2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai

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Trip start
November 27, 2015
2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Venice
November 27, 2015 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C
We only have one night at the Anthony hotel in Venice, so have no chance of exploring.
Just a bite to eat and sleep, then shuttle to the ship in the morning.
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Manchester Airport
November 27, 2015 in England ⋅ ⛅ 11 °C
We flew out to Venice a day early to catch the Splendour ots from Venice to transit the suez canal, and finally arrive in Dubai.
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
The Splendour is splendid
December 1, 2015 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 6 °C
This is day three or four, I'm not quite sure.
But one thing I do know is that this is a great ship.
She is a bit tired, after all she's twenty years old and being sold off to Thomsons next April.
But she's still a beautiful ship, with very tasteful and classy decor.
All the staff seem happy (which is quite unusual) and therefore very friendly and helpful.
Another plus point on this cruise is as well as our usual travelling companions, Maz and Sue, we know about twelve or fifteen others in the concierge lounge, so every evening we have a great big group all sitting together.
Apparently the Americans have nicknamed us the British wagon train circle, because that's how we end up as friends of friends join the company.
I'm not sure if this is a nice or nasty nickname?
But hey how, we're doing no harm to anyone and we're all enjoying ourselves.
Besides anyone is more than welcome to join us, in fact the more the merrier.Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Haifa, Israel Rccl warning !!
December 3, 2015 in Israel ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C
Well it's Haifa, Israel today, and we all received a letter in our cabins warning us of the dangers of travelling around Israel.
Recommending that we don't travel down this road and that road, for fear of attacks.
Funny thing is that all their tours from the ship are all going ahead.
Maybe RCI have special dispensation from the terrorists?
But my typically cynical view is that they are trying to scare passengers in to not doing private tours and booking the ship's tours.
It was the same a couple of years ago when we visited Haifa, and had the same kind of warning from the cruise line.
But Sheila and I along with Ken and Denise, jumped on the local bus service to Bethlehem, I think the cost was about £2 return as opposed to the ship's price of about $150.
So go figure!Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Haifa, Baha'i temple
December 3, 2015 in Israel ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C
One really good thing to see in Haifa, is the Baha'i temple.
It's a bit of a hike up on the hillside on the edge of town,but it is a really beautiful place, with fantastic views over the town.
I'm not at all religious, but the feeling of relaxed calm in the place was wonderful.Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
What a lovely surprise
December 5, 2015 in Israel ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C
We got an unexpected invitation from Peter Dimitrov the hotel director, to go to the Chef's Table, which normally costs $80.
It was a brilliant night with superb food and various wines to match each dish.
The other evenings this week have been good to, with our company growing in size as the cruise has gone on.Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Ashdod another industrial port !
December 7, 2015 in Israel ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C
Why do these cruise lines insist on docking at industrial ports?
It's a rhetorical question really because I already know the answer.
It's cost, I understand that it costs less to dock in industrial ports ; that's fair enough, I get the fact that the company needs to save money.
But when you are in an industrial port, you are not allowed to walk around the port or even walk to the port gate.
Fine I get that too, it's all to do with safety, but why do the cruise company insist on charging $12 or $15 for the shuttle?
It was their choice to dock there, but if we want to visit the town we do not have the option of making our own way.
Take Ashdodl as an example, the cruise compass leaflet tells you how nice the town is, but if you want to get out of the port to visit it, it will cost you $15, if you had the option of either walking or getting the shuttle that's fine, but you don't have the option.
The cruise line as usual has you by the balls.
Rant over! LolRead more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Suez canal
December 9, 2015 in Egypt ⋅ 🌙 16 °C
After hearing about the terrible machete attack at the Leytonstone tube station, where a guy apparently attacked three innocent people with a machete because of the Syrian bombings.
We now have heard about the governor of Aden being blown up by so called Islamic terrorists.
If this was being done in the name of the Islamic religion, why are they killing other Muslims?
IMHO, It's got nothing at all to do with religion, they are just political nut cases.
The big problem is that as the attacks increase, people will believe more and more the anti- Muslim propaganda, driving a wedge deeper and deeper between our respective communities.
Omg, that's a rather deep subject for a cruise blog!
So I'll stop.Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Meal with an officer
December 10, 2015 in Egypt ⋅ ☁️ 14 °C
Yesterday we had the usual invitation to have a meal with an officer.
This usually means that you sit on a table for six or so people, and have a set menu meal with wine.
This is just another of the little perks for being diamond plus.
This time we were told that it was going to be a buffet style meal, same sort of no arrangement, but no set menu.
To be honest I didn't really fancy going, what with it just being a buffet which I didn't think would be much good.
But Sheila wanted to go so we did.
How wrong was I, it was brilliant, in fact it was probably the best meal with an officer I've ever been to.
The food was fantastic, the wine flowed, and the two young officers we had on our table where great company.
It turned out that they were the casino manager and his assistant, and at the end of the meal they made a note of all of our cabin numbers and loaded $5 on each of our sea passes to play the casino slots.
Now he cynics among us will say that they only did that to entice us to spend money in the casino.
But I personally think that it was a nice thing to do, and at the same time great PR for the company.
Btw only our table got that, no one else did.Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Aqaba, Jorden
December 10, 2015 in Jordan ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
No news is good news I suppose?
December 11, 2015, Gulf of Aden ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C
Since we came out of the Suez Canal all the news channels have mysteriously disappeared from the TV.
This could be due to the loss of the satellite signal, but, the more cynical amongst us, me included reckon that the ship has blocked them, due to all the bad terrorism news we've had recently.
This part of the trip, from the end of the Red Sea, into the Gulf of Aden is where the possibility of pirate attacks is, so the ship has armed security, a night time blackout and an open deck lockdown, where passengers are not allowed on the open decks during the hours of darkness.
This is the norm on Suez Canal trips, so those of us who have done it before are not overly worried.
But there are a few passengers who are quite scared, and a bit worried.
So I suppose seeing news about terrorists etc would not help.
Ergo the lack of news channels.
That's my theory anyway.Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Salalah, Oman
December 12, 2015 in Oman ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
What can I say about Salalah?
Not much it's crap, we actually did a ships tour to "The Souk" my god it was basically just a row of tatty shops, and we were supposed to spend 3 hours there.
Not a chance Sue, Maz and myself jumped a taxi back to the ship after 30 minutes!!Read more
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
Muscat, Oman
December 13, 2015 in Oman ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C
Didn't get off as we are back here next week.
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2015 Splendour Venice to Dubai Rulocal
some people are just naturally stupid!!
December 14, 2015 in the United Arab Emirates ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C
I'll explain this as best I can, but you really needed to be there.
Sheila and I went to the consecutive cruisers meeting, so we could find out the ship's procedure for ending this cruise and starting the next.
Along with getting your new sea pass cards, and what to do if you are going ashore in Dubai to see the sights etc.
It's explained to us that we would receive our new sea passes the night before the end of the cruise.
So on the final day of this cruise, which after 8.30am becomes the first day of the next cruise.
If you want to leave the ship BEFORE 8.30am you just go to the gangway and check off the ship with your old sea pass, and when you return you check back in with your new sea pass.
But if you want to leave the ship anytime AFTER 8.30am you must go to the Schooner Bar AT 8.30AM and have your old sea pass cancelled and your new pass validated.
Then you can leave the ship anytime you want.
Now that might sound a bit complicated but believe me it isn't.
The officer asks are there any questions?
One guy who had to be American, pipes up, what if I want to leave the ship at say 8.27am or 8.44am?
Well sir as one time is before 8.30am and one time after 8.30am, just follow the previously explained procedure.
SOME PEOPLE!Read more
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Trip end
December 14, 2015