So last October, we returned to our AMA travel agent, Sylvia and told her to book the Norway & Atlantic Passage cruise, aboard the Royal Princess. It was to depart September 10th and Glen was to retire September 1st so perfect timing. It seemed a long way off but as everyone knows, time flies when you're having fun.
Our journey began with a flight to London's Gatwick airport via WestJet. It was a 9 hour flight with us landing at 10:30 Sunday morning. We had to make our way from the North Terminal to the South but a train made the journey an easy one. We stayed at the Hilton hotel and they let us check in right away. After a nap, we explored the terminal to find where we'd meet the Princess bus the next day. Who knew there are two WH Smith stores (one outside, one inside) in the terminal?
I had organized a rendezvous with Glen's cousins to take place Sunday afternoon in the hotel lobby. We were enjoying a beer ( Old Speckled Hen, first brewed on the 50th anniversary of the MG car factory [1979] and named for the car that workers used to get around in [covered with specks of paint]) in the hotel lobby when Denise and Betty arrived. It was so good to see them! I hadn't spoken to them in 40 years although Glen had often touched base during his work-related travels to Europe. We had a lovely dinner together in the hotel restaurant then said our goodbyes. We were feeling the affects of jet lag and went to bed early.
We met the Princess people (the WH Smith inside the terminal) the next morning for the transfer to Southampton, the port from which the cruise ship departed. It was a long bus ride but we met a guy from Ottawa called Don so passed the time talking with him. Turns out he has a YouTube business featuring cruising tips called Don's Family Vacations. He has done oodles of cruises so had some interesting stories.
AMA gave us a voucher so we could do the express check-in at dockside. They processed us quickly and we received our cruise cards which function as a room key and a credit card. They also gave us a number, 34, and told us to sit in the terminal and wait to be called. Elite cruisers boarded first then they began calling numbers beginning with 20. Boarding halted at 22 when the gangway connection broke. Turns out the tide was extremely high and the gangway wasn't designed for that. I figured we'd have a later lunch on board so bought some eccles cakes at the snack shop to tide us over. The gangway was fixed and more numbers called, then it broke again. Finally, 34 was called but by the time we reached the end of the gangway, they gave up fixing it. Everyone then boarded through the service gangway. It took 3 hours for us to get to our stateroom. Jet lag didn't help our mood but our spirits lifted when we entered our cabin. The mini-suite was lovely with a normal sized bathroom so Glen was happy. While I unpacked, he watched, form our balcony, the ship leave Southhampton for Rotterdam. We then had a much deserved beer in the Wheelhouse bar and met our to-be favourite server, Pranit from Nepal.
We didn't stay up too late as we would be doing a tour the next day and jet lag got the better of us--such party animals!!
The cruise we had signed up for involved stopping in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Hamburg, Germany, Bergen, Norway, Belfast, N. Ireland, St John's, Newfoundland, and New York. As you can guess, there were to be many days at sea. However, we didn't get beyond Hamburg when plans changed. The meeting of hurricane Florence and a storm over Belfast meant dangerous seas for crossing the Atlantic so the captain decided to go south instead. Who said cruising was boring?
I'll describe our ports of call in subsequent posts but thought I'd give you an overview of our days at sea. Because Glen could walk this time, we decided to climb the stairs most days. The Royal Princess has 16 decks (#13 doesn't exist) and busy elevators so being willing to do the stairs saved time. It also burned off the extra calories! My Fitbit had problems with the ship's roll and one day recorded that I had climbed 75 flights of stairs. There was no way I did that! And yet, even though we ate and drank every day, I didn't gain any weight.
Every morning after a buffet breakfast, we did a 30 minute walk. Sometimes this was on the jogging track; sometimes on the pool deck. Unlike the Island Princess, the promenade deck was only open when the boat was docked. Usually there was an enrichment talk at 10 which we attended. Topics ranged from ocean facts to the evolution of navigational instruments. Then we'd head to the pool deck for pre-lunch beer. Lunch was often from the buffet or the fast food places nearby (pizza and burgers). After lunch, Glen would have a nap or we would listen to an audiobook in our cabin. The couch made the room a great place to relax. Then it was off to the Wheelhouse bar for pre-dinner drinks. There were two dining rooms open for anytime dining as well as two specialty restaurants where you made reservations (Crown Grill and Sabatini's). After supper, we either went to a show (the comedian and magician we saw were both Canadian) or watched a movie.
Partway through our crossing of the mid-Atlantic, Glen came down with a cold so it was nice we had a comfy cabin where he could rest. He wasn't the only one coughing. Unfortunately, a couple of people had their holiday cut short because of a medical issue. We witnessed a woman being taken out on a stretcher in Vigo, Spain and then a day out of New York, the US Coast Guard did a medical evacuation of another woman. Apparently she required treatment only a hospital could provide. Obviously Princess handled these situations professionally.
I couldn't bring enough clothes in one small and one large suitcase so I often did a laundry in our bathroom sink. I had brought liquid detergent and clothes pegs and used these to great advantage. Unlike the dry prairies, air-drying on a ship takes time. I did discover a small laundry room on our deck but had no wish to spend my day watching a machine wash my clothes. Another option was to have the ship's crew clean our clothes but I saved at least $150 by doing it by hand.
The ship had a huge casino with machines and gaming tables. We played VideoPoker a few times and lost so there was no real incentive to return. The thing I did appreciate was most of the machines were non-smoking. For those who like games, there were several trivia games every day and the library was well-stocked with board games and playing cards. The Zumba teacher also gave dance lessons and every night there were folks dancing in the Piazza. Not Glen or I as his hip is still not up to that. There were two rock bands (mostly oldies), a string trio, pianist, and an Irish folk singer so every evening was filled with music.
There were three formal nights and roaming photographers snapped shots of people all gussied up. Some were in tuxes and evening gowns but Glen was not out of place wearing his sports jacket. Those nights we always ate in the dining room as they often had special dishes and Glen knows the final formal night means baked Alaska for dessert (Princess tradition). I ate lobster tail three times but only in the specialty restaurants. One night we signed up for a Tuscan food/wine tasting which was excellent. They knew Glen was celebrating his retirement so brought out a nice chocolate cake at the end. On our final sea day, we did a tour of the galley and the chef had created a display of 140 potato dishes.
To see my photos of our time at sea, click here
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