It's A Small World - A Never-ending Pre-trip Report

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Great plans and very sensible playing it safe at some ports. Great idea for a prescription mask! What a fun addition to snorkerling.

Exciting!

 

[Pinkocto]

Your plans sound so much fun!!!


Excellent that you can drop the bags off at 8, that will be much more convenient than going back to the hotel.

 

[dolphingirl47]

GREAT plans!!!! Can't wait to read about this fab trip!

Not long to go now. Looks like you're nearly all set.

Yes, I just need everything that I have ordered to arrive and then I am all set.

Great plans and very sensible playing it safe at some ports.

After the nightmare in Boston, I just decided to go the path of the least resistance.

Great idea for a prescription mask! What a fun addition to snorkerling.

I figured that I may only make it to most of these ports once and I rather not squint at the fish.

Excellent that you can drop the bags off at 8, that will be much more convenient than going back to the hotel.

I was so pleased when I found this out.

Corinna

 

[franandaj]

Sounds like all your plans are coming together nicely.

It will be here very soon!

 

[dolphingirl47]

Sounds like all your plans are coming together nicely.

It will be here very soon!

Things are progressing well. I can't believe that tomorrow it will only be 4 weeks until we leave.

Corinna

 

[dolphingirl47]

The different time zones are already getting to me and we have not even left yet. I missed the one month mark yesterday and I just noticed that one month from now, we should be on our Blue Mountains tour. I wonder how jetlag will affect me. The furthest east I have ever been is Dubai and that is only a 3 or 4 hour difference depending on the time of day. We will see how travelling all the way to Australia will affect us.

Yesterday I engage in some spring cleaning and cleared out the wardrobe that has all my dresses in. Everything that I have not worn for a year or looked at in terms of gowns for that length of time went to charity. Let's just say, I took rather a lot. That gave me the perfect opportunity to pick out the gowns for this trip, too. So here are the ones that made the cut:













With the gowns decided upon, it was time to sort out the stuff to go with them. I have sorted out the make up that I will take. Here is a comparison between the make up bag I took in November (green) and the make up bag I am taking this time (black):



I have restricted myself to 7 eyeshadows that can be combined in various ways and will go with every outfit, one mascara, 2 lipsticks and 2 lipgloss. OK, a tinted lip balm may have also jumped in, but this protects against UV light and therefore is not really make up.

Now I just have to make the final decision on the jewellery, but I have a pretty good idea what is making the cut there. Once the final decision is made, I will post my treasures here.

My lanyards have now arrived and I really like how they have turned out:





I also have my last designs for magnets now and they have been laminated and cut out. Now I just need to add the magnetic tape to all of them and then they are done.

Corinna

 

[kittymamma]

All of the gowns are YUMMY !!! It's hard to pick a favorite any more because they are all so stunning.

 

[tiggrbaby]

Lovely gowns!

 

[dolphingirl47]

All of the gowns are YUMMY !!! It's hard to pick a favorite any more because they are all so stunning.

I think my favourite is the purple Belle gown (the one with the roses on the bodice) and yes, it is really called this.

Lovely gowns!

Thanks.

Corinna

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Yeah the gowns are revealed! 6 in total how lovely. I have to say whilst they are all gorgeous I just love the green/jade one. Is it the Irish in me? Also purple.

I love the make up bag. Like you the furthest I have been in Dubai. I hope the jet lag is ok. They say it is worse going west. When we went to Hawaii omg. So you will have to let us know! My Mum said she thought West was worse than East. Rather go forward than back. They have been to Austrila and NZ and Hawaii with us.

Love the Lanyards!

Those gowns remind me. How do you transport to prevent creasing?

How nice to donote your old ones to charity.

 

[dolphingirl47]

I have to say whilst they are all gorgeous I just love the green/jade one.

This has really grown on me. I just really love the colour. I got it for the Suez Canal cruise last year and it has made the cut for the last cruise, too.

Is it the Irish in me?

Maybe, but there is no Irish blood in me. My ancestry is Polish.

They say it is worse going west.

Let's hope that this is how it works out for us, too.

My Mum said she thought West was worse than East. Rather go forward than back.

That does make sense. When I go to Dubai, going forward 4 hours does not bother me at all, but going back 5 hours in Florida throws my body clock out of sync for a week.

Those gowns remind me. How do you transport to prevent creasing?

I don't. They get sent for pressing the first evening.

How nice to donote your old ones to charity.

I figure they are better off going to somebody who will enjoy them and do some good in the process rather than hanging in my wardrobe gathering dust.

Corinna

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

are there staff on the cruise that will press clothes then? Cool.

 

[dolphingirl47]

are there staff on the cruise that will press clothes then? Cool.

Yes, I even had gowns dry cleaned on DCL and Royal Caribbean if I ended up spilling something on them. This works out cheaper than getting them cleaned at home.

Corinna

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Yes, I even had gowns dry cleaned on DCL and Royal Caribbean if I ended up spilling something on them. This works out cheaper than getting them cleaned at home.

Corinna

How neat. Come to think of it I think now it is ringing a bell. I think Alison said Fran got some shirts pressed. I don't know why we don't even consider this.

 

[Pinkocto]

Lovely gowns! I'm very impressed you let the others go. I'm a bit of a pack rat and always think I'll use something again.

 

[dolphingirl47]

How neat. Come to think of it I think now it is ringing a bell. I think Alison said Fran got some shirts pressed. I don't know why we don't even consider this.

It is just so convenient and the prices are very fare. Sending a gown for pressing is about $6 or $7 (depends on the ship). That way I don't have to worry how to pack it and they will look their best come formal night.

Lovely gowns!

Thanks.

I'm very impressed you let the others go. I'm a bit of a pack rat and always think I'll use something again.

I am a bit of packrat, too. I still have enough gowns so that I could wear a different one every night on a two week cruise. My wardrobe that I use for my dresses and gowns was bursting at the seams so some stuff had to go as I could no longer find anything. (and there may also be the element that I have indulged in a bit of dress shopping for daytime wear and cruise casual nights).

Corinna

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

My Mum sent her wedding dress to a charity and got a letter and photo back from a lady in Africa who was delighted to use it. It was then used countless times until it fell apart. Always worth the sacrifice!

 

[dolphingirl47]

We hit another landmark today. It is now only 4 weeks until we get on the ship. So today was the day I had to register this cruise as leisure travel with Royal Caribbean. I learned very quickly that a travel agent is never really on holiday. Every cruise I take from this point forward counts towards my ongoing professional development. As such cruise lines are asking to register any cruises you go on with them 3 to 4 weeks in advance. Sometimes there are little perks so we will see how this pans out on our cruise. When I come back, I also have to register this cruise with our professional body where it will count towards renewing my master status next year. I have to say I could think of worse things to do for my professional development.

The last couple of days were good mail days. Most of my dresses have now arrived. I am waiting for three dresses, which were delivered at the local parcel point today and another parcel arrived there today, too. I ordered some kaftans from two different places that I will wear as cover ups over my swimsuit around the ship and on the beach. Hopefully everything will have arrived when I have to go past there on Wednesday so I can pick it all up in one go.

We have really beautiful weather today. I had a couple of parcel waiting at the Royal Mail delivery office and as I was awake quite early this morning, I decided to go for a walk before work and pick them up. I now have my prescription snorkel mask and this makes all the difference. I also got the second half of my embarkation outfit and the outfit I am going to wear on the flight. People from the USA may be familiar with LulaRoe. I recently discovered their leggings as a friend in the USA is a consultant and I decided that I wanted to find out what the hype is all about. They are the most comfortable leggings that I have ever worn. I now have a red pair for my embarkation outfit and a green pair with a matching top. Actually, the top has red in it, too so both leggings will go with this. I figure on a long flight like this, I need to be comfortable and I cannot think of anything that better fits the bill.

I thought I was done shopping, but then I found some really cute water shoes that just screamed South Pacific and Hawaii to me. I could not resist them.



Corinna

 

[dolphingirl47]

My Mum sent her wedding dress to a charity and got a letter and photo back from a lady in Africa who was delighted to use it. It was then used countless times until it fell apart. Always worth the sacrifice!

What a lovely story.

Corinna

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

Sounds like are making progress! How fabulous you are doing what you love towards your development!


I adore those shows Corinna.

Those leggings sound nice.