Stage 2 - Regent Mariner. Miami to the Amazon
We left the Silversea Dawn and started our next venture which is Miami through the Caribbean to the Amazon and back on the Regent Mariner. 25 days including Christmas and New Year onboard.
After breakfast on the Dawn we disembarked, uber to the Biltmore Hotel approximately an hours drive from Fort Lauderdale to Miami. It was a very smooth transition, Silversea had the process well in control.
The Hotel looked very impressive. Very old worldish. It is a luxury hotel in Coral Cables, about 20 mins from the Cruise Terminal. The hotel was designed by Schultze and Weaver and built in 1926. At that time it was the tallest building in Florida at 96 mtr.
We arrived early and were very fortunate that the room was ready so dropped off our luggage and headed out to the shops. A very long and warm walk 0f 45 minutes into Coral Cables. Julie also decided to get her nails done. 4.5 hrs later we were finished - AHHH 😖.
Decided to have an early dinner in town so chose a Chinese restaurant. Big mistake. Clearly our taste in Chinese is very different to that served here in Miami - or we were just unlucky. Decided to walk back to the hotel to limit the heartburn.
The hotel looked just as impressive at night.
Next morning the bags were picked up and taken ahead of us to the ship. We headed down to breakfast, very ordinary and disappointing. it was prepared for Regent guests in a separate dining hall, cold scrambled eggs, cold coffee etc. At 11.00am we were to be bused to the ship. Regent's organisation was chaotic with several hundred waiting in the foyer at the same time. Took some time to be transferred to the pier and lined up in lengthy queues through check in, once onboard all was good.
Our penthouse suite was ready. Lovely large room and, of course, a stocked bar 😁
We unpacked and settled into our room.
The forecast was for wind and overcast conditions - an ominous sign 😕
The Mariner is larger than the Silver Dawn (48000 tonnes vs 41000 and 700 passengers to 600). It is a well designed ship with a lot of places to find things to do, so it never seems crowded. It is showing a bit of wear as it is an older vessel but still very nice and comfortable.
We had dinner with an American and English couples. A good mix and lots of laughter. Then off to bed.
Our first day at sea, overcast and windy with more to come. The ship handles the swell very well (good stabilisers) but weather conditions hamper lounging around outside. I joined a trivia team (Julie wasn't feeling the best so stayed in the room). The team came in second - a much stronger result than I'm used to. There is a good gym onboard, hopefully I can get some time to use it. The room has too many mirrors to constantly remind us of the need to do something.
That night we ate at the specialty French restaurant Chartreuse. Very good menu. Great desserts.
After dinner we headed to the theatre for the show. A juggler!! totally inappropriate act for this cruise. He was a good juggler but after 10 mins there was not much else to entertain us. The show was 45 mins. So we left early and went back to the cabin. The good news was that he has another show later in the cruise - sounds like a night at the bar.😁
The next day we awoke to overcast and windy conditions again with a 2 metre swell, Our first port of call was to be St Barts in the Caribbean planned for tomorrow, this was cancelled due to the weather. Knew the weather gods would turn on us at some point.
The food onboard compares favourably with Silversea, although it seems difficult to get hot vegetables, their steaks are not as tender or tasty, similarly with a hot cup of expresso. Oh well, I guess it is a 1st world problem we must put up with 😇. The venues onboard are very elegant and a good wine selection. Lunch was tuna, soup, Chinese pork spare ribs and expresso ice-cream. Julie refrained from chewing the bones. Heaven knows what we will have for dinner as we are going to the specialty steak restaurant, Prime 7.
It's been a long cruise so far and starting to forget what day it is. The sun came out and the crowd hit the deck lounges around the pool.
Over the next couple of days at sea before arriving at Guadeloupe it was more lounging around the pool interspersed with food and drinks, occasionally getting to the gym, catching up on a couple of shows (not the juggler) and trivia (our team is doing well). Julie still not feeling the best so spent a lot of time in bed trying to sleep off the bug.
The weather cleared, sun shining and seas reasonably calm, although the wind was still blowing.
Amazing site of a full circular rainbow around the sun. I did get a bit of golf practice, Tough to read the greens in the wind
We arrived in Guadeloupe and the fine weather was still holding.
Back onboard, some relaxing around the bar, dinner then the show, an English singer - not bad, who came onboard without his luggage that didn't make it. His borrowed clothes were somewhat out of character for the night.
Speaking of clothes, Regent is far more casual than Silversea and Seabourn. Most nights are 'elegant' casual (i.e. polo shirt and slacks) which makes it more comfortable. I do expect a couple of formal nights for Christmas and New Year, but wait and see.
Next day had us in St George's Granada. St. George’s is the capital city of the Caribbean island of Grenada which was founded by the French in 1650 It is a very popular tourist attraction. We elected to take the clear bottom kayaking tour. It ended up being very hard work as we paddled for about 45 mins to a spot where there were small statues sunk on the seabed (very exciting - not). On the return paddle 1 member off our 2 person kayak ran out of puff so we ended up getting a tow back for the last 5 mins. Arriving back to shore for another rum punch and a swim.
Next port of call was Port of Spain in Trinidad Tobago. The city serves primarily as a retail and administrative centre and it has been the capital of the island since 1757. It is also an important financial services centre for the Caribbean and is home to two of the largest banks in the region. The city is also home to the largest container port on the island and is one of several shipping hubs of the Caribbean, exporting both agricultural products and manufactured goods.
Julie still wasn't feeling terrific and as it was going to be a hot and humid day, we cancelled our tour and I took a walk into the town. I was warned by the security guards at the pier entrance to be wary of pick pockets etc (interesting start). They had people all around the city (dressed in red) to help guide you to where you might wish to go.
For a Capital city, there was not much to see
There was a statue of Brian Lara for all you cricket lovers
Back onboard for a quiet evening and enjoyable sunset.
A further couple of days at sea. The weather is getting warmer and very tough to get a lounge in the shade around the pool. 😖
Still a bit windy which continued to played havoc with my putting practice.
There was a new show, very good looking couple of tango dancers which was good as well as the ship's entertainers singing and dancing. Overall the entertainment hasn't been anything marvellous.
The ship is preparing for Christmas in a couple of days when we are in Manaus.
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