CruiseMiss

I think the entire cruising universe is aware by now that I can’t stay ashore for too long, once the ship’s start calling I have to answer! With that said I thought now would be a good time to let you know about my next adventure! At the end of August I will be boarding MSC Opera for a 10-night European itinerary. Our ports of call are Ijmuiden, St Peter Port, Vigo, Lisbon, Bilbao and Le Havre. Quite an interesting selection if I do say so myself. I am quite excited about this cruise. Firstly I am planning on spending the day in Ijmuiden with the family that I met during my cruise on MSC Magnifica. Catching up with them again will be very nice indeed and I can explore Ijmuiden this time instead of Amsterdam and with friends. Secondly, I have never been to Le Havre or Bilbao before so that’s something new and although I have visited Guernsey many times I was a child at the time so I can’t remember a great deal. In all it should be a great cruise! I shall also once again be cruising solo. I figured I had too really, it’s about time I took a longer cruise on my own and on a multi-national ship so that I could give you a real hearty blog on what it’s like. My last MSC cruise was solo but it was only 3 nights and my 2 week cruise on Ventura last year doesn’t fully count because I had friends on board for the cruise. This time though I am going in blind so to speak. 10-nights just me, myself and I. I see people talking on forums and groups all the time about how they would like to do a solo cruise but sometimes the mix of nationalities on some of the cruise lines makes the decision for them harder. You have the worry of ‘am I going to be the only English person on board’ or ‘what will I do if I can’t find anyone to socialise with’. Although MSC Opera is sailing from Southampton I am still expecting a mix of nationalities. This time I am travelling down to Southampton via rail and have planned to stay with a friend for a few days on the Isle of Wight pre cruise. It’s also a good excuse for me to do some ship spotting before I go! I do however need to invest in a smaller suitcase as God himself couldn’t make me take my usual one cross country via rail. That means there’s shopping to be done! I am forcing myself to downsize but can I do it? - Watch this space! So Ladies and Gents that’s the 411 on the next voyage……Are you on the same cruise? then let me know! August 25th MSC Opera By Danielle aka CruiseMiss www.CruiseMiss.com www.facebook.com/cruisemiss www.twitter.com/cruisemiss

World Circumnavigation, those two words together send thousands of images shooting through my mind all at the same time. It’s like a race across the globe in a split second without even leaving my chair. For me a world cruise will be the ultimate experience, it’s my life’s goal I suppose you could say. I one day hope I am lucky enough (and wealthy enough) to embark on a voyage that would see me at sea for several months and taking in some of the best destinations our planet has to offer. Up to now I must admit I don’t think I have done badly at all when it comes to travel, I have visited so many wonderful places but I always feel like I need to be out there seeing more. My only concern however regarding a world cruise would be how do you possibly cope once back home? I almost fell apart after 5 weeks in the Caribbean let alone 2 or 3 months sailing around the world! Every time P&O Cruises release their world cruise itineraries I find myself spending forever looking at the ports of call. In fact I am on the website now looking at Aurora’s 2014, 109-night world cruise. Yes, if I was able to do this trip one day then it would most certainly be with P&O Cruises, I can’t help myself! These are some of the ports on the Aurora cruise: Nuku Alofa - Tongatapu, Tonga, Whitsunday Islands – Australia, Hong Kong – China, Kuala Lumpur – Malaysia, Colombo - Sri Lanka, Reunion – Madagascar, Cape Town - South Africa, Luderitz – Namibia, Halong Bay – Vietnam and San Juan Del Sur – Nicaragua. That’s just a tiny section of where she will be going and that little snippet alone is enough to make me want to get going right this very second. Can you imagine waking up in some of those places? I can but at the same time I can’t. Before my Caribbean cruise I felt the same way, you would see images of the destinations and think, boy I wish that could be me one day. Even when my Caribbean cruise was booked still didn’t quite believe I was going, neither did my friend. It only became real once we boarded the ship in Southampton. It wasn’t exactly a world cruise but it was still a mammoth trip, one that we were very lucky indeed to be able to do. I know a few people that have done world cruises with P&O and not just once either, some have now done several and have plans to do more. The stories and photographs they come back with only fuel my ambition to one day do it myself. If you hadn’t already figured it out, my blog today is a public announcement that I want to do a world cruise. So, now my question to you is who’s coming with me? (Well we have to try and keep the costs down! ? ) By Danielle aka CruiseMiss www.CruiseMiss.com www.facebook.com/cruisemiss www.twitter.com/cruisemiss

Have you ever noticed that after a cruise, especially if it is a long one, you struggle to get back into the simple things we do day in day out in life? Like making the bed, such a chore to do again when someone has done it for you for several weeks yet you managed perfectly fine for the last however many years before boarding the ship. There are so many little things that become mammoth tasks you just can’t seem to face anymore. Being “looked after” for a few weeks really does make you appreciate when once back at home just how well we are taken care of whilst on board our favourite cruise ships, and how hard the crew work!! Let’s take a typical day. You shower and then place the towel on the floor or in the shower basin for it to be changed. Sadly if you do that at home unless you have cleaning fairies living with you then it’s still going to be there when you return from work. You venture down for breakfast and all that greets you is a box of corn flakes. Not quite the same as having a full English or continental waiting for you, is it? The fine dining is nothing but a distant memory. Before the cruise you quite happily slaved away cooking a delicious family meal but now even a sandwich feels like something you just don’t have the energy for. You briefly think back to the ease of the lunchtime buffet and how right now you would do anything just to pop your head in and see what’s on offer. Instead you now have the choice of whatever is still edible in the refrigerator. The evening’s entertainment has resorted back to things like CSI and BBC Drama’s with the occasional trip to the local pub. If you are really lucky a series of Hell’s Kitchen might be running on TV, this way at least you can watch your frustration of being back home, magically leave via Gordon Ramsay’s mouth as he screams expletives and throws scallops at the poor souls in the competition. As the evening draws near you settle down after such a traumatic day, in a not so comfortable bed for a not so exciting night and to top it all off there’s no chocolate waiting for you. It’s at this moment you remind yourself that even the wake-up calls from god, also known as reception, are no more. You have to fend for yourself now and rely on the good old alarm clock. Welcome back to reality, Oh yes! It feels wonderful to be back home, doesn’t it! There are other little things that get to me though, for example even the toilet takes on a new form! The toilets in our homes are often a lot lower than they are on cruise ships, you return home and suddenly you have what feels like 5 extra miles to travel before finding it. Not the nicest experience in the middle of the night when one is still half asleep. Anyway……this is my back to reality check………….. To those of you about to embark on another cruise adventure, think of us, your fellow cruisers, who are struggling to once again come to terms with our loss! ? By Danielle aka CruiseMiss www.CruiseMiss.com www.facebook.com/cruisemiss www.twitter.com/cruisemiss

Well there are just 5 more days to go before I join P&O Cruises, Ventura for a 2 week Mediterranean cruise, and after all the sun we have been having in the UK, I can’t wait! (Slogan pun not intended but pretty hard to avoid)The good weather at home always makes me think more about cruising and this time it has made my mind think non-stop about a sunny and warm sail away. The last time I sailed out of Southampton on a sunny day was in July 2011, since then it has either been pouring with rain or dark. All I want to do is sit on the Lido Deck with a cocktail and feel the sun on my face. It would also be nice to be able to see Southampton and the Isle of Wight as we leave for a change. Recently they have been obscured by fog or it’s been so dark only lights were visible on the shore. These little things make a big difference so someone have a word with Mother Nature for me please! With regards to pre-cruise preparation, this time I am failing miserably. I mentioned a few days ago on twitter that I had started packing. What I actually meant was that I had removed the luggage labels from my bags that were left on from my Caribbean cruise. I know it’s pitiful, but I keep getting side tracked by a dozen other things. I will say proudly though that yesterday I managed to pack my shoes. That’s it! I am sure I will unpack them and re-pack them again between now and Friday but for the time being as far as I am concerned they are packed. One thing I did start and have completed is the printing of all the cruise documents. I suppose that’s because I press buttons and the printer then does all the work. I have my e-ticket, luggage labels, insurance info and coach transfer ticket. Seated neatly on top is my passport so in that sense you could say I am all ready to go! ? Today’s post is a little shorter because I am telling myself I MUST start getting organised and I can’t do that if I keep the laptop on. I shall finish by saying I can’t wait to be back on board Ventura. My friend is already having fantasies about the Pizza from Frankie’s and I can’t stop thinking about the Chicken Sizzler with Rice from the Beach House. Usually I don’t think too much about the food before a cruise but boy do I LOVE that Sizzler dish! And it must be with Rice never with Chips! It’s probably a good thing we only decided to book this cruise 17 days before it sailed, I dread to think the state we would be in by now if we had booked months earlier! By Danielle aka CruiseMiss www.CruiseMiss.com www.facebook.com/cruisemiss www.twitter.com/cruisemiss

Oh no!!! :(

It’s that time of year again, summer is almost upon us and so come the thoughts of some fun in the sun for 2 weeks. I have visited the Mediterranean on a cruise several times but I never tired of it. I love the atmosphere in countries like Italy and Spain during the summer months so it’s no surprise that I am once again preparing for a Mediterranean adventure. The cruise I am due to sail on will also offer me two new ports of call. La Coruna, Spain and Ajaccio, Corsica. I did actually cruise to Ajaccio one before but it is a tender port and sadly the day we arrived the ocean decided to whip up a storm so I never left the ship. Other ports on the cruise are Valencia, Barcelona, Gibraltar, Monte Carlo and Civitavecchia. I have visited each of these ports several times so I now know them like the back of my hand. Again though when the sun is shining and you are sailing in on an impressive white whale even these never become boring. I like to shop in Gibraltar, watch the rich and sometimes famous stroll by in Monte Carlo and the others, I normally decide what to do when I get there. It’s been 5 years since I was last in the city of Rome so I think this time I may make a day of it and head back for some good old sightseeing. It was the height of the summer season when I was last there, the temperature got above 100 degrees and the excursion was 10 hours in length. To say I was exhausted by the time I returned to the ship was an under-statement, I barely knew who I was by the time I made it to the gangway. I’m not in a hurry to do that again but it would be nice to go back. So which ship are you going on I can hear you say, well, I am going back to my beloved, Ventura. Ventura is one of my favourites and yes I am obviously looking forward to the cruise but I am also looking forward to seeing her, post refurbishment. I am yet to have a bad cruise on this ship, she is fun, full of energy and if there were one thing that ever kept dragging me back it has to be her tiered stern. I am never more content than I am when here watching the sun set on the ship’s wake. If you are booked on this cruise then let me know! Ventura sailing June 15th 2013. Only 16 days to go!

Thank you, I am glad you both enjoyed it! :)

We were sailing through the Mediterranean Sea, the sun was just starting to set and I had the entire deck to myself, this is the life, I thought. Nothing but ocean for miles around, no noise and nothing spoiling the view. It’s a feeling that never gets old. On this particular evening it was warm outside and there was only a gentle breeze. I found myself on deck 16 and decided I would use the time to take five minutes for myself and enjoy nothing but the sound of the ocean. I can’t begin to tell you how peaceful it was. The view was amazing. I could see for miles around and I had a pretty good bird’s eye view of the mid-ships section of the Lido deck too. Always great for people watching. After a few minutes I made my way down to the bar to grab a drink and take it back up with me. When I returned, still there was nobody else to be seen. I made myself comfortable and to be honest I don’t even think I had any thoughts. I was so content at this moment that my entire mind was simplyempty. I only ever get that feeling when I am at sea, I am sure a lot of you can probably relate. I had sat for quite some time when another ship suddenly appeared on our Starboard side. She looked what I can only describe to you as “pretty”. She was glowing as she sailed, her reflection glistening off the ocean as she made her way slowly to her next port of call. I think the only down side to a cruise is that you can’t see the ship you are on in the same way, without having to involve a search and rescue team of course! By now I must have been sitting here for at least 90 minutes and aside from one wandering passenger I had not encountered another soul. When it comes to some things, I admit I am a typical woman (only some things, I must stress) and occasionally things like nail colour needs to be re-touched during a holiday. I decided now would be the perfect time. I could sit in peace in the open air, instead of passing out from the fumes in my cabin, and they would be dry in no time because of the warm night air. I don’t know what happened but as soon as I started painting it felt like the entire ship descended upon my deck. Yes, the deck was now mine, I had been here so long I was demanding squatter’s rights and I wanted these people to get out of my space. To be honest it had nothing to do with them shattering the peace, they were all relatively quiet and simply just passing through on their post dinner stroll. I was undertaking a work of art here though, I needed to concentrate on the nail and not the finger. Ladies, are you with me? There’s more to nail painting than meets the eye! ? Eventually all was silent again and peace was restored to my abode. I had completed my task, finished two drinks and grabbed some pretty incredible photographs. In all it had been a most pleasant evening. The type of evening that sends me back to sea time after time. I spent just over two and a half hours up there on my own and I wasn’t bored or restless for a second, I can’t stand to sit inside and watch shows when I can be outdoors breathing in all of the above! It may seem like today’s post goes nowhere as such but, quite the contrary. There were approx. 2000 passengers on board and just under 1000 crew, yet for over an hour I only came across one other person. It’s a nice reminder to us experienced cruisers and a document of proof to a non-cruiser that regardless of the ship, you can ALWAYS find space for YOU and remain un-disturbed at least once a day! By Danielle aka CruiseMiss www.CruiseMiss.com www.facebook.com/cruisemiss www.twitter.com/cruisemiss