31 May 2022- Agio Nikolaos- Crete again 51/217/365

Good morning all here we are again in the Port of Agio Nikolais- Crete and yes its our 51st Wedding anniversary today, quite amazing how time flies when you are keeping busy and travelling.

Following breakfast we when then to ‘THE RETREAT’ which is an area of the ship which has little cabins with hot and cold running waiters and we were given fee access  as a special treat for the day. First thing Jennifer disappeared off to have a one hour long massage and duly arrived looking a little worse for wear as the masseuse was apparently very strong and was able to knead away all the aching muscles accumulated of the the past 51 years, Ha.

So we spent the complete day there having lunch with both having salads of different types and with the odd zizz in between Jennifer did her sewing and Noel listen to his music. One of the waiting staff came from Cape town and we talked about a possible visit there but he seems rather reluctant to recommend it due to the current problems he said both in certain areas of Cape town and elsewhere, clearly we need to check before adventuring there. Around lunch time they turned on some large fans and suddenly I was covered with a light dusting of rain but as it was a clear sky thought hat was strange but the fans are designed to emit a fine spray of water to help cool down the area, good idea we thought.

 At the end of the day we went back to the cabin for a wash and brush up and from there up to the Observatory Bar when shortly afterwards the Captain and his top aides to give a welcome to recently joined guests and let them know a little bit more about the cruise and his comrades responsibilities on board the vessel. So what do the numbers mean at the top well the Captain informed us that there were currently only 217 guests on board whilst there was 365 staff to take care of you, so quite a good ratio of guest to staff. This apparently changes later in the month where guests will begin to outnumber the staff with more than 400 on board as the season picks up. Apparently many Americans are not travelling to Europe due to the war in Ukraine??

For dinner tonight we had booked the Thomas Keller Restaurant which is very posh but as usual Noel eating requirements were well know by all the staff and so Noel had his lovely Gulf Bay Prawns and Jennifer Crab cake and we both had a ribeye steak as a main course but both stayed away from the desert being good boys. Our waiter for this evening was a Peruvian guy named Gino and of course he asked where we cam from so we answered near London Heathrow and he said exactly where which we thought a bit strange and so we told him West Byfleet  to which he responded he knows it well as he used to live for four years in Hersham and was the Maître D at the Mercedes Benz Brooklands restaurant, such a small world.

After dinner we had a quick drink in the bar before leaving for the Seabourn square for a cup of tea sitting in the nice comfortable seats and then on to see the show. In the past I have not really bothered with the shows but to be frank we have seen three now and all of good quality and last nights show covered music and songs from West Side Story, Chicago , Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, Elton John and so a brillant mix of music we both enjoyed.

Upon our return to the cabin we found the bed covered with a few red rose petals and a congratulations card together with a bottle of Red wine and gold covered strawberries, what a nice thought and to cap it all the TV had been switched to the music channel with songs from 1971…..

Oh well its been a long day and so to bed.

30th May 2022- Back to Patmos

Today was a quiet day for us and as it was going to be rather warm we have been lazy and decided not to roam the streets of Patmos being chased by tourist shop staff, restaurant staff and any Tom, Dick or Harry that wants to make a buck or two.

So we found ourselves a nice place by the swimming pool on what can be described almost a bed and under a very large umbrella we whiles the time away with the usual sewing and listening to music and followed by a later afternoon swim and hot tub. We had a light lunch on the patio and chatted to one of the South African waiting staff who keeps on calling me Mr Noel whilst all the staff call me Mr Groves, how they all remember your name beats me as I even have trouble remembering it sometime.

Quite a few people have gone for tours but quick frankly we do understand they do this as its the coolest part of the day for us to leave at 0845 would be a total shock to the system as when at home we don't usually surface for breakfast until about 1000 . Having recently been on a Caribbean cruise on the Silver Sea Silver Spirit where we did get off on various Islands and combined with two other Caribbean cruises from the past all the Islands all begin to look the same , mostly run down apart from the expensive Hotels and with lots of corruption so we think Greek Islands are roughly the same. Apparently hardly anybody pays Tax in Greece, I thinks its a national sport. I read somewhere a short time ago that the Greek Tax Authorities hired a helicopter for a few days and toured the various areas looking which houses had swimming pools as majority of owners said they did not and avoided a swimming pool tax so by using the Helicopter they were able to prove their point and claim back some money.

I am a couple of days behind when writing these blogs and we arrived overnight in Kusadasi, Turkey and blow me guess which ship we parked right next too, all will be answered tomorrow

The weather has been very good indeed so far and hope that its stays that way although touring hot sticky towns for us is not exciting any more and any of these towns look very much like Spanish Towns.

29th May 2022- Arriving in Athens

With little or no chance to visit Athens due to the road issues caused by the cycle race it was a good day to have a nice day by the pool. Today about 100 guests, perhaps more, left the ship during the first part of the morning and to secure a nice spot by the pool was a doddle.  We hade breakfast on the patio with two bacon sarnies from the Colonnade Restaurant and together with some nice English breakfast tea it was good.

I may have referred to my ‘lurgi’ during the past few days and it appears to have gone as two days ago I changed from the the ships water to Evian still bottled water and stayed away from the scrambled egg has made a big difference and today I felt I was up for most things. We found two rather comfortable, almost a settee, by  the side of the poo, and Jennifer spent some hours on her sewing whilst Noel listened to his music and we passed the morning that way. Lunch we had on the patio where they do nice nice really fresh salads and so I had one with Mahi Mahi fish and prawns which was very nice. Jennifer seemed to have a bit of everything looking at the size of the plate contents.

During the afternoon we noticed what appeared to be a small amount of ‘newbies’ walking around the ship and also several new crew members, even the Captain has left and there is a new one so we hope he knows what to do. Unfortunately the F1 Monaco race was not on TV so Noel followed the results on his Formula One App but not like the real thing which is being recorded at home for later viewing. WE both had a go at swimming and enjoying the hot tub before a little more rest but at around 1600 we headed back to the cabin for a small afternoon zizz. At 1800 we went for an early evening drink before heading to the main restaurant for dinner which seemed quite deserted and later we understood why as  more guests departed the ship that joined and there are now only 215 people on boars plus crew compared to around 300 before. As we sat down to dinner a new Maitre D came and introduced himself and apologised for last nights screw up on dinner, they brought a nice steak covered in onions after a long delay of about 30 minutes and then the spinach and chips arrived but no steak and so I ate the chips and waited for the steak which was good but would have been better with the chips and spinach. Anyway he apologised for the error and offered for us to go to the ‘Retreat’ which is a special deck on the ship where you have special little rooms and your own waiter and swimming pool  etc AND AT NO COST which would normally charge around $160 per person to which we gratefully accepted and also pointed out that we had already booked for the 31st but they said don't worry we will change to no charge, which always sound good.

After dinner we went to the Seabourn square to enjoy some quiet time with a cup of tea, this area is like your lounge but it also the hub of the ship for information and the location of Guest Services, the Shops and also a tea and coffee bar and finally booking for future cruises. Having enjoyed the tea and not wanting two late nights we returned to the cabin where Noel finished up the blogs for yesterday and today.

Having watched some reports about the shootings in Texas and hearing Trumps statement at the NRA that "good guys with guns will always beat the bad guys with guns" only it did not work here. No amount of laws will stop a madman who is not known to the police purchasing weapons used by the army and the only way is a complete ban on guns but hat will never happen in USA. The idea of arming teachers in the event of a gunman going in to a school is a nightmare in the making.

28th May -We arrive in Patmos Greece

First thing this morning all guests had to go for a Covid test which was quite quick and painless ad then on t breakfast.

Patmos has the reputation of being historically a very strong religious Island which is quite with lovely street and nice little shops, and then you ready again where the locals are waiting for the arrival of a cruise ship so they can scam them over trinkets, T shirts, Taxis , food and drink. In view of Noels issues over the past few days we waited an hour after breakfast and then decided that walking the streets of a little town with traders pestering you all the time in 30 degrees of heat was not the best way to spend  our time  and so we decided to stay on board.

Now comes the exiting bit in that Jennifer went to do our clothes washing in the on board free laundry which was quite large and containing 6 sets of washers and dryers .During about lunchtime the ship staff opened what is called the Marina at the beck of the ship where if you were so inclined you can borrow kayaks, or take rides in inflatable tyres or the yellow banana, not for us though. Looking at the age of some of the guests one wonders how many heart attacks there will be.  We had lunch outside in the shade where again the staff are very attentive and its almost like you have to drink out the bar or they will have to chuck it away, but free flowing it certainly is.

During the day its been interesting to catch up with the practise at the Monaco F1 GP and when typing am waiting for Qualifying to start, but clearly something is wrong with Ricciardo this year and it looks like , according to the F1 press , that he wont last the season out and will be replaced, let us see. In addition I found out that the Liverpool vs Real Madrid game is taking place tonight and hopefully will be on TV so keeping fingers crossed, but if not I have set it up to be recorded at home. Its now about 4.30 pm and Jennifer has just returned from her toenail extravaganza and seems pleased with the result.

We have been using the ships (free?) Wi-Fi which is fine but of course slow as it is Satellite based and ok for email/What's app/ and checking the general news but no use for uploading photos of our trip which the numbers are slowly mounting.

Tonight is a farewell for many of the guests who have had either a one week or two week cruise so there will be a band by the pool and food tables etc , so lets see what happens. Well they had the usual trooping around of the staff to the sound of music. The evening was interrupted by an announcement, most unusual, that the planned trips for tomorrow to Athens and the Acropolis have had to be cancelled  due to the Greek government  agreeing to a bicycle race around the streets which essentially means that most of Athens roads have been closed although getting to the airport should not be a problem they say. When this was announced we were in the main restaurant and peoples faces just dropped like that is what we cam for , ah well that's life.

Tonight Noel watched the European Champions League cup final in Paris which was delayed by security issues ( only in France do you get security issues in football) and it started about 40 minutes late with some stupid French singer and dancers that nobody was interested in being booed through out. Its like going to a strip show and they we thought you might like to see a bit of Turandot whilst your waiting..

Finally at least I was beginning to start to feel a little better and I think I know what caused the problems

27 May Cesme-Turkey Missed tour again

We went for breakfast and feeling fine but shortly afterwards, the same old problem appeared which is worrying, annoying and frustrating all at the same time. The previous day Noel had booked to have a session in the Spa have toenails sawed  off which was carried out by a very nice young lade of Zimbabwe extraction who know lives in Birmingham. I can know walk a little better without tripping over toe nails and so Jennifer clearly though this was good and has arranged for hers to be attended to tomorrow.

We had lunch in the Colonnade and sat outside watching the world go by for a while and then returned to the bedroom for a short nap. Jennifer is spending time. So we had a quiet afternoon and then went to the SKY Bar for an early evening drink and avoided the Captains cocktail party before trotting off downstairs for dinner. We had thought about going on the joint dinner table where you can mix with other guests but we had changed our minds on this from the previous night as there was an obnoxious English couple who totally monopolised the conversation and you could see the husband of the second couple looking more and more depressed and so the last thing we needed was this guy turning up and so we sat by the window overlooking the harbour. Noel had taken some pills earlier and so was up to going to the Stevie Wonder songbook show which again was quite entertaining for about an hour. As I was feeling better I thought we would pay a visit to The Club but shortly after we arrived Mr Obnoxious and his new found fans turned up and were most noisy and so we moved to the other side of the room  and then they started to show off on the dance floor and so we left, lets hope they get off at Athens.

We have watched the latest development from the Texas school massacre , what a disgrace…When will the yanks learn allowing guns to everybody, just about, can only cause problems. If they want guns let them have them but locked up at a gun club. What is also amazing is the the grandfather said he was surprised and had no idea his grandson would carry out such a terrible deed. For a kid that did not work where did he get the money to purchase the guns and ammunition. we will wait and see.

I like to do a blog when travelling but notice that if you don't do it the almost before it happens you forget what you did two days ago so sometimes timelines might be out but only we know that

26th May A day in Bodrum, Turkey

We had booked some while ago on a bus tour of Bodrum for about 4.5 hours but after yesterday incident Noel decided  not to go and so Jennifer went on the tour leaving at 0830. So I spent some time catching up some blogging and watching the news regarding latest status on the school shooting. On board we have SKY, BBC, FOX and many other live TV channels so whichever country you come from you can keep up to date on world events. Of course world events are pretty bad at this time its a double edged sword.

Bodrum look like a nice place and I will be taking some photos later this morning after Jennifer returns as she has the camera today for the tour. I sat at the back of the ship closest to the shore and you could hear a large group of people shouting and cheering and so wondered if this was one of the places the youngsters come to as Turkey is a relative cheap place to stay. Bodrum is steeped in history and later today we will go and take a look at the famous castle. Oh well that's we thought as shortly after breakfast Noel came down with the Lurgi again and  so mostly stayed in the cabin. Not sure what is causing the problems but am guessing its the water as usually when I am away travelling but had failed to do so here and so will change right away to see if there is any improvement.

Later in the day we did venture out to the swimming pool but again this was not to be and so back the cabin went, Bloody nuisance not knowing what is causing it.  In the evening we headed back to the main restaurant for dinner where we both enjoyed a nice dinner with attentive and caring staff and management. After that we went back to the room and and had quiet time.

24-25 May a couple of days of relaxing-almost in Crete and Rhodes

We arrived at the first Greek Island called Crete where we parked up in the bay but we had not booked any tours. There was lots of nice views which we enjoyed during the day but we also enjoyed the food on board and Noel has been able to find a wine that he could drink with safety called ‘Virginia Dare’ a nice Chardonnay.

On the tuesday evening we decided that a quiet evening after in the dinner and we watched a documentary of Rob Brydon and  Steve Coogan  on their trip around the Greek islands but boy did they stay and nice Hotels and eat at some amazing restaurants, unfortunately  much of the food they ate would not be suitable for the author.. As regards food and to ensure that the Chefs can cover my food requirements I have to choose my food request for the next day to allow time for them the prepare one with out all the ingredients that can do me harm and so far they have done a good job. At mealtime the Maître De   takes personal care of collecting my food to ensure that it complies with my order which really helps to make for  good evening for us.

Overnight we cruised to Rhodes where we planned to take a walk around the town and everything was fine then Noel came down with the Lurgi and so Noel had to spend the morning in the cabin and Jennifer continued her sewing whilst sitting outside overlooking the swimming pool. By lunchtime Noel was improving and so we sat outside and had a salad and we then thought we would have an afternoon  by the pool but yet again Noel had an issue and returned to the cabin. Later in the day Noel took a few photos of the Rhodes ruins and port/marina area and it all looks quite nice to walk around although talking to some of the people who did visit the town were not so impressed, small streets in the heat with shops selling all the usual tourist stuff. Not sure how the people on tours enjoyed their trips ?

We then started to hear about the school shooting In Uvalde, Texas and could not believe what had just happened and it brought tears to our eyes. How can you legislate for this happening again as there now appears one day later to be many different angles to this story about many warnings signs about the young killer and or why it took so long for the police to get involved as there indications that police were scared to enter the school, not sure if this is true and will have to wait the outcome of the enquiry.  On the other hand the fact that a group of ISIS were using the Mexican border disguised at South American immigrants with the plan to kill George Bush the ex US President for his involvement in invading Afghanistan I guess Tony Blair may now be looking over his shoulder a bit more.

The Party Gate issues with the UK Government investigation fizzled out a bit with the release of a report but it clearly showed that the Civil Service is a bloody mess, the old series of ‘Yes Minister’ says it all. There is an elements of truth in Boris comments at the yesterday press conference where he explained that in context there are over 800 people working in Downing street and well over a 100 offices so how can you expect him to know what is going on with all the CS staff. Lets stop all this rubbish and get on with sorting out the economy which has been decimated by COVID ( not BREXIT as many people hope) and sort all the other far more important issues.

Dinner tonight was good with Noel having the Salmon and Jennifer the artic cha which looked very nice. After dinner we went to the Observatory Bar and listened to the English Duo who are very good. After singing a number of songs about Paris, Las Vegas etc etc the male piano player then said it great singing the songs when he cam from Coventry and that's pretty much all he know.

A day at sea from Haifa to Agios Nikolaos-Greece

Well we both slept quite well and quite frankly we were both exhausted from the previous days events. We took breakfast in the Colonnade restaurant and from there moved to the heart of the ship called Seabourn Square where guest services were also located.

We spoke with Guest Services regarding our issues as described earlier and they promised to look in to how the refund for Hotel costs and taxis would be carried out and quite frankly I thought this might take several days but in fact four hours later a message was posted that they had refunded to my AMEX card the cost of the Hotel etc, so lets hope the money has been received. During the rest of the morning we unpacked our suitcases and got a bit more organised and now at least we can find what clothes we want to wear. With the morning gone we went to the Skybar for a glass of beer and Jennifer had a concoction of ginger beer, orange and other stuff as she had explained she was suffering a bit queasy after failing to put on her sea bands. In the morning Jennifer attended a cooking course on how to make an apple strudel which apparently was quite funny.  

In the afternoon we both decided to take a  rest so as to be fully recovered for the evening but the sleep was deep and we awoke around 6pm in time to get ready to go for dinner in the Colonnade Restaurant where Noel enjoyed the lobster and Jennifer had the the monk fish and both were very good. After dinner we went for some quiet time in the Seabourn Square and then on to the show which was music and songs from the 70’ and 80’s and quite good really with small live band and about 8 performers.

The we returned to the cabin and hit the sack as they say….and tomorrow we shall be in Crete.

You could not make this up–Part Two

We hung around in the lobby after checking out of the room at midday waiting for the taxi to arrive, We wrongly assumed that the driver would come to the Hotel reception and look for us ad so at about 1410 I checked with reception that if there was a taxi waiting for us would they come upstairs to find us and he said NO and that we should downstairs and wait. So rather than wait for the baggage to be taken on the trolley downstairs Jennifer went ahead to try and find the Taxi driver and lucky we did this as I think he was about to leave.

The driver explained he had little English and that we were going to Hotel in Haifa which sounded about right. We left the Hotel and this driver had two mobiles both with Waze  Sat Nav running and again talking all the time on the phone whilst keep changing the Waze info and checking emails and texts etc whilst slowly weaving about the road. At least he was following the signs to Haifa and so off we went down the motorway and after about half an hour having been on the phone for all the time he pulled in to the side of the road to confirm where we going. ?? So I found the detail and then gave it to him and off we went again with him on the phone and continually playing with the two mobiles and then suddenly I heard him say the name of the Hotel where we should go  to meet the Seabourn people. Th reason we had to go to a Hotel to check in was that another vessel was there at the same time and they could not handle the two vessels at once?. We arrived at the Hotel in Haifa at around 1525 after a scary and uncomfortable ride and handed the baggage over to a couple of guys who said they were Seabourn although they had no ID denoting same but I watched them as the took our suitcases in to the Hotel where finally there was a Seabourn sign only it was not Seabourn crew  but the local agent staff. We checked in and had some light lunch and waited around for our turn to leave on the coach to the port at around 1630. We arrived at the Haifa Port and talk about Fred Karno’s army, I don't know if they were building the port cruise terminal or pulling it down but it seemed to be mostly in large tents.

Where they dropped us off the coach we then had go to the departure hall which was the other side of the train tracks and meant wee had to climb three sets of stairs carrying our hand luggage as the lift had broken and we reached a place and had to wait for our baggage to arrive. It finally arrived and we had to pick up our own suitcases and drag them thro where then the staff were arguing or discussing, not easy to tell, about what should be done next. They then decided who would lift the cases on the the scanner and who would look at the scanner screen and then who would take the cases off. Finally we were thro to the other side and back on the the coach which then drove the length of the harbour to another area which was immigration, also in large tents. I did think about taking photos but they are very sensitive in Israel to photographing government building but it reminded me of the of Heathrow airport check in which was tend on North side. We were questioned again about PCR tests and we could confirm our were completed the previous day and so went to see the immigration lady, there were other passenger it would appear had not taken a PCR test and would have to do it now. We walked the length of the large tented area and went thro immigration and from there we walked all the way back to the waiting much smaller coaches. We had walked quite a huge distance for me and my right knee was giving up and I was hot and sweaty and not in the frame of mind to start a relaxing cruise after all this hassle.

We got on the smaller coach and drove the 400 yards down the pier to the ship and boarded and greeted with a glass of champagne, which neither of us drink,  and settled in to our cabin and now it was about 1745 . Form the cabin after dumping our stuff we went to our  muster station and then back stopping for a beer on the way back to the cabin but the suit aces had not arrived at this point which was a little unusual but when I spoke to guest services they said sorry but there has been a delay in the port which we think was due to the lift being out of action and they had to move the baggage containers by hand, such efficiency  wow, how Israel allow this to happen I find difficult to accept as it was like a third world country port facilities and not like a modern Israel. Quite frankly it appears the Port has been designed for cargo and they using same for passenger ships and it does not work. Made a big note, never take a ship from Israel again.

We went for dinner in the main restaurant where we discussed my food allergies and they now have this well in hand and hopefully will have no problems with this at all. After dinner we went to the Panorama lounge for a cup of tea and listened to the couple making music and they were very good but then it was time for bed.

You could not make this up?- Part ONE

We walked out of the baggage hall in to the reception area looking for a Seabourn sign or even one with our name on it but could not see anybody. We waited around for about fifteen minutes and then Noel went looking for help and eventually found a security guard who knew nothing but suggested that perhaps in the coach park which was about a ten minute walk that way, so we decided not to bother with this as the instructions received from Seabourn clearly states transfer from Airport to the Ritz Carlton Hotel. So we decided to take a taxi to the Hotel rather than hang around anymore.

We found the taxi rank and explained where we wanted to go and yes no problem and we got in the taxi and off he went whilst incessantly talking on the phone and playing with his Sat Nav using Waze which kept on turning upside down and covered with loads of icons, no idea what he was doing after about two miles he stopped at the side of the road and asked where he was to go??? so after giving him the info from my mobile and then looking on the search function on his phone we finally decided that we both agreed where to go. I had not planned to connect to Wifi/Data to save money but now as I was so concerned where we were actually going I connected and checked the route he was taking but also phoned the Hotel for them to ask the driver if he new where he was going but the guy at the Hotel could not properly hear me. We finally arrived at the Ritz Carlton Hotel at about 0145 and the drop off was on the ground floor and reception on the first floor so the driver helped us to the reception where I asked for a receipt for the USD 80 which seemed expensive to me but the Hotel assured me it was about correct for this time of night and distance.

The receptionist was provided with our passports and searched for our reservation for about five minutes and then asked did we have a reservation number, No I explained that as we were due to be greeted at the airport and taken to this Hotel I was not bothered about getting the Hotel reservation number. Anyway he kept looking and eventually gave up and asked should we have gone to the Tel Aviv Carlton Hotel ( no connection with Ritz Carlton) but as Seabourn paperwork said RITZ CARLTON that's where we came to. Finally after about fifteen minutes after we arrived he said there was no booking for us ? so what to do. Well as all the Seabourn documents showed Ritz Carlton we had better stay there the night and let Seabourn sort it out rather than involved another Hotel and by now it was about 0215. So I said please give us the cheapest room and he said he only had two rooms left, one a standard room and the other a suite, as Hotel was virtually sold out and that the rate for the room including breakfast and taxes would be about USD 750, what I said !!! yes he said that is the basic rate. I then remembered when looking at Hotel in Tel Aviv how amazingly expensive they were which is why we had decided not to stay there for a couple of days before our cruise.

When we arrived in the room which was very nice indeed I then set about trying to contact Seabourn after searching the internet and then using Skype to call Seabourn Uk which was of course closed but they provided an emergency contact number in the USA which I phoned and had to wait about twenty five minutes for somebody to answer and hoping that I would not be cut off. I explained the situation the agent who then checked all my details and indeed she confirmed that we should have been met at the airport and that our Hotel the Ritz Carlton and don't worry Seabourn will cover your costs and I will contact the Israel agents arrange for you to be taken to Haifa later in the day. It was now about 0315 and we were getting tired but we went to bed but I found it difficult to sleep. Somehow when turning of the lights we had turned off the master power switch without realising and when we awoke at about 0745 nothing was working. So we called down to reception to find out what was wrong and the girl who answered the phone explained what to do and also there was a message for you. She said that AKOR had phoned to say a Taxi would meet us at 1400 to take us to Haifa. I said did she have the telephone number of the person that called and she said not, blood ridiculous I thought , an expensive hotel like this cannot run a proper message service.

I spent the next half an hour trying to find a company by the name of AKOR connected with cruise line management but was not able to find any company remotely like this. Anyway we went down for breakfast and I approached the reception and asked for a copy of the message an the guy said what message? the one your female colleague read over the phone to me this morning at about 0730 ish so he checked the computer and still found no message and then he went in to the side office and came back with a female staff member who said she took the message and I asker to repeat it and she said that whoever had called had given the name as AKOR and said that a Taxi would come to the Hotel around 1400 to collect us and had also mentioned to the Ritz lady that we had gone to the wrong Hotel??.

20th May continued- Part Two It gets worse

So finishing up all our paperwork I checked again the Israel Government website where they announced overnight you don't need a PCR Test ( Oh damn, so paying for our arrival tests in advance was waste of money) but you must wear a mask on the flight and everywhere in  Israel. This would be no problem for us as used to it from our last flight back from Miami on 1st May

So we arrived at the Airport at around 1145 for our PCR tests which were booked in the upper departure level of Terminal 5 but when we got there it was closed and you had to go downstairs to the arrival level where you would have it done there. So finding an elevator in the terminal is never easy but we did ask somebody who told us the where also to find the test centre which was at the right far end of the terminal. We checked in for our tests with a small five minute waiting time and was told it would be available around 4 hours later and our flight was at 1700 so hopefully it would be ok. From there we had to go the the BA ‘assistance’ check in desk as I had requested wheel chair assistance, right knee is still a problem and so is standing . Of course the BA check we needed was complete at the other end of the Terminal so with Noel desperately hanging on to the baggage trolley we made our way there and checked in and only waited a few minutes before someone came with a wheelchair to take us to the lounge as we know had a five hour wait till our flight departed.

There are additional advantages by using the assisted route as they jump the security queue and when arriving in a country they also use a different immigration channel. However at about 1500 the reports came back from the test and both were fine. The food in the BA lounge was not good for me (or others looking at the waste) but Jennifer concocted from a part break roll and grated cheese, Oh for the Virgin lounge. This BA lounge was very busy and at 1600 the guy arrived with the wheelchair and off we went to the gate using about four lifts and a train. WE arrived at the gate and boarding had started and immediately  I noticed there had been an aircraft change from B777 to a B787 Dreamliner which was fine. We were told we must wear our masks on board as it was an Israel Government requirement and so we did. We eventually arrived at Tel Aviv Ben Gurion Airport at around 23.50 . Jennifer had eaten well on the food provided whilst Noel had his self made pork roll with tomato which was actually very good.

As we need assistance you have to wait for everybody else to get off the plane first, not sure why as u still have o walk off the aircraft and down the ramp to meet the wheelchair. anyway we waited and finally they found somebody who took us on special route and said wait there and somebody will come to collect you with a electric buggy and then he left and we watched the BA crew leave and then waited. Finally the original chap came back about fifteen minutes later so I asked where the buggy was and after about twenty minutes wait it arrived. Apparently it was shift changeover time hence the delay but the lady who collected rushed us thro immigration and into the baggage hall where out two suitcases were whizzing around on the almost empty carousel. We collected our baggage on a trolley and headed outside expectantly to look for the Seabourn Rep. To be continued.

So where to start week 16-20th May 2022

After  enjoying a week in the caravan and visiting the family we returned to West Byfleet on Sunday 16th to start preparing four our journey to Israel and joining Seabourn Cruise  in Haifa to tour the Greek Islands and ending up in Istanbul where we are due to spend four nights sightseeing .

The requirements to travel on the Monday as published by the Israel Government and also Seabourn was asking for a PCR Test three day’s before actual departure days and these tests unless you go for the four hour report test which costs about £ 120 each and so we organised the usual one which can take 2 sometimes three days to get the report. So working on this basis we had organised our tests at the drive-thru at terminal 4 on Wednesday 18th at just after 1700 because our flight was leaving at 1655 and you need to have the test 72 hours before flight day. So we took the test then waited for the reports which came back quite quickly the next day on Thursday  afternoon and so know we could complete the following documentation.

1- Israel Government application for landing permission which you need to complete by adding all your actual vaccination details, date-type etc plus also upload a copy of actual vaccine certificate

2- The Israel Government require you to have a PCR test upon arrival at Tel Aviv airport which is cheaper if you pre-book so we booked that

3- Complete the BA pre-flight VERIFLY app with copies of Vaccine Certificates and finally add confirmation you have rec’d Israel approval to land

4- Complete the Seabourn pre-departure Vaccination information

All this takes a while and then of course 24 hours prior to departure you can check in on the British Airways website to obtain boarding passes,

So by Thursday night a lot of work had been completed and we breathed a sigh of relief.  Then overnight Seabourn advised that thee would be a significant delay to embarking due to Haifa Port congestion and that all passengers should go to a Hotel in Haifa where you would check in and then whilst waiting you could have so light refreshment to await your turn to board. this was going to be a pain in the neck we thought but then if that is the scenario there is not much to do abut this.

Oh well never mind we thought and started packing suitcases in readiness for our travel. On Friday evening we signed on to BA for our boarding passes only there was something wrong with the website and after six attempts using different browsers I gave up and said would do early the next morning. On waking on Saturday morning a  new email from Seabourn stated that PCR tests must be within 72 hours of Boarding and so what with the 6-7 delay in boarding our current PCR test would have expired so what to do?

So a call to Seabourn ( which is handled in the UK by P & O) to aske what to do, I waited 20 minutes to get thro and the the P & O Staff said she did no know the answer and would I hold which I then did for about another 25 minutes and then was cut off. Bloody ridiculous. So what to do, I checked again on PCR test availability and the only one that would suit our requirements was one at Terminal 5 at £ 120 each, stupid rip off price but what to do. To do this we had to change the Taxi from 1345 to 1100 and rush around the house and finalise packing and close down the house which we completed in time and departed for the airport.