Marcie and Tom are joining Capt. Dag on the Seabourn Spirit today (Sep 25). Have a great cruise and please let us all know how Dag is doing.

Heard from Marcie today, they are on the ship and have already run into Capt. Dag! I think they are having dinner tomorrow night. She was too soon on the ship to report much, but I'm sure we'll be hearing from her soon!

Bon Voyage Marcie and Tom. Keep us posted on your travels.

Marcie, you and Tom really know how to do it. Hope you enjoy your pre- Tut, Seabourn cruise!

SOOO anxious to hear about their SB journey but more excited to see them on TUT!!!

Hopefully we will get lots of details during our dinner on the 6th. Can't wait to hear all about it.

I can't wait to hear the SB details, too! I hope you both have a blast!

:bv: Marcie and Tom! Have a fabulous time and do tell us about it!
Thanks,

Have a great time, Marcie and Tom. We'll be checking on the Sojourn in late October.

Thanks for all the Bon Voyage greetings. We're off to a great start. It was so special when we boarded yesterday as our ship, Seabourn Spirit was docked next to the Regent Voyager !! It seemed like old home week. So far this ship is great, like one of Regent's but on a mini-scale (except for the cabins which are 277 sq. ft. and plenty roomy).

We learned that Capt. Dag does read the Manifest list so he surprised us more than visa versa. We walked in our cabin and there was a very nice hand-written note and a stuffed "dog" waiting for us. Next we found him in the hall and he took us to a private area on the ship where we could sit, talk and catch up. He looks great and I'm sure he'll be a hit with Seabourn just as he was for so many years with Regent. It was so kind of him to invite us to eat with him tonight at the Captain's Welcome dinner. We are looking forward to that.

We did tell Capt Dag all the people who send their greetings (I think I received at least 20 emails before leaving from so many sending their best wishes and to give him a hug etc.) He was VERY impressed when I went through the list of familiar names and he just grinned. I'm sure it was a good feeling knowing he is missed. To most who know him, he'll always be our favorite Captain. I guess some of his old buddies from the Voyager came over here yesterday. I'm sure it was a nice reunion.

This afternoon we'll be on a small island Lipari, just off the coast of Sicily. We have no plans whatsoever....just the way we want it. Stroll, people watch and eat pizza!

Jean, Tom and I have talked about you and Clyde as we've walked around trying to imagine what it must have been like having the pirates shooting at this ship off the coast of Somalia. !!

Last night we had a wonderful dinner outside on La Veranda (what is called Restaurant 2) with a delicious Surf and Turf dinner. The lobster was outstanding. YUM.

Well....that's it for now. We're off to a great start on this pre-TUT trip.

Good to hear things are going smoothly and love your plans to walk, people watch and eat pizza! Sure Dag was excited to see you two. You all go way back with many cruise nights together. Keep having fun and we are excited to catch up with you in Athens! :hug: :hug:

So glad you're enjoying time with Dag, a new ship and the beautiful weather. Please give Dag our regards.

Cheers, Anne

What a wonderful welcome!!! We've never had the privilege of sailing with Dag as our Captain, but you can start a list for him of those who wish to, and put us at the top! :) We've heard so many wonderful things about him.

Enjoy your time on the Spirit, Marcie & Tom - you may need to rest up for the TUT deluge! :D

Tom & Marcie:

Am chuckling to myself. We'll all board the Voyager with jetlag , a bit of stress and groggy and there you'll be at the gangplank greeting us all perky, rested and smiling. :D

We're jealous!

Cheers! Ray & Penny

"greeting us all perky, rested and smiling"

Seems she is this way 100% of the time
:D :D

Marcie and Tom: Have a wonderful time on the first leg of your trip. So glad you met up with Captain Dag - I hope he doesn't mind still appearing on LCT with me (not that he'd know). Lee

Marcie & Tom: You are truly special to be dining with the Capt. first time on board! But then, I know you know Capt. Dag so well and he was undoubtedly very happy to see someone he knows so well.

Can you still see the patch outside on the starboard side of the ship? That suite was where the lady was taking a bath and the grenade hit a mirror in the bathroom. She was covered with glass. Can you picture us all huddled together down in the middle of dining room while Capt. Sorenson manuevered the ship to cause a big wake so as to swamp the little boats the pirates were in? It was a very scary time indeed and for the rest of that cruise the curtains on the windows in the dining room were closed.

Have a great time and I'll be looking forward to hearing all about it next Jan. Have a bread stick for me and don't forget to order that cheese app. it's to die for. Forget what it's called!

Correction: It was Cap't Pederson who was the Cap't of the Spirit at that time. (I just took a look at that album to refresh my memory which is notoriously bad these days!)

What a gorgeous day, weather is perfect and things couldn't be nicer. Today we're at the bottom of Italy's “boot”. This is the first time we've stopped here, in the past we've always just cruised around it. We're going to spend the afternoon anchored in the Gulf of Squillanceis having a Marina day (swimming, kayaking, banana boats etc.) Should be perfect conditions.

Yesterday we were in Lipari Island(off the coast of Sicily), what a little gem! It is a quaint, charming village and entirely walkable. The only other tourists (few) seemed to be from neighboring Italian towns. It was as beautiful as any postcard. Last night we had a great dinner with Capt. Dag and others (none we had ever met before). It was a fun, congenial table and as always, Capt. Dag was the perfect host.

After dinner, Tom and I went to the show in the theater with 4 very talented singers followed by “The Club” for what turned out to be an evening of dancing until 1:00am. I was concerned about Tom's back but he had no problem and danced like there was no tomorrow. Holly & Marty were "The Club" entertainment (they were on Regent for 4 years so many may remember them).

We made friends with (ironically considering Tom's back issues) a Dr. and his wife from Los Angeles. He is an Anesthesiologist who specializes in pain management. We are having dinner with them tonight and the 4 of us special ordered dover sole. Later there is a “Flambe under the stars/Dancing under the stars”. Like Regent, there are always fun things going on and I even play daytime trivia.

For being a first timer here on Seabourn, we are quite impressed. The food and service has been impeccable. We haven't missed the balcony (surprise, surprise) as the sliding glass door allows the same view we would have with a normal balcony door closed. We do open the door sometimes for the sea breeze and the French balcony does allow you to step out for fresh air but much too small for any furniture.

Here are some photos from yesterday.
http://picasaweb.google.com/petlove...v1sRgCJ3Cq43wi6edggE&feat=directlink

Marci,Am enjoying your reports and photos. You are going to places we haven't been to in the Mediterranean.Lipari Island looks soooo,well,Italian.
Think we'll try for a ship Capt. Dag is on.
We are also considering the Seabourn ships to cruise on.Glad to hear there is lots of dancing.

Marcie, thanks for taking the time for the update and the great pictures. You, Tom and CaptainDag look terrific and so happy. Continue to have a marvelous time.
Elaine

Sounds like fun Marcie, great pictures. I thought you were on the Soujourn for some reason, but the ship I see in the background is obviously one of the "triplets".

See you Saturday.

Marcie -- Enjoyed the photos. Glad to see you and Tom are having a great time. The stiff collar of Dag's dress uniform doesn't seem too comfortable! Jealousy reigns here in Chicago.

Marcie,
Loved reading about your trip and seeing the photos. We leave for the Spirit in 10 days. We just got back from Anaheim and San Diego and it was pushing 100 degrees. I guess So Cal is having a heat wave, best to be away from it :)
Say hi to Captain Dag for us, can't wait to meet him!

Great photos, Marcie. We'll be on Seabourn Sojourn in late October, Rome to Ft. Lauderdale.It's encouraging to read that you danced until 1 p.m. I've been worried that Seabourn might be too stodgy. I love those outside dining events. Say hi to Capt. Dag for us and keep having a fun time.

Marcie, Wonderful updates and photos. We'll have a doc with us on ROAR3 (orthopedic)! Hope Tom's back is better.

Wonderful to hear from you, Marcie! I'm so interested to hear about the Spirit, and of course what a special treat to be sailing with Dag again. Continue to have a great time, and we'll see you in Athens on Saturday!

Today we're in Brindisi, Italy. This is another new port for us so it should be fun. We continue to enjoy this cruise so much. Being a small ship, it's really easy to meet people on board and the service, staff, food is exceptional. It is fun because it seems like there are always surprises showing up in your cabin... a beautiful exotic plant, a towel animal, a little boat with a photo of Tom and me in it, a tote bag. For just a 1 week cruise they have really given us some fun surprises. They also give the guest book with the passengers names and where they live. We are use to receiving these on longer cruieses but not on a 1 week cruise. I really think this is a nice touch.

Tom had a special order of rack of lamb last night. It was prepared Tableside by Armand (the great maitre'd). What a beautiful presentation and Tom said it was just as delicious. Tomorrow night we're having a larger dinner with 6 new friends. We special ordered Dover Sole for everyone. This is one of their specialties.

We continue to stay up late each night, not sure where we keep finding this energy. I know we sure don't have it at home. LOL. Last night was Liar's Club and live music in The Club. We were the last table to leave the main dining room last night (again).
I uploaded a few more random (very random) photos. Some of these are from our Marina day which was a big hit. It reminded me of the fun we had on the Diamond with the water sports.

http://picasaweb.google.com/petlove...v1sRgCKD71tPb7qjJyAE&feat=directlink

Ok, all for now. Need to go eat breakfast so we can go ashore.

Wow! Doesn't Captain Dag look great in his 'whites'? Thanks so much for the comments and photos Marcie - it's great to sail along with you. Lee

Sounds like an excellent cruise, Marcie! Thanks for sharing the photos.

Marcie, it's great to read your reports and see your photos. I'm so glad you are enjoying your Seabourn cruise. I knew you would. Keep having fun!!

Don't get burned out you'll need stamina for TUT!! ;) ;) ;) :hello1: :hello1:

Looks like great fun. See you Saturday.

:app: Fantastic, Marcie - looks like you and Tom are having a blast! I am so glad to hear Tom's back is holding up. See you soon!

I am loving the pictures, it all looks so perfect!

Joanna is right....think we need to slooooow down and save our stamina (and Tom's back...) The best is yet to come !!! Can't wait to see everyone Saturday night (or maybe Sunday) :banana:

I am sailing off on the Seabourn Odyssey soon so it is nice to read your favorable reports Marcie. The Odyssey is one of their larger ships so I hope our experience is as nice as yours has been on the Spirit.

I bet you really enjoy the Odyssey. We have only been on the Soujourn but loved the ship.

For some reason, I'm thinking I want to get on one of the Seabourn "triplets". I have a feeling they will soon be history, like the Song of Flower. Visted that ship, but never sailed her.

I keep getting wonderful deals from Seabourn in my emails for all their ships!

I need to email B&K, looking into puting down $1,000. deposit for an "onboard open booking". It's good for 2 years, any of the Seabourn ships and 100% refundable if not used. Kind of seems like a no brainer to us.