Anne's Travels

Postcard from the Far East - December-January 2011-12

2012-01-30T21:09:00.019Z

On Saturday 17 December I left home at 7am and had a good flight to Chennai, but once there I had an eleven-hour wait for my connection to Colombo. However there were no problems with the onward flight and I duly arrived in Colombo at 2pm. After a few hiccups with my car I eventually set off for Kandy and arrived around 5.30pm [midday on Sunday for me!] in the pouring rain. A very long journey!

I was moved to the Topaz Hotel from the Tourmaline, where I should have been staying, but that was no problem – it is in the same complex and was a more active place. My room was comfortable enough and the food in the hotel was really quite good. The only problem was the weather! Very grey and wet! But I wasn’t too worried – I relaxed in my room and I managed a swim in between the showers on day one and day three. One evening I went along to a cultural show and then to visit the magnificent Temple of the Tooth.

On Saturday 24th the sun shone, albeit rather weakly, but sadly I had an email problem – someone had hacked into my email address book and spammed everyone. I had hundreds of replies coming in. So I had to take fast action, which took me some time. However I did get to the sun for a little while later that day. Christmas Eve was a lovely day but dinner was very strange. Unbeknown to me it was to be held at the sister hotel, Tourmaline, down the road. I turned up at my usual restaurant and they were happy to serve me a delicious dinner, but hardly anyone else there. Christmas Day was quite sunny so I spent it by the pool, but dinner was even stranger – no alcohol at all a religious day! So back to my room for a nightcap! On Boxing Day I took a trip to Nurwala Eliya [N’eliya] which was a wonderful drive into the mountains through the tea plantations. I took myself for a walk around N’elyia once there before my driver drove me back.

On Wednesday 28^th I was picked up at 8.30am and we headed for Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage where I spent two hours with these wonderful creatures – watched them having a bath and feeding. We then set off for a three hour journey to Colombo where I installed myself into the lovely Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel. As De La Rue had made the reservation for me [they have a factory in Colombo] I got upgraded to the Executive Club floor, which is very comfortable and I was even sent a bottle of fizz to welcome me! All very nice indeed!

I then spent most of the next 12 days relaxing in the sunshine by the Cinnamon Lakeside pool. One morning on week two, I visited my old company’s factory in Sri Lanka – a good day to choose as it was a bit stormy that afternoon. I did go out on New Year’s Eve with the De La Rue General Manager and his wife and the GM did take me for a sundowner at the Galle Face on my last evening, which was fun.

In the early hours of Monday 9^th January I took the short 4 hour flight from Colombo to Singapore. Spent the day relaxing and shopping! Found quite a good tailor to make up some dress material, and a dressmaker to adjust a skirt for me as well as cobbler to mend some shoes! It rained cats and dogs on Tuesday, so except for picking up my shoes and having a dress fitting I relaxed indoors. In the evening I had a great fun dinner with my nephew, Simon, and his wife Seetha.

On Wednesday 11th I packed up in the morning and then caught the very smart ferry across to Bintan Island which took just 50 minutes. I then settled into the Angsana Resort, where I had a lovely room overlooking the beach and the pool. Weather was a bit grey that afternoon but warm. However the next day the sun came out and I spent every day for the next nine days relaxing by their pool in glorious sunshine. There were a few annoying power cuts in the evenings on the first two days, but otherwise I thoroughly enjoyed my time at this delightful resort. I did manage a massage one afternoon but otherwise I did nothing very much but relax with lots of books! This little resort is very well run and seems to get good weather. Lying by the pool I got offered papaya [not for me!] each morning and an ice cream cornet every afternoon [definitely for me!] and I always got a little Indonesian present on my pillow each evening. It is worth a visit if you are in Singapore with a few days to spare but take your own booze – drinks are astronomical!

Then on Friday 20th it was back to Singapore which was very wet on arrival. However the next day was lovely and I went to the pool in the morning. In the early afternoon nephew Simon picked me up and I went over to their home to spend the afternoon with the family. In the evening Simon, Seetha and I went out for a very nice dinner in Dempsey Road. On Sunday, Chinese New Year’s Eve, we all took a walk around China Town and after a Chinese lunch we all went on the Singapore Flyer [similar to London Eye]. This was followed by a visit to an ice cream parlour at the Marina Bay Sands, and then I went back to my hotel for an early night. Monday was another sunny day so I spent the morning by the pool and in the evening Simon and Seetha invited me to dinner at their home where we were joined by Seetha’s sister and her family. Tuesday was pack up day to catch the evening flight to Hong Kong.

On the evening of Tuesday 24th I made my way into Central Hong Kong by the Airport Express, only to find a huge queue for taxis at Central. So I walked into the streets with my luggage and fortunately found a taxi immediately – albeit a rather expensive one because of the Chinese New Year celebrations! Thankfully I was well looked after on arrival at the Grand Hyatt and had a lovely room overlooking the harbour. My first day in HK was very cold and rather wet, but I took myself by MRT back into Central to do some shopping in the Lanes, although not many places were open thanks to the New Year. The next day I took the Star Ferry across to Kowloon [free for us senior citizens!] and I walked Nathan Road for hours and hours! The following day it was back into Central to wander the Lanes again and on my last day the sun came out so I was able to relax by the pool for a few hours. Then I had an excellent overnight BA flight back to London at the end of a wonderful holiday.

Postcard from Rome - 1-5 October 2011

2011-10-06T21:44:00.011+01:00

I flew out from Gatwick on a glorious afternoon. Not the best of BA’s flights. They served only ‘tea’, so lunch was missed that day, and the Club Cabin was freezing! Rome airport was a shambles but eventually found an expensive shuttle to get me into the city and to my little hotel. The room was tiny – just room for one person, but Sue is joining me in the morning, so we will have to squeeze in! Took myself out for a nice dinner at a delightful little Trattoria just down the road and sat outside for my meal.

The next morning I set off to try and get to the Vatican, but got lost en route. After an hour I eventually met up with Sue, who had just arrived from Gatwick, and after a good lunch we walked Rome for the afternoon. In the evening we met up with our Group for dinner and then six of us – all ladies – decamped to a little café and drank Aperol Spritzers for an hour or so before retiring to our hotel and bed.

The next morning we left early for the Vatican and spent the morning on a guided tour of the Vatican Museums, finishing in the Sistine Chapel. We then had a lousy lunch with our Group, before going back for a tour of St Peter’s Cathedral, after which Sue and I walked Rome for two and a half hours. We stopped for an ice cream at one stage, and it turned out to be the most expensive ice cream ever - £10 each!!! It was then rest and recuperate at the hotel for a while before going out for some pizza and vino for dinner.

At 9 o’clock on Tuesday morning we went off on a guided walk to the Colosseum and then to the Forum – we spent four hours walking around these incredible places and then walked around Victor Emmanuel Monument before finding ourselves a nice little restaurant for lunch and a much needed drink! In the afternoon we visited the Pantheon and Piazza Navuna and then walked slowly back to our hotel, stopping en route for a reviving drink! In the evening after a quick dinner we went to a performance of Strauss’s Elektra at the Opera House – not something I particularly enjoyed although there was some excellent singing! As there was no interval, some of us indulged in a couple of nightcaps in the balmy air of Rome before retiring.

On our last morning Sue and I walked down to see the wonderful cathedral of San Giovanni before packing up our bags ready for departure. We then had a nice lunch sitting outside before being bussed to the airport for our flights home. How lucky we were to have four days of cloudless skies and some delightful people in our group.

Postcard from Minerva - August-September 2011

2011-09-18T20:40:00.035+01:00

On Friday afternoon of 19 August I left London by minicab and reached Portsmouth Passenger Terminal at 4 o’clock. It didn’t take long to ‘bump into’ the Captain and the Swan team, and I discover my friend Rutters is back on board, this time as Cruise Director! I soon embarked on Minerva and after a safety drill, we departed Portsmouth at 6pm. By 7.15 we were cruising along ‘my beach’ at East Wittering! I had a good table at dinner and afterwards had a few nightcaps with Rutters!

On Saturday morning I was up early to watch us drop anchor at Sark. After a swift breakfast I was on the first tender ashore and spent two hours walking all around the island – a really lovely morning. The sun then came out so I was on the first tender back to the ship and I spent the rest of the day on the top deck in glorious sunshine. In the evening it was the Welcome party, and at the last minute [thanks to a seasick passenger] I joined the Captain’s table and we had a fun evening. The following day was at sea – the morning was fairly dreary, but the sun came out in the afternoon, and I went to the sun deck for a few hours. We had a bit of fun as the Captain was up there too and he suddenly noticed some fin whales, so he rushed down to the Bridge and he kept the ship with the whales for about half an hour, followed by a few dolphins! That evening there was a poor Show which I watched for a while and then had a couple of nightcaps before retiring.

At 7.30am on Monday 21st we arrived in a rather damp and foggy La Coruna, but by 8.45 I was off on a tour of the town by coach, and then we drove to the delightful town of Betanzos, where we had a very good walking tour, even it was in rather damp and dreary conditions. We still had rather cool weather for our arrival at 8.30am in Leixoes, Portugal the next morning. I went on an interesting excursion to Braga, which took us almost an hour to reach. We had an interesting visit to Bon Jesus, an amazing shrine/church high up above Braga, and we then spent an hour walking around Braga itself, sadly in cool and cloudy conditions. This week I had a few early nights with very little to drink as I had put myself on some antibiotics to try and kill a nasty cough that was getting the better of me.

Wednesday was a lovely sunny day at sea and saw quite a few dolphins during the day. In the evening I met up with a new friend, Miriam, for a drink on the back deck in the sunshine and it was nice that we stayed there for our dinner. Around 8am on Thursday we arrived in Cadiz with a wonderful sunrise, and I took myself off on a short walk around Cadiz for an hour or so. We departed Cadiz for Malaga at 3pm and I spent the afternoon soaking up the sunshine on the top deck. In the evening after dinner we sailed by Gibraltar and then I watched the excellent Crew Show

On Friday 26th we arrived in Malaga at 6.30am, which I got up to watch. I heard from Captain Giovanni that we had been involved in a rescue overnight – some people in a zodiac were taking on water. I spent that day quietly on board as I have been to Malaga many times before. Sadly I got badly stung on the top deck, but hopefully with plenty of Anthisan cream it will calm down. That evening I had a lovely dinner á deux with Lech, the Hotel Director, and then listened to an excellent after dinner talk on opera with music by James Naughtie. The next day we arrived at Cartegena around 11.30am and in the afternoon I went on an excursion to see the highlights of Cartegena. It is a delightful little town and in the evening Miriam, and I went into the town for a tapas dinner and had a few drinks on the quayside before returning to the ship for departure at midnight. Sunday was a day at sea which I spent on the top deck even though it was not that sunny. In the evening I had a lovely dinner with Rutters, Miriam and Peter the Purser, finishing up, needless to say, with a few nightcaps in the Shackleton Bar.

Early on Monday 29 August we arrived in the beautiful little town of Mahon in Menorca on a lovely sunny morning. I went on a scenic drive around the island, visiting an archaeological site, El Toro mountain and church, and the pretty little town of Fornells. On return I took myself on a walk around Mahon before returning to the ship. Then I was lucky enough to be on The Bridge for a wonderful cruise out of Mahon Harbour. On Tuesday, we anchored off the port of Alghero in Sardinia. I went into the little town and spent the morning walking around the Old Town. I stopped for an Aperol Spritzer during the morning; a little later on I met with Miriam, and we repaired to another bar near to the port so that we could catch the 2.30 tender back to the ship. We arrived at the delightful little town of Calvi, Corsica, at 8am the next morning and the Captain had a very tricky manoeuvre to get us into our berth. I went on a wonderful excursion around Corsican villages in and around Calvi which was fantastic – great views and great places. On return I had a quick lunch and then walked Calvi for an hour before retiring to the top deck. In the evening it was the Farewell Party and I joined my new friends Anne and John at their table which was fun, We followed it with a few nightcaps on the back deck! The following morning we arrived in Livorno very early, and I went off on a tour of the lovely little town of Lucca in glorious sunshine. Half way through the morning I heard that my friend Nona was now very ill indeed with cancer, and I may not even see her again. After visiting a few churches to say a few prayers, I then sat and had a strong Aperol Spritzer in the sunshine.

Just before dinner on Thursday 1st there was an announcement that Minerva was going into dry dock in November for 3-4 months to have a major upgrade done and it would start at the end of November. Hence my Christmas holiday on board was thrown out of the window. Sadly I have already booked my expensive flights which will be difficult to get back. So I wasn’t in the best of moods but I had been invited to have a pre-birthday drink with my friend ‘Rutters’, so I toddled up to the Wheeler Bar to meet him. However when I arrived I was taken to the Card Room to find all my friends on board – Captain, Officers, all the Swan team and one or two passengers who I had become friendly with, and they all greeted me with Happy Birthday! They plied me with champagne for an hour then all the passengers took me off to dinner in the dining room, and that was of course followed by a few nightcaps. A lovely party, though tinged with sadness because of my friend Nona, and the major re-fit over Christmas. On Friday 2nd, my birthday, I had lots of cards and messages and then I went off on a boat trip around the canals of Livorno, as well as a tour of the Fortress. The afternoon was spent partly in an internet café and partly on the top deck. In the evening a bottle of wine and a birthday cake were delivered to my cabin from ‘the Ship’s company’ and then I met up with Captain Giovanni for drinks, dinner and nightcaps. The birthday cake was re-produced for ‘pud’ and ‘Happy Birthday’ again!

On Saturday 3rd I went back into Lucca for a tour of Palazzio Pfanner during the morning; the afternoon was spent on the top deck after another visit to the internet café. At 6 o’clock that we evening we sailed for Messina and then we had the Welcome Party and I was at the table of the Hotel Director. The next day was a quiet day at sea, except for a party for ‘Singles’ at lunch time. In the evening after a good table at dinner, I went to join my friend Barbara in her suite to watch Stromboli erupting as we close cruised. In fact we then went to the back deck and joined some Swan friends as the Captain sailed around Stromboli for two hours and we saw some spectacular eruptions. Very early on the morning of Monday 5th September we arrived in Messina in Sicily, and I went on a ‘panoramic tour’ of the City. We arrived at our final stop in the Cathedral square in time to watch the amazing Cathedral clock at midday – a gold lion roared, a gold cock crowed, angels going around Mary sang Ava Maria, and a little church rose up in a window. All quite amazing! That afternoon we sailed for Brindisi in Italy, where we arrived at 1.30pm the following afternoon. I took an excursion to Otranto, a delightful little town about an hour and a half along the coast. Later that evening we sailed for Venice.

After a quiet day at sea on the top deck, I went to drinks in Barbara’s suite with the Swan team and the Captain and officers so that was a fun party. Then very early on Thursday 8 September we cruised into Venice – sadly it was rather dark and misty but we had some pretty good views. In the morning I visited two Palladio villas which were absolutely wonderful although our guide was rather too verbose! I spent the afternoon wandering around Venice and enjoying an aperol spritzer on the Grand Canal. In the evening Captain Giovanni rather let me down after suggesting dinner ashore, which needless to say never materialised – I will say no more other than never trust an Italian! On Friday morning we arrived in Pula at 8am and thankfully managed to berth rather having to anchor. I went on an excellent tour to the most wonderful little town of Rovinj – the blue pearl of the Adriatic. I spent a great morning wandering around the town. On my return I did a quick walk around Pula before returning to the ship. That evening I heard that my friend Nona was in a coma, and she died the next morning, so a rather sad time for me.

On Saturday 10th we were in Hvar in Croatia and I took the tender in for a walk around the Town for an hour or two, and then returned to the ship for an afternoon on the top deck, although I did visit the Bridge for our departure. Quite late that evening I watched us berth in Dubrovnik and then went along to the crew show.. I spent the following morning relaxing on the top deck in glorious sunshine, and in the afternoon I went into Dubrovnik and ‘walked the walls’. It was a very good walk, albeit in very very hot weather – we think about 100 degrees! So we returned to the ship fairly exhausted! Early on Monday morning I was up to watch us cruise – for an hour and a half – through the Montenegro fjord before arriving at the delightful little town of Kotor at 7.30am. Later in the morning I did an excursion to visit Sveti Stefan, where there is a colourful hotel on a little island, and then we went on to visit the old town of Budva – not the most exciting of towns. On my return to the ship, I did swift turn-around and went off again to walk around the old town of Kotor. I also walked for 20 minutes up the steep steps to the castle, but decided that I had walked high enough when I saw someone being brought down on a stretcher, so I didn’t get right up to the castle. As it was another very hot day I thought it better to return to the ship while I was still in one piece! At 3 o’clock we set sail for Albania and once again sailed through the picturesque Montenegro fjord.

On Tuesday 13th we anchored off Sarande in Albania, but having there been before I decided to relax in the sunshine on the top deck all day which was very relaxing. In the evening it was the Farewell party and dinner and I joined two of my Swan Hellenic friends at their table for a very jolly evening. Very early the next morning we arrived in Itea and I took a stroll around the little town in the morning and then, except for a visit to the Captain to exchange photos, I spent the whole day on the top deck in glorious weather. In the evening I met up with some friends on the back deck and we stayed there for dinner under the stars. About 11pm we sailed for Corinth, where we arrived the next morning just before 7am with another beautiful sunrise. I visited Old Corinth, which was not up to much, but then we went up to Acrocorinth to walk up to the fortress, which was absolutely amazing. The climb up to the top was quite a challenge, but there were some amazing views from the top. However the climb down was even more of a challenge, as some of the cobbles were very slippery.

Once back at the ship I had an hour or so on the top deck and then I was very lucky and privileged to be allowed on the Bridge to watch us go through the Corinth Canal. As always it is a memorable journey through the Canal. Minerva only just squeezes through, and in fact we were able to touch the trees from the Bridge wing as we transited. It takes about an hour and a quarter to make the whole journey as we go very slowly indeed. Once through, I then went tried to sort out some future cruises for when the ship is back in service after its major refit, and then it time to start packing for departure tomorrow. I was just sorted in time to watch us arrive in Piraeus at 8.30pm. Then a quick dinner, finish packing, a nightcap and bed! The last morning was fairly relaxed – went to the Bridge to say ‘goodbye’ to Giovanni and then left the ship at 10.30 to catch the 2pm flight to Heathrow, and I was home by 5pm, within an hour of landing!

Postcard from Italy - July 2011

2011-07-13T20:58:00.012+01:00

Early on a cold and wet morning on Thursday 7 July I left Gatwick with my friend Sue Sheridan for Verona. We were met in sunny Verona and driven to our hotel, the Olivi in Sirmione by 12.15pm. Our room wasn’t quite ready so we were given Aperol Spritzers as we relaxed in the sunshine. By 2pm we were lying by the pool! Later that afternoon we took a walk into the little town to stock up the bar in our room! After a delicious dinner we were in bed reasonably early after such an early start.

Friday and Saturday were spent by the pool in glorious sunshine, and on Saturday evening, after an early dinner, we went into Verona to see Nabucco at the Arena. A truly magical evening – great music in fantastic surroundings.

On Sunday morning we took the 8.20 ferry across to Garda. There we wandered around the shops for an hour and after a refreshing drink we walked along Lake Garda for nearly an hour until we came to Bardolino. Almost the first stop was a bar beside the Lake for a glass of Aperol Spritzer! After that we did some shopping, and both ended up buying new bags and shoes! We then found ourselves a delightful little restaurant for a light lunch with another Aperol Spritzer, and the Patron then offered us a little Limoncello to finish! It was a very hot day – about 35 degrees – so after lunch we took the ferry back to Sirmione and retired to our hotel to recover from our excursion!

Monday and Tuesday were spent quietly by the pool; we enjoyed another delicious dinner on Monday evening, finishing with a Limoncello, of course! On Tuesday we left the pool mid afternoon to get back to Verona for the 19.35 flight to Gatwick.

A wonderfully relaxing Italian break in glorious sunshine!

Postcard from Copenhagen April 2011

2011-04-15T06:58:00.019+01:00

I left London around 4.30pm on a beautiful sunny day and landed an hour and a half later in Copenhagen on a beautiful evening. Having spent half the flight sneezing, the cabin steward took pity on me and gave me lots of champagne – even a few to take with me! By the time I reached the Strand Hotel, the sneezing had stopped! Must have been some sort of hayfever! I spent the evening quietly in my tiny room downing more champagne.

The next morning, after a late breakfast, I went out to walk around Copenhagen on a glorious day before the rest of the Welsh National Opera Group arrived. It was a little chilly to start with but it soon warmed up. I walked all the way to the Little Mermaid, then back to the Amalienborg Palace where I watched the Changing of the Guard – not quite up to British standards! Then I wandered around Nyhavn watching everyone enjoying their drinks and lunches in the outside cafés. After returning to the hotel for a short break, I set off in the other direction to see Slotsholmen and Radhuspladsen. After walking for almost four hours I returned to the hotel to relax on a seat just outside overlooking the Canal for half an hour, and I then set off on another walk to see the Rosenborg Castle but was too late to go inside, so I returned to the hotel. I had been walking for about five hours so time to relax in my room. My friend Sue arrived around 6pm and after a drink we joined the others in the WNO party for dinner down the road.

The following day was not quite so fine but nonetheless quite a good day weather-wise. In the morning we went on a walking tour of Copenhagen with WNO group, visiting different places to where I had been the previous day. After a smorrebrod lunch we then went on a boat trip around the canals for an hour which was most enjoyable. That evening Sue and I went to the Custom House for dinner – my meal not too good, and then we took the Water-taxi across to the Opera House for a rather modern production of Romeo and Juliet. I have to say it was not quite my cup of tea – but was unusual to say the least!

Tuesday morning was very damp and chilly and it got wetter and wetter as the morning progressed! We had a tour of Christiansborg Palace which was absolutely fascinating and then Sue and I toured more of Copenhagen on foot and got pretty wet. We climbed Holy Trinity tower and after another smorrebrod lunch we visited the Crown Jewels in Rosenborg Castle. By then we were well drenched and returned to our hotel to recover before another ‘opera evening’. We dined at a little Italian restaurant en route to the Watertaxi and had a very good meal and not too expensive. Then we caught the water-taxi to the Opera House and saw a very good production of La Boheme. We water-taxied back to Nyhavn and nearly died of the cold, but a quick walk got us back to the Strand Hotel and a nightcap!

The last morning was rather dull and damp. Sue and I wandered over to All Saviours Church but that was closed, so then we walked to St Alban’s Church and had a look around there. After a hot chocolate we took ourselves to the Marble Church which was very impressive inside. Then back to the hotel to pack up and get out of our room. Once organised, we met up with friends, Andy and Jan, for a smorrebrod lunch and at 3.30pm set off for the airport. Arrived home by 8.15pm and it didn’t take long to unpack and collapse into bed! It was a most enjoyable long weekend in spite of the miserable weather of the last two days.

Postcard from Minerva in the Far East - January-March 2011

2011-03-17T17:49:00.089Z

I flew out to Singapore a little early for my embarkation on Minerva and spent a few days in Singapore to catch up with my nephew Simon and his family. I arrived on the evening of Friday 14 January after a comfortable flight; Simon met me and took me to the Hyatt Hotel and then he and I had a lovely dinner at Jones The Grocer in Dempsey Road. Afterwards it was back to the hotel to hit the sack for a few hours.

In the morning I wandered around the shops for an hour or so and then met up with Simon and his wife, Seetha. We did a bit more shopping before lunching in a delightful little restaurant in Club Street. In the evening I took a taxi across to Simon and Seetha’s very comfortable little home and spent an hour with them and their two delightful little children, over a lovely glass of champers. After that we went to the Fullerton Bay Hotel for a fantastic special cocktail in their bar on the top floor overlooking the Marina Bay Sands – it was a magical experience. The lights were just wonderful and we had a great time up there. We then went next door to the Palm Beach for a Chinese dinner before going back to my hotel. The following morning Simon, Seetha and daughter, Natasha, picked me up at 10.30 and we visited the Commonwealth Graves at Kranji en route to the Wetlands at Sungei Buloh, where we had a quiet walk for about an hour. We then lunched at ‘Bollywood’ a little local restaurant before I returned to my hotel for a quiet afternoon by the pool.

On Monday 17th I spent the morning at the Hyatt pool and then checked out of the hotel and made my way to Jurong Port to embark on Minerva. After unpacking I walked around the ship and met up with Captain Giovanni and Staff Captain Alex for a drink. I was later joined by Barbara, a friend from my last cruise, and she and I dined together. The next morning I managed to get myself out of the Port [not easy!] and spent the day with Seetha and the children and we had a lot of fun. I stayed for lunch and tea before making my way back to the ship. Soon after 8pm that we evening we sailed for Brunei. The next couple of days were spent soaking up the sunshine at sea, interrupted only by a Singles party and a Welcome party!

At 7am on Friday 21 January we arrived in Brunei, and I spent a wonderful day visiting that country. In the morning I went on local boat to explore the Mangrove Swamps – saw quite a lot of wildlife – crocodiles, monitor lizards, monkeys and many birds - it really was a great morning boating around! In the afternoon I did a City Tour of Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei. It was a fascinating afternoon, learning quite a lot about their Sultan. It finished with a cruise along the waterways and then enjoying tea and local cakes at the boatman’s house before returning to the ship to sail for Borneo.

In the very early hours of Saturday 21 January we arrived at Kota Kinabalu, the capital of the State of Sabah in Borneo. A wonderful local band greeted us as we stepped ashore and then I went of an amazing tour of Kota, including an hour or so at a local Cultural Village, which was quite an event! Then back to the ship just in time for sailing at 2pm for our next stop in Sabah, Sandakan. That evening I dined with Cruise Director, Hugh, plus two other friends. We arrived in Sandakan at midday and that afternoon I spent hours in an Orangutan sanctuary watching them and some macaque chimps play and feed – it was absolutely fascinating especially when one rather large one landed in the viewing area just in front of me! From there we went to a Chinese temple for a wonderful ‘Lion’ dance on poles! We sailed for Lahad Datu, our last stop in Borneo, that evening and arrived at midday on Monday 24th. I did a ‘city tour’ of the little town, visiting a temple, a local house and the fresh food market. We were an unusual sight to the locals as cruise ships rarely visit them! In the evening we sailed for the Philippines.

We had a windy but sunny day at sea, and I went to some friends’ suite for drinks in the evening, followed by dinner with my Swan friend, Rutters, and Barbara. The next morning I was invited to the Bridge to watch us arrive in Cebu, which was as fascinating as ever. We were greeted by some beautifully dressed Filipinos, who danced for us for about 30 minutes. After lunch I went on a tour of Cebu City, visiting the majestic Taoist Temple, some Filipino homes and museums, San Pedro Fort, Magellan’s Cross and the Basilica Minor del Santo Nino. Sadly it was a rather dark and damp day but it was fascinating to travel around the city and see their way of life, often in very poor dwellings. Cebu is home for some of the crew so we had quite a few visitors to the ship that day. Late that evening we sailed for Manila.

After a quiet day at sea, we arrived in Manila at 6.30 in the morning and I was up there to watch us come in. Manila has a sort of NY skyline as you approach and you can see the promenade like a pearl necklace. The Filipino crew were all up early and excited as most of them were meeting up with their families for the day. I went on quite a good City Tour, visiting a museum, a church, an old home, a Fort and a handicraft centre, and we then had a bus tour around the Old part of the City which was fascinating but sad too. So many ‘slum’ areas but also we saw such things as flower markets and suckling pigs being cooked on the street. We returned to find the crew and their families being fed and generally looked after on the quayside. Their families were allowed to visit the ship while the passengers were ashore in the morning and afternoon. That evening I dined with friends and then watched us depart at 11pm.

The following day at sea was very sunny but very windy and the seas were beginning to change. At around 4.30pm we left the shelter of the Philippines and headed out to sea towards Hong Kong, and from then on we hit very very rough weather. The winds were around 43 knots, storm force 9, all night, and my bed waltzed, my cupboards and drawers kept opening and shutting, and anything on any top rolled to the floor! It was a crazy night and I don’t think I slept a wink as we were tossed around all night long. The following morning a few of us crept up to the dining room for breakfast [the Veranda buffet up top was closed], and even there china crashed around and people had to be helped to their tables! I spent the day lazing around in my cabin. The Farewell Party was cancelled but the Gala dinner stayed, and as the ship was not jumping around so much, I dressed up and made my way up to dinner. As I walked through the Bar I met Captain Giovanni, so I stopped for a chat, and then we were joined by Colin, Swan MD, and Giovanni’s fiancée Danielle, and in the end we all went into dinner, together with the Hotel Director. So a fun evening even if we were still dancing around a bit. That evening I dropped off to sleep with ease, and woke up to a calm ship! It had been a very very rocky road from Manila to Hong Kong! At 6am on Monday 31st I was up on deck to watch us berth in Hong Kong.

That morning I went up to walk the Dragon’s Back – a very long but exhilarating walk, especially as the sun shone on us, even if there was a chill in the air. We initially had to climb very high, and even after that it is a tough walk across quite rough terraine. It was 8.5 km [5 miles] and you needed to keep up a good pace to complete in about 4 hours. Sadly one gentleman found it too hard going, and had difficulty in getting to the end, so we had a bit of a disastrous finish – the whole excursion took us about 6 hours instead of 4! That evening I met up with my lady boss’s friends who took me to the HK Yacht Club for a lovely dinner overlooking HK Harbour. The following morning I took a trip to HK Island to visit the Upper House Hotel, which is marketed by Pineapple Marketing [one of my jobs]. An amazing place and I had fun there. After that I walked The Lanes and then took a bus to Stanley Market where I spent the afternoon. I stopped for a spritzer and some samosas on the beach but otherwise toured the shops. Then back to the ship, where I watched a laser light show before meeting up with my friends Jack and Jane, with whom I had dinner. The next morning, Wednesday 2 February, I went into Harbour City with my computer to do some updating, and then took a long walk along Nathan Road to the Jade Market. After a light lunch I spent the afternoon on the top deck – it was rather hazy but reasonably warm, and then spent an hour on deck watching us sail out of Hong Kong before dining with friends. We then had a day at sea when there was a Singles party at lunchtime and the Welcome Dinner in the evening when I dined with the Hotel Director and two other friends.

On Friday 4 February we berthed at Haiphong in Vietnam and I went on a day’s excursion to Hanoi. We had a long journey – just over two hours – to Hanoi but there was so much to watch. The local people on every kind of transport, usually a bike or motorbike of some sort, sometimes a family of four on one motorbike plus luggage! There were many rice fields, Vietnamese locals working in them with their buffalo. On arrival in Hanoi we went to an amazing Water Puppet Show, which was very colourful and fun. After lunch in a local hotel, we toured around the city, viewing the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, One Pillar Pagoda and the Temple of Literature. After a good day it was another long drive back to the ship. That evening there was a good Classical concert, and we sailed for Halong Bay at midnight.

Early on Saturday 5th, we anchored in Halong Bay. It was long wait to get on the tenders, so I caught up with Giovanni and Cruise Director Paul for a chat. Then I went off on a wonderful cruise around Halong Bay on a local tender for three hours. Not too many of us on each ship, which made it easy to move around and I spent the morning on the top deck viewing the incredible rocks in the Bay. We saw the local fishing village, and then visited the amazing Thien Cung Cave before returning to the ship and I spent a few hours on the sun deck before watching us weigh anchor and continue to cruise around Halong Bay on Minerva for an hour or so. That evening I had a fun dinner with some friends in the Veranda Restaurant.

After a quiet day at sea, I was invited to dine with the Captain [the delayed Welcome dinner], which was preceded by an invitation to drinks with my friend Barbara, so that was a fun evening. The next day, Monday 7 February, we arrived in Da Nang, and I went on a lovely tour to Hoi An. It is now a bit more touristy than my last visit eight years ago, but I still enjoyed the morning and bought some lovely silk. The afternoon tour around Rural Da Nang was very poor and I regretted going on it. In the evening I met up with a friend of my lady boss and her husband for drinks and dinner and then danced on deck afterwards. Finally I watched us sail at 23.00 for Nha Trang.

After a quiet day at sea I went to the Crew Show and then had an early night. I was up early on Wednesday 9th February to watch us arrive at the pretty port of Nha Trang. In the morning I went on tour of the City, visiting pagodas, temples and buddhas! Sadly I had a bad bus and a bad guide which rather spoilt the morning for me. The afternoon was spent on the sun deck! In the evening I had dinner with Captain Giovanni and three other friends, and we had a great fun dinner. We spent the next morning cruising up the Saigon River and berthed in Ho Chi Minh City by 12.30, in between two replicas of Minerva II! In the afternoon I went on a City Tour – had done it all before but it was good to see it again. I visited the Reunification Palace, the History Museum, the Post Office that looks like a railway station, and China Town. Sadly we missed a Temple as it closed just before we got there. Then it was back to the ship through the Saigon rush hour which was an incredible experience – you have never seen so many motorbikes, usually with 2-4 people on each bike! I spent the next morning relaxing on the top deck and then watched us sail for Cambodia in the early afternoon. In the evening I dined with my friends Rutters and Barbara.

Saturday 12th was a peaceful day at sea in fabulous weather – almost too hot even for me! In the evening I had drinks in the suite of friends and then dined with four other friends in the Veranda Restaurant. In the morning I watched us arrive at Sihanoukville at the unearthly hour of 6am. Then I went back to bed for while and after breakfast I went to Sokha Resort and spent the morning on the beach and the afternoon by the pool. All very relaxing. In the evening I joined my friends Jack and Jane for dinner on the back deck before watching us sail for Bangkok at 11pm. We then had a quiet but very hot day at sea and the Farewell party in the evening. The party was on deck and then I dined with my Swan friends, Andrew and Andrea.

On Tuesday 15th we arrived in Bangkok two hours early, before I was up! I spent the morning visiting a tailor to get some shorts copied and dresses made up and in the afternoon I visited the largest teak mansion in the world, the Vimanmek Golden Teak Mansion, followed by a visit to the Throne Hall, an amazing place with some quite extraordinary gold exhibits, not to mention some outstanding embroidery pictures. We then had a very long journey back to the trip – made longer by the dreadful Thai traffic jams. After dinner I had a nightcap or two, with my friends Jack and Jane. The next day was change-over day, so the ship was a bit chaotic. However I took myself on a trip to see the Floating Market – this is the new market which I hadn’t visited before, always having gone to the one that was in the centre of Bangkok. It was a long journey, over an hour, but then the cruise on a long boat around the canals was fun, and we finished up in the Floating Market, where I resisted buying anything, just took lots of photos. Then back to the ship for a quick lunch before going back to the tailor for a fitting. After that I went to the MBK Centre in the centre of Bangkok for a wander around the shops for a couple of hours. That evening it was new passengers at the dinner table, after which I had a nightcap with Captain Giovanni. The following day, 17th February, I was meant to spend the morning on the ship and then go on an excursion in the afternoon, however it was all change. I did spend the morning on the top deck and took delivery of my new clothes at lunchtime but we had to depart early so all excursions were cancelled and I spent the afternoon on the sun deck. I was lucky enough to be invited to the Bridge for departure and stayed there while we sailed down the Chao Praya River for a couple of hours.

Friday 18th we were at sea all day and in the evening it was the Welcome Party and so wore one of my new dresses! Discovered that my old De La Rue friend, Diana Coghill, was on board with her husband, which was a nice surprise. I dined at my friend Rutters’ table, which was fun. Seem to have picked up a bit of a cold so had a couple of rums before hitting the sack! Thankfully the next day was another day at sea so I relaxed on the top deck with my streaming cold and cough. Listened to Hannah Gordon at the evening show, had a large rum for my voice and then retired to bed! The following morning I watched us arrive in Singapore, and then went off to meet with nephew Simon who took me to their apartment and I spent the day with him, his wife Seetha and his young family. We had a wonderful dinner party with Seetha’s sister and her husband and I returned to the ship by 10.45 pm. In the morning I made a brief shopping trip to Orchard Road in central Singapore and by 1.15pm we had sailed for Port Kelang where we arrived early on the morning of Tuesday 22nd. Most people went off to Kuala Lumpur that morning but having been there I did an excursion to Klang. We visited a local Malay home and then had photo stops at the Blue Mosque, the Alam Shah Palace and a short walk around Little India. Not the most inspiring of excursions! We sailed a little late at 7pm and that evening I went to an excellent piano concert.

On the morning of Wednesday 23rd we arrived at Georgetown, Penang, and after lunch I went on an excursion to the amazing Kek Lok Si Temple. It is just a little way outside Georgetown and we were a very small group of us. We walked up about 100 steps to the first part of this unbelievable temple – the largest Chinese Buddha Temple in Malaysia. It was all so colourful that you could hardly believe it. You have to take a small tram up to the Buddha at the very top but it was well worth the effort. You also got a great view of Georgetown from the top. It was a very hot afternoon, but a most enjoyable one. In the evening I took myself to the back deck for a sundowner and met up with my De La Rue friend, Diana. In the end she and I and her husband Peter all stayed outside and had our dinner there. Later that evening we sailed for Langkawi.

Early on Thursday we arrived in Langkawi and the Captain had a very tricky arrival with both wind and currents, not to mention many fishing boats with no lights just noisy engines! That morning I did an excursion around the island, of which the highlight was a cable car to the top of Machincang Mountain. The views across the island were incredible in spite of the mist. We then went on to visit some rice gardens before returning to the ship. We sailed from Langkawi at 3 o’clock during a brief rain storm which soon cleared and I was then able to spend an hour or so on the top deck. That evening was the Crew Show, again! After which I had a nightcap with friends. The following day we were at sea in the most gorgeous weather – blue skies and a slight breeze, so spent the whole day on the top deck. Made some nice new friends at dinner in the evening and had a nightcap with them before retiring.

On Saturday 26th we sailed into Port Blair in the Andaman Islands at 7am. I took a tuk-tuk into town in the morning, having been there before, but decided it wasn’t worth the visit so went straight back to the ship and relaxed there. In the afternoon, I went on a very good stroll around Ross Island where the British once had their administrative offices. It was very warm, and we were glad of a slight cloud cover for some of the time! After dinner that night was another ‘Evening with Hannah Gordon’ which was very good. The next two days were at sea, which I spent on the top deck, with the Farewell party on the first night and another Hannah Gordon evening on the second night.

Early on Tuesday 1 March we arrived in the rather tatty port of Chennai [Madras]. The security was very tight indeed and it took us an hour to get off the ship, on to our bus and through the port, but eventually we set off on a City Tour, visiting amongst other things the Mylapore Temple, San Thome Cathedral and Fort George, then back to the ship for an hour before setting off again in the afternoon on a Heritage Walk which was absolutely wonderful. After an hour long journey to the West of Chennai City we arrived at Koiyambedu Market, one of Asia’s largest fresh food markets. We spent half an hour there wondering in amongst the locals who loved having their photos taken! Then, after a brief photostop at the National Museum, we visited Egmore Railway Station and mixed with locals there. From there we drove to the Georgetown area of Chennai, and once again we spent half an hour walking in amongst the locals until we got to the Armenian Church, one of the oldest churches in India. Our walks amongst the locals was truly incredible, seeing life in India in the raw. That evening most of the passengers left for London, so it was relatively quiet. I cleaned up the library for the staff as it was in such a mess, before retiring to my cot.

On Wednesday I took it easy. Just a coach trip into the Taj Hotel in central Chennai in the morning to use the Taj’s WiFi system to update my computer, and then relaxed on the top deck in the afternoon. In the evening I relaxed with a drink on the back deck before and after dinner. In the morning I made the long journey to Mahabalipuram to see the amazing historic monuments carved out single bits of granite, as well as the Shore Temple nearby. It was extraordinary to see an elephant out of a single piece of granite. All absolutely fascinating. The afternoon was spent on the top deck, and in the evening I had the privilege of watching us depart Chennai from the Bridge. Then two quiet days at sea spent on the top deck, interspersed with a Singles party, a Welcome party and a performance by Absolutely Opera.

Early on Sunday 6 March we arrived in Tuticorin – a very commercial man-made port with coal and salt and containers all around us! I took an excursion to Pallayamkottai and Tirunelveli to visit a Temple and two lovely churches. In the second church we attended a lovely mass which was held especially for us. It was a long journey to and fro but it was fascinating to drive through Southern India – people washing in the river, buffalo soaking in the river and generally watching Indian life on the streets. Then back to the ship and an afternoon on the top deck, and a jolly table at dinner in the evening. Next morning we arrived at Kochi at midday where the temperature was 92 degrees in the shade! That afternoon I set off on an excursion to the Allepey Backwaters. It was a long journey out there but then we had an hour and a half cruising the backwaters and watching life and wildlife as we cruised. It was a peaceful and fascinating afternoon, and then our driver – a real Stirling Moss – drove us back to the ship at breakneck speed. That evening I dined with some of the Swan team. The following morning I went to Kumbalangj Village by tuk-tuk. There we were given refreshments, shown a lot of locals at work before taking a canoe ride back. A very good, if very warm, morning. That afternoon we had our first piracy drill as we are now just getting into pirate waters.

Just after 7am on Wednesday 9 March we arrived in Mangalore – a little late thanks to a late pilot! I did a City Tour as I haven’t been to Mangalore before, and it was very good, visiting a chapel, a temple and a cashew nut factory, all made a lot more interesting by a very good guide. The afternoon was spent on the top deck and in the evening I was invited to dine with the Hotel Director and Staff Captain, which was fun. Next morning we arrived at Marmagao – a really dreadful port covered in coal and iron ore, so absolutely filthy. Most passengers went to visit Old Goa, but having been there before I went to the beach for the morning which was wonderful. Had three good swims in the pool as the red flag was flying on the beach and soaked up the sunshine with a light breeze! That evening I had a delightful dinner with Captain Giovanni and some old friends – it was really good fun as there were just the four of us, and afterwards it was the Crew Show – the fourth time for me!

Around 10.30 on Friday 11 March we sailed into Mumbai. Having been there many times before I decided to relax on board for the day, and at one stage watched the antics on the quayside as the powers-that-be decided to put new fenders in between the quayside and the ship. In the evening I joined Giovanni, his radio officer Ravi and Ravi’s friend Joseph for a wonderful curry dinner in Mumbai, after which we stopped at the Gateway of India before returning to the ship. The next morning I took myself off to the Taj Mahal Hotel to try and use their WiFi system, but failed, but I went around the corner to the Apollo Hotel and succeeded there. I then met my Indian girlfriend, Geeta, for an iced coffee in the Sea Lounge of the Taj Hotel, before going to a money changer to get rid of my rupees after which Geeta dropped me off back at the port entrance. That afternoon I was lucky enough to be on the Bridge to watch us depart Mumbai for Muscat, after which we had a Piracy Drill, and that evening I dined with my De La Rue friend, Diana, and went to a concert by Absolutely Opera.

We then had two days at sea sailing along pirate alley in glorious sunshine. Giovanni had set in motion all sorts of anti-piracy measures which I will not elaborate on in case any pirate reads this!!! Both days were spent on the top deck, finishing with the Farewell Party on day one and a short visit to the Bridge at the end of day two. We finally arrived in Oman at 7am on Tuesday 15 March. That day I went on a day trip to Nizwa and Jabrin. The Nizwa Fort was incredible after which we visited the Souk and then went to a local hotel for an excellent lunch, although it was slightly spoilt by an influx of passengers off the Costa ship that was in port. The same group rather spoilt our visit to Jabrin Castle in the afternoon. When we got back into Muscat we were taken for a brief photo stop at the Sultan’s Palace. Once back on the ship I showered and packed up swiftly, and then joined Captain Giovanni for a glass or two of bubbles before leaving for the airport for my midnight flight home, and so I came to the end of a wonderful nine week holiday.

Postcard from St Lucia - December 2010

2010-12-27T20:56:00.021Z

After a fraught couple of days when the hotel threatened to cancel my booking because the agent hadn’t paid up, I eventually took off for St Lucia and although quite ‘bumpy’ at times, had a good flight and arrived at my hotel, Coconut Bay Hotel, in St Lucia in the late afternoon of Wednesday 15 December. Then the hotel tried to put me into the ‘children’ side of the hotel, but after I got everything sorted all was well. I had quite a reasonable room with a good view and with all mod cons, including Wireless Internet free, so I was happy! I had an Italian dinner and an early night.

The next few days were spent lying in the garden by the Adult pool [no kids anywhere near!] soaking up the sunshine and having a few easy swims with the odd rum drink or two! In the evening I alternated between an Italian and Asian dinner in their speciality restaurants, and kept well clear of the hotel’s main [buffet] restaurant, except for breakfast! Everything is very easy in the hotel as all food and drinks are inclusive, and so is Wireless so I can get on line in my room whenever I want to.

On Monday 20th, I took a tour of the island with Lamie, my local agent. He was a good guide and I enjoyed the tour, although was a bit bemused that we were out for six hours and no mention of any lunch! It was good to see the island, but it has been absolutely devastated by the hurricane in October. So many landslides, so many forests ruined, so many banana plantations wiped out, so many rivers across roads and most roads in a dreadful state. One landslide completely wiped out a house and all the family. Awful as it was to see, it was nonetheless good to see how fast they are moving to put everything right, but it is going to take them quite some time. It was very moving to see how they are all coping.

I have to confess that for the rest of my time in St Lucia my days were spent lying in the garden by the pool and the evenings were quiet dinners in one of the speciality restaurants. The weather remained pretty good – always fluffy clouds and the occasional shower, but I have returned with a good tan and feeling relaxed.

AMB/30.12.10

Postcard from Minerva - September-October 2010

2010-10-08T14:27:00.050+01:00

On Thursday 9th September I had a good BA flight from Gatwick to Naples, and had only been on board half an hour when some old friends rang me to invite me to drinks, so life on board started promptly! It was a good evening which started with drinks in my friends’ cabin and then I dined with them and finally over a nightcap or two met up with Captain Giovanni. A rather heavy evening!

The first morning I went off to see an amazing Roman villa called Villa Oplontis. The whole place is in remarkable condition and has some wonderful frescoes. At 2 o’clock we sailed for Taormina, passing Sorrento and Capri after a short while. The weather was not that good so I didn’t stay long on the outside deck that afternoon. The Welcome Party was that evening and I dined with two Swan staff and some other friends, followed by a nightcap! The next morning we anchored off Sicily at Naxos to visit Taormina, but having been there before decided to lie out on deck – but not for long the rains came! We had a few showers for the next twelve hours, but after that the sun came out and I spent much of the next couple of days on the top deck.

On the afternoon of Monday 13 September we began our wonderful approach to Venice albeit in rather grey weather. After a lovely morning on the top deck the clouds came up for our approach and stayed until we had berthed! Then a glorious evening! The following morning I set off on a visit to Murano and Torcello islands. A beautiful morning so a good sail to the islands. It was a relaxing visit to both islands and at the end many of us stopped at a local bar for a drink. I ordered an ‘Aperol Spritzer’, a great Italian drink. As so many people copied me, it is now called ‘Annie’s drink’! Then back to the ship for a quick lunch after which I walked Venice for three hours! Back exhausted to watch us sail with a glorious sunset. Then dined and had a nightcap with old friends.

On Wednesday I was up very early to watch Captain Giovanni bring us into his home port of Trieste on another glorious morning. On departure from the ship that day we were greeted with flowers and a Trieste goody bag, and then went off on a wonderful tour, albeit with a bad guide, of Miramare Castle - a beautiful castle right on the sea in lovely gardens. Back to the ship for a quick bite of lunch and then I went ashore again and walked Trieste for two hours – an absolutely wonderful city. I finished my walk with an aperol spritzer in the sunshine, then back to the ship for the most extraordinary departure! We had a band playing, we had the captain’s family all watching and some in their sailing boats escorting us, we had the tugs spraying water fountains – everyone was on deck to watch this amazing departure given to Giovanni – just fantastic to watch. In the evening I dined with one of my Swan friends, and we then we joined everyone out on deck for a ‘Deck Dance’. Rather a chilly one but good fun.

On Thursday morning we arrived in the Croatian port of Zadar. Having been there before I just had a walk around the little town for an hour and then returned to the ship to spend the rest of the day on the top deck! At 3pm we sailed for Split – a new port for me. That evening I joined a table who were celebrating a birthday and then went to the Crew Show. Early on Friday we arrived in Split and I went on a short tour of the fascinating city before driving out along the Riviera to a local restaurant for a glass or two of wine and some local food. At 2pm we sailed for Dubrovnik, but sadly the weather was not so good so the afternoon was a ‘catch-up’ one in my cabin, with the odd walk up on deck to see some marvellous scenery. In the evening I went to drinks in one of the Suites where I met and chatted to Peter O’Toole and then eight of us dined together. We arrived in Dubrovnik at midnight when I was in the land of nod, so had a lovely view of the delightful town when I drew my cabin curtains the next morning. Having visited this Town many times before I went on an excursion to Lokrum Island and had a relaxing morning there. The afternoon was spent relaxing on the top deck. The following day was ‘at sea’ so I spent it quietly on the top deck, and in the evening had drinks with friends in their suite. Captain Giovanni then invited me to join his table for dinner so we had a great fun evening, finishing with a few nightcaps at the bar!

On Monday 20th we arrived in Albania – my first visit. We anchored off Sarande and from there I took a bus journey to Gjirokaster. We drove through the most wonderful scenery for an hour and a half, although it was rather spoilt by seeing rubbish everywhere, a bit like Libya. On arrival in Gjirokaster we had a great tour of the old Castle, then we walked through the old Bazaar to a local restaurant where we were offered a drink. This was followed by a visit to a local museum which was a mock-up of an old Albanian house – really fascinating. Then the long journey back to the ship but once again we were able to enjoy the beautiful scenery. That evening was the Farewell dinner, and I dined with some new friends.

Early on Tuesday morning we arrived at the Greek island of Itea, but having been there before I decided to take a short walk around the town before heading for the top deck to enjoy the beautiful weather. Later that afternoon, Giovanni invited me on to the Bridge to watch us transit the Corinth Canal. Although I have been through the Canal a few times before, this was special as I have never watched it from the Bridge before – it really was an amazing experience watching such a large ship go through such a narrow canal! We could literally touch the plants growing on the side of the canal! Some of us then celebrated with a glass of Ouso! Early on Wednesday morning I took an excursion to see the Acropolis – it was good to visit again, but rather spoilt by the crowds of a large ship that was in port and by the fact that we did not have a very good guide. Then back to the ship for an afternoon on the top deck. Thursday was ‘change-over’ day on the ship, so after a quick visit to the Athens Passenger Terminal to use their WiFi facilities to update my computer, I went up to the Top Deck for the day and relaxed in glorious sunshine. That evening was rather chaotic as the outward/inward flights for the ‘change-over’ passengers were very delayed so I had a quiet dinner and was early to bed!

On Friday 24th I took an excursion to the new Acropolis Museum, which – unusually for me – I really enjoyed. An amazing place with glass floors, excavation work underneath the ground floor and fantastic views, and luckily I had a very good guide. At 3 o’clock that day we sailed for Nauplia and that evening was the Singles party. By the time we arrived in Nauplia the next morning, it was sadly rather damp and rainy. I had not planned any excursions so I wandered ashore and walked around Nauplia for an hour and then returned to the ship to relax on deck in spite of not much sunshine! We sailed for Santorini at 3 o’clock that afternoon, and in the evening I was on the Captain’s table at the Welcome Party. Was placed between the Captain and a very cheerful gentleman so we had a lot of fun! Early next morning we arrived at Santorini, which is high up on top of a volcanic rock. I was up to watch the Captain bring Minerva into the caldera and see the tugs tie us up to buoys. I then went off by boat and bus to Oia, a delightful little Greek town, and walked around there for an hour or so. Met up with a new friend, Barbara, and we had a quick drink before getting back on the bus and driving to the capital of Sardinia, Thera. Barbara and I found a delightful little bar called Franco’s, which I had read about, and had a lovely drink and light lunch overlooking the Aegean Sea with classical music in the background. I then walked around Thera in the scorching sunshine for a couple of hours before walking [for 30 minutes!] all the way down to the tender, passed the donkeys, and back to the ship. After a quick change I met up with Barbara and we set off back up to Thera where we enjoyed sundowners watching a beautiful sunset, and then moved on to have some dinner in a delightful little restaurant overlooking Minerva. Afterwards we took the cable car back down and joined some crew for a nightcap before taking the tender back to the ship to watch us sail for Patmos.

Early on Monday 27th September we arrived at the island of Patmos - my first visit there. It was a delightful place and we had glorious weather so all the little white houses glittered in the sunshine. I joined a tour around Chora and then walked around the port of Skala for a while. I met up with some friends for a drink before returning to the ship for a lovely afternoon on the top deck. We set sail for Canakkle in Turkey that afternoon. I spent most of the following morning watching us cruise past the Gallipoli memorials, and then spent the afternoon on the top deck having visited Canakkale many times before. In the evening Barbara and I invited the Swan team plus the Captain and Hotel Director to join us for a drink and then most of us dined together. Early on a rather grey Wednesday morning we cruised past Istanbul with all its mosques and palaces and bridges, and then, fortunately, the sun came back and so it was up to the top deck for the rest of the day. We arrived at Nessebur in Bulgaria at 6pm and the wind was kind so we were able to berth that evening. After watching us arrive I went to drinks with some friends and then Captain Giovanni and I decided to go back to the restaurant that we found in Nessebur last year, and had a most enjoyable and fun dinner. In the morning I went on an excursion into the countryside to visit Goritza – a lovely little Bulgarian village – and we were invited into a house for homemade ‘treats’ including some very strong alcoholic ‘treats’! We then visited a church and called on the Mayor before returning to the ship. I did a short walk around Nessebur town and then I was invited to the Bridge to watch us sail. However the wind had picked up and we couldn’t leave our berth, so our departure was delayed by three hours. It was a very very tricky manoeuvre to get us off our berth but our expert Captain managed it, not without a few nerve-wracking moments, to the applause of the passengers.

On Friday 1 October we arrived at Odessa on a very cold grey evening. I had a quiet dinner and a few nightcaps while many passengers went to the ballet. The next morning was glorious sunshine but a chill wind, so I took off and went for a brief walk around some of the sights of Odessa, and then returned to read my book in a sheltered place on deck, and at 2pm we sailed for Sevastopol. That evening I was invited to a party for all ‘back-to-back’ passengers after which I had a very nice dinner with one of my Swan friends. Next morning we arrived at a very chilly and windy Sevastopol, practically got blown away as I watched us arrive and we had a tricky time securing the springs [ropes]. Having been here before I took myself off on a walk around Sevastopol – walked for two hours around the city in a chill wind but it was very enjoyable, and being a Sunday very quiet. In the afternoon I went out to visit the ancient Greek city of Chersonesos and the wonderful St Vladmir’s Cathedral. Although grey and cold, it was a peaceful afternoon as we walked around this site, which is right on the sea. In the evening I had a slightly difficult dinner table and then the Black Sea Fleet Ensemble came on board, but having watched it last year, I took to the bar instead!

Very early on Monday 4th October we sailed into a grey and cold Yalta. In the morning I took myself off to walk around the little town of Yalta, visiting the beautiful cathedral among other things. In the afternoon I went on an excursion to the Alupka Palace, where the British stayed for the Yalta Conference; an impressive place. We then stopped en route back to ship to take a look at the stunning Swallow’s Nest, built on the cliff edge. In the evening I had a wonderful dinner with the Hotel Director, before watching us sail for Istanbul at 23.00 hours. The next day was ‘at sea’ on a sunny but chilly day. I did manage to read on the top deck for a short while in the morning and afternoon, but was warmed up by joining some friends for drinks and lunch. In the evening it was the Farewell Party and I joined quite a good table for dinner which included Douglas Hurd, my old boss!

Early on Wednesday morning, 6th October we sailed up the Bosphorus, and berthed in Istanbul at 8am. Breakfast that day was only my second indoors since I had been on board! I spent that day catching up with myself and with my friends on board as well as packing up. Istanbul was very full of people and it was very grey and wet so it was better on board than ashore, especially as it was my fifth visit! The following day I flew back to Heathrow, and was back home by 5.15pm after another great cruise.

Postcard from Austria and Germany, August 2010

2010-08-18T23:10:00.016+01:00

On Saturday 7 August I set off with my friend Sue for our visit to Oberammergau. We left Heathrow for Munich early morning, enjoying a good brunch en route. We then took a train from Munich to Garmisch and a bus to Seefeld, arriving at the Hotel Seespitz around 4pm. We had the most wonderful room with a large balcony overlooking the lake and the gardens of the hotel. First stop was a bite of chocolate cake and a cup of coffee not having eaten since mid morning; second stop was a glass of wine sitting outside in the glorious sunshine. Then we unpacked and got ready for dinner – a delicious buffet dinner enjoyed with a backdrop of sunset on the mountains!

Next morning wasn’t as sunny as we had hoped so we strolled around the little town of Seefeld. Nearer to lunchtime we stopped for an Aperol Spritzer and watched the world go by. The sun came out in the afternoon so we managed a short time by the pool before getting ready for a gala dinner in the hotel. Monday and Tuesday were much better days weatherwise! We spent both days relaxing by the pool in glorious sunshine and on Tuesday late afternoon we walked into the village and then had a gentle stroll around Lake Wildsee.

On Wednesday morning we set off for Ettal. When we got to the station for our train, we discovered that the lines were closed so we took a bus to Garmische and then took a taxi up to Ettal. After a glass of wine in the garden of our hotel we set off on a walk around Ettal and the Abbey, but then it started to rain so back to the hotel to unpack. In the evening we dined with the other members of our Group [Friends of Welsh National Opera] who we would be travelling with around Austria and Germany.

Thursday was Passion Play day so we set off at 10.30 on a shuttle bus into Oberammergau. We walked around the little town until lunch time and then joined up with our group. After lunch we walked down to the Passion Play House for the first part of the play. It started at 2.30 and finished at 5pm and was absolutely amazing. It really was the most incredible play that I have ever seen. We then walked back to our restaurant for dinner before returning to the Passion Play House for the second part of the evening – we all left at almost 11pm just amazed by the whole performance. The cast was around 2,000, including many children and there were also horses, donkeys, sheep, goats, doves, camels and even a cockerel! Everything was so very real and how they all remembered their lines for seven hours, I will never know. All absolutely unbelievable.

On Friday morning we left at the crack of dawn for Lindorhof Palace – a beautiful palace and even more beautiful grounds. We walked around the palace and the grounds for a few hours and then drove on to Hohenschwangau. Here the heavens decided to open! We managed to walk up the road for a drink and lunch and then walked up to Neuschwanstein Castle, but by then the rain was really coming down. We did manage a tour – not an impressive one - of the Castle, and then walked quickly down back to our bus – a long and wet walk. We were all thoroughly drowned by the dreadful weather. After that we drove on to Bregenz to unwind, unpack and have a nice dinner.

On Saturday Sue and I walked to the station first thing to buy our train tickets to Munich for the following day and then we joined a small group on a walking tour of Bregenz, after which we took the train across to the small island of Lindau. We were joined by three friends for a lovely lunch on the waterfront to celebrate Sue’s birthday. Sue and I then walked Lindau for a couple of hours before taking the little boat back to Bregenz. In the evening we walked along to the Floating Opera Stage area of Bregenz for dinner where we had a very nice meal and were joined by Andy [the tour administrator] and his wife Jan which was fun. Then we wandered along to our seats to watch Aida on the Floating Stage. Sadly it started to rain, but armed with plastic ponchos we were kept very dry. It was a spectacular production but rather OTT in many ways. There was so much going on that you often missed one piece of the action for another, and the cast all got very wet not just from the rain but from splashing around in the water. All the scenery was manipulated by cranes – often some extraordinary sights! Thankfully the rain disappeared by the end and we were able to walk back to our hotel in the dry!

The following morning Sue and I took the train to Munich and flew home to Heathrow in the afternoon. A lovely break, of which the visit to Seefeld and the Oberammergau Passion Play were the highlights.

Postcard from Kenya and Cape Town February-March 2010

2010-03-28T09:57:00.055+01:00

After a painless flight I arrived safely in Nairobi on the evening of Tuesday 23 February. I was taken to the Fairview Hotel for the night, where I had to repack and put my Bush-gear into a small bag as I was only allowed 15k on my flights into the Bush. This I did with a whisky and a delicious bowl of tomato soup! I fell into bed at midnight and slept fitfully!

At 6.45 the next morning I was off on safari! My original flight had been cancelled so I went on a small plane which took me over Kenya for an hour – we flew passed Mount Kenya and on via Loisaba to Nanyuki – most of the time I had the little plane to myself and it was just wonderful! A second small plane – again to myself – took me to the airstrip at Elsa’s Kopje in Meru National Park. An amazing camp – and my room felt like it was out of doors! I fear I might hear too much over night!! Around me are plenty of birds and lizards and little guinea-pig type animals called Bush Hyrax which seem to be everywhere and like to use the shelf around my room as a racing track!

I spent the morning quietly unpacking and getting a feel for the place. Then had drink by the pool, lunched with the Manager, Sue, and spent the afternoon by the pool until 4.30 when I went off on my first game drive with George, my Guide. We had a good evening, saw quite a lot of small game plus a few white rhino, masses of giraffe. Around 6.15 we stopped for a sundowner in the Bush with giraffes as the backdrop! Then drove back to the camp for a quick change and dinner which tonight was in the garden – I was joined again by Sue and by Brenton, who had just arrived as trainee camp manager.

After a good night’s sleep, I was woken at 6am with a glass of juice and then went off on my next game drive, and Brenton came too. Again saw lots of game, including elephant, hippo, Grevvy’s zebra, which is very rare. Stopped for our picnic breakfast overlooking a river, and there we saw a crocodile sunbathing! Back to the camp at about 11 o’clock and we saw a little bush baby just on the approach to the camp – very rare as it is nocturnal. I spent the rest of the day relaxing at the Camp until the next Game Drive at 4.30 – a good drive but didn’t see so much – mostly buffalo and elephants, but that evening we had our sundowners with zebra as our backdrop! On return to my room at the camp I found a bat in my room which took a bit of dealing with! Having ducked and dived I hid behind my mosquito netting around my bed and at dinner asked the manager to get rid of it, which she duly did! We then had dinner under the stars!

On Friday morning I was up again for another game drive at 6.30 with George, and we had a great drive – saw many things very close up and actually saw seven lion, three of them in a tree! This morning we had our picnic breakfast with giraffes and a buffalo! Returned to the lodge around 10.45 to find elephants blocking our way, so we gently persuade them to move and let us through! After a light lunch and a quiet break by the pool I set off again with George on an evening game drive. Luck was with us again. We went back to where the lions were in the morning and found two and another walking away. With that two other cars arrived so we drove off and came back 15 minutes later when those cars had moved on. We found the lions still there and by searching the area we found the lioness who had wandered off. We stuck with her and watched her walk to the river for a drink and then walk back – absolutely wonderful sight! Our drive continued with the odd spotting of elephant, giraffe, and various types of the deer family until it came to ‘sundowner’ time. Having failed to find any animals to drink with we stopped to admire the mountains and within minutes four jackal walked by – quite amazing! A great day of game viewing! The day finished with dinner under the stars and I was joined at my table by the boss of Cheli & Peacock who owns the lodge, plus his Operations Manager, and of course Sue and Brenton, so we had a fun dinner.

Early on Saturday 27th, my last day at Elsa’s Kopje, George and I set off again this time on a long drive through the National Park to see Elsa’s grave – a really peaceful place to have our breakfast. We then did a short game drive at the end and saw a huge herd of buffalo as well as the remains of a ‘kill’ [a small zebra]. After a quiet afternoon by the pool George and I set off again, saw quite a lot of game and many large birds, finishing with a lion who had just killed but who was sadly rather distant and we couldn’t get close. So back to the camp for my last dinner at Elsa’s which was another fun one in the garden.

At 6.30am on Sunday 28th George and I set off to find our lion and we managed to get quite close but not close enough for good photos. So we had our breakfast and then went back to the camp to pick up two others and thence on to Meru strip for my flight to Olonana. It was quite long in a small plane as it hopped across Kenya for two and a half hours but it was great to see the countryside. Arrived at Olonana’s air strip where my guide, Joseph, met me. We had to wait for two others, Ted and Barbara, on the next flight, 15 minutes later, and then we set off through the wonderful Mara countryside passing lots of game as we went. We arrived at Olonana Camp around noon, where I have a nice room, built into a tent – it’s a very smart tent with electrics and running water! The camp is built alongside the Mara River and my tent is right beside the river. After unpacking I had a relaxing lunch then spent the afternoon at my ‘tent’ watching the hippos and baboons on the opposite bank of the river. At 4pm I went off on a wonderful game drive through the Mara with Joseph, plus Ted and Barbara, and we had a great time. Saw a pride of ten lions, plus another solo lion, a black rhino, plenty of elephants, one group with a particularly young calf, as well as a mass of varying antelopes etc, and sadly one very very young giraffe without a mother and with a bad leg.. We eventually left the park at 6.30 and had our sundowners overlooking the Mara before returning to Olonana camp for dinner.

On Monday we set off after an early breakfast on another game drive. We soon saw some delightful young lion cubs, but they were really only visible with binoculars, so we made our way on into the Mara, and lo and behold there were four cheetahs. Quite incredible! They had just made a kill and were enjoying their meal! We watched them for about an hour, with vultures hovering ahead in nearby trees waiting for the carcass. The cheetahs then wandered around near to our car so we saw them close up before lying down to sleep off their meal. After a coffee-stop we went on a search for lions but our Land Rover got very stuck in a bad ditch and it took poor Joseph half an hour to get us out of the ditch! They have had a lot of rain recently and the tracks in the Mara are very wet so we tended to slip and slide and waltz our way along the muddy tracks, sometimes more like rivers than roads, with mud flying everywhere! On the way back to Olonana we saw rhino, hippo, giraffe and many other animals. Then a late lunch and a large glass of wine! That afternoon it absolutely poured with rain, so that when we set out for our evening drive we could not get across the ford-bridge to the Mara Park as the river was moving at a tremendous rate. We eventually drove in at an ‘illegal’ entrance, but we saw nothing and got pretty wet in spite of our special raincoats! After a sundowner – or rather a raindowner – in the park we drove back to the camp.

On Tuesday 2nd March, Joseph and I, with Ted and Barbara, set off on a fantastic 9 hours in the park. Our first view of the park was with sun rising over the Mara – a truly beautiful sight. Then we journeyed across the park, making our way towards the Tanzanian border. However, unbelievably, Joseph suddenly saw a male lion in the long grass in the distance so we hurried towards him and there he was with his two lionesses. We stayed with them for a while until they started to move, and then Joseph decided he knew what they would do! And he was right of course! They made for the road we had been on so we raced back there and watched them make a kill of a baby gazelle. We followed the lioness with the kill, and the lion chased her taking the ‘kill’ off her, so the lioness missed her meal! We sat and watched them for quite a while – listening to the lion crunch the bones of the little gazelle, all rather sad. Eventually they all lay down to sleep and we moved on. Quite amazing! So we ventured on towards the Tanzanian border where we stopped for our excellent bush breakfast just short of the border and after breakfast stopped a little further to admire the Serengeti. We then set off to see a lot more animals, including a rhino, buffalo, giraffe very close up, loads of hippos out of the water, some standing up, and three huge crocodiles not to mention a few other lions in the distance. Then unbelievably Joseph spotted a leopard and we got very close before he descended his tree and shot off into the long grass. Joseph was a marvel that day, even though he got us stuck again in the very muddy Mara, and it took us over an hour to get unstuck! We eventually got back for a late lunch at 3.45! But what an incredible morning – the Big Five in one go!

Later that afternoon in rather rainy conditions, Joseph took me across to see a Masai village just behind the camp. It was an extraordinary place – all their cows in the middle with a bush around them, their tiny mud homes, their bright clothing with so many beads around their necks. I had an enjoyable hour with these people before going back to the camp for a quiet dinner. There was so much rain over night that by next morning everything in my ‘tent’ was really damp and I was quite glad to be moving on! It was a wonderful three days with a brilliant guide.

I was up early on Wednesday 3rd to pack and after breakfast I set off for the airstrip that was about 40 minutes from the camp. There I took a small plane to Nairobi, arriving at midday. I was taken on a short tour of Nairobi, as well as making a brief visit to Karen Blixon’s house in the Karen suburb. Had a nice lunch at The Verandah in Karen and then headed for the airport for my evening flight to Mombasa. I arrived at 7pm and was in the Serena by 8pm, and it was good to have a bath and recover from the safari! The hotel is set in wonderful gardens, with a good sized pool. My bedroom is very small but overlooks the ocean and the garden and I am just minutes from the pool. So my days at the Serena were spent relaxing with a book, swimming and soaking up some sunshine!

On Tuesday 9th March I set off back to Nairobi on an early morning flight and got to the Norfolk Hotel soon after midday. The hotel gave me a lousy room and their pool was not working but thankfully I was invited to visit the De La Rue banknote factory that afternoon so I did not have to worry too much about the hotel. The DLR General Manager picked me up around 2.15 and off I went for a most enjoyable afternoon in the DLR factory. It was great to be back and I found it all fascinating – bringing back many happy memories! In the evening I joined the GM for some drinks and then helped him entertain some visiting customers. A fun afternoon and evening!

After a very short night, I went back to the airport for a very early flight to Jo’burg and on to Cape Town, and it didn’t take long to get out of the airport and on to my apartment on the Marina. It is a lovely place overlooking the Cape Town Waterfront and from my bedroom I have a view of Table Mountain. On the first day I discovered that I had a friend at the Cape Grace Hotel, so joined him for drinks at 6.30 for an hour before he had to leave for the airport. Day two was spent at the pool relaxing in the sunshine, and day three I went out to the winelands with my new Tour Guide, Bryan. We had an excellent day, starting at Durbanville Hills winery, and then went on to the Waterford Estate where you can taste wine with chocolate! We had a lovely lunch at Dieux Donné overlooking the Franschhoek and Stellenbosch valley. After lunch we called into Rickety Bridge winery before making a long tour across the Franschhoek Pass and we drove off-road across farmlands to Botriver coming back on to the main road Kleinmond. After stopping at Steenbraswate Pump Station for a good view of the Strand we drove along the coast to Gordons Bay and back to Cape Town by 7pm.

After a quiet Sunday by the pool, I spent Monday morning on my balcony and then met up with a new friend for lunch at Wakame at Mouille Point which was excellent. Walked around the Waterfront for a while in the afternoon and saw my old ship Discovery in port! On Tuesday went into the Waterfront to meet two old friends for lunch at Willoughbys. After leaving them went for a ‘glass’ at the new hotel the ‘One & Only’ – meant to be a seven star hotel. Stunning view from their bar but not sure about the seven stars! The next week, except for one rather cloudy day, was spent quietly by the pool soaking up the sunshine, with the occasional meeting with friends! On the Saturday I met up with my friend June for some coffee and scrambled eggs in the extended Cape Quarter, and then we went on for a glass of wine at the fabulous new restaurant, The Grand & Beach, and on the Sunday met up with some friends for lunch at Baia on the Waterfront. One evening, I met up with Kerry, daughter of my friend/guide who died last year, and we had a glass at the Cape Grace. But mostly it was days by the pool and evenings quietly in my apartment – it was just so wonderful to sit on your balcony in the evening with a glass and just watch Cape Town by night! A fantastic holiday! Sadly back home on 26 March but thankfully just ahead of the BA strike!

Postcard from Antigua, December 2009 - January 2010

2010-01-16T17:10:00.022Z

I departed Gatwick on time on Christmas Eve and landed in Antigua just before 5pm. After picking up my luggage, it was a half an hour taxi ride to Jolly Harbour. I checked into the little villa, which is very basic, and then made a 20 minute walk to the nearest shop to stock up! Thankfully a very nice Security lady saw me struggling back to the villa with my shopping and gave me a ride! So then it was an evening of whisky and unpacking!

The first few days were very quiet – wonderfully sunny so I spent them on the patio relaxing and soaking up the sunshine. Sue arrived late afternoon on the Monday and we had a boozy evening on the patio! The next morning we set off to hire a buggy to make it easier to get around but there were none available so made the long walk back to our villa and then walked up to North Beach which was a bit of a disappointment. We had a picnic lunch beside the beach and then went back to the villa for the afternoon.

On Wednesday Sue and I took a local bus into St John’s and spent the morning walking around the little town, which was rather inundated by passengers off two very large cruise ships! We bussed home by 1pm, picked up some food and had a quiet lunch in our villa. In the afternoon we took delivery of a little buggy so life should be a lot easier – the 20 minute hike into the centre of Jolly Harbour is too much in this heat!

On New Year’s Eve Sue and I started off early again, bussed into St John’s and then bussed on to English Harbour. We walked around the wonderful Nelson’s Dockyard, and then took a water taxi across to Galleon Bay, from there we walked for 30 minutes up the ‘lookout’ trail to Shirley Heights – a really tough climb, especially in the heat. The view up there of Nelson’s Dockyard and English and Falmouth Harbours is amazing and worth the walk. After a drink and a rest we managed to persuade two policemen to drive us back down to the Bay as Sue was suffering from blisters! We then took the water taxi back to Nelson’s Dockyard where we stopped for some lunch and then bussed back to St John’s and on to Jolly Harbour. After a little drive around Jolly Harbour in our newly acquired buggy we relaxed in our villa for the afternoon. In the evening we had a torrential downpour and had quite an experience driving our buggy in the tipping rain to a restaurant for dinner, but we had quite a good, if large, Italian meal, even if we were soaked!
For the next three days we took ourselves to South Beach. We took a picnic and a decent drink with us and just lay there soaking up the sunshine with our books! There is a rip tide at the moment, so swimming has not really been possible, although we did manage to jump around in the waves every now and then. It is however a long beach so we were able to wander along. In the evenings we went down to the resort and had some quite good dinners.

On Sunday 3rd January Sue left for London in the evening and Jackie arrived. The first evening was spent quietly at the villa. For the next couple of days we relaxed on the beach by day and had dinner in the resort in the evening. The rip tide is calming although only just, but the weather continues to be glorious. On Wednesday Jackie and I went into St John’s for a stroll around and we eventually caught up with my friend Euri in her shop Eureka. In the afternoon, after lunch in the villa, we strolled around the North beaches, and had an Italian dinner in the evening.

On Thursday Euri had offered to take us on a drive in the afternoon, so we spent the morning on the beach and came back to the villa for lunch, but sadly the drive did not materialise, so in the end we spent the evening in the villa. However on Friday after another morning on the beach, Euri did materialise and took us to Carlisle Bay where I met up with some of Pineapple Marketing connections, and we were kindly offered a drink, after which Euri then dropped us back at Jolly Harbour.

Saturday and Sunday were quiet days on the beach – just swimming and lying in the sun with the occasional wander along the long beach in search of shells, of which there were many, and in the evening quiet dinners at the local restaurant. Montserrat is very clear from the beach and on Saturday the volcano was steaming! On Monday once again I was off by bus to English Harbour and Nelson’s Dockyard, this time with Jackie. I repeated last week’s excursion! We took a water taxi to Galleon Bay and from there we walked the Lookout Trail up to Shirley Heights. Another tough climb and of course we needed some replenishment once up the top. This time we walked all the way down by tarmac road and took the water taxi back to Nelson’s Dockyard. Once again it was lunch at the Admiral’s Inn before taking the two buses back to Jolly Harbour, and a quiet evening at the Villa.

Tuesday 12 January was a day on the beach – even though it was very warm we had quite a lot more cloud, and then we had a final dinner at Peter’s Steak House. Wednesday was a bit of shell-shock day! I awoke to a text message from a friend telling me that Gatwick was closed, so I checked my flight online to discover that it was cancelled! After struggling to get information for hours, we then decided to go to the beach for an hour or two and let life settle. I then went back to the villa at lunchtime and struggled with all sorts of contacts to try and find a flight home. Eventually a good friend of mine back home used her Travel Department to help and we got a seat for me and Jackie on the BA flight the next day. It was all however a bit of a nightmare especially as BA made no contact with me whatsoever.

The final day was spent quietly on the beach in glorious sunshine before leaving for the airport very early to ensure we get the seats we had booked, and we eventually took off for London well after midnight – well over 24 hours late – but at least we made it!

Postcard from Minerva in Greece and the Black Sea, September-October 2009

2009-10-05T22:29:00.021+01:00

I left home at 4.45am and then eventually took off for Athens at 8.30am. A good flight and nice companions, and was actually in my cabin by 4.30 Greek time. I was greeted by a bottle of wine from a member of the Swan team and a bottle of champagne from a friend who was on the previous cruise. After the safety drill went for a walk around the ship, bumped into Captain Giovanni and put the world to rights over a drink for an hour or so! We were slightly delayed sailing from Athens – late delay of last passengers – so had a quick dinner and then watched us sail before retiring to bed with a whisky!

At 7.30 on Sunday morning the thrusters were deployed which got me out of bed so got up to watch the Captain bring us into Nauplia on a fine but slightly cloudy morning. Spent the morning on the top deck until it started to rain, then went down to watch us leave. Giovanni signalled for me to watch from the Bridge as I was getting rather wet, so had some fun on the Bridge for a while. In the evening it was the Singles party and afterwards I dined with Hugh, the Cruise Director, and two other lady friends of Hugh, followed by quite a few nightcaps! The following morning we were at anchor off Skyros, so I tendered ashore and we were then bused to little Skyros Town, 20 minutes away. After a couple of hours of walking the Town, I got a text message from Giovanni to say he was coming ashore for lunch. Once he arrived we searched the little town for a restaurant serving lunch, but nothing, so we bussed back to the Port and found a delightful little restaurant and there we sat in the glorious sunshine had a wonderful fish lunch with some excellent Greek wine! Later that afternoon we sailed for Volos. In the evening it was the Captain’s Welcome party, and of course I was not only on the Captain’s table but also sat beside him. Had a really excellent evening!

By 8am on Tuesday we had berthed in Volos and at 8.30 I was on my way to get on the little train that takes you up Mount Pelion. It was a really wonderful journey with great views. After a short walk around Milies at the top, we were driven back to the ship, where I spent the afternoon on the top deck in the sunshine. We sailed out of Volos at 8pm and eventually arrived the next morning in Canakkale, Turkey, around 12.30pm. The Captain had a very difficult time berthing us with strong winds and strong currents. It was a masterful piece of seamanship. I decided not to go ashore having been twice before and spent the afternoon relaxing on the top deck. In the evening we sailed for Nessebur in Bulgaria and then I met up with my friends Harry and Jeanne Massey for drinks. We then went into dinner together and I found myself next to an old school friend who had recognised me! After a good dinner table, Harry, Jeanne and I went upstairs for a nightcap and the Captain joined us for a short time while we were there.

On the morning of Thursday 24th we cruised along the Bosphorus in beautiful if windy weather and past Istanbul with some beautiful views of the city and from there we cruised into the Black Sea and passed a pod of dolphins on the way! The wind then died down quite a bit and I was able to spend the whole day on the top deck! In the evening we sailed into Nessebur – a very tricky port to get into but our capable Captain brought us in through the swell. Later he and I went out for a fun dinner in Nessebur! The following morning I took an excursion up to the Balkans to a little town called Eketch seeing how they live up there which was fascinating. On arrival back at Nessebur I walked around the old town for 20 minutes before returning to the ship and the top deck for the afternoon. We sailed at 6.30 that evening for Odessa. Had a good table at dinner and had a good many nightcaps afterwards.

I spent most of Saturday 27th on the top deck enjoying the sunshine. The temperature went down occasionally but it was overall a lovely day. Watched us sail into Odessa at 5.30 and at 6.30 I was off to the Opera House to watch a delightful performance of Giselle. Once back on the ship around 9.30, it was supper and then a reasonably early night. In the morning I went on a walking tour of Odessa in glorious sunshine. There was a bit too much ‘talk’ and not enough ‘walk’! The afternoon was spent on the top deck! In the evening it was the Crew Show – a slightly updated version for me, so I went along, and it was very good indeed. Even Captain Giovanni appeared insisting that the Captain’s band would be playing – he played about one ‘ting’ on the Triangle! A good fun evening!

On Monday morning we sailed into Sevastopol at 8am and I went on an excursion to Bakhchisarai Palace and Assumption Monastery. Discovered I had been there before! However they are very peaceful places and it was a lovely trip under cloudless skies. In the afternoon it was back to the top deck! In the evening we had the Black Sea Fleet Ensemble entertain us for a while and then I watched us depart at 11pm, followed by a few nightcaps. We arrived in Yalta the next morning at 8 o’clock and I went off on the ‘Tsar’s Walk’ which took us on a lovely walk under cloudless skies from St Mikhail’s Church to the Livadia Palace. Once again the afternoon was spent on the top deck – although sunny it was getting cooler! That evening I met up with Hugh’s two friends, Marion and Jane. We had drinks in my cabin and then had a fun dinner together, followed by a few nightcaps!

On Wednesday 30th September I was up and about reasonably early to watch our approach to Kerch in Ukraine. It was a difficult approach - we were almost slaloming through the red and green buoys! The water around was very shallow and Captain Giovanni was very worried that we might not make it – but we did! The band was there to greet us and Giovanni was up to his old tricks – he went out on to the quay with his ‘Triangle’ and joined the band! Later that day I took a short excursion around Kerch, but there was not that much to see, and we had our first rainfall of the cruise, so it was not much fun walking around in the rain! So back to the ship fairly quickly! Had another good table at dinner followed by a few nightcaps!

Thursday was spent at sea. The weather was reasonable so I spent most of the day on the top deck even though it was a little cool. At noon I went to drinks with my friends, Ronald and Lynn, in their suite and then back to the top deck! In the evening it was the Farewell Party – I had a entered a quiz to guess the name of the place on the same Longitude and Latitude, and got it right. Only two of us got it right so we each got a bottle of champagne presented at the party. I then joined Paul Cranny [Swan] for a good dinner table, of course followed by a few nightcaps!

Was woken up at 5am as we arriving at Istanbul so went up to watch us arrive, and then went back to bed. It was a beautiful sunny day so spent the whole day on the top deck. Giovanni sent me a text towards the end of the day, so visited him in his cabin to give him some of my better photos. We then had a coffee together on the Bridge before he set off for a night on the tiles with some colleagues from another ship who were in Port. I had a quiet dinner and packed up and had a fairly early night.

I spent the final morning on the top deck – the weather wasn’t brilliant but it was dry and it was good to relax until 4.30pm when it was time to depart the ship. Goodbye to Giovanni at the bottom of the gangway and then left for a very long night. Our flight was very delayed and I eventually got home at 1am, which was 3am my time. Except for the two charter flights it was a wonderful holiday.

Postcard from Italy, July 2009

2009-08-02T18:32:00.010+01:00

On Monday 20th July I took the Gatwick Express from Victoria and met up with my friend, Sue Sheridan, at the Sofitel Hotel at Gatwick. We gave ourselves a very nice pasta dinner and dropped into bed! On Tuesday 21st we were up and off by 7am and took off for Verona by 09.50 – almost 40 minutes late. However we made up time and landed in Verona by 12.35, only 20 minutes late! We were met by a driver from our hotel and arrived at the Hotel Olivi in Sirmione at 13.30. Once in our room it didn’t take us long to unpack and get down to the pool to relax and swim in the glorious sunshine. We made a quick trip into the little town in the late afternoon, and bought some wine and nibbles for our room, and later had a delicious dinner sitting on the dining balcony of the hotel.

The next couple of days were spent soaking up the sunshine by the pool. On Thursday evening we had an early dinner in the hotel and were then driven into Verona so that we could go to see Carmen at the Verona Arena. Not the best opera I have ever seen at Verona, and sadly not very good seats either – the luck of the draw, I guess. Managed to meet up with my friend Liliane during two of the intervals, which was great. Then back to the pool for the day on Friday.

On Saturday Sue and I set off for the Lake Garda ferries. We took the ‘Rapido’ ferry at 9.30 and went to Garda where we walked the shops and then stopped for an Aperol [a delicious Spritzer type of drink]. We then walked from Garda to Bardolino, where we once again walked the shops before stopping for another Aperol and a light lunch before catching the ferry/boat back to Sirmione.

The next two days were spent quietly by the pool, and enjoying delicious dinners in the hotel in the evening. On Tuesday afternoon, 28 July, we flew home at 4pm and, thanks to the time difference, I was back in my flat in London by 6.30pm.

Postcard from Canada and Alaska, June 2009

2009-06-28T15:07:00.059+01:00

I arrived at Heathrow check-in at 9.30 on Sunday 31 May to be told that I had been upgraded to first class and so made my way to the first class lounge! I then had a very comfortable flight to Toronto where I was met my cousins Pauline and Dinny, who drove me for an hour or so to Courtice, a suburb of Toronto for the 65th party of my other cousin Heather. It was a good party and I met up with all Heather’s family and friends. At around 7.30pm [12.30pm my time] Pauline, Dinny and I set off for Dinny’s cottage on Kahshe Lake, near Bracebridge. Two and half hours later we arrived and I fell into bed around 4am my time!

After a good night’s sleep, and a good breakfast, the next morning, we set off for Bracebridge itself and went to Dinny’s friend Brian where we spent an hour or so and Brian took us on a excellent tour of the Bracebridge area. After a visit to Dinny’s home in Bracebridge [she is in the process of selling up this home and moving to Calgary], we drove back to Kahshe Lake and had a happy evening together in the cottage. The next day Pauline, Dinny and I picked up Brian from Bracebridge and went on a tour around Huntsville and Deerhurst. We stopped for a wonderful lunch at The Cottage on the river at Huntsville, and then returned to the cottage via Bracebridge. On our last evening at the cottage we had a delicious dinner, played with our photos and laptops, and watched a DVD.

On Wednesday morning, Pauline and I bade farewell to Dinny and set off for Pauline’s home in Wainfleet on the other side of Lake Ontario. We stopped at Hamilton for a short time to call on Marjorie, Pauline’s elder daughter, and then drove on to Pauline’s apartment, where we had a rather late pizza lunch! About an hour or so later Pauline’s son and daughter-in-law [Tony and Daystar] came over with two of their children and had some supper with us, and a little later that evening Pauline and I went over to see her daughter and son-in-law [Betty and Andy] for a drink with them. The next day Pauline and I drove up to Guelph where I took my 90 year old aunt, Nan, and Pauline out for lunch at The Boathouse, a nice restaurant on the River Speed. Pauline then drove us back to Wainfleet and we took in a visit to Lake Erie en route

On Friday morning Pauline and I left home early, had a coffee with daughter Betty, and then headed for Niagara-on-the-Lake to meet with Tony and Daystar. First stop was a visit to the Chateau de Charmes winery where we had an excellent tour and wine-tasting. Then we went on to their local golf club restaurant “19th Hole” for lunch on Lake Ontario in glorious sunshine. After lunch Pauline, Tony and I [plus one of Pauline’s grandchildren] went to Niagara Falls where we had a wonderful afternoon. We took ride on the Maid of the Mist which takes you right up under the Falls – quite an experience! Early on Saturday 13 June, Pauline drove me to Toronto airport and I took off around midday for Vancouver.

By 4pm I had checked into my luxurious room at the Shangri La Hotel in Vancouver, and I spent a few hours enjoying the luxuries! Sunday morning was cloudy but warm so I set off for Stanley Park and walked all the way around for three and a half hours. By 2pm the sun had come out so returned to the hotel and to their pool to soak up the sunshine f or a few hours. On Monday morning my friends Anne and Martin picked me up and we drove over to West Vancouver for a tour of the Olympic sites and en route we saw my first black bear! They then took me to the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club for a delicious lunch on the waterfront, after which I returned to my hotel for a short time by the pool, but the sun was not that warm!

The next day, Tuesday 9 June, I walked around Vancouver for a short time, and then met up with my friend Anne and we went to Granville Island – we walked around the market there, bought ourselves some lunch which we ate in the sunshine and then drove back to pick up Martin from his doctor’s appointment. From there we drove out to their home in Port Moody and had a lovely dinner party, enjoying drinks on their balcony and a wonderful salmon steak barbeque. A friend of theirs drove me home late that evening. Early the next morning I took an excursion to Vancouver Island. The coach took us via the Ferry at Swartz Bay and on to Victoria. I spent a happy 3 hours or so walking around the delightful city, and enjoying a nice lunch in the sunshine. We were then driven to the amazing Butchart Gardens – the most incredible gardens I have ever seen. I spent two hours walking around and enjoying the colour and the scenery, before rejoining our coach to return to the ferry back to Swartz Bay, and on to Vancouver, where I arrived at 9.30pm. It was a truly lovely day in gorgeous sunshine. On my last day, I walked around the city for an hour or so in the morning and then spent the afternoon by the pool in glorious sunshine. Picked up a delicious supper from the Deli next to the hotel which I enjoyed with some wine before putting my head down!

On Friday 12 June I flew to Alaska, arriving in Ketchikan at around 8.30pm. I checked in to the Cape Fox Lodge just before 9pm and got myself a typically [for America] huge plate of fish and chips, of which I ate about a quarter! I spent the next morning walking around Ketchikan – a delightful little Alaskan town, and I then embarked on the ‘Spirit of Yorktown’ at around 5.30-6pm. It was a busy evening, but I had a comfortable cabin, if a little near to the engine and pumps!

On Sunday morning I woke very early and by 6am was up on deck watching the Alaskan world go by. We had picked up two kayakan rangers, who of course arrived by kayak, and they gave us some good talks as we cruised around the Misty Fjords. It was truly magical scenery, and my sightings were a brown bear and two cubs, a mountain goat, 3 hump back whales, harbour seals and some Dall’s porpoises very close up. I spent most of the day on the open deck looking for wildlife, and met up with a number of fun people, especially two couples from Adelaide and one from Cardiff. We eventually reached Metlakatla at 3pm and went on a slow trip around the town finishing with a wonderful local Indian dance performance before returning to the ship.

On Monday morning I was again up early and was on the back deck sheltering from the rain to watch the passing scenery. Saw a black tailed deer and nearing a dozen bald eagles before we arrived at Petersburg, which is known as Little Norway. Went ashore to watch a Norwegian dance show by local children and then walked the town. In the afternoon we headed towards Frederick Sound and the Aussies and English on board were on the top deck looking for the humpbacks! We had a fantastic afternoon and saw many of them, as well as porpoises and seals! There were about eight of us on the top deck having fun running from side to side watching whales from all directions, and towards the end we had a glass of wine as well as a camera in our hands! On Tuesday we awoke to find icebergs in all directions and I spent most of the day on deck watching icebergs, seals and many waterfalls as we progressed up ‘Tracy Arm’ toward the Sawyer Glaciers, and even saw part of an ice ‘growler’ [small iceberg] break off in front of us. We saw many seals and their pups and had a lot of fun as we transgressed the Bay. At lunchtime we were given a wonderful BaBeQue on the top deck and the sun came out to help our enjoyment. Towards the end of the day we were back in Frederick Sound and saw some really wonderful displays from the humpbacks, and particularly one who put on a fantastic ‘tail flip’ right up close to the ship.

On Wednesday 17th we sailed through some beautiful ‘narrows’ until we arrived at Sitka at around 9am, and I then walked into the little town. Spent the morning wandering around, and even found an internet café to catch up on emails! After lunch back on board, I went on a short walk through Sitka National Historical Park before returning to the ship for departure at 3pm. In the afternoon we at last see another brown bear, and in the evening I dine with my newly found friends from Adelaide and Cardiff! Sadly on that day we were invaded by 54 Kiwis, who joined the ship for the last three days, making it all quite crowded now, so the Aussies and Brits stuck together and left the Kiwis and the Yankees to their own devices! I joined up with my Aussie and Welsh friends for a fun dinner.

On Thursday we were back into the ice again, and arrived at Glacier Bay at 6am where we took on two rangers. Some of us early risers spotted a humpback whale and then I spotted an orca whale. We then spent the morning cruising Glacier Bay and had a fantastic morning, spotting sea otters, steller sealions, three brown bears, mountain goats, bald eagles, puffins and many other types of birds. We finally reached Margerie Glacier, an absolutely amazing place, and while we were there a huge chunk of the glacier fell into the sea in front of us. That evening had another good evening with the Aussies and the Welsh!

Early on Friday morning we arrived in Skagway. I took a short local tour and then spent nearly three hours wandering around the delightful little town and even bought by myself some moccasins! At lunchtime we sailed on to Haines, where I did a short walking tour around Fort Seward, a delightful part of Haines, and walked on into town briefly before returning to the ship. That evening was the Captain’s farewell dinner with free wine so a rather merry evening was had by one and all! The next morning we were up bright and early as we arrived in Juneau and we all disembarked at 8.45am. After leaving my hand luggage in a nearby hotel, I then walked around Juneau for a couple of hours before taking a local shuttle out to see the Mendenhall Glacier, where I spent a few hours walking around before shuttling back to my hotel, and at last my room was ready for me! Before sorting my packing, I took one last stroll around Juneau walking up the road for 15 minutes or so to see the house of the Governor, Sarah Palin. A beautiful house but I don’t think she was at home!

On Sunday morning I went downstairs to try and find some breakfast to find that the hotel didn’t serve any! That’s a first for me! Later that morning I flew back to Vancouver, arriving at the Shangri La Hotel at 9pm. A long ol’ day. I nipped next door to pick up a few bits and pieces for some supper which I enjoyed with a whisky in my room before getting to my much needed comfortable bed! The following morning I caught up with my emails before setting off for the airport and take-off at 17.45. Had a good flight, touching down at 10.30 on Tuesday morning. On the whole a good holiday, but the last few days on board the Spirit of Yorktown was rather spoilt by the arrival of so many Kiwis.

Postcard from the Indian Ocean, February-April 2009

2009-04-09T15:00:00.026+01:00

I arrived in Cape Town early on Friday 13th February and was driven into Town. My apartment wasn’t available until 11am so I did a food shop at Pick ‘n’ Pay before settling into my little apartment. Spent a few hours in the sunshine in the afternoon, and then went back to the Waterfront to get myself a pay-as-you go Sim card for my mobile. That evening my friend Colin came around for a drink. The next few days were spent quietly by my pool with the odd foray into the Waterfront to wander around the shops. Later in the week I met up with an old friend from Cape Town for lunch and on the Friday my guide/friend Colin took me on a wonderful day trip to Paternoster on the West Coast. We spent the day travelling all the way up there, stopping for a coffee at a local cultural centre for coffee and then for a glass of vino at Langebaan, before driving on to Paternoster where we lunched at the delightful Paternoster Lodge overlooking the beautiful bay. We got back home for a glass on my balcony at the end of the day. A truly wonderful day. I spent the next few days by the pool in glorious sunshine, then on Tuesday 24th I met with Colin and his wife Wendy and we went up into the Winelands for a wine tasting and then for lunch at Ernie Els’ restaurant Guardian Peak which was another enjoyable day. Spent a few more days by the pool and met up with my friend June again for lunch in Camps Bay and then it was time to embark on Discovery.

On Saturday 28 February Colin and Wendy picked me up and we went to Haut Bay for lunch. Sadly Colin was taken ill during lunch and whipped into hospital. So Wendy drove me back to the Marina, where I picked up my luggage and embarked on Discovery. After a quiet night on board woke up to a glorious day, during which the temperature reached the 100 degree mark – too hot even for me! Spent the day reading on deck. In the evening we departed at 18.30 and had the most magical and memorable departure. It was a glorious evening, and we had an escort of a pod of whales as well as seals playing with the ship as though they were dolphins, and a beautiful sunset to boot!

After a day at sea we arrived at Port Elizabeth at 7am Tuesday 3 March and by 8am I was off to Addo National Park to see the Addo Elephant – had a great morning, seeing many elephants and lots of small game as well. Was back at the ship by 13.30, so spent the afternoon soaking up the sunshine. Early on Wednesday we arrived in East London – I took the shuttle into Town but we were taken to a shopping centre so I went straight back to the ship and spent the day on board. We left for Durban at 2pm, and arrived the next morning at 7.30am.

At 09.45 I met up with my friend Vickie, and she drove me up to Pietermaritzburg and onwards. En route we had a coffee at her house in Gillitts, and then drove through the Midlands Meander to meet up with her friend Clary at the Cooking Bear for the most delicious lunch. We all had a wonderfully fishy Fish Pie [!] and I followed it with a Don Pedro, a delicious creamy liquor drink! After that Vickie drove me to Hilton where we had a cup of coffee with her daughter Kate, and then she drove me back the ship, where I had a relaxing evening in my cabin. We didn’t sail until 23.00 that evening so I gave ‘departure’ a miss that time and went to bed!

On Friday 6th March we called into Richards Bay, and our pilot arrived by helicopter, so was up early to watch that! Otherwise it was another rubbish day, like East London, unless you have excursions to one of the safari parks. I took the shuttle bus into the town but stayed 20 minutes and took the bus back to the ship as there was nothing to see. Spent the afternoon on deck, and then watched the pilot take back off again by chopper

On Saturday we arrived slightly late in Maputo, Mozambique, but by 10.15 I was off on a City Tour. Maputo is a delightful little city with the locals rather too enthusiastically trying to sell us their wares! I toured all the major sites, such as the Polana area, the Eiffel Railway Station, the Cathedral, the Natural History Museum and local markets and also went out to the Costa do Sol to see their local beach. We departed at 6pm and had a beautiful evening view of the City on departure.

After three days at sea doing nothing much more than soak up the sunshine, we arrived atReunion at noon on Wednesday 11 March. Having been there before I stayed on the ship that afternoon and relaxed with my book! The next morning I took the shuttle into the capital, St Denis, and took a walk around the little town. Back to the ship for a quiet afternoon on board and then watched us depart with a beautiful sunset. In the evening I was invited to a very good dinner party by Andrea, the Cruise Director in the Yacht Club – my first fun evening! Early on Friday 13th March we arrived in a very very wet Port Louis, Mauritius. I went over to the Waterfront mid morning and bought some postcards, but otherwise stayed tucked up on the ship all day. The next morning was much brighter, so I took myself over to Port Louis by waterboat and walked around Port Louis for an hour or so to remind myself of some of the sights, and then spent the afternoon soaking up the sunshine on the ship. It was a day for a passenger change over so new faces on the ship in the evening, and another fairly grizzly lot of table companions! At least my Australian friend, Kay, who has been sitting with me for two weeks, was still there.

On Sunday 15th March we sailed for the Seychelles, missing out Madagascar where they are still fighting one another! So we then had two days enjoying the very calm seas of the Indian Ocean with a few whales and dolphins, before arriving at Praslin in the Seychelles. By 9.30am on Wednesday 18th I was on a tender and then a shuttle and off to one of their lovely beaches, with soft white sand and turquoise blue sea. I had a wonderful day in the sunshine, just swimming and walking the beach. In the evening I met up with my newly found Australian friend Kay. She came to my cabin for drinks and then we dined together in the Yacht Club away from our ghastly dinner table! During the evening we arrived at Mahé Island and berthed in Port Victoria. The next morning I went on an organised excursion around Port Victoria and North Mahé. It was an enjoyable if humid morning visiting the Botanical Gardens, the town of Port Victoria, and around the coast. We stopped at Beau Vallon for a drink and a swim before returning to the ship. Sadly the afternoon was rather a wet one, so took to my cabin with my book! The following morning we left Port Victoria at 5am and arrived at La Dique at 7.30am. I took a tender ashore at 9.15 and once ashore at La Passe, the capital of La Dique, I managed to get on a Camionette [a type of small bus] and went to Anse Source d’Argent beach – this is one of the world’s most renowned beaches. Fortunately I was there ahead of the masses so got some good photos before everyone else arrived. Spent the day on the beach, hopping in and out of the water. Decided to walk back to La Passe and photo the island as I walked. Met up with some Discovery friends en route so joined them for a drink at a nice little hotel on the waterfront. Got back to the jetty around 4.30 and took the next tender back to the ship.

For the next three days I sat peacefully on the sun deck reading my books as we crossed the Indian Ocean which was so calm it looked like a millpond. The only small excitement was crossing the Equator, but Discovery has a rather strange ‘Crossing the Line’ ceremony, which was not worth watching!! Early on the morning of Tuesday 24 March we cruised into the Maldives and anchored off the capital Malé. I took a tender in at 8.30am and spent a couple of hours wandering around the little town, but it was very very hot – almost 100 degrees in the shade! My T-shirt was completely soaked on my return to the ship! At one o’clock we set sail for India.

On Thursday 26 March, after another day and a half at sea, we arrived in India at the little port of Vasco da Gama in Goa. It was very humid and rather overcast on arrival although the sun did come out once I set off on a tour. I went on a fascinating drive to Old Goa and the capital, Panjim, seeing how real India lives! We visited the old cathedrals in Old Goa, and in Panjim, walked around the town and the very colourful market before returning to the ship. Unfortunately we were berthed right next door to the place that they load coal and ore on to the ships so Discovery and all of us on board got very black! We sailed at 5pm for our final port, Mumbai. That evening I had a lovely Indian dinner in the Yacht Club with Mohammed, the headwaiter from Minerva! Around 10am the next morning we sailed into Mumbai. I took myself to Colabar Causeway to buy some materials and then back to the ship to start my packing!

Early on Saturday 28 March I left Discovery and I have to say I was glad to get off. I did not enjoy the ship this time. It appears to have gone down hill since I was last on board, and I shall definitely not go back. It was sloppy and inefficient and not even the Captain bothers to put his hat on whilst on the Bridge. The excursions were horrendously expensive so I only managed four in the month on board, and they were all rather chaotic. The organisation of seating in the dining room was a farce and I had some pretty bad tables. The Captain was often quite rude to me and to others and it was the first time in 9 cruises with Discovery [and 23 with Minerva, who are under the same ownership] that I have not been invited to the Captain’s table.! In spite of all of this I did enjoy some of the places that we visited!

With 59 others[!] I then travelled to Mumbai Domestic Terminal and flew up to Delhi. From there it was a seven and a half hour bus journey to Agra, with a stop for lunch and a comfort stop! It was an amazing journey seeing India in the raw – we saw ladies in vibrant saris, men in turbans, men having a pee whenever and wherever they felt like it, sleeping bodies all over the place, every kind of animal you can imagine – cows, horses, dogs, ox and carts, sheep, goats, ducks and even camels and an elephant – all wandering all over the place, then there were tuc tucs, mopeds and bicycles by the dozen, often with whole families on board or carrying beds or ladders or whatever, and we saw truck loads of ladies in their colourful saris, food and vegetable stalls everywhere, and not to mention mounds of cowpats [used for fuel]!!

On arrival at the Sheraton Hotel I did a quick change, had some supper and then sorted my room out before collapsing into my lovely bed! Next morning, Sunday 29 March we set off at 8am for the Fatehpur Sikri . On our journey this Sunday morning we had a marvellous insight into the Indian Sunday morning! Along the wayside we saw them having their breakfast, having their shave, having their hair washed and generally living life along the roadside! We saw lots more animals – monkeys, peacocks, pigs, water buffalo, donkeys and carts as well as camels and carts, to name but a few! Cowpats were being sold everywhere, and then we saw the girls making them – up their elbows in manure making the cowpats and putting them out to dry! Of course also along the way we saw children playing cricket everywhere!

Eventually we arrived at the citadel of Fatehpur Sikri. It is not unlike walking through the Forbidden City as you walk through this abandoned city – an amazing morning. From here it was back via a craft shop to the hotel where I had a swim instead of lunch! In the afternoon we headed for Agra Fort – this incredible place is smaller than Fatehpur Sikri, but fascinating, and from there we got some incredible views of the Taj Mahal. The Red Fort to me was more beautiful from the outside than it was from the inside. Then at 4.30 we arrived at the Taj Mahal itself. We had to go through incredible security to get inside, but once there we spent two hours enjoying the wonders of this ‘love’ monument. Sadly the sunset never happened, instead the sky got darker as the afternoon went on, and we left just before a thunderstorm arrived, but the afternoon light on the Taj was completely different to the evening light that we saw before we left, and you could see how this monument changes colour with the atmosphere around it. A memorable afternoon. Our evening for an outside dinner was cancelled because of the weather, so we had a dinner in the hotel, and were all presented with miniatures of the Taj!

Very early on Monday morning we returned to the Taj for sunrise – this was a spectacular site, more especially because there were very few people there. It was all quite magical and because it was so quiet I even managed to get a ‘Lady Di’ moment. I sat on her seat and a visitor took my photo for me! Then we returned to the hotel for breakfast before starting our long but fascinating journey back to Delhi. We stopped at a craft centre to start with, but I stayed on the bus, and then we drove for another three hours before we had some lunch. Then on to Delhi by 4.30, and we were then taken on an orientation tour of the city – seeing the sights of Old and New Delhi and seeing the life of the local people. We eventually arrived at the Crowne Plaza Hotel by 7pm, had a quiet dinner and a relatively early night!

This post cruise trip to the Taj Mahal was OK but being with 59 other passengers was a bit of a nightmare! I was glad to get out of the Crowne Plaza on the morning of Tuesday 31 March and travel over to the Taj Mahal Hotel in Delhi, where I had a lovely room with a fantastic view over Delhi and I then spent the afternoon by their lovely pool. Had a good meal in their coffee shop in the evening.

The next day I luxuriated in the Taj Hotel – breakfast in bed, lay by the pool all day, and then supped in my room in the evening! On Thursday morning I spent a few hours by the pool before taking a taxi over to the British High Commissioner’s Residence to spend a couple of days with my friends, Dickie and Arabella Stagg. After a lunch party by the pool I spent the afternoon by their pool. The next 24 hours was a social whirl in the High Commission before returning home on the day flight from Delhi on Saturday.

Postcard from Barbados December 2008 - January 2009

2009-01-18T15:39:00.004Z

I had a smooth and easy flight from Gatwick and arrived in Bridgetown early, at 3.30 on the afternoon of Monday 22 December and was ensconced in my room at the Bougainvillea Beach Resort on the South coast by 4.45. Had a nice room on the third floor with a view of the sea and the pool. Nipped to the little shop next door to get some milk and juice and few bits and pieces and then relaxed in my room for the evening.

My first morning I set off on an expensive taxi ride to the local supermarket where I stocked up so that I can cook myself for the next three weeks, and of course bought some of the local rum! Then I went to the pool for the rest of the day, and a quiet evening in my room.

After that my days were by the pool and my evenings relaxing in my room. I managed 40 lengths of the good-sized pool each day but otherwise I did absolutely nothing else at all! Except for one rather rainy day the weather remained very good for three weeks, just had the odd scattered shower, which went as fast as it came!

Had an excellent flight home on 15 January – a thoroughly relaxing three week holiday!

Postcard from Tenerife November 2008

2008-11-27T17:42:00.010Z

I met up with my friend Sue at Gatwick Airport on Wednesday 12 November, and after checking in we proceeded to Duty Free! We took off on our charter flight for Tenerife just 15 minutes late at 10.30, and arrived three and a half hours later. We took a taxi to our hotel and were ensconced in our room by 3pm.

The hotel was absolutely perfect – we had a lovely ocean view room with plenty of space in the room and the bathroom, and a wonderful balcony. After a quick unpack we went down to the pool for an hour or so to pick up a few rays of sunshine. That evening we had a very good dinner and an early night.

The next three days were spent lazing around by the pool with our books and going for the odd swim or three! In the evening there was always a very good buffet dinner and a nice bottle of wine.

Early on Sunday morning, Sue and I took an excursion up to Mount Teide, the Volcanic mountain in the centre of Tenerife. We had an interesting morning, taking a cable car to the very top, and then stopped en route back at an amazing view point. It was a beautiful day and so as soon as we got back to the hotel headed straight for the pool!

Our short stay finished the next day; we spent the morning by the pool and then headed for the airport at lunchtime. Our flight was on time, and we landed back at Gatwick early evening after a lovely few days of relaxation in the sunshine.

Postcard from Minerva August-September 2008

2008-09-13T22:07:00.026+01:00

I boarded little Minerva at 13.30 on Saturday 9 August and immediately found lots of ‘Swan’ and crew friends on board, and one or two passenger friends too! In my cabin I found a lovely bottle of wine awaiting me from my Cruise Director friend, Hugh, who sadly was not to be on this cruise. After the Safety Drill I unpacked and then watched us sail in dreadful weather – pouring rain and very windy, but once on way it seemed to calm down.

After a calmish night we approached Guernsey at 8am. Sadly the swell was too bad to allow us to board the tenders so we never got to Guernsey so we headed South in very very rough weather. In the evening I had a bowl of soup in my cabin as I didn’t feel up to the dining room! The next day we rolled and bounced our way across the Bay of Biscay, but during the day I had an invitation to the Captain’s table at dinner that evening, so that cheered up a dismal and rough day. The Welcome Party went well but everyone had to sit down for the reception as it was still pretty rough, but I had a lovely evening at the Captain’s table. The new Captain is Italian, Giovianni Biasutti – and I sat on his left so we had a very cheerful and chatty evening.

On the morning of Tuesday 12th, we awoke to warmer calmer weather and by 10am I was on the top deck in my bikini! We arrived in Leixoes in Portugal at midday and in the afternoon I went on a City Tour of the delightful little town of Oporto, finishing with a Port tasting at Sandemans. It was a good afternoon in lovely weather – at last! On Wednesday it was Lisbon – cruising up the Tagus River we arrived in glorious sunshine and a strong wind. I took myself into the Centre by shuttle bus and bought myself a delicious lunch of sardines and vinho verde, sitting in glorious sunshine writing postcards! Then back to the ship for a little more sunbathing on the top deck where I once again met up with our Italian Captain and had a long chat! At 6 o’clock that evening we sailed for Portimao, where we arrived at 9.15 in the morning. I took myself off to Praia da Rocha to have a look but it was so ghastly – full of English tourists! - that I returned to the top deck for an hour or so. In the afternoon I took an excursion to Lagos, Sagres and Cape St Vincent. Had a very good guide, but it was a poor tour with not that much to see, and at Sagres and Cape St Vincent it was very windy and quite cool. Back to the ship soon after 6pm and I then watched us sail at 7pm. In the evening watched an excellent presentation by the Captain on Antarctica.

On Friday 15th at 7am we arrived at Cadiz and I went on a wonderful excursion to Jerez – walking around the delightful little town and fortress and making a great visit to the Tio Pepe Bodega, where we not only had an excellent tour but a fun sherry tasting too. On Saturday we arrived in Malaga at 7am and I went on a rather disappointing tour to Antequera, a little town way up in the mountains. We walked around the castle and church area which was pretty but that was about all! By the time we were offered free time all the shops were closed and bars were not easy to find! At 8pm we sailed for our two day cruise across the Med which I spent mostly on the top deck! Saw some wildlife – bottleneck dolphins and some sea turtles. Had a nice Ladies Evening dinner the first night, and on the second night I went to drinks with some friends in their very smart suite, we then dined together. After dinner I went to the party on the Pool Deck, breaking off for a while to watch us arrive in Cagliari in Sardinia. When I rejoined it I found myself with all the Swan staff and some of the crew, even joined by the Captain later on. We partied and danced until 1.45! A very good evening!

On Tuesday 19th I went on a good walk around Cagliari followed by a short scenic tour of the area. We were dropped off in the Town so I joined a new friend and walked around the shops before walking back to the ship to watch us sail for Civitavecchia. After an afternoon on the top deck, I dined with an old friend, Steve, who is the Hotel Director. The next day we were in Civitavechia but I spent the whole day on board soaking up the sunshine. In the evening it was the Farewell Party, which finished up with another good drinking and dancing session on the Pool Deck!

On Thursday 21st we anchored off Sorrento from where we had a great view of Vesuvius. I went into the Town for a short walk around, but it was full of awful tourists!!! So back to the ship where I of course spent the rest of the day on the top deck, joined by Captain and Hotel Director at times! At 7 o’clock that evening we sailed and by 7.30 I was on deck with friends – enjoying a glass of wine as we cruised by Capri at sunset, and we then stayed out on deck for our dinner, which was great. The next morning we arrived at Palermo in Sicily at 8.30 and an hour later I went on a good trip to Monreale where there is the most amazing cathedral with many many gold mosaics – absolutely incredible. Walked around the little town of Monreale from where there is a good view of Palermo, then back to the top deck for the afternoon. Saturday was ‘change-over’ day so I spent it quietly on the top deck except for joining the 15 others who remained on board for a light lunch.

On Sunday 24th I went on a drive around Palermo and then up Mount Pelligrino, from where there were good views. We then drove on to Mondello and stopped for a drink before returning to the ship. I spent the early afternoon on the top deck and then the Captain invited me to the Bridge to watch our departure – a very special honour. In the evening it was the Singles Party and afterwards 12 of us all dined together. Monday we were in Porto Empedocle but having been to the site before I stayed on the ship. In the evening we had Welcome Party no 2! This time I was invited to join Steve, the Hotel Director, at his table for a great fun evening which finished up dancing half the night away on the Pool Deck. On Tuesday 26th we were in Catania, but having been here before I decided to spend the day on the top deck! In the evening I had drinks with my old friends in their wonderful Owners Suite and then we dined together.

Wednesday and Thursday were sea days spent in the sunshine on the top deck; on one evening I dined with my Japanese friends – we first met on board in 2002! Then early on Friday 29 August we sailed into Venice and had a simply wonderful view of that magical city. In the morning I did a walk around the northern parts of the city, finishing up near St Mark’s and then took a launch back to the ship. In the afternoon I took myself back into the city and walked around for two hours or so, treating myself to a chocolate ice cream and a typical Spritzer! On Saturday I went to visit some islands and monasteries but the second monastery was closed. However quite a pleasant morning cruising the Lagoon! Was invited on to the Bridge to watch us sail out of Venice.

By 7am on Sunday morning I was breakfasting on the back deck and then watched us berth in the little town of Zadar in Croatia. There I went on an excellent walking tour of the Town. Captain Giovanni invited me to the Bridge for the afternoon so there I went at 3pm and watched us cruise through the most wonderful scenery of Croatian canals for 3 hours or so – lots of fun and absolutely incredible scenery!

On Monday 1 September we arrived in Dubrovnik at 8.15am and I went on a City Walk. Having been there before it was not new, but I wanted to go around the Cathedral among other places. After which did a bit of shopping - bought myself a nice turquoise necklace and earrings. In the afternoon went on a sightseeing drive to Cavtat. We had some fantastic views along the coast of Dubrovnik and then on to a little hostelry for some local hospitality before returning to the ship at 6pm.

Tuesday 2nd – my birthday – had a wonderful morning cruising the Gulf of Kotor in Montenegro. It was the most glorious morning and the scenery was absolutely stunning. Spent the afternoon lying quietly on the top deck. In the evening had a great Birthday party with Captain Giovanni, Steve, the Hotel Director, plus two Swan Hellenic friends, and three passenger friends – started with drinks in the Wheeler Bar, then dinner in the Dining Room, followed by a nightcap out on deck with Giovanni and Steve. The next day was Kefalonia where I did an island tour and fell in love with a delightful little town called Assos – lots of little tavernas, two small beaches, and many pretty houses covered with bourganvillea. Thursday morning we arrived very early in Itea, and I went on a trip to the monastery of Osios Loukas. It was a wonderful drive through the mountains, and the monastery was fairly impressive in spite of a lot of it being under scaffolding. The monks chanted for us for 20 minutes, an incredible experience. We left Itea around 4pm, and about an hour later the Captain found a school of dolphins which he chased for about 20 minutes – all was good fun! In the evening I dined with my friend Steve under the stars as we transited the Corinth Canal – quite an experience by night! After the journey was completed the Captain and Staff Captain came back to join us for drinks – another late, but fun night!

On Friday 5th we arrived in Nauplion at about 9am where we were at anchor. Having been before I decided to spend the day on the top deck and relax before the journey home. We arrived in Athens at about 4.30am! Spent the morning on the top deck where the temperature was about 97°. At 2pm I dressed up and prepared for my return home – went to say goodbye to the Captain and Hotel Director, and then left for my flight home that evening. A truly wonderful four week cruise.

Postcard from Moscow - 1-5 May 2008

2008-05-09T21:58:00.014+01:00

I arrived at Terminal Five Heathrow early on 1 May and walked around to get my bearings. After taking a glass of juice in the Club Galleries I then made my way across to my Gate – via lift and monorail – and boarded my flight very promptly. We took off soon after 9am and I arrived in Moscow after a fairly painless flight, with plenty of champagne, just before 4pm.

On arrival I met up with my friend Sue Sheridan and the rest of the Welsh National Opera Group who had travelled on the BMI flight and we were driven by coach to our hotel, the Swissotel, together with our very Russian guide, Galina! After checking in to our splendid five star hotel and unpacking we joined the rest of the group for a Welcome Dinner.

The next morning was quite sunny and we set off reasonably early to visit the Novodevichy Convent, a truly amazing and picturesque place. We had a choral performance from the convent men’s choir and walked around the convent for an hour or so. After a rather rushed lunch we moved on to the Armoury Museum in the Kremlin and had a walk around the Kremlin before going back to our hotel for a quick shower and change into our ‘glad-rags’! Then we went to the Stanislavsky Theatre for an excellent performance of The Nutcracker, which finished around 9.30pm, after which we went back to our hotel and for some supper in our room plus a large drink or two!

On Saturday morning, we set out at 9.30am on a beautiful morning for Red Square where we spent an hour or so walking around this incredible place and listening to all the information from Galina, and of course seeing the amazing St Basil’s Cathedral and the famous wall of Red Square, which is surprisingly small. After that we visited the Tretyakov Gallery, where we walked around the galleries, and especially the Icon Gallery. We then had lunch there before driving off to the river to board a boat for a cruise along the Moskva for an hour or so. In the evening we went to the New Bolshoi Theatre [the old one is being repaired!] to see a wonderful performance of Swan Lake. A truly magnificent performance in a wonderful atmosphere.

The next morning, Sunday, we were off at 9.30 to visit the Kuskovo Estate, a sort of Russian Versailles in a very mini way! It was another glorious morning and we were able to enjoy walking around the Estate as well as through the gardens for a little way. After that we went back to Red Square and paid a visit to the famous Metro of Moscow – a quite amazing place full of stunning bronze figures. Sue and I then took ourselves off for an excellent lunch at the Bosco Café in GUM’s on Red Square. I enjoyed a Smoked Salmon Blini, Sue enjoyed a beef stroganoff and we both had a Vodka and tonic! All delicious! The weather was still fantastic as we walked around Moscow for a short time before boarding our bus back to the Hotel. Our final bit of culture was to return to the New Bolshoi Theatre for a performance of the opera, The Tsar’s Bride, which was really great with some very colourful costumes and great choruses. We were late back to the hotel, but then enjoyed a nightcap with some crisps before retiring.

The final morning we took it easy and boarded our bus for the airport at 12.30. I checked into the BA Lounge to indulge in some

smoked salmon blinis and Vodka tonics before boarding my flight at 5pm! I arrived back at T5 at LHR just before 6pm and was

back in my flat soon after 7 o'clock. A wonderful cultural weekend!

Postcard from Antarctica to Antigua Feb-March 08

2008-03-30T21:54:00.049+01:00

I had a very good flight from LHR to Buenos Aires via Sao Paulo, and although a little late arrived at my hotel, the Sofitel, by 1.30pm on Friday 8 February. In the late afternoon met up with my friend, Ralph Ayling, and enjoyed a long chat over a couple of glasses of bubbly. Then had an early night. Spent a quiet Saturday in BA ready for departure to Ushuaia early the next morning.

On Sunday 10 February, after a slightly delayed flight, we arrived in Ushuaia, the beautiful little southernmost city of the world, soon after 3pm and embarked on Discovery only a short while later. Then went off for a quick walk around Ushuaia before returning for the safety drill and then watched us depart for Antarctica. The next day we cruised Drake Passage, which was unusually calm, but saw no wildlife at all. The next day, Tuesday, it was all change due to a medical emergency. A passenger had fallen and broken her hip so we had to go into Maxwell Bay instead of Deception Island to unload the passenger. We stayed there all day and did zodiac cruises to see the Gentoo penguins. It was bitterly cold, and you needed thermals, two or three sweaters, parkas and hats, not to mention Wellington boots with two socks, as well as over-trousers, and two pairs of gloves! But it was a fun short cruise in the zodiac in Antarctic waters! As we were leaving that evening saw whales and penguins around the ship.

On Wednesday 13th I woke up at 6.45am to find icebergs around us, so got up fast to go outside. As I was emerging we hear from the Captain that the wind is too strong to allow us into Hope Bay so we spend the day cruising Antarctic Sound and the Weddell Sea. We cruised down what is known as Iceberg Alley for hours. It was the most incredible day – freezing cold, the temperature hovering around zero, but the wind chill factor made it feel colder, and at times very windy – it was blowing at 66 knots at one stage. We saw hundreds of icebergs – all absolutely stunning in all shapes and sizes, some like castles, ships and particularly sinking ships!, plane hangers, crowns, pyramids, waterfalls. Many so enormous you can’t believe it, and of course they go downwards about nine times the size they are above the water! All totally amazing! We also saw quite a few whales and one or two seals. That evening was a quiet Captain’s Welcome reception and dinner and an early bed.

Thursday I was up and about on deck at 6am to watch us cruise through incredible scenery – a bit like cruising through the Alps – it was all so beautiful on a gloriously sunny but cold morning! Eventually we pulled into Paradise Harbour where we cruised up to Waterboat point. As I was in the last group to go ashore to visit the Gentoo penguins I spent the morning on the top deck soaking up the glorious sunshine, but with about six layers of clothes on! By 1pm we were called to our zodiac to go ashore. En route to the penguin island we suddenly spotted a minke whale, so our driver got nearer and cut the engine, and the whale circled us a couple of times – absolutely wonderful! We also saw some dolphins jumping around. Then went off to see the darling, but smelly! penguins for an hour before returning to the ship. I watched us sail back up through the Paradise Bay and through some stunning icebergs with penguins leaping around us. Another amazing day!

On Friday morning we awoke to a very grey, wet and windy day, and our first landing in Orne Harbour was cancelled because of the wind – the zodiacs would have flown away. So we set off for Wilhelmena Bay, whale, seal, penguin and bird-watching all the way. Saw quite a few hump backs, one or two seals and few Antarctic birds. Once there it was getting too icy and very windy, so we moved on to Dallmann Bay but that too was unforgiving. Very windy and raining hard, so the Captain took the decision to say goodbye to Antarctica and set sail for Drake Passage, which, after a slightly rough night, was reasonably smooth for us the following day. On Sunday 17th we entered the Chilean fjords and had a spectacular day cruising through them – saw many birds, including two condors! On Monday 18 February we arrived in Punta Arenas early in the morning – the heart of Patagonia. I went off to Otway Sound to see the wonderful Magellanic penguins – a cold but enjoyable morning walking amongst them. In the afternoon I wandered around the town and did some shopping, and we then set off on three days of cruising through the Chilean fjords. Saw one or two points of interest, like the Skua Glacier in Amalia Fjord, the English Narrows, which are VERY narrow!, a shipwreck or two, the little Indian village of Tortel which is only accessible by boat [Discovery is the only ship to visit!], not to mention the odd condor, penguins and seals!

On Friday 22 February we eventually arrived in Puerto Montt. I walked around the little town in the morning and as the sun came out spent the rest of the day on the top deck. It is a stunning little town, surrounded by volcanoes, which gave us all a beautiful view as we departed at 6 o’clock that evening. After a cool day at sea, we arrived in Valparaiso on a glorious morning – not a cloud to be seen. I went on a rather average wine tasting tour, but at least it enabled me to stock up my cabin bar! After the wine tasting we made a tour of Vina del Mar and Valparaiso before returning to the ship for an afternoon on the top deck!

The following day at sea was a cool one, and then at 7am on Tuesday 26 February we arrived at Robinson Crusoe Island. We were tendered ashore and I spent a couple of hours walking around this delightful but lonely little island where there are only 500 inhabitants. Saw many incredible little houses, including one made of bottles, and saw seals playing off the pebble beaches. Thankfully the sun had come out that day, so once I returned to the ship I went straight to the top deck! And then we set sail for four days at sea, arriving at Easter Island at 11.30 on the morning of Saturday 1 March. I took the tender ashore and walked for an hour uphill to try and visit a volcano but having taken a wrong turning, decided to walk back into Hanga Roa, where I walked through the little town and visited the famous Moai figures in the town, before returning to the ship 3 hours later. It was a lovely walk but very hot and dirty in the red dust of the roads. The next morning I went off on a 5 hour excursion to visit many extraordinary Moai sites – some on volcanoes, some on beaches – all quite amazing, even though I have seen them before. Back to the ship around 2pm and then we set sail for five days at sea. Thankfully they were smooth and sunny days, and except for one evening when I was at the Captain’s table [which was not the most stimulating of events!], it was a quiet five days. Did see a whale and a school of dolphins on the last day.

On Saturday 8 March we eventually reached Arica and I went out into the Atacama Desert to see geoglyphs and tutelar figures. Whilst at the figures we had a dance show and some pisco sours! I then walked around Arica to top up my bar before returning to the ship for an afternoon in the sunshine. The next day we were at sea cruising towards Callao/Lima and in the morning the sea was alive with life – so many dolphins and seals you could hardly believe it! Early on the morning of Monday 10 March we arrived at the port of Callao, from where you can drive into Lima. I went on an excellent excursion around a monastery and two convents in Lima and we drove around the city and some of the suburbs in the process. It was better in that it was a small group, which included the Captain and his wife! After visiting the artisan shops on the quayside, where I bought a smart alpacha waistcoat, I returned to the ship and spent the afternoon in the sunshine. We then set sail for two days at sea. On the first evening I had dinner with the Staff Captain, Chief Electrician and his partner which was fun, and on the second night it was another ‘farewell’ party.

At 5.30am on the morning of Thursday 13 March we arrived in Manta, and by 7am [30 minutes late] some of us were on our way by air to the Galapagos islands for the day. In the morning I went by boat to see iguana, boobys and sea lions and then on to Kicker Rock before going to a beach for a swim. However we were plagued by large horseflies on the beach who kept stinging us so back to our little boat to escape and then back to the main town of Puerto Baquerizo. From there we were bused to the highlands of the island for an excellent lunch in a local restaurant. In the afternoon we walked a nature trail on the island hunting for tortoises, but only found about 5-6 of them. We eventually arrived back in Manta at 8.30pm and were back on the ship by 9pm. So I relaxed in my cabin with room service. The next morning I decided to try and find the artisan shops which sell my much-loved Ecuadorian shawls but failed dismally, so in the end I went on an excursion which took me to see Panama hats being made, tagua buttons being made, and finally to Montecristi, where I found my Ecuadorian stoles, so I was happy. The Captain and wife were on my excursion and she went out and bought lots of these stoles too!

At 7am on Saturday 15 March I left on a two hour bus trip down to Isla de la Plata. It was great to watch Ecuadorian life along the way and then on arrival at Puerto Lopez we boarded little boats and were speeded out to the island. There we were taken in small groups on a two-hour walk across the island and back looking for birds. It was very hot but a good walk. Sadly in the midday sun there were not that many birds flying around although once we got to the other side there were a few blue-footed boobys and lots of frigates. Once back to our starting point, we speeded back to the mainland and after a good lunch in a lovely nearby hotel we had our two hour bus drive back to the ship. Our bus had a burst tyre but fortunately we were in convoy so we all transferred to another bus and were back by 6.30pm. Sunday was a day off – resting on the ship, with new passengers arriving all day.

On Monday 17 March I set off at 8am for Bahia and Bird Island. A wonderful coach journey into the heart of Ecuador where we saw real life as we travelled for two hours north of Manta to Bahia. Once there we boarded a little boat, about of 12 of us per boat, and we travelled around Bahia and particularly around Bird Island where we saw many birds, and especially frigates who were fishing all around us. It was a wonderful morning watching ‘nature’. After lunch, which I avoided and just nibbled plantains, we visited the local archaeological museum, drove around the little town and then headed back to Manta. We were delayed about an hour by a broken down bus which we couldn’t get past, but eventually arrived back on the ship by 6.30 in the evening. A lovely day! The next day was a quiet one on the ship, but I met up with my friends Anne and Martin in the evening. We sank a bottle of champagne in my cabin and then had a lovely dinner in the Yacht Club.

On Wednesday 19 March I was up very early and at 6am I set off for the airport once again. We eventually took off for Santa Cruz in the Galapagos at about 7.45 and arrived at Baltra Island at 9.30am. From there we were ferried across to Santa Cruz Island and set off down to Puerto Ayora and the Charles Darwin Centre where we saw some incredible tortoises including the 100 year old Lonesome George. We had quite a few organisational problems but it was a good morning wandering around among the tortoises. Then I walked in Puerto Ayora and saw pelicans, seals and sting-rays in the harbour before meeting up with the bus again and we drove into the Highlands for lunch, after which we walked around the area and saw lots of giant tortoises in the wild. We arrived back at the airport around 6pm but our flight was very delayed and we didn’t arrive back at the ship until 10.15pm [a very long day of over 16 hours] and our late arrival back at the port delayed the departure of Discovery! I watched us depart at 10.45 pm and then retired to my cabin for a strong drink or two!

The next day was thankfully a day at sea to relax and catch up, and in the evening it was the Welcome party for the next cruise, but for me it was the Farewell party! After dinner I caught up with my friends, Anne & Martin, for a nightcap before hitting the sack. In the morning we arrived in Panama a little late and I took a tender ashore with all my luggage at about 11 o’clock. My car took a while to arrive but I was soon ensconced in the Riande Aeropuerto Hotel and spent the afternoon by the pool. On Saturday 22nd March I flew from Panama to San Juan and then from San Juan to Antigua and arrived in my lovely suite at the Carlisle Bay Hotel at about 7.45pm where I spent the evening unpacking and sorting myself out.

Easter Day was spent quietly on the beach soaking up the glorious Caribbean sunshine and in fact I spent the rest of Easter week on the beach, which was just wonderful. Had a quiet dinner in the restaurant each evening, and was usually asleep by 9.30pm! On Friday 29 March I flew home, thankfully to Gatwick and to Terminal Five, although even there the luggage for Club Class passengers got lost for an hour and to add to the problems you now need a coin to get yourself a luggage trolley at Gatwick. The joys of travel!

Postcard from the North African coast Nov 2007

2007-12-16T08:51:00.001Z

POSTCARD FROM DISCOVERY
NORTH AFRICAN COAST TO LISBON
October – November 2007

My slightly delayed flight from London to Alexandria arrived at 8.15pm and although I had a very swift departure from the airport it took my taxi well over an hour to get to the Sheraton Montazah in Alexandria. It did not however take me very long to hit the sack for a good night’s sleep in a comfortable little room overlooking the Med. The next three days were gloriously sunny so I spent them by the Sheraton pool.

On Monday I left the hotel at 1pm and embarked Discovery, after a struggle with the Port Authorities, at 1.45pm. The first person I see is the Captain! Michael and I had a quick chat and then I went on to unpack and sort myself out. On Tuesday have a late breakfast – most people have gone on tours – see Michael and wife, Wendy, to say Good Morning; spend the morning in the sunshine and then have lunch with them, and then back to the sunshine for the rest of the day. The following day was a quiet day at sea in glorious sunshine, and in the evening we had the formal evening and I was on the Captain’s Table. I went to the reception and met up with some old Minerva friends, which was great. Then I went to meet up with other guests at the Captain’s Table and found more friends. I was luckily seated on Michael’s left so we had a very good chat all evening. After dinner a few of us went on for a nightcap before the bars closed for four days…. as we approached Libya.

Very early on Wednesday morning we arrived in Benghazi, Libya. Having been before I stayed on board all day. Met up with Michael and Wendy for breakfast, but otherwise I just lay in the glorious sunshine all day. In the evening some old Minerva friends came to my cabin for drinks before we all went to the Yacht Club restaurant for dinner. A lovely evening! The next day we were still in Benghazi so I spent it on deck in the rather sandy hazy sunshine! We left Benghazi at 1.20pm and sailed for Al Khums, where we eventually arrived the next morning at 9am – a sleepy pilot was very late reaching us! Then the authorities caused havoc so we were not allowed to disembark until well after 10am. It was such chaos that I decided to spend the morning on the ship in the sunshine and in the afternoon went ashore to see the incredible site of Leptis Magna – a wonderful afternoon wondering around this amazing place. In the evening after dinner I went to the Bridge Deck with my dining friends to watch us depart Al Khums. We arrived in Tripoli the next morning at 7.30am – delayed once again by the late and rather difficult pilot. Having been here before I decided to spend the day on board. The sunshine was great but we were pestered by a plague of flies! Having had mosquitoes all the way through Libya and then flies, we were all glad to depart Libya!

I was up bright and early to watch the wonderful approach to Malta and into the Harbour on Monday 5 November. The sun was out and it was pretty spectacular. Soon after we had berthed I went ashore and walked around the town of Valetta for two or three hours. After a quick and early lunch Michael invited me on to the Bridge to watch us sail out of Valetta. Then back to the sunshine for a little while, but a bit cooler on deck now. Very early the next morning we arrived at La Goulette in Tunisia – here I went on a panoramic bus tour of Tunis, Carthage and Sidi Bou Said – I have been before but it was quite a pleasant little tour and jogged my memory! At 2 o’clock we sailed for Almeria in Spain. Spent the afternoon on a rather cool deck but in the sunshine. The following day we were at sea – a quiet day but I did go to a Discovery Club drinks party at lunch time. In the evening it was the farewell party – met quite a few people at the party who I hadn’t seen all cruise!

On Thursday 8 November we arrived in Almeria, Spain, at 8am watching a beautiful sunrise in a clear sky. Spent the morning walking around the town in glorious sunshine, then back to a few hours on the top deck. In the afternoon went on a tour of Cabo de Gata Nature Park, Mojacar, a little white-housed town in the mountains, and then went on a drive through some spectacular desert scenery on the way back to the ship. In the evening I dined with my Minerva friends, the Hewetts, in the Yacht Club which was good fun. Very early on Friday morning I was up on deck to watch us sail into Gibraltar, and by 9am I was in Town doing a bit of retail therapy, then back to the ship to watch us sail for Lisbon soon after midday.

On Saturday 10 November I was up very early to watch us come into Lisbon – a very difficult approach and the Captain has to change the side of his arrival many times because of the strong currents. However we had some wonderful scenes coming in with clear skies and a glorious sunrise. After saying my ‘goodbyes’ to Michael and Wendy I went ashore and met up with my friend Sue Sheridan, and we spent the day ‘doing’ Lisbon. Open top bus, sardine lunch, delicious white wines, and finally a walk up to the cathedral and the castle. In the evening we went to a lousy restaurant which was a shame.

On Sunday Sue and I took the train to Sintra and had a wonderful day walking for hours and hours visiting palaces and castles! We met an amusing couple of ‘gays’ on the train who we kept bumping into! Then found ourselves at the same restaurant at lunchtime, where we had an excellent lunch. When our bill came in we found these fun guys had paid our wine bill for us! We returned back to the hotel around 6pm after a lovely day. In the evening went out for a quiet Italian dinner. The following morning we walked around Bairro Alto and stopped for a glass of wine or two in the glorious sunshine. After checking out of our hotel we took ourselves to lunch at the top of the hotel, which was excellent and then made our way to the airport for our rather delayed flight home.

A wonderful holiday!

Postcard from Central America April-May 2007

2007-10-07T22:37:00.000+01:00

POSTCARD FROM DISCOVERY
CENTRAL AMERICA TO THE UK
April – May 2007

On a beautifully sunny morning I arrived at Gatwick on Friday 20th April by 8 o’clock and bumped into a friend of a friend so had a chatty hour or so there before taking off on a relatively painless journey to Costa Rica via Dallas, although it was very long and I eventually fell into bed in San José exactly 23 hours after getting out of bed!

The Marriott in San José was a very comfortable place and I spent a lovely first day relaxing in the sunshine by the pool and had a quiet dinner in the evening. Early the next morning I was off on a 3½ hour bus journey to Puerto Limon where Discovery awaited us. I had only been on board five minutes when my friend Captain Michael called me and we had a lovely lunch together catching up. Managed a short time in the sunshine and then had a safety drill before watching us depart Costa Rica for Honduras. Had an uninspiring dinner table – meant to be eight people but only three ladies turned up!

Monday 23rd was a glorious day at sea so spent it on the deck soaking up the sunshine. The next morning am up early for breakfast before going on deck to watch us arrive at Puerto Cortes in Honduras. The authorities didn’t make life easy but we eventually got in twenty minutes late and I took a trip to Lake Yojoa in the centre of the country. A beautiful, if sometime nerve-wracking, drive to the Puhapanzak Waterfalls, where I had a swim, and then on to Lake Yojoa where we had a good lunch and a nice walk around the grounds of the hotel near the lake. Then back to watch us depart, quite late, for Belize, before a late dinner with another table of three!!

Up at 5.30 to watch us arrive in Belize, dropping anchor at 6am! By 7.30 I am on my way ashore to visit Belize City and the Mayan city of Altun Ha. It was a glorious morning but a rather disappointing morning tour – too much Mayan and hardly anything of today’s City. Back to the ship for lunch and then relaxed in the sunshine on deck for the afternoon and in the evening watched us sail for Havana at 6pm. Went down to dinner to join my three ladies for dinner to find that the Maitre D had moved another couple over to join us, and then – lovely surprise – the Captain came to join us. I had told him of my problems and he came to help which was wonderful.

Thursday was another day at sea which I spent out on deck in glorious sunshine, and in the evening it was the ‘farewell’ party for a large number of passengers who were leaving in Cuba. We arrived in Havana in the early morning in a very oily harbour, and at 9am I went off on a walking tour of Havana which was excellent and we saw a lot, and travelled to some of the further places by bus. Then back to the ship via a rum factory where we all imbibed just a little! Spent the afternoon relaxing on the deck in glorious sunshine.

On Saturday 28th I left early on a long day’s trip to the North West of Cuba to see a cigar factory, visit Vinales and have lunch up there. It was a very long day – ten hours – but the island is beautiful if very primitive out in the country. In the evening I met up with Michael and some of his officers and we all had dinner in the Yacht Club which was fun. A tired Captain retired after dinner and I had a night cap with some of the others! The next day was glorious and having had enough of walking around Havana I spent it relaxing on deck and had a buffet supper in the evening on the Lido Deck – all lovely with the roof open. Monday 30th was another day in Havana but I spent it on board – relaxed on the deck all morning and then found myself lunching with Michael and Gil, his colleague from Voyages of Discovery. Had another few hours in the sunshine in the afternoon before another full safety drill, and then a quiet dinner and an early night. The night however was interrupted as we sailed for Nassau at 2am and the Bridge is overhead so I could hear their fairy footsteps for quite some time! Tuesday 1 May was another glorious day spent out on deck and in the evening was the formal Welcome Party. Had a lovely evening on the Captain's Table.

Early on Wednesday May 3rd, I watched us arrive in Nassau. Had a walk around Nassau in the morning and then went off on a Yellow Bird Catamaran for a rum punch sail around Nassau; stopped for a swim on a beautiful beach and then back to the ship by 4.30pm. A quiet dinner and an early night. The next morning I got up late and spent the morning on the ship. After a quick and early lunch I went to join Michael on The Bridge to watch us sail from Nassau and then returned to the sun deck for the afternoon. Had a full table at dinner that night for the first time – not the most of exciting of people but at least there were quite a few of us! The next day, Friday 4th, was a day at sea which, sadly, was not particularly good weather. By lunch time there was a monumental storm so that was the end of the sunshine for the day.

Saturday 5th May was a pretty blowy morning but I spent it up on deck watching us cruise towards Bermuda. Saw Michael and he invited me back on to The Bridge for our arrival into Bermuda so after a quick lunch spent an hour or so on The Bridge watching us arrive in Hamilton – it was a fairly difficult arrival and in fact the Pilot ‘had’ the ship for most of the way. Once berthed I went off on a very pleasant cruise around the Hamilton waterways to see all the wealthy homes that there are in Bermuda and then walked around the town for a little while with Thea, one of my table companions. On Sunday I went on an excellent drive around the southern shores of Bermuda in a taxi with just five others which was very good. Also climbed to the top of Gibbs’ Hill Lighthouse and walked around the Royal Naval Dockyard. Back to a quick lunch and then I took myself off on a walk around the little town of Hamilton for a short while. When I got back to the ship the sun was still shining so back to the sundeck until it got too cool. At 6pm I went up to the Bridge Deck to watch the Captain take us out of Hamilton – took almost two hours to get away from the Bermuda islands!

Then four days at sea – the first two of which were quite rough and very chilly. The second evening I was at the Captain’s table for dinner, which was good fun. The following day was slightly better weatherwise so spent quite a while lying in the sunshine but well wrapped up! Sat out on the deck all afternoon in the sunshine, but well wrapped up. In the evening met up with my table for a drink in the bar before dinner otherwise a quiet evening. On the fourth morning the sun came out and I spent the rest of the day on the sun deck – even saw whales and dolphins during the day.

On Friday 11 May I was up early to watch us arrive in Horta in the Azores. We berthed early at 7.30am and after a swift breakfast I was off on a whale and dolphin watching excursion. It was really great – saw quite a number of sperm whales and hundreds of dolphins. Took lots of photos – although there were a few good ones, seem to take far too many of the ocean!!! Spent the afternoon on the sun deck until the skies clouded over. In the evening had a quiet dinner and an early night. At 6am the next morning I was up to watch us arrive in Ponta Delgada in the Azores, but the pilot decided not to reach us until 7am so we cruised around for an hour and eventually berthed at 7.30am! Went on another whale and dolphin watching excursion but it was very poor. Did see some dolphins but it was very uncomfortable doing this in little zodiacs with tiny seats, and we got very wet! Once back on board I went up to watch us sail for Harwich at 2pm – after a while went on to the Bridge and whale-watched from there all afternoon. Another quiet evening dinner table and early night.

On Sunday 13th I went to a Discovery Club reception and then I was dining at the Captain's Table again - this time it was mostly his officers on the table - so had a good time! Monday 14th was a fairly rough day to start with but warmed up later so that I could read on the deck, but well wrapped up!

On Tuesday 15th, our last day on board. In the morning I went on to The Bridge to watch us cruise across the English Channel and then Michael invited me to join him for lunch á deux which was very nice. It was a pretty nasty day outside – typically grey and drizzly Channel - so it was a good day to pack up and catch up. I was up and out of my cabin early on Wednesday and watched us sail up to Harwich in freezing and windy conditions. We eventually berthed at 09.15 after a lovely cruise.

AMB
16.05.07

Postcard from South America Jan-Feb 2007

2007-10-07T22:26:00.000+01:00

Postcard from Barbados and Minerva
on her swansong around South America

I left a very foggy Gatwick on Thursday 21 December and arrived safely in Barbados at 7.15 that evening and checked into the reasonably comfortable Bougainvillea Beach Resort in Christchurch on the south coast of the island. The first day was spent stocking up my kitchenette and sorting out my computer, but after that I did nothing but soak up the sun. I spent most of my first week just lying in the sunshine by the quiet pool [where there were not too many kids!],swimming in the pool and occasionally have a bounce around in the waves which you get on the south coast of Barbados. Most evenings I relaxed in my room. On week two I rang up a few friends and on the Friday had a lovely lunch at the beautiful Champers near Accra Beach with some old diplomatic Bajan friends which was good fun. Other than that I continued in the style of week one until Thursday 4 January when I packed up and left for Minerva.

I arrived at Minerva mid afternoon to start my 66 day cruise and met up with lots of old crew friends. Was able to unpack and sort myself out before any of the UK planes arrived. In the evening met up with my old friend Richard [the out-going Captain] and his wife Ada – we had drinks and dinner together and then had a nightcap in the Orpheus Bar with some other friends before hitting the sack! The next morning I did a tour of Historic Barbados and went shopping in the Terminal and in Bridgetown in the afternoon.

After a lovely day at sea and a rather average Welcome Party, we arrived at La Guaira, the port of Caracas at 7am and I set off on a slow bus trip to Caracas by 9am. The road was slow as the main bridge collapsed last year and they are now building a new bridge. Had a great cable car trip up to the top of Mount Avila with spectacular views of Caracas, and then visited Quinta Anauco Colonial Museum and the National Pantheon before returning to the ship for a 4pm departure for Aruba. That evening had dinner with a couple of my ‘gay’ friends before retiring to an early cot. On Monday 8 January we arrived in Aruba at 8am and soon after I took myself on a walking tour of the town, Oranjestad. Having been there before I just wandered around to remind myself of the place before returning to the top deck to soak up the beautiful sunshine. We sailed for Curacao at 1pm. After spending the afternoon on the top deck I wandered into Willemstad, the capital of Curacao, on our arrival there at 6.15pm. However it was dark and it was not easy to wander around so I swiftly returned to the ship and joined a nice table for dinner. On Tuesday 9th January we arrived in Guaranao Bay at 6.30am and an hour later I was on a bus en route for Coro, a delightful little Venezuelan town. Sadly I had a bad guide, but met up with Gerry, a cheerful guy, and we took a walk around the town once we got rid of the guide. Then back to the top deck for the afternoon. In the evening there was a lovely party for all singles on the 66 day cruise and we all had dinner together afterwards which was fun. Wednesday was a day at sea so I spent it on the top deck and in the evening had a very nice dinner with the Cruise Director and Cruise Manager and one other passenger – all very select!

On Thursday 11 January we approached the Panama Canal early in the morning and by 10am I went on to the Bridge to spend the morning there watching us go through the Locks. It was a wonderful morning – in the company of the retired First Sea Lord! Around 12.30 I was invited to some friends who have a suite on the front of the ship for a drink as we emerged from the last Gatun Lock. After a fun lunch with some newly made friends as we sailed through Gatun Lake, I went back to the Bridge to watch us go through Pedro Miguel and Miraflores Locks before arriving in Balboa. That evening I joined some of my Swan friends for a great Indian Buffet in the Bridge Café. Early the following morning I was up and off on an excursion to visit Miraflores Lock and see the exhibition that they have there, and in the afternoon I went on a walking tour of Colonial Panama and also drove through the city as it is today and then visited Old Panama which is now just ruins. We got back to the ship just in time for her to sail at 6pm for Ecuador. In the evening went to a good reception for all those on board for 66 days followed by a nice table at dinner. The following day was a day at sea doing not very much! It was a bit grey for most of the day so caught up with some computer work in my cabin. In the evening met up with an old Minerva friend [Michael Latham] and his partner for dinner and then had an early night.

On Sunday 14 January we arrived in Manta, Ecuador around 4.30am! A large group of people were leaving early for a day trip to Quito. I went on a trip around Manta to see how Panama hats are made, to visit a Tagua [nut] factory to see how buttons and crafts are made from these nuts and to visit the local museum – very interesting morning. Back for lunch and in the afternoon we had Andean Indian folklore dancers on board performing for us. In the evening I met up with some old Minerva friends [Tudeimans] and we dined in the Grill, after which I bumped into my good friend Niranjan, the Chef, and we had a good few nightcaps in the Orpheus bar. The following day was at sea – spent the morning on the top deck and saw some whales playing quite close by. In the afternoon we had the Crossing the Line ceremony having just crossed the Equator, and in the evening it was the Farewell Dinner for the first cruise and I had a very good fun table.

We arrived in Salaverry on Tuesday 16 January at about 6.30am and by 9.15 I was on my way to visit the little town Trujillo and from there to the two Moche Temples – of the Sun and the Moon. In the afternoon I visited the adobe city of Chan Chan and saw the Dragon Temple and the Tschudi Palace – a day of incredible archaeological sites. In the evening I was invited to a lovely drinks party in a suite with some friends [John & Jan] and then we all went on to dinner followed by nightcaps! The next morning I was up and about early and saw whales from my balcony window. We had a morning at sea before arriving at Callao at midday and in the afternoon I went on quite a good walking tour of Down Town Lima. In the evening those of us on the 66 day cruise were invited to a private champagne reception at Larco Herrara Museum which was interesting and fun – then back to the ship for a snack supper. The following morning I went to visit Pachacama – an Inca site of palaces and pyramids followed by a visit to the wonderful Lima Gold Museum. In the afternoon I took myself off into the Miraflores area of Lima for a wander around the shops. That day MV Discovery had sailed into Callao for the day – I heard that my friend the Captain was on board but getting off the ship that day – but I sadly didn’t find him. Watched her sail in the evening, and had a quiet dinner with old friends and new.

On Friday 19 January I visited a Hacienda to watch a wonderful display of Paso horses in the morning, then returned to the ship to watch us sail for General San Martin, another coastal Peruvian town, at 3pm. In the evening we had the Welcome Party and I joined friends [Vaughan-Frances] at quite a good table, had a drink by the pool afterwards and had a chat with Captain Mark en route bed! Very early the next morning we arrived at General San Martin a small place in the coastal Peruvian desert and watched seals playing in the sea around the ship. I went off on a tour of Paracas National Park, visiting a wonderful little fishing village in the middle of the desert, a museum and a fantastic rock formation, then back to the top deck. We sailed for Matarani at 4 o’clock that afternoon. In the evening I joined an interesting American couple [Lloyd & Marianne] for dinner. Sunday 20 January was a day at sea which I spent on the top deck in glorious sunshine, although I went to a ‘singles’ party at lunchtime which wasn’t up to much! Saw quite a lot of sea life that day including whales and dolphins. In the evening had a rather difficult dinner table but then enjoyed a drink with some of my Swan friends around the pool.

On Monday morning, 22 January, I left on a day-long trip to Arequipa – a wonderful day touring Santa Catalina monastery, as well as the cathedral and various churches in Arequipa, and enjoying a lovely lunch up there. Back in the evening to enjoy a relaxing dinner with my Swan friend, Paul Cranny and some other guests. Early on Tuesday 23 January we arrived in Arica in Chile, and at 9am I went off on a tour of the little town of Arica and saw some lovely Chilean dancing during our tour. In the afternoon I went on a wonderful coastal walk with some fantastic views and saw lots of birds and sea lions. We sailed for Valparaiso at 8pm after which I had a quiet evening and an early night. The next day was a day at sea which I spent on the top deck and during the day spotted sharks, dolphins and flying fish. In the evening I was invited to a lovely dinner party with five old friends [Duncan, V-Frances, Plattens]. Thursday 25th was another day at sea which once again I spent on the top deck in glorious sunshine and had a quiet dinner in the evening.

On Friday 26 January we arrived in Valparaiso in Chile, just ahead of the Queen Mary 2 so we were able to watch her arrive. In the morning I went on a short walking tour of Valparaiso with their amazing little houses perched on edges of mountains all over the town. After a swift lunch I went on a wine tasting trip to Indominta winery in the Casablanca valley – an excellent afternoon under cloudless skies. In the evening I dined with the Catholic priest [Father Brian] who is an old friend even if I am not a catholic! Saturday was a day at sea spent of course on the top deck – blue blue sky and a slightly chilly wind but I found a protected corner and spent the day in the sunshine. In the evening one of my Swan friends, Matt, came for drinks on my balcony – we downed a couple of pisco sours – and then had an Indian dinner in the Bridge Café. After a couple of nightcaps in the Orpheus bar I retired to bed!

On Sunday morning we cruised up the Chilean fjords to Chiloé island and in the afternoon I did a tour of some of the churches on the island. Then had a quiet dinner and earlyish bed. The following morning we arrived in Puerto Montt very early and by 7.30 I was off on a tour of Petrohué Falls and Lake Llanquihue as well as Lake Todos Los Santos – quite a good but rather damp morning and we could not see the nearby volcanoes. In the afternoon the sun came out as I went off on a wonderful tour of Frutillar and Puerto Varas with a good guide and we saw the stunning volcanoes very well. In the evening a quiet dinner table and an early night. On Tuesday 30 January we spent the morning cruising through the Chilean fjords until we reached Chacabuco, a tiny port in the south of Chile. Most of us were taken on a wonderful drive through scenic countryside along the Rio Simpson to Coyaique, the capital of Patagonia. Coyaique itself was not much of a place but I enjoyed the drive there and back stopping occasionally along the way for various views. We arrived back at the ship quite late but I had a nice dinner table after which I had another early night. However it became quite rough during the night so didn’t get much sleep as we rocked and rolled and shuddered our way across the Pacific Ocean! And so we started our four days at sea cruising around Cape Horn to the Falklands. I spent the first day watching the wonderful scenery from my cabin and in the evening I was the guest of one of the Swan staff [Pru] for a nice dinner party and a few nightcaps afterwards. On the second day I was up fairly early to see the Amalia Glazier, where two ice flows meet, an amazing sight and then we cruised on through the fjords all day. It was now getting colder and colder and at times very windy indeed – so windy in fact that the Captain forbade us to go on the outside decks at one time! In the evening I met up with three of my Swan girlfriends [Lynn, Lucy & Julia] and we had a lovely girlie evening! The next morning we continued our way through the fjords and entered the Magellan Straits – a few rough moments but on the whole a relatively smooth passage to Puerto Williams, the southern most Chilean town, where we anchored for an hour to get clearance to go around Cape Horn. From there I saw so many birds it was incredible – islands of cormorants, penguins flying through the sea rather like dolphins, and many many others. By 8.30pm we had arrived at Cape Horn, and we slowly sailed around the Horn – a truly amazing experience. So rugged and desolate and yet with a craggy beauty!

On Sunday 4 February we arrived in the Falkland Islands. To start with the wind was too great to allow us on to the tenders, but eventually the Captain was allowed to take us further into Port William Sound and so we were eventually able to disembark into tenders. I went to Sparrow Cove – a beautiful bay surrounded by rough terrain and from there in a 4x4 across this extraordinary countryside to Kidney Cove to spend an hour at the Gentoo and King Penguin colony – a wonderful but bitterly cold morning. Then back to the ship for a quick bite of lunch before going ashore to Port Stanley where I went on a walking tour of the delightful and colourful little town. The people were very friendly and you could see many different species of geese, ducks, birds etc all around you. I returned to the ship quite late, for a quick change, quiet dinner and early night. We spent the night sailing around from East Falklands to West Falklands and past some amazing little islands until we arrived at West Point Island around midday on Monday morning – the sea there was full of penguins and birds of all sorts and kinds. I took a tender ashore and walked for half an hour across the island to Devil’s Point, seeing Upland Geese and Striated Caracara as we walked. At Devil’s Point we found so many Rockfeller Penguins and Black-browed Albatross that we couldn’t believe it! We were so close to them all – most of them with chicks – absolutely wonderful –and we are able to spend about 30-40 minutes there. I then made the half hour walk back to the tender and on to the ship. That night was pretty rough as we crossed from the Falklands to the Magellan Straits and we continued to roll and bounce along all morning too! The afternoon was a little better and in the evening I went to the Farewell Party for cruise two! Met up with some old friends [V-Fraqnces] and we dined together with a few others in the dining room, followed by a nightcap before I went to bed.

Early Wednesday 7 February we arrived in Punta Arenas, The Antarctica Gate!, and I went of on a City Tour in the morning. It was bitterly cold but it was quite an enjoyable tour of the little southern most city. In the afternoon I went on a drive to Port Famine and Fort Bulnes – they were not the most interesting of places but the drive to and from was wonderful – saw guanacos [like lamas], rhea [like ostriches], dolphins and loads of sea birds as we drove along through the wonderful countryside. In the evening I met up with some new friends [Underwoods] for dinner, plus nightcaps and dancing afterwards which was good fun. In the morning I went on an hour and a half bus journey to Otway Sound. We drove through some amazing scenery across ranch after ranch after ranch. It was absolutely freezing at Otway sound – with about five layers on I kept warm, but my face was stinging because of the biting wind which was so strong you could only just stand up, let alone walk for twenty minutes to the Magellanic penguin colony. However, once there, it was absolutely incredible to see them all with their chicks and in their burrows. Am amazing morning. On our way back to the ship we saw rhea and alpacha to name but a few! After lunch I strolled into Town for a wander but soon returned to the warmth of the ship. In the evening about 100 of us went to a local estancia for a wonderful barbeque and show, and then home to an early night.

On Friday morning, 9 February, I went on a long walk through the Magallanes Reserve Park – a good, if cold walk high up into the Park with some stunning views from the top. Back to a little lunch and a quiet afternoon in my cabin followed by a nice dinner in the Swan Restaurant with old friends [Dorlings]. The next day was a quiet day at sea although the weather was far from quiet – winds gusting at 100mph in the afternoon. Went to the Singles party at lunchtime and met up with the Bishop of Norwich, an old friend of mine. He and his wife and I then went on to have lunch together. In the late evening we attempted to round Cape Horn for the second time, but this time we failed – the weather was too bad – the wind was gusting at 100mph! At 6.30am on Sunday 11 February we arrived in Ushuaia [Ush-why-a] the capital of Tierra del Fuego – the southern most island of South America which is half Chilean and half of Argentinean. It was a gorgeous, if cool, morning - the snow-capped mountains all around the little Argentinean town were slightly tinted pink by the rising sun. In the morning I went for a short drive around Ushuaia and in the afternoon with the sun still out and the day warming up I went on a wonderful trip into Tierra del Fuego National Park. We drove through this beautiful park stopping at the odd lake and forest, and even at a beach! I spotted a red fox, many different birds including, I think, a condor way above us at one moment. Just as we were leaving Ushuaia in the evening, when we were all ‘tarted up’ for the Welcome Party for cruise number three, we spotted Explorer II [the old Minerva] sailing into port, so we were all out on deck waving and shouting, and the two ships exchanged lots of toots and whistles! Then on to the party and that evening I was invited to join a Swan ‘family’ table for dinner afterwards which was the greatest of fun.

Monday 12 February was a quiet day at sea although I met with friends of friends for drinks and lunch. In the evening I met up with my friend Caroline, the purser, for drinks and dinner in the Bridge Café which was good fun. Had a slightly disturbed night after the emergency medical alarm went off – I heard the next day that sadly one passenger had died during the night. The next morning we were back in the Falklands again, and this time I went to see the King Penguins and Gentoo Penguins at Bluff Cove – spent hours watching the parents all losing their feathers on land and the chicks all playing in the waves! From there back across East Falklands to Port Stanley where I attended a Service of Remembrance at the War Memorial attended my many of us from the ship; the service was taken by the Bishop of Norwich. Then back to the ship for a quick bite before going back on shore to visit some of the battlefields for the afternoon. I was quite late back to the ship so a quick change and then I joined quite a nice dinner table. Early the next morning we arrived back in West Point Island and I spotted some Commerson dolphins [white with black fins] around the ship. I had another wonderful walk across the island – this time in glorious sunshine. Saw many birds and visited the Rockhopper penguin and black-browed albatross colony once again. This time I also walked along some of the coastline and saw some Magellanic penguins as well as many geese and ducks. Had a quiet afternoon in my cabin, and then invited a girlfriend from a pre-cruise tour of China a few years ago for drinks in my cabin, and we dined together afterwards. The next day was a day at sea, and thankfully the sun came back out – at last – and I managed an afternoon on the top deck. In the evening I had a very nice dinner table and one couple [Gortons] invited me to join them for a nightcap afterwards which was fun.

At 6am on Friday 16 February we arrived in Puerto Madryn, and by 8.30 I was off to an Ecological Centre and then to see a sea lion colony; the sea lions were great, but the Centre was very boring. After a quick lunch I spent an hour back on the top deck and then went off to visit Gaiman, a Welsh town about an hour and a half from the ship. Had a little walk around the town but then it started to rain so we curtailed the walk and went to a large tea party with lots of Welsh food! Once back at the ship I had a quick supper in the Bridge Café and a very early night. The next day we were at sea – sadly a rather cloudy day but at least warmer. I met up with a few friends for drinks and lunch [Gerry and the Grooms], and then spent the day in my cabin. Having had a good lunch I decided to skip dinner and have another early night. The next morning was beautiful and warm, so I was happy to return to my old spot on the top deck, at long last! In the evening I had dinner with Graham and Julie James [he is Bishop of Norwich] – a lovely evening, having a good time à la trois!

Early on Monday 19 February we arrived in Buenos Aires. I took myself ashore mid morning to visit my old friend Ralph Ayling only to find he had had to go to Uruguay. So sadly no lunch but his office did organise to send a lot of my bits and pieces home for me which should help the weight of my luggage on my return flight. In the evening my dinner with Sir William and Lady Fraser was cancelled as they were late back from an excursion, but hopefully it will be reinstated later. On Tuesday we were due in to Montevideo by 7am but River Plate traffic delayed us and we eventually arrived at 9am. I went off on a wine-tasting at Juanico Winery, north of Montevideo. A fun morning with some quite good wines. I spent the afternoon on the top deck as we sailed for Rio. In the evening I joined my friends Ann & Tony [V-F] for a drink in their suite, and Geri, the doctor – who is another old friend – also joined us. We had a wonderful evening, dining in the grill and then a nightcap in the Wheeler Bar. Bumped into the Captain and Staff Captain and at last got an invitation to dine with Darius, Staff, and to visit the Bridge for the arrival into Rio. Spent the following day at sea on the top deck and then dined with Darius and another passenger in the Swan Restaurant. Thursday was another lovely, if windy, day at sea so I spent it on the top deck and in the evening went to the Farewell Party for cruise three! Then dined with some of my Swan friends and their relations which was lovely.

On Friday 23 February we cruised into Rio in the morning. I managed to get myself on to the Bridge and viewed this wonderful sight once again. It was absolutely boiling in Rio – over 90 degrees in the shade! I tried to sit on the top deck but it was too hot even for me! So after a light lunch and once everyone had gone off on their tours I sat by the pool and had a few swims – the first time since I have swum on board. In the evening I went ashore to meet up with my De La Rue friends, Trevor and Celia, and we had a wonderful evening at Gero’s restaurant in Ipanema. On Saturday morning I met up with Celia at a shopping centre and we spent a couple of hours wandering around before going to Trevor and Celia’s home for a glass or two of champagne. Then on to join another lady from De La Rue and her boyfriend for an excellent lunch at Esplanada. I then returned to the ship for an evening visit to Corcovado to watch the sunset with a caipirinha! On return to the ship I had an early night!

On Sunday 24th I was up early and off on an excursion to the Tijuca Forest in an open-top jeep which was great fun. We had a short walk once in the Forest and then returned through Rio to the ship in the jeep – rather a hot drive with no clouds in the sky and the temperature soaring but a great ride nonetheless. In the afternoon we sailed for Salvador and I had some wonderful views from my cabin. That evening was the Welcome party – met up with quite a few old friends, and then Henry, my friend from Chichester, and I joined a jolly table for dinner. The next day was a beautiful day which I spent on the top deck, except for a brief visit to the Orpheus Bar at lunch time to join the Singles party. In the evening I opened the bottle of champagne that I had been given on arrival and Henry joined me in downing it before dinner!

We arrived in a rather wet and cloudy Salvador around midday on Tuesday 27 February. However the rain clouds lifted enough for me to set off an hour or so later for an afternoon on the beach. It was not, though, the best of afternoons – the rains returned off and on, the waves were too strong to swim in, and beach was full of chairs and tables. Although we did in the end get some reclining chairs and some sunshine, I have been on better beach excursions than that one. The evening was a quiet one, and I woke up next morning to glorious sunshine for our day at sea, however by 3pm the winds got up and suddenly the rains came down so back to the cabin! In the evening Henry invited me to join him for a drink before dinner so we went to the Orpheus Bar and then the dining room for dinner. The next day, Thursday 1 March, we arrived in Recife at 7am, and by 8am I was off on an excursion to Igarassu to see the first church built in Brazil, and from there on to see a Dutch Fort and also a centre for the preservation of manatees before going to a beautiful beach at Itamaraca where I had a lovely swim and soaked up the sun for a short while. In the afternoon I went on a lovely river cruise around Recife, albeit with too many people on board! In the evening there was a Brazilian show on board given by local dancers from Recife; a good evening although it finished on a low when I had a very disappointing discussion the Hotel Director who has treated me so badly whilst on board.

Friday 2 and Saturday 3 March were days at sea spent on the top deck although the sun disappeared on both afternoons! Did see lots of flying fish and even some dolphins during the day. I had dinner with some gay friends on Friday and some Scottish friends on Saturday. Early on Sunday morning we arrived at Itaqui, and after some bureaucratic delays we went ashore to visit Sao Luis; in the morning I visited the incredible Sitio do Piranhenga which used to be a chalk factory but is now an ecological centre used for the disadvantaged, and in the afternoon I walked around the little historic town, and got very wet in the process. In the evening I had a lovely dinner with the Cruise Director and a couple of other friends. Monday was another day at sea – a lovely morning but a slightly cloudy and wet afternoon, although we did have the Crossing Line Ceremony after lunch – just before the rains came. In the evening I dined with three of my Swan friends. At midday on Tuesday 6 March we arrived at the Ile de Royale in French Guiana, and were tendered ashore for a few hours. This was a prison colony and was a slightly depressing place, especially as it was rather showery when we were there, but there was a wonderful walk all the way around the island which I enjoyed. In the evening I dined – at last – with the Hotel Director and the Captain. It has only taken nine weeks to dine with the two people whom I knew best when I boarded.

Very early on the morning of Wednesday 7 March we started our cruise down the Suriname river – a very shallow river so we had to time it that we went over the shallow sand bank at the right minute! We eventually arrived at Paramaribo at 8.30am. It was a very wet morning and with no excursions I spent it on board. The afternoon was also very wet, and I had the worst guide of the cruise, so my visit to Paramaribo was not the best. Had a quiet dinner and an early night. The next day was a wonderfully sunny day at sea and in the evening it was the final Farewell Party. Had a very nice table hosted by Matt with Henry and Tony Dyson’s sister and her husband, and after dinner we spent a little while in the Orpheus Bar. Early on the morning of Friday 9 March we arrived in Barbados, and by 9.30 I was on my way to Accra Beach to spend the morning there. The afternoon was the top deck and in the evening I said ‘goodbye’ to all by friends by the Pool Bar listening to a steel band playing on the Pool Deck. As I looked out from my cabin on Saturday morning I could see a turtle in the Caribbean sea! At 11.30 on Saturday morning, 10 March, I walked off Minerva for the last time and there wasn’t a soul there to say ‘farewell’, all rather sad, but some of the officers on board were a strange lot.

Then on to the Bougainvillea Beach Resort for three days. However, they let me down very badly saying they had no room for the Saturday night and transferred me to another hotel for the night. Not a good start to my relaxation on Barbados. However the weather was beautiful so spent the afternoon in the sunshine. Eventually moved into the Bougainvillea Beach Resort the next day, but not a very satisfactory outcome. They still keep me waiting for my room, and give me one of their worst rooms – so drink some liquid sunshine and go back to the sunshine fast for a few days before returning home.

March 07

Postcard from Uganda and Rwanda Oct-Nov 2006

2006-12-03T19:40:00.000Z

I left London for darkest Africa on the evening of Thursday 26 October and had a comfortable enough flight, arriving to see a wonderful sunrise as I touched down in Entebbe. My guide from Volcanoes Safaris, Sam, met me and took me to the new Kampala Serena Hotel where I checked into a very comfortable room. After a light breakfast I spent the day lying by their beautiful pool in glorious sunshine watching marabou storks circling overhead! An early dinner and an early night meant I felt much better the next day; Sam took me to visit my friends at Volcanoes Safaris [my one-day-a-week job in the UK] and then I returned to the Serena to spend the afternoon by the pool and had another early dinner and early night!

Sam picked me up at 8.30 on Sunday morning and off we drove to the North of Uganda, through Luwero and Nakasongola. We had a good if bumpy journey as Sam did a marvellous job skirting around the billions of potholes which seemed to get worse rather than better the further north we went! We were getting close to our lunchtime stop at Masindi when the car decided to play up and would hardly go at all, but with lots of help from Sam we made it slowly into Masindi. Sam dropped me off at the Masindi Hotel for lunch and went to struggle with the car. The long and short of it was that the fuel pump had given up and the only replacement was sitting in Kampala. So we managed to find ourselves a young man called ‘Ramadan’ and his little jelopy who drove us to Paraa Lodge in Murchison National Park. In fact normally you take the ferry across the Nile to Paraa Lodge, but the ferry was broken [we are in Africa!] so we took a little speed boat, me with all my luggage and six men – we made it to the other side, and I got myself safely installed in a lovely room overlooking the Nile where I can watch the hippos emerge. Poor Sam had to make his way back to Masindi to try and mend the car overnight.

The next morning I went on an early morning game drive and was lucky enough to see lions, elephants, giraffe, buffalo, and loads of different bucks. In the afternoon I embarked on a cruise up the Nile to Murchison Falls – saw hippos, crocs, buffalo, elephants, lots of bucks and many birds! It was a bit rainy at the Falls but it was nonetheless a lovely afternoon. I met a delightful couple [Roger and Jeannie Wheater] on board and found we had many friends in common! Sam finally returned with mended car, and he organised a trip down the Nile the next morning towards Lake Albert – a lovely peaceful relaxing morning watching herons, crocs and hippos among many others! After an afternoon by the pool went on an evening game drive and saw herds of giraffe, buffalo and elephants but no other excitements!

Wednesday morning, Sam and I left Paraa Lodge at 8am and were ferried across the Nile to be reunited with Sam’s car. We drove to the top of Murchison Falls and walked right down to the top of the falls – a stunning sight which I remembered from 34 years ago! Then we drove on to a Rhino Sanctuary, where I tracked white rhino on foot! Quite scarey but very fascinating. After eating our picnic in the Sanctuary we drove on to Kampala and I checked back into the Serena to recover from my safari!

After a luxurious night in the Serena, Sam picked me and we set off for Fort Portal. We had a good journey and the road was much better for most of the journey. It never ceases to amaze me what you see on the roads, besides the potholes [or craters!] and heavy lorries with smelly exhausts, as you drive around Uganda – many people walking or bicycling along; ladies in colourful dresses with babies on their backs and ‘their world’ on their heads; bicycles with so much on the back – beds, firewood, suitcases, half a tree of bananas, all piled high, even ‘moving shops’ on bicyles; goats and pigs being pulled along on string leads; small motorcycles with children squashed between parents; toddlers carrying water bottles [sometimes on their heads] which are almost as big as themselves; school children all dressed alike in school uniform; tiny little bare-footed children, some with babies on their backs, who never run into the road and usually waving to you as you drive by.

Anyway we arrived in Ndali Lodge early afternoon after a brief stopover for lunch in Fort Portal where we drove through a horrendous storm – even got wet in the car! Ndali is a strange place, and to me it was disappointing after looking at their brilliant brochure. I had a small cottage with a bathroom – and a bath – but no electricity, which tests me a bit these days. On the first morning I was up very early to go chimp tracking in Kibale Forest. Kibale is full of primates and we first found some baboons playing in the forest. However, it was a long and tough track, but we did eventually find the chimps, on the ground. We had a wonderful view of them as they played around – some of them huge and some smaller ones too. By the end of four hours I was absolutely exhausted and fell over twice in the slippery mud, but the only thing to be hurt was my pride and I got some lovely muddy clothes! After a quiet afternoon of recovery I had dinner with the boss of Ndali and his girlfriend. The next day Sam took me to Bigodi Wetlands where I set off on a walk around the swamplands – saw many different monkeys and lots of birds, but after about two hours the heavens opened and we got very very wet! I was completely sodden right through and had to almost strip in the car for the journey back to the lodge! Once back it was a quiet afternoon relaxing!

On Sunday morning Sam and I left Ndali Lodge and drove via Kasese down to Queen Elizabeth Park. We spent an hour or so driving through the craters of the Park spotting game, and then on into the main park itself where we had our picnic lunch overlooking the Kazinga Channel watching birds, hippos and buffalo. We then had another game drive in the Park before driving on to Jacana Lodge – a strange place with little wooden cabins overlooking a lake – but I found I had two or three friends that I had met along the way also staying there which made for a nice evening.

The next morning Sam and I set off on a game safari at 7am and it was sadly a very quiet morning for game; we saw all the usual animals but the only excitement was a hyena! So after five hours of ‘looking’ we went to Mweya Lodge for a drink and watched elephants, hippos and buffalo over lunch after which I took a river cruise up the Kazinga Channel where you see everything in the river very close up – hippos, buffalo, crocs, and many different species of birds from large herons to tiny kingfishers. Then a short game drive and back to my lodge. On Tuesday Sam took me off on an even earlier game drive and this time we got lucky by seeing a pride of lions, albeit a little distant, but we were able to watch them through our binoculars for about an hour. After that I spent a few hours at the lodge to relax where I watched Colombus monkeys around my room. Late in the afternoon Sam and I decided to walk in the Maramagambo Forest – a guide took us through the forest to the bat cave, but half way along the heavens opened and we got absolutely soaked for an hour. It was a big endurance test as we weaved our way across many very fast moving rivers which the rains were causing in the forest and my guide and Sam had to give me a lot of help to cross them. A lovely walk was rather spoilt, although the bat cave wasn’t my idea of fun – millions of bats, very smelly and the cave even had pythons in there!

On Wednesday morning Sam and I set off on the road to Ishasha. The road was pretty awful after the heavy rains – thick mud, deep large puddles, and deep tyre marks of the lorries that go along that road to the Congo – a challenge for Sam’s wonderful driving. Completely different to other roads, there was hardly a soul to be seen, just the odd bicycle or ‘people’ lorry, the transport that carries people to markets etc, as well as a broken and upturned lorries and a little bit of game. Eventually we reached the Ishasha part of QE Park and we drove around for an hour or so looking for the tree climbing lions. No luck – so we went back to the entrance and had our picnic, and then started off for Bwindi. Our luck turned…. as we drove along the road, Sam spotted some lions just inside the Park which we were able to get to close to. There were four lions [two cubs] sleeping quietly in the tree but they woke up to greet us – just wonderful!

After that we made our way to Bwindi over bone-rattling roads – in this part of the world the word ‘tarmac’ doesn’t exist! We bumped and swerved our way across these dreadful roads for a couple of hours through little villages until we reached Volcanoes Bwindi Lodge and I settled into one of their wonderful new bandas overlooking Bwindi Forest [although I don’t like the eco-style loos and showers!]. After a good dinner by the fire I retired to my cot fairly early. The next morning was bright and sunny and I set off on a walk in the Bwindi Forest to the Myunga Waterfalls. At first it was an entrancing walk, seeing many different kinds of monkeys swinging about above me, but as we got nearer to the Falls the walk got tougher and I slipped and slithered and bruised my way upward along the muddy path with the help of my guide. We first visited the lower two falls and then eventually we got to the top of the falls. They were stunning and my guide helped me cross the river by stepping stones to get a better view. I then slipped and slithered and bruised my way back down hill again! It was a beautiful walk but quite a tough one too! On the way back we passed a bare-footed lady with some Nile beer bottles on her head; I commented that she had twelve bottles of Nile on her head, and my guide said ‘No, actually she has 25 bottles in that case and she is walking three miles to her village!’. Finally I got back to my Lodge almost four hours after leaving – exhausted, I had a drink and some lunch and relaxed for the afternoon and evening. The following morning I went on a three hour relatively easy walk around the Buhoma Community – visiting a local school, where the children sang to me, tea and coffee plantation, banana wine brewing site and finally I watched some dancing by the Batwa [pygmies] people. After lunch I took a wander down to the river at the Lodge and then relaxed for the rest of the day.

On Saturday morning Sam and I set off on our six hour drive from Bwindi over to Mgahinga. The first three hours were through Bwindi Impentrable Forest along dirt bone-rattling roads but often passing by colourful ladies and waving toddlers. I also spotted ‘moving trees’! - people carrying huge mounds of sweet potato plants, or similar, on their heads so that you cannot see their heads; and a people ambulance – a sick man in stretcher being carried high on the shoulders of four young men. We also saw many different types of monkeys and birds. Eventually we emerged from the Forest and travelled the last three hours to Mgahinga – the roads didn’t improve at all but the scenery did. Three Volcanoes were reasonably clear for us to see, and we stopped for our picnic lunch in Kanaba overlooking these Volcanoes. We eventually arrived in Volcanoes Mgahinga Lodge around 3.30pm and I settled into one of their little bandas.

On Sunday morning I went on a nature trail with Sam and a guide around Mgahinga Forest – a fairly exhausting 4 hour walk around the forest. We didn’t see much except for lots and lots of buffalo dung so I was a glad we had the army with us, plus gun, in case we came face to face with a buffalo. Had a quiet afternoon in the lodge. My guide, Sam, was not too well. Sounded like malaria, so he went off to the nearest clinic and spent some hours there getting injected, and luckily was much recovered by the next day. We had a quiet Monday morning in the Lodge and set off after lunch for Rwanda. It was a short drive to the border, and then half an hour from there we drove up another dreadful road to Virunga Lodge, high on a hill overlooking some of the ‘thousand hills’ of Rwanda, as well a couple of lakes and three volcanoes! I settled into my beautiful room [except for the awful eco-loos] with a stunning view, and joined other people for a cosy dinner in the lodge.

I was up at 5am on Tuesday morning and left the lodge by 6am! By 7.45am I was off on my first gorilla track of this trip. We started off across muddy fields before entering the forest, and we then tracked through bamboos and nettles and thick forest for about an hour before we found the Sabyinyo group of gorillas. There were eight of them, one was a little baby of about a year, who had recently been named ‘Big Ben’ by the British Ambassador [with whom I am staying next week]. We had a great hour with the gorillas, moving with them every now and then. The silverback ‘Guhonda’ just sat there for us for quite a long time. Then we had to track back through the forest and over a big wall back to the cars. We were very lucky in that the whole tracking only took three hours! The rest of the day was spent quietly at the Lodge – the sun came out and I was able to dry may hair on my balcony!

I was up at 5am again on Wednesday after a rather dodgy night – felt very sick. I couldn’t manage any breakfast except for a glass of fruit juice, and then left for my next tracking – this time the Golden Monkeys. It took an hour to get there, once again through the forest, and then I spent an hour watching them race around, jumping from tree to tree and having a wonderful time. It was fun, but I wasn’t feeling so good so I was glad to set off back – fortunately only three quarters of an hour - to Sam and the car. We came back to the Lodge where I could relax. In the late afternoon there was some warrior dancing at the lodge which was fun. I had an early night as still wasn’t feeling too good. Was up and down out of bed for a few hours, but eventually my stomach settled and I woke at 5am feeling a lot better. Then off to track gorillas again. This time I tracked the Hirwa group – after half an hour across the fields we fortunately only had a very short and easy track through the forest and were with the gorillas by 9am. We spent an hour with them, sometimes following them through the jungle. At one time the silverback got fed up with us and charged us, and then promptly sat right opposite me for about ten minutes – a bit unnerving. After an hour with the gorilla family we returned to our base, and I came back to the lodge for the afternoon to relax.

Although I had had another rough night with my tummy, I was well enough to hit the road with Sam and we drove to Gisenyi on Lake Kivu. However we had only got five minutes down the dreadful road out of the Lodge, when one of the shock absorbers went.! Sam had to doll his work outfit and get under the car and put things right. Needless to say we were surrounded by many children who appeared out of nowhere and just stared at us! Anyway Sam solved the problem and on we went. The Rwandan main roads are much better than the Ugandan ones – most having tarmac on – but there are many more people walking along them and once again you see colourfully dressed ladies, mostly with babies on their backs and with anything from umbrellas and handbags to sewing machines, terra cotta pots [up to 20 of them] and trees on their heads! The men all seemed to wear very colourful flipflops, and on their bicyles carry loads of dirty yellow cans all containing the local beer. You see many tiny children along the roadside, some running a hoop, or tyre, in front of them. Bicyles are also used as taxis these days with seats on the back and it is amazing what you see them carrying! Anyway once in Gisenyi Sam and I found ourselves a little outboard dingy and took to the waters of Lake Kivu. We were taken across the lake to see some amazing hotsprings where people come to cure themselves, but sadly it started to absolutely tip with rain as we arrived. Fortunately we had borrowed some suitable wet gear to protect ourselves against the torrential storm but we stilll got back feeling pretty damp. We then had a good lunch at the excellent Kivu Sun Hotel, a trip up to the Congo border in Gisenyi and a drive through the town before driving back to Virunga Lodge for a shower and a cosy dinner there.

On Saturday 18th I spent the morning quietly in the Lodge, packing up, reading and doing some emails, and after an early lunch Sam and I set off for Kigali. We had a good if wet journey and eventually got to Kigali at 3.30, and went to the British Ambassador’s residence, where I was staying. Jeremy [McAdie] is an old friend from my Foreign Office days. Within an hour I was in one of the best baths I have had for a long time, soaking off 16 days worth of safari grime! All dressed up I went down to a lovely glass of champers and then off to a Fashion Show and Dinner at the InterContinental with Jeremy. He had a table of ten, although one Minister and her husband failed to show up, so we were only eight. It was a good evening but very late…. bed at 1.30am! Got up late-ish the next morning and pottered around the Residence until 12.30 when 13 guests plus two babies arrived for lunch. A very good lunch that went on until almost 5pm! After that Jeremy and I sat and chatted and watched videos over a bottle or so of wine!

On Monday morning Sam picked me up at 7.30 and we set off on our long trek across Rwanda and Uganda to Mburu National Park – it took us six hours plus a time change so we arrived at Mantana Tented Camp for a very late lunch. After which I went on a boat trip around Lake Mburu – saw hippos, buffalos and plenty of birds; then a game drive with Sam when we saw quite a lot of wildlife – impala, waterbuck, zebra, topi, buffalo and a few eland. Saw leopard footprints but didn’t find it, sadly. Back to my tent – how I hate tents! – for a quick shower and on to supper and bed. Couldn’t wait for the morning to get away from the bugs and noises of a tent in the bush! So off at 7.30am for another game drive for a couple of hours before hitting the road to Kampala. After a short visit to Volcanoes office I went to the Kampala Serena Hotel and relaxed in its wonderful luxury. A rainy afternoon so time to catch up with myself!

Spent the last two days relaxing in the Kampala Serena. Couldn’t do very much as it was rainy, but it was just lovely to be back in civilisation again! Did a bit of shopping and had some good meals, and after 2400 miles around Uganda and Rwanda I flew home on the Friday day flight.

Postcard from Discovery in the North Sea – July 2006

2006-08-07T15:33:00.000+01:00

I left my flat at midday, departed Victoria Coach Station at 1pm, and arrived at Harwich on Sunday 9th July at around 3pm. As I walked on board the ship 'Discovery' my good friend the Captain was there to greet me. After a couple of hours of unpacking and settling in I went up to the Bridge Deck to watch us depart Harwich. We then had a safety drill after which I relaxed in my cabin, where a bottle of champagne awaited me from Voyages of Discovery!

I had dinner that evening with ‘my table’ – and ‘my table’ is the same for the whole cruise unless invited elsewhere! We had just one poor man and five ladies. After dinner I went to listen to the Cruise Director tell us about the cruise and then retired to my cot!

On Monday, my first day at sea, it was gloriously sunny, if chilly, so spent it out on deck; went to a very poorly attended ‘singles’ party at midday but then met up with the Captain, plus his cousin and her husband [Ann & Laurie] for a drink after which we all had a nice lunch together. Spent the afternoon lazing around in the sunshine, and in the evening it was the Captain’s Welcome Party. A very strange party – where you all sit down at the reception, and then I was at the Captain’s table for dinner afterwards. A lovely evening!

Tuesday was rather grey and drizzly as I opened my curtains, but I went up to the Bridge Deck to watch us arrive in Flam. Even in the rain it was a great to see us sail through the Fjords and to watch us berth there. I took the local train from Flam up to Vatna-Halsen – there were some wonderful sights of waterfalls and fantastic views as we travelled upwards. We stayed up there for an hour or so before taking the train back to Flam, and I then walked back to the ship for a short stop-over before taking an afternoon excursion to Gudvangen. After a walk around the spectacular Gudvangen, we were then driven up Norway’s steepest road – with stunning views – to Stalheim, where we spent an hour in the Stalheim Hotel admiring the fantastic views – including a wonderful rainbow! – and enjoying chocolate cake and coffee/tea! Then back to the ship and up to the Bridge Deck to watch us sail. I had a quick dinner and then back up on deck to watch us sail through the Fjords for an hour or so.

We arrived in Bergen just before 8am on Wednesday; it was dryish to start with but the rain soon got going, and I went on one of the wettest walks in a long time. It just tipped out of the sky and we got absolutely soaked. It was however a good walk with an excellent guide, and we went by funicular up to Mount Floyen to get a good if rainy view of the Town. Then back to the ship to do a change of clo’ before going to ‘the Lido’ restaurant where I joined the Captain, Ann and Laurie for lunch before setting off on a trip to Troldhaugen to hear a piano recital of some of Grieg’s music. Back to the ship and I watched us sail in the pouring rain!

Up early on Thursday 13th to see us sail into Lerwick in the Shetland Islands. Very cold and windy and trying to rain, but fun seeing lots of seals in the harbour. My excursion to Mousa Island was cancelled because of the weather so went on a trip to Sumburgh Head, which was actually very nice in spite of the cold windy weather! Saw lots of different birds, including the famous puffin, and some wonderful views. Back for lunch and then on deck to watch us depart for Iceland. In the evening I joined the Captain, Ann, Laurie, the Hotel Director and the Chief Engineer for drinks and then dinner in the Yacht Club – a wonderful evening was had by all!

Friday we were at sea all day – it was sunny but very chilly so I spent it on deck reading but well wrapped up! On Saturday morning we sailed up a beautiful Icelandic fjord with snow-topped mountains and arrived at a very windy Akureyri at 8.30am. I had a lovely day there – travelling to the stunning Godafoss Falls and then on through lava fields to Namafajll sulphur pools, Dimmuborgir lava ‘twilight castles’, and then to Skutustaoir for lunch. From there we drove back to Akureyri for a tour of the delightful little town and the beautiful botanical gardens before returning to the ship. We had a very windy take off and then travelled up the beautiful fjord back to the North Atlantic.

On Sunday morning I went on deck early to watch us cruise up the fjord to Isafjordhur and watched puffins flying around on the sea – absolutely wonderful sight. We arrived in a rather damp and chilly Isafjordhur but I went on an excellent cultural tour of Isafjordhur and the surrounding areas. We had a flute recital in a church at Bolungarvik, drank ice cold water from a waterfall and visited the local maritime museum where some local children were dancing and singing for us. In the afternoon I went on the most wonderful visit to the tiny Icelandic island of Vigur. We took a very smart speedboat out to the island, saw a whale on the way, and once there went on an hour long walk around the island seeing thousands of puffins, guillemots, terns, eider ducks etc – a truly magical afternoon. When we were ready to depart the Captain had a problem when weighing anchor as it had got caught up in trawlermen’s wires, so it took us some time to cut us free, but we then cruised back down the fjord and on to Reykjavik.

In the morning I watched us arrive in Reykjavik around 7.30am and I went on a tour to visit some lava cliffs, sulphur springs and the Blue Lagoon – all fascinating. I managed to disembark the coach near to the British Embassy, and went to lunch with my old FCO friend Alp Mehmet who is now the British Ambassador to Iceland. We had a lot of fun and it was great to catch up with him and his wife. In the afternoon I wandered around Reykjavik before returning to the ship to watch us sail. We were in a very tight berth and it was a master of seamanship to get us out to the open sea! In the evening I had dinner with one of the speakers and we saw whales as we were dining!

Tuesday was a rather long day at sea – I went on deck for a little while but it was rather wet and cold so took to my cabin for most of the morning, walked around the ship a bit, had some lunch and did some work on my pc. In the evening joined another of the Captain’s dinner tables which was good fun.

Was up early to see us arrive in Torshavn in the Faroe Islands at 6.30am on Wednesday morning. After an early breakfast I then set off by bus for Vestmanna – an hour’s bus ride. We then got on a small boats for a wonderful two hour boat ride around the dramatic cliffs of Vestmanna, seeing all sorts of birds. The Faroes were very foggy so we had a slow bus ride back to the ship and then I watched us sail out of Torshavn in the fog and head back to Harwich. That evening was the Captain’s Farewell Party – went to a very good reception and then to dinner at ‘my table’ for the last time.

Spent Thursday morning packing and sorting myself out and generally wandering around the ship. In the evening I met up with the Captain, Ann and Laurie for a drink and then the four of us had a lovely farewell dinner together in the Yacht Club restaurant. Sadly though, it got very foggy and the Captain had to leave us rather promptly to get back to the Bridge.

On Friday morning I was up on the Bridge Deck early to watch us arrive in Harwich on a glorious morning. I disembarked around 8.45 and caught the coach back to Victoria Station by lunchtime.

A really wonderful cruise!

An Interesting and Varied Career

2006-06-13T21:30:00.000+01:00

I started my secretarial career in 1961 after a disastrous attempt to take up nursing. After a year's secretarial training at St James's College in London, I found a job as Assistant Secretary to the Managing Director of The De La Rue Company, who in those days were more famous for playing cards than anything else, but their main business was printing banknotes, and at that time they also had Formica and Potterton boilers, among other things, under their belt.

I had four fascinating years working as Assistant Secretary to Mr Gerry Norman [now Sir Arthur Norman], where I learnt how to run an exceptionally busy international office, and in those days we did not have the help of modern telephones and copying machines.

In February 1965 I was approached by Peter Orchard, the Managing Director of the banknote printing division of De La Rue, who asked if I would like to work for him, which I accepted. From then on I worked alongside Peter as he progressed up the De La Rue tree to become Chief Executive in 1977 and Chairman in 1987. As well being Peter Orchard’s Personal Assistant, I was also De La Rue's Social Secretary and the Secretary of their Charitable Trust, and I therefore had a wonderfully interesting and sociable job, often travelling the world to organise functions for the company.

Sadly Peter died very suddenly in office in January 1993 and after 32 years with De La Rue the time came to move on. In November 1993 I joined the Foreign Office where I worked for Douglas Hurd as his Assistant Private Secretary, otherwise called the Diary Secretary. When Douglas retired Malcolm Rifkind became Foreign Secretary and I stayed on and worked for him until May 1997. They were four fascinating years which I thoroughly enjoyed even if it was very hard work.

I did not stay long after Robin Cook became Foreign Secretary, and eventually decided to retire. Now I travel the world during the winter months and do a few small part-time jobs when I am in England during the summer months. This also enables me to enjoy some cricket during the English summer!

Postcard from Italy - May 2006

2006-06-09T22:40:00.000+01:00

I left London on a wet and grey Sunday; had an excellent meal on board BA to Pisa with a couple of small bottles of champagne! Was eventually met and driven to Florence where I checked into my little hotel right next to the Ponte Vecchio. Sue Sheridan, who was already in Florence, came over to see me. We had a drink on the roof of my hotel – a delightful spot with a wonderful view, and then walked to her hotel for a chat with our guide, before going out for a very nice pasta and back to bed.

On Monday Sue was busy with her choirmates, so I walked Florence all day! It was a lovely day and strolled for miles and miles and even climbed the Campanile. In the evening went to Sue’s excellent concert in the church of the Annunziata which didn’t start until 9.10. Dined with them all afterwards. Got back to my hotel at 1.15am! Woke up late the next day and after breakfast joined Sue on another walk of Florence; after visiting Santa Croce we climbed to Piazzale Michelangelo from where we got a wonderful view of Florence on another glorious day. Enjoyed a glass up there, and after a bit more walking back down in Florence we had a late lunch and called it a day – both exhausted. In the evening we met in the Republic Square and had an excellent dinner at a nearby restaurant. We were both home in our hotels early for a good night’s sleep.

On Wednesday morning I was picked up by our driver, Jacqui at 8am, we then picked up Sue and drove on to Arezzo where we spent a couple of hours walking around the delightful little town in glorious sunshine. From there we drove on to Sansepolcro where we saw the famous picture of the Resurrection. We had an excellent lunch in a nearby restaurant before moving on for a wonderful afternoon in Assisi – a truly magnificent place. We walked around the whole Basilca and then relaxed with a glass of wine in the sunshine. We then drove on to our home for the next two nighnights – La Pregheira – a wonderful old converted monastry run by an English gent and Uruguayan lady. That evening we went out for a delicious, and cheap, meal locally with our driver, Jacqui.

On Thursday we set off early for Perugia, where we had an excellent guide for a couple of hours in glorious sunshine. It is a fascinating place and it was good to have a guide to show us around. After a drink in the sunshine we drove on to Lake Trasimeno and did a bit of shopping for local delicacies in Castiglione del Lago where we had an excellent lunch in a little restaurant overlooking the Lake. After that we drove on to the delightful little town of Cortona for a short walk around the city before driving back to La Pregheira for an excellent if expensive dinner in house.

In the morning we had a bit of a lie-in before driving to Montepulciano where we had a wonderful walk around this little town in glorious sunshine. We had a lovely lunch in little local cafe, and then on to the tiny little pretty towns of Pienza and Montalcino to see the local sights, finishing up with a glass at the wine bar in the ramparts of the fort at Montalcino. In the evening we drove on to Siena and checked into our local hotel, Palazzo Ravizza, where we had a nice dinner. The next morning in glorious weather we went off at 8.30 to San Gimignano for a lovely walk around the towered city. Then on to the delightful walled city of Monteriggioni where we had an early lunch before driving back to Siena. There we gave ourselves an ice cream in the Piazza del Campo before meeting up with our guide for a two and a half walk around the City, eventually getting back to our hotel at 6pm! That evening we took our guide out for a nice dinner in Siena, then home to pack up for an early start on Sunday morning to catch our flight to London.