Lisbon

Arrived in Lisbon this morning but, I don't think I'll be getting off because a national day of mourning has been declared because of the tragic funicular tram accident last night. Apparently 15 deadBaca lagi
Sea Day

Today we had the Pinnacle Lunch with an officer, which was nice good food, free booze but, no officer, except for the hotel director who introduced the heads of departments then they all promptlyBaca lagi
Boarding day and first night

Didn't do a lot today, as is usual for a first night on a cruise. It's the first time I have been on this ship (Independence ots) for about 5 years. Still a good ship but, the atmosphere is not asBaca lagi
Cadiz Spain 🇪🇸

Cadiz today and I finally got off for a walk around. Been here a few times and I like it. Only off for about an hour and had a stroll along the old ramparts, which are literally 2 minutes away fromBaca lagi
Barcelona.

Well in Barcelona today, I did get off but didn't get far! Firstly the queue for the shuttle busses was horrendous, seriously I've never seen it that bad before. The queue must have contained hundredsBaca lagi
La Seyn sure Mer (Toulon France 🇫🇷 )

Didn't get off again, too hot!
Across the bay on the Toulon side, must be a naval base as there were a number of French navy ships, including an aircraft carrier.
Sea Day

Today was another day at sea, sailing to Toulon in france
Alicante, Spain 🇪🇸

Well I didn't even get to the bottom of the gangway this time. The weather was in the 30s again and I've seen Alicante before, so I stayed onboard ship again.
We met two nice couples this evening, whoBaca lagi
Malaga, Spain 🇪🇸

Never got off today. Well that's not exactly true, I got to the bottom of the gangway when I realised I had forgotten my hat and with a temperature of 31° and bright sunshine, I went back to theBaca lagi
Day 4 heading to Malaga again

Very uneventful day tbh. Calm seas and sunshine were the order of the day.
Day 3 At Sea

Day 3 was normal quiet sea day until the captain announced a medical emergency concerning one of the crew. I'm not sure what the problem was but, the captain said we'd be turning around and heading toBaca lagi
Day 2 La Coruña

Today we arrived at our first stop, the port of La Coruña. So as usual I got off the ship for a walk around the town for an hour or so. First stop was an indoor market, selling mainly fish and fruitBaca lagi
Day 1 onboard.

The coach trip down to Southampton was tiring but, far better and easier than driving down. We whizzed through check-in thanks to Sheila needing a wheelchair to board as she cannot manage the zig zagBaca lagi
Onboard Celebrity Apex

First impressions of the ship are good, it is quite big and looks quite different with the magic carpet bars on the side.
Having said that it's big, at 130,000 tons it's 20,000 tons smaller than theBaca lagi
Coach to Southampton

The coach trip to Southampton was really good and comfortable. The time passed really quickly due to chatting with a couple we met from Liverpool (Paul & Janet O'Shaugnessey) I've probably spelledBaca lagi
Spectrum Conclusions

Nice ship if you like the bigger ships, plenty of things to do and places to eat, even though most of the more interesting places have a cover charge.
To me, the main inside decks, 4 and 5 don't seemBaca lagi
Wave to the Explorer

Well that was a nice touch, the Explorer passed us on the port side, close and slow, the then ships spoke to each other with their foghorns . Then we both did a turn of about 180° and went on ourBaca lagi
Suez Canal

This must be the 5th or 6th time we've transited the Suez Canal, and as with all the other times this was a wonderful experience. It always amazes me how the dug it, it's definitely a brilliantBaca lagi
Pinnacle Lunch

Today we had the invite to the usual pinnacle lunch. Well I say usual, because it's the norm to have one on every trip. But this one was exceptional, it was held in Tepenyaki the Japanese restaurantBaca lagi
Barcelona

Flew into Barcelona, to pick up the Spectrum ots
Miami, United States

Port Canaveral, United States

Freeport, Bahamas

We where supposed to go to Coco Cay, in the Bahamas, but due to the weather, we couldn't tender in. So we had yet another change of port, and went over to Freeport on Grand Bahama. As it is mostly aBaca lagi
Las Palmas, Gran Canaria

Got off for a walk today, been here a few times before, so this time instead of walking along the sea front, I walked across town to the beach. A very short and pleasant stroll, the beach was veryBaca lagi
3rd sea day

This is the 3rd day at sea 🌊 and the ship is still rocking and rolling.
Day after tomorrow we dock in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, and the weather is supposed to be good, so that should cheer up someBaca lagi
Interesting changes

Well originally we were supposed to go to Boston, New York, Port Canaveral then Miami. But because of the bad weather in the Atlantic, our route was changed to Bruges, Le Havre, Madiera thenBaca lagi