Explorer and Wallecan.....................and TonyW concealed in the luggage hold if I could get away with it!

I am allowing myself to get reservedly excited about my July 04 cruise now....the more success stories we hear, the more I will get into it.

There are a disappointing number of new allocations and confirmations still........and what is happening about Watchdog and local Radio stations??

Anyone out there got any news, good or bad? Dont`t let us crazy folk put you off posting......just jump on in there!

Tony, I am wounded, hurt and cut to the quick. How can you limit yourself to getting 'reservedly excited' You should be simply wildly ecstatic when you consider the people with whom you will be travelling. Any more of these comments and I will withdraw my offer to buy you a drink in Tunis. :twisted:

There are bars in Tunisia now?

Tony, how could you fail to be unreservedly excited about Aslemma buying a drink? I am told there will be street parties and marching bands all over Essex in celebration!

i have heard of one other who has accepted £170 otherwise all has been quiet on my local radio.i am not going to get excited about my cruise until the paperwrk arrives.should be soon if i am off may7.its a beautiful day here just right for a gin and tonic beside the pond.cheers everyone carol

There have always been bars in Tunisia Magsy but it is too late now for Tony as my offer has been withdrawn. I will however treat you if you manage to come out there.

I can't promise street parties and marching bands here, but I have got two guitars which have just been re-strung, there is a set of drums in my loft and one of my sons still has his trumpet so I'm sure I could provide something. PS You would need to bring your own ear-plugs

Another piece of bad news: the neighbours have begun objecting to my new blue grass, which they can see from their upstairs windows. They have threatened me with a petition to the council, and as I don't want to have them (i.e. the council) knocking on my door when I have so many rich passengers to look after I have reluctantly decided to trace Mr. Oddjob and ask him to replace the old weeds. Unfortunately, the cost of this extra work will have to be taken into consideration when I draft my final rates, i.e. you'll probably be fleeced for an extra £2.50, making £7.50 in total. In view of the fact that there are no other supplements, you're still getting an excellent deal - if you don't agree, you're probably not rich enough to come anyway.

As the intellectual tone of this thread has deteriorated somewhat of late, I thought I'd be so kind as to redress the balance:-

Q: What noise annoys a noisy oyster most?

A: A noisy noise annoys a noisy oyster most.

I hope that helps.

Fay's Intrepid Enterprises Anonymous

Thank you so very much for sharing that useful information Fay. I feel so much better for knowing that. I too had noticed that the standard of erudition on this site had rather deteriorated of late.

but I have got two guitars which have just been re-strung, there is a set of drums in my loft and one of my sons still has his trumpet

At least if my cabin is anywhere yours I will not have to worry about the engine noise!

The `reserve` in my levels of excitement are inversely proportionate to my `belief` levels in the cruise actually happening!

I truly look forwards to sharing a cruise with the bunch of fellow nutters who have been allocated the `bad boy/girl cruise` with me!

As for buying drinks....I think the first round is on me!

......and where is William?

Hi Fay,
Maybee I can be of assistance in the odd job department at this time, at present my future is cast in plaster, however if you can offer accomodation for myself and my wheel chair say in the garden shed, and you promise to feed and water me on a regular basis, plus free garden party pass for me and my chair then I am your to command ( read the small print ) sounds good to me, not to sure for you ????

Dave

Hi Dave,

Sounds to me like you would fit right in there..........they are all `plastered` most of the time anyway and that may be the only way they get a-float!

(For non-plasterers, a `float` is a plasterers tool)

As for buying drinks....I think the first round is on me!

To all 4/7 Melody cruisers, I deem it only sensible to print Tony's penultimate posting wherein the above statement was made. Have your solicitor look it over to see if it is a genuine offer. Perhaps there is a legal get out in that the 'first' round is mentioned! My legal expertise is insufficient to establish whether subsequent rounds are the responsibility of someone else. Caveat emptor and all that!

Nobody wants me on their cruise - Fay keeps promising and Tony has banned me for life on his taxi cruise.......

Dear Fay

I understand that various people have withdrawn their applications due to misrepresentation of cruise itinery. Your garden may contain Jerusalem artichokes, Brussel sprouts, French beans and your tannoy system may be playing Tulips from Amsterdam but unless you are actually going to visit these places I will take you to court and sue you for misleading advertising.

However, I note that I may now qualify due to the fact that I am wearing a plaster on my finger. So should you have any vacant places please reconsider. I am very keen to travel to France or Switzerland and therefore will be very happy to share accommodation with a plaster of Paris Gnome of Zurich if this will help.
Yours desperately
Allisu

Hi Alli

I will take you to court and sue you for misleading advertising

Have you reported this to Watchdog, TSA, TA, ACCA, RNLA and the Dockers Union?
I understand your deseperation but did you have to maim yourself to ensure a place on a Garden Cruise?

Sadly, I'm too poor to qualify for the garden cruise.

Has anyone else had a call re their passport number? R*** have asked for my passport details, to give to MSC.

This info was on my original form, but I think I read that those forms were all destroyed - in which case, they've got another long round of phone calls to make

When I enquired about my booking the consultant said that once they had got all this information MSC would be sending out their own written confirmations.

Another step closer to embarkation - as Magsy says, not long for some of us now. I hope you Cabbies have a wonderful time, then I'm looking forward to the first reviews and photos from MSC travellers, find out more about what we can all expect !

Not sure if this is the best thread for this - please move if you want, Luci.

For those like me staying in Venice either end of the cruise, here's a link with photos of the waterbuses from the airport into town, and other practical tips.

http://www.cheapvenice.com/Alilaguna.htm

There are lots of Venice sites, but I thought this was quite practical and I liked the photos.

Hi Cardiff Girl

Feel free to post it again in your Roll Call topic and/or in Useful Links.

luci

In case others hadn't noticed, I've just spotted this useful and detailed review by Dennis of his MSC Sinfonia cruise March 13. Apparently all the MSC cruises are similar in style, and it gives details of the same Genoa transfer as MSC Melody.

http://www.holidaytruths.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=20866

Thanks Cardiff Girl - Sounds good!

Things are looking up! It seems as if MSC are efficient and organized (not what we are used to!) and I am really beginning to look forward to this now.

Hi Cardiff Girl, Thank you for alerting us to the fact that we might expect a telephone call from our travel agent asking for passport numbers again. I understood that the forms we sent in with this information were securely destroyed because the information was inserted in to their database. This begs the question - What has happened to the database? I have supplied this information twice now, both written and verbally!
Still, it is better to know not to panic if we get the call!
Thanks again.