Posh Mum's Journeys

Poshmum is doing something a little different- a 12 night British Isles cruise operated by Princess. Took the train to Southampton yesterday and explored the old town area

And The Duke of Wellington below dates to 1220

See you on board!

20th. June 2024….boarding was slick and well staffed. With 19 floors, the Princess Regal is huge and hosts around 3 500 guests. We have the Premier package, which includes up to 15 premium drinks a day. Not even Poshmum could see that away. However, a glass of champagne went down very nicely. The pool deck was very busy as for once this June we had sunshine, not constant rain. The sail away party was pretty lively. We headed for one of the bars as England drew 1 all with Denmark in the European Cup competition. Perhaps if Pickford, a Sunderland lad, had not defended his goal with such craft, it may have been worse. We dined in the Symphony restaurant. Included in the package. Somewhat bland food and staff were rushed off their feet. We had a reservation, but there was still a wait. Twice so far, we have ordered via the Medallion app, and twice, despite our order not being fulfilled, the app claimed it had! Staff were quick to meet our orders when chased up, but the app is seriously flawed.

21st June Our balcony stateroom on floor 11 is comfortable and surprisingly spacious. Guests can order robes from housekeeping, which we did yesterday…..not sure when they will arrive.   We are at sea the whole day and due to dock at Cobh tomorrow, a small town a few miles from the better known Cork. We are shake rattling and rolling as the winds are quite high as we hurtle towards the Irish sea.

We had a light lunch at the Horizon bistro, surprisingly nice, and enjoyed a crisp white sauvignon blanc with it. Attended the onboard theatre for a very interesting talk from the King’s former butler. He was totally respectful of the Royal family members he worked with. There are free puzzles in the onboard library, so we did a couple aided by a cheeky cocktail. We had to don gladrags as one of the 2 formal nights. It was lovely to see so many guests in their bling! Lovely live music as we strolled for dinner in another included restaurant, The Concerto. Lump crab cake followed by duck a l’orange. Very tasty and piping hot. We were just in time for another theatre show, this time delivered by a truly fabulous dancing troupe. Their show was called Born to Dance, and these delightful young people certainly were! Poshmum thinks perhaps this is just a tad more relaxing than many holidays…..perhaps I am being converted!

22nd June Our first port of call is Cobh pronounced as cove. Cork is easily reached from here by train. This is after breakfast of course which we have ordered to be delivered in our stateroom. Not via the Medallion app, so hopefully, it will work out!

We bought tickets for the Spike Island prison museum including the ferry ride and tour. Most interesting and whilst originally used to hold transportees it also held young joy riders in the 1980s. Great pint of Muphys back at Cobh before rejoining the ship. Locals very friendly and singing their heads off on a damp Saturday afternoon. There’s something about how music unites visitors and locals the world over.

Princess theatre had a hypnotist show which was hilarious. More lovely live music and dancing. Poshmum partook in an excellent margarita after dinner. Cruising slowly towards Dun laoghaire.

23rd June docked slightly late in Dun Laoghaire dur to fog. Took shuttle boat to the main harbour and ambled round the People’s  park with vendors selling a variety of foods. Very popular as a regular Sunday event. Explored the town before heading to the  National Maritime Museum built in 1972 within the former Mariner’s church, built in 1843.

24th June Docked at Liverpool today and temperatures have soared. Easy to see how Liverpool was a truly well deserved winner of the City of Culture award way back in 2008. Apart from its musical and maritime heritage, Liverpool has retained many historic buildings, including the famous Royal Liver Building dating to 1908. I came to Liverpool when my son was a baby solely to get him added to our passports. That was in 1989 when Liverpool was tragically affected by the Hillsborough football disaster when 97 Liverpool fans lost their lives. No-one should die when out for the day at a sporting event they love.

We had lunch delivered to our balcony back on the ship, given we needed to be back by 3.30 today. Hey, it worked really well, too. Delicious hot sandwiches piping hot with ice cold Tiger beer. Excellent that the ocean now app has improved since our original attempts!

25th June Greenock near Glasgow which is easily reached by trains every 20 minutes or so. Had light breakfast delivered to the stateroom before heading out to explore the town. Not much to see and the main museums were closed so did the coastal walk instead. Somewhat wet as the mist hung low above the Clyde. Delicate little cake served as lunch. Early dinner because of the England game!

We watched the England v Slovenia game in the very pleasant Vista lounge where the team served complimentary ice cream and popcorn. Evening entertainment is great. A rock band tonight and plenty of shows in the theatre.

26th June at sea but still plenty going on. We opt for breakfast delivered to the stateroom. Excellent coffee and a good choice of food items more than enough for us.

27th June its Poshmum’s 43rd wedding anniversary today! We docked slightly outside of Kirkwall and were transferred to shore with the little tender boats again. Weather windy but very sunny and warm. Strolled through  town, and a mile and a half hike took us to Scapa beach and visited the memorial commemorative of those who perished in WW2 following the sinking of the Royal Oak by a German U-boat.

Hmmmm, that was some walk! To atone for sneezing in my face, my husband of 43 years found me a Poshmum worthy bar – The Auld Motor Hoose and what else could I do but down a pint of Scapa ale!

Tonight we go posh for dinner at The Crown Grill. They asked if we were celebrating an anniversary or anything so I said yes but didn’t mention the sneeze! They brought us a special sharing dessert to mark the occasion so thoughtful! We enjoyed a couple of drinks with dinner and took one into the theatre and watched another fabulous musical dance show.  Rocked to sleep by the high winds…..

28th June we dock right in the middle of Invergordon. Windy so no breakfast on the patio today and Jimbo is poorly with his cold. Took a scenic but lengthy bus ride to Inverness. Very pretty and of course busy. Returned by train to save a little time.