We are back on the NCL Jade for the second time. A lot has changed since our last cruise on this ship after its refurbishment but it still remains one of our favourite ships. Not too big (though not too small) with plenty of public areas and a proper crows nest lounge.
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We leave Southampton on a warm calm evening after a nice lunch on the aft deck.
We have a sea day before we reach our first destination - the port of Lerwick on the Shetland Isles.
We booked this cruise last minute direct with NCL. An Oceanview cabin - but pleasantly surprised by the size of the room.
Quick drink before we head into Le Bistro for dinner
We had prebooked several specialty meals for sea days. Le Bistro was excellent as usual though the menu hadn't changed since the last time.
We will have to tender in Lerwick - despite the new pier that's been completed just out of town the Jade is still a little too large to use it. So its all aboard the lifeboats. Fortunately our loyalty points mean we can board the tender first.
Rather like a transformer the Jade creates its own platforms for boarding the lifeboats/tenders
Help I'm in a lifeboat
The NCL jade sits stationary in its deep water spot - its computers maintaining position by GPS
This is of course is DI Jimmy Perez's (Douglas Henshall) house from the BBC detective series "Shetland"
This charming little beach (Bains Beach) is next door to the Perez house which is one of a few surviving Lodberries (piers that run into the sea - historically developed into warehouses then houses)
We had arranged a trip with Halcrows "Shetland Explorer Tours"
Lunch was included on this tour at a hotel near the airport, another "Shetland" TV location Series 5 is now showing on the BBC iplayer here
Impossible to avoid the Shetland Ponies, very cute but so hardy.
Finally we spent the last moments in Lerwick shopping for the ultimate Shetland Wool Jumper (from Ninians store on the high street)
Time to get those lifeboats back on board
Our wonderful captain informs us he's going to keep the Shetlands and Faroes between us and the storms in the Atlantic as we depart for Iceland rather than the normal route shown in red.
Dinner tonight is in the MDR where we have a nice table watching the wash behind the ship.
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