Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

Oceana cruises in 2016
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qbman1
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#126

Post by qbman1 »

She's definitely smuggling something in there !!

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Raybosailor
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#127

Post by Raybosailor »

28th. December

Gran Canaria

We approached the port of Las Palmas at 06:30 with a following stiff breeze so it was a bit cool up on Lido deck this morning as I watched the pilot come aboard but we were tied up by 07:50.

After a leisurely breakfast we decided to go ashore at about 09:45 to find the gangways clear and the short walk into the town was quite pleasant despite the wind. After a wander through the narrow streets we decided to make our way to the beach at Playa Cantera which was on the lee side of the island and the pleasant promenade was basking in sunshine. As we walked along the prom we met our table companions John & Julia so we sat with them on a bench listening to a South American pan piper playing an array of different pipes, he had the usual cd's and souveniers for sale and I purchased a bamboo flute which has annoyed Cheryl ever since.

Walking further down the prom I was lured into a beachside cafe that displayed a sign in the window "Sin Gluten" and free WiFi, as you can imagine the other three had a hard time getting me to leave. Gluten free San Miguel beer and free WiFi ? what has Oceana got to offer now.

On our return to Oceana we stopped to take photos of two tall masted sailing ships that were moored up, one being The Lord Nelson belonging to a trust that enables people of all abilities the chance to experience cruising under sail. I spoke to two of the crew who told me that a fortnights cruise with them is slightly cheaper than a P&O cruise and you can do as much or as little as you like when onboard. Cheryl was less than impressed when I told her that this could be our next cruise holiday.

Note to Cubie, I have a photo of a scantily dressed young lady swinging from the rigging of the Lord Nelson if you want to add it to your portfolio.

Weather: Winds of Force 5, sunny with temperatures of 19 deg. max.

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qbman1
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#128

Post by qbman1 »

I can top your 19 deg Raymondo. This was on Christmas Eve:
IMG_5839.JPG
Mind you, even I stopped short of taking photos of the scantily-clad young ladies !! I worry about you.


daib GC
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#129

Post by daib GC »

qbman1 wrote:
I can top your 19 deg Raymondo. This was on Christmas Eve:

IMG_5839.JPG

Mind you, even I stopped short of taking photos of the scantily-clad young ladies !! I worry about you.

It may have been 19 by the beach but it was B cold in the port area. Very cold wind.

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qbman1
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#130

Post by qbman1 »

Yes, it did get a bit breezy at times - here's a clue why we didn't dock at Fuerteventura
IMG_5857.JPG

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Raybosailor
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#131

Post by Raybosailor »

daib GC wrote:
qbman1 wrote:
I can top your 19 deg Raymondo. This was on Christmas Eve:

IMG_5839.JPG

Mind you, even I stopped short of taking photos of the scantily-clad young ladies !! I worry about you.

It may have been 19 by the beach but it was B cold in the port area. Very cold wind.
I was photographing the rigging Cubie how was I to know she would come swinging into view ?

The temperatures were in the shade averages but it was quite hot out of the wind, had to wear my faithful old sunhat to stop me burning.

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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#132

Post by Raybosailor »

29th. December

Tenerife

It was a lovely morning as we approached the port of Santa Cruz at 06:30, we seemed to be taking things pretty steady as we entered the port but Captain Willard might be thinking that it was here that Lord Nelson lost his arm and was taking no chances.

As usual we had a leisurely breakfast in the Ligurian giving the bulk of shore bound passengers plenty of time to clear the gangway before we took our exit. It was a sunny day so the battered old sunhat came out straight away and even Cheryl covered up as we walked into town.

We had never approached Santa Cruz from the sea before and the port information sheet from our cabin had a map that was close to useless, so we sat on a bench in a small square to try and get our bearings. There was a man sat reading a newspaper next to us so I asked him in Spanish for directions, to our amusement he replied " no good asking me mate I'm from Durham" I would have sworn he was Spanish until his wife appeared from a shop opposite.

We walked a few streets more and then things started to look familiar and we spent a while going round the indoor market before finding a nice cafe beside the tram line where we caught up with family on Facetime.

We were back on board Oceana for lunch and decided that we were going to take advantage of the sunny day on Lido Deck where we took part in the Music Master quiz but fell 5 points short of the winners.

The sail away party was a battle of noise as Queen Victoria was in port with us, ships horns blasting each other and people singing it was no place to go for an afternoon kip on a sunbed.

Weather: Light winds, sunny and dry with max. temperature of 22 deg.

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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#133

Post by Raybosailor »

30th. December

La Palma

It was our first visit to La Palma and we fell in love with the island straight away, apart from the ugly McDonalds building the first thing you see as you leave the cruise terminal, the island seems unspoilt by tourism.

Once across the busy main road we found ourselves in the narrow cobbled road of Calle O'Daly named after an Irish merchant who in 1773 initiated the first public elections in Spanish history and was constructive in the opening of the first state run school in the Canaries.
There are so many interesting buildings along this street that you don't realise how far you have walked and at the end there is a nice square Plaza De La Alameda where you can sit on a bench and people watch. There is also a life size replica of the ship Santa Maria in which Christopher Columbus sailed on his voyages of discovery.

After a coffee and WiFi catch up in a lovely rustic bar/cafe where we were the only English speaking people present we visited the remains of a fort that overlooked the sea front. It was so windy up there that my battered old sun hat blew off but I was able to retrieve it much to the annoyance of Cheryl as she has been trying to get rid of it for years.

On from the fort we went down a steep hill onto the Avinida de Maritima where all the old traders houses sport attractive flower draped balconies which was a must for photographers. Under one building there was a shop selling artisan craftwork which is always a magnate for the pair of us, we only went in for a walk round but we came out with a bag full of stuff.

We loved La Palma so much we went into the tourist office and came out with a few brochures and accommodation details as we plan to return for a week on the island.

Back on board we had spent so much time on shore that we had missed lunch and the Music Master quiz so we did something we rarely do, we ate from the Horizon Grill and enjoyed cheesburger and chips washed down with coca cola (the grandkids would be proud of us) not healthy but nice for a change.

Todays sailaway was The Great British Sailaway which we enjoy so off to the cabin to change into our Union Jack shirts and back for a real good sing along. The sailaway was well attended and with songs from Wales, Scotland, Ireland and of course England we let the whole of La Palma know we were leaving.

Weather: Strong Southerly winds of Force 6 but warm and dry when out of the breeze with temperatures of 24 deg.

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Happydays
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#134

Post by Happydays »

I'm enjoying reading your review, seems like you had a good time. We usually like the "Great British" sail away as it's good fun :thumbup:

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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#135

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31st December

New Years Eve in Madeira

This is the day we have been waiting for, the main reason for booking this cruise was for the fireworks in Funchal so we were looking forward to that.
The sea was a bit choppy as we sailed into port and we were berthed right on the end of the breakwater, because of the wind direction the swell was coming straight into the harbour and Oceana was acting as part of the breakwater for other ships in port.

After breakfast we went ashore and took the shuttle bus into town, it was quite busy as there were a few cruise ships in port, all along the main road there were local folk singers and dancers with ukulele bands providing the music which I enjoyed as I am learning to play the ukulele myself (very badly at the moment).
The ukulele was introduced to the world by a man from Madeira named Manuel Nunes who went to Hawaii to work in a sugar plantation and he developed the ukulele based on a Portugese instrument called a braguinha, so if you visit Hawaii and listen to the ukulele being played it is all down to Manuel.

We walked deeper into town and after a walk round the flower market and a stop to listen to a band that looked like the Portugese equivalent to our Salvation Army we headed for the shoreline, the wind had increased and there was some dramatic spray breaking over the sea wall.

The large coffee houses like The Ritz were very busy but they are not our sort of place so we came back off the main road up a narrow street where we found a lovely cafe in a courtyard that had excellent coffee and WiFi so Ray and Walley were happy (Walley is what I call my wallet).

When we returned to the ship we were held up for a while by the shore crew who were being instructed by the bridge via radio phone, the huge rubber fenders attached to the quay were squealing against the hull in the movement. We were then instructed to go aboard in small groups and the walk up the plank was similar to the old fairground hurdy girdy ride.

For the first time on the cruise we decided to go to the cabin and rest for a while before getting ready for the third black tie dinner and the festivities later.
After dinner we decided to change out of our formal wear into something more suitable for a windy night up on top deck.

In the lead up to midnight we were entertained by the group "The Four Tunes" who were performing on Lido deck below us and the party was soon in full swing as we sang along to every tune. We were joined for a while by the captain who told me that he had never experienced a port day in Funchal like today, he said that they have had to employ the portside thrusters all day to ease the strain on the lines.

The count down to midnight came and on the stroke of midnight the ships horns blew which seemed to signal the start of the fireworks which were amazing, there were three dredgers moored up outside the harbour where fireworks were being deployed so we were encircled by an amazing display.

The BBC Radio 2 team were broadcasting live from Oceana hosted by Penny Smith the former breakfast tv presenter and the celebrity guests Cara Emerald (jazz singer) and Ana Tronic (ex Scissor Sisters) were performing in the Starlights Theatre.

We were woken up in the early hours by a bridge announcement that there was a medical emergency which was actually on our corridor and there was the noise of people scurrying around and the sound of distressed voices. We had just settled back into a deep sleep when we were again woken, this time by heavy vibration of the ship. We found out later that the vibration was the ship going quickly about to return to Funchal and send the patient ashore, a rather unfortunate end to what was a great night, hope all went well for the patient.

Breakfast this morning was a quiet affair as it seemed most people elected for a lie in but old die hard here tucked in to a full jotter (thats Nottingham speak for orange juice,cereals,anything that will fit in a large frying pan and toast washed down with copius amounts of builders tea) followed by a walk round the ship, which was indoors this time as the prom deck was closed.

Weather: New Years Eve morning it was quite breezy but it was quite pleasant out of the wind with a temperature around 21 deg. But by afternoon the wind had picked up quite a bit and the passage out of Funchal up towards Cap Finisterre was a rough one.

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Stephen
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#136

Post by Stephen »

You can't beat the good old full English Ray :thumbup: I sometimes say to Mrs S, 'I think I might give the fry up a miss this morning'. But once that aroma hits the nostrils any will power dissolves like sugar in tea :D . And as it's the only time I indulge in the greasy spoon I'm going to make the most of it :thumbup:

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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#137

Post by Stephen »

Like the sound of your cruise Ray. Never done a Christmas cruise before, and I just mentioned it to the guvnor and to my surprise she seemed to like the idea :shock: It could be happy days if I play it right :thumbup:
Last edited by Stephen on 15 Jan 2017, 12:52, edited 1 time in total.

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Raybosailor
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#138

Post by Raybosailor »

I can well recommend it Stephen, we really enjoyed our first Christmas and New Year cruise, there were the usual moaners but I don't think they could have tried very hard to enjoy themselves.

As for the full English its the only way after a heavy night on the pop isn't it ?, mind you its nil less by mouth for a while now and steady on the alcohol for a while. New Years Resolution ? naaaaaagh!

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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#139

Post by Raybosailor »

1st January-4th January

3 Sea Days Home

There was nothing significant to report from our three days at sea apart from the rough seas around Cap Finisterre where the swell was over 6 metres in Force 8 winds. On the morning of the 2nd January the waves were crashing over the windows of the Ligurian restaurant as we had breakfast, the waiters were struggling to serve and there was a crash of crockery now and then. I heard reports that the Plaza buffet was temporary closed but when I ventured up there later to get a cuppa it was open.

For once the Bay of Biscay gave us some respite and as we rounded the tip where La Coruna lies things steadied a little though the motion sickness bags remained on display in public areas.

Our last formal dinner (Black & White) was on the 2nd January and was well adhered to in the Meridian restaurant which was the last time we saw our table companions as they ate in the buffet on the last night.

I will write a summary in another post so for now its chill out and Sudoku until Southampton.

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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625 Summary

#140

Post by Raybosailor »

The Summary
Embarkation: All I can say about this is EXCELLENT, the smoothest one to date and the only wait was the queue at security which was again caused by passengers not being prepared, at least we were entertained by a very good choir while the usual suspects were asked to remove the hardware from their pockets.
We were eating lunch 40 minutes before our allotted check in time.

In General: It was our first Christmas afloat and a most enjoyable cruise, we think P&O do Christmas and New Year very well and would recommend it to anyone.
We booked this cruise mainly for the overnight in Madeira and the fireworks and this was the highlight and grand finale to two lovely weeks on Oceana.

The Ship: It was our first time on Oceana and although it is not our favourite we would sail on her again, she is looking a bit tired in places but overall nothing to complain about. The only thing we didn't like about it was that Cafe Jardin takes up the whole of that section of the Atrium so you have to go down a deck to avoid walking through the restaurant. The crew were very friendly including the Captain Andrew Willard who is the most passenger friendly captain we have met, he even played a part in some of the shows and read a story to the kids on Christmas morning.

Cabin: Inside D319, it was quiet at night but on rare occasions during the day that we visited it there seemed to be a lot of traffic in the corridor as it was positioned between port and starboard corridors but that didn't bother us as we only slept and showered in it. The bathroom was ok but the shower had a curtain which Cheryl hates, the wardrobe space was ample as we always pack our things on wire hangers that take up less room than the bulky wooden ones supplied (which were stuffed behind the life jackets for the duration of the cruise).

Restaurants: We opt for Club dining at night as it makes life easier having the same waiters to deal with my gluten allergy. The head waiter Harish was very efficient and obliging and our two table waiters were very friendly.
The food was good and Cheryl tried some dishes that she had never had before including Pheasant & Haggis (not on the same plate).
Lunch was mostly taken in the Ligurian restaurant as I had pre ordered my gluten free meal the previous night which was usually a surprise as I could never remember what I had ordered. We like breakfast and lunch in the MDR's as you nearly always get fresh table companions which can be interesting.

Entertainment: I can't comment on most of the guest entertainers as we had seen most of them before so apart from the Headliners shows which we always enjoy we followed the resident band Front Of House around the bars.
The Beatles tribute band The Cheatles were not the best tribute we have seen but they were entertaining and the audience including us sang along.
The Four Tunes group entertained us very well on New Years Eve up on Lido Deck in the run up to the fireworks.
Cara Emerald & Ana Tronic were in the Starlights Theatre on NY's Eve but we were out on deck dancing to DJ Dom.
The young kids put on a Nativity play and the older kids did a version of "Annie" which were both enjoyed by quite large audiences.
The crew pantomime was very funny with an appearance by the captain, the crew performance show was very good too with a hilarious sketch at the end in which the captain came on dressed as a ballerina.

Itinerary: The port of La Coruna was a welcome stop on our way to the Canaries, we just walked ashore and explored the lovely town. I did not speak to anyone who had enjoyed Agadir and most people who had booked shore excursions were disappointed.
The Canaries need no introduction and we have visited them many times before except La Palma which we loved and plan to return for a longer break.

Madeira was the highlight of the cruise apart from the heavy swell in the harbour, there was a lot of street entertainment during the day and the World famous firework display was nothing short of amazing.

Disembarkation: We were given a time of 09:15 so we had a leisurely breakfast in the Ligurian ( a full jotter to last me all the way back to Nottingham), we then sat in our meeting point in Starlights where we were called at precisely 09:15.
Luggage located and car keys collected we were on the motorway just after 10:00.

With just a 15 minute stop for a cuppa on the M40 we sailed home without a hitch and before we knew it we were sorting through a fortnights mail including some Christmas cards that had arrived after our departure on 20th December.

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Happydays
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Re: Oceana Christmas Cruise E625

#141

Post by Happydays »

Your reviews have made interesting reading! You brought the whole cruise to life.
Glad you and your wife enjoyed it :thumbup:

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