Posts tagged Cruise
Silver Spirit – Across the Atlantic in Luxurious Style
Jun 11th
by John and Sandra Nowlan
At first they looked like white birds skimming across the ocean surface before diving into the restless water. But we were in mid-Atlantic, far from shore, sailing on an ultra-luxury cruise ship from Barbados to Cape Verde, off the coast of West Africa.
The ship was Silver Spirit, the largest and newest in the six-ship Silversea fleet. The sea creatures turned out to be flying fish, which surface in abundance in this area of the South Atlantic.
The schools of flying fish (we were tempted to call them flocks of flying fish for their uncanny aerial ability) were just one of the many delights of this repositioning cruise, a twice-a-year ritual for many cruise ships as they move from their winter itineraries in the Caribbean and South America to summer destinations in Europe and the Mediterranean. Surprisingly, the Silver Spirit had only 240 passengers, about half the normal total, served by 370 well-trained and gracious staff. Service is always excellent on Silversea, but this was amazing! Warren Brown, a guest from Bermuda who has crossed the Atlantic 16 times, thought that the average North American just doesn’t like to go on an ocean passage. They seem to prefer the ‘bus tour’ type cruise with stops every day.
This was our fourth trans-Atlantic cruise and, like the other lucky passengers, we love the extended time at sea, the gentle daily blend of ship and ocean and the huge selection of activities available. In particular, ocean crossings offer an array of talented guest speakers who entertain and inform in a series of lectures. On this cruise the daily talks in the spacious main theatre were by a biologist/oceanographer, a retired British ambassador and a forensic pathologist. Also, Morton Dean, the former CBS and ABC television reporter told us of his adventures in the world’s hot spots and showed video clips of his work. Every evening the main theatre was open for a performance by the six resident singers (the ABBA night was particularly memorable) or a variety of excellent vaudeville acts. The bars and lounges also had live entertainment.
This cruise also had a culinary theme and most mornings at sea featured food demonstrations and tastings ranging from Normandy style Dover sole to moist chocolate cake with raspberry coulis. In the afternoons an elegant Tea was offered with 12 kinds of Ronnefeldt loose organic tea served with finger sandwiches, scones and pastries accompanied by live music.
The crossing was exceptionally smooth and many guests spent their days on comfortable deck chairs around the pool or in the large library where the fine selection of books was augmented by daily satellite editions of major newspapers from Canada, the US, Britain and Australia. Excellent coffee, tea or complimentary cocktails were always available from the attentive staff.
Most guests chose this kind of cruise for its total relaxation and change of pace from normal life. Ken Dunlop and Nathalie Roy of Val D’Or, Quebec, were typical. “We’ve cruised with our kids before,” Ken Dunlop told us. “But I work in an intense business and this is our chance to get away from it all. We love days at sea and we each read a book a day. We’re already confirmed for this cruise next year!”
The large, well-equipped staterooms, each with a well-trained butler to meet every need, are key reasons why, according to Hotel Director Paolo Percivale, more than 50% of Silversea passengers are repeat guests. All suites have comfortable beds (queen or twin), plenty of storage space, a well-stocked complimentary bar, lots of mirrors and marble bathrooms with tubs, showers and high-end toiletries. The flat screen TV has a choice of many channels and hundreds of on-demand movies. Almost all suites have a spacious balcony. Silver Spirit also offers 26 double-size Silver Suites, with separate powder and living rooms, a huge walk-in closet and a Bang & Olufsen audio system.
Leisurely dining is one of the great pleasures of cruising and Silversea consistently showed us that small ships can be especially creative at mealtime. Its formal partnership with the prestigious Grand Chefs Relais and Chateaux brings a level of sophisticated cuisine that ranks among the best we’ve ever enjoyed. The main, single level, dining room offers open seating and contemporary international fare with an excellent selection of complimentary wines. Unlike most other lines, Silversea purchases fresh fish and produce in the various ports it visits and we benefited with delectable fresh seafood from Barbados, St. Lucia, Cape Verde, the Canary Islands and Morocco.
Remarkably, Silver Spirit also offered five other restaurants at mealtime and we got a chance to sample them all. La Terrazza, at the stern of deck seven, is the spot for breakfast and lunch buffets. We usually hate the jostling and disorganization of cruise ship buffets but this ship seems to have perfected the self-serve concept. A separate room for dining (including the spacious back deck) and a well-planned food area meant no crowding and lots of time to choose among the huge variety of salads, main courses and desserts. In the evening La Terrazza becomes a fine Italian restaurant that follows the principles of Slow Food.
The upper level of the Pool Grill (casual fare and pizza at lunchtime) turns into the Black Rock Grill in the evening when waiters bring a pre-heated volcanic flat rock (450 degrees F.) to your table and let you cook your steak or seafood exactly as you like it. A unique and very tasty open-air experience. The extra-cost Seishin restaurant is an intimate dining area featuring Asian fusion cuisine and Kobe beef while the formal Le Champagne (also extra cost) is the only Wine Restaurant by Relais and Chateaux at sea. Here, an exquisite six-course menu is featured with perfect wine pairings.
Our favourite dining experience on Silver Spirit was the Stars Supper Club. The Art Deco inspired design and cozy furniture is perfect for the chef’s fixed menu of fifteen small but creative dishes served three at a time over five delicious courses. Among the offerings (the menu changes every three days) were lamb noisette with pancetta and Thai prawn with birds eye chili. Culinary heaven! To add to the atmosphere of a 1930s style supper club, a talented singer of light jazz, accompanied by piano, serenades diners and dancers throughout the evening.
After five days of tranquil sea time, it was exciting to land at Porto Novo, Cape Verde, the westernmost municipality in all of Africa (even though the continent’s mainland is 570 kilometres to the east). Porto Novo (population: 20,000) is the major town on Santa Antao, one of 10 islands that make up the country of Cape Verde. Our bus tour of the island covered tropical rain forests near sea level and desolate, chilly volcanic mountaintops. The little towns combining Portuguese and African heritage and the amazing seascapes from roads carved into the sides of volcanic cliffs provided one of our best-ever cruise ship tour experiences.
Three more sea days brought the Silver Spirit to the Canary Islands and then to Morocco where we chose a long, 13-hour tour to the ancient imperial city of Marrakesh. With the largest public square in Africa (filled with snake charmers, monkey handlers, acrobats and story tellers) and the biggest traditional market (called the souk) in Morocco, this exotic city of close to a million inhabitants was well worth the visit. We purchased a 45 Spice mix and a leather bag, enjoying the bargaining process (expect to pay about half the original asking price).
As we approached our final destination in Portugal we asked a few fellow travellers about their cruise experience. Moncton native Brenda Atwood and her husband Cliff of Thunder Bay, Ontario, were especially happy with the spaciousness of the ship and the service they received. “They cater to every possible wish,” she said. “You’re never fighting for a deck chair. They know you by name almost immediately and they have your favourite drink in front of you before you sit down!”
Guest speaker Morton Dean told us he enjoyed every minute of the crossing. “I’ve flown over the Atlantic many times but this trip has given me a whole new appreciation of the ocean. I’ve seen it now as I’ve never seen it before.”
John and Sandra Nowlan are travel and food writers based in Halifax
[News/Alerts] Luxury Kosher Cruise Special For Kids
May 2nd
Alaska Kosher Cruises
You will see Alaska’s breathtaking natural beauty- glaciers glowing blue and magnificent wildlife – from your vantage point aboard the five-star Norwegian Pearl. Whether you’re touring the rainforests and fjords of Ketchikan, helicopering over the stunning Mendenhall Glacier or seeing whales up close, you’ll understand why Alaska is so sought after. THE PERFECT CRUISE FOR FAMILIES
Australia & New Zealand Cruise
Join us on the elegant Holland America line as we explore the land down under. Revel in the cosmopolitan attractions of Sydney where history, opera, opals and koalas are ever present. Then venture to New Zealand, where nothing can prepare you for its majesty. The experience is only enhanced by 5 Star Glatt Kosher cuisine and exemplary Kosherica customer service
Cruising to the some of the greatest museums in the world
Sep 15th
by Nina Wright
After years of sailing our own 36 foot sailboat on Lake Huron’s North Channel we were sceptical about the pleasure of being guests on someone else’s boat. But, two new hips and a knee replacement urged us in that direction. If we were going to do it however it had to be to a new and exciting destination. The Baltic beckoned -with St. Petersburg, Russia as the big draw. After much investigation and conversations with other friends and travellers we selected the Oceania Cruise line and their 14 day Baltic itinerary which gave us ports such as Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, Bruges etc but allowed for a full three day stay in St. Petersburg. Our choice of cruise line was heavily influenced by size of ship as we could not imagine a boatload of 3000 plus tourists arriving en masse at any dockside terminal.
Insignia, is a 674 passenger ship which because of its size can dock at ship terminals in each city which some of the larger ships cannot use. In spite of its size, our ship still contained all the amenities one could hope for – spa, fitness room, swimming pool, casino, entertainment centre etc.- just on a modest scale. Perhaps most importantly it offered the irresistible combination of shipboard efficiency, coupled with warmth of service, comfort and safety.
Our cruise started in Stockholm and major photography exhibitions were on at both the Moderna Museet and Fotograsfiska (the Museum of Contemporary Photography). These shows, plus the enormous wealth of fabric, glass and wood design present in virtually every retail outlet made our two days in Stockholm well worth the visit. One of the real culinary highlights was Lux, a superb small waterside restaurant (one Michelin star) whose chef, Henrik Norstrom, created a fabulous summer tasting menu from locally-grown organic meats and vegetables.
Upon departure for Helsinki we spent four glorious hours as the ship sailed through the archipelago that surround Stockholm, the island landscape being evocative of the Lake Huron North Channel with its pink granite islands and multi varieties of pine where we had sailed our 36 ft. sloop for the previous thirty years.
Once docked in Helsinki we opted for a quiet walk around the bustling port market, through town to the quaint rock church, had a modest light lunch before winding our way back to the ship. In spite of the cobblestone streets, sturdy sneakers made the walking do-able. Those sneakers have now seen their best days as cobblestone was present in almost every destination and my lovely wardrobe of sandals never left the bottom of the closet floor!
As expected, the highlight of the experience was most certainly St. Petersburg and reaching it by boat in place of the usual airport hassle was a definite plus. We arrived at 8.00 am and from Toronto had arranged for a private car and driver with our own guide to meet us at the boat to get an early start. Tatiana, our elegant young guide, who had been provided by the Red October tour company, was waiting to whisk us off to The Hermitage for early admission. Early admission is pretty critical as hordes of impatient tourists followed us and we were fortunate to have been able to arrange this timing as it contributed to making the experience a much more intimate and powerful one.
An important aspect of our up-front planning was the reservation of a wheelchair, as they are in short supply and, without prior arrangement for the elevator to be in operation, of little use. We chose to view the living quarters of Czar Peter the Great and the Rembrandts -all on upper floors. As everyone knows this is a vast complex and could take days if you had it. We loved what we saw and determined to return one day. It is claimed that there are over 40 kilometers of corridors filled with treasures that reflect the wealth and tastes of the Czars .To see the unfolding of those historic times and the art and architecture collected is a not-to-be- missed experience.
Exhausted but uplifted we were deposited back to Insignia in time for a rest and a delicious dinner of fresh lobster.
The next morning our Mercedes took us to Catherine’s Palace, a drive of over 20 kms, during which we passed many memorials, parks and landmarks, all of which Tatiana was able to describe in detail and in fluent English. Again the early arrival and prior wheelchair arrangement were essential to the quality of our visit and the opportunity to see more of the Russian masterpieces.
On our final day in St Petersburg the weather stayed warm and sunny as it had been since Stockholm, so we decided to enjoy the gardens of Peterhof Palace. The estate, designed by Czar Peter the Great, was lush and filled with freshly planted flowers surrounding the hundreds of exquisite fountains and waterfalls (cascades) found throughout the grounds. It is a unique feat of engineering that all the fountains run without any mechanical power and depend on the gravity of spring-fed lakes and a complex series of valves and jets to produce eye-boggling multiple sprays of crystal clear water shooting high into the air. It was a perfect setting in which to take a long walk under a cloudless sky.
During the Second World War St Petersburg was surrounded by the heavily armed German army which kept the city under siege for over 900 days. Most of the historic buildings were destroyed and have all been perfectly restored to their original splendour, although many treasures were looted and have disappeared from sight. Like so much of Europe the visitor is not aware of this carnage and the Russian authorities have spared no effort in their restoration efforts.
On the night before leaving St Petersburg we learned that the Grand Hotel, which dates back to 1820, was having an evening of supper music featuring a Tchaikovsky ensemble with a little ballet and opera . We decided to add this evening of Russian theatrics to our itinerary as the Grand is also known for its excellent cuisine. We were not disappointed and during a superb dinner served in a stunningly beautiful Baroque-style dining room we experienced a delightful repertoire of classical Russian music.
We left the next morning heading for the ports of Tallinn, Riga, Visby, through the Kiel Canal to Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Bruges, each of which we would visit on our way back to the Port of Dover in England where the voyage would come to an end. Although the focus of our trip had been Russian splendour and history, the opportunity of being able to see first- hand all these picturesque smaller towns was a real bonus.
So while we had never expected to be devoted cruisers, the Insignia and the Baltic has converted us to looking for other exotic destinations where we can unpack once, experience many new and exciting countries, and enjoy the comfort and luxury of a floating home
