IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES, IT WAS THE WORST OF TIMES

I've got nothing on Charles Dickens so this isn't a Tale of Two Cities but a Tale of Two Cruise Lines!

Many prospective Regent cruisers (myself included just a couple of years ago) ask things like "Is Regent for me?" or "What makes Regent different?" or even more common, "Is it worth the money?"

After my first Regent cruise last year, I would have immediately answered the 1st and 3rd questions in the affirmative but been hard pressed to adequately convey a response to the middle one.  In fact, I believe I discuss a "feeling" in my previous blog without putting it into exact words.  Now, however, I can safely answer that middle question with authority.

Earlier this month, Mike and I treated our daughter Sara, her husband Donnie and our absolutely perfect grandson Richie to a cruise.  Nice we are, but not nice enough to fork over $$$$$ for all 5 of us to cruise Regent!  Instead, we decided to take a cruise on NCL out of New York City to Florida and the Bahamas.  NCL is typical of the mass market cruise lines we have cruised with in the past so we pretty much knew what to expect.  In all fairness to the line, I will say that I have found their staff to be more gracious and friendly than other mass market lines.  This cruise was no exception.  The pleasant staff, unfortunately, did not make up for everything else.

Before my last Regent cruise, members of both Cruise Critic and Luxury Cruise Talk warned me that once I  had cruised Regent, I'd never want to cruise mass market again.  I sort of believed them; especially after our great Regent cruise where all of my expectations were met and/or exceeded.  But I'm a pretty easy-going gal, very down to earth and the type of person who has a great time no matter what so I didn't think I'd have any real issues "stepping back down" to mass market cruising.  Wow!  Was I ever mistaken!


What follows is a list of differences that I won't miss when I get back on the Mariner again in January:


Boarding the ship ~  after swiping your key card for the first time on Mariner, you are genteely escorted to the pool deck for a bite to eat and offered a cocktail by an employee who is ready to answer any questions you may have and wants you to feel immediately welcomed aboard.   My experience on the Norwegian Gem was not even close to that (even though as a Casino VIP I did have a personal escort onto the ship).  After swiping your key card, you are herded into the main atrium and accosted by numerous staff members, all of whom apparently are there to sell you the day's special cocktail.  Interestingly enough, they don't actually TELL you it's for sale until after you have accepted a glass and then they ask for your Key Card.  I felt sorry for all of the newbie cruisers who didn't know they were going to be billed $15 for what they probably thought was a welcome aboard complimentary drink.


The Pool Grill ~  like every cruise line I've ever been on, there is always a grill or small buffet right around the swimming pool where you can grab a quick bite to eat.  The Norwegian Gem grill offered hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, french fries, salad and condiments the first day, and the second, the third, the fourth...... in fact, every day and every night that it was open, the menu never varied.  The only thing that changed was the amount of people on line in front of you.  On the Mariner, you can find traditional grill fare like burgers and hot dogs but you won't find them sitting under a heat lamp.  Those items are cooked to order and then delivered to you at the table you have selected.  And the menu doesn't stop there;  every day there is a DIFFERENT theme for the pool grill such as Mexican or Seafood or Italian which is available in addition to the traditional items.  And you don't have to stand around like an elementary school student in the lunch line waiting for someone to load up your tray!
 
The Buffet ~  on the Mariner you will find a traditional buffet available during the day.  What you won't find here, that you can find on NCL:  hordes of fellow passengers pushing their way around you, trying to get at a sliver of bacon or a soupcon of pudding as if they haven't eaten in hours;  lack of sufficient seating in the buffet area and even more importantly, lack of consideration for fellow passengers ~ nobody will ask you to join them at their table even if there are clearly additional seats available and none of the ship staff will assist you in finding a seat;  this is especially thrilling when you are trying to balance a plate, bowl and beverage and, again, doing so without any assistance from staff.  Just try doing that on a Regent ship.... you have to INSIST that you don't need help from the staff because they are all over themselves trying to help you carry plates and find tables!


The Port Visits ~  oh, the joy we experienced having a half hour wait in line to get off the ship and an even longer wait IN THE RAIN to get back on at every port.  I am not sure I am going to know what to do with the extra time in port when the Mariner stops and I can practically breeze through the efficient checkpoints coming & going.  And let's not forget that Regent provides things like umbrellas for its passengers in the event of rain and bottles of icy cold water are provided COMPLIMENTARY.  The Gem had a lovely woman at the top of the gangplank selling flimsy plastic trashbags (I mean rain ponchos) but somehow it just wasn't the same!


I could go on and on.....really....on and on and on!  Of course there are the obvious differences that everyone talks about like how you don't have to sign for things every time you turn around (drinks, gourmet food, towels, etc.).


But it's the little things that are just done automatically that you don't really think about until they're not there.....those are the reasons why people who try luxury cruising don't go back to mass market!

Oh, The Places We'll Go!

I received a NOOK for Christmas (that's the Barnes and Noble e-reader for those of you who missed the hottest tech toys of 2009!)  Anyway, that has absolutely NOTHING to do with my 2011 cruise -- other than the fact that I'll probably bring it along because I have fallen madly and deeply in love with the thing -- but basically I've spent the past few weeks doing nothing other than reading novels.  I kind of figured it was about time that I put the damned thing down and so something else; what might that something else be?? Of course, it's on to the computer to do some OTHER reading!

So, anyway, I decided to start looking at the places we will be stopping and one of the things I am most looking forward to is the transit of the Panama Canal.  Even though there is no beach.  Or no casino. Or no golf course.......

But, it is important to know about geographical "things" and really I might get the chance to try out for Jeopardy again (did you know that about me??).  So here I find myself reading all kinds of interesting narratives about the construction and general history of the Panama Canal and seriously it is quite amazing!

I've taken the liberty of "lifting" a few pictures that show 1) an easy-to-read detailed map of the canal and 2) an illustration of how the locks work.  I am now going to attempt to insert these pictures right here in the same general vicinity of this paragraph ~~ here goes!!   Okay, well they appeared kind of all around this paragraph but that's okay, a couple of months from now I'll have this all down pat again!

Here is how the route we will be taking works: Ships approaching from the Atlantic first pass through the Gatún Locks -- a series of three lock sets that lift vessels 85 feet (26 m) to Gatún Lake. Once there, ships wind through the lake's channel for about 23 miles (37 km) before entering the Gaillard (Culebra) Cut. After about 8 miles (13 km) spent crossing through the Cut, ships reach the Pedro Miguel Locks. These locks lower ships 30 feet (9 m) to the Miraflores Lake, where they pass through a mile-long (2 km) channel. Ships then approach the two-stepped Miraflores Locks that return them to sea level. A 7-mile (11-km) passage takes them out to the Pacific. From deep water to deep water, the canal is 50 miles (80 km) long.

Each of the locks is built in pairs to allow for two-way traffic. With a total transit time of eight to 10 hours, it just wouldn't make sense to run a one-way street.  To raise a ship, water is released from a lake (Gatún, Alajuela or Miraflores) or from a higher lock through valves that open on the upper end of the lock. To lower a ship, water drains to a lower lock or to the ocean through valves that open at the lower end of the lock. The locks are powered by electricity.

Because so much hinges on the locks' integrity, safety precautions prevent large ships from sailing through on their own steam. An out-of-control large ship could plunge through a lock. Large craft are instead escorted by electric towing locomotives.

To find more information, or to read the whole story, visit Panama Canal Authority -- I believe we all only have time for the Reader's Digest version!

Booking the Mariner

As readers of my previous blog already know, last year Mike and I took a luxury cruise aboard the Seven Seas Mariner to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary.  I had high expectations ~ and all of my expectations were met AND exceeded by the wonderful ship, the wonderful staff and the wonderful group of passengers we had the pleasure with which to sail.

Although I had high hopes and dreams, I thought it would be quite a long time indeed before we were in a position to spend that much money on a cruise again.  I wasn't overly morose about it; after all, I had checked the Regent website and scanned the brochures, and the Mariner wasn't heading anywhere I wanted to go at the time I wanted to go.  So, instead, I booked a cruise for Mike and I aboard the Norwegian Gem for 2010.  Sailing out of New York City was a major plus; and it enabled us to treat our daughter, son-in-law and our #1 grandchild to cruise as well since we only had to pay their cruise fare as opposed to 3 additional airplane tickets.  Having this family cruise to look forward to kept my mind off of what was going on with the Mariner.  I stayed out of the Luxury Cruise Talk chat rooms and the Regent threads on Cruise Critic (why torture myself with hearing about others' upcoming trips).  I barely glanced at the Regent brochures that came in the mail before unceremoniously throwing them away.  And I deleted all Regent-related e-mails without even opening them up.

Then, finally, right before Christmas, one of the brochure descriptions did catch my eye.  It was for 2011 sailings and it showed my wonderful Mariner heading back into warm climates in January.  Oh Joy!  Here was something I could consider ~ the first leg of their Circle South America voyage ~ two weeks in warm waters and transiting the Panama Canal (a first for us).  Then I saw the price and sticker shock set in.  Was I insane to consider paying that amount for a 2 week vacation??  I wasn't even sure I should mention it to Mike...he might think I'm even crazier than I thought I might be!  But when I showed him the dates and itinerary, he didn't hesitate at all:  "Book it!"  I hemmmmed and hawwwwwwed for a couple of days before finally calling my old friend Joe at Chic Luxury Cruises and reluctantly gave him my credit card information for the deposit.

Mike is generally more pragmatic than I am, but even he convinced me that the old cliche "you can't take it with you" is probably right on and after all what is the point of busting your hump day after day after year after year if you are never going to enjoy the fruits of your labor.  And just looking at our cabin pictures brings back so many incredible memories....we truly cannot wait to be back on board.

So, this blog begins another chapter in the cruising lives of Diz & Mike and it will probably become quite active in the second half of 2010.

Join me in my journey!