Ashdod: We Waited and We Waited

Do I even want to write about what turned out to be a “bust” for us? Not really, but I will. So here goes the “short” story of today.

We knew the COVID-19 formalities were going to delay us. We were prepared for that. After all, we’d been told that the process could take up to six hours. The first part — the PCR testing — went smoothly and the testing was completed ahead of schedule. Then, we waited … and we waited … and we waited … and we waited. No announcement for us to proceed to immigration. That answered the question from this morning. Since we were not berthed at the terminal, we’d be going through the formalities on our way to the Sea Mall.

At 11:30a, we went up to the Waves Grill for lunch. Then, we waited … and we waited. CD Leslie came on the P/A to say we were still waiting for the test results and immigration … and promised to be back in an hour with an update. So, we waited … and we waited. Leslie made another announcement. The same news … waiting on test results and immigration. One cabin number was then called with the request to contact the front desk. Later, I heard that there was one inconclusive test. Was that someone in the cabin that was called? Probably.

Anyway, it was just about 3:00p when Leslie finally came on the P/A system to say Insignia was cleared. He proceeded to call the tours to the gangway. No calls for us independents until 3:30p.

By that time, Mui and I had decided to throw in the towel. You see, immigration was still ahead of us. We’d have to take the shuttle to the terminal, go through the formalities, then get back on a bus to go to the Sea Mall. The museum we were planning to visit would be closed by the time we got there. We didn’t feel like it was worth the hassle to go through all that just to walk around the marina area. Instead, we figured we’d have afternoon tea on a quiet ship. Yeah, right!

Apparently, the “clearance” given earlier was just for PCR testing. We were just sitting down to tea when the announcement came that “everyone” had to go through immigration, whether they planned to leave the port or not.

So, we trudged down the gangway only to see the bus we’re required to to ride through the port pulling away as it was at capacity. It was another 20 minutes before another bus pulled up to collect us and a few others. Five minutes after that we were pulling up by the terminal. The only good news in all this? Those on the buses ahead of us were already finished so we just walked up, showed our passports, went through the security checkpoint, walked back out, and got back on the bus back to the ship.

By this time, it was 4:30p. The Panache Quartet was still playing in Horizons, but afternoon tea was already being dismantled. The wait staff were kind enough to accommodate us … and we were joined by Cella, who was also late to the “tea game.”

Now, at 6:00p we are not only back in our cabin, but I am ready to put this whole debacle behind me. It takes a lot to frustrate us. But the Israelis managed to do so in a big way today. I sure hope our next couple of days in Haifa will make up for today.

On the bright side … I had mentioned in my cruise satisfaction survey that I wished there was a full length mirror in the cabin. What seemed like minutes after we dropped off the survey at the front desk this morning, there was a knock on the door. Yup … a new door for the double closet … with a full-length mirror on the inside panel. Now that’s what I call service!Read more