Greetings from the Millennium Mayfair Hotel in semi-sunny London. We spent this mornIng riding the Hop on/off bus around the 2.5 hour red route. Fred arrived in London sonce Thursday. Jan has been here since Monday. Weather was cooler this morning with early rain but the sun is trying to shone now.

London is all decked out for the Queens 60th Jubilee celebrations which began today. Starting tomorrow through Tuesday it will be almost impossible to get around. So timing is good to head for Southampton tomorrow

Regent rep says there are about 114 In the hotel to be transferred tomorrow. We are on the 12:15 bus and it is about a 2 hour drive.

Looking forward to being on Voyager tomorrow.

Jan and Fred

Hi Jan & Fred,

The HO-HO is a great way to see the city. I bet London looks wonderful all decorated for the Queen' celebration. Glad you are heading south and avoiding the major traffic. Hope you have loads of fun especially at the Giant's Causeway.

Jan and Fred, Bon Voyage--hope you have a great cruise and you have good weather. When we did this itinerary, the weather was kind of rainy and cool, but bearable.

SHAMROCK has begun. Sitting in lounge at lax waiting for flight to leave. Took a bit to find BA lounge in TBIT but found i turned the wrong way from security. At least on this trip do not have to have my brother make a second trip to lax so I have my sport jacket. Looking forward to a great trip.

Let the fun begin! Safe travels, Ralph and I hope you can check onboard to entertain us

In Toronto boarding soon for LHR --- looking forward to seeing everyone.

OMG thought you'all were boarding today......not???? tomorrow? Well in any case looking forward to seamail from this great trip. Wish we were there, but will live vicariously through you'all.

Cheers to a great trip and

Really looking forward to all your post innings, ESP as George and I board silversea explorer in Reykjavik on the same day that voyager is there. If you see a big Oklahoma cowboy with his petite wife, that is us.

This will be a fabulous trip, a great itinerary. Wish I was there, boarding the Voyager with you all tomorrow. Oh well, to travel vicariously with you will be better than nothing! Bring on the seamail ...

Me too SHAMROCKers, looking forward to the seamail!
Have lots of fun!

Add me to the list for looking forward to hearing from the Shamrockers! This is a trip I have been considering for quite a while and can't wait to hear about your adventures.

Sally, This is a great cruise.... Crystal and I took it last in reverse plus or minus a few ports. If you go in with the idea of rain most days, you will be thrilled when the sun comes out. I particularly like the standing stones!!

Sorry for the lack of posting this is a port intensive itinerary everyone has been so busy and it is going GREAT. Have had some wonderful dinners and laughed a TON. It is now midnight and I am answering emails right now but wanted to post and let you know all is well on the Voyager.

Be back at a more civilized hour with more details.

Again a very busy day.

We were in Dublin today and opted out of a tour. We headed to Dublin with Ken and Sheila to join them in a stroll in town. We did not know that today the OLYMPIC flame was coming through town. People were lining the streets and first came big brightly colored open top buses with noise and dancers setting the tone. About five minutes later came the runners with the Olympic torch. It was fun to be involved in this particularly since we were not expecting to see the Olympic torch. We passed a Regent bus tour and saw Eugene and Gail on the bus. Then we stopped in for a cup of coffee and headed back to the shuttle bus to return to the ship. There we met more of the group including Cheron, Mark and Ralph and ended up eating lunch together. They had ribs and we got an “extra” plate for the table.

Our first game of cards took place today with five players and we played hearts. Mark whipped us in both games. I left the last game early to go to trivia. Only Eugene and Gail were there and the three of us got 15 right! Another couple achieved the same score. We had a tie breaker and lost but because we got 15 correct they called us both winners!

Today was Rod’s birthday so we celebrated with them in Prime 7 and I ate more than I am going to acknowledge. It was all very good.

Late now and we have to get up early for a tour, eventually Ken will post a few pictures. A port a day is intensive used to more sea days.

Good job on the trivia! What was the tie breaker question?

Good job on triva, ngaire. GE and I will carry the LCT trivia torch for you on our trip the end of July, but I can't get George Sr to play. He thinks he is bad at trivia because both sons and I are really good. So he is average to above average but thinks he is bad.
Try to find Tom and Barbara noon for me. He is Orpington on cc, and they are just wonderful people and on this trip with you. They are in their eighties, but he is full of energy and pushes Barbara around in a wheelchair. Anyway, they are super fun, so say hi for me.

Great job on trivia. and so nice to get an update. Sounds like all is going well and everyone is having a great time.

If you see the Glanvilles (Jim and Jill) say "hi" for me and tell them I hope they are enjoying the trip.

lovely

Shamrock (#2 Report)

We finally have some time to catch up on what's been going on. A lot! First, our stop in Cork Ireland. The port is actually Cobh. We went on an excursion called "Exclusive Home and Garden Visit. We headed from the pier to North Cork/West Waterford Blackwater Valley in Southern Ireland. We arrived at Ballyvolane House, an award-winning Irish country house situated on an estate of landscaped gardens and parklands. Originally built in 1728, Ballyvolane House was modified 120 years later in the Italianate style. There were six beautiful bedrooms upstairs for guests to stay in, and we enjoyed a very nice lunch: vegetable potage, roast beef (we were expecting Irish stew), vegetables from the gardens, and a terrific lemon tart with homemade ice cream and whipped cream.

After lunch, we headed along the Lee River for a visit to Lakemount Gardens. Its owner, Brian Cross, has created one of Ireland's top gardens; its quality of planting an wonderful contrasts has won widespread acclaim. Brian took us around for a personal tour. We were very lucky as the morning light rain gave way to sunshine at the Gardens. I took lots and lots of flower photos. The sun on the rain drops on the leaves looked like diamonds.

After the Gardens, we headed toward the port but stopped for a tour around Cork itself. I think the only place that I got off the bus was at St. Finbarr's Cathedral, which looked like a mini Notre Dame. It was a very enjoyable excursion.

Gail and I had dinner on our own, and it was excellent.

Yesterday, we were in Dublin. Having never been there, we chose to do a Highlights tour--and I think we decided that they are not necessarily the best idea. We departed from the pier and passed the Customs House on the north bank of the River Liffey. It was completed in 1791. We crossed the river and headed for Trinity College, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I; it is Ireland's oldest college. It's Library is home for the world famous Book of Kells, a hand illustrated manuscript of the Gospels on calfskin. Turns out that this year's Olympic flame was going through Dublin yesterday having come from Belfast, and we saw it. Only trouble was that it caused all sorts of traffic problems because of the large crowds.

Our other major stop was St. Patrick's Cathedral, which was founded in 1190. It is perhaps best known for its association with Jonathan Swift, who was Dean there from 1713-1745. We toured around the city, viewing more highlights from the coach before heading back to the ship for lunch.

After lunch we had a little time to catch our breaths. Then we headed to tea and trivia, which was fairly quiet as many passengers were on afternoon excursions or just went into Dublin on the shuttle. Our little team, including Ngaire and Ken, Gail and me and someone who asked to join us won by scoring 15 out of 15! (We actually tied another team.) I have to confess, the questions were not very challenging.

For frequent cruisers, there was a special performance from the "Gaels Afloat Irish Traditional Dancers," which was excellent--sort of like Riverdance. I hope I was able to capture a few good photos.

We had dinner in Signatures--the fancy French restaurant--on the spur of the moment with other friends and a new friend traveling by himself who is part of our group. We had a really good meal and had fun getting to know him.

Today we were supposed to stop at Douglas, Isle of Man in the U.K. but the captain came on about an hour ago to tell us that a low pressure area and possible cyclonic winds precluded the use of tenders, and so we headed directly for Belfast and arrived at about 11:00 AM, so it is obviously not very far.

On the way this morning, several of us played either Pooch or Hearts. After lunch they are offering a few of the Belfast excursions that are also planned for tomorrow since we now have an extra day here. We decided to take the shuttle with several others of our group and head into Belfast to see the new Titanic museum, which is supposed to be terrific.

So that's about it for now.

Gail and Eugene

I think this is St. Finbarr's Cathedral--the mini-Notre Dame--in Cork.



Here are a couple of photos from Lakemount Gardens. It was very nice when the sun came out and the flowers and leaves still had raindrops on them.





Going to post these before while I'm connected.

-----------------------

Eugene

Thanks for checking in, Eugene. It's too bad to miss Douglas, but to have a nice relaxing morning - a sea morning - should be a welcomed relief on this port per day week. Keep the seamail coming, you all.

Love your photos, especially the raindrops on the leaves..... amazing!

Falmouth



A few from St. Mawes:

The "Queen" and the procession celebrating the Jubilee


A portion of St. Mawes castle


A nice thatched roof

Nice pictures Eugene, very nice.

Great pictures, Eugene. We are looking forward to joining you all next week in Reykjavik. We arrive in Iceland Monday morning and are heading directly to the Blue Lagoon, then the hotel. We are doing the Golden Circle Tuesday and Whale Watching and Puffin Island on Wednesday morning before boarding about 1PM. It is so oppressively hot and humid here that we can't wait for cooler weather, even if it does rain.

Thanks for the pictures Eugene!

eugene
Interested in your report on Titanic museum. I have been interested in that ship since I read "A night to Remember" too many year ago to count.

Sorry, we found out that there were no tickets available for the Titanic museum until late in the afternoon. It was still raining heavily, and we stayed onboard. So I can't report. Perhaps we'll get there tomorrow after our excursion, but I kinda doubt it.

---------------------------

Eugene

Fun photos and reports! Sounds like you're keeping super busy, so thanks for posting!

Great reports and wonderful pix Eugene. I'm loving them. Thanks!

Sunny! Beautiful country.
Thanks

I'm so glad you have taken the time to report, when it is one port after another. Eugene, your pics are wonderful, as is the commentary!

What neat pictures! Thanks Eugene.

Had a good day today went on a tour with Eugene, Gail, Ken, Sheila, Dave and Joan. If the weather had been good it would have been great but unfortunately it was cloudy with some light rain at times. We visited some Abbey Ruins then saw a lot of the countryside and the houses were beautiful. One little town we visited Donaghadee would have been stunning in the sun. It had brightly colored houses, a castle, a big church spire, a harbor with a light house and small boats and delightful little shops. We had a Irish coffee stop but a little too much whiskey for my taste.

We enjoyed lunch then a little hearts was on the menu. We came in second at trivia (after changing answers that would have given us the win) and they still gave us tokens for second place.

Early dinner tonight and we are going to get an early night for the first time since we have been onboard. It has been after midnight every day.

We arrive at midday tomorrow and all the tours are in the afternoon and a sleep in tomorrow sounds great.

We are now anticipating our new people in Reykjavik and looking forward to welcoming them onboard.

Before we took standardized tests in school, the teachers always told us to go with our first instinct!! Tokens for 2nd place..... nice!

Shamrock Report 3

Because of the necessity to skip the Isle of Man, we had a long stay in Belfast. Unfortunately, it rained most of the time, often pretty hard. The first day we stayed on the ship. Yesterday--Friday, June 8 in case the chronology is becoming confusing--we went to the Ards Peninsula. We took the coastal road along the southern shore of Belfast Lough heading for Grey Abbey.

We passed Stormont Castle, which was the seat of the Northern Ireland Assembly that was responsible for Northern affairs. We arrived at Grey Abbey, site of a Cistercian Abbey from which the village takes its name. We stopped at the abbey, and the misty weather seemed perfectly appropriate for visiting the ruins, which date back to 1193.

From Grey Abbey, we traveled the peninsula to Ballywater, which was formally a finishing village and now is a costal vacation getaway. It reminded us of Montauk, where Gail has a home.

Then we headed north following the coastal route through the town of Millisle to Donaghadee, which has a long seagoing history. It apparently is a very popular place for water enthusiasts, including anglers. There we stopped at a local hostelry for Irish Coffee and some local breads--a nice mid-morning treat with plenty of "kick." We had about 15 minutes after our coffee to explore the town.

From there, we drove along the coast of the Irish sea and it had cleared enough so we had fairly good views of some of the islands out to sea. In addition, we saw many beautiful summer homes along the coast--many in the Georgian style, but also a few beautiful modern buildings.

We returned for a late lunch. After lunch, Gail won at Hearts, I snoozed, and then it was time for Trivia. We came in second place, which was enough to win some chits. One of the most difficult questions was, "What optical device was invented in 1897? First, we thought monocle, then we decided since spectacles were much earlier that couldn't be right, then Gail and Ken thought contact lenses, but we thought that was too early. So we settled on sunglasses. We should have listened to them!

Gail and I didn't have dinner plans, so we jointed a couple of women from CA who were eating alone. We had a nice time chatting about travel, and the food was very good, especially a seared tuna on wasabi appetizer, and a fantastic frozen chocolate creme brûlée with mousse and chocolate icing.

Knock on wood we are about to land in Portree, Scotland, and it looks beautiful, though pretty cool--about 60.

Eugene and Gail


The Titanic Museum in Belfast (winged front)



Samson and Goliath--the two huge cranes in Belfast Harbor




Grey Abbey



Gail and Ken Simpson at our stop in Donaghadee for Irish Coffee



Interesting Church on our way back to the docks in Belfast

excellent report. thanks

Question for Sham-rockers:

Are there many full Grand Voyage cruisers that have been on since Auckland? Are there events open just to these cruisers during your segment(s)?

thanks,

Not aware of any special functions for Grand Voyage cruisers. I really do not meet other guests not sure if anyone else in the group has met people who have been on for a long time.

We have been to Portree many times before so we made it a sea day. A little cards in the morning and Ken did go ashore for a little while. I need him to post some pictures. I cannot believe how busy we have been. Most of the group went to the Castle today and I am sure they enjoyed that it is a nice tour.

Nice dinner tonight with Dover Sole and Filet the food is terrific.

Time is passing so quickly life is good aboard the Voyager

Marc,

Yesterday, Joan met a woman who has been on since Singapore. I haven't heard about any special event for Grand Voyagers.

All in all, it's been a terrific cruise despite some less than perfect weather. We're looking forward to Norway.

Posting a nice photo by Ken Simpson of Sheila and Ngaire in Donaghadee: