Ahoy Ahoy, this time everything is somehow completely different! Because it is both a vacation without the little red one, and also a kind of vacation that we would never normally do! Everyone who knows our blog knows that we cannot suppress sarcasm or cynical comments. They are just there and need to come out. Like with women and children who somehow manage to reach 10,000 words a day. So in advance: we still appreciate this trip and certainly don't want to offend anyone! But from the beginning: Lena was lucky in a raffle (again) and won (again) a tiny little prize: a cruise! One week in Norway's fjords with the MSC Meraviglia for two people in a balcony cabin. There is certainly agreement that there are worse lottery prizes. Pot holders, stuffed animals, bottle openers or pens with dried out ink... Now a cruise! Since we have forced you to read our previous vacation reports in quite some detail, you know that our usual vacation style includes peace, solitude, individuality, and freedom! Phew - now a cruise! How do we reconcile our ideas with the currently fourth largest ocean cruiser in the world? Honestly, we didn't know either, so we set off from Frankfurt on Friday with considerably more uneasiness than anticipation. The first stop was Unna, because it quickly became clear to all of us: this vacation would be anything but relaxing for Ida. Therefore, the decision was made to set sail without our whirlwind and instead give her a week full of grandmas, grandpas, cousins, horses, and dogs! It tears us apart to be separated from our daughter for a whole week, but it gives us the opportunity to (hopefully) recharge our batteries and face the upcoming everyday life with full force!
So the journey began...at 7:24 a.m. from Dortmund to Kiel by IC train! It couldn't have started more relaxing than sitting on the train for 4 hours. If only it weren't for the other passengers...
The whole car empty, except for the four-seater next to us. Cologne grumpy citizens at their finest. And it quickly became clear that these four senior tormentors would stay with us for a long time: 'That's a giant ship! Like a high-rise building built on the sea! 75 meters high!' Direct hit. They are also traveling with the MSC. Hopefully, we will lose each other quickly among almost 6,000 guests. The organization during the arrival needs to be highly praised here. One of the numerous staff members was already waiting at the train station, collecting all cruisers and leading them to the bag drop. So we were already rid of our suitcases and backpack (for an additional €20). Very pleasant.
Then we were shuttled through the Kiel harbor to the terminal on a small cutter. That also went smoothly; lots of personnel, good signage and directions. Still pleasant.
Particularly noteworthy, albeit somewhat sad, was the encounter with a dolphin who apparently got lost in the harbor a few days ago and is causing the harbor masters quite some concern due to its behavior. Because apparently, it can't find its way out on its own...or it simply doesn't want to!
The passengers are divided into blocks to board. After weeks of cold weather, we were more than grateful for the sun. So we sat outside and waited for our boarding. Very pleasant.
With a book and water, it was easy to endure until: 'The transfer in Cologne was a pure disaster. That's the Deutsche Bahn for you. And there were no elevators...! We almost didn't make it!' Not so pleasant anymore! You can't make this up. Almost 10,000!!! people want to get on the ship and these people from Cologne find us to talk to! But if there's one thing we've learned in recent years and vacations, it's 'shoo away annoying pests'! Just ignore them, give short answers without the possibility of further conversation, open your book demonstratively, or if nothing else helps, give stupid answers! 'You made it, fortunately for everyone, on time!' After we had our peace again, it was finally time to go aboard.
And that's where the chaos and intrusiveness unfortunately began to take over!
After the obligatory safety photo [in case you go overboard and need to be identified ;-)], we entered the grand Galleria Meraviglia, where an employee stood every two meters to offer us "great deals" in sometimes bad English! Donald Trump would have liked it! "Make MSC great again!" Pretty unpleasant.
Before we were allowed to enter our cabin, we walked from station to station like we were searching for a pass to enter A38, to confirm reservations, set up the Wi-Fi, and ask for table and time for dinner. After the incredibly good organization during the arrival, we were all the more dismayed at how bad this part of the day went: no one spoke German (which didn't bother us so much, but many of our fellow travelers probably couldn't handle it), and the staff was not particularly helpful. After a long struggle with our sense of direction, we were finally allowed to enter our cabin, which is really very nice!
Spacious, bright enough thanks to the balcony, and with a very comfortable bathroom for a ship.
We spent the rest of the afternoon dozing on the stern terrace before rushing to the onboard fitness center to get rid of the energy we gained. And guess what: this seems to be the only place with plenty of peace and free choice of seating. You will find us here more often. Then it was time for our first dinner at the "a la carte restaurant"! And here the horror awaited us. Dining with strangers at the same table! One is annoyed by the fact that someone completely unknown thinks they can watch us eat and ask about the taste. The other is annoyed by the hated small talk that seems to be expected due to the table arrangement! But it was less bad than we suspected and feared! The food can also be praised, although the portions are rather sparse for ordinary mortals! So afterwards, we went to the buffet restaurant! Since both restaurants are nine floors apart, the second meal was not only deserved, but also necessary due to the increased burning of calories! So, to finally come to an end, we spent the rest of the evening sipping cocktails on the stern terrace (empty because it was freezing) and peacefully fell asleep with sometimes gruesome sounds of the ESC 2019 and moonlight over the water! Until tomorrow my loves...
