Ashore - to bus driver: 'Which is the best side for the view?'
'What are 'attractions'?'
In the restaurant, grumpily, to dining companion: 'This is just like MacDonalds'. TSH and Diva have had their complaints about Silversea over the years but it is NOTHING like MacDonalds.
In the restaurant when there was a squeaky door: 'Have you any WD40?' Waiter (who seemed to think this was a drink) 'I will try to get it for you, sir'.
In Skagen for the second time on this cruise, TSH and Diva once again took the shuttle bus and walked around the pleasant town. TSH was eager to take a picture of the church but when they reached it, most of the building was wrapped in plastic as repairs were undertaken.
There are coincidences onboard - two sets of unrelated guests from Wisconsin USA and another set of guests who live only about 5 miles from TSH and Diva's home.
When Diva uses the guest laundry, she is accustomed to providing technical advice to people who cannot operate unfamiliar washing machines (any washing machines?). On this occasion, another guest advised her on setting a suitable program and clearing the lint from the tumble dryer. She enquired if he was an engineer but he replied that he was an Australian banker.
Sailing away from Stockholm, guests were invited to a sunset sail away party at 3:45 pm. '....soft lighting of the amazing sunset...'. At 3:45 pm it is bright daylight in Sweden in June!!
Entering the impressive and showy brunch buffet for the third time on this cruise, TSH and Diva were advised by a ship's officer to 'act like you have not seen it before. Just say 'Wow''.
Approaching Helsingborg (Hamlet's castle), the Captain of the Silver Spirit declared a Code Alpha - the signal for medically trained crew to attend an incident. Later that evening, a helicopter appeared and a medical evacuation took place - the first time TSH and Diva have witnessed such an occurrence. They have no information about what happened or whether the two events were connected but they send best wishes to all involved.
.... and women wore dirndls. TSH and Diva were initially pleased when the evening show was to be given by a local folk group from Tallinn. In the event, hefty men pranced in macho style whilst women simpered and jostled for their attention. Diva is not prepared to record here what she was muttering about what should be done to the patriarchy.
TSH's walking tour in Tallinn might have ended in disaster if it was not for his presence of mind. During the tour, the guide rushed off without giving clear instructions about where she was going. He lost sight of her and his sound system went silent. So he was alone and adrift at a distance from the Silver Spirit that was too far to walk. He decided that the best plan was to go into a hotel and ask them to call him a taxi. The receptionist and the taxi driver are his new heroes. He thinks that all tour guides should be tall and wear bright colours. He is now grounded for solo visits for his own safety.
It was disappointing in Helsinki that the Silver Spirit was docked at a distance from the city centre, instead of at an inner harbour, as they experienced on a previous visit. So they did not go ashore, as it was not clear that the shuttle bus would go to the area they wanted.
In Riga, TSH and Diva both walked along the riverside and into the old square but in Tallinn Diva stayed safely onboard the Silver Spirit whilst TSH went on an organised walking tour of the city. In the evening, TSH had banana foster for dessert whilst Diva - the banana fan - did not. A first. It was Formal Optional and, walking past Reception, they were greeted with 'super elegant as usual'. That will do.
The MacDonald brothers are back on the ship, impressing everybody with their energy. It is amazing how an international audience can sing and clap along with Wild Rover and Whiskey in the Jar.
It seems that there is a new Silversea style, omitting the customary daily briefings about the location and the sea state. Certainly this captain is not very communicative, although in Gdansk he found time to chat with TSH and Diva and show them the Polish sausage he had bought ashore. Do they not feed the captain on this ship?
Regular readers will know that Diva has struggled many times with technology and time changes. On this cruise, she has set the phones to automatically adjust to local time. Most of the time it has worked well. Sailing up the east side of the Baltic, the time is 2 hours ahead of UK time. But in the night the course of the Silver Spirit often swings to the west, returning to UK + 1 hour time. And does not revert until docking has been achieved. After the alarm should have gone off.
There are now 11 spare coat hangers.
All the ingredients of a Gothic horror were in place - a severe weather message on the phones, the laundry delivered by a different butler who understood little English and had no explanation for what had happened to the first one, a fault on the security system which had not recorded Diva's return to the ship in Gdansk (security phoned the suite and were assured by TSH that she was in the shower - should they have believed him?) and the TV map showing that the Silver Spirit, heading for the coast of Lithuania, was somewhere in land-locked western Russia. The lightening and thunder were almost simultaneous and the thunderclap was the loudest Diva had ever heard. Fortunately the sea remained calm and the other issues were resolved. Apart from the positioning information, which was probably the result of tampering with GPS systems. Hopefully the Captain has access to more accurate navigation information.
