Feb 14th St Valentines Day. Started the day with cappuccino from the Square (pre-ordered via Seabourn Source App) followed by a stretch & hold class at 8:15 and a light breakfast in the Colonnade. It’s now 11:30 am and we are lounging in the Retreat on Deck 12 listening to country music through wireless headsets. But before I get too far ahead of myself I’ll bring you up to speed on the events of yesterday. Armed with our negative pre-travel tests, our day started with a 5:00 am alarm for our 8:40 am flight to Miami. Having successfully overcome the remaining hurdles of flight, luggage & pier side covid test, and after a long wait in what felt like a holding pen we boarded the Seabourn Ovation at about 1.30 pm. I must say we were not very impressed with the whole boarding process but once onboard we put it behind us. Over lunch in the Colonnade we signed in to the Seabourn Source wifi. 'Suites Ready' was announced just as we were finishing lunch, and after a quick recce of the gym/spa area, and stopping for coffee at the Square (our first experience with the new ceramic, reusable take-away cups - a vast improvement on paper!) we dropped our stuff in our suite. Not feeling able to relax until we had completed the safety drill, we watched the in-suite safety video, then went & registered at our assigned muster station in The Club. “One of us” being interested in The Retreat & Wine packages we had a word with Ryan in Seabourn Square - you’ve probably already figured out that we signed-up to the Retreat. We opted for the 7 day package & pre-booked the 6 sea days & the Gatun Lake day (we’ve been through the Panama Canal before & we can always run out to the front of deck 12 to see what is going on). The wine package was a bit more complicated requiring us to pre-order specific wines to a certain $ value which you then draw upon as you wish. Not being familiar with most of the wines on offer it all seemed a bit too much for our addled brains and we decided to order wines on an a la carte basis if we didn’t fancy the house wines on offer that day. As we would find out later some of the wines that we particularly fancied were not even available as the ship stocks had run out & the wine list hadn’t been updated for stocks taken aboard that day in Miami! Two of our checked bags arrived around 4:30 pm and the remaining one about 6 pm. Our overall impression on day one is that Seabourn isn’t quite what we remembered it being. This was reinforced by the lack of soap choice - there is in fact no choice, you get the soap you are given, along with one set of shampoo, conditioner & bath gel to be shared between the bath & the shower, and we had to request body lotion. Also, despite completing the Preferences questionnaire as part of the pre-boarding documentation, our in-suite fridge had not been stocked & we were told by our cabin stewardess that they pay no notice to the in-suite preferences & we had to let her know what we wanted. Which turned out to be a waste of time as we discovered after dinner that she hadn’t given us what we asked for! On the plus side dinner in the T.K. Grill was as good as we remembered it, despite our first choice of wine not being available.
I think that brings you up to speed and we can move on with today. 12:00 noon, Captains announcement, managed to make out that winds are going to be between 25-35 knots tonight & 15-20 knots tomorrow & 75 F when we will be in Cozumel. Tonight, being Valentines & a formal night we wore red for dinner in the Restaurant. Frankly, apart from the twice baked cheese souffle appetizer, it was quite disappointing. Service was so-so. Sea Bass was a bit too buttery & my Beef Wellington could have used some extra jus on the side. The special dessert, a pink & white chocolate mousse heart was bland. The evening show, billed as Latin Quarter with Seabourn singers & dancers was canceled due to rough seas, and replaced by singer Stevie Bor. While a talented singer, we had seen him several years ago and his act hadn’t changed.
It is now Thursday 17th, a sea day after two days in port and we are back in the Retreat. Here’s a short recap of the past couple of days.
On the 15th we were docked in Cozumel. To be honest we didn’t expect much and we were not disappointed. We hadn’t booked a shore excursion opting to stretch our legs with a walk into the old town. We were told it was a 20 minute walk, but it took us more like 35 minutes. The walk is flat but not particularly interesting even with the sea on one side. We were glad we had packed our ponchos as the rain came down on our outward journey. The round trip took us about 3 hours taking in the pedestrian area, some of the back streets & the cemetery. We went to trivia at 4:30, got a couple of easy questions wrong & came second! Dinner on deck at Earth & Ocean made a nice change.
On Wednesday 16th we were one of 3 cruise ships anchored several miles off Belize City. Cruise ships can’t get any nearer as the water is very shallow. The local tender ride took about 20 minutes. Thinking that we should “do something” we had booked the ships tour to the Lamanai Mayan ruins. It was a long day comprising an hour’s bus ride followed by a 20 minute boat ride to get to the ruins. On the plus side because it was so remote we had the place to ourselves! And our tour guide Sydney “call me Bob” was both knowledgeable and entertaining. Our day had started in the Grand Salon at 9:45am and we arrived back at the terminal just in time to catch the last scheduled tender at 4:30 pm. To complete the misery we had to sit on the open top-deck of the tender & faced getting soaked as the heavens opened had it not been for our trusty ponchos! Talking to passengers on other tours it seemed to be universal that all tours took longer than anticipated with one tour group not getting back to the ship until 6 pm. We went to (Assistant Cruise Director) Luke Mergatroyd's show at 6:15 and managed to fit in a quick dinner at Earth & Ocean before the ‘early’ Latin Quarter show at 8:30. Lost an hour tonight so wanted to make it an early night.
This morning (17th) we did the 7:45 am stretch class, followed by breakfast on deck. They offer a healthier alternative to the other breakfast venues, although we do take coffee from the Square. The “Ventures” lady was on our tour yesterday and we arranged to meet her this morning at 10 am for a chat about our upcoming cruise on the Seabourn Venture. With all of the delays and it being a new program for Seabourn we were looking for some reassurance and clarity over our concerns. Not sure we are fully committed after our chat but we are closer than we were. After ‘checking-in’ to our cabana in the Retreat we went to trivia at noon. The team we had joined a couple of days ago had a full complement but “team spontaneous” only had 4 so we joined them and managed to win getting only one question wrong. Two more Seabourn coffee mugs to add to our collection. Then it was back to the Retreat for lunch & champagne and that is where you will find me now. Dinner on deck. Dance party back of the Club was rained off.
Friday 18th. San Andres, Colombia. A vacation island off the coast of Colombia, San Andres has a rocky northern shoreline and sandy beaches/resort hotels along the south shore. We anchored off the north shore and tendered in. Deciding against a Seabourn tour and waving away the local taxis, we opted to explore on foot. I'd figured out that we could walk over to the south side then loop back to where we began. Unfortunately & true to form I miscalculated, taking a wrong turn we ended up in an area not frequented by tourists and by which time we were starting to worry that we might not get back in time. Stopping to ask directions from a lady selling bananas we were pointed to a bus stop - "the street corner opposite the church" - and put on the right bus by a couple of local lads. Not having any local currency I was advised that $2 should cover our fare. There was a driver and a ticket collector - who wouldn't have looked out of place as a nightclub bouncer. Taking our seats it wasn't long before the collector came and sat behind us. Saying nothing he tapped my arm & I handed him the $2. He looked at it, nodded his head & returned to his place next to the driver. Phewww! The bus ride took a good 25 minutes which is an indication as to how far off my directions were, but as promised it dropped us right at the tender dock. It was straight to the tender & the Patio Bar!
Saturday 19th. Puerto Limon, Costa Rica. Booked the Tortuga Canal ride as other tours all booked up. It was an hour bus ride each way & approx. 1 ½ hour slowly cruising a canal. Seating was close together so not much room to maneuver and it was pot luck which side of the boat you were on. “Saw” a couple of sloths high up in the trees, some iguanas, a few birds, a couple of howler monkeys and a small crocodile. Can’t recommend it but at least it was short. Most of the reports on other tours were also negative, with roadworks adding an hour-plus each way to some of them. Those that ventured into town on foot also had nothing good to say.
20th. Boca del Toro, Panama. Despite losing an hour last night we got up for the 7:45 am stretch class. We needed it after missing a couple of days. There were no ship tours offered. Popular with surfers & scuba divers, Boca is one of a chain of islands and the thing to do seemed to be to take a water taxi to one of several other islands to go to the beach. We decided not to bother and wandered around the town. Stopping for a coffee/beer at a small bar on the waterfront we enjoyed chatting to the owners about life on the island. It was quite hot so after a couple of hours we returned to the ship for lunch on deck. Trivia was at 3:30. When we got there our fellow Team Spontaneous members were nowhere to be seen, so we played alone. And, wouldn’t you know it, we Won! Today’s prize was a Teddy Bear. Turned out that 2 of our team thought we weren’t going to turn up so they joined another team. At 4:45 there was a caviar-on-deck sail away, and a talk on the Panama Canal at 6:15. Dinner on deck once again, had a nice chat with a couple of fellow passengers over dessert. Bed early.
Monday 21st: Panama Canal. Our transit through the Gatun Locks began at about 8:15 am and took best part of 2 hours. A series of 3 locks raise and lower ships 85 feet from/to the Atlantic Ocean at Colon. It is an amazing feat of engineering if a bit like watching paint dry! Those on ships tours were taken ashore by tender in Gatun Lake and will rejoin the ship in Colon We opted to stay on board, spending the day in The Retreat, and popping out every now & again to see what if anything was happening. The return journey took little more than 30 minutes. Ship docked in Colon to pick up passengers out on tour. Dinner in TK Grill. Way too much food! Nightcap in Observation Bar.
Tuesday 22nd. Sea Day. Rough seas overnight continued into the morning. Ship rocking and rolling & strong gusty winds don’t help. 10 am Fun Fair on deck, but we are back in The Retreat. Feeling bit 'off', don’t know if it’s the sea or the nightcap. Bloody Mary will either kill or cure! It’s formal tonight and have 6:15 Seabourn Club cocktail party. Chefs dinner in the Restaurant, a 7 course tasting menu with 3 main choices. Showtime with Ben Mills, a raspy singer with songs from Rod Stewart, Beatles, Moody Blues, was fun. Nightcap in Observation Bar, late turning in.
Wednesday Feb 23rd. Day at Sea. Up for stretch at 7:45 am. Seas have calmed since yesterday, but overcast with light rain showers in the morning. Breakfast on deck then back up to the Retreat. Trivia at Noon, with team of Officers adding to the challenge. Made some dumb mistakes and finished second. The Officers came second last. The “problem” with doing the Retreat is that you don’t bother to look to see what is going on around the ship. Liars Club is on pre-dinner at 6:15. Dinner on deck. Clocks back an hour.
Thursday Feb 24th. Santo de Tomas, Guatamala. Docked at about 8 o’clock and off at 8:30 for our Seabourn shore excursion "Aktanamit cultural exchange & Eco adventure". Consisting of a boat ride in a small “attack craft” along the coast to Livingston & up the Dulce river to a school for 800 local & indigenous children. The boat ride was rough and I made the mistake of sitting in the front so felt every bump. The school was interesting and on way back stopped in Livingston for a very brief walkabout, primarily designed it seemed to make us part with our dollars. The shore was lined with thousands of birds mainly pelicans, terns, and frigate birds. It was an interesting tour but felt a bit rushed. On the way back we had to move to the back as the seas were even rougher and I got drenched. Disembarking at the pier was difficult to say the least. All in all though the tour was worth it, and a percentage of the cost went to the Aktanamit community. Dinner on deck. Enjoyed early Comedy/Magic show by Many Muden. A couple of drinks and a dance in the Club afterwards.
Friday Feb. 25th. Day at Sea. Another day in the Retreat. Stretch at 7:45 am followed by breakfast on deck. Picked up our passports. Filled out Travel Authorisation form for Bermuda. Trivia at noon, second again! Ross & Luke performed songs from musicals on deck at 5:30, caviar & Harvey Wallbangers on offer. Had dinner with Victor & Karen from our trivia team, at 7:30 in The Restaurant. It was a lot of fun. 10 pm show “Push the Button”, carried over from Wednesday, was a bit frenetic and seemed to lack any continuity, although that may have been the point. In any case, I fell asleep during the show. Lost an hour as clocks put forward an hour to EST.
Saturday Feb. 26th. Our last day at sea before disembarking in Miami tomorrow morning. Got up with difficulty for 7:45 am stretch, followed by breakfast on deck. Got a head start on the packing before Covid test at 10 am. Quick & efficient, in and out in 4 minutes. Hopefully will get negative result. Our last day in the Retreat, and final Trivia at noon. Roger & Barbara not feeling well (stomach, not covid), so only us, Karen & Victor. We missed one question, but were the only ones to get the bonus question correct, and so finished in a blaze of glory, winning the coveted new Seabourn black tote-bag. Since Roger & Barbara were with us in spirit, they very kindly gave us one for them as well. Last afternoon in the Retreat, final bottle of Moet! Went to crew farewell on deck at 6pm, & had dinner in the Colonnade “Indian Market” with Victor & Karen, then went to 8:45 performance by Mandy Muden. Not as good as first show but entertaining nevertheless. Then back to suite to finish packing & put suitcases out. Up at 6:30 to watch ship dock in Miami. Out of suite at 8:00am, quick breakfast in Colonnade & off the ship at 8:45 am for our airport transfer. Officers & Ross there to see passengers off. Had to wait for bags to come off but clearing immigration was a breeze. Bit chaotic outside of the terminal as Seabourn staff not allowed to help, so finding our tour bus not as easy as could have been. A nice touch was that Roger & Barbara who were off earlier than us waited for us to say goodbye. Thankfully they were feeling a lot better. We had chosen the 5 hour tour of Miami with free time in South Beach suitable for flights after 4 pm. We therefore expected to be dropped off around 2 pm. HOWEVER, it appeared that some other tours had been canceled & Seabourn booked people on our tour with earlier flights. Someone on our bus had a 3:15 pm flight so our tour was cut short. We had 30 minutes in Little Havana and were put off at the airport at 1:00 pm! There was only one person happy about this! The terminal was a bit chaotic but got through to the sanctuary of the Flagship Lounge without too much delay for the 5 hour wait for our flight. Flight expected to be on time putting us in Bermuda around 10 pm local time.
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