November 29 – December 1, 2007 Getting There and Dubai

I am writing from my bathtub at Jumeirah Beach hotel. What is the secret to making a rubber duckie float? So many bath amenities, even goat's milk soap that I am trying out. None of that marble stuff. Bathtub shelving is blue granite as is the shower step in. You could melt in that bed, and even the couch pillows are like no other.

Club level is the way to go here. That airport pickup was best in my life. Our driver picked us up right from the plane, waited for our bags for us, stood in line for us for the passport check, and then drove us to the hotel. Great checkin at the club. Lovely stroll all up and down the beach and even under the road in the ocean yards from Burj al Arab . So many restaurants and nice pools and waterslides and great beach. Check out Latitudes rest. Different country in every room. Weekend brunch includes sparkling wine and long island tea.  We just looked and took pictures.

Today will be included breakfast and included Wild Wadi before heading to ship. Trip over from Houston was horrid. Every seat in every section sold. Bulkhead where we were was a fav stretching and chatting spot so no rest. Saw 5 movies and slept 15 min.

I did the seafood meals and had cold grilled salmon for first meal and huge boiled shrimp for the second.

Todd had chicken (other choice was pasta) and later pizza. I ate his cous cous. It had apricots, dates and almonds. Only free drink in all those hrs was at dinner. Not even soft drinks offered anytime but with the next meal and you had to get ur own water all the time. Bare bones. Loads on the flight going to Iraq for work with oil and gas cos. We flew all across Iraq and Kuwait but never saw anything. Route was up Canada over to Ireland across France and Russia and Romania and across the holy land and on to Iran and Iraq. Arrived an hour early. Ride was early and took care of us like u would not believe. Silversears everywhere at the hotel. Christmas tree at airport.

It looks like the Houston pollution stripe on the horizon. I hope it wears off.

The zero entry pool here is neat. Nice dark blue.  Last night I could not find the hot tubs. Now I can see them out the window.

For beach access u just walk out. I guess at Burj u jitney over here.
The flight left Houston at 4;30 and changed planes in Atl. The Dubai part was 12 hours but was supposed to be longer.

Since I could not sleep last night I did enjoy the tub. They have Elemis plus a bunch of other stuff. They give you a beach bag and sunscreen and lip balm and flip flops.

You can get great wifi in your room, but if u want it free on your club deal u need to go up there and get the codes or u can get loaner laptops and use up there and enjoy the amenities.

I have just stuck to the Blackberry so far. Sorry about the lower case and typos but I am on thumb typing and have slept 3 hrs in 2 days.

Last night we saw the ski slope and the mall from the road. It looks huge, and we saw the tallest building in the world.  It is just over half completed.

What a view at breakfast. Burj on one side and the city on the other. I had Arabic bread and Indian lentils and American bacon, hash browns and boiled eggs plus fruits. Big breakfast. Todd had all American food. I also had smoked salmon.

I went to the club reception and they are letting us keep our room until 2 and then a driver will take us complimentary to the ship.

Wild Wadi opens an hour early for Jumeirah hotels guests. From here u just walk in pretty much.

People are drawn to the wavy part of the beach. We are about to switch to beach gear.

The hotel has free shuttles to Souk Madinet Jumeirah. We are not doing any of that we will do any of that from the ship. We are enjoying this place while we can.

I am sure those who are not bored are all thinking, "I can't believe she want all the way to Dubai to go to a water park". My response is, "why not???". For the interested, Google wildwadi.com. This place is not the kind of place you walk way up a bunch of steps to stand in line with screaming kids. Oh, no! You grab an intertube and lay in the lazy river till you find the entrance to whichever master route you want to do. Then you walk up maybe 8 or 9 steps and then reboard an intertube while some young person will then push you off on the first slide for your set of slides. It will shoot you UP, not down. You are transported thru the water slide UP and then moved along to the next slide, which will be down and then up and then down. You never do a thing except keep your rear off the ground (difficult) and ride the wave. Incredible. Then you ride the rest of the river or move to the next master set. They also have this ENORMOUS thing where you can climb and lay down and ride, but we didn't do that. And the have a surf thing and a bogie board thing, and adults and kids were trying this, and boy was there a range of skill. We just watched. The wave pool was very nice and warm. They had a kiddie park with slides for all sizes. Around were various snacks and souvenier (price) shops. The various Jumeirah hotel guests get in an hour early at a separate entrance that was just steps off the beach from our hotel. It is free to all the properties, and you just give your room number and could go any day and everyday if you want. They have lockers if you want, and these operate off the wristband by adding money to it and slapping it against the locker. They will set you up in loungers and will escort you anywhere if you need anything. Just like you were still at the resort (which you are), you do not get things pointed out, you are escorted and comfort is ensured. We did the whole place in 2 hours and moved on for a beach walk and then the hot tub.

The hotel has a swim up bar or walk up and they insisted on carrying our drinks to our room, though they had to get permission from 4 different people to escort up there. Nobody expects a tip. We gave some.

The executive club room was $778. While not cheap, they picked us up at the airport. Not just a ride. They personally found our bags on the belt, lifted them off, moved us to the VIP customs line which they stood in for us until we got up there, took us to the hotel in a new Audi (greeted in the car with waters and cold towels). They gave VIP check-in and you get drinks and appetizers every night in this level. Also, there are always snacks in the lounge, and they have free net and loaner laptops and then you get a lovely breakfast with a mix of Indian, Arabian, European and American choices all catered to you.

Service is beyond amazing. If you are anywhere at all and even looking slightly perplexed, you are greeted and taken to your every need and want, which is usually handy, luxurious, and often included.

We were allowed a 2 pm checkout with no hassle at all, and we were taken to the ship in time for the 3 pm shuttle, also free of charge.

December 1, 2007 Embarkation

Embarkation - this was our first "regular" SS embarkation. We paid for the early one before. They rolled out the red carpet for us, and we had what I hope is the only line. We had champagne, did the passports and photos and had canapes in hand in 8 minutes. The had smoked salmon, caviar and blinis, various canapes, and shrimp cocktail.

We were invited to go back around for any drink of our choice or more champagne and did so. We never touched a bag, and all 4 bags were on the bed waiting to be unpacked when we got to our room about 20 minutes after boarding. We were shown the cabin and told our stewardess would introduce it to us.

I went to the pool deck after scoping out the medallion suite. I was in pursuit of a salad and told "we close at 4". I had my one ugly American moment where I said, "it is 3:58" and went and had a few mixed nuts and a glass of wine at the pool bar and then on to tea for Jasmine that I hoped would be a real pick me up. They have gone to bags! but have a nice selection. Service was lovely. They bring you our silver tra and offer a variety of scones. The pianist was just lovely.

Todd unwound in the cabin (735, one of 2 medallion suites)  while I went off to get a La Terraza reservation (now the specialty reservations are made at the restaurants and not reception, and you are seated and the programs are introduced. I was the only one there and had no wait and no difficulty getting a reservation for the 2nd formal night. I could have got in for tonight for the Italian lobster, which I might should have done as I am not sure about getting dressed up after the sesert safari, but we did not drag this tux and dress for nothing.

I perused the library, got a movie and the daily games and came back to get ready with Todd for the lifeboat drill.

The stewardess came and noted anything we requested or wanted (literally took notes). I had requested some things a year ago, and I requested others 4 days before the cruise, and all requests were met except the Grey Goose, but there is a letter that it is not on board yet because of the difficulties with liquor in Dubai and that we would get it today. The Jack Daniels and wines and Diet Pepsi were all here, as was the extra club soda in smaller cans.

Medallion Suite

 We are in 735, starboard side. There is only 736 portside in this category. At the door, you have your bell and letter holder and come inside to a closet of shelves and a table and mirror that has become our place for the cards and sunglasses.

To the right is the water closet, and to the left is the hallway (wasted space) to the living area. This area could be more comfortable, as there is tons of space, but they have the loveseat (though there is plenty of space for a couch). They have the table you see in about.com but not those blue chairs. It is different chairs, and they are more for dining than sitting and relaxing. They have room for a relaxation chair or two.

Anyway, nobody has that yet, but I know with the new ships the lines are coming out with, a lot of people want it.

Anyway, it is very serviceable, and ther is a Noramaki (may not be it) cd player with speakers on the wall. The desk is very nice and seviceable with all our connectors and glasswear, binoculars and plates and plenty of cloth napkins and an atlas, encyclopedia and dictinary.

The personal stationary had someone else's name, though we have had this cabin booked for 20 months. (I had that dealt with).

All the hotel info and postcards and stuff are in a rack. There is a beautiful new 37 inch Philips lcd that swivels to be seen from the desk or couch. There is a nice table (I believe it is the silver suite one but folded down) that they have the extra sodas, liquor and beautiful flower arrangement that I love, along with the fruit sitting on (bad sentence).

The bedroom module has the bed, nightstands, a dressing table with more plug-ins and lovely 2nd TV just like the other and cabinets for more storage underneath. In addition to bedside lamps, there are adjustable reading lamps installed over the bed for each person that just go right to whatever you want for your reading and such. Nice.

They have the bedside clock and phones everywhere, including the bathroom.

The closet is off the bedroom and huge with tons of drawers, plenty of hangers and a huge full length mirror. There is a nice shoe rack.

You can enter the bathroom here or from the water closet in the hall. This gives you direct access from our bedroom if the door is shut or from the hall, and there is a sink in the water closet and another door that lets someone be in the toilet area with privacy while someone else is in the bath or shower and having 3 sinks, one should never have an issue.

The bathroom has a Jacuzzi brand jet tub that I am anxious to experience and the double sinks with shelves and all the Bvulgari amenities. The Bvulgari is also in the water closet and about the tub and such. There is more storage here and also a thin full length mirror here and the shaver plug.

This suite comes with free laundry as often as you like but not pressing or dry cleaning. We will likely use it just to get some stuff de-wrinkled, as I am surre they will not bring it back wadded up!

Also, the website no longer mentions canapes in this category as I assume they may want to eliminate, but they are included, and we were brought the full caviar spread at 5 and then the stewardess asked what time each day do we want canapes.

The balcony is larger than the standard suite, naturally since the room is bigger.

Fabrics have been lightened, delightfully. They have gone to beige, tan, offwhite, and lighter browns for the most part. The drapes in the bedroom module can be wrapped for complete darkness or opened to see out the balcony, and the door can be closed or opened. We are using it both ways since Todd woke up after 2 hours and came out and watched TV and worked a puzzle and I slept but woke up at 4 and am now out where enjoying the suite while he rests in his cocoon while we try to make this our last jetlaggy day.

December 1 Activities

Our first interesting experience was that we had no life jackets in our cabin (still don't). When the stewardess came, she asked if we needed anything, and Todd said lifejackets. She and I both just thought he was stating it was so close to 5:30 that we needed to move on. Well, there weren't any. So she left while he was looking and then I "got it" that we really had none and tried to chase her, but she was off like a flash in seconds. Even another guest came in. No life jackets. Well, Todd followed me out to see what I found out, and then said, do you have your key? So we neither one had one and now no life jackets or way to get one. Hall monitor said go and listen and then call stewardess.

We did that. We were fine. Then we had to get a new key card.

We unpacked and tried to go to the Taste of Things to Come, but we were slow and sore from the plane and the waterpark and tiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeed. We got up there in time for clams and a drink and another chat with Shani Reay the cruise director.
Many dined in their cabin or were on the Evening in Dubai tour, so there were only 5 of us in the dining room. Plus I think it was always 7:30 in the past and maybe still is except the one night. There were a lot of others at 7:30 and then many more at 8:30 when people were back from the tour.

We headed off to dinner right after 7. The room was not full. Many dined in their cabin or were on the Evening in Dubai tour, so there were only 5 of us in the dining room. Plus I think it was always 7:30 in the past and maybe still is except the one night. There were a lot of others at 7:30 and then many more at 8:30 when people were back from the tour. They did a better job than before in mixing local cuisines and had tastes of Arabia mixed in with traditional favorites.
I went for the traditionals since I had some Arabian stuff at the hotel.

I had steamed clams, Maui red onion soup, and then sea bass with pasta with pesto instead of the vegetables. Todd had the curried prawns, the same soup and tenderloin. For dessert, I had pina colada sorbet, and he had vanilla ice cream. We gave the sommolier a run for his money, taking 3 wines to please us, but now he likes us, so I think we will get good service. Our waiter remembered us, and we remembered him. We have seen a few familiar people, but most not. They have a 7 month contract. We were on Whisper in April of 2006 and Wind in March of 2007.

I forgot to mention that in the chaos of getting ready for the boat drill, I ordered room service - the 42 cal delicious! tomato basil soup and some spring rolls  since we are not caviar  people.

December 2 Dubai

The weather has been 80 and no humidity like home. My gosh it is fabulous!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are amazed at the smog and the traffic, but the traffic looked neat lit up last night.

Today before our desert safari, I may go do a souq or something if there is a shuttle. I haven't read anything yet, too tired and too busy having fun.

I still feel tired but look 10 years younger than the old had I looked like yesterday. Several people asked me yesterday if I was OK. I think a couple thought I was unhappy, but I was just really about to fall down from exhaustion. I did sleep 7 hours last night.

Our Indian driver gave us a nice little tour coming to the ship and lots of commentary. We enjoyed that. This place as far as the look of the buildings reminds us a lot of Hong Kong.

Well, it is 5:50, so I am either going back to bed or for another tubbing experience. I have got to be perky to see Todd on that camel!!!!!!!!

Wow. Like everything else in Dubai, the daylight is magic. I have not seen anything like it the last two days. One minute, it is PITCH BLACK. The next minute, it is like somebody snapped in a new background, and it is almost totally daylight. It is just too hard to describe. It is 6:25 and in this mode. That is the mode where they still have lights on but it is 80% light.

SS website says laundry but not canapés, but I figured they probably were. Canapés are not a must have, especially since you don't pick them (though they probably would do that since you pick the time).

I've been turned around on this ship. Since the last time on here, I've been on Wind and just came off of Voyager a couple of weeks ago, and I nknow all the decks, but I keep turning the wrong way.

It has been interesting just having the ship sit here. I guess that is what QE2 will be like. That is what the staff are all talking about

We have high hopes for the laundry and I hope we stay put long enough to actually fll out the ticket.

What a busy day and there is so much left. I am in the 4 x 4  on the way back to the ship.

I am still so tired.

There is a sunset like u would not believe out the car window..

This morning was breakfast then shuttle to city center . Som  e got off at gold sou  q, and it is walkable from the cruise terminal neat people movers like escalators with no steps in that mall and a market that is so amazing.

Later was lunch after a drink in the pool bar lounger and then up to putting range and off to desert safari. It was awesome.

Tonight is formal and we were invited to dine with the cruise director.

I will describe in detail when I am not in the car.

I saw the golf and yacht club by the Hyatt. It is pretty over there but no real chance for pics. Like everything else in Dubai, there is so much netting or blocking for the dust and construction. The place is a dust pile.

A tidbit on Dubai, it rains about 4 times a year for less than an hour we hear, and I think it is not even 2 inches of rain.

I am really dragging and not sleeping enough hours. I slept less than 5 last night. I signed up for afternoon tours part of the time but we like the afternoon activities like trivia and golf, so we are missing that.

Interestingly, I was SOOO sore before I went on the camel ride and came back with NO backache like I had a cure. That camel was like a baby's bottom, but....Todd was on the saddley part, and he was not happy.

More comments for this day:

We both (separately) enjoyed that jet tub in the room. It is Jacuzzi brand and has a lot of settings and is nicely powerful enough to give some soothing, unlike some of the hotelish weak things. I like my jacuzzis, so I love this perk. Todd thought it was not going to work out for a 6 ft. 3 big guy, but he liked it.

We are so convenient to the buffet that we are going there more than we would. It works out well since we are not up to snuff anyway and the food there is to die for.

I love how they carve the fruits on the spot on SS. I really enjoy the ripe fruits. I had that and some American bacon and eggs. Todd had ham and eggs.

I went on the City Centre outing. I was intrigued by the people mover up the mall floors and the market thing was so international. Think California Farmer's market indoors with world offerings and people from 200 countries with Best Buy and Walmart and a chocolate store all mixed into one place.

It was hard to get pics due to the haze, but after the 4 x 4, he took us out, and we got great ones.

The pool deck was so nice to lay out and have a drink. They have new tables on the decks and balconies and new little tables in both that I like. I think they will last a while.

Todd played with the Nike clubs upstairs. They do rust a bit, but he was playing with techniques he had just read in a magazine, and he was having a good time.

Lunch on Whisper at the buffet usually includes most of the sit down offerings, and I enjoyed cod, crab legs, salad and pumpkin soup, while Todd had the soup, fish and lasagna. they also had beef satay, pizza, veal, chicken, and many other dishes. They had crème Brule also.

The lunch wine was nice. Service up there is really good. That has not gone down.

There were morning and afternoon tours, and they had it well organized with everyone being directed to where they should go. Ours was a group of I think 5 vehicles with 3 to 4 guests in each. The outing was tailor made for SS and escorted by SS fully. It was customized to each guest, and those that wanted a tame experience were all organized and grouped, and those of us doing the regular were placed accordingly as well.

We went out to Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve and went to the camel farm. We saw the camels we would ride and had a coffee and dates. I don't like any coffee anywhere and liked this. It is more like tea and has a fruity taste at the end.

Dates were good, but there were flies around.

We got on the camels. The white ones are from Sudan, and the brown ones are gulf camels (Austrailia also has a brown camel).

We rode around for some time, and they took pics with our own cameras, never trying to sell us anything. Two ladies did not ride. Everyone else enjoyed it. I found the camel soft as a baby's bottom. Todd was in front and did not feel the same way. I had a back ache before, and the camel cured it. Crazy but true.

Then we went in the dunes for pics and had either an Arabic Coke Light, a Fanta orange or water.

After that, we went to really look at the camels and saw 2 day old babies.

After that, they spun out the 4 x 4's for about an hour (they let out air from the tires before you even start this whole venture) and then headed out. They put the air back in the tires, gave us a city tour and went back to the ship. This was a customized tour for us with no other guests. The regular event following ours would have 300 people and the bbq dinner, belly dancing, star gazing after sunset, etc. Our thing was more to our taste and quite private with constant checking by the 5 tour hosts and our SS host. Attendees were 35 to 55 on this jaunt.

The captain's party was nice. I got emotional, as I always do. The 2nd in command told a cute tale comparing being second on a ship to second at home.

The guest flutist, Jane Rutter sat with me, and we had a delightful chat. She is from Australia and had a lengthy trip to come, as well.

Shani put together a table of 9. There was a couple from America that were first time cruisers, a British couple that have sailed SS 17 times and no other line and a Canadian couple that had met the British couple on some other cruise they had all been on. They all knew Shani from Cloud.

The Americans kind of offended us a bit with some of the quizzing and bragging. They didn't seem to be enjoying the trip that much, and for them, I hope they really do. This is a long way to come and not have something you want.

The other couples were a total delight. Fully interesting and good companions on into the Sally Jones show. She is from London's West End and did cabaret tunes intertwined with comedy. She involved a guest from Tulsa and had him tangoing with a rose in his teeth.

She will do something on a sea day in the afternoon mixing Andrew Lloyd Webber tunes with a lecture on him. I can't wait for that.

We all think all the Emirates may be similar and are looking forward to the sea days, but now that we just pulled int Khasab, I can see it will be quite different.

Tried Panorama for the disco at 11:30 when the show was over (they are starting the shows now at 10:30 so people can linger at dinner, I don't like that but some do, and nobody walked in late). There were a half dozen there, and one couple that I think was the distinguested gent and a frequent guest were too good and intimidating for anyone else to dance. The music was great, and at midnight, that was it on the bandwidth.

Todd is not donning that tux again, and the 2nd formal night, we are going to La Terraza.

At dinner, I had the goose liver that was just devine! I had the celeric apple soup and the salad with strawberries and cashews and then lobster. Todd had mixed berries in blue curacao, the salad and prime rib, followed by vanilla ice cream. Some of our table mates had the veal, and others the halibut.

December 3 Khasab

I did not sleep 5 hours last night. I am not sure how I am going to go again till the late night.

Last night we decided to dine in the cabin and watch a movie. Two of the 4 were not working (of course they were when we were too busy) and one movie we had seen on the plane, and the other was wierd. So we got a dvd, but we could not watch that on the bed without our laptop. So with the stubby couch and the desk type chairs two must sit on the couch and use the other chairs as a footstool. That is my high horse for the day but people in verandahs and vistas are on 50 percent off and those of us in suites are at 20 (we also got 5 percent Venetian and 2 percent past sailing but could have got that on a verandah).

Anyway, so on the plus side, you get the box of Godivas in this suite. It is 6 inches long and 3 inches high.

They will not decorate for Christmas till the first day of the holiday voyage. They don't want to offend anyone. I have my own thoughts on that. I would like decor.

Today they will do the Hannukah celebration (being in Fujairah, and that is not worrisome??) And have the rabbi doing the lighting and full celebration.

For those with Blackberries or other worldwide internet gadgets...in this region, they will work some places and not others. It switches to GSM in some places. That is why I used a lot of minutes.

For anyone going to Khasab (means fertile) the dhow fjord is an absolute must. Drop everything and do this thing.

SS had two big dhows and a small one. The place is walkable from the ship but they pick u up and take u the 200 metres.

Seats are on the ground like an Arabian living room (they tell us). You board this big thing and just lay there and watch the mountains and rock formations from all directions. You see little fishing villages that sometimes have 10 people. The government gives them electricity and gets it into these mountains by helicopter. Until a few years ago they ate only fish and dates with no outside contact to the world. Now the kids are taken somewhere from there to school and they go away for 4 days and then come home for 3.

Our tour started at 1:50 and ended at 5:30. They offered dates and had bananas and apples on board and also soft drinks (no diet) and water and Arabian tea (sweet) in the tiniest cups and coffe in tiny cups. Think kids' tea set.

The guides talk and tell interesting stories and take u 18 km in each direction. You stop for swimming and snorkeling ( which many don't do). We saw small fish but lots of shells and beautiful coral. The ladder was quite steep. Going up was odd. The water is partially in the Indian Ocean and partially in the Persian (Arabian) Gulf.

We also climbed up in Telegraph Island for photos.

Much of the way back was whistling and clapping for dolphins to clip up or chase the boat. I took movies and we took stills with 2 cameras. Hopefully we have something!!

We skipped breakfast (- had grapes from our in room fruit). Todd worked some puzzles while I chatted in the hot tub on deck with a Russian lady that lives in Vancouver. She had earned her passage by escorting a Chinese family where the head of the family does nmot see well. From here, they will fly to Hong Kong for 5 days. The hot tub was perfect. They brought us fruit and lemon waters.

For lunch, we had buffet again. I had salad and mussels and gazpacho. Todd had grilled fish, veggies and fruit.

There was a nice sail away party last night. Before that, we were treated to an Iranian welcome dance  they put on for us before boarding. All the portside people saw it from their balconies.

For dinner, I had fois gras terrine, cauliflower voulette  and veal marsala. Todd had king scallop ravioli, fruits, soup and tenderloin. This was delivered course by course. They wanted us to call 815 to pick up the tray and it did not work and room service was busy. We spent the night with the icky dishes. We lived. The night's canapies were shrimp cocktail, so we had those, too.

December 4 Fujairah

Our tour in Fujairah (foojarahh) is at 9 AM, so we can finally go to trivia this afternoon.

Last night we missed the flautist I met and a late night jazz performance by Shani Reay. The shows are late as they are geared to the European clientele.

Last night we got our Venetian Society invitation for tonight. I cannot believe it is December 4.

One other thing...Shani Reay, the cruise director makes announcements every two hours. That is annoying. Maybe that is because they want to assure us in this part of the world.

Today in Fujairah we were not able to by a souvenir and came back and found one on the bed.

I slept from 8:30 to 3:35. I am feeling decent now after a long soak and an easy tour. I hope I can stay up for the show tonight.

Dubai plans to have their airport be bigger than Heathrow. Pretty soon it won't juist be Abu Dhabi and Dubai you hear of. We saw Le Meridian from the road here today, and Palm Jumeirah is coming in here to Fujairah. Another huge hotel owned by Emirates opened 3 weeks ago, and JAL built a huge hotel on a great beach for to bring the Japanese in here.

They are blasting out the rock mountains just like Branson.

Today we saw the real wadis.  There was no water. Many years not a single drop comes to Fujairah. Can you imagine? This looks like sort of a grand canyon/painted desert.

The tour was informational and educational more than anything.

We went to a museum  and a mosque  and a beach  and for some photo stops. The tour was from 9 to 12:45 after breakfast.

For lunch we had salmon. Todd had pasta, and I had salad.

New on Whisper this trip is in addition to offering drinks and food at your chair, they are walking around with wine and champagne. Also new is they are giving cold towels when you come onboard.

All the tours seem to be organized by Arabian Adventure Tours, and they seem to be tied to Emirates.

Our stewardess is really learning our likes and schedule more than any cruise. She forgot a couple of things like the Neutrogena shampoo, but she is watching whatever we are using in the fridge and everything there and cold, which nobody has ever done on a regular basis.

The pool deck is packed, and somehow I have ended up in the shade.

We are going to trivia and golf putting later and Venetian Society.

We are really looking forward to the sea days. We have Muscat first. They are telling us that it is unspoiled but that it won't last.

December 5 Muscat

We are still in Oman.  Tonight they are having dinner under the Arabian stars  and are having an Arabian folklore show.  Shani said she'd set us up on 9 if we didn't want to do the buffet, but we have now decided to do it to make sure we don't miss anything.

I'm caught up on the sleep enough. It is just too hard to stay up for shows every night with this much touring, eating and wine. They will have afternoon shows on the sea days, or I would be making more effort, as I loved the one show.

We are definitely got a brush up on all ways Muslim. I already was fairly informed after working with one for 5 years and sitting next to him.

Today's tour had Todd rather sour, as I knew it would. I got the, "Dear, you know I hate museums and sightseeing" quite often, along with, "I love the ship" and "I don't make you do things you don't want to do". I know Todd did see some great things he enjoyed, but 4 touring days in a row is a lot. We are done for a couple of days.

Today here in the Sultanete of Oman, we saw the 4th largest mosque in the world.  Several things in it are in the Guiness Book of World Records.  Please read if you are coming here: LADIES, long sleeves, don't show wrists if possible. Absolutely must have a scarf. Also, no ankle can be showing, even in a long dress, wear socks. You will not get in if even a centimeter of ankle is showing, period. Men ought to wear long sleeves but not a must. Pretty much all did that I recall. Light fabric for your comfort and shoes that are easy to remove. No cleavage and something high that can be totally covered with the scarf.

We did see the museum here. No photos there, and they want the cameras left on the bus.

We went to the souk  here (accessible by the ship's free shuttle, as is local casual dining), nobody is open from 1 to 4. They sell frankincense and myrrh and the pots and charcoal, many knives, oil pots, perfumes, local candies, scarves, potteries, woven items, herbs, Indian treats. US dollars are widely accepted, and it was 2.5 USD to one of the local Omani currency. On the day like this where 250 SS people were there, US change was not a problem.

We went to the Sultan Qaboos palace for photos and to the old cruise terminal.  Another stop was the Grand Hyatt , a 5 star hotel where we had soft drinks (tea, coffee, soda, and unusual juices) and local cookies). That was midway in the tour.

The bathroom at the mosque was in the ground, very difficult for a woman in long pants. Be forewarned, men may bust in. Also at the mosque yesterday, it was a unisex wierd place where you had to carry in your own toilet seat and go in while men were in there. Try not to drink much liquid if you can and don't eat anything that will create stomach issues. They have the hoses vs. tissue. I would rather wait all day.

More later. I have to catch the hot tub before they close off for the bbq.

(Later)

Our team won trivia the last two days. I won crazy golf today, and Todd won yesterday. Yesterday, I attended the Oman lecture. The trivia team we are on is a real international mix, and they count on us for the American stuff, but then they don't listen to us half the time. On the one about which state had the most hurricane damage in 2004, I said Florida, but they wanted to put Louisiana. There have been a number of others, too but we are still winning. Todd cost us a question a couple of days ago, so they are only mixed on our skills, lol.

At the souk today, we bought the frankincense and myrrh and the charcoal and also candies and another camel and some pots amd some silver sandals. You are allowed to take pics if the women are not in them.

Tonight's canapies are chocolate covered strawberries.

We have been inside two mosques. If you look at the ones where I have the big black cape (Freddie or someone will know the correct name)...that is in Fujairah. That one, you just have to deal with men going in and no tissue or toilet lid, but the lids are outside if you look, and the men won't see you in the stall. Further, these flush, and if you brought paper, it would be fairly Western.

It was the grand mosque in Oman where it was a metal thing in the floor. What was yucky is there was so much water on the floor that removing the pants and all was not easy, and the lock didn't work, and I had already busted in on some man who didn't even have the door shut. These metal things in the floor don't flush.

Don't focus on it, just be prepared for it.

Last night was dinner under the Arabian stars. We don't like the pool bbqs on SS and told Shani so, and she did set up chairs for people that only wanted to see the show, but we went like we always do and had the usual experience. Todd called this a real step down, and I agree. First off, it was Dinner Under the Arabian Stars, not to be confused with Arabian Dinner Under the Stars. There was not a single Arabian dish, which was sad since the huge dance group was there with us all day.

Some people love these pool bbqs. I liked the way Regent did these things at lunch and how they focused on local foods. I did give Shani a long talk on this two days ago from the hot tub.

At any rate, I did eat one rib and some salad and fruit, and Todd had some shrimp and a rib and some rice. Oh, I had mussels from the paella, too.

The Arabian show had a few guests up there dancing with them. We didn't get any explanation, they just danced.

Afterward was the disco party, and people from 35 to 60 appeared out of nowhere, thankfully. The other nights, the lounges have had very low attendance besides the structured show. This was great fun with the social hosts, especially the European men's rendition of YMCA and a couple of others. Their involvement of scarves to get the women to move their hips after Shani left was most interesting. When they moved into salsa and cha cha, the Spaniards invited me out. I did my best, but after a few, my calves were hurting, and I retreated to my seat.

December 6 Sea Day

Today, they are offering so much that they had to use smaller print on the activities sheet. They have a bridge tour with the captain, several fitness and health lectures, regular enrichment, extra bridge lessons at all levels, French lessons, Italian lessons, Latin dance class, a culinary demo with the wine pairings, knitting, blackjack tournaments, two daytime shows from the night time entertainers, bing, Liars club and also all the regular stuff they do. I see Todd had marked his choices with a "T" by them, and they aren't what I was planning to do. He seems to have marked the points stuff. We really took home a lot of stuff last cruise, and we do want some more things. Last time, we had the most of anyone on the ship. That won't be the case this time.

They continue with Hannukah every night, as well.

They also have yoga and pilates every day and other fitness classes. I will post all the activity sheets when I get back, along with the menus that I have enjoyed having a day in advance like usual, lol.

Tonight, we are going to La Terraza for Italian. I am looking forward to that.

Silver Whisper service blows Voyager away many times over, and Wind blows Whisper away any times over. Voyager does a better job of matching the local cuisines to the port, but SS is an Italian line, and they like it that way.

It sounds like the new Regent ship and the new SS ship will be similar in many ways, though SS will be at 540, and it sounds very similar to Seabourn Odyssey (info on it is widely available, as are itineraries all the way thru 2009). Both the new Regent ships and the new SS ship will be focusing on bigger suites and better cuisine, and Odyssey does not seem to have the bigger suites, but they will be closer to some of the current market offerings, and they sure will have more pools and hot tubs than now.

Regent Voyager had more going on in the lounges, but then my cruise sounded livelier than on crossing.

Both do an outstanding job on their tours, though SS is ALWAYS escorted, and in the Middle East, this is critical.

Regent Voyager met 95% of my expectations, and the 3 SS cruises have met 95-99%. As you all have guessed by now, my expectations are quite high. This cruise cost 16k with the tours, air and 1 night's hotel, so my expectations are high.

I was amazed to count in the passenger booklet that 106 of the 360 on board are Americans since we have met 7. So, that is 29.44% Americans.

I feel pretty strongly about the few things that are better on here and the few things better on Voyager, and I am not the only one to say, but when I have sat in the upcoming ship and plans for both lines for current ships, they are planning to address these.

The scarey thing is that when SS, Seabourn and Regent build all these ships by 2010, the birth count will be up considerably. That will be good for all of us if they can't fill the rooms, but on SS most sailings are sold out for 2008, and they are looking at 2009 and planning 2010. They say they are so full that they are anxious to cancel the early booking bonus and the early payment. Of course they want us to book on board.

I asked the counselor about booking at the last minute on 30 days' notice, and she said they are not giving the last minute Venetian anymore because they are too full. I don't know about that. So, if they are 96% full, they are going to charge 200% for one person to join this thing if they book one day before sailing? I don't know if they would or not, but they have a swelled head.

We all know the lines will charge what the market will bear, so if they fill up, they will reduce discounts, and if they are full, they will raise. One thing is for sure, if the new SS ship sits in 2009 for 3/4 of the year in the Caribbean, it should be good for Americans.

When I look at 2008 on both Regent and SS, there are only a couple of sailings that have all the discounts and number of nights I am interested in, and they seem much more interested in filling 2008 than selling 2009.

Anyway, today, Todd did intermediate bridge while I did the cooking demo/wine pairing/tasting

 and then we had lunch. I did the future sailing lecture and the Andrew Lloyd Webber lecture/songs by Sally Jones.

We did the Black Jack tournament, bingo for points and then Todd did golf, while I went back for black jack. I have won everytime except when he was there.

Next is a violin virtuoso and international show from Jacqueline Roche.

We have dinner at La Terazza, the Italian specialty restaurant. (I was wrong on that, it was the 7^th).

They have Liars club tonight.

(Later)

Anyway, the sea day was great. I did two shows, bingo, the cruise lecture, the cooking/wine pairing demo and tasting, and black jack tournament and video black jack and also trivia. We came in 3rd yesterday. A couple of teams pulled in half the ship for their team, and there was a new team. You get points everyday anyway, and we are raking them in.

Todd did half of what I did plus the intermediate bridge (which was really the hard core people that showed up anyway) and the golf. Someone new got a hole in one.

There is a very active bridge group on board.

December 7 Sea Day

We lost an hour last night and will lose 30 minutes tonight. When we go home, it is 11 and a half hours difference, and I think the trip is 22 hours. I don't have nearly as much work waiting for me as Todd does. He is starting to already stress out, and I really thought he would relax more on the sea days. He had a good day, but at dinner, he was thinking about stuff that could have waited till that 22 hour flight.

Dinner last night wasn't my favorite. I had cod, and Todd had chateaubriand. We had French onion soup and I had a salad, and he had the spring rolls. They decorated the plate with a bunch of dijon sauce, and I had a hard time keeping it out of my fish. I don't "do" mustard.

We have skipped breakfast almost daily but are having it in our suite today.

The flutist plays again today, and I like her as a person, so I hope to see her today. We missed her show before.

Yesterday, they had 5 spa lectures (eyes, teeth, anti-aging, detox, and overall wellness). We missed all of that. Today they have one on aches and pains with aromatherapy and one one nails and feet.

They are also doing some sort of sherry and beer bash, which seems odd where you are supposed to brag about your grandchildren and bring pictures??

There is a Buddhism and Hinduism lecture, a wine tasting, and Islam lecture, a fashion show, the top suites tour, line dancing class.

The farewell party is tonight, and we are going to the La Terazza for dinner for the Italian.

I got a lot of sun today from chatting in the hot tub and from sitting on our balcony.

I booked cruise 3830 for Dec 08 but want the Christmas one afterward. It is not cheap and we have been to most of the ports more than once.

I am holding May, 2009 for Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Vietnam, Okinawa and somewhere else in Japan. There is not even a price yet. I hope our schedules allow us to go. We have done Hong Kong and Singapore together 10 years ago, and I have been to Japan. It has been a long time.

I attended a nutrition lecture.

December 8 & 9 Mumbai

We are in India now and heading out to the inspection required for all guests.

Today's bathroom report: Mahatma Ghandi's house (not the correct name)  - Western style, flushes but has the hose like Heathrow and no tissue. The Prince of Wales Museum (old name), way worse than the mosques, el grosso, avoid at all costs Taj Mahal hotel, terrific.

So, about Mumbai - there are 16 million people here.  Sixty  percen  t are unemployed. There are 80 million a year moving in here

. We were chased and followed everywhere with tremendous harrassment. The same people followed so many places. Everywhere we were not on the bus except inside the Taj Mahal hotel , we were shown merchandise, begged for money or asked for picture taking or something.

We saw the dobi ghats , which was very interesting. We toured the two museums.

We went to some fancy shops, and there was high pressure to buy. Some did, and some did not.

At the Gateway to India , nobody went over there except Todd and me, as we wanted good pictures. That was the worst of all.

We did buy two great maps and a wonderful tapestry and a nice box and a little jeweled elephant. Some bought clothes, scarves, rugs, and boxes.

When we got off the ship, we were all handed a red rose.

The tour went long due to massive traffic and the fact that the shoppers did not come back to our bus on time. One of the other tours went to some of our stops but also rode some train. This tour was added later after we booked.

They were generally charging 40 rupees to the dollar, but those with pounds were getting ripped off if they did not know the rate, and they even tried to drastically "round up" for me, but I refused to pay.

The ship was not allowed to offer a free shuttle here due to unions, and I think they announced to the whole city that our buses would be out and about for two days.

The Taj Mahal is a class hotel, but if you even leave the steps, be prepared.

There is a lot to learn here. We know a lot of this since we are exposed to so many Indian people in Houston. Most don't live here or come here that we know, and I would keep a visit here as a stop and not a base.

Well, they were generous with the points this afternoon, and we managed to get a t-shirt, a picture frame, a wine stopper and a business card holder. All very nice items.

At lunch, I enjoyed the teriyaki chicken wings. After trivia, I attended a spa lecture about nutrition.

We are getting ready to go to the India dance show. I love how Shani admits when something doesn't work out. She said the Arabia show added 3 years to her life!!!!

The Indian folklore show was very good last night.

I had the Indian favourites dinner, and Todd had tenderloin.

We have had to get up at 4 am. We are going to leave with some internet minutes left.

(Later)

The early debarkation from the ship was easy.  We were not to set out our bags like others. We were to leave them in the room and call a specific extension 20 minutes before our debarkation time. We had a special breakfast slip and had it at 4:45. We had our wakeup call at 4 a.m.

The previous night, Shani had an early show and then the Indian show.  The show had an opening by her and then the violinist.

Our ride took 40 minutes (though they allowed 1 ½ hours). 

The airport bathroom had two in the floor Indian style stalls and two Western stalls.

We each had our own row on the plane from London.  From India to London, we had one other guy in our row of four. I had curried fish, and Todd had curried chicken.  Later, we had coconut fish.  All the “go withs” were a bit odd – strange cheese, cucumber and tomato with some sauce on some sort of grain bread, always a lot of yogurt and rice puddings that were very fine.  We were selective on what we ate.  Each segment was 9 hours, and there was one central video screen. They alternated American comedy, Indian music videos, and Indian movies with English subtitles and American movies. The reception was bad, and it generally wasn’t very viewable.

We are stranded in Chicago. Air India decided to hold the plane in London (we didn't even know we were going to London) for 19 people coming from Delhi. They said 20 minutes. Then the people came in like 45 minutes. We thought we were leaving, and they said they had not got the bags down. We waited another hour and a half and they shut the cargo door.

(Much later)

Our flight was to leave O'Hare for Houston at 7:55. We got in at that time and got our bags well after 8. Nobody would talk to us at United, and Air India was nowhere to be found, no reps at their desk.

We went upstairs, as we were told, and the Air India people said we should be downstairs. This happened to many people. Anyway, then ALL the Delhi people were in line as not one bag from Delhi was on the plane after making over 40 people miss their connections.

They were going to put us on American tomorrow but could not confirm the seats because the American people closed right as we got to the front of the line (though we had been first in line when nobody was at AI).

We are on a 6:45 a.m. flight, so we have to pay for our own cab tomorrow. It is 20 degrees here. We have no coat. We took the blankets from the plane and took turns standing in the freezing cold waiting for the shuttle. Of course it will be too early for the free breakfast.

It was 10:45 when they got us all over here. We got $12.50 for vouchers and bought everything in sight from the $3 happy hour menu and are having our Silversea welcome champagne that we never got around to drinking. We have pizza, chicken fingers, etc.

PLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEee be careful of Air India. If you take them, get trip interruption insurance and also expect no help, no direction, etc.

On the plus, they have limitless drink service (unlike Delta that lies about it) and all the wierd food you can eat. If you think you have had authentic Indian food...fly Air India.

So we have 5 hours here in the hotel. Whoopie! The plus, I would recommend this as a park n fly. Free internet on two pcs in the lobby, and if you have your own laptop, the internet works free anywhere in the hotel on a fast wireless.

The room is decent. We have a really nice recliner and ottoman and a big bed and TV and a very comfortable desk and chair setup. The shuttle driver was the nicest driver I have ever encountered.

They have an indoor pool.

They also tried to send us to Hobby instead of Intercontinental.

On the 2nd flight (from London), we had 7 seats (2 sections) to ourselves. Todd slept most of the flight (first time ever), and I slept about 3 hours. He is supposed to work tomorrow.

Anne, feel free to discuss this itinerary with me at any time. As you can see, I have many thoughts.

There is snow on the ground here in Chicago. I had clients delayed getting in here yesterday, so I guess it could have been worse.

December 10 – US Central Standard time

We did get a 5:30 am flight out after a fewshort hours at Holiday Inn Elk Grove. We got back to Houston at 8:10, and all our bags were there.  We had to go several terminals over to where our car was located.  We arrive home at 9:20 am.