This morning I should be driving to Southampton with Sue to go on a cruise on P&O’s MV Ventura ... but thanks to the current Coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak, I'm not.
On returning home, I then tried to contact the valet parking service to cancel our booking with them, but again I was put in a telephone queue which never seemed to shorten. In the end, I sent them an email as their terms and conditions stated that I had to give 48-hours notice of cancellation, otherwise they would keep all my money!
By midday on Saturday it was apparent that the ports we would have visited (Lisbon, Malaga, Barcelona, Cartagena, and Cadiz) were beginning to be closed to cruise ships ... and once the Spanish government made it clear that it was going to enact a total lock down, P&O announced that the cruise was going to be cancelled.
We already had several cruises booked for later in 2020, and on Saturday afternoon P&O contacted us by email to explain how we could cancel them, and what the financial settlement would be. The alternatives were:
As I had not had an acknowledgement to my email to the valet parking service, I tried to contact them to make sure that they had received my cancellation ... and discovered that their office only works normal office hours from Monday to Friday. I therefore sent a second email in the hope that I had managed to get my cancellation in before the deadline comes into operation.
On Sunday morning we paid yet another visit to our travel agent, this time to cancel our May cruise to the Mediterranean aboard MV Britannia.
So, what do we have to look forward to? Certainly, no cruises this side of August (and possibly, not even then!) ... and since the latest government pronouncement, the prospect of being in some sort of purdah or having to 'socially distance' ourselves for the next two, three, or even four months.
By the middle of last week, it was apparent that the likelihood that we would go was already in doubt, but once the Prime Minister announced that anyone who was over 70 years of age should not go on a cruise, that was it. Early on Friday morning P&O contacted us with a number of alternatives. These were:Where we should have been going aboard MV Ventura.
- Go on our cruise (with an additional £400.00 onboard credit) ... BUT with the possibility that our insurance cover would be invalidated with regard to Coronavirus/COVID-19 because of the government’s advice not to go or
- Cancel our cruise and accept a 100% Full Cruise Credit that we can use to book another cruise by the end of 2021
On returning home, I then tried to contact the valet parking service to cancel our booking with them, but again I was put in a telephone queue which never seemed to shorten. In the end, I sent them an email as their terms and conditions stated that I had to give 48-hours notice of cancellation, otherwise they would keep all my money!
By midday on Saturday it was apparent that the ports we would have visited (Lisbon, Malaga, Barcelona, Cartagena, and Cadiz) were beginning to be closed to cruise ships ... and once the Spanish government made it clear that it was going to enact a total lock down, P&O announced that the cruise was going to be cancelled.
We already had several cruises booked for later in 2020, and on Saturday afternoon P&O contacted us by email to explain how we could cancel them, and what the financial settlement would be. The alternatives were:
- A full refund of the money we had paid or
- A Future Cruise Credit worth 125% of the value of the money we had paid
As I had not had an acknowledgement to my email to the valet parking service, I tried to contact them to make sure that they had received my cancellation ... and discovered that their office only works normal office hours from Monday to Friday. I therefore sent a second email in the hope that I had managed to get my cancellation in before the deadline comes into operation.
On Sunday morning we paid yet another visit to our travel agent, this time to cancel our May cruise to the Mediterranean aboard MV Britannia.
In the end, after discussing it with him, we decided to hold fire and not to cancel as P&O were likely to cancel it themselves ... and might give us a better deal. We did - however - manage to book a replacement cruise for the one we should have been going on today. It is going to Venice in 2021 ... and was paid for using the 125% Future Cruise Credit we received as a result of today’s cruise being cancelled.Where we should have been going aboard MV Britannia.
On Monday I received an email from the valet parking service informing me that our booking had been cancelled and our money refunded, so at least that is sorted out satisfactorily.Where we hope to go to next year aboard MV Arcadia.
So, what do we have to look forward to? Certainly, no cruises this side of August (and possibly, not even then!) ... and since the latest government pronouncement, the prospect of being in some sort of purdah or having to 'socially distance' ourselves for the next two, three, or even four months.
Hi Bob,
ReplyDeleteBetter to be on the Safe Side and not go on Cruises until next year...Our Government 'Foreign Affairs' has advised all Australians who are currently overseas - to return back to Australia ASAP as other countries are closing their boarders etc...the epidemic is certainly Global and we won't be travelling - not even out of town. Stay Well there Bob. Cheers. KEV.
Kev Robertson,
DeleteI am currently listening to the British Foreign Secretary making a statement in parliament ... and it basically says ‘don’t go abroad unless it is absolutely necessary as we can’t guarantee you’ll be able to get back’.
We are hoping that we’ll be able to resume cruising later this year; hoping, but not expecting.
Keep safe and keep well,
Bob
Sorry to read this Bob, there is going to mass disruption of peoples holiday plans this year and indeed peoples daily lives. Yesterdays announcement was a blow to my son in law who delivers beer to pubs in central London and kent, he had already noticed a falling off of orders and deliveries over the last week. With my daughter and two toddlers to support he is a very worried man today. I notice there is controversy over plans for SALUTE with warlords refusing to cancel the event until forced to by Excel, I'm not it is the responsible thing to do?
ReplyDeleteI like the idea that you mentioned previously of playing remote games via Skype or such, certainly your portable system or Commands & Colours would be perfect for this?
On the bright side we may still be watching Premiership football in the late summer this year, but then there is the question of players contracts....... oh dear what a mess.
Take care,
Lee.
‘Lee,
DeleteWe went to Bluewater this morning ... and other than the food section of M&S, it was like a ghost town. The Disney shop was shut, and I suspect that other shops will follow suit in the near future.
I hope that your son-in-law gets the financial support he needs from his employers and/the government.
I can understand why the South London Warlords want to wait for ExCel to cancel SALUTE. If the Warlords cancel, they will be financially responsible, whereas if ExCel cancels, they are. I expect that SALUTE will be cancelled, but I’m not sure when that decision will be made.
Once I’ve got my PORTABLE COLONIAL WARGAME book finished, I want to look at various ways to use the Internet to fight tabletop battles online. As you write, PW and C&C would seem ideal starting points for such games.
I’ll make no comment about football; I’m more worried about the forthcoming cricket season!
All the best,
Bob
Portable Wargame Campaigns is also an idea...
ReplyDeleteJustin Penwith,
DeleteThere’s a chapter about my Portable Wargame Campaign system in the PCW book.
All the best,
Bob
I have enjoyed reading your blog for many years, but I am sorry to hear about your holiday plans. I work and live in the city where the situation is as you describe, answering systems are overloaded, food shortages, panic buying is rife, pubs, restaurants and many shops shut. It is starting to look like the refuse is now not being collected. We normally have commercial collections daily, but have not had one for a week! However, there is a lot of people helping their neighbours and many small acts of kindness. Keep the blog up and inspire us with good news about toy soldiers!!
ReplyDeleteJon Meech,
DeleteThanks for your kind words about my blog. It is much appreciated.
Our part of London seems to be relatively unaffected, but even so, many shop shelves are emptying almost as soon as they’re refilled. Schools are still open (but I understand many will be closing early for Easter) and there are far fewer cars about. The buses that go past our house are almost all nearly empty, and we are expecting that the local council will move over to fortnightly refuse collections ... something they have been planning to do anyway.
Luckily we have great neighbours, and we’ve had offers of help if we need it. At the moment we don’t, but it’s nice to know that we have support if we need it,
I hope to do lots of wargaming whilst I am in purdah, and I’ll certainly be writing about what I do as and when I can.
Keep safe and keep well,
Bob
As you mentioned on my decision on standing down attending the Woking 54mm Games Day, you have made a wise decision for your family health. There is always next year and it is just a game or leisure time.
ReplyDeleteYou have also made some wise, encouraging and interesting points in your blog over the last couple of weeks about the solo option of our hobby, PBEM and keeping in contact through email / online.
Mark, Man of TIN,
DeleteIt’s very simple; by protecting yourself as best you can, you are doing your bit to protect others. One cannot guarantee that one will not contract the virus, but one can do everything one can to avoid it if at all possible. We’ve tried to do our bit ... and let’s hope it helps.
As someone who has periodic visits from ‘the black dog’, I know that it would be very easy for me to sit and worry myself into a state about things over which I have no control. I’ve learned the hard way that trying to think positively about the situation helps, because not only will it enable me to cope mentally but also physically. Healthy mind, healthy body may be a bit of a cliche, but in my experience, it helps.
By writing positively about what I am doing during the current pandemic helps me to cope, and I hope that it is helping others. One side effect has been an upsurge of interest in my PW rules ... which looks like being a concept ideally suited to the wargamer who is confined to their home.
Keep safe and keep well,
Bob
It sounds like you've got it sorted Bob. We are supposed to be doing a Black Sea cruise in Autumn, have to see if that goes ahead or not!
ReplyDeleteMartin Rapier,
DeleteSue and I hope to make it to the Black Sea one day, but since the Ukrainian crisis, far fewer cruise ships have been going there. I want to visit Odessa and Sevastopol, and I suspect that they might also be on your list of places to go. I hope that you make it later this year.
All the best,
Bob
Hi Bob
ReplyDeleteYou did well to avoid a cruise to Spain. We have been living under a formal state of emergency for a week. All bars, restaurants and shops(other than food shops) were closed with a few hours notice. Everyone in the country were confinded to their homes, again with a few hours notice. We can only go out to food shop, visit doctor or chemist and in an (unspecified) emergency. If we do leave the house we must go alone and avoid all contact. Only one person can be in each car, except for hospital visits. Numbers are restricted in food shops and only one allowed to enter when one leaves.
Despite this everyone is very civilised and patient. No one seems to break the curfew. If they do the police are quick to impose fines of 300 euro. In our sleepy valley there has been no panic shopping. Jan went food shopping today and found the shelves to be full and no shortage of fruit or vegatables. Also sufficient meat, only chicken missing.
The current restrictions were for two weeks, and have just been extended for another two weeks. But there seems little likehood that it will return to normal before summer, or even Christmas.
I hope that you continue to have a reasonably relaxed situation in the UK, though many don't seem to realise it from what I read in the papers and hear on UKTV. And I really hope that the refusal to impose strict restrictions such as Italy, France and Spain, does not prove to have been a mistake.
Take care and keep healthy
Paul
Paul,
DeleteWe have several more cruises booked for later this year, but we expect they’ll be cancelled. P&O are going to moor their ships in various ports around the UK. Two are going to Dover and two to Southampton, and work has stopped on the ship that was coming into service in May.
We have friends who own a place near Havea, and they managed to get a flight back to the UK. They were supposed to go back to Stansted, but ended up in Newcastle ... and had to take a coach and taxi back. They wanted to avoid the lockdown ... and are now back home and in self-imposed isolation.
As you’ve probably gathered, the UK is moving towards total lockdown, with changes happening on an almost daily basis. For the past few days, shopping has been difficult at times, with supermarket shelves being denuded by panic buying of toilet rolls, tinned goods, antibacterial wipes and hand wash, fresh fruit and vegetables, and bread. They are trying to regulate matters by setting aside special times for old people and medical workers to shop, and they are also imposing limits on how many items of certain goods shoppers can buy.
We are expecting this situation to last for at least three months, and it seems likely that schools won’t open normally until September. The government’s legislation will allow them to impose all sorts of restrictions, should the need arise ... which it no doubt will do in the next few weeks,
Living in London, we are ahead of the curve with regard to infections, and we’ve noticed a real change. Fewer people are using the buses that drive past our house and the air quality is a lot better. Although the supermarkets are crowded, almost everywhere else - including big shopping centres - are empty. Now that pubs, bars, clubs, cafes, restaurants, and cinemas are shut, one expects that we will soon be in a de facto if not de jure lockdown.
Keep safe and keep well,
Bob
Hi Bob
ReplyDeleteNot surprisingly most, if not all, Brits with holiday homes here have already returned to the UK. However a lot of holiday makers are finding great difficulty getting home. Situation made worse by all hotels and airports due to close tonight.
Jan and I are Spanish residents, and will sit it out here. The clampdown probably sounds terrible in the UK, but to be honest it is quite reassuring that they are taking it seriously. As always the police are much more heavy handed here in Spain, and hand out fines to one and all, so there is very little resistance. But I would prefer that to the indecisive way it has been handled in the UK. Clearly advice is ignored by those who don't like what is said. To ask shoppers not to bulk buy after the experience of the past week says it all. I really don't understand why neither Boris nor the supermarkets just impose rationing. They did that here as soon as the state of emergency was imposed, and we have no problem getting food. No big queues, and no empty shelves. The same with asking people to stay at home, rather than making it illegal to be outside with a good reason.
I fear that it will not be long before it is imposed in the UK, or at least in London. And I suspect that they will have a lot of resistence because of the earlier half hearted approach.
I hope that you and your family keep safe and keep well. And do try to make the best of it by getting in more writing, wargaming and painting.
best regards
Paul
Thistlebarrow (Paul),
DeleteI can see why people would want to return home to the UK, but from some of the comments I have read, some left doing anything until the last minute in the mistaken belief that the UK government would repatriate them. The ‘Civis Romanus Sum’ attitude is still alive and kicking in the minds of some people.
The clampdown sounds as if it is draconian ... but it isn’t if it helps to stop the spread of the virus and prevent unnecessary deaths. The problem is the ‘you cannot do this to me’ attitude that people seem to have these days. I recently saw a video of a woman who went swimming in a Spanish hotel’s swimming pool despite it being taped off. A policeman stripped off, jumped in, dragged her out, and she was then handcuffed and arrested. She screamed her protest about how unfair it was and that the handcuffs hurt!
Sue and I are going to our local Tesco’s tomorrow morning to do some shopping during the oldies hour. We are expecting that it will not be properly policed, and that there will be loads of intelligible people buying stuff before elderly people manage to do theirs.
At present, some people with second homes or caravans are going out of the major conurbations in the mistaken belief that they can escape the virus, not realising that by doing so they are both potentially spreading the virus and putting a strain on the local medical and other services.
As far as we are concerned, the sooner a proper clampdown is imposed, the better. At least it will make the ‘it won’t happen to me‘ cohort realise that it can ... and will ... possible in a way that they will find far worse than they can imagine.
I plan to do as much wargaming as I can, and to write and blog whenever the mood - and inspiration - is upon me. I hope that you and a Jan will do the same.
Keep safe and keep well,
Bob
Hi Bob
ReplyDeleteYes I completely agree that our strictly imposed personal restrictions are the right way to go. Right from the start the police imposed it with heavy fines of 300 to 600 euros. But everyone accepts it is essential and abides by the regulations. The only exceptions are holiday visitors, particularly British. The woman you mention in the swimming pool was British. Apparently a labout candidate at the last election!!
We try to avoid going out as much as possible. And on Friday Jan went to our local supermarket for the first time (after seven days). She was impressed that everyone kept the required 2 metre distance, both in the queue and in the shop itself. One person was allowed to enter only when one had left. The shelves were well stocked and only chicken was in short supply. Lots of toilet rolls (that seems to be a particularl British concern).
My son lives in a lovely village just north of Newcastle. Rothbury is a popular day trip and retirement home for geordies. But lately the locals are getting very annoyed with holiday home and caravan visitors who come and strip the local shops. And, of course, there is always the fear that they will bring the virus with them.
Its terrible how quickly our lives have changed, and how it has made so many people so selfish and uncaring.
If the UK follows the Spanish model things will get worse quite quickly. Hope I am wrong, but it seems to be the way it develops in China, Italy and now Spain.
Whatever happens take care of yourself and your family
best regards
Paul
Thistlebarrow (Paul),
DeleteThe UK government has made it clear that they are going impose fines on people who break the rules, starting with £30.00 for a first offence, rising to an unlimited amount for subsequent breaches.
The idiot woman was a Labour candidate in the last election, and is a local councillor in Kings Lynn/West Norfolk. Exactly the sort of numpty we need in parliament!
We went to Tescos during the oldies hour, and plan to go to Marks & Spencers tomorrow to buy some more fresh food. We are looking for fruit and veg so that we can leave our tinned and frozen stuff unused for as long as possible because we expect it to get a lot worse before it gets better.
The ‘flight’ to the countryside by some people is almost as stupid as people using crowded Tube trains to go to nonessential work. They are only thinking of themselves, and not about the consequence for others.
Perhaps this might just make to ‘me’ generation realise that they are dependent upon other people, without whom their comfortable lives would not be possible. As the pandemic gets worse - as it will - and they begin to be personally affected by it, it will be a nasty jolt for them, and might just shake them out of their complacency.
Stay safe and stay well,
Bob