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TRAVEL
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June15
the language constraints between them
and a service crew representing dozens
of different nationalities.
Entertainment
Shows
tend to be better on bigger
ships like this one, and here they
offer a 35-minute performance twice-
nightly. We manage to catch only two
of them:
Pianoman
, and then a great
performance from young Asian-Aussie
duo Heart of Spades on “acoustic” violin
and guitar.
The plethora of
activities
organised
by the cruise director and his enthusiastic
young team seem to go down well,
though sometimes evoking shades of
Butlin’s holiday camp with over-jolly
exhortations to join in. A Latin music
party held one evening on the huge
Neptune Pool Deck is a huge success,
however – everyone turns up. (Once
again, Roy refuses to join the conga
line, so I console myself with a couple
of first-class caiparinhas.)
The Neptune Pool Deck also has a
massive
outdoor movie screen
, where
films are screened at advertised times:
we catch bits of
Mary Poppins
and
The
Judge
, and concerts by the likes of Paul
Simon and James Taylor.
But we have our best fun at the
Skywalker’s
lounge, where a good DJ
operates from 10.30pm into the small
hours. If you want to dance, a cruise
ship has to be the best place to do it;
no need for a taxi to get you home, and
when the crew finishes for the night
around 1.30am, they just leave you to
it. We haven’t danced so much in years.
As for the
casino
, if gambling is one
of your things, smoking had better be
another. The one time we walk through
the place, it reeks like an old ashtray.
Excursions
For both local Singaporeans and expats,
this cruise is likely to be more about
the ship than the ports. After all, to
do Penang or Langkawi justice – and
they’re both great destinations in their
own right – you need far longer than the
few hours allowed. Far better to take a
few days to see them properly on some
other occasion. We did our own thing
in both Penang and Langkawi, being
familiar with both places, but a first-timer
might want to opt for one of the variety
of excursions offered at an extra fee.
As for the unattractive Port Klang,
which is quite a distance from Kuala
Lumpur, we see it as a good opportunity
to stay on board and enjoy the ship’s
facilities.
All this, of course, just underscores
how lucky we are to live in Singapore
and have so many travel options to
choose from. Cruising is just one way
to go, and it seems that the more of it I
do, the more I like it.
princess.com