July
2023
Kent
UK
the family
July
2023
Highlands
Scotland
Castle &
Loch Ness
July
2023
Caithness
Scotland
Whisky &
John O'Groats
July
2023
Shetland
Scotland
Crafts &
Scalloway
July
2023
Kent
UK
11:30
| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
|---|---|---|---|
|
24th July 2023 |
DoVeR Kent UK |
Lunch with the family |
|
26th July 2023 |
Invergordon Highlands Scotland |
Urquhart Castle & Loch Ness |
|
27th July 2023 |
Scrabster Caithness Scotland |
Wick, Whisky & John O'Groats |
|
28th July 2023 |
Lerwick Shetland Scotland |
Ponies, Crafts & Scalloway |
|
30th July 2023 |
DoVeR Kent UK |
Home by 11:30 |
| Flag: | Date: | Port: | Comment: |
I awoke at 6:20 five minutes before the bow thrusters started up. At seven o'clock, I had the full English breakfast al fresco on the Verandah. Back in my cabin, I updated this blog, before heading off the ship.
At 8:30 I was stood with Sally awaiting the shuttle bus into town. When it arrived, he said he wan't going to leave until 8:50, so I started walking instead. I explored the newly redeveloped Western Docks, which have been tastefully renovated. In town I bought some sticky labels in the WHSmith clearance section and a pair of fawn jeans in the Scope one pound charity shop! I then walked back to the ship, where I had my mid morning instant decaff coffee, with the extra whitener I had brought from home.
At noon my cousin Jean arrived with her daughter Michelle and whisked me off to Cullins Yard restaurant in Dover. Here I had the ham, egg & chips, whilst Jean had the fish & chips and Michelle had the spaghetti with prawns. I had a pint of cider and the two ladies had bottles of Peroni beer. Then Michelle drove me back to the ship, where I slept for one hour.
At the safety drill I chatted to Archdeacon Gavin whose colleague Liam had now gone back to Nottingham. At six o'clock we had the entertainers cocktail party where I had just one glass of cranberry fizz. Amanda remembered me and asked what was I going to say about the Tall Ships in Lerwick, so I rushed back to my cabin to get my laptop to show her my slides.
At seven o'clock I dined on the broccoli and blue cheese soup, the prime rib of beef and the mixed ice cream. I had just one tin can of cider to drink, sat with a Welsh lady and her Scottish husband. He had spent his career in wool carpets, including time in Kidderminster and Abingdon. At 9:30 I went to hear the Twisted Circus fantasy production show for a second time. This again included great pop songs, like Roxanne by the Police, Sweet Dreams by the Eurhythmics and Tainted Love by Soft Cell. I went to sleep just after eleven o'clock having done over seventeen thousand steps, equal to seven miles of walking during the day!
I awoke at 6:35 ready for my usual mug of instant decaff coffee in the cabin. The sky was clear and the sun was shining! I started work on this blog, before having TWO eggs Royale for breakfast.
At nine o'clock I touched base with Oana at her Explore Ashore desk. At 10:30 I gave my forty minute talk on Invergordon. Two people asked about the Clava Cairns near Culloden.
Back in my cabin, I gave the line dancing a miss as I updated this blog and my next talk. At noon I lunched on the minestrone soup and the roast lamb, followed by a hundred minute siesta. At 3:30 I gave my forty minute talk on Scrabster with several embedded videos.
At 4:30 I went to the strawberry etagere tea, where I had one small tuna roll and one small egg mayonnaise one, followed by TWO strawberries dipped in pink chocolate. I had two cups of tea to drink, sat with two ladies and one gent from Hampshire. The latter preferred Seabourn to Silversea, but his favourite line was Noble Caledonia.
I then did four circuits of the promenade deck, equal to one mile, in the bright sun, but cool wind. At six o'clock I went to the solo travellers meet up at the back of the Captain's cocktail party. I was the only man amongst a dozen ladies, but none of them were ballroom dancers.
At 6:45 I dined in the Grill on the killing skunk soup, the DoVeR sole and the honeycomb ice cream. I had one larger tin can of cider sat with two ladies from Brighton and one from Oadby in Leicester. At 9:15 I went to the Viva disco session to well-known pop songs.
At 9:45 I went to the Graffitti Classics show time. This was a quartet led by a brusque Irish man, doing silly things whilst playing popular classical pieces. The audience loved them!
Back in my cabin, I started to watch my Invergordon talk, but soon went to bed. However, I had a disturbed night thanks to the two cups of strong tea I had drunk at tea-time. During the day, I had done less than nine thousand steps, only just over three miles of walking during a busy day!
I awoke at 6:20, just ten minutes before my alarm. At seven o'clock I had the full English breakfast to eat, in preference to the special kedgeree. I had one glass of tomato juice and one glass of coconut & banana smoothie to drink.
At eight o'clock I was on dispatch duty in the Playhouse ready to escort my third choice Urquhart Castle & Loch Ness tour (£64). At 8:15 I led 38 guests out to the coach where our driver was Daniel and our guide was muslim Mahdia. Just after ten o'clock we arrived at the castle for our one hour visit. I gave the long queue for the introductory movie a miss and headed straight out to the ruined castle on the banks of the loch. I did some photography in the bright sunshine, before utilising the free wi-fi outside the cafeteria. In the end I didn't have time to see the film, which I have seen on previous visits. We drove back north eastwards along the west bank of the loch to Inverness, for a quick panoramic circuit.
Back at the ship at 12:30, I had the cordon bleu turkey, the beef lasagna and vegetables, but no potatoes for lunch. I then slept for three quarters of an hour. Just after two o'clock, I went back ashore walking north eastwards along the High Street and the lochside prom to Saltburn village. Here I photographed the pretty Woodland Walk, before returning to Invergordon. It was one and a half miles each way.
Back on the ship again, I touched base with Louise at the Explore Ashore desk, before giving my forty minute talk on Lerwick. I didn't show any videos or cover the four walks around the coast I had as backup. At six o'clock I did the Mayfair Quickstep, the Catherine Waltz, the ballroom rumba and the jive with Elizabeth at the early evening ballroom session. At seven o'clock I dined on the parsnip soup, the monkfish tails, the sugar free orange custard and four petit fours. I had one tin can of cider to drink, sat with Rosemary & Alan from Watford and the Hamphire gent who I had had tea with the previous day.
At 9:30 I went to Wayne Denton's excellent John Denver tribute show time. When I had last seen him in 2022 I wrote: "All the famous songs were there: Rocky Mountain High, Take Me Home Country Roads, Thank God I'm a Country Boy, Leaving on a Jet Plane and Annie's Song. When he told the story of how school teacher Christa McAuliffe had replaced John Denver as the Citizen Astronaut and he sang "Flying For Me", I nearly shed a tear!" Back in my cabin I watched my Lerwick talk on the telly, before going to sleep at 11:30. During the day I had done nearly eighteen thousand steps, equal to more than seven miles of walking!
I awoke at 6:20 ready for my usual mug of instant decaff coffee in the cabin. At 7:10 I had the special breakfast of a brioche filled with baked beans and topped with a poached egg. Back in my cabin I had to prepare a new P&O bid.
At 9:15 I was on dispatch duty in the Playhouse theatre ready to escort my first choice Whisky, Wick & John O'Groats tour (£79). I led my 35 guests down at 9:30, but unfortunately our coach hadn't arrived, so we had to stand on the quayside for a time. Eventually one of the other buses was reallocated to us and we finally departed at 9:55 with Australian guide Robyn and local driver Lockie.
Our first stop was just fifteen minutes at John O'Groats, so I rushed around picking up maps and leaflets and recording my piece to camera. We then had an hour and a half's guided tour by local Jane at the Pulteney whisky distillery. This was very photogenic with huge stainless steel mash tuns and tall copper stills.
Our final stop was three quarters of an hour at the harbour in Wick. Here I walked into the town centre to explore the quiet High Street. I eventually found the Heritage Centre, but gave it a miss at a fiver for admission. I did some photography around the harbour, but it was over cast all day.
Back at the ship at three o'clock, the Grill had closed, so I had three small rolls in the Living Room: egg, mackerel and cream cheese. I then slept for an hour and a half. At five o'clock I watched Amanda's Tall Ships talk on the telly. At six o'clock I did a Mayfair Quickstep, a rumba, a jive and a ballroom quickstep with Elizabeth in the Britannia Lounge.
At seven o'clock I dined on the pumpkin soup, the veal schnitzel and the toffee ice cream, sat with Paul & Vanessa from Maidstone and a single lady from Reading who had been on my coach that afternoon. He was an air con engineer with interesting stories. He and his wife were both keen photographers who used photoshop to enhance their works.
At 9:45 I went to Wayne Denton's Neil Diamond tribute act in the Britannia Lounge. Not as good as his John Denver show the previous night, with some songs I didn't know. He finished, inevitably, with Sweet Caroline which went down a storm with the appreciative audience! I went to sleep just after eleven o'clock, having done just over ten thousand steps, equal to four miles of walking, during the day.
I awoke just after six o'clock to a glorious sun rise. At seven o'clock I had the breakfast special of fried egg, tomato, chorizo, mushrooms and goat's cheese. I had one glass of tomato juice and one glass of raspberry smoothie. I had to bolt my meal as we were sailing in to Lerwick past the tall ships. Out on the deck, I got some good shots as we passed the Victoria Pier and the Holmsgarth Ferry Terminal in the sunshine. When Randy came to service the cabin, I returned to the top decks for some more photography in the sunshine.
At 8:30 I was on dispatch duty in the Playhouse theatre, ready to escort my 42 guests out to the coach. Here I met driver Douglas and English guide Helen for my first choice Ponies, Crafts and Scalloway tour (£59). Our first stop was at the Shetland Jewellery centre, which had free wi-fi. Next up came the famous Shetland ponies. Our final stop was at the museum in the old capital of Scalloway, which also had free wi-fi. I took pictures of the Shetland Bus exhibits, before walking along the main street to see the Shetland Bus memorial by the Church of Scotland. I photographed all the important buildings, including the castle and the Norway house in the drizzle.
Back at the ship, I went to the Bavarian lunch in the Club restaurant. Here I had a huge pork shank, which I gnawed to the bone. I was sat with a lady from North East Devon and two ladies from Amersham in the Chilterns.
Afterwards I caught the 2:45 penultimate shuttle bus into town. We were dropped off at the Alexandra wharf, as the centre of the town was cordoned off. I walked up to Fort Charlotte to photograph the tall ships, before processing along the narrow main street as far as the RNLI building. I took some more pictures around the small boat harbour, before entering the Victoria pier where half of the tall ships were berthed. I walked along the Albert, Alexandra and Laurenson wharves, before rounding the North Ness. I had a quick look around the Holmsgarth quay, where the other half of the tall ships were berthed.
I got back to the ship at 2:45, just fifteen minutes before all aboard time. Here I had my first afternoon instant decaff coffee, before sleeping for three quarters of an hour. Then I had another in-cabin coffee, whilst listening to Keith's excellent talk about the crown jewels on the telly. I finally got around to backing up my photos from the three previous ports of call on this cruise.
At six o'clock I went to the Britannia Club cocktail party, where I sat with the solo travellers. At seven o'clock I dined on the lobster bisque, the Caesar salad, the Chateaubriand beef and the clotted cream ice cream. I was sat with Jill from Totnes and Margaret from Oadby with her daughter Christine.
At 9:45 I went to the production company's variety show in the Britannia lounge, which featured great songs and dances from West Side Story, Mary Poppins, Les Mis and others. I went to sleep at eleven o'clock having done over fifteen thousand steps, equal to over six miles of walking, during the day!
I awoke just after six o'clock and got up half an hour later. At 7:30 I had the full English breakfast to eat, with just one glass of buck's fizz to drink. I spent most of the morning updating my port talks with the new photographs I had taken during the cruise. I did four lengths of the sunny side promenade, equal to just half a mile of walking.
At 10:30 I watched the Meet the Captain session on my telly. At noon I had an interesting chat with Archdeacon Gavin Kirk from Lincoln. I then lunched on the corn chowder with shrimp soup, the scampi & chips with mushy peas and the mixed ice cream. I was sat with a lady from Worthing and a couple from Elsenham near Stansted airport in Essex. I then slept for an hour and a half, before having my first instant decaff coffee of the afternoon.
At 3:30 I listened to Keith's excellent thirty minute talk on King Charles the Third. I continued working on my updates, until at 4:20 I did four circuits of the promenade deck, equal to one mile of walking. Back in my cabin, I had my second coffee of the afternoon, actually sat out on my balcony for the first time this cruise! I then watched Lawrence Bee's talk on British Geology.
At 5:30 I started packing. At six o'clock I dined on the white asparagus soup, the lamb shank and the almond toffee ice cream. I was sat with Val from Manchester, Laurie from Sidcup and Geoff from Portsmouth. The latter had been a submariner in the Royal Navy and so had worked at Faslane and Dounreay.
Back in my cabin by 7:30, I updated this blog and worked on my Cornish presentations. At 9:30 I went to the Frequencies production show time. It began with Aidan Rider singing "I am what I am" and was a suitable ending to a super cruise! I went to sleep at eleven o'clock, having done only seven thousand steps, equal to nearly three miles of walking, on a busy final day.
I awoke at 5:30 to the bow thrusters, as we approached DoVeR harbour. At 6:30 I had the full English breakfast in the Grill buffet. Here I said safe journey home to Elizabeth & Richard and Vanessa & Paul.
Back in my cabin for one last time, I finished packing. I left the ship at 7:45 and had an easy run home, getting back at 11:30. I had a light lunch and then slept for over an hour, before going to Jane's tea dance. It had been yet another super cruise!
Chaplain Gavin Kirk later wrote: "I liked the blogs: very reminiscent of Parson Woodforde's diaries. Was that intentional?" I wrote back to say: "I hadn't heard of James Woodforde before. Wikipedia says: 'Because he always recorded what was provided for dinner, which very occasionally was an elaborate banquet, he is often wrongly characterised as a glutton.' Oh dear, I am guilty of gluttony as charged!"
Speaker Keith Hanson later wrote: "Thanks for your update, hopefully you will get a chance to put on your dancing shoes on the next cruise."
7 Drawers 6 Night cruise 6 Grill dinners 6 Grill lunches 6 Grill breakfasts 6 Dancers 5 ? 4 Singers 3 Port Talks (Invergordon, Scrabster & Lerwick) 3 Tours escorted (Ditto) 3 Full English breakfasts 2 New towns (Wick & Scalloway) 2 Sea days 2 Breakfast specials 2 Beef dinners 2 Fish dinners 2 Cocktail parties 1 Solos luncheon 1 Eggs Royale 0 Eggs Benedict!
Thirteen Cruise Lines:
* Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines * Saga Shipping Company * Voyages of Discovery * Seabourn (Carnival) * Princess (Carnival) * Cunard (Carnival) * P&O (Carnival) * Celebrity (RCCL) * Silversea (RCCL) * Oceania (NCL) * Marella (TUI) * Ambassador * CrystalForty Two Cruise Ships:
Silver Whisper Silver Spirit Silver Wind Silver Muse Silver Moon Silver Dawn Black Prince Black Watch Boudicca Balmoral Braemar Bolette Celebrity Silhouette Celebrity Solstice Celebrity Eclipse Celebrity Edge Celebrity Apex Saga Rose Saga Ruby Saga Sapphire Saga Pearl II Quest for Adventure Spirit of Adventure (Old SofA) Spirit of Adventure (New SofA) Spirit of Discovery Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) Queen Elizabeth (QE) Queen Victoria (QV) Queen Mary 2 (QM2) P&O Arcadia P&O Aurora P&O Oriana P&O Iona Crystal Symphony Crystal Serenity Seabourn Odyssey Seabourn Sojourn Marella Explorer Oceania Sirena Ambassador Ambience Sapphire Princess VoD Discovery