CRUISE TRIP WITH 12FLY NING NING AND DING DING! - PART 1
Last December, I was given the opportunity to board StarCruise Libra for 5 nights fully sponsored by StarCruise and 12Fly travel. A cruise vacation has always been in my wish list since I was (probably) 7. I am already grateful to go on 4 days 3 nights trip from Penang – Phuket – Krabi – Penang but just my luck, they threw in a bonus 1 night trip from Penang sailing to high sea.
Before I give you the day to day experience, I have to announce this first. I LOVED EVERY SINGLE MINUTE OF IT! I am a mono-phobic so travelling alone is not fun for me so it was exciting for me to go on a trip with 12Fly mascots Ning Ning and Ding Ding. We were not together all the time, sometime I choose to be alone but I was never lonely. I felt safe and happy. For single ladies looking for an escape, you should consider going on a cruise. It's not even THAT expensive. Maybe it was back then. And the reputation somehow remains strong. But for a 4days 3nights trip with 2 stopovers in Phuket and Krabi, its only RM1200 per person. Check out their website for more information about available trips.
17 December 2016
Our journey started from Kuala Lumpur by bus. After approximately 5 hours transit, we arrived in Georgetown, Penang. As we had a few hours to kill before we can embark the ship, we went for scrumptious lunch at Sri Ananda Bahwan Banana Leaf Restaurant in town. Penang is a food haven, you can never actually go wrong when it comes to food options. After our meal, we had a stroll around Penang’s Little India and Armenian Street to “walk off the lunch”. Mind you, it was a sunny day therefore of course I stopped for some street snacks for desserts. 
Around 4pm, we head to Port Swettenham Pier to check-in and board the ship. As the first embarkation is only to Penang’s high sea / international, we only needed to produce our Malaysian Identity Card. 
Guess what was the first thing I did on board? I go straight to the Pool Deck! There’s no one around since other guest have not arrived and that is the only time I was able to get the place to myself. It was lovely! I felt a sense of accomplishment in life. Yes! That great and the ship have not even sailed away.
Upon checking-in, I was assigned to a Deluxe Oceanview Stateroom in Deck 7, my home for the next 5 days. My first thought was – the bed looks small and the bathroom is tiny. Luckily, I am not sharing the room with anybody so I got the whole cabin to myself. Don’t be fooled by the tiny looking bed. It was so comfortable! I almost always wanted to stay in, if not for the many activities provided on board.
Around 6pm, all guests were invited to join the sail away party at the Pool Deck. This is where the happening things happen. Guests were presented with international buffet lines, and a dance performance by the crew. The house band was also playing throughout the night. It felt like a fiesta.
After the dinner, all guests were required to take part in the Mandatory Passenger Safety Drill. Passengers are divided to specific areas based on the decks they were assigned to. However, since we were having dinner in the restaurant, we just stayed there and participated with the existing group. Some of their staffs were there for demonstration.
Our night continues with a line-up of activities. We were given their daily newsletter – Star Navigator, which carried all the necessary information such as programme for the day, location of each performances, their daily offers and important notices from the crew. Make sure you have this with you, I learned this the hard way when I missed the most important agenda – timing of the buffet spread.
Later, we went to watch a performance in their Star Lounge. It was energetic and fun. Their performing crew really put a great effort for the guests. There’s also another performance available for mature audience called Beyond Innocence – at a minimal cost. I was tempted to go but decided that I’m not mature enough.
I did however, checked out the casino. It was my first time ever! It was exactly like how I imagined it would be based on the movies scenes I’ve watched. Flashy lights everywhere, that familiar sound from slot machines and crowded tables for roulette. I don’t know how to play any of them so I just watched people place their bets and joined them cheering when they win.
Finale for my exciting first night at the cruise was really simple but what I enjoyed the most and since then became my nightly routine. With a book to accompany me, I propped myself on one of the lounge chair at the Sun Deck overlooking the stage. I had the best view of starry night and the house band playing right below me. The cool breeze and the distant sound of the sea perfected the whole experience. I didn’t feel like like I needed any other company. It was perfect.
18 December 2016
The next morning, I woke up early to catch the sunrise. Went upstairs to the Sun Deck but there was already so many people and I wanted to be alone. My next best option was to go to Deck 6 or as I called it, the Sports Deck where nobody goes to. Just as I expected, there was only 1 other person there catching the sunrise. That was a defining moment for me. I realised that you can be alone and not feel lonely. It was lovely, to see the sky gradually changes from darkness to bland grey, a hint of pink with yellow outline and finally the cool blue tone blending with the sea. 
Breakfast was served at the Pool Deck, one of the 2 available eateries catered to Muslim guests. It was a yummy spread, I think I had 3 servings of food to make sure I covered a little bit of everything. I was glad we were told we do not have to check out from our rooms when we disembark the ship in Penang. With that full tummy, I didn’t think I would manage to pack.
Docking in Penang, we left the ship for the day to check out from our first trip and return later for our second trip. The day was spent walking around Beach Street near the pier. Lucky for us, it was Penang’s Car Free Sunday and there was a bazaar with street performances and local pop up stores in town.
(To be continued...)
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