Nov 4 & 5 - Cartegena and Malaga, Spain

11-04: Cartegena, Spain. This is a new port for both of us. We had a HO-HO bus planned but due to the rain, we canceled. We relaxed on board and caught up on computer things. We ate à la carte at Izumi. It was delicious. We had plenty to eat and it was much less than the standard $45 per person. After that we went to the casino for a little while. It continues to rain but here on the ship there is no impact. Tonight the show was a production show. It did not disappoint. Costumes, dancers, and singers we a great treat.

11-05: Malaga, Spain. Today we have a cooking class booked through Get Your Guide. We wanted to take an Uber to get to the location. We thought we timed it to make it in plenty of time. At this port we have to shuttle from the ship to the terminal building. One shuttle was loaded up, then it would not work. So, everyone got off that shuttle and merged with the next causing delays and confusion. One we got to the terminal we felt we didn’t have time to wait for an Uber or even know where to wait, so we opted for a taxi. We got to our location just in time. With all the confusion and time pressure of the morning, our backpack was left in the taxi, never to be seen again. At least nothing important was in there. I had an old sweater and scarf, Stuart had his new coat purchased for a high price in Norway, and we both had nice Polaroid sunglasses. But let’s forget that and get back to the cooking class. It was fun. We first made a cold soup that needed to be refrigerated before serving. Then we peeled and cut veggie for a sort of salad, The we started the Paella with chicken in it. The sangria flowed freely, so everyone had a good time. The chef had a lot of stories to tell and he was very interesting. His assistant was a real asset, so well organized! After dinner we skipped the magic show, went to the casino (and won a little), and off to bed.

Nov 2, 3 - Barcelona and Cruising

11-02: Barcelona. Today we board the ship. We don’t have to check out until 12 noon so that works out well with our boarding time of 1:30p. We had coffee and a quick pastry across the street before heading out in an Uber. We got to the ship in plenty of time but sadly we stood in a VERY slow-moving line for over an hour to board the ship. Once we did get on, they did have a nice set up with stations to go to for help with purchases, Wi-Fi, RCCL app, and more. No welcome drink or even a coupon for one. I do have 4 drinks a day on my Diamond status, which of course I cannot drink 4 drinks a day! I’m sure Stuart will help me out. We checked our cabin; it is fine but as far forward as one can go in cabin 9500. Stuart’s luggage was “tagged” and they confiscated his Leatherman. He is not happy about that as he has taken it everywhere and it was accepted before. Tonight, on board we went to Izumi, the Japanese Restaurant. We liked it on Jewel and we like it here on Brillance as well. The line up of shows looks pretty good, except for tonight. We just checked out a few of the venues on the ship, spent a bit of time in the casino, played cards in our cabin, and went to bed early.

11-03: Valencia, Spain. Our first port of call for this cruise. We booked a tuk tuk ride through Get Your Guide. We had a little trouble finding the pickup location but thankfully the guy called my phone to clarify. We found him right away with instructions. The GPS walking route was not accurate at all. We were ready to leave but the other couple booked with us did not show. A third couple showed up and he was going to use them to take their place and off we would go. Once they got in and we started, the original couple arrived. So now we waited for them to switch and off we go. Anyway, after that we had a nice, albeit chilly, ride through the city. Valencia is a lovely city with a lot of green. I enjoyed seeing orange trees planted along the streets. These are sour oranges and not grown for eating. You see this in Brazil as well. We stopped at a huge museum complex, the most impressive I have ever seen. It is called the City of Arts and Sciences. It is hard to describe but it is huge and overall built to look like a fish swimming in the water. Back to the ship to warm up before dinner in the Minstrel dining room. I had some delicious chicken korma. The show was The Three Jenny’s. This is a Celtic group singing Irish songs, they were pretty good. A brief stop at the casino, cards in our cabin, and we called it a day.

Oct 30, 31 Nov 1 - Canet-en-Rousillon

10-30: Just a quiet day today. Laundry, cards, packing… 

10-31: Perpignan to Barcelona. Delivered our rental car back to Perpignan train station and took the train to Barcelona. Nothing unexpected from this portion of the trip. Checked into HCCHotels. We walked to a nearby café for dinner. Our starter was deep fried anchovies, what a delicious treat. They tasted like the surf fish we got when I was a kid. Stuart was brave to try them but he thought they were ok. I will say he liked the tacos a lot better! Lots of walking today and we are tired.

11-01: Barcelona. We slept in and then walked to a different café for lunch. It was very good. Stuart had the traditional breakfast but I opted for lasagna. It has sauce that tasted like my mom’s, so that was a treat! We walked around a little bit and then found a café in the sun for some afternoon drinks. It felt so good to sit in the sun. We have had colder weather than we imagined. 

Oct 27, 28, 29 - Canet-en-Roussillon

10-27: It is an overcast day but not really cold. Stuart went to the store and on the way, he discovered a market today. After he was back we both went down the promenade to the market area and several restaurants we open and available there. We picked La Plaza as it showed some good-looking pizzas on their menu. We ordered that and I ordered an appetizer of mussels. I was surprised when they arrived with no shells! There we at least a dozen, maybe more. They were very good but filling for sure. The pizza was delicious as well. We topped off the meal with a delicious crêpe with sucre, citron and, a coffee. We were so full we took a nap when we got back! We played cards and had baguette and cheese for dinner. The moon is 1 day off being full but it is beautiful over the sea tonight.

10-28: Today was especially quiet. We both still have sniffles, not worse but not better either! Refreshing walk on the promenade and lunch at La Table. It was so good last time we ate here but today was not the case. Stuart ordered the steak and it was tough. I ordered the prawns and they didn’t have much flavor. The prawns showed up in their natural state but grilled. Heads and all were my job before they could even be tasted, then flat. Oh well, it was still a good day.

10-29: Today was the day to venture out to see the cousins. I tried to call in the morning but Odette answered and thought it was a spam call. We just drove there and they really welcomed us nicely but since Rene did not reply to my email, I wasn’t sure. We talked about family. Rene’s English is still very good. It was a short but nice visit. He said they only stay home, mainly because Odette doesn’t want to leave the house. He said it makes her anxious to go places. She likes to only take care of the home and work in her garden. They tried to call Annie but the was not home. We took a wrong turn back to the apartment but it was a nice view of agriculture. There are a lot of new olive orchards and we saw them pulling out some sort of root vegetable. Maybe it was carrots but I’m not sure. After we got back, we went to the little snack place near us and had a coffee and pastry. We walked on to the end of the Promenade to a tapas bar. That sounded good so we stopped for a drink and a tapas, but they were not serving tapas yet. We had a drink and watched the sun fade. Back to the apartment and cards. Tomorrow, we need to pack!