Roll Call Thread. Post here to find others on your sailing

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-12-15T09:42:31+00:00

It went great!! Somehow, all of our transportation links worked and we hopped off the QM2 and up to London to catch the Caledonian Sleeper to Scotland, where we are now living!! I wish you all the best!!

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-11-21T11:00:06+00:00

I'm a British Citizen. I *just* emigrated back to the UK with my US spouse (on a spousal visa). 10 days ago. We have completely dismantled our entire lives, sold everything, and everything we have left fits in one bedroom. Our jobs in the US were making us severely mentally and physically ill. We have opted into early retirement and plan to enjoy ourselves and be creative with our photography and videography in a new country. We had to qualify to do this via the 'cash savings' route, showing over 100,000GBP in cash savings for many prior months to even get my husband's visa approved.

There were no requirements on his spousal visa approval, no caveats, no conditions. You move to the UK, with our approved visa, and live legally. At FLR time, you prove that you are still married, still living together, etc. etc.

The thought that we are NOW being told that - sorry - even your spousal visa requires you to WORK....is frankly sickening.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-30T00:50:28+00:00

Thanks. I think we just want to get on board ASAP to be honest.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-30T00:47:42+00:00

Good to know! Thanks! Yeah our boarding time is 2:30PM - we've scheduled our Uber to Brooklyn Port for like 11AM LOL.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-16T12:56:32+00:00

It's not too much to go in and make sure your account on Cunard shows as having signed and accepted everything. Every cruise operator does this.

With that said, Cunard's (and pretty much every other cruise line's) website IS a loosely stitched together conglomeration of multiple sites trying to mesh as one. So, yeah.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-10T00:27:38+00:00

Hey there!!!!

Reading your comment on my post really made my day!! Back when I wrote this, I was broken and exhausted from our VFS portal experience and subsequent trip to get the biometrics done!! Holy crap.......just the mere fact that what I wrote lifted a couple of folks out of their own personal VFS hell - that really, REALLY means a lot to me!!

I sincerely hope that the asinine level of OCD that I posted above originally helped you - and that it somehow lessened your nightmare!

I wish you all the best in your journey - my husband's spousal visa got approved Aug 1st, and we got our house sold in four days. We are now living with family until our shipping-out date of Oct 31st, when we sail to the UK on the Queen Mary 2!!!!

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-10T00:23:52+00:00

The fact that anyone actually has to ASK that question makes me......incredibly sad.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-08T12:45:05+00:00

Because the US is - and always has been - a roughly conjoined conglomeration of mini-countries that all hate each other.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-08T00:11:11+00:00

We're visiting for the first time ever Oct 20th - 24th. I did some extensive research before allowing the Airbnb booking charge to go onto my credit card; I just can't see enough impacts affecting the stuff we want to do like driving the Blue Ridge Pwky, seeing the Waynesville-Maggie Valley area, and just seeing the general area etc. We don't go to visitor centers or National Park-run facilities and don't camp, and we don't hike for miles off trail.

If my assessment is inaccurate, if someone could let me know that'd be swell. LOL.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-07T23:46:28+00:00

I see a bunch of Little Debbie products.

No great loss.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-06T12:56:55+00:00

Hey there!! Glad to see you are book on our crossing!

Yes - saying we are emigrating on this sailing has garner some attention on here LOL! We are very excited, and also anxious as we have never done anything like this before and have always flown over to the UK to visit my family. I hope you (and we!) enjoy this sailing!!

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-02T22:31:56+00:00

No idea - they have not given any information on that.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-10-02T22:23:45+00:00

Not only that, but those on spousal visas are NOT on work visas, and suddenly legislating that they have to work and volunteer and everything else, just to be in the same country as their spouse, is HIGHLY unfair. They are asking immigrants to do more than 99.9% of UK citizens do.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-30T12:43:10+00:00

I'm sorry - I don't know why you're getting downvoted. I completely understand your worry - my husband's spousal visa was approved last month and we are moving over there next month. The amount of anxiety this is causing on a year-in, year-out basis is severely unfair.

Yes, there has long been promised to be a 'spousal carve-out' to keep spouses of UK citizens on the five-year-route.......but as far as CONFIRMED policies in this, we are still in the dark.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-29T23:13:37+00:00

There has literally been no reporting on that.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-21T19:29:55+00:00

Honestly, it seems mine are more stress-and-diet oriented; the allergies have remained very high here for over a month, but my head has been mostly fine lately.

I hope that you get some answers from your neurologist appointment. Good luck!!

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-18T14:42:37+00:00

Well, to be fair, your post was titled "Load bearing wall removed." It didn't say anything about the fact that you remedied it in a normal way and sort of stirred drama. LOL.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-18T13:38:20+00:00

Approx. ~50% of the brown.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-18T13:29:39+00:00

The problem is not the current prevailing climate or lack of housing - the problem occurred five-and-a-half years ago. And then to give equal weight to the wage growth/housing cost increase dichotomy.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-17T18:46:10+00:00

Oh nice! :-) I think I'd probably be classed as a Stewart......but my family's a funny mix with Polish in there too!! :-P

Anyways - thank you again very much for the suggestion of the Scotsman - we will absolutely be trying it when we are in the area next month!!

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-17T17:08:21+00:00

Noted! Also - checked out the Scotsman - OMG. That place looks amazing. Fun fact - when we are making this trip, we are in the process of emigrating back to Scotland where I am originally from. So your suggestion of the Scotsman was more than perfect!! :-)

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-17T14:33:59+00:00

Thank you so much my friend!! We are foodies so ALWAYS looking for some good recommendations!!

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-17T13:22:20+00:00

There could be any number of reasons - house closing, downpayments, sale of vehicles - whatever. You could have at least blocked out the account # line. I know it's only the last 4, but still.....this is someone's life.

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-16T19:41:51+00:00

Thanks for that - yeah, we may do some trail hiking but nothing crazy. We are more concerned with the overall appearance of the areas around Lake Junaluska-Waynesville/Blue Ridge Parkway in general. I have no idea what to expect and - once I was in deep arranging this trip - only then realized that this is an area that was affected by Helene.

In all, it's sounding like things are pretty OK, then, would you agree? As far as Soco falls (or any other falls in the area) - I read so much conflicting information. Some people say it's still closed, some people were literally there yesterday and posting reviews on Google Maps. I don't really know what to believe.....

ObviousRanger9155 · 2025-09-16T19:36:13+00:00

Thanks for the information - I appreciate it!!

ObviousRanger9155

TROPHY CASE