Day 94 14th April 2011

This is the last day of the cruise. When we awoke his morning we were docked in Southampton. On our side we could see many small boats moored in mid-stream and some tankers and other supply vessels coming alongside to begin the process of getting the ship ready for its next voyage back to the Caribbean. We went down to breakfast since the timetable for leaving did not allow passengers to leave until 9.30am but actually they started at 8.50am with an announcement over the ship’s loudspeaker system. This filled us with optimism that we would be off the ship early but it did not happen since after the early start it slowed down.

After breakfast we waited patiently in the cabin for the announcement that  were next but the lifts were very slow since everyone was on the move so we started off early. We arrived at deck 5 to hear our group announced so could proceed immediately to the gangway. It was still slow process since there is only a small lift for wheelchairs which takes one at a time. The lift brings you out into the enormous baggage hall where we needed to get a porter and then find five suitcases and the manual wheelchair in the several hundred other bags. We located them reasonably quickly and set off through customs to the waiting taxi. John, the taxi driver had rung a couple of times to co-ordinate his actions with ours. When we emerged he was waiting for us.

Three hours drive and we were home. The house had been decorated with ballons and bunting to welcome us back. The pile of mail was simply enormous and the house felt quite strange after three months absence.

Day 93 13th April 2011

This is our last day on board the Aurora. We are now sailing rapidly towards Southampton and will be arriving in the early hours of Thursday morning. The ship is rather like one large waiting room with people seeking different ways of passing the time. There are many people reading in every public room while the cinema is full and many others are attending the last in the series of lectures. We went to listen to a talk on the Falklands War by a former navy officer who had served on the staff of the commanding admiral. It was a bit technical but clearly well informed if rather biased in favour of Margaret Thatcher. Chris went to the cinema to see the Last Three Days while I attended the last talk about 15^th and 16^th century pottery by David Barby.

We have successfully packed everything and can only wait until the morning to collect it. Hopefully the taxi arrangements will work and we will be home in the early afternoon.

Day 92 12th April 2011

It’s a bit of a grey day and quite cool (i.e. 13C). This is no surprise since we are heading north towards the western approaches. The normal end of cruise activities are underway such as completing the evaluation form, receiving the preliminary statement of account for us to check and collecting envelopes for tips. There is a routine for giving people a tip and it is to place the money in an envelope and then hand it to the individual. This is normally done on the last day but you have to get ready. In our case we have identified five groups of people we want to give something to.

They are starting to collect luggage from today. This is very early but is due to people having far more items than on a short cruise. The suitcases are taken from the cabins (we leave them outside) and they are then stored below so that they can be unloaded early on the last morning. No one can leave the ship until the bags have been unloaded and checked so it is important that it is done efficiently. We are all issued with a coloured ticket that gives us a time to disembark. In our case it is green or 10.15am. They often do it faster than the plan so I would anticipate being off the ship and in the taxi around this time.

We gained another hour at 12am so we are now at GMT+1, that is we are at the same time as the UK. We have come the full cycle of time. This afternoon we finished packing three of the five suitcases and sent them away. In between packing we listened to John Barby speak about the age of William Hogarth. I walked my normal 13 laps today and worked out that I had walked 750 laps of the ship during the voyage or around 220 miles.

Day 91 11th April 2011

The Quay

The Square

This is our last port of call so we are a little sad but also looking forward to getting home and seeing everyone. Three months is a long time to be away. Ponta Delgada is a small island and we docked at St Michael which is the largest town on the island. The ship is berthed at the cruise terminal, a new building set in a curved quay with a range of shops and restaurants. The quay leads you into the town. We had a walk around the town and a cup of coffee. The people were very friendly and it is a pleasant place for a stroll but little to do. It looks Portuguese in places but also Baltic in some of its buildings. It is a bit hilly but also has nice flat areas for pushing a wheelchair.

The port has a container area that serves relatively small vessels perhaps for inter-island freight transfer. There is also a marina for pleasure craft and we saw a large catamaran sail past Aurora on its way in. The tranquil weather has continued. It is a warm and sunny day. Some (including me) of the passengers got the temperature wrong thinking that 16c was cool and put on coats but in the sun it was hot.

We were only in port for the morning and by 1.30pm we were at sea again. During the afternoon we went to listen to a talk about the history of P&O. This was followed by a tour of the galley. What surprised me was how small was needed a space to cater for 1800 passengers. After the tour it was the chocoholics buffet which as the name suggests is a chocolate themed event with a chocolate fountain, chocolate cakes and even chocolate bread and butter pudding. You have to like chocolate to appreciate it.

We have been sorting out suitcases to check we have enough space for everything. We do!

Day 90 10th April 2011

We are now in the middle of the Atlantic. It is remarkably calm and peaceful for the middle of an ocean. We did have a few showers earlier today but it is now warm and dry. It has been a quiet day and we have been to hear the last Peter Purves presentation. He talked about Blue Peter and his life after the show ended. He appeared in many pantomimes and presented a range of shows including Kickstart. For over thirty years he has been involved in the Cruft’s dog show. Last night we went to see Tom O’Connor. He is doing a couple of shows before Southampton.

Tomorrow we have our final short stop on Ponta Delgada.

Day 89 9th April 2011

Our drinks party went well with a full cabin. We had many people sitting on the bed since there was not enough room to be anywhere else. We were lucky that it was very calm if the ship had been moving it might have made things difficult. We had asked room service for ice and lemon slices but they did not arrive so not everything works on the ship.

We started today with queuing to be seen by British immigration. The process only took a few minutes but queuing took far longer. They always carry out these operations in the Alexandria restaurant which is probably the least accessible space on the ship so we have to queue then take a lift, enter the restaurant through the door everyone else is leaving and then rejoin the queue. This is the first time on a cruise we have had to go through UK immigration on the ship. We can only assume the rules have changed or they treat longer voyages differently. Anyway we can now enter the UK.

We gained another hour at 12am so we are now at GMT-1 or two hours behind British summer time. It is another warm day with little breeze and a calm sea. We felt compelled to start packing so one suitcase is now done. Chris went to see the film Black Swan which she described as a load of old twaddle while I watched the live broadcast of the Manchester United versus Fulham game.

It is another formal night and I cannot escape the view that they are trying to pack as many of them in as possible. We have one more day at sea tomorrow before we arrive in Ponta Delgada on Monday.

Day 88 8th April 2011

It is a calm warm day with a smooth sea as far as you can see. It is a quiet almost subdued day with everyone now talking about going home. We have met several people who have already started to pack their suitcases. It does seem a little early to me but we will probably have to make a start in the next day or two. Some passengers have clearly bought a lot and doubt they can fit their belongings into their existing suitcases.

We went to another talk by David Barby who reviewed the changes in fashion, housing and furniture after the Second World War. It was interesting presentation and well attended. Later this evening we are having a few people around for a drink before dinner. We have been invited to several during the voyage. We are going to the Indian theme dinner tonight after our soiree.

We gained another hour today at 12am so we are now at GMT-2 which is another indication that we are getting nearer home

Day 88 7th April 2011

It is another warm sunny day with a calm blue sea around the ship.  We went to the Pennant Grill last night with our table companions Gordon and Janet for dinner. We both had the bison burger and it was excellent. It is a rather special setting since it is outside on the back of the ship. It indicates the night temperatures are still high. There was a deck party going on below us and the music drifted up. We spoke to the restaurant manager who always seems to be around about how long she was working and she told us about 11 hours that day. In my observations she works at least this amount most days. There is no concept of a day off at sea.

We are still moving the clock forward and yesterday and today we moved one hour forward at 12am. We are now at GMT-3 which means we are 4 hours behind UK time due to the extra hour for summer time. I am not sure which method of gaining an hour is best in the middle of the night or at midday. The first means you get less sleep the other makes the day rather short. You find yourself rushing when you thought you had lots of time.

We attended the second talk by David Barby about antiques. It was amusing and informative. It got a good audience on a warm day and at what essentially is lunch time. Chris went to see the film 127 hours. She enjoyed the film but it was bit gruesome at the end. Earlier we had walked through an exhibition put on by the crew explaining what happens in Aurora behind the scenes. It was interesting not least because of some of the facts. Apparently we have eaten 10,575 litres of ice cream, 270 tons of vegetables/fruit, 18 tons of bananas and drunk 26,000 bottles of wine. The later suggests that everyone drank about 13/14 bottles each.

It is a formal dinner tonight. I think we will have one more before we arrive back in Southampton.

Day 87 6th April 2011

It is fairly obvious that most people are preparing for the end of the voyage. We decided to buy some of the photographers’ general photographs of the ports of call. You could choose 24 and they would be presented in an album. It took us over an hour to select 24 images and we were far from alone in going through literally thousands of pictures. They were also showing a DVD video they can shot of the Panama Canal transit. We had already decided to buy the film so did not go and see the preview but they showed the video several times to meet the demand. The shop has also sold out of the cheaper suitcases and only has the more expensive left. We had already bought one some weeks ago to cope with the extra goods acquired along the way.

This afternoon we went to two presentations. The first was from Peter Purves and is the second in a series of three that covered his life as a Blue Peter presenter plus his time on Doctor Who. He did ten years on Blue Peter and 44 episodes of Dr Who. It was very enjoyable and his short video illustrations were well chosen. The second was from David Barby who appears on Bargain Hunt and other antique programmes. He focused on his life as an auctioneer and valuer. He spoke at length about the discover of a house owned by a Mrs Mellor which was capsule of valuable antiques and painting. The contents sold for £1.5 million at auction about 10 years ago. He also gave an insight into the collapse in prices of items such as brown wood furniture and the rise in Chinese items. The later is funded by the enormous growth in wealth of individuals who want to but objects fr0m their past.

It has been another bright warm day although one with a strong breeze. We now have four more days at sea before our last port of call.

Day 86 5th April 2011

The Pitons

Rum Punch and Piton Beer

Entrepreneurs

We arrived at St Lucia at around 8am this morning. It was not are normal sunshine and clear skies but rather a tropical rainstorm that you could hear before you saw the rain. It did not last long and we set of for our trip on a catamaran around the island to see the Pitons. These are two mountains over 2500 metres high which are the emblems of St Lucia. The catamaran was full of passengers and we slowly travelled along the coast stopping for 30 minutes in a bay to allow people the opportunity to swim in the sea. While we were there the local entrepreneurs came alongside in small boats and tried to sell us small souvenirs with shouts such as “happy hour two for one” and Asda Prices”.

The trip lasted for four hours and although we did get some showers at the start it was mainly dry except for the sea spray. The Pitons were impressive since they rose very steeply to form an inverted cone. They were separated from each other by a high valley. The coast showed many signs of tourism with hotels and marinas as well as many sea going yachts. We saw an enormous yacht complete with helicopter landing area which must have been the toy of a billionaire. We were astonished at the capacity of some of our fellow passengers for rum punch and Piton beer.

The Aurora had moored in a duty free port which simply means that there were lots of shops selling jewellery, alcohol and souvenirs. We walked around but it was an artificial place made far worse by a karaoke bar that beamed amplified off tune singing around the area. Unfortunately the ship was tied up with the starboard side facing the land so we could hear the singing all afternoon. It was awful.

This is our last port of call on this side of the Atlantic. Tonight we start to cross the ocean on our way to Punta Delgado, the last port of the voyage. This is Portuguese territory and we are only staying for a few hours.    

Day 85 4th April 2011

It is another warm day with temperature around 28C although the breeze blowing over the ship makes it feel cooler. The visibility is limited with a haze around the ship probably providing only a few miles sight. It is also a little humid. We are sailing towards St Lucia and we will arrive tomorrow morning. In the last 24 hours I have heard and witnessed that we are running out of some products. These are not terribly important but interesting. Apparently they are having to ration stilton cheese, have no flowers on board (i.e. you can normally order a bunch or a display for a special occasion) and no birthday cards. From time to time you notice that they switch brands and at the moment we have a lot of New Zealand and Australian products that early in the voyage would have been sourced from home. These are, for example, cold remedies, orange juice and ginger beer plus a lot of New Zealand lamb. At times I think P and O bought the whole supply since we have been offered it as an option for most meals.

Last night, our waiter Sandeep surprised us by bying us all a glass of champagne last night as a thank you because he had enjoyed serving us during the last three months. We saw the in-house company, Headliners perform a show called Blame it on the Boogie last night. It was to there normal high standards. We had already seen it once before earlier in the trip. Today we listened to a talk from Peter Purves, the actor who is probably best known for working on Blue Peter. He is doing a series of three talks about his life. He covered his early years in the theatre and how he got a part on Doctor Who. I enjoyed his presentation. He is a good speaker and works without notes. Tonight, we are going to hear the in-house company singers do songs from Andrew Lloyd Weber.

It is obvious that the trip is coming to an end so we are starting to think about taxis and packing as is everyone else.

Day 84 3rd April 2011

Iguana

Aruba Shops

Today we stopped at Auroba, an island in the Dutch Antilles. It is a Sunday so the local town is quite quiet. It is obviously a duty free place since it is full of jewellery shops and other high value goods. Most of them are closed since it is a Sunday. We walked along the marina to a local park that overlooks the sea. It was full of iguanas running across the grass or climbing the palm trees. They had obviously been photographed by thousands of people since they were not frightened. It was 27c but there was a strong wind blowing so it seemed cooler. We stopped for a drink overlooking the marina and watched a fishing boat. One of those that you hire to take you out to fish return and show off their catch. Some very large fish had been caught and they held them up for everyone to see. The road around the marina has many small stall type shops so we popped in several of them on the way back to the ship. 

The ship is moored near to a cruise terminal and compared to many other ports security is light and almost invisible. In New Zealand we were endlessly asked for passports and our ship cards. In contrast at Aruba a security officer accepted a wave of your cards from a distance as proof that you could come in. On the ship they were scrutinised and all bags scanned in the normal way.

The ship is secured on the port side so from our side (i.e. starboard) is the open sea once you cross the reef which is only a few hundred yards away. We sat on the balcony during the afternoon allowing time to drift past.

Day 83 2nd April 2011

This is another warm pleasant day although the sea is rougher than in the Pacific. The clock went forward one hour at midday to GMT-4 which means we are five hours behind UK time since it is at GMT+1. This time stuff is quite complicated. We attended the Grand Voyage lunch today and that started at 11.30am to allow for half an hour later being 1pm due to fiddling with the clocks.  These lunches are for everyone who are doing the whole voyage and you are invited twice once on the outward journey and another on the return. Today’s lunch is obviously the return one. It was reasonable but perhaps because we have got use to good food it seemed nothing special.

The Indian crew are very happy since Indian won the Cricket World Cup. Many of them started to watch at 4am this morning sacrificing their sleep for their team. I expect that as the night progresses we will see a lot of tired waiters. Their normal shift pattern requires them to work hard which combined with little sleep will be exhausting.

We attended the last talk from Johnny Ball today which focused on floating and ships. He is very enjoyable to listen to and I am surprised that he attracted relatively small audiences. This was made more obvious by his presentations being in the Curzon Theatre which is the largest venue so even an audience of a hundred looks tiny. At the end of the show he started to give his views on climate change which indicated he was sceptical about some of the evidence. However, he did not get a chance to explain his opinions.

Tomorrow, we will be in Aruba where we intend to wander around and do some shopping although it is a Sunday.

Day 82 1st April 2011

Bridge of Americas at Sunrise

Balboa Port

Culebra Cut

Centennial Bridge

Dredging Culebra Cut

Evacuation Miraflores Lock

Approach to Gatun Lakes

Gatun Lock - Steps

Today started very early at 6am when the alarm went off in time for us to see the beginning of the journey to cross from the Pacific to the Atlantic Oceans in one day. The start is marked by the Bridge of the Americas which carries the Pan-American Highway. Even before sunrise you could hear the heavy traffic that was thundering over the bridge. Sunrise was not until 6.15am and in the dawn light you could just see the skyline of Balboa, the city that marks the Pacific end of the canal. The Aurora sailed under the bridge with only about 12 feet of clearance and proceeded towards the Miraflores Lock which we arrived at 7.55am after passing the port of Balboa.

We were following the MSC Container ship Monterey. In order to enter the lock the ship needs help and this is provided by powerful locomotives called Mules which run on tracks on both sides of the lock. Eight mules (i.e. four on each side) pulled Aurora into the lock along with some power from the ships engine. There is only a couple of feet of room each side so great accuracy is needed. The lock raises the ship by 54 feet so when you leave you are now above sea level. During the trip through the lock we landed a passenger so that he could go by ambulance to a hospital.

As we left the lock we enter the Miraflores Lake which has been created by damming the Rio Grande river. There are several tugs around us to help if we need it. It is a 30 minute trip to the Pedro Miguel lock and we repeat the process except that we only raise the Aurora by 31 feet this time. We are now 85 feet above sea level. In order to raise the ship the lock must be flooded with 11 million gallons of fresh water.

There is little sign of any animals on the bank which is heavily built up but there are some pelicans and other birds and large yellow butterflies as big as your hand. The banks are covered with piers, landing stages and many small boats. As we left the Pedro Miguel lock we could see the Centennial Bridge opened in 2004 to relieve the pressure on the Bridge of the Americas. We have more clearance as we pass under this bridge and sail towards the Culebra Cut. This is the place that cost the most lives during the building of the canal. It is 9 miles long and you can see how the sides have been cut away to form terraces in many places. They are still working to widen the canal and have been doing so since it was first opened. We saw both dredges and what look like drilling rigs working on the canal.

During the transit of the Culebra Cut other ships are not allowed to pass us since it is too narrow (i.e. about 640 feet at its widest). However, once we are though this section we meet a series of container vessels and the Celebrity Infinity, a liner. This area is Gamboa and is the approach to the Gatun Lakes. This is a lake created by the canal and is one of the largest man-made lakes in the world. There are several ships moored in this area waiting their turn to move through the canal.

We reached the Gatun Locks at about 2pm. They are three step locks that lower ships down 85 feet so they are again at sea level. There are two side by side locks so on our right the MSC Container ship Monterey went through alongside the Aurora. It took an hour and a quarter to descend the steps. We are now effectively in the Atlantic or rather the Caribbean Sea. The whole process began at 6am and was completed at 3.15pm so taking 9 hours and 15 minutes.

For me the final process of descending to sea level was amazing since we could see the container ship going down while being followed by another cargo ship which was in a higher step of the lock. We spent almost the whole day on the balcony popping inside the room to hear the comments of the port presenter who narrated the trip and also looking at a camera positioned in the front of the ship showing the forward view. It has been another hot and humid day probably one of the warmest of the whole trip. The trip through the Panama Canal has certainly lived up to expectations.

We now have a day at sea on our way to Aruba.

Day 81 31st March 2011

It is another hot (i.e. 28c) calm day with lots of animal activity around the ship. Two pods of dolphins swam past this morning on the starboard side, many dozens of individual animals in each group. The ship has been followed all day by several different types of birds – possibly frigate birds, skuas and sooty terns but not always easy to tell. You can hear the birds calling to each other as they fly alongside the ship occasional diving to catch fish. It is obviously a busy area for shipping since we have seen a continuous stream of container ships and other vessels all day.

We went to hear a briefing on the Panama Canal which we reach early tomorrow morning. It apparently costs over $300,000 toll for the Aurora to pass through the canal. It is based on a fee per full bed and a slightly lower one for empty beds. We have about 2800 beds so the unit cost is over $300. The briefing explained that the transit would take about 9 hours and involves being raised over 300 feet above sea level to then be lower back down to sea level at the end of the journey. The pilot comes aboard at 4.30am in the morning and we go under the All America Bridge which carries the Pan-American Highway at about 6am and then join the canal shortly after that. We are going to spend a lot of tomorrow watching and photographing what goes on. They are apparently widening the canal to take vessels twice as large so we should see a lot of civil engineering work.

It is probably going to be an early night if we want to get up in the morning.

Day 80 30th March 2011

It has been a very hot day as we steam south towards the Panama Canal. I walked around the deck as usual and was conscious of both the heat and humidity which was energy sapping. We have spent a lot of time on the balcony and in talks by the guest speakers. Chris went to listen to ‘Up the Nile with a Stethoscope’ by a doctor who had worked on Nile cruises. She enjoyed the talk a great deal. We both went to listen to Johnny Ball talk about gravity from Galileo to Einstein with many practical demonstrations.

Looking out from the balcony we saw more turtles swimming past and other people saw dolphins and Manta Rays. We didn’t see them but people are very studious of the ocean and therefore see more than our occasional glance. Probably due to having 3000 people locked up in a confined space (luxurious that it is) means that illnesses have a habit of going a round the whole ship. In this way there is a ship’s cough that everyone seems to have had and I am now infected. It obviously has reached many people since the ship’s shop is full of cold and cough remedies.

The semi-final of the cricket world cup featured India versus Pakistan and the large Indian community amongst the crew were passionate for their team to win. I only had to ask at breakfast to be given the latest score (i.e. 90 balls left and 140 runs to score). They were studying the Internet for the news continuously. India won and is now in the final against Sri Lanka.

We were chatting with someone from the next table in the restaurant and she created many of the questions on who wants to be a millionaire, blockbusters and several other shows. This ship is full of surprising people.

We reach the Panama Canal on 1^st April and I have saved a blank video disk so I can film as much as I can. 

Day 79 29th March 2011

The Marina

The Square

Yacht moored next to Aurora

This morning the ship docked at Huatulco. This is a small town that has been especially built as a holiday resort. It is in a beautiful bay with a very long quay so that cruise liners can anchor right alongside the town. It is a delightful place with beaches within a few minutes walk of the quay, lots of shops and restaurants. It is also incredibly hot with temperatures in the mid-30C and almost no shade. We went for a wander around the local craft market and then through several jewellery stores. They sell mainly silver here and there were wonderful objects but at high prices. 

There are a row of restaurants with men outside each to encourage you to come in and eat. We did have lunch in a small restaurant. I had fish stuffed with shell fish and squid/octopus. It was lovely. Chris had chicken fajitas. We were able to eat in the shade while watching the world go by. You needed to spend as much time out of the sun as possible because it was so hot.

The bay contained a number of yachts that it would be exciting to own as well as a couple of fast boats with marines. On land we had a guard of Mexican sailors around the ship with automatic rifles while in the town were armed police. It makes you wonder why so much force is needed here. They were very friendly and posed for photographs.

It is evening now and the ship has had an emergency with a man taken off in an ambulance. He looked as if you may have had a heart attack. His wife followed after him. The ship was delayed while this was sorted out. Several passengers have similarly been sent to hospital in different ports. It is when you find out how good your travel insurance is.

We are now sailing to the Panama Canal and are due to arrive on 1^st April. We are looking forward to this part of the journey. It is one of the many highpoints.

Day 78 28th March 2011

Aurora in Acapulco

Acapulco in the background

Cliff Divers

Yesterday’s word was zestful.

Last night as we approach Acapulco we saw several turtles, some sharks and a few flying fish. This morning in the bay we saw a group of dolphins behind the tour catamaran so an exciting 24 hours for sea life. There was apparently a whale in the bay as well but we did not see him. The ship arrived about 9am and from our balcony we could see the city which was not the most attractive although on the other side of the ship the views of the bay where outstanding and beautiful. The city looked a bit run down and the sight of troops along the quayside did not give the impression of a peaceful place. The drug wars raging in Mexico have spread to Acapulco.

To go ashore we had to navigate a very steep gangway which was only made possible by the mobility assistance team of young men. Two at the front and two at the back, they guided Chris down the gangway and later they hauled her up. Without their help in many ports we would not be able to leave the ship. We noticed that the local taxis are blue and white Volkswagen Beetles. The road outside the dock has dozens racing along every few minutes.

We went on a boat trip around the bay to see the sights and the cliff divers. In order to get on board we had to be ferried across on a small raft like vessel. The crew were very helpful and we got Chris on board with her wheelchair without any problem. The best viewing area was on deck 2 and with help Chris got a seat up there. The catamaran sailed around the bay with a guide pointing out the homes of famous people, mostly movie stars who own or use to own houses here. The bay is divided into three areas: the old where the famous once bought homes in the 1940s to 1960’s, diamond where the rich now buy homes (e.g. Oprah Winfrey and Bill Gates) and the new which is a beach lined with five star hotels. On our way round we anchored to watch the cliff divers. This had been arranged for us and five young men dived off the cliffs. It looks incredibly dangerous but the men swam out to the boat to collect tips and get their photographs taken. The swim is a couple of hundred yards and the current looks fierce but they made it seemingly without effort. The dive itself needs to be timed with the waves so that they have the maximum depth of water beneath them. They dive out from the cliff and did some acrobatics as well as a swan dive. 

The temperature is over 32c and it saps you of all energy. Around the ship all you see are people asleep in the shade. The city is surrounded by hills and a large part of it along the bay is built into the cliffs and steep sided hills. In several places are long staircases to allow people to descend the cliffs. The beach curves around the bay and you can see why people began to come here in the 1940’s it must have been magnificent.

We sailed at 6.30 pm to continue our journey south along the Mexican coast.

Day 77 27th March 2011

The clocks moved again today but not due to the ship rather the start of UK summer time. We are now at GMT-6 but UK time -7 or seven hours behind UK time. We are still continuing to sail down the coast of America/Mexico about 50 miles from land. The temperature has increased and it is now about 24c with a gentle breeze blowing across the decks. The sea is calm but as usual no sign of other ships. Money is not used on the ship. You are given a cruise card that serves as identification, door key and charge card. When you buy things they are charged to your account and you sign a bill. A copy is given to you so that by this stage of the journey I have a draw full of slips of paper. When the wine waiters get use to you they don’t even ask for the card since they know your name and stateroom. It is very easy to buy things and when you are ashore using money it can seem quite odd and personally it takes me a little while to adjust back to the real world.

Each evening dinner is announced over the ship’s speakers so that everyone on board Aurora can hear it. It follows the same pattern each night with one small but crucial difference. The restaurant manager or another person will say:

“First sitting for dinner is now being served in the Alexandria and Medina restaurants. Enjoy your meal and have a …….. evening”

The dotted line is an adjective that changes each night and has been following the letters of the alphabet. The first sitting is announced at 6.30pm and everyone stops to hear the word, to laugh and discuss the chosen word with everyone around them. Last night was yaba-daba-doo, an unpredictable choice. We are now waiting to hear what adjective beginning with Z will be selected.

Tomorrow we are arriving at Acapulco and in our case to leave the ship for a catamaran trip to see the divers.

Day 76 26th March 2011

The clocks are on the march again and they went forward one hour last night to GMT-6 or six hours behind UK time. We are continuing to steam south along the coast to Mexico. The weather has continued to be calm although the temperature has remained warm rather than hot. There is a lack of other vessels today with none sighted by the end of the afternoon. I did my 13 laps of the deck with very few people sitting out since the entire promenade deck was in shadow but with a lot of people walking slowly around. It is rather like an obstacle course having to weave in and out of them. However, the cool temperatures made it ideal walking conditions.

Prior to the walk we went and listened to a new speaker talking about the dam buster raid. Chris thought he gave too many details but I just thought he knew his subject. He is doing a series of RAF subjects and speaks well with good presentation techniques. After the talk we needed to recharge the powered chair’s battery for an hour and then we tried to watch a film called, ’Beyond a Reasonable Doubt’ except it was. We left after 40 minutes. It is difficult to give any positives since it was slow, lacked a believable plot and the acting seemed more suitable to a comedy than a thriller.

It’s a quiet day with a formal dinner tonight and another opportunity to have our photographs taken with the captain. No sure if we will attend the captain’s party since they are normally a bun fight as there are free drinks.

Day 75 25th March 2011

When we reach the open sea last night after leaving San Francisco it was quite rough and the ship was moving with some force side to side. However, by this morning the sea was calm and very smooth. During the day the temperature has risen and we were able to sit on our balcony for the first time in several days. There is still a lot of cloud and the ocean is very dark almost black in colour. We are meeting the occasional freighter since we are sailing parallel with the coast of California but no signs of animal life in the sea. I won one dollar from an Australian passenger by betting him that India would beat Australia in the Cricket World Cup. One of the waiters also won with the same bet.

This morning we attended a talk on the wines of California by an American expert from the Rutherford Ranch winery. They provide two main brands Rutherford Ranch and Round Hills. We had a chance to taste five of their wines this afternoon: Chardonnay, Chardonnay/Viognier blend, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and a Zinfandel. They were all perfectly good wines but the best was the Cabernet Sauvignon which was also the most expensive while I also liked the zinfandel which was the cheapest. The difference in price was $20 to $8, respectively. There was a good deal of interest in the wines.

After tasting the wines we later attend a talk by Johnnie Ball about mathematics. You may remember him from the television where he tried to make maths interesting for children. He was doing much the same on board the ship. He covered a lot of ground showing interesting solutions to making multiplication easier. He is speaking again in a few days time about science.

The weather in Acapulco is apparently a lot hotter than here with temperatures reaching 31C so that after the cold and wet of San Francisco everyone is looking forward to arriving there.

Day 74 24th March 2011

Golden Gate Bridge in the rain

Alcatraz

We got up very early this morning so that we could be awake when the ship went under the Golden Gate Village. It was at about 5.50am. The visibility was good although a little rain was falling. The bridge was illuminated by its lights so that its outline could be seen. The water below was quite turbulent showing the powerful currents. There was little traffic at that early hour.  After seeing the bridge we returned to bed for an hour.

We had booked a trip to travel around the highlights of San Francisco. Unfortunately, it was raining hard by the time the coach was ready to start the tour. The journey involved going across the Golden Gate Bridge to a view point on the far bank. This was fun but the rain was now coming horizontally with a 40 mph wind that shook the coach as we made the crossing. A few hardy souls got out at the view point to take a photo. The trip moved through the city showing us the Golden Gate Park with its beautiful trees, the fine Victorian homes built in the 19^th century, and the large houses of the original rich families that are now schools or hotels and finally the modern shopping centre. It was a beautiful city and you could see why people wanted to live here even in a deluge of rain.

The rain changed from a deluge to simply a downpour during the afternoon so we walked the short distance from pier 35 where the ship had docked to pier 39, Fisherman’s Wharf. We dashed from shop to shop to avoid the rain but managed to have lunch, do some shopping and see the sea lions that congregate on the floating pontoons at the end of the Wharf. There was also a good view of Alcatraz Island. By the time we returned to the ship we were very wet. I did manage to sample the local beer, Long Tire Amber Ale which was very smooth.

The ship sailed at 6pm tonight on its way to Mexico, Acapulco. We went under the brdige again and this time we had a clear view.

Day 73 23rd March 2011

It is another rough and cold day with the sea as agitated as any we have experienced on the whole trip. One thing that does happened to everyone on a long trip such as this one is that your sea legs improve so that you can move around more easily even when there is a lot of motion. I walked around the deck this morning even though there was a high swell running. There were few people on deck because it was only 10c so probably too cold for sitting but at least a dozen people walking.

We have started to change the clocks at 12am rather than during the night and have been steady loosing hours for the past three days so we are now at GMT-7 or 7 hours behind UK time. We will be taking our pilot on board at 5am in the morning and passing under the Golden Gate Bridge at 6am. Our intention is to get up and see the event but the flesh may be weaker than our intent. There is also the opportunity to see the reverse trip when we sail out tomorrow night.

The forecast for tomorrow in San Francisco is not wonderful with temperatures of 8c with some rain but that will not deter us from going on the trip and enjoying the visit.

Day 72 22nd March 2011

It is a cold and overcast day with the temperature around 14c but feeling very cold due to the strong wind which is blowing from the north. The ship is about 900 miles west of Los Angeles and it feels as if it should be a lot warmer than it is. It is so windy I did not get my daily walk around the deck. One lap convinced me that it was impossible to battle the strong wind and the moving deck. I had to retreat inside and do more ordinary tasks such as the washing and checking the bill. At the end of each leg of the voyage (this leg finishes in San Francisco) we get an invoice for our expenditure over the leg which if you don’t stop them is claimed from your credit card or what other means of payment you have set up. We got our initial account this morning. It is rather like demands for back taxes they are always on time. You do need to check them to ensure no mistakes have been made. Unfortunately it seems quite accurate.

Chris has gone to see Mama Mia for the (I have lost count) time in the cinema and I am writing the blog. I also intend to work on my OU course on Creative Writing which I have been plugging away at since we left. I have an assignment due on 14^th April, the day we arrive back in Southampton so need to get it completed in the next three weeks.

As always when it is cold or rough no one is outside so the ship feels very crowded. All the main rooms are full of people reading, sewing or just nattering to each other. The conversation varies but main themes are previous cruises, how hard the waiters and stewards work and complaints about small matters. We changed Captain’s in Auckland and people have noticed that she is less visible than the previous one. He would often make short announcements about the weather or some small change but the new Captain speaks less. She is also seen less around the ship. Personally I use to see the old Captain everyday simply walking through the ship saying, “Good Morning” to everyone he encountered. This is a very minor matter but is important to many passengers who I am sure want to identify with the person in charge.

We have one more day at sea before we reach California.  I hope the weather improves.

Day 71 21ST March 2011

Runner up of the crew competition

Winner of Passenger Competition

At 12am today the ships clocks moved forward one hour so we are now GMT-9 or 9 hours behind the UK. It is a bright clear day with brilliant royal blue seas around us and a clear blue sky above. We can probably see 20 miles from the balcony and the view nearly always shows an empty ocean with not another ship in sight. We were able to eat in the Pennant Grill last night with our friends Gordon and Janet. It is a spectacular restaurant in good weather since it is outside at the rear of the ship so that you can see the stars. The food was excellent and it was a lovely evening.

Some weeks ago a challenge was issued to passengers and crew to construct a ship from rubbish found on the Aurora such empty water bottles, cardboard, string etc. I had largely forgot about it but today was the final for the competition when the boats where judged by the Chief Engineer, Captain, Deputy Captain and Purser. The ships had to float, carry passengers in the form of six cans of coke and survive a storm of two men jumping into the water alongside them. There were seven passenger and five crew entries. They were amazing in that they were models of vessels not simply bits of rubbish stuck together. The winning passenger team had constructed a catamaran while the winning crew ship was a model of the Aurora. It was a great event.

We will be continuing to sail towards California for the next three days. We are due to arrive in San Francisco on 24^th March.

Day 67 to 70 17th to 20th March 2011

A few issues at this end have stopped me from blogging but everything is fine now so recommencing with this catch up blog covering the last few days.

Currently we are sailing from Honolulu to San Francisco and are due to arrive on 24^th March. The weather is a touch windy with the passage being rougher of the last few days than since we left Southampton. Although today it has settled down a good deal. Tonight we planned to eat in the Pennant Grill which is an open air restaurant on the rear of the ship but this is obviously a poor choice if the weather is bad. We will need to wait and see.  Happiness is also that they are showing a recording of the Sunderland versus Liverpool match at 4.30 today assuming satellite links are working.

Yesterday we were in Honolulu and took the shuttle bus into the main shopping area where we had lunch in Bubba Gumb’s Scrimp restaurant. This was typically American with blindingly fast service, lots of noise and local people eating colossal meals. After lunch we walked down to Waikiki beach which was about 15 minutes away and saw Diamond Head, the extinct volcano. The beach was miles of white sands with lots of families having a day out. Inland from the beach are a row of 5 star hotels. It was a pleasant day for walking with some cloud keeping the intense heat at bay. We got an extra few hours in Honolulu since the ship needed to refuel.

We now have several days at sea on the last leg of crossing the pacific. After San Francisco we travel south to Mexico and through the Panama Canal before the final crossing of the Atlantic. It feels like we will soon be home and the trip has raced by.

Day 66 16th March 2011

The ship arrived at Christmas Island about 8am this morning and anchored a mile or so from the entrance to the lagoon. We all had to go and get tickets for the tenders to be taken ashore and mine is 720 which in the normal process of tendering would mean a wait of probably an hour. Today they are having problems because it is low water and the harbour is shallow so they are only taking 20 people at a time on the boats plus each trip is taking about 30 minutes or even more. From our balcony we hear the sailors’ shouts and several boats have touched the bottom so they are being very cautious. It is now 11am and the operation has been underway for 2 hours and they have taken about 150 people ashore. At this rate I will be on a boat in about 7 hours or so. The hope is that the process speeds up as the tide turns and the water gets deeper. The captain has just made that announcement.

We can see the island and there are long stretches of clear white sandy beaches with lots of palm trees but very few building. We are opposite the settlement which is called London and marks one side of the entrance to the lagoon. The others side is called Paris. London may have a population of a few dozen people from my observations. I can see a church and a long low building with a roof covered in solar cells plus two large aerials. A few cars and trucks can be seen. There are three fishing vessels moored with us at the entrance, a few small powered boats and surprisingly two kayaks. The sea is very blue and you can clearly see the surf hitting the reefs. The entrance is not very wide. The sea changes colour obviously indicating the different deeps of water. The water in the lagoon is very green. It is the image of a stereotype desert island.

Finally at 3.30pm I got on a tender, the last one and managed to spend one hour ashore before returning on the last boat back. While I was away the staff contacted Chris and asked her if I was back so making her worried that I had been left behind. The island is very under-developed but the sand is white and the water is azure. It constantly changes colour as the sunlight hits it. The town of London where we disembarked is a few sheds; on one was the sign, Fair Price to indicate the local store. I only had time to post a postcard, walk along the beach and take a few photographs before the crew were calling us back to the boat. It looked a truly remote spot for those seeking to get away from it all. The local people were friendly but obviously very poor. The post office was a table with a briefcase and a folder of stamps. The post mistress stamped your cards in front of you before placing them in her bag.

Next stop Honolulu and we have been told that we have to see the USA immigration staff at 7.15am once we dock so an early start to the day. We are going on a trip to amongst other places Sunset Beach.

Day 65 15th March 2011

Happy first birthday, Harry

It has been a day of blue skies and sea. The only negative has been a strong wind on the starboard side of the ship that has caused a lot of spray on the open decks. On the balcony it has been ok since you can shelter from the breeze.  It has been a quiet day with the ship sailing at 22 knots towards Christmas Island. Probably, the most significant feature of today is that we will re-cross the Equator at about 11pm tonight and enter the northern hemisphere again.

Last night we went to the deck party out on the back of deck 8 around one of the pools. It was very good with some good music and the chance to watch many surprising people dance the night away. The sky was very clear and you could see lots of stars but it is quite a challenge to distinguish what you are seeing. I used an application on my iPad that displays the night sky in any part of the world to reproduce the sky over the ship and with that identified some of the constellations.

Chris went to see another film today, “The Men who stare at goats”, she was not sure if she liked it or not. I did not attend preferring to walk around the deck. We have spoken to a number of people about Christmas Island and some are unsure if they will get off the ship to go ashore. We will see what happens tomorrow.

Day 64 14th March 2011

We are sailing towards Christmas Island at the moment. This is one of least developed nations on the planet. It is over 1000 miles from Honolulu and is probably best known for being the site of the British nuclear bomb tests. It is a very poor island with 5000 inhabitants making a small living from exporting coconut related products. We attend a port talk about it this morning and this island as virtually no infrastructure for visitors. It can only be accessed by the ships tenders and there is some risk of going a ground so the tenders will carry fewer passengers than normal. It is likely to take a long time for people to be taken to the land and then returned. The island is largely sand so wheelchairs will probably be very difficult to move. In light of all these negatives we decided that Chris should stay on board Aurora and I will go ashore on my own.

Today is quite windy with a lot of spray coming on deck. However, it is quite warm with temperatures around 28c but with a high humidity. The ship is moving around a good deal due to the wind. Chris has gone to see the film Inception this afternoon while I am busy doing Open University marking. Last night we had dinner at Café Bordeaux serenaded by the Jeff Fowler band who mainly played jazz. It was a lovely meal and a pleasant evening. We went to see a magician after dinner who I thought was good and Chris didn’t so a split vote.

We have learnt that on 3^rd July 2012, all seven P and O liners are going to sail into and out of Southampton together to celebrate P and O’s longevity (over 100 years). We have been looking at the possible cruises we could go on to take part in the event but nothing leaps from the page as yet.

Day 63 13th March 2011

We arrived this morning in Samoa. This is an independent country and only a short distance to American Samoa where the people and customs are identical. However, the people of these islands are very proud of being independent. They had a general election last week and are just waiting for the result. Their parliament sits for 5 years and elects a head of state who also serves for 5 years. The country looked quite poor although the people were polite and friendly. They helped Chris in several places. The predominant colour is green with fruit trees growing almost everywhere you could see. The ocean is deep blue and the island has reefs covering most of the shore so that you can see the surf from most locations.

We decided to go a trip to see around the island in the afternoon. In the morning we visited the local market that had been set up for the ship’s visit.  It was similar to many other island markets but prices were lower. They sold the usual mix of clothing (e.g. sarongs and tropical shirts), carvings (e.g. bowls and ships) and jewellery (e.g. pearls). People were courteous so that you could shop without being pressured. As with almost everywhere in the pacific that we have been they welcomed you paying in American dollars.

The trip was very good. We rarely feel they are not. It took us to see the local vegetable, fruit and handicraft market. This was only partially open due to it being a Sunday. People here are expected to eat, drink and go to church today. Some villages fine you for not attending church. The market indicated that this is a poor country but again with relaxed kindly people. After the markets we went to see a church seminary built over a hundred years ago. It was a lovely building overlooking a wonderful green area. The final stop was the author Robert Louis Stevenson’s house. He lived here for the last five years of his life. The house has been preserved and it was an interesting visit. The final treat was a selection of local fruit to taste. This was an enjoyable day.

Our next stop is again another very remote place, Christmas Island.