Shipboard Life - 11th July

Today we arrived in Bamburg and we were supposed to go on a walking tour of the city, but I had a bad night and did not sleep well, so we stayed in bed till 10 am! It was pouring with rain anyway, so the walking tour would have been miserable.

So I thought I would regail you with tales of shipboard life. Our cabin is typical of cruise ships, enough space for a bed with about a meter around it to move about. The bathroom is just big enough for a toilet, basin and shower but adequate for our needs. The ship has three decks of rooms, we're on the Sapphire deck which is the middle deck just above water level, with our own balcony and a full width window that we can lower electrically, as I think I have mentioned before.

The upper deck is the Diamond Deck, where the rich and famous dwell (and pay for). The bottom deck is the Jewel Deck, most of the suite is underwater and only have tiny windows at the top to see over the water.

On top of the ship is the Sun Deck, from which you have panoramic views of the river and countryside.

At the front of the ship is the Jewel Lounge where you can sit and enjoy the view, chat with other passengers, drink coffee or drinks from the bar if you so choose. At the front of the ship on the same level is Portebello's Fine Dining restaurant, to which you are invited to once per cruise, which we did Sunday night. Very nice it was too, Italian cuisine with personalised service from all the waiters, not that the service in the main dining room, The Crystal Room, has any inferior service. The Crystal Room is where we have all our meals normally, buffet service for breakfast and lunch and sit down meals for the evening meal. The food, of course, is delicious, and plentiful, if not too plentiful. Needless to say, we'll be both going on diets when we return.

It is the northern summer, and it doesn't get dark till after 9 pm, getting light about 4.30 am. So right now it is 9 pm, and I can see clearly out of our cabin window. Guess what, we're coming into another lock. We are on the downward slide now, dropping down towards the Rhine river in a couple of days.

We have Wi-Fi and internet reception most of the time, there are some dead spots on the river but not too bad overall. On the wall is a 30" TV, computer and information guide for all our needs on board.

We have our own butler and cabin steward, with a turn down service in the evening. In other words, pure luxury. Everything, food, excursions, drinks and tips and fees are all inclusive in the price. You really could leave your wallet at home. Hope you are not all too envious.