HAPPY NEW WEEK!
I hope everyone has a joyful week. The Brood X cicadas were screaming today on my patch. About a week ago, I noticed some big holes at the bottom of my trees. Various critters dig holes in my yard, so I didn't think much about it. Since then, I've seen articles about some of last year's Brood X cicadas popping up this year. Apparently, some of the bugs, called "stragglers," decided to sleep in, and they're appearing this year instead of last year. In most cases, it's because our soil didn't warm up to the required 64 degrees Fahrenheit until too late to wake them up in 2021. So, some of the noisy screechers decided to hit their snooze alarm and climb out this year instead!
Right, here we go: please don't feel obliged to comment or 'like', or even read all this!
We left on a grey day on Wednesday 25th May. We managed to find our car park, & were divested of our heavy luggage, which was a relief. Then we were bussed to the nearby pier where Borealis was waiting for us. We were some of the 1st on board, so it was only late morning, and we had chance to look around a nearly empty ship.
Of course, the most exciting bit that day was getting our keys for our upgraded cabin - soo thrilled to open the door!
Bigger than we had booked, and with a super balcony overlooking the rear. In this pic, the bathroom & wardrobe are behind us. The bed was super comfortable & we were given fresh flowers, a basket of fruit, and a free bottle of fizz! Such luxury!
One of the lounges: a beautiful antique inlaid table in the foreground.
A massive mural taking up an entire wall. Note the coffee beans woven into the carpet!
Part of the central area of the ship: it has a massive ornamental clock rising through 3 floors, and the base shows the time in several time zones. Wouldn't like to dust it!!
We enjoyed a buffet lunch and had time to unpack before we sailed at 5.30pm.
Because we were at the rear of the ship, we had prime view of the waterfront at Liverpool as we pulled away. Edit: this is the famous Liver Building, with 2 Liver Birds on top (mythical!) Next to it is the Cunard Building and the now modern Martime Museum.
I lived near Liverpool as a teenager, and worked in the centre of the city, doing typist then later, secretarial work. Very exciting times as it was in the 60s!! I loved the city and wandered around its famous buildings in my lunch breaks, so it was great to see it all again, all these years later. It has had money invested and a lot of it looks much better.
Huge cranes dominate at the modern Container Terminal - I think Liverpool was one of the 1st to invest in the container system, and now its a major feature. In the old days, many big ships were built & launched in that area, but sadly shipbuilding is now only a tiny part of the work in the region.
We could see the other side of the River Mersey, and then it opened out, and we were at sea.
The theatre stage on the ship. We were told that the shows were very good, but we didn't go to any!
We had a good meal in the restaurant where we were given a window side table. We ate late and then went to bed, ready for enjoying the rest of our trip.