Sue and Garry's Greek cruise

[Suekersh]

Morning all.
Found this in my in box this morning.


Tuesday, 3 October - Embarkation Day.
AuroraGreek / Med cruise

We had left home on Friday to spend 3 days in Devon with our son before driving to Southampton Monday morning for an overnight stay in Elizabeth House Hotel.

We had an early embarkation time which all went smoothly and we had a buffet lunch in the Alexandria Restaurant where our friends eventually caught up with us. The Wine and Bubbles flowed well and a good start to the cruise.

On past cruises on Aurora by the time we have left the Priority lunch our cases were outside waiting to be unpacked ..... Not this time. No sign of them. Our friends who didn’t board for a 90 minutes after us had all their luggage, we left them to their unpacking and went out on the Aft deck. Around 5 p.m. the cases started arriving and managed to get unpacked before going down to dinner for 18:30.

We have a lovely table for 4 by the window and had met one of our waiters earlier this year.

After dinner we called into the Duty Free shop which on Aurora is tiny and from past experience sells out of our favourite gin very quickly. We ordered 4 bottles of gin to collect at the end of the cruise as did our friends. The shop manager told us that if we do see it at a cheaper price in Gibraltar to take a photograph of the price and he will match it.

Next stop was the Glass House to stock up with Jam Shed Shiraz as this is the only bar on the ship which stocks it and it saves the overworked waiters in the dining room having to go and get them.

Our friends went to the theatre and we wandered around chatting to passengers we had met on other cruises before finally getting back to our cabin.

We now have 3 sea days before we reach our first port of call Malaga.

Wednesday 4 October

After a long breakfast in the main dining room where we spotted Dolphins close by the ship, I had a busy morning mainly running around doing admin duties,whilst Garry was attending to the laundry that had accumulated since leaving home last Friday.
The peninsular lunch invitations had arrived and although our friends booking was linked to ours we had been given different dates for the lunch. It was no issue to change them but the wait to see the one loyalty person on the desk seemed to take forever even though was only one person in front of me.

At 11 am we went up to the Pennant bar to meet other passengers we had been communicating with since we booked this cruise about 2 years ago. It was a good turn out but as we had just tuned the corner to head down towards the dreaded Bay of Biscay we needed our coats on. Wemet up again with many familiar faces. I am dreadful at remembering names.

The afternoon passed quickly and there were times when it was quite pleasant to be outside. The Bay of Biscay was calm and the sun when it managed to break through the clouds had some heat to it.

We had booked Sindhu for Garry’s Birthday treat. Even though his birthday was yesterday we decided to leave it until tonight. We had booked it on line a couple of weeks ago and paid £10 per person deposit which then gives a further 20% off the total cost of the food so worth booking from home. Bookings usually become available 2 weeks prior to the cruise starting.

Comedian Manual Martinez was in Carmens. I call him my stalker as he seems to appear on the same cruises as us regularly. A lot of passengers enjoy his humour and magic tricks but I am not one of them.

There was a Rock & Roll group in the theatre but by the time we left Sindhu not only were we ‘too late and too stuffed’ to want to sit in a show we had also managed to get through a couple of bottles of wine. Hopefully they will be on again in a couple of days so we should get another chance to see them.

Thursday, 5 October 2023 - 2 nd sea day to Malaga.

The sun finally came out to play and by mid morning had started fighting back and winning the war with the clouds. The sea was very calm. A lazy day was just what I needed after a busy week and other than a quick 3 laps around the prom deck I stayed on my sunbed until it was time to prepare for our first of only 3 formal nights on this 19 night cruise.

The evening started early and as the Welcome aboard cocktail party started at 5:45. We were expecting huge queues but they had opened the doors early so by the time we arrived there was no queue at an officer showed us to some seats. Prosecco was served whilst we waited for the Captain to arrive. Captain Russell Robson was quite entertaining. He had already been to the Crows Nest to do the Welcome aboard speech up there and a passenger had followed him down to attend both parties just so that he could answer the questions the Captain was asking. The passenger thought it was very funny to get the exact number of nights all the passengers had travelled on P & O.

Dinner was the Marco Pierre White Beef Wellington menu. Unfortunately part way through the evening there was an accident with a glass of red wine, which meant Garry had to go and change during the meal. He wasn’t impressed as he was wearing a new dinner jacket for the first time. It will go to the laundry for specialist cleaning but it does look like it will be okay. Accidents happen but it may take him a while to laugh about it.

Our friends went to the theatre to see the Headliners show Astonishing and we went into Anderson’s Bar as this is the only bar that serves the Gin flights.

Friday 6 October - Final Sea Day to Malaga

We were out on deck very early anticipating a hot sea day as we sailed down the Portuguese coast. We weren’t disappointed but we had to leave our prime spot beds at 11 am to get ready for our Ligurian lunch at noon.

Another fabulous lunch with friends where the wine continued to flow throughout the meal. So much so that I needed an hour to sleep afterwards before I went back out in the sun.

I was still stuffed by the evening so decided against going into dinner.

Garry went without me and I slept right through.

Tomorrow we dock in Malaga.

[CaroleF]

Thank you Sue for the update on your Greek cruise. I love Aurora and it's great to read about your latest adventure.

Carole

[MaureenB]

I'm so pleased to have a new cruise from Sue and Garry to read about. I shall look forward to further instalments!

Have a wonderful time.

Best wishes

Maureen

[Suekersh]

Morning all from a very dull and damp Swansea.
Here is the next instalment from Sue and Garry.


Saturday 7 October 2023 - Malaga

4 ships in port today, Celebrity, Msc, and Tui. It was quite chaotic and Aurora was the furthest out as the others were on changeover days.

We were late docking apparently due to the weather but more likely due to the cruise ships as the weather was perfect.

Firstly a shuttle bus to get through the port which was obligatory, then a second one to get to the Port gates which was chargeable but free for us as select fare passengers. The scanner wasn’t working so cabin numbers were taken by hand.

It was a lovely hot day and once into the city we wandered around but our first stop was to find our fav tapas bar Uve Doble which is very popular with the Spanish, to try to book in for later. Last time we were here they took bookings but today there were no bookings being taken so we just had to take ‘pot luck’ along with everyone else when they opened at midday.

It was hot so we found a bar in the shade which was still serving breakfast but they were quite happy to serve the ‘ mad English’ beer at 11 a.m. to be fair it was only me on beer and the lightweights started with coke, water and coffee.

We were in the shade, the beer was good so we ordered another round before heading back to the Tapas bar which had just opened.

We had a lovely table outside with a view of the castle. The tapas are expensive here as they are ‘posh tapas’ but so worth it. The place soon filled up especially as it was weekend, the inside area is much bigger than outside but I was pleased we got there early enough for outside seating.

In our way back to the ship we found a small supermarket and stocked up on cabin essentials.

Garry had checked this evenings menu out in the Main Dining room and decided we would skip that and instead go to the Glass house with our friends. During the day Brian & Denise messaged to say that the menu was uninspiring and did we want to go to the Glass House. Great minds etc.,

This restaurant can’t be booked but I could go on the App at 6 p.m, and request a table for 6. This was confirmed a few minutes later.. It wasn’t as busy as we expected and we were well looked after by Cherry a waitress we have known for many years.

Our friends left to go and see The Cream of Clapton in the theatre
whilst we went out on deck to watch the sail past the Costal towns of the Costa del Sol whilst waiting for the meteor shower to arrive.
Either it didn’t happen or we gave up before it did.



Sunday, 8 October 2023, 1st Sea Day to Palermo.

A beautiful hot sunny Sea day with hardly a ripple on the sea.
I got my usual spot at the Aft of A deck and hardly moved all day other than turning over on my lounger and soaking up the rays from the Golden Globe in the sky. Dolphins followed the ship for a while and there was quite a lot of shipping around probably heading either to the Suez or from.

The dinner menu wasn’t very inspiring again but we stuck with it as continually eating in the speciality restaurants would mean I would need to buy more clothes before the start of the second cruise.
Passengers who have stayed on board from the last cruise have said that the food was much better on the last cruise but that there was a large turnover of chefs and galley crew in Southampton. We can only hope it will improve as the cruise goes along.

We had been invited to the Crows Nest for the Peninsular cocktail party but as we are at the aft of Deck 11 and and dine at the aft restaurant on deck 6 it seemed a waste of time energy to walk the full length of the ship and back again, so instead attended the party that was in Carmens at the aft of deck 7 and opted to go to the later one after our meal instead of having to be ready for dinner by late afternoon.

For the first time we have seen since the Pandemic they were serving hot canapés with the drinks. It took a while to get a drink but once we had one the top ups came regularly. It was a good party and our Captain Russel Robson was very entertaining.

The Loyalty team reminded everyone about the brochure launch on the 10 th October and promised that everyone would have a delivery overnight on the 9 th.

The raffle prize which we didn’t win was a bottle of champagne and the most travelled passenger attended the first sitting party. I can’t remember how many nights but in the Captains words they had done as many nights on P & O ships that he had equivalent to around 7 years. Very impressive.

The entertainment in the theatre was Tom Ball who had won Britains got Talent and a comedy magician in Carmens. Neither enticed us to spend the lovely evening inside and we had drinks outside on the aft deck under the stars. Still no sign of the Meteors forecast.

In the Horizon Newspaper there was a statement regarding the number of formal nights on this cruise. Apparently the info we got only showing 3 was a misprint and there are indeed the 4 formals that had been shown on our cruise personaliser but the date had changed by one day so as not to clash with our call into Messina.



Monday, 9 October 2023- final sea day to Palermo

Another perfect Sea day with Dolphin sightings and Calm seas.

I had my usual spot on the aft deck and spent the day there. The only time I moved was to collect the news sheets and crosswords.

We had a delivery of the New brochures and some very nice chocolates delivered to the cabin just before we were leaving for dinner. Pre registration starts on board tomorrow. We won’t be missing our day in Palermo to join the queue to pre book.

The evening meal was the best we had had so far in the Main Dining room. We can only hope that this continues.

After dinner we went to listen to the new Pulse group. They only boarded the same day we did.
They were performing Soul & Motown and we thought they both had great voices and a very talented backing group.

We met friends on the Aft deck and had a drink chatting under the stars discussing the Pros and Cons of the 2025/2026 itineraries. It was another warm clear night.

We arrive in Palermo around 08:30 tomorrow.

[CaroleF]

Sounds wonderful! Grey and getting chilly here so very envious of your sun. Thanks again for your report.

Carole

[Suekersh]

Morning all. Here is the latest update from Sue and Garry.

Tuesday, 10 October 2023 Palermo, Sicily .
We were out early as we got closer to land my phone started beeping to let me know I was in range of civilisation.

We spent some time catching up with the e mails from the last two days since leaving Malaga, booking the select dining for our next cruise, and contacted our travel agent regarding the new itineraries that had been released to view today.

We disembarked and walked through the terminal building to be accosted by throngs of taxi drivers. We hadn’t decided exactly what we wanted to do here. The P & O trips didn’t inspire and the research we had done didn’t either.

We opted for a Ho Ho bus thinking that once we had seen around the city we could then walk back to the areas of interest. It was an hours trip around and there were some impressive buildings and parks but there were many more areas filled with rubbish and the noise and traffic was incredible. They must have the loudest ambulances in the world. The scooters and bikes did not recognise pedestrian crossings and just wove around pedestrians. We saw one scooter with mother driving and her young daughter was holding a mobile phone up to her mothers ear so she could have a conversation, the Sicilian idea of Hands Free!

At end of the bus tour we found a bar which was a little gem called Café de Paris but not one of THE Café de Paris chain.
It was very hot the sun was on fire. I ordered a large beer and the drinks came with Hot Ham and Cheese baguettes which were delicious. Next came Ham & Cheese pancakes. I tried to refuse them but she insisted they were free and to enjoy. I tried one and it was delicious but couldn’t eat any more. The bill when it came was 7 euros, we had expected double that at least.

Fed and watered we set off to have a closer look at the Theatre Area which was superb. According to the tour guide on the bus every stone was laid without any cement to hold it in place. The area was very busy and we had been warned that the pickpockets etc were rife in this area. There were a few dodgy characters about but the place was ‘buzzing’ clean and cared for.

Our next stop was an Ice Cream parlour we had spotted. Italian ice cream is the best and this was definitely worth the calories. The downside was they didn’t sell Liquorice ice cream and from the look on his face I don’t think he had heard of it. This is where our friends caught up with us. They had done the HO HO tour about 2 hours later than ours. They don’t do early mornings unless necessary whereas we think it is the best part of the day.

Next stop was to find a supermarket to stock up on cabin supplies before going back to the ship as my tonic supplies were getting low as were Garry’s Pepsi max.

The ship;was still fairly quiet and the spot I usually choose to sit was vacant which was a result. I spent what was left of the afternoon soaking up the rays.

The sailaway was delayed due to the pilot boat being used by another vessel. I used one of the sailaway champagne vouchers we had been given on boarding before going down to dinner.

Captain Russell informed the passengers that there had been a slight change in the itinerary and our ports of Mykonos and Heraklion had been swapped around due to the amount of ships in the pot of Mykonos which is a tender port.

The show in Carmens was excellent with the Headliners performing Top of the Billboards. All the music from the UK hits in the 60s/ 70s from the Beatles, Elton John etc. a great show.

We finished the night again under the stars on the aft deck with a nightcap. The clocks go forward again overnight putting us 2 hours ahead of the UK.

Wednesday, 11 October 2023 Sea day to Athens
It was a much cooler morning, very windy and as the hour had gone forward it took a while for the sun to rise. It was very windy on the aft deck but as the sun rose the breeze was welcome.
Once again I didn’t move much all day. I love these sunny hot sea days.

It was the 2 nd formal night of the cruise and another lovely meal in the dining room with another Marco Pierre White menu.
Our friends went to the theatre to see Tom Balls second show and we went up to the Crows Nest for the Salted Caramel Espresso Martini.

We are now in Athens and on the tour bus to see the Corinth Canal and ancient Corinth.

[CaroleF]

I hope you enjoyed the Corinth Canal. We went down it on Adonia, very impressive work to create that canal.

[Suekersh]

Here is the latest update from Sue and Garry.


Thursday 12 October 2023 - Athens.

We had a very early trip booked to visit the Corinth Canal and then onto the Ancient Corinth which dated back to 600 BC.

It was a long journey from Piraeus and the port is huge with lots of ships in port both cruise ships and ferries, small yachts and ships being renovated. We passed some some stunning scenery.

At the first stop there were clean toilet facilities and a chance to buy a drink or snack but as it was a very short stop of 15 minutes a quick visit to use the facilities and then the short walk to the canal viewing point. It was stunning but I would have preferred a trip on a boat to see it rather than standing on a bridge looking at it. We were told it wasn’t being used at present because of a landslide.
There were lots of ‘tat’ stalls around all selling (or not selling) the same stuff.

We returned to the coach but the tour escort didn’t get back on the bus. We waited and a search party was sent out but he couldn’t be found. We eventually left to continue our journey to Ancient Corinth.

Because of the lost time waiting for the tour escort this part did feel very rushed. Inside the museum area we were not allowed to take photos as some of the exhibits were very recently excavated and hadn’t been published. For me this was the most interesting part of the tour. Lots of the exhibits were in very good condition and the original colours could be seen. Our tour guides knowledge was excellent and she made the relics and the way the people lived come alive.

The next part of the tour was outside walking through the old ruins which she made interesting with her stories. We did keep losing her in the crowds as she was very petite. There was a lot to see. I am not very good at visualising what was there when all I can see are old ruins or in some places or just rocks.

We returned to the bus and once again everyone was accounted for except the tour escort but as soon as we set off our tour guide informed us that the escort was fine and he had boarded the wrong bus after the first stop. It was good to know he was okay and hadn’t had a mishap.
The last stop was another toilet break as it was an hour back to the ship, and of course the obligatory shopping opportunity. We had a quick look but nothing ‘shouted ‘ buy me. There was some silver jewellery and I had a quick look but it didn’t shout ‘buy me’
We were hoping that there would be a nice bar or even a not nice bar as long as it had beer but a quick look round revealed absolutely nothing.

We returned to the ship early afternoon and I found a bed in the sun for a few hours.

We had booked the Beach House with friends for dinner and had a fabulous view of the sail away. When we were last on board Aurora in July the Beach House had changed the Lava rock steaks to huge 10 oz ones but we had heard that you could now order one steak to share. Our waiter first told us it was not possible but we asked him to check with the officer in charge. There are so many new crew on board that it will take time for them to settle in but at least he now knows for future that this option can be offered.

The meal was excellent and we have another one booked in a few days time.
Our friends left to go to the theatre to see the Headliners show Fantasy and met other friends in Anderson’s bar to finish the night .

We have another early trip tomorrow in Heraklion - Crete.

[Suekersh]

Morning all here is the latest update from Sue and Garry.



Friday, 13 October 2023 Heraklion, Crete

We had another early start and we were off the ship soon after the All Clear announcement was made.

Our destination today was to Aghios Nicolaus a small sea side City about an hours drive from Heraklion through stunning scenery.

The clouds looked threatening as we drove through the mountains and we went through a rain shower which was concerning as we hadn’t brought a brolly or waterproofs, but when we arrived at our destination the sun was shining and it was hot.

Although it was an ‘on your own trip’ our guide walked with us out of the coach park and pointed out the interesting parts to visit.

We headed for the lake area with the bars dotted alongside and purchased drinks whilst we got our bearings. Fed and watered we set off to wander around the touristy town. There was a mixture of shops from the usual tourist tat to upmarket jewellers and everything inbetween.
One shop had huge pieces of Amethyst which were absolutely stunning in all shapes and sizes.

We stopped for an excellent Gelato before heading for the beach area. It was a bit of a disappointment as it was very stony which is probably why the sea was so clear. We were going to stop there for another drink but all of the available tables were by the busy roadside so carried on around the bay to find a quieter bar with a sea view. There were so many to choose from.

We had 3 1/2 hours in the city before we had to be back at the coach park and the time went very quickly but I think we saw most of the attractions.
The tour guide kept us entertained with Greek myths on the way back to the ship.

Once back on board Garry rushed off to the laundry and I found a lounger in the sun. I was hoping for an hours ‘shut eye’ but soon realised that would be impossible. We were docked right under the planes flight path to the busy airport. Every 5 minutes they were arriving and close enough to see the pilots. Apparently it had been like that all day.

The restaurant staff excelled last night and dealt with an incident in the dining room quickly and professionally.

Another excellent dinner for all of us with my favourite Sea bass on the menu.

It was the 70’s party night in Carmens with the resident group Pulse. Our friends went to the theatre to see the Violinists final show.

Tomorrow is our final Greek port Mykonos and our only Tender Port. It is due to be exceptionally busy and we have already been warned of possible long delays and passengers who cannot stand for long periods of time have been advised that they may be more comfortable staying on board Aurora.

When we booked this cruise there should have been four Greek ports but Rhodes was cancelled a few weeks ago for ‘operational’ reasons. Disappointing but we will be booking another Greek cruise to try to get to Rhodes.

[LadyPCruiser]

Hi sue - anything grab you in the new brochure??

[Suekersh]

Saturday, 14 October 2023 - Mykonos, Greece

A tender port along with 4 other ships, the largest being the Virgin ship but that had stayed overnight and left at 13:30.

We collected our Tender tickets from Carmens and were amazed that there was no queue. We only waited about 10 minutes before our ticket numbers were called to go down to the tender station.

P & O had requested tender assistance from the port but they hadn’t got up early enough to provide it.

Mykonos is a Greek Sea side town. Very picturesque with many whitewashed buildings and alley ways that wind around, you wouldn’t think a car could pass through but did along with large vans.

It was still relatively quiet as we walked around the harbour from the tender point but knew it would be rammed later with so many ships in.
We found Little Venice and spotted a nice little Bar called Katrinas which had a small Terrace with great views. It was too early to stop for a drink so continued through Little Venice.

There were many individual shops Highly decorated hand bags which looked lovely but I knew I would never use, so many Gold and silver shops but again too ornate for me and the Gold looked a funny colour.

We finally ended up by the sea again and could see the 16 th century Windmills. Garry stayed at the bottom and I walked up the steep slope to get a closer view. From there I could see the hoards of passengers disembarking various tenders from the different ships. I took photos and decided to walk back down the steps instead of the slope. The steps are ancient and were used by the donkeys to transport the grain to and the flour from the windmills.

By this time it wasn’t too early for a drink and we retraced our steps through Little Venice to the bar we had spotted. We weren’t disappointed the views were magnificent. The Greek beer was excellent. We stayed there for over an hour just people watching. The sea was so clear we could see the fish below us.

When the bill for the 4 drinks came Garry had a “Ow much moment” 28 Euros for 2 cokes and 2 bottles of beer. Hey Ho we are on holiday and the views were worth it.

We headed back the same way towards the centre and stopped again, this time for a Gelato. Again more expensive than we had paid in previous ports but was unanimously declared the best ever.

We walked back to the tender embarkation and the Port Authority had taken over the tender duties. We only had a short wait and we were back on Aurora in time for restaurant lunch.

I got a bed in the sun but the cloud came over about 4 p.m. and it became cooler.

Another excellent dinner in the restaurant with my favourite Sea Bass.

Sunday, 15 October 2023 - Sea Day to Messina
I was out on deck early and it was still quite cool until the Sun managed to burn off the clouds and heat up the North Westerly wind. I finally shed my layers and soaked up the rays whilst chatting with other passengers.

The highlight today was the evening entertainment. Neil Lockwood Lead singer of E.L.O (2) fame has got to be the absolute best entertainer on P & O. We have seen him before and will see him again and again. He is the only act that has enticed us to go to the theatre this cruise. The theatre was packed with not a spare seat available and passengers standing on the stairs and at the back.

When we returned to the cabin I had a Hot Toddy to try to ward off the germs from the coughing, sneezing and spluttering passengers.

Tomorrow we arrive in Messina.

[Suekersh]

Good morning everyone, here is the latest update from Sue and Garry.


Monday, 16 October 2023- Messina.
Our least favourite port of the cruise. This is the Port of Call that P & O deemed suitable as an alternative to the beautiful Island of Rhodes, when due to the usual ‘operational reasons ‘ the Port of Rhodes was cancelled from our itinerary.

Messina is a city with an Astronomical Clock which is definitely worth seeing more than once to take in all the mechanical actions it performs at midday each day. Before and after midday for a small fee you can climb the internal stairs. After seeing this perform at least 8 times over years we will pass on this.

There are trips to the nearby town of Taormina which we have been to many times, a chance to see Mount Etna close up and a Godfather tour amongst others.

Last time we called here last summer after experiencing the clock for the 8 th time we caught a Ho Ho bus from the port to see the sights. That was a bit different as there was only one stop to Hop off where they stopped for 5 minutes for passengers to get off to take photos of the views and hop back on again or wait 30 minutes for the next bus.

After calling for the obligatory gelato close by the ship we returned and set up on the deck for the day. At least the weather was excellent which was the only positive I can think of.

We had a fabulous evening in the Beach House with friends.

[Suekersh]

Morning all here is the latest cruise report from Sue and Garry.

Tuesday, 17 October 2023

1 st Sea day to Gibraltar

Another hot calm sea day as we headed back West.

Booking day for the 2026 Spring cruises. We had given Andrea our fabulous TA our instructions to book the 2026 Grand Voyage on Aurora and we got a very quick confirmation that we had our preferred cabin booked.

A perfect sea day with a few sightings of Dolphins and very calm seas.

It was the third formal night but the menu just didn’t inspire so we decided to go to the Glass house which was exceptionally busy as is usual on a formal night as it doesn’t insist on formal dress.

Wednesday, 18 October 2023 sea day to Gibraltar
We started the morning with a champagne breakfast. So much food was delivered that there was enough for lunch as well.

The wind was quite blustery and a warning was announced for passengers to take extra care around the ship.

The sun was hot and I stayed safe by not moving from my sun lounger.

Captain Robsons voice came over the speaker which we knew could only be bad news. It was. The weather forecast was horrible with gale force winds and High seas for the Atlantic Ocean. The call to Gibraltar was cancelled as the authorities had informed him that they would most likely have to close the port.
We are in for a rough ride back to Southampton.

As soon as the announcement was made the queue for the duty free shop went around the ship. Passengers had been waiting to buy their supplies in Gib. Luckily we had bought ours as we boarded knowing that the shop do a price match if we had found it cheaper in Gibraltar. The only thing I really needed was some whisky purely for medicinal purposes.

After dinner we went to the theatre to see Neil Lockwood which should have been his final show but as he can’t disembark in Gibraltar we will be lucky enough to see him again. Another great performance from this amazing talented musician.


Thursday, 19 October 2023. - Sail Past Gibraltar

A windy sea day but not too bad at times and we could still walk around the ship without much issue. Sone brave passengers were outside but it was fairly miserable . I thought we were getting away with it fairly lightly until late afternoon.

I managed to get into the shower but as soon as I came out I knew I wasn’t going anywhere that night.There was nothing gradual about the build up of the storm it just happened as we turned into the Atlantic. Anything that wasn’t fastened down was made safe .
I took sea sickness tablets and I got into bed and stayed there.

Our friends phoned regarding dinner and had also decided against it as feeling unwell, Garry took them some sea sickness tablets round and as the motion of the Ocean has no affect on him other than his walking ability he went to dinner.
Our lovely officer Clio arranged for my dinner to be sent to the cabin.
As the tablets had worked I felt well enough to eat.

Needless to stay we didn’t venture out at all in the evening.

[Onelife]

I always read Sue’s cruise reports with much envy and whilst it is unlikely that I will ever enjoy Sue and Garry’s cruise lifestyle, I do by reading her reports get a sence of having experienced the journey with them.

Fantastic cruise report writing Sue.

Thank you.

[CaroleF]

I agree with Onelife. I've been on Aurora numerous times, my favourite ship so I can visualise exactly where they are on the ship. I really enjoy hearing about their lovely days.

Thank you for posting.

[Suekersh]

Morning all. Here is the latent cruise report from Sue and Garry.


Friday October 20 th 2023 sea day to Southampton.

Another rough sea day but the sun was out. The motion of the Ocean had caused problems during the night in the area around Champions where the storm had penetrated through the doors and sea water had invaded. Industrial driers were out in force and the crew were repairing the doors and frames.

We walked past he shop and the shelves were 1/2 empty with the remaining goods strewn around the floor. I won’t be buying Pringles in there as they will be smashed up.

We managed breakfast then sat outside for a short while before Garry decided to do some laundry and miraculously got a washing machine.
It was so quiet that once the white load had finished he did another coloured load and we are completely up to date ready for the start of the next cruise.

It was rough probably the worst we had known. Nothing in the cabin would stay put and the Poltergeists we’re having a party. Drawers and cupboards just opened at will. Walking was a challenge and lots of extra steps were added today just to get anywhere.

We collected our Duty free purchases from Masquerades and the first thing I did was to make a whisky, honey and lemon drink for medicinal purposes. Not that I needed it but just in case. So many coughers and sneezers on this ship.

I decided my bed was the safest place to be but did venture down to lunch then another 5 minutes of fresh air.

Getting showered was an interesting experience with one hand firmly on the grab bar.

We managed to get into dinner which was a celebration night menu. I had lobster but not as you know it. Gone are the lobster tails, now it is a lobster claw taken out of the shell and put between 2 pieces of puff pastry and served with juicy prawns. Luckily I am not a big eater as when I removed the pastry there was very little left but it was excellent. I would rather have small and tasty and the pastry if I had eaten it would have been filling.

The ship was still moving around considerably so we skipped the entertainment and went straight back to the cabin, where once again the poltergeists had been having a party.

We checked on the cabin TV and Aurora had just started crossing the Bay of Biscay.

[Onelife]

"It was rough probably the worst we had known"

Considering the amount of cruises you have done then it must have been rough….wishing you calm seas across the bay.

[Suekersh]

Morning everyone, here is the latest update from Sue and Garry.

Saturday, 21 October 2023 final day of cruise.

This day is always a downer of a day. The packing to tackle, saying goodbyes and just knowing our fabulous holiday is over until the next one.

Lucky for us no packing to do especially as the sea state was so rough that cupboards and doors were still opening and closing of their own accord.

We collected some leftover booty from cruising friends just to save them from having to carry it home. We have donated in the past when we have been disembarking and they have been staying on.

The storm on the last three days has been so bad that many passengers are happy to be disembarking but we have checked the passage weather for Monday and it is looking very good.

Some of the usual daytime entertainment was cancelled because of the motion of the ocean and my bed was the safest place to be.

The sea state gradually lessened during the day and once Aurora had turned into the English Channel it was noticeably calmer.
It was so good to be able to shower using two hands instead of hanging on for grim death to the hand rail and pressing my butt up against the shower wall for stability. (Too much information I know )

Final dinner was another success as we toasted another great cruise with friends. Not sure when we will see them again on a cruise but hopefully next year.

The entertainment in the Theatre was excellent. A variety show with the very talented and entertaining Mo town group The Vinylettes for the first 20 minutes followed by the super star Neil Lockwood who closed the show.

Final breakfast with our friends in the main dining room before saying our farewells whilst they wait for their disembarkation announcement.

A great ending to a fabulous cruise which was only marred by the storm for the last few days.

Shopping this morning in Southampton for essential supplies but as it’s a Sunday so no need to rush off.

Then it’s time to set off for the Caribbean and the passage weather forecast looks sunny and calm with Madeira our first stop on Thursday forecasting 25 degrees and sunny.

[Whynd1]

Glad you have enjoyed the cruise Sue,hope the weather out of Southampton will be kind to you.

It's dark and damp here in South Wales. Still not too long for me for me, my only cruise this year on Iona to do the Christmas markets,had to cancel one in the summer due to family health problems.

Have a good cruise.
Lindsey

[MaureenB]

Thank you for posting on your cruise Sue. A great read as always.

I am looking forward to reading all about your Caribbean journey.

Calm seas and hot sun to you and Garry

Best wishes

Maureen