is this Denmark?

In Bornholm, an island which is currently Danish but has been Swedish (no wonder that Diva does not understand the geography in this region), TSH went on an excursion which took him to a small fishing port. For the first time on this holiday, the temperature was high and he was pleased to have his Silversea water bottle.

At dinner with the Hotel Director and the Head Housekeeper, Diva remarked to the latter that she could not imagine housekeeping for 1,000 people. Bafflingly - and worryingly - the response was 'Neither can I'.

The sunsets have been dramatic, even though they mostly do not result in darkness. One evening the reflections appeared to turn the sea orange. One night, Diva looked out of the window and saw darkness for the first time for many days. 

It wasn't an official Bloody Mary day but one guest was heard to ask for one at 9:45 am. She was politely directed to the venue where such drinks are available all day. 

Bikes and a baby

 All of the Scandinavian towns are, as usual, full of tall athletic people riding bikes at speed through crowds of pedestrians. TSH and Diva are unscathed so far. There are some very good features - Diva walked past a bench where a young man was sitting and he leapt up and offered her his seat. She thanked him, refused the offer and wondered quite how decrepit she must now appear to be.

On one of TSH's excursions a young man stood up on the bus and announced that they had a baby with them and that anyone who objected should move to a different bus. TSH stayed put but was aware of a level of noise and disruption. There have been a small number of children on this cruise, which is very unusual for Silversea.

One evening the sail away was quite late, so they decided on pizzas for dinner in the open air restaurant. This proved to be a mistake, as the chill wind made them cold despite the overhead heaters and the M&S thermal vests. The pizzas were excellent.

ER, TSH and Paddington Bear

 The catering crew have made great efforts and produced an impressive chocolate buffet one evening, followed by a magnificent brunch the following morning. Some of them probably had little or no sleep. 

The brunch had all the usual breakfast items as well as a seafood selection, an ice sculpture and, of course Bloody Marys. 

TSH ate his usual fruit and then made himself a marmalade sandwich. He is in good company with the late Queen and Paddington Bear. They revisited the brunch at lunch time.

Technical triumphs

 TSH has now been on a number of excursions alone and has always returned safely. There are always clear instructions about whether to take each guest's personal 'Quietbox', which is a system for hearing the guide as the group moves around outdoors. There are always guests who turn up without them and no spares are carried.  On one outing, there were guests at the front of the bus who were talking loudly at the same time as the guide. She told them sternly to either keep quiet or to move to the back of the bus!! 

In Norway, public toilets are usually chargeable, so TSH was proud of finding free ones on two occasions. And they were clean! In Oslo, both TSH and Diva went out for a short walk and were surprised to see local bathers in the fjord, close to the Silver Spirit and other vessels and in spite of the distinctly chilly temperature.

There were two technical problems. TSH's camera persisted into going into 'flash' mode even when lighting conditions were bright. An online consultation with the manual resolved the issue. More seriously, his laptop refused to connect to the Silver Spirit wifi. They tried several options but nothing worked and it was beginning to look like faulty hardware. Diva asked AI what they could do and was impressed when it gave her precise instructions for modifying Device Manager (who knew?) to resolve the issue. Success!

In which TSH deserts his dessert

 TSH and Diva are in a very complicated part of the world, where Denmark, Sweden and Norway meet across a complicated system of waterways. Diva has never got it into her head and this was not helped by her telephone welcoming her to Sweden as Silver Spirit approached Skagen in Denmark.

It is a very long time since TSH and Diva were on the agenda at the daily crew briefing. In La Terrazza in the evening, they were seated next to people who made a series of phone calls on speaker phone. Loudly. All the way through dinner. TSH ordered a dessert but decided he could not bear the noise any more and they left the restaurant. Not before exchanging words with the culprits and informing the Maitre d' of the transgression. The Maitre d' said he would talk to the culprits. All the crew know of the incident, are supportive of TSH and Diva and are taking even greater care of them.

There are currently 11 surplus coat hangers in their suite.

Formal Optional

On this leg of the cruise - Amsterdam to Copenhagen - more people are wearing formal clothes on the 'Formal Optional' nights than on the first leg - Southampton to Amsterdam, where only about 4 men were wearing dinner jackets and bow ties. Including TSH. But it is still a minority and many people are dressing quite casually. If Silversea listen to the majority of their guests, it will not be long before formal wear is banned and denims and fleeces compulsory. Sad.

During the journey so far, there have been many 'white nights' when there has been little or no darkness. There have been 2 Venetian nights, when members of the loyalty club are invited to a cocktail party. The host reads the names of the guests who have sailed with Silversea for the most number of nights. On both occasions, TSH and Diva have been 5th. Their 700 odd nights will never compare with the people who were given 25 roses to celebrate 2,500 days of Silversea travel!

On his excursion in Kristiansand, TSH had his picture taken (with his consent) by another guest who wanted to show it to TSH's doppelganger back home.

TSH and Diva usually take their phones and kindles with them as they move around the bars and lounges. On leaving the Dolce Vita bar, TSH also scooped up the drinks menu, which is in a similar case. They kept it in the suite overnight and returned it surreptitiously the next morning.

No pictures, please

 So far on this voyage, the waters have been smooth but the weather cold and sometimes rainy. Patches of snow are visible on the hills surrounding the fjords. Another guest was unsure what a fjord is and thought it might refer to one of the many waterfalls.

TSH went on an excursion alone in Vik, experiencing even more snow as the bus went higher into the hinterland. He used a (clean) tissue attached to the seat in front to help him find his place after the photostops. No problem that cannot be solved with the use of tissues!! Diva worked on her U3A AI presentation which is due to be delivered later in the year. 

In the Arts Cafe aboard the Silver Spirit, another guest recorded a video, including pointing his camera directly at TSH and Diva. She pointed out that it was illegal to film people without consent.  Another woman supported her. The cameraman glared at Diva and said she had also caused trouble in the theatre that morning. As she had not been in the theatre that morning, she concluded that he had upset at least 3 women that day.

Some of the coat hangers have been taken away. 

An age thing?

 When TSH and Diva started sailing with Silversea 20 years ago, they were among the younger guests on board. 

In the lift on the way to dinner, other guests assured TSH and Diva that they looked 'spiffy'. They were pleased with this, as both take pride in their appearance. They are often complemented. But is this  because they are now among the older guests, from whom little elegance is expected?

Later, Diva wondered if she had misheard. Had they said 'spivvy'? Or 'squiffy'?

Immediate Danger

Stavanger was extremely wet - TSH and Diva both needed a change of clothes on return from their short walk. Rosendal looked very pretty from the ship, so TSH and Diva decided to stay on board, especially since it was a tender transfer.

TSH's hearing aid is bluetoothed to his phone and he is quite accustomed to the sound of notifications coming directly into his ear. But this morning the sound was different - longer, louder and almost painful. He looked at the phone and saw a message in (to him) incomprehensible Norwegian, headed 'Immediate Danger'. In red. Not a good moment. But Page 2 was in English and explained that it was a Norwegian authority test of their emergency alert system. Relief. 

Diva counted 14 surplus coat hangers and decided to move them to the shelf with the life jackets.

A waiter said that she would not like to live in a tiny Norwegian settlement because she needed 'more drama'. Diva assured her that it was possible to create your own drama.

Norway via the North Sea

 The first leg of TSH and Diva's voyage is finished, many guests have left the Silver Spirit and many more have embarked - this leg will be slightly fuller than the previous one. 

They happened to be sitting in the Panorama lounge when the towel folding demonstration started and they were too polite to leave whilst members of the Housekeeping Department constructed 'towel art', including a rabbit, an elephant and a crocodile.  Far too complicated for Diva. 

TSH and Diva make good use of the complementary laundry service, so each afternoon 3 or 4 clean garments, each on a wooden hanger, are delivered to their suite. So the number of coat hangers in their walk-in wardrobe is increasing fast. As usual on a Silversea ship, they leave surplus hangers on the bed to be taken away but on this voyage the butler has decided they might need extra hangers and he returns them to the wardrobe.  So TSH's hanging space is reducing and his clothes are crammed together. They have explained the problem to their butler but with limited success.

One of the waiters now introduces TSH and Diva as his parents.

Bloody Mary for breakfast

 Despite being held hostage on the ship, the brilliant MacDonald brothers performed again, including an excellent version of 'Sunshine on Leith'.

The original plan was that TSH and Diva would have pizza in the outdoor restaurant in the protected mooring at Newhaven, before the scheduled late night departure. They went ahead with the plan, even though by dinner time they were in the middle of the North Sea. Fortunately the sea was calm and the heaters were effective. Best pizza in the world.

They must have missed a memo. Approaching La Terrazza for their usual buffet breakfast, they were accosted by waiters trying to thrust Bloody Mary cocktails into their hands. There was a special brunch, including an extensive sea food buffet, decorated with carved fruit and a huge ice sculpture. Rumour amongst the guests was that Silversea were trying to improve the mood after the disappointment of missing Edinburgh yesterday. Many of the crew had been up most of the night preparing the feast.

When they returned to the brunch at 12:00, some of the dishes had changed but TSH was able to construct an amazing meal including hash browns with Marie Rose sauce.

The clocks have changed to Netherlands time but the clocks around the ship are still wrong.

TSH and Diva do not drink Bloody Marys at breakfast.

Photoblog

 

Portland lighthouse

Bridges over Forth from Silver Spirit

Panorama Lounge on Silver Spirit

Lerwick - Shetland

Butt of Lewis

Liverpool

Hillsborough Castle

Inverness Castle

Another altered itinerary

It is never good news when the captain makes early morning announcements directly into all the suites. The Silver Spirit was anchored at Newhaven for a tender ride to Leith followed by a bus ride to Edinburgh. But the water was too choppy for safe tender operation, so the visit was cancelled and the ship headed directly to Amsterdam. TSH and Diva always intended to stay aboard so they were not personally inconvenienced except for all the people who stayed on what should have been an almost empty ship. But think of the chefs. 400 extra people for lunch!!

Bean bag tossing is now being arranged to keep people amused. The good news is that the MacDonald brothers are still on board and will perform again. Basically, they were unable to disembark as planned and are being taking against their will to the Netherlands. With all their instruments and stage props!!

In the SALT (local dishes) restaurant, TSH ate his most unusual salad ever - Taybank salad. It contained roasted brussels sprouts, beetroot and raspberries. His main course was lamb and skirlie. At breakfast time he had a dish of porridge and picked up what he thought was a jar of honey. It turned out to be strawberry jam, but he poured it on and decided that the combination worked very well. 

Burgers for breakfast

 In the Shetland Isles, TSH and Diva had intended to go ashore for a walk around Lerwick. But the morning mist was so thick that they decided to stay onboard for a relaxing day instead. They walked round and round the open deck for exercise.

In Invergordon, they were booked on the Inverness Highlights tour, which included 1.5 hours at leisure in Inverness. The tour started early and the plan was to skip breakfast on the Silver Spirit and eat at the M&S cafe in Inverness. The place where they were dropped off was so far from the centre of the city that it took 30 minutes, at Diva's slow pace, to reach the shopping centre So they made their way back to the bus without having time for food. TSH was distraught about his missing sausage sandwich. Breakfast was at 13:00 and consisted of excellent burgers and fries!

The Silver Spirit clocks are still all wrong. 

international Matters

 Leaving Liverpool, during the Beatles tribute concert, Diva chatted to a woman from the USA and asked her where she was from. 'Washington DC. I am so sorry.' TSH and Diva had agreed before embarkation that they would not be drawn into any discussion of world affairs, especially not with US citizens. There have been two such discussions, both initiated by the US people and both expressing horror at the current situation. 

Another US woman consulted Diva about shopping - 'Will the shapping in Edinboro be good?' Diva had no idea what to say. Designer? Discount? British brands? Is there not a wide range of shops in Seattle?

The after dinner concert featured the MacDonald Brothers - a versatile pair of young Scotsmen who once came 4th on X factor. It was probably the best show TSH and Diva have seen on Silversea ships - Celtic reels, Simon and Garfunkel, Elton John and an excellent rendering of the Proclaimers' '500 miles'.

In the suite, TSH played 'Ferry cross the Mersey'.

TSH and Diva and the bins

 On a cruise ship, infection control is very important.  Public washrooms on Silversea ships have notices telling guests to open doors using tissues and bins are provided by the doors for tissue disposal. Except on the Silver Spirit, where the bins have vanished. 

TSH and Diva mentioned this deficiency on their mid-cruise questionnaire. They received a letter from Guest Services and a visit from the Housekeeper, thanking them for being part of the hygiene team. The bins are now back!

TSH's theory is that the bins were removed during the recent refit of the Silver Spirit and nobody remembered to put them back. But did nobody notice the room full of 'surplus' bins?

Very close to home

 In Belfast, TSH and Diva went on a tour to Hillsborough, the royal residence. After the tour of the house, Diva took the bus to the Visitor Centre,  whilst partially sighted TSH bravely walked alone through the gardens. He made it to the exit in good time for the ride back to the Silver Spirit.

At lunch in La Terrazza, TSH and Diva were shown to a table that looked as if someone was already sitting there and had just gone to the buffet. The waiter insisted that the table was free and they sat down. When the occupant did return, they apologised but she smiled and went to sit somewhere else. When the occupants of that table returned, there was a danger that the whole section of La Terrazza would descend into chaos.

TSH had his first filet mignon of the cruise - totally up to standard.

In Liverpool - about 20 miles from their home, TSH and Diva took a walk along the riverside, retuning to the Silver Spirit just before the rain started in earnest.

Diva's sparkly shoes had their first outing of this holiday and received their first compliment within the first half hour.