April 2026 - Singapore to Mumbai (with Rye and Sydney thrown in !!)
First, Easter. We had almost a week in Rye and all the kids (plus Baby granddaughter of course) came to stay which was lovely. The weather held out and we were able to host the extended family for lunch on Easter Sunday.
Just after Easter, we flew to Singapore to board Crystal Serenity, our first ocean cruise in Asia and our first cruise with Crystal. I am writing a story about the cruise for MiNDFOOD magazine and Andrew is recording a couple of long-form YouTube episodes. When we’re invited on a cruise, we’re still trying to work out the balance between working and holidaying but it’s a good conundrum to have!!
We loved the cruise. In no particular order, the ship, our Suite, the rockstar dining, the free-flowing drinks, the destinations/Ports. All of it!
We didn’t realise until we boarded that this cruise was the last segment of a World Cruise which had started in Los Angeles on 11 January. Crystal has a World Cruise on one of their two ships each year (a third ship is coming in 2028). We had no idea of how many multi World Cruisers there were onboard. Many do a World Cruise with Crystal year on year! What loyalty to Crystal and to the World Cruiser group of friends.
We were given a Sapphire Veranda Suite which was the best room we have ever had onboard. A lounge room and sitting area, bedroom, ensuite bathroom and super-wide veranda (balcony) which extended across the two rooms and was accessible from both rooms. Huge, sumptuous and elegant, we loved Suite 9044!
That wasn’t all we loved – the dining was extraordinary and the entertainment really surprised and impressed us. At any given time, there were several live music options across the ship plus a Casino. There were several Enrichment Speakers too plus gatherings for things as varied as knitting, golf, bridge and pickleball!
As for the food, there was so much and soooo much choice. Fine dining at Umi Uma (the only Nobu partnership at sea), Sushi Bar (the walk-up six-seater counter at Umi Uma), Osteria d’Ovidio (the only Alajmo brothers partnership at sea) and Beefbar (the only Beefbar at sea). All were completely different and all were very memorable meals.
There was also the main Dining Room, Waterside, the buffet breakfast and lunch option, Marketplace, and the café, Bistro.
The food was incredible and it was impossible to be disappointed at any venue and impossible to get bored.
I turned 58 on the cruise (we celebrated my birthday early in Melbourne). We were docked in Port Blair for the day and had dinner at Umi Uma, complete with a cake and waiters singing me “Happy Birthday.”
“Where is Port Blair?” you may ask. The Andaman & Nicobar Islands is the answer. Part of India even though the Islands are closer to Myanmar or Thailand than India. Sort of like the Cocos (Keeling) Islands of India.
Andrew had organised a private boat charter for the morning and he was very happy to catch a Giant Trevally and do some snorkelling. I was happy to look at the gorgeous scenery and loll in the incredibly warm water. A very unique birthday. Need to start thinking about the Festival of Sixty!!!
The itinerary of this cruise was fantastic. Singapore, KL, Penang, Phuket, Port Blair, Hambantota and Colombo (Sri Lanka), Cochin, Goa and Mumbai. It was a mixture of culture, history, architecture and wildlife. And most of the ports were new to us which is always exciting. In fact, Sri Lanka was new to us.
We are about to go to Africa and have a safari there for the first time. All the kids bar N&K who couldn’t get leave are coming. In “training” for our safaris in Africa, we did a two-hour game drive in Hambantota, Sri Lanka. We saw loads of animals but the standouts were the elephants and the water buffalo.
We had another wonderful wildlife encounter out of Penang at the Bukit Merah Orangutan Sanctuary. We were in a cage and the orangutans were outside the cage. We fed them oranges and watched them move around, so human-like. It was a privilege and reaffirmed our intention to see orangutans in Borneo one day.
I’ll have a story in MiNDFOOD magazine later in the year about this wonderful cruise. I sure hope we can cruise with Crystal again!
We finished up in Mumbai and treated ourselves to a stay at the historic Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, thinking we were having Sunday afternoon and all day Monday there with our flight home at 1.40am Tuesday.
We had overnighted in Mumbai on Crystal Serenity and done a walking tour organised through GuruWalk so we spent Sunday afternoon at the wonderful Taj, wandering around the hotel complex, having a provided afternoon tea at the Taj Club Lounge and having a swim in the lovely pool.
We had room service for dinner and watched the 1984 Movie, “A Passage to India.” Ready for bed, I just happened to notice that our flight was at 1.40am Monday 27 April ie about three hours from then. Cue: panic and a rushed trip to the airport!!
All was well and we got home a day before we thought we were arriving home. I even managed to write a bit of this blog entry on the plane home. Ahhh…and we thought we were seasoned travellers yet we almost missed our plane. Ouch…that would have been an expensive mistake.
A day after we arrived home, I day tripped to Queenscliff with the Victorian branch of the Australian Society of Travel Writers (ASTW) to lunch at fine dining restaurant, Mietta’s, at the newly-restored Queenscliff Hotel (QH).
We travelled via Port Phillip Ferries which travels from Docklands to Port Arlington and we had a full program. First, a stop at Quiddity Place - a new Cellar Door, restaurant, olive oil producer, Art Gallery and accommodation venue from Oakdene Wines, then lunch and a tour of the QH followed by a guided heritage walk to the Royal Hotel (also newly-restored) for an inspection and yummy scones. We were transported by Explore Australia in an eye-catching purple minivan and received a goodie bag of local produce to bring home.
The sun shone brightly all day and about 20 of us laughed, shared stories and learnt more about Queenscliff as a destination. I’m back next week to stay overnight at QH (yay, lucky me!) and do a few more fun things on the Bellarine. I will have a review of the QH and a wider story about the Bellarine Peninsula in Stuff (NZ).
Finally, today sees us travelling to Sydney to meet the founder of Panache Cruises who has come to Australia (from the UK) to launch Panache in Australia. Panache sells luxury and ultra luxury cruises and they also package up unique experiences including: luxury hotels and trains. In exciting news, Andrew and I are Australian Ambassadors for Panache – https://www.panachecruises.com/en-au/panache-ambassadors-andrew-leonie-jarrett
Watch this space as our relationship continues to grow. And hit up Panache if you want a good deal on a luxury or ultra luxury cruise!! www.PanacheCruises.com or:
AU - +61 2 5138 3092
UK - +44 161 513 8200
US - 1(833)-399-4108
Writing Wins:
Zip. Zilch. Nil. Nada.
For the first time since January 2024, I have had nothing published this month! Lucky I have this blog to keep my byline alive!!
Seriously, I am not fazed. The absence of published fiction is because I haven't had time to write any and the absence of travel writing is a combined effect of me trying to widen the publications I write for and a “to be published” queue. I have a few stories queued up with a publication that currently has no Editor so, once a new Editor is appointed, a few stories will probably drop at once.
See you in May…from Africa!!
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