lovely sunny morning again, the weather has been very good so far, the sun was not on our balcony so after breakfast we went to our favourite spot at the front of the ship and bagged a couple of sun beds near the pool before it got too busy. The water was lovely and warm in the pool and I had it to myself for the first hour and swam lots of lengths . Hubby stayed with the sun beds as it worries me what happens to them if both are unoccupied for a while ? By lunchtime we'd had enough sun and it was getting very busy and noisy so we returned to the cabin and both slept for an hour. There was a message on the interactive T.V. about booking disembarkation time , this is different to last time as there was a message in horizon paper last year. Luckily we had checked, so,after a bit of a rest we went down to reception and booked the earliest time which was 8.30 , meeting in the meridian restaurant. It's sad to be thinking about disembarkation ! There was nothing on the menu that really appealed to me that evening, and my stomach is still not right so I just had a plain chicken breast with 6 chips and a few peas, it is nice but a few more veg would be good. It was a Headliners show ' curtain up' in the evening and it was good, although not one of my favourites, they all work extremely hard and seem to love what they are doing.
Saturday 27th September sea day
It's warm but cloudy today so we stayed inside and watched the line dancing, I would love to join in, but not with my hip. Maybe next year, - I keep,saying that so I hope I'm fit by next year ! In the afternoon it was the crew talent show in aid of McMillan cancer support so we went along to that and it was packed , managed to get a seat on an end luckily and it was quite good. Funny in places and some good singing. Finishing with the obligatory ' if I were not upon the sea ...' And then there was a collection at the end which raised a large sum although I can't remember the exact amount . We watched the captains interview on the T.V. in the afternoon and he was quite entertaining. That night we went to the 'best of British ' buffet. There was quite a good selection of supposedly British food, - fish and chips of course, gammon and pineapple, Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, some various pies, but CURRY ! Might be popular, but not British. A comedian called Tucker was on in the theatre and he was ok, a bit tame but only a few walked out so must be good ! I tried to stay awake to watch us pass through the straits of Gibraltar but there was a terrific thunderstorm again with lots of sheet lightning and I didn't see anything of Gibraltar.
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Jacknian
Topic author - Second Officer
- Posts: 352
- Joined: January 2013
- Location: Cambridgeshire
Re: A424 Azura to the med
So , after a bit of a delay due to problems with my hip replacement, heres the rest of my cruise reports.
Sunday 28th September - Cadiz
We have been here many times before so we decided to stay on the ship. It was a glorious sunny warm day, so we went to our favourite spot at the front of the ship and it was almost deserted. The pool was lovely and warm and I had it to myself so swam a few lengths and then hubby decided to take some photos of me with MY camera ! He is very technically incompetent and I don't know what he did to it but after a few shots the shutter stuck open and would not do anything ( he said it was the shock of taking a photo of me that did it ! ) I was a bit worried that the lens would get scratched so wrapped the camera in a napkin and went back to the cabin to put it on charge in case it was a battery problem. It was the great British sailaway at 4 so we went and waved our flags and sang along to the patriotic tunes with every one else. It was lovely and warm and we had saved our free champagne vouchers for today and I has a few glasses of Pimms too ! I know some people think the sailaways are 'common ' but I love the great British one and we always try to go to it. There was a theme in the evening of red white and blue which is a new one on me and was not advertised before hand so we did not have any appropriate clothes to wear but a few people made an effort, and some wore the flower necklaces from the tropical night for some reason ! They were not even red , white or blue, but multicoloured. We had a lovely dinner of roast pork with apricot stuffing and then I had mixed fruit crumble tart and hubby had sultana brioche bread and butter pudding which he said was very yummy ! We went to see Peter Cutler in the theatre and he was very good, he has played Marius in les Mis and sang some songs from that musical and also others as well as some Michael buble and other more modern stuff. After he finished there was the usual rush to the other end to get a seat for the chapman brothers, but we decided not to bother and just went and sat in the blue bar with a nice glass of prosecco .
Monday 29th September. Sea day
It was nice and sunny again although a bit cooler , we sat on the balcony for a while and I'm glad we did as we saw lots of dolphins and pilot whales. We didn't have to even watch out for them as there were constant shouts from other passengers of ' dolphins! Dolphins ! ' we tried to get photos but it's impossible unless you've got some special camera that's much better than mine ( which incidentally is working again ) but I did manage to film them on my iPad. I did a bit of packing in the afternoon so as not to have so much to do tomorrow, very sad it's nearly over for another year. It was the last formal night and the restaurant was quite crowded, we were given one of the bench seated tables which are not ideal for me as theres not enough room for my leg, but I thought it best to put up with it as we wanted to get to the first show tonight. The food was very nice as usual , it was beef Wellington night ! The best meal of the cruise for me , I love it ! I also had the chicken consommé and tarte aux pommes , all in all a lovely meal. We then made our way slowly to the theatre to see the headliners perform 'reel to reel ' which was very good . After that it was the passengers talent show so we waited and waited for that to start, don't know what happened but it took ages before they finally got under way. It was variable as usual, some very good singers and a couple of comedians who were ok, but also a lady who was in her 80's who just stood on stage and danced ( badly ) to ' the twist ' she did no more than you would see on the dance floor but everyone gave her a good cheer of course. The show didn't finish till gone midnight so we retired for the night.
Tuesday 30th September sea day
Well our last day, very sad it's over but we've had a great cruise as usual, it's been a bit different this year as I can't get about as easily but hopefully by next year I'll be fighting fit again. It was quite cloudy today but still mild, so after some more packing we sat on our balcony for lunch and the sun came out briefly while we ate. After lunch we had a final wander round the shops and I found a lovely little cruise ship charm to go on my pandora bracelet. During the afternoon the sun made a reappearance so we sat on our balcony for the last time before changing for dinner. We went to the glasshouse and had a lovely meal, of lamb and rosemary sausages , creamy mash, and veg. Then a enormous ice cream sundae to share. Steve Tandy and Peter Cutler were sharing the bill at the theatre and they were very good, but half an hour of each is not enough ! We then went and sat in malabar and listened to catch 22, good as usual . We returned to the cabin and after changing into night clothes we put our last case out for the cabin steward.
Wednesday 1st October.
Disembarkation day and what a shambles ! It started ok , we got up early and had breakfast at 7. It wasn't too busy and we were back in the cabin by 7.30 you have to be out by 8 am so we went with our hand luggage to the glasshouse where we had been told to meet. Well it was ridiculously crowded , no chance to sit down and hardly any room to,stand either . Everyone was crammed shoulder to shoulder and it surely was against all health and safety rules ! No one knew what was going on, there were no announcements and the people with priority disembarkation didn't get called or told to get off there was just one big rush as soon as the people at the front started to move. Obviously the re had been some delay because the passengers with 9 o'clock as their time were also there and then the 9.15 lot arrived too and it was horrendous, the worst organised disembarkation we have ever had in our 12 years of cruising. I have written a letter to P&O about it, not that it will make any difference I know. It was made worse by the fact that I had to stand for around an hour with my dodgy hip , leaning on my walking stick and not one single person offered me a seat ! Well eventually we got off the ship and were soon on our way , arriving home at lunchtime.
Final thoughts.
It was a lovely cruise to some beautiful places, we loved cruising into Venice especially as it will probably be the last time we do that. We loved Dubrovnik , it is gorgeous and the weather was very good for the whole cruise. The ship is looking good, and the cabins are spacious and ours was kept spotless by our lovely cabin steward . Not so good was the restrictions around the ship due to the noro virus. Not the cruise lines fault I know but it does affect the enjoyment of the cruise. I think the changes in the main restaurant do not improve the service as was suggested because they have just given the waiters more tables to serve, And the choice is not as good. The disembarkation was a complete farce ! They really need to sort that out. None of this has put us off cruising and we are already booked to go on brittannia in July / August next year.
Sunday 28th September - Cadiz
We have been here many times before so we decided to stay on the ship. It was a glorious sunny warm day, so we went to our favourite spot at the front of the ship and it was almost deserted. The pool was lovely and warm and I had it to myself so swam a few lengths and then hubby decided to take some photos of me with MY camera ! He is very technically incompetent and I don't know what he did to it but after a few shots the shutter stuck open and would not do anything ( he said it was the shock of taking a photo of me that did it ! ) I was a bit worried that the lens would get scratched so wrapped the camera in a napkin and went back to the cabin to put it on charge in case it was a battery problem. It was the great British sailaway at 4 so we went and waved our flags and sang along to the patriotic tunes with every one else. It was lovely and warm and we had saved our free champagne vouchers for today and I has a few glasses of Pimms too ! I know some people think the sailaways are 'common ' but I love the great British one and we always try to go to it. There was a theme in the evening of red white and blue which is a new one on me and was not advertised before hand so we did not have any appropriate clothes to wear but a few people made an effort, and some wore the flower necklaces from the tropical night for some reason ! They were not even red , white or blue, but multicoloured. We had a lovely dinner of roast pork with apricot stuffing and then I had mixed fruit crumble tart and hubby had sultana brioche bread and butter pudding which he said was very yummy ! We went to see Peter Cutler in the theatre and he was very good, he has played Marius in les Mis and sang some songs from that musical and also others as well as some Michael buble and other more modern stuff. After he finished there was the usual rush to the other end to get a seat for the chapman brothers, but we decided not to bother and just went and sat in the blue bar with a nice glass of prosecco .
Monday 29th September. Sea day
It was nice and sunny again although a bit cooler , we sat on the balcony for a while and I'm glad we did as we saw lots of dolphins and pilot whales. We didn't have to even watch out for them as there were constant shouts from other passengers of ' dolphins! Dolphins ! ' we tried to get photos but it's impossible unless you've got some special camera that's much better than mine ( which incidentally is working again ) but I did manage to film them on my iPad. I did a bit of packing in the afternoon so as not to have so much to do tomorrow, very sad it's nearly over for another year. It was the last formal night and the restaurant was quite crowded, we were given one of the bench seated tables which are not ideal for me as theres not enough room for my leg, but I thought it best to put up with it as we wanted to get to the first show tonight. The food was very nice as usual , it was beef Wellington night ! The best meal of the cruise for me , I love it ! I also had the chicken consommé and tarte aux pommes , all in all a lovely meal. We then made our way slowly to the theatre to see the headliners perform 'reel to reel ' which was very good . After that it was the passengers talent show so we waited and waited for that to start, don't know what happened but it took ages before they finally got under way. It was variable as usual, some very good singers and a couple of comedians who were ok, but also a lady who was in her 80's who just stood on stage and danced ( badly ) to ' the twist ' she did no more than you would see on the dance floor but everyone gave her a good cheer of course. The show didn't finish till gone midnight so we retired for the night.
Tuesday 30th September sea day
Well our last day, very sad it's over but we've had a great cruise as usual, it's been a bit different this year as I can't get about as easily but hopefully by next year I'll be fighting fit again. It was quite cloudy today but still mild, so after some more packing we sat on our balcony for lunch and the sun came out briefly while we ate. After lunch we had a final wander round the shops and I found a lovely little cruise ship charm to go on my pandora bracelet. During the afternoon the sun made a reappearance so we sat on our balcony for the last time before changing for dinner. We went to the glasshouse and had a lovely meal, of lamb and rosemary sausages , creamy mash, and veg. Then a enormous ice cream sundae to share. Steve Tandy and Peter Cutler were sharing the bill at the theatre and they were very good, but half an hour of each is not enough ! We then went and sat in malabar and listened to catch 22, good as usual . We returned to the cabin and after changing into night clothes we put our last case out for the cabin steward.
Wednesday 1st October.
Disembarkation day and what a shambles ! It started ok , we got up early and had breakfast at 7. It wasn't too busy and we were back in the cabin by 7.30 you have to be out by 8 am so we went with our hand luggage to the glasshouse where we had been told to meet. Well it was ridiculously crowded , no chance to sit down and hardly any room to,stand either . Everyone was crammed shoulder to shoulder and it surely was against all health and safety rules ! No one knew what was going on, there were no announcements and the people with priority disembarkation didn't get called or told to get off there was just one big rush as soon as the people at the front started to move. Obviously the re had been some delay because the passengers with 9 o'clock as their time were also there and then the 9.15 lot arrived too and it was horrendous, the worst organised disembarkation we have ever had in our 12 years of cruising. I have written a letter to P&O about it, not that it will make any difference I know. It was made worse by the fact that I had to stand for around an hour with my dodgy hip , leaning on my walking stick and not one single person offered me a seat ! Well eventually we got off the ship and were soon on our way , arriving home at lunchtime.
Final thoughts.
It was a lovely cruise to some beautiful places, we loved cruising into Venice especially as it will probably be the last time we do that. We loved Dubrovnik , it is gorgeous and the weather was very good for the whole cruise. The ship is looking good, and the cabins are spacious and ours was kept spotless by our lovely cabin steward . Not so good was the restrictions around the ship due to the noro virus. Not the cruise lines fault I know but it does affect the enjoyment of the cruise. I think the changes in the main restaurant do not improve the service as was suggested because they have just given the waiters more tables to serve, And the choice is not as good. The disembarkation was a complete farce ! They really need to sort that out. None of this has put us off cruising and we are already booked to go on brittannia in July / August next year.