And just like that.... It's all over!

Well folks it doesn't seem like five minutes since the build up to Christmas and now its all over! I had a lovely day filled with food, alcohol, and presents! I had two pairs of new shoes, chocolates, bath soaps, Pajamas, etc.

Did you all have a nice day? What did you all get up to?

I have to say for the first time ever I didn't eat too much like a pig...!

For New year I think I will be out in a pub somewhere having a couple of pints as you do at New Year! I am bracing myself for the new year mind. With January looming there will be lots and lots of good offers about and of course all you lovely cruisers will be wanting to nab the best deal to cheer yourself up with a good holiday to look forward to. Which is great because it keeps me nice and busy!

So I thought I would check in with you all with a quick post.... here are a couple of photo's from my Christmas day to nose at.... Keep posted for the New Year shots!

                                                       All dressed up for Christmas Day!

                                                    Liam and Dave enjoying a Cuban Cigar!

                                                  Me, Sian, and Jade, Liam's cousins!

                                    Liam's sister- Mia and I. I'm wearing the new black shoes!

                                                     Karen with her broken wrist and me!

                                                                 Liam and I by the fire!

                                                             Ooooo new Topshop boots!

                                                              Ooooo Kurt Geiger boots!

Merry Christmas Friends!

Hello, Good Morning to you all and Merry Christmas! I hope you all have a lovely day and you get all the nice things you want tomorrow. But most importantly enjoy your time with your family having lots of drinks, laughs, cuddles and food!

I will be spending my day eating to be honest. Lots of eating! And a few tipples of the old wine/beer!

Be careful in the snow! Sending you lots of love and Christmas cheer!

Samantha x

My South African friend Sophie... a lovely story to make you smile!

Yesterday was a pretty stressful day here at cruise.co.uk. The phones were busy and there wasn’t that many people in the office due to the snow conditions outside. So to say I was busy is an understatement.

Ring, Ring, Ring, Ring, goes the phone. Good Morning cruise.co.uk, Samantha speaking, how can I help you? Oh hello there Samantha, said the kind British voice down the phone. I am looking at a cruise on the internet but I am all the way over in South Africa and I need to check I can book it correctly. No problem I said! Anyway the conversation went on and this man proceeded to tell me that he had read my blog and seen that I love animals. I said Oh I do. He said well you will love my little friend Sophie!

My blog today friend’s is a story that put a little smile on my face during my stressful day. My friendly South African friend, Mr Taylor sent me an email with these pictures on it. He proceeded to tell me that he had rescued a dog that was very sick indeed. The vet had mentioned that she was a lovely dog and just needed a second chance in life. Mr Taylor went on to take this lonely dog in and now she is healthy and bouncing around the house with a lovely personality! Ahhhhrgh! Look at these pictures! I think it is safe to say that Mr Taylor is a hero and what a lovely looking dog she is! I am glad that Sophie had a happy ending and all the bad days are behind her!

And thank you Mr Taylor and Sophie for making me smile! J

It's so sad to see an animal like this!

The sadness is her eyes.

A new dad, a new home, and a new wardrobe! A lovely scarf there Sophie!

Happy and Playful. Beautiful!

My Boyfriends concerns about our future!

Yes! Can you believe it?! My other half, Liam and I went for a meal the other night for his birthday. And then he hit me with it. I was told I was a brilliant candidate for his future wife and he was really looking forward to our future together. BUT there was one concern that was playing on his mind. When we moved in there was an agreement. I was to clean and wash and he was to cook as I had no interest in cooking! Agreement was signed with blood and we moved in happily last October!

There seems now, that there is a problem with this signed agreement. I put it down to the fact he will be 30 next year and is thinking about our future- i.e. getting married, having kids, etc

He now thinks that I should take an interest in cooking because he is worried that if I can not cook how will I feed our future children whilst he is away at work.

It is safe to say I have no interest in it. It seems that this lack of interest has not been a hindrance in my life as when I was younger my mother cooked for me and when I moved out my boyfriend did it for me so I never really felt the need to learn! But now it appears that at the age of 25 I should really get a move on and learn because otherwise any future children I have are going to starve!

I have to admit I had a bit of a cob on about this situation after our lovely meal. I thought how he dare tell me to learn how to cook when he doesn’t do anything round the house. What am I supposed to do now, go to work full time, cook, clean, wash, do everything whilst he sits and watches! I THINK NOT!

Then it really dawned on me! I have the upper hand here! So my friends, I decided to show him what for! Now he wants me to learn how to be the perfect house wife and cook as well, It's not fair that I do everything! SO, I put forward a renewed agreement!

Yesterday was a bad snow day for me so whilst I was sat at home I decided to use my time wisely. I walked to the local shop and bought all my ingredients. Laptop on the side with the method of how to do it, I then went on to create this beautiful lasagne! And then to really rub it in I baked an apple crumble! So when he walked through the door and half seven. BAM there it was- me- the perfect house wife and him basking in my glorious food.

Did you like your food I asked? Oh it's beautiful he yelped in amazement! Now I cook Liam you must help me out with the chores around the house! This is only fair! So your jobs now are to put the bins out on a Sunday night, help with the hovering occasionally, and when I need you to clean or put a load of washing in you will have to do it to share the responsibility. Because unless you do these things when I ask Liam, I have uncertain thoughts about you as a future husband- providing a helping hand for when I need it.


I am certain that he thought he could get away with doing nothing around the house now I am learning to cook. But really he is worse off because now he has to help out with cleaning where as he didn’t before!

Ha ha haaaaar I chuckle to myself!

The lesson here my friends- NEVER challenge a woman or under estimate her skills.

It will only gain you more jobs to do around the house!!!!

A Saturday spent in A+E

Snow, Snow, Snow! I'm not moaning about it because I think it’s pretty and lovely this time of year. It really gets you in the spirit for Christmas. But what I don't love is when a member of family calls you up at 11am to say that she thinks she has broken her wrist, slipping in the snow!!!

So at 11am this Saturday morning, Liam and I were racing to the A+E department with poor momma K in the front wincing in pain. It appears the culprit is not only the snow but bread also. She was on her way to the corner shop for the bare essential- Bread! And then it happened. Down she went putting all her weight on her wrist.

So we were in hospital for approx 6 hours whilst poor momma K was having her wrist pulled back into place. OUCH! I can't say I was happy at this point in the day. We all knew she was going to be in pain and I'm sure if she was writing this herself she would let you know in her own words. But when the doctors came out to call us back in to collect her, the tears were streaming down her face as she gripped her poor hand in despair. We wanted it to be one of us to take the pain away from her. But I must say she didn’t swear once and was extremely graceful in her discomfort. I'm not sure how she put a brave face on but she did so hats off to momma K. It was a really bad break as well she completely moved the wrist bone down!

The older you get the longer it takes you to get over things as well. Now she is house bound, which isn't a bad thing in this snow- it’s hard to travel in. But a word to you all, please stay in, I don’t want to hear of anymore breaks because another trip down the hospital is not on my agenda again for a while!

Please be careful out there! X

Sad news today, friends.....

If you have been keeping up with my blog recently you will know about the Lovatt/ Upton animal kingdom nightmare we have been having recently! We have a marine fish tank in our living room and we love them! So beautiful with all their colours and extremely relaxing to watch! We were desperately trying to save our little clown fish last week. Due to him being picked on by one particular fish we had to find a bigger anemone for him to live and hide in. We found one in the end which is beautiful and managed to provide a lovely little hiding place for our beloved clown fish. BUT, last night we got home and looked into the fish tank as we do every day, and there was no clown fish!

We looked everywhere for him, only to find that he had jumped into the filter at the back and had suffocated himself. SO! A very sad day today for the Lovatt/Upton household. Liam was wandering around the house last night ever so sad and feeling very upset at how much effort we had gone to, to save him, and then he went and practically committed suicide!

So tonight we're going to have fish and chips in his memory!

Ooooo Hawaii sounds AMAZING!

I keep having day dreams about going to Hawaii! I'm lying on the beech reading my book listening to the sounds of the turquoise sea hit the white sand. In my dream I have a hunky man with a six pack fanning me with a banana leaf and bringing me cocktails as I require them on tap of course! But in reality I would probably go with the other half, Mr Lovatt- he has a six pack- a six pack of lager’s next to his lounger though!

It's a destination I have always wanted to go to. If it wasn’t for the 18-20 hour flight and the expensive prices I would probably have been already! As I have already stated on my blog before, Princess has a nice new itinerary to Hawaii. BUT- you only fly to LA then get a nice relaxing cruise down to Hawaii taking in the views as apposed to be cramped up all the way on a small aircraft seat!

Look at this....

Golden Princess Itinerary
Wed 19 Jan	LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA
Thu 20 Jan	AT SEA
Fri 21 Jan	AT SEA
Sat 22 Jan	AT SEA
Sun 23 Jan	AT SEA
Mon 24 Jan	HILO, HAWAII, USA
Tue 25 Jan	HONOLULU, HAWAII, USA
Wed 26 Jan	KAUAI(NAWILIWILI), HAWAII, USA
Thu 27 Jan	MAUI (LAHAINA), USA
Fri 28 Jan	AT SEA
Sat 29 Jan	AT SEA
Sun 30 Jan	AT SEA
Mon 31 Jan	AT SEA
Tue 01 Feb	ENSENADA, MEXICO
Wed 02 Feb	LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA

Fabulous isn't it! Let's have a little look at the islands shall we....

So, it’s no surprise then that with 2011 looming people are thinking about their next luxury cruise. And, why not? With these cold dark days we need to cheer our self up. Even if it is with a cup of tea for the short term, a cruise will certainly book a smile with your face for the long term! I have to admit there are some excellent prices still flying around.

But what is there to do in Hawaii? Well the fresh, floral air energizes you. The warm, tranquil waters refresh you and the breathtaking, natural beauty renews you for a start! Then there are the activities!

Eating!

A local dish is the plate lunch consisting of two scoops of rice, macaroni salad, and everything from kalua pork, Korean barbecue, chicken katsu, beef teriyaki, or mahi mahi. What about a shave ice? These are finely shaved snow cones which are served with colourful flavours on the top with a choice of ice cream or azuki beans on the bottom. Or if that sounds a little beyond your exploring limits lots of international food is served on board Princess!

Dancing!

The Hula! Get your flowers around your neck and your grass skirts on men, it's time to treat your Mrs. to a romantic dance! Experience the culture, the positive vibes and rhythmic sounds! Imagine it now.... disembarking the ship to explore the culture and dancing on the beech!

Snorkelling!

Gorgeous creatures of the sea await your eye! The crystal clear waters allow you to clearly see the vivid colours of the Dolphins and colourful tropical fish near Kona, in Pawai Bay. Just beautiful!

Have I convinced you yet? No?! Take a look at the Golden Princess.....

Pure luxury

Movies under the stars

An evening in the bar

A relax by the pool and open sea

Ok so now I've got you! Please call me on 0800 408 6153 to help progress my day dream!

 

 

Have you ever wandered- How on earth do cruise ships float?!

If you’re anything like me, you'll have a wandering mind that is often fascinated with most things and always amazed! So on my recent trip to Southampton to board the Aurora, I was- surprise, surprise- amazed at how big she was. And then I looked across the port to see the independence of the seas. Wow! She really is huge. My little clogs were chugging away wandering with all the facilities on board and the architecture that’s involved - how on earth do they float! It’s just amazing!

Well here is the answer, friends. A little bit of science on a Monday never hurt anyone!

Apparently it’s all down to buoyancy and displacement. What does that mean then? I hear you whisper.

WELL, ships are designed to displace the amount of water equivalent to their own mass. Now let that digest a minute..... I had to read it a few times!

It means that the pressure of the ocean pushes up on the bottom of the boat and keeps the ship afloat, or buoyant. This counters the downward force of the vessel's gravity, thereby helping it float on the water's surface.

This basic idea is often referred to as Archimedes' Principle.

According to this principle, an item floats when it displaces more than its own weight of the liquid that it's immersed in. The surrounding fluid pushes back with a force equal to that of the amount displaced, so when the two are equal- whala- the object floats!

Still, even though I understand this scientific fact, it is massively amazing. Don’t you think?!

GREAT NEWS for Princess!

Princess cruises are off to more exotic destinations!

Princess' 2011 - 2012 Asia season have been announced! I’m excited about this one because I think this part of the world is just beautiful! There will be trips on two ships to 60 ports on 14 itineraries. Australia, Japan, South Korea, China, Thailand, Vietnam, and Singapore will be among the featured countries. WOW! It’s a dream of mine to visit all of these places at some point in my life.  And believe it or not my boyfriend was bought up in Singapore, Jakarta and Dubai until the age of 5! So we are desperate to get over to that part of the world again. I love culture and discovery!

Not only that but Princess will also be popping over to South America next year and this will extend from the autumn of 2011 to the spring of 2012. It will offer cruises to 31 destinations aboard two ships. Rio de Janeiro, the Amazon River, Cape Horn, Peru's Machu Picchu, Brazil's Iguazu Falls, the Chilean fjords, and some Caribbean islands will be among the highlights!


Liam thinks he’s an action man figure I swear! He keeps saying to me he would love to be like Bear Grylls and be dropped off in the middle of the Amazon for a jungle adventure! Are there any other wives/girlfriends/partners out there that are happy to join me in dropping off their other wannabe action figure men off in the jungle?! Oooo imagine the bliss! And lack of washing we would have to do whilst their away!!!

Princess are also scheduling in Hawaii, Tahiti, and the South Pacific which will consist of 43 sailings, offering 10 itineraries to 33 island ports. Five Princess ships will handle trips to, from, and between the islands. Again, another place I would love to visit! Hawaii! Oh imagine it now. White sands on a peaceful beach. The sun begins to beam a sweet heat against your pale British skin just browning you off ever so nicely. BUT wait a minute! Where is my cocktail?! “WAITER” you shout- along he hurries, ice cocktail in one hand and a banana leaf in the other to fan you….. oh and by the way he looks like Brad Pitt!!!! All this whilst our respective other half’s are in the jungle getting muddied up I might add! BLISS! Am I painting this nicely for you ladies?!

And 1,2,3… back in the room!

In addition to this there will be a number of 14-day round trips from Los Angeles. The sunny state! We can only dream what the weather is like there every day! The Panama Canal route will see 38 cruises during the 2011 - 2012 canal season, including a number of two-day canal itineraries. A wonderful opportunity to see lots of beautiful wildlife. And finally another exciting trip I feel is the first new Pacific Coast route. A seven-day itinerary on the 2670-passenger Sapphire Princess will bring it to the doorsteps of more than 20 million Californians, as it sails between Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Santa Barbara, and the Mexico port of Ensenada. Again, Mexico another beautiful part of the world with gorgeous beaches, rich culture and lots of tequila and Corona! Be careful with these two substances in the sun- it is easy to get carried away with all the Mexican flare in the air!

So if any of you are up for any of these trips- give me a call please and we can get rid of the action figure’s and enjoy a beautiful cruise to any of these fabulous destinations with Princess!

Great idea Sam! I hear you all mutter- I know, I know, I do try!


0800 408 6153 is the number!

It's all kicking off in my animal kingdom!

SO, I walked through the door last night, freezing cold, immediately put the fire on, greeted the fish in our tank, opened the kitchen door to let Mr Doogle out and made myself a cup of tea- waiting for the man of the house to come back and prepare my food!!! (I need to learn how to cook- apparently I have a skill for evaporating food- it has been done I assure you with spaghetti, custard, vegetables- the list is endless!)

Anyway- I digress; I'm here to tell you that the Lovatt/ Upton animal household is not a bed of roses at the moment. Last week I noticed that Mr Doogle was going bald! I noticed he had some kind of dandruff on his skin. So, on pops the laptop and I research away to find out if rabbits can get dandruff! It appears they can... so I ordered some medicine to get rid of it for him. £20 for this spot on!!! So last night I was there applying this medicine to his back. Poor thing- he's losing his manly display of luscious locks! You will all be happy to know he is fine in himself- still parading around the house thinking he's a dog!

Mr Doogle

And then my mother in law comes bouncing through the front door! KAREN?! I say surprised! What are you doing here?! Liam has had me on a mission, she says, stressed- it's the fish- I've been to A+D aquatics in Oldbury, to get a new anenomie for the clown fish, Liam stressed some urgency earlier on the phone but they haven’t got any Sam, what are we going to do! Now for those of you that don't know about marine fish- clown fish can hide in a living organism called an anenomie where it is safe to live and hide. No other type of fish can touch this living organism because they get stung by it- so once the anenomie dies or shrinks up the clown can be in trouble if it does not get on with the other fish! This is what is happening! The old anenomie has died and our little clown fish is being bullied!

Now my mother in law is the sweetest person you will ever hope to meet in your life. She would go to the ends of the earth for you if you asked her to! She had left work early at half past four to go to this fish shop for her son who couldn’t get there to get a new anenomie.

Karen and I

Oh Karen- sit down I said, I’ll put the kettle on. TWO HOURS I’ve been stuck in traffic she says with an ever so slightly heightened tone in her voice- open the back door- I need a fag! I sit down next to our marine fish tank and look on in horror as this little clown fish is being picked on….. And there isn’t a great deal we can do other than get this particular fish out that is bullying him! And for those that are familiar with fish- these humbug damsels are REALLY hard to catch.

Karen walks in the living room after her moment of distressing. We sit there looking on just hoping the little clown fish will make it until we can get a new anenomie for him…. It will be Saturday until we can get a new one for him.

So you see friends, it is not a bed of roses in our animal kingdom at the moment- but I will keep you posted. Fingers crossed we can save him! And for those of you that do have pets- I hope all is well.

Clown fish hiding in an anenomie

The tree has arrived!

Another story to tell…. what else to talk about at this time of year. You got it… Christmas trees!

So the story goes....  I always have a real tree but having gone round to a few tree sites they were all looking at £30-£50 for a tree- even the small ones! Stupid price I thought! So we had been advised to go down to Focus. As we walked in all the decorations were on sale- 50% off! Brilliant I thought! Then we walked outside to where the trees were. As I stood, there were these 8ft trees on sale at £12.99! We can't have one of those Liam, I said in shock- there far too big for our little humble abode! But all the small are full price he answered! We had no other option! It had to be a big one! As we struggled outside with this tree under arm, we stopped and looked at one another and realised we had come in my little KA! How were we going to get this tree in my little car?!

By this point everyone in the car park was laughing and pointing at us as we were kicking and shoving this tree in my car.... as all men do when it comes to impossible situations- Liam was getting frustrated and angry with the tree! Stop! I said your ruining our big tree! So there we were driving in a KA with the windows completely greened out by this tree, with the boot open and hardly any room for us two! You know how I feel ladies and gentlemen when I say it’s an IKEA moment only at Focus with a tree instead of flat pack! We got back home only to find that it was too big to fit in the room- so we cut the top off... and when we finally cut the ribbon off, the tree puffed up and outward- it's safe to say we have no view out of our front room.... as the pictures show.....!

Pleeeeeease tell me you have a similar story because we looked like nutters trying to get this tree into a little KA! I’m interested to know… has anything like this happened to you before?!

Now I know we’re going to have to outdo this tree next year- its official- we need a bigger house! Liiiiiiam- wallet please!

With all the glitz on it once the struggle was over!

Arriving home only to find it doesn't fit!

Once the ribbon had been taken off- I'm sure a squirell came out of it at one point!

Christmas Tree time.....

It's that time of year again where I'm off dragging Liam round farm shops to get a Christmas tree! |I luuuuuurve Christmas time with all the snow that's here and the lights, the decorations. Eeeee the presents...! EXCITING!

BUT, before I celebrate Christmas I have to go birthday present shopping. Can you believe it?! Liam was born on the 20th of December and his sister was born on the 27th December! So you can imagine for me and his mom it is a rather expensive month!

I have a BIG surprise for him in store but my lips are sealed- just in case he reads this- so keep posted I will reveal all at a later date.

ANYWAY- back to Christmas tree's! I love a real one.... I need to get some lights and some more decorations this weekend to put up. Is your tree up? What are your plans for Christmas?

We usually chill out down our local pub with a couple of pints on Christmas eve and then head home early as I need to be well rested for Christmas day!

Christmas day I am up at the crack of dawn- much to Liam's displeasure! We open our presents with a cup of tea In bed and then head to his Nan’s for a good old Christmas dinner and eat like pigs for the whole day! Lush!

Oh and don't forget to get your advent calendar up..... I love looking forward to that chocolaty treat each morning!

     

                                                                                                                                                                   

Aurora- P+O- Christmas Cruise

So, I have just come back off the Aurora, P+O. I had a lovely time and lots of laughs. It's my first time on a P+O ship and my first impreessions are WOW- how can those things float!!! Although the Aurora isn't as big as some other ships she is still glorious in her own right.

First night we had a drink in the crows nest and stood on the top deck with a glass of champers for the sailaway. It was soooo cold as it had snowed but a great atmostphere of excitement was in the air. Everyone here at cruise was excited and really up for a good old celebration. And being new to the company I was ready to mingle and make some new friends.

Impressions were that the ship was large, spacious and traditional. But lets get the bad bits done away with first....

I must admit that for a cruise ship that is supposed to have great service, the service wasn't so great. When we ordered a house wine of £2.95 they brought us the most expensive wine on the menu at £6 and said they had run out of the cheap house wine. Strange we thought- cruise ships dont "run out" of things do they???? When we questioned the waiters they all of a sudden couldn't understand english so well. We went to another bar and low and behold we got the cheap house wine we asked for. So we weren't impressed. On quite a few occasions we were upsold wine without consent and the waiters even argued with us with regards to what we had ordered! You dont argue with customers, especially when we point at the menu to show you what we want!!!! Allot of the time it took the waiters 15 minutes to bring us our drinks and were quote short with us. The food on the first night wasn't good at all, the steaks were either under cooked or over cooked and we immediately felt rushed as they kept clearing our plates away before certain people had finished. A customer is not supposed to be rushed! One table hadn't even been served their main meal and everyone else was on their desert!!!! Not good at all!

Anyhow, that being said the cabins were lovely and spacious with  really comfortable beds and a clean sheets and a clean bathroom. Our cabin steward was lovely. Really friendly and talkative. We had a balcony cabin on deck 10 and the balcony was spacious with lovely woodern garden furniture. I felt extremely comfortable and cosey in my cabin. The heating was lush. The shower was powerful- a great must have, and the space for us ladies to keep your lotions and potions was good too. Despite the shocking service the ship was lovely and upkept. I had a day in the sauna and steam room and a dip in the jacuzzi which was lovely and clean. The theatre was huge and the nightclub was lively on the saturday night. Decor around the ship was traditional but extremely clean and well kept.

All in all I had a great time and loved being away with my collegues on a cruise but the waiter service massively let it down for me. It has been said before that these two night cruises do not give you the full- real experience of what a cruise is really like because the staff know that you won't tip. I suppose they think your all going to be drunk the whole time anyway- so what's the point?! My point is.... if you give bad service your not going to get tipped. The service should be the same on a two night cruise as it is on a 14 night cruise!

Thank you cruise.co.uk for my experience but a message to the waiters- improve on your service skills- you let P+O down this time!

Here are some pictures of the Aurora-

The ship as we arrived in Southampton

Wow... Look how big she is from the ground!

Ben, me, and Pippa at the terminal in Southampton- very easy boarding!

The cabin hall on Deck 10- Britannia Deck- all our bags are ready and waiting for us- Lovely!

Ben and I excited out by the outside pool!

Our Deluxe Balcony Stateroom- Very spacious and clean! Ignore the clothes on the bed!!!

Southampton Port early in the morning- in the distance you can see the Independance of the seas!

The crystal pool- Really clean and spacious! The Jacuzzi's were so warm!!!!

The theatre- REALLY big!!!

The main entrance as you arrive- lovely!!!

The Masquerade nightclub...

Me enjoying a glass of champagne on sailaway!

The sailaway scotsmen!

Mmmm a cocktail- very nice and only £3.45!

Ben and I in the nightclub...

Pippa and I enjoying a drink and a pose for the camera!

James, Brian, Ben, Angela, Pippa, and I in the Crows nest bar...

The buffey restaurant ... The orangery

Cruise.co.uk company photo!