Newcastle trip (part 3)
music: BBC, cash in the attic
mood: Tired but ok
It took us some time to wake up and get dressed, but when we had breakfast was awaiting us. It was served in the Seven Seas restaurant.
The breakfast was so good! Really delicious and just my taste. Oh, how I missed the real English breakfast! Toast with bacon, scrambled eggs and tea. I even took two servings and then was totally stuffed. While eating breakfast we heard a couple of the stewards speak some language which we couldn't immediately grasp. Angela and I discussed this but as we weren't sure we decided to ask one of the staff. The girl told us that they spoke Polish and that about half of the staff is Polish and another part is Philipino. So I asked her how to say: "thank you" in Polish, she told me (I already forgot now) and I tried to say it every time I had to say "thank you". They had to laugh about that quite hard.
Anyway, after breakfast we went up on deck, as during breakfast we already saw land. It was great seeing land from the boat, we also have got tracks of the GPS, even put a marker at the moment we called Phil so that's nice to see now.
It was so good feeling the wind and smelling the sea... I wondered what it must have been like back in the olden days, when you sailed for months without even seeing land. How it must have been like to then see land again after months. This wasn't months, just one night, but it still felt good. It was nice feeling the breeze and just standing there relaxed, watching the coast and Newcastle come into view. We also ended up in a conversation with a tour bus driver about Newcastle and the Angel of the North. I wanted desperately to see the Angela of the North and was surprised that I had not seen it yet. The bus driver overheard me talking to Angela about it and told me that you were not able to see the Angel from the sea as it was too far inland. And that it was the most ugly thing he had seen too.
Anyway, after docking we went through customs and passport control which was a wait but quite easy. Because the center of Newcastle is quite an end away from the port of Newcastle we had a bus transfer from the port to the center.
In the bus we let the GPS run as well.
When the transfer bus arrived at the station there was a man selling tickets for the sightseeing tours. We had already talked about this and decided we wanted to do the tour so we immediately bought the tickets for it. Then the ticket seller saw my Pudsey sweater and said: ah, Nationals! 
About 15 minutes later the sightseeing bus was there and we were off. Sitting at the top deck of the bus, which was open en enjoying the tour. I can't explain it: you would have to experience it for yourself, but it was great! Just so much fun in the descriptions of places and buildings and historical events. Things about 'miles and miles of red tape' in the town hall... don't even ask me to explain this. So sometimes Angela and I had fits of laughter and most of the other people sitting at the top deck were German so were looking at us as if we were mad. They probably did not get the jokes...I don't know. Anyway, we got 2 bustours for the price of 1. The city center tour and the bigger tour in which we also drove over some of the 7 bridges and saw the quaside. It only rained for a short time so we were lucky, the tour was about 90 minutes so pretty good value for money.
After the bustour we really wanted to eat something and, most of all, have a nice cup of tea. We walked towards the Quaside and, after having walked incorrectly first, ended up at the water side. We asked two technicians where a good pub was to eat and they directed us to the 'Slug and lettuce' this only after they had said that they did not have a problem with 'going Dutch' with us...as long as we paid. As you can imagine we did NOT take them up on that offer! We went to the 'Slug and Lettuce' but in the end only had a good deserved cup of tea and a sitdown. It was too much of a Friday's and not enough of an English pub for us. But still, the sit down was good and the tea even better. A lot of fun was that there was a lesbian couple there with a daughter and friend of one of them. Angela and I walked away hand in hand, but unfortunately I don't think that they have noticed this. We found it highly amusing though!
From the 'Slug and Lettuce' we walked back towards the city center and finally found ourselves a nice pub: Fitzgeralds (60 Grey Street) where we had another nice cup of tea and a long sitdown, but also a really good lunch. Baquette with chicken, bacon and melted cheese: delicious! And the pot of tea helped too.
While we were there we also called Les and asked him how he was. It was good talking to him again as we don't do that too often.
After lunch we decided to have a walk around some shops and we did buy some things as well... I know we shouldn't have but we will cherish those things even more!
I know it sounds unbelievably strange, but it was so good to just walk around English shops, hear English being spoken, go to Marks & Spencers...even though I only saw one Tesco, if only from a distance, I just instantly felt at home! This was hightened by our trip to Waterstone's. I LOVE it to walk around in Waterstone's and just look at books. It was also marvellous just walking around enjoying ourselves and each others company. Especially when the sun broke through the clouds and it became nice and warm.
Toward the end of the afternoon we walked back towards the station and had another cup of tea in a pub (can't remember the name anymore) while watching the Live 8 concert on a big screen.
After this unfortunately our time in Newcastle was already finished and we got back in the transfer bus which brought us back to the port again. It was so short but fantastic! Especially the stops in the pubs...Fitzgeralds was a good example of a fantastic British pub, with people of all ages walking around. And the food and tea were great, the pub was quiet but still bustling...definitely a good place for a stop when you are in Newcastle!
Anyway, it was now back on board again and that's where I'll start off next entry.
Angelasgf on 07.25.05 @ 08:09 PM CST [link] [No Comments]
Sunday, July 24th
Newcastle trip (part 2)
music: Total silence
mood: Good
I know I said I would write again 'tomorrow' and this is already a week ago. That's how life unfortunately goes sometimes. Hopefully I will finish this account today though as we will be to the Czech Republic and Ukraine next week so again enough to write about.
But, we are not there yet so let me finish the Newcastle trip first.
Just after the cinema, at 21:30 we went to eat at the Seven Seas restaurant. During check-in we had bought vouchers for this dinner so we only had to go there and just pay the drinks.
Dinner itself was called: 'Scandinavian Buffet' and had lots of different food to choose. From fish to meat, from vegetables to salads, pasta and everything in between. And also very yummy deep fried mushrooms! It was so great sitting there together without having to worry about mobiles or about anything at all. That was relaxing! The food was good and pretty soon you already notice that you have actually eaten too much. But then a look on the dessert buffet teaches you that actually: you might be able to fit some more in your stomach. That dessert was delicious too! Chocolate cake, some puddings and of course: ice cream. I did eat quite a lot of cake, so much even that in the end I really couldn't fit any ice cream in there anymore. Yes, me and no ice cream: that's scary huh? Of course Angela taunted me with her ice cream, saying how lovely it was and eating it in such a way that I just had to notice... but no, I was stuffed and that really was that.
After dinner we decided to go up on deck for a while. I just wanted to see the sea and smell it. It was nice and quiet up on deck, there were some more people but not too many. Angela had also brought the GPS and so we switched it on while we were outside. That is funny as we now has got a track showing where we were then.
It was so fantastic just smelling the sea not really having to think, only just being able to relax!
Angela stood behind me with her arms around me and like that, holding each others just staring out onto the sea. Seeeing the lights of oil rigs in the distance, quite a lot actually about 4 or 5, and just being together like that... pure heaven to me!
However, after about 15 minutes up on deck we decided it was too cold and went inside again. We then wanted to go to the admiral pub to have drink but it was so smokey there that we almost immediately needed fresh air again. So we decided not to torment ourselves and just to find a drink somewhere else. Well: this was not as easy as you might think. The supermarket on board had just closed, the vending machine did have cold cola but we thought we didn't have enough coins and the money changer didn't work. So we walked a couple of times back and forth between the information desk and the money changer but it was a lost case from the beginning. In the end we did manage to scramble some coins together and bought two cola from the vending machine.
We then went to our hut as it was alreayd quite late and it would be a short night. In the huts there were two 'beds', that is: one bed and one couch which you can also use as a bed. And also nicely with a table in between. So if you want to go away for a romantic weekend: you should not book the boat as you can't even sleep in one bed together! I passed out right away but woke up what felt like a million times that night. Just because the sounds were so unfamiliair and I sorta had Titanic dreams...
So when the alarm went off and a nice voice said, in about 3 languages, via the broadcasting system that the restaurant was now open for breakfast and that we would arrive in Newcastle in 2.5 hours, we were still quite sleepy... This was about 7:30 in the morning and I guess we only slep from about midnight onwards.
More later...
Angelasgf on 07.24.05 @ 11:46 AM CST [link] [No Comments]
Tuesday, July 12th
Newcastle trip...part 1!
music: The sounds of the outdoors
mood: Quite well...
For all of you who were anxiously waiting, here is part 1 of our Newcastle trip.
The trip started off Friday. I had arranged with my boss that I could leave work at 14:30 about 4 hours earlier than normal.
It was quite nice weather while walking from work to the busstop, so that got me perfectly in the mood.
However: I did start to become worried, too much the Titanic idea in my head. This would be my first time ever on a boat, let alone the first time at sea. So yes: the nervoursness started to built up a bit while walking to the busstop.
After coming home Angela and I packed. She had already started when I was still at work but I also had to get some clothes. We did this and when we thought we had everything got in the car and drove to the terminal. Check-in started at 16:00, we were there a bit later so all perfectly in time. It was quite busy, but the queue looked longer than it really was and it went quite fast.
The lady at the check-in desk asked us whether we would want to make a reservation for dinner and buy the vouchers, as it would be a bit cheaper now than on the boat. We discussed this and in the end decided to purchase the Scandinavian buffet only for the first evening: the second evening we could then still see what we wanted to do for dinner.
After check-in it was passport control... We were lucky, one week later and we would have been screened to death probably, but now we could continue walking after 2 looks at our passport. Pretty good and quick if you ask me.
Then time came to board and we walked via a flight of stairs into a sort of tunnel which connects the mainland with the boat.
Our boarding pass doubled as key card for the room, so immediately when we came on board we started the search for our room. I have to say: it was still pretty easy, but the boat is huge! Luckily I did have Angela as my guide though, so she wasn't too fazed by it all and I felt a bit more relaxed because of it, probably.
The first time trying the key card: that was fun! Why? Because it took me about 5 times to get it right! After that most of the time Angela let me open the door as I needed the practice...
Anyway: we dropped most of our luggage and then went up on deck. It was brilliant: standing on deck, watching IJmuiden glide away... Great to see it from the waterside instead of the lighthouse, that's for sure! Not too long after the boat had set sail and we had left IJmuiden behind the 2 bars located at the sundecks were opened. We decided we needed something to drink and to eat, but the only thing they had in these bars as far as food was concerned was 'the original American hotdog' and some peanuts. Well, Angela and I both took the hotdog and something to drink: it indeed didn't kill you but it did it's best!
Immediately during boarding we had seen what films they had in the cinema and we decided to buy two tickets for: The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. The film in itself was somewhat weird, but it would not nearly have been such a disappointing experience if only that was the problem though! You had two parts to the cinema: A & B and I guess both were as uncomfortable and lousy. It didn't matter in which cinema you were: the sound was crap and we heard the other film better than our own, the screen quality was lousy and it looked more like some sort of auditorium than a cinema... We've seen the film but really it was a waste of money.
If ever you go with that boat: do not buy tickets for the cinema as you will be utterly dissappointed! Luckily though, the food was a lot better...
I'll try to write part two tomorrow...I guess this might end up as a pretty long read!
Angelasgf on 07.12.05 @ 09:36 PM CST [link] [1 Comment]
Thursday, July 7th
Terrorist attacks in the UK
music: TV on in the background
mood: Absolutely sad... 
This morning, while being at work, I received a Breaking News email from the BBC. Talking about an explosion in the tube and saying that it seemed a power surge.
Well, only a short time later there were more explosions so the idea of the power surge went out of the window. And even later the label 'terrorist attack' was used for the explosions.
The latest figures: 37 dead and 700+ injured.
Luckily everyone I know was either not there and was not hurt. But of course that does not mean it doens't have an impact. I've been watching the TV ever since I came home from work.
Call me weird, but in the end: isn't that what everyone does. Even though you see every image 5 million times, even though you hear everything 25 times before getting some new news: you keep on watching.
Not that it changes anything, you just do.
Anyway... what I find interesting is that it doesn't matter how many Security Services you have...if the terrorists do everything according to plan we should not know, right?
Only if they fuck up we will notice. That's basically where we stand, as far as I think.
I've got the feeling Amsterdam is next on the list...
So you won't see me there anytime soon.
For all the people caught up in these new, horrible terrorist attacks: I wish you strength and I'm certainly there in thought in this difficult time.
I'm Dutch, but when I heard it I had the hairs in my neck standing upright..
Good luck to us all!
Angelasgf on 07.07.05 @ 10:28 PM CST [link] [No Comments]
Sunday, July 3rd
Very nice weekend...
music: Nothing, there's complete silence
mood: Very good indeed!
Wow, has it been such a lot time already since I have written? I apologise... it just seems like a day only consists of a couple of hours instead of 24 hours.
Anyway: we have had our Newcastle trip and it was fantastic!
Weird as it may sound: it was relaxing and tiring at the same time.
Obviously I will let you all know more about it, but I first have to write that...
I'll do it offline first so you hopefully will see it in a couple of days.
I have to say: both Angela and I are quite tired. Her back was killing her and we are both really tired. I guess it's a good tired feeling though: short nights because you are having fun!
I promise that you will get the whole story, I just don't exactly know when yet.
Hugs, Jacqueline
Angelasgf on 07.03.05 @ 08:15 PM CST [link] [No Comments]
