Celebrity’s Newest Up and Comer: Silhouette

Celebrity Cruises has just announced their fourth ship to enter their Solstice Class ship’s line.  The ship’s name will be CELEBRITY SILHOUETTE, and she will be a sister ship to the Solstice, Equinox, and Eclipse.   She is set to sail in 2011. 

There aren’t any further details, but you can find out more about the current sister ship which is going to be launched April 2010, the Celebrity Equinox.  Enjoy!

(Photo: celebritycruises.com)

–Saundra

Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth

Cunard is in the process of building a new ocean liner, the much anticipated Queen Elizabeth.  She is to be the sister ship to the Queen Victoria and is set to make her maiden voyage to the Iberian harbours and the Canary Islands in October 2010.  Cunard picked this itinerary because the original Queen Elizabeth also took this same voyage.  She will sail out of Southampton, and make calls to Vigo, Lisbon, Cadiz, Las Palmas, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Santa Cruz de la Palma, and Funchal for this two-week voyage.  Her decor will be an art deco style, and the music and dance will also mirror this era.  As the website says,

“Relive in modern glamour high society events of the 1930s and 1940s as you grace ornate rooms whose rich décor recalls the halcyon days when our first Queen Elizabeth ruled the waves.”

For former Cunard President Carol Marlow’s press conference announcement introducing Queen Elizabeth, click here.

To see a video of the keel laying ceremony of the Queen Elizabeth, click here.

There have been visits to the Fincantieri Shipyard, in Italy by Cunard’s videoblogger, and here are the videos, enjoy.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3 (Adding the Queen Elizabeth name to the bow)
Part 4 (Interiors)

(Photo from Cunard.com)

 

 –Saundra

Excursion: The Titanic Cemetary

While in Halifax, Nova Scotia during our voyage on the Queen Mary 2, we took an excursion to the Titanic Cemetary.  This was a bus tour, and it was quite comfortable on a misty day.  Our tour guide was quite informative and shared some information about some of the synagogues, churches and buildings along the way, which were of significance to this tour.  If you get a chance take this tour, it’s quite interesting.

Once we arrived, we were given the option to stay on board or to go to the cemetary (note that this excursion is immediately after the “Titanic Museum”, see my article here).  After a short walk to the burial site, you see a large sign and an area of numbered tombstones.  Some bodies which weren’t identified were simply numbered–this certainly left a somber feeling to me.  Those who knew the names of those buried applied their names at various times.  If they had the money to put the names to tombstones they did, otherwise a simple number was left on the stone.  The tomb of the unknown child is here and is remembered by many with gifts.  The unknown child has been recently examined–scientists have been trying to determine the exact child’s family, of which at the time of my trip is yet to still be found.  Additionally, the character in the 1997 movie Titanic, “Jack Dawson”, was a fictional person of a J. Dawson buried in this cemetary (but his first name is not “Jack”, it was Joseph and again, the movie character is entirely fictional).  I’ve read that it’s a coincidence that there was a J. Dawson on board the vessel. 

I would highly recommend taking this tour as you will find that there is a lot more to this tour than just who is buried here.  There is a lot of background and history revealed about the people and the city.  I’ve left out a lot and I do this tour no justice.  I’m sure you will enjoy this tour if you go, it will be an eye opener.

Titanic Cemetary Signage

J. Dawson Tombstone.  Notice how simple the design.

The Titanic Cemetary in Halifax, Canada

Tomb of the Unknown Child.  A more elaborate site.

(All photos: By me)

–Saundra

The Disney Dream, the Newest Mickey Ship To Come

The upcoming new Disney ship, the Disney Dream, began construction in Papenberg, Germany’s Mayer Werft shipyard on March 2009.  The ship is due for delivery to Disney in early 2011.  There has been much anticipation and excitement for this ship in the past months with press releases, videos, and more.  The Disney Dream will have many of the same inspired themes, ideas, and touches like the other ships.  For example we do know that in the lobby atrium there will be a bronze statue of Admiral Donald (Duck).  The Disney Dream will encompass 14 decks, be an 1,115 feet long, 128,000-ton vessel with 1,250 staterooms which can accomodate up to 4,000 guests.  Additionally, this ship will have the first water coaster at sea called the AquaDuck.  Look for more updates in the year to come.

Keel Laying

Additionally, Disney’s private island “Castaway Cay” will be expanding.  See the video below for more information. 

Castaway Cay Expansion

Lastly, but most certainly not the least, Disney will be sailing to ALASKA!   Disney will be sailing to Alaska starting in April of 2011 through September 2011, and will make stops to Juneau, Skagway, Tracy Arm, and Ketchikan.  Additionally, it will be sailing along the west coast to San Francisco, California and to Victoria and Vancouver, Canada.

Disney to Alaska!

The news doesn’t stop there.  Disney is going to be adding another ship, the Disney Fantasy, as well.  I look forward to hearing more about it as time unfolds.  Disney has exciting days ahead.

–Saundra

Oasis of the Seas – On Board

A new video has been posted for you to see what it’s like on board the Oasis of the Seas  website.  As I’ve said before, exciting days are ahead.  Here’s a glimpse of what happens on the deck of the ”Boardwalk” portion of this enormous ship. 

The “Boardwalk” is on deck six, and includes a real carousel, donut shop, ice cream parlor and more.  While you’re enjoying the video, why not take a look at the new and updated Royal Caribbean website as well?  They also have new brochures for you to order as well.  Bon voyage!

Parking in Bermuda

When traveling to Bermuda one thing that the traveler wants to know about is transportation.  Immediately what comes to mind is either public transport or renting a car.  One thing you cannot do in Bermuda is rent a car if you are a visitor.  Note that each family in Bermuda is only allowed one car.   Therefore, you may get around by taxi, bike, mopeds, motor scooters, etc.   Bermudians drive on the left, and the roads are very narrow with very little (or no) shoulders.

What I found interesting in Bermuda was the parking.  Due to the fact that each family in Bermuda is only allowed one car, there are countless scooters around in the country.  During rush hour you’d see a bevy of them all over the place.  Additionally, there are parking lots just for scooters/mopeds (for the sake of length I’ll use the term “scooter”). 

As you can see in the photo below, scooter parking is very narrow
to accomodate the size of the vehicle.  Which makes perfect sense. 
The white lines mark the spaces.  This photo was taken at a
lot about a block away from the Hog Penny Pub.

Additionally, I took the photo below in the City of Hamilton. 
There are parking lots just for scooters within
the city to accomodate.  I found this quite interesting since
I’m so used to large concrete parking garages.

More scooter parking in Bermuda.

Visitors to Bermuda who’d like to rent a scooter may do so at the numerous rental agencies.  Hotels and resorts also have concierges, and the contact at the front desk  may offer companies by which you may make reservations.   I also noticed rental agencies with store fronts that had scooters for rent just in my walks around Hamilton.

One thing that is important to note is that if you are not experienced with riding a scooter, it can be dangerous, and I do remember seeing the remains of an accident on my trip to Bermuda.  So please be very, very careful should you decide to rent a scooter. 

The convenience of getting around this wonderful, beautiful island can easily be done by taxi just as easily (or by bus).  I was able to experience my travels in Bermuda by taxi, bus, and water taxi, but decided not to attempt the scooter.  However, many do rent a scooter, and if you have, feel free to share your tips. 

Please enjoy your travels safely. 

–Saundra

(All photos by me.  And I can be followed on Twitter.)

Oasis of the Seas is Here

As I shared before, Royal Caribbean’s (RCI) Oasis of the Seas was on its wayto the United States, and it is now here.  This very large monumental ship, which I will say is a landmark of a ship, has finally arrived in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, in Port Everglades.  This awesome ship took a two week trip from Turku, Finland to make its voyage to the United States, and now is here to take in some final cosmetic decor. 

Oasis of the Seas will have real foliage added within its ship in the next couple of weeks while in Florida.  Additionally, in the tradition of most ships there is usually a godmother.  With Oasis of the Seas there will be seven godmothers for this ship–one for each of the seven neighborhoods.  Talk about amazing.

She will make her debut voyage on November 19, 2009, and will make a television appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America” November 20.  Her first voyage will be a unique one as she will be making a 5-day/4-night voyage to RCI’s private island of Labadee, Haiti.  She will then do an official naming ceremony on November 30th with a fundraiser to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. After that she will make her first one-week voyage on December 1st of 8-days/7-nights to the eastern Caribbean to St. Thomas, St. Maarten and the Bahamas.  This will be in regular rotation with an alternate one-week voyage to the western Caribbean to Labadee, Costa Maya, and Cozumel.

Exciting and interesting days are ahead for RCI!

–Saundra

(Photo: From RCI)

It’s Coming: Oasis of the Seas

As a fan of cruising, and being that my first sailing was on a Royal Caribbean ship, I would be remiss in not sharing that Oasis of the Seas is coming.  This is no small thing, and those in the cruise industry have been following this news for more than a year already.  I will only share some of the highlights in this blog.

Oasis of the Seas is going to be, essentially, a sort of city or entertainment at sea, on a cruise ship.  The focus is the entertainment within the ship.  They have a concept called “neighborhoods” within the ship, a kind of focused community.  This 220,000 GRT ship is already making its transatlantic crossing as I write this blog.  It has 16 decks, and will hold up to 5,400 passengers (2,700 guest rooms), some face a “central park”.  Really.

Some firsts?  For Royal Caribbean they will offer day care for children under three years old.  They will offer spa service for teens.  They are adding an additional flow rider (not just one, but two) on board.  Real tropical foliage on board.   A zip line that you can RIDE on.  They will have an aqua theatre so that you can watch a divers show.  Oh and don’t let me forget that they will have a Broadway musical on board:  Hairspray.

This is not a complete account of what will be aboard Oasis of the Seas, please go here for more.  It’s overwhelming as I’ve been following it for YEAR.  There’s been controversy from the size and ports of call, down to security and how to embark and debark that many people.  I look forward to hearing the news.

(Photo: Oasis of the Seas from Royalcaribbean.com)

–Saundra

Wordless Wednesday: Horseshoe Bay Beach Bermuda Late Afternoon

Cunard: A Casual Teabag Selection

On board the Queen Mary 2, they have a dining area called the Kings Court. It’s a sort of casual dining area. From their website:

“You can enjoy a casual breakfast, lunch or late-night buffet in Kings Court. At night it is transformed into four intimate dining venues: Lotus, with a tasting of multinational Asian cuisines, the Carvery, with British-style carved roasts, La Piazza with authentic Italian cuisine and the Chef’s Galley…“

Each morning for breakfast I always have tea for breakfast.  As you can imagine, there’s a wide selection of teabags from which to make your cup.  I took a few extra tea bags with me because I wanted to see if some were different in taste, and some I just wanted to have for my ride home.  I had some left over and you can see them in the picture above. 

I’d love to hear from the tea fanatics. Enjoy!

–Saundra

(Teabag selection from left to right: Organic Japanese Blossom, Traditional English, Ceylon, Earl Grey, Darjeeling, Pure Camomile, Japanese Green Tea.  Photo by me.)