h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Where do I begin? At the beginning I guess…

MaeveDanae (U612018) and I started out our adventure wonderfully. MaeveDanae had never actually been on an airplane before so she was thrilled by that as well as anything else. The look on her face as we took off on our first flight made me warn her "if you yell 'WOOHOO' I'm going to have to kick you." By our flight over to Paris she was an old hand at it and spent almost the entire flight flirting with a cute Spaniard on the plane. On the way from Paris to Nice she took photos of the clouds around the plane to show everyone. It was a sheer delight to travel with someone who made it all seem new and exciting to me as well.

We boarded the ship in Monte Carlo then went to our staterooms to freshen up and wandered around in town even though it was overcast and chilly. Fortunately this cleared up and the weather was beautiful for the Christening and naming ceremony, which was actually attended by Prince Albert! We were ushered into the VIP section (though there were only about 100-150 people at the ceremony) and got to sit in the third row with the "family". The appropriate people (including his serene highness) spoke, the ship was blessed then the Godmother released a Nebuchadnezzar (seriously big bottle – think several magnums) of Perrier Jouet in a custom engraved bottle, which smacked into the ship and exploded loudly (a sign of very good luck for the vessel). We then went up to the dining room for a 7 course luncheon of beluga caviar, foie gras and various other wonderful foods. A couple hours later the horns blasted and all non-passengers were called to disembark, after which we set sail.

The following day at sea was a bit rough. Fortunately MaeveDanae doesn't get seasick either. She really is great to travel with! I don't get seasick; I get what I call "Maritime Sleeping Sickness". The boat starts rocking and I get .. I think I slept like a stone for almost 12 hours as it rocked through the night. A perfect reprieve from my insomnia of late!

We arrived in Palma de Mallorca the following day and wandered around, shopping our way through the area near the cathedral. We stopped for lunch at a lovely square, where we shared a pizza and a pitcher of sangria in the Mallorcan sun, while a strolling musician played flamenco guitar for diners. We then continued shopping our way back toward the regular streets, stopping sometime around 3pm, when we stopped for coffee and sweets before heading back for the ship.

The following day we stayed in Mallorca because of storms at sea that prevented our sailing for Barcelona so we did the whole thing over (almost identically) with 4 other passengers we met onboard and had great fun with throughout the cruise.

The ship has several dining options. The grand dining room has traditional cruise dining (5 star menus arranged by Jacques Pepin) while there are also 3 alternative dining rooms, something that has come into style of late for new ships. One with more American "chop house" fare, one with Italian fare, and the third serves tapas and has open air dining for those who wish it. All of the dining is single seating, meaning you come and go as you wish like a restaurant instead of having an appointed "dinner time".

Upon arriving in Barcelona we disembarked, picked up our luggage and our driver took us on a quick tour before the airport. We went to Sagrada Familia cathedral and were actually able to go inside a small chapel that is completed (most of the church is not accessible) because it happens to be our drivers family church.

On the way home our flight was delayed out of Paris and we missed our connection and were forced to spend the night in Boston. I didn’t bother to contact Paulie as we went straight to our hotel and crashed. We had to be back at the airport at 4am for a flight to Charlotte. We arrived here over 12 hours late but moving fast.

It would have been fun to talk to you, Batty, even if it *was* April Fool's Day. What makes you think I would have believed that it was rreally you?

Anyway, that sounded like a fabulous cruise! You are so lucky!

I was extremely incoherent though Paulie. Even more than you probably remember.. We got to Boston and got through customs to discover our flight was gone. All we did was check into the airport Hilton, order dinner and go to bed. I actually fell asleep before room service came and had to wake up to eat dinner.

If I hadn't been so tired I would have loved to have you to the hotel for dinner.

Actually, I can relate to that fatigue....

About ten years ago, my whole family went to Maui for a week or so (My sister-in-law's sister lives there). We weren't jetlagged too badly going over, but coming back we all just zonked out for about 15 hours or so. So, I know just how tired you must have been.

I've had a few lengthy between-flight stopovers in various places--Anchorage, Taipei, New York, Washington, D.C. Mind you, I never got to leave the airports, so I couldn't really *see* those cities.

Unfortunately that is what happened to Boston on this trip.

Logan Airport is so far away from downtown Boston that you wouldn't have time to see much of it even if you *could* get away from the airport for a while. And, I'm not really sure there's all that much worth seeing. The State House has a golden dome. (Some student humorists at Univ. of Mass. got in trouble for portraying the dome as a giant butt , which sums up what goes on inside that place )

The big downtown shopping area (Downtown Crossing) is exactly one street, about four blocks long. There's also Newbury Street, but the prices there are probably too steep for your budget. Likewise for the shopping mall near Copley Square, where you can find Nieman Marcus and other outrageous places.

Faneuil Hall and the Haymarket are pretty ; they're even er later in the season when it's warm.

If you're going to do Boston, it would be better to see the city in May or June, when all the flowers are out and the swan boats are back, and the city is alive with color and birdsong.

I would like to see Boston. I'm not much of a shopper so it's never the shopping areas that interest me much. I think the shopping we did in Mallorca is the most I've ever shopped in my life. While I enjoyed it, it's mostly because the shopping was so integrated with the local culture that it made the shopping fun.

I bought shoes but only because they didn't look like anything from the US. I bought pearls because well.. when in Mallorca...

Hi Batty! I thought it was you!!
How have you been? I know what its like to arrive at an airport only to find your connection flight gone

It happened to me when I returned from Moscow left me stuck at Heathrow for a night
Smudger.

Hiya Smudger!

It was good in a way - it let me rest before the final leg. I ended up buying a load of stuff while away so I needed to rest.. PC is going to laugh when he sees it - he's a shoe hound and I bought shoes!

Where have you been all this time?

Ive kept things going in your absence In fact, if you have a look at my page you will see that Ive been writing for

You and Abbi were the first two I met on here and of course the person who wrote that Pacific Glory story
Smudger.

I've had a few things going on IRL lately. But I have noticed how well you've done. You make an ACE proud.

Ah! well, its good to see you back again

I try to keep up with everything, but some times I just cant do it

I still just visit the two sites, this one and an Ex service one, but believe me thats enough at times
Smudger.

I agree! I have very few sites I visit unless it's for work or something...

I had to pop off line there, to let Mk2 phone her son
but as from next Wednesday I will be on Broadband!!!

Well its 256kps which is 5 times faster than my dial-up, but its only £3 a month more and doesnt tie up the phone
Smudger.

I'm on broadband and I love it! I don't think I could cope with dial up any more because of it..

Nice to have you back Bats
Sounds like a great trip, especially as your friend obviously enjoyed herself so much.
It`s a long time since I was in Boston, but the memories are pleasant, particularly the Guinness
Broadband, ah,there`s a thing. It`s getting more reasonably priced now, with the various speed options available. Be interesting to know how you get on with yours, Smudger.
It`s getting so that waiting for downloads on dial-up is becoming life-threatening....

Hi, Lurcher.

Boston has changed a lot since you were last here. We don't throw in Boston Harbor any more.



But Durgin Park still serves cornbread.

`Lo Paul....dammit, another illusion shattered. I thought it was an annual event..

. "It is grainy and rough-textured, moist and slightly sweet. Sturdy enough to smear with butter, it is also ideal for crumbling onto the top of a dish of baked beans or a bowl of chowder. "The secret is mixing it by hand," Tommy Ryan says. "A machine makes it too fine, and you end up with cake."
At least some things stay the same

Hi Folks, Lurcher, I will let you know about my Broadband asap!
I already know just how fast the Max one is, as No2 stepson has it, and its

He can D/load a song in seconds, where it would take me an hour on dial-up

What I like about it now, is that you can buy it in various speeds, and as you say, the price is coming down a lot due to the competition between ISPs Suits me!!
Smudger.

'lo dear Wolfie! You're right - my cohort had a great time as well. Though now she's advised me the next outing had better live up to her now high expectations.

*dunks her cornbread in Paulie's and nibbles on it*

Do they have cable ISPs in the UK? We use our cable tv connection for broadband internet so it doesn't require any installation past what is already in place for the tellie...