Onboard the Voyager and having a relaxing cruise…

Just an update on our trip so far.

We arrived in Funchal on Thursday and had a wonderful visit. We stayed at Reid’s Palace which is a lovely property with stunning grounds and an easy walk to town (not as easy on the way back as you have to walk up a rather steep hill, but it’s manageable.). The hotel’s restaurants are excellent and the high tea on the terrace lived up to its reputation. The weather was lovely and we spent Friday walking around Funchal on our own and visiting the market. I have a huge bouquet of flowers which is still in pretty good shape. Saturday we took the cable car and spent some time at the Monte Palace Gardens. We took the death sled (aka toboggan ride) down the hill and survived unscathed. The three folks in back of us (also guests at Reid’s) were not so lucky – 1 broken wrist, 1 dislocated shoulder and 1 spectacularly bloody nose. Not life threatening but not fun either. We did a levada walk on Sunday morning which was great fun and an interesting peak into island life albeit a tad on the muddy side. We will definitely come back to Madeira for a longer visit.

We boarded the Voyager around 2:00 on Sunday. I think about 114 passengers boarded in Funchal. There were more than 500 already on board for the grand crossing. Check-in was fast. We had our champagne and headed up to the pool deck for our traditional embarkation cheeseburgers. Rooms were ready at 2:30. Lifeboat drill was at 4:15 and then sail away at 5. We ate at La Veranda as we could not get a table for 2 in Compass Rose. It was the surf and turf menu and we both had excellent lobster tail entrees. Service was a bit slow but the waiters were trying hard – there just didn’t seem to be enough of them to go around. The show was the 70’s and 80’s songs and was well attended. We went to the Horizon lounge after for some dancing.

Yesterday was the first full day for us and there are lots of activities to choose from. Jim and I are both taking the Cordon Bleu class. Chef Phillipe is an excellent teacher and we had a fun class making tomato and goat tart tian with lamb fillets and sautéed spinach. The kitchen in latitudes was a bit confining with 10 people trying to cook but everyone was in good spirits and there were not too many collisions. The weather was mostly sunny with some cloudy patches and you could occasionally see rain off in the distance. Last night they had the block party, the captain’s welcome aboard reception and it was formal night. We had dinner with some friends in Compass Rose. The food was excellent but the service was the slowest I have ever experienced. There was almost a 30 minute wait in between the first course and the second. The wine steward only made the occasional appearance and then there was another prolonged wait before dessert. The staff seemed especially stressed – they were running around like crazy and there was none of the usual friendliness and joking around. The show was a clarinetist – we stopped in and listened to a polka and then some Klezmer music – not really my cup of tea although I think he was a very talented musician. We wandered up to the Observation lounge and listened to the piano player – Bill Forrest. He’s quite good.

I managed to make it to exercise class this morning and then joined Jim in Compass Rose for breakfast. Again we had extremely slow service and the wait staff does not seem to be happy. There’s nothing obviously wrong – everyone is very polite and professional - but there’s something missing. We went to an interesting lecture “Is Conflict with China Inevitable?” this morning. It’s a spotlight on public television this cruise so we have good speakers. The seas are rolling gently today – about 9 foot swells according to the noon report from the boat driver. It’s a following sea so the motion is pleasant rather than troublesome. The captain has warned us the wind will shift tonight as will the wave direction and we could be in for a more pronounced motion. He advised sensitive people to take action. I have my seabands on and will probably take a bonine tablet pre-dinner just to be sure (I have managed to get seasick on our sailboat while we were still in the mooring field playing with the rigging – Jim is a very patient husband.). Let’s hope for the best.

The Voyager seems to be in good shape. Some of the new furniture is on board already. All the chairs in the coffee area have been replaced by gigantic brown and gold upholstered armchairs and big brown leather couch. The chairs in Latitudes are now all brown leather in preparation for the upcoming steakhouse theme. And all the chairs in Compass Rose have been replaced by upholstered chairs – I thought the old ones were much more comfortable than the new ones.

Off to tea soon and then we have the galley tour that’s part of the cooking class. We will lose satellite connectivity for 2 – 3 days and will be unable to post so there will be a silent period.

Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Mary Ellen