After leaving the Falklands the ship turned south and began to steam towards Cape Horn. Today the temperature fell further since we are going to reach our furthest southern point. In a few days we will be passing beside several glaciers to show how south we are. There is a strong cold wind blowing on deck and most people are wearing warm clothes as they walk around. Most people are inside keeping warm. As the day progressed we started to see several small islands on the starboard side of the ship. They were rocky, steep and looked very wind swept and barren. This was the story of Cape Horn – many rocky barren islands. The wind was fierce and the sea got rougher but quite gentle for this part of the world. We stood on the balcony and watched the ship go round the cape and then it turned north again to head for the beagle channel and Ushuaia which is the southern most city in the world. We are due to arrive around tomorrow morning. Curiously, the city is in Argentina while Cape Horn is in Chile.
We arrived in Port Stanley about . It was about 10 C and there was a light rain falling. I was going ashore on my own due to the nature of the tours. They were all unsuitable for Chris. I went on two tours: a trip to see a colony of rock hopper penguins and a tour of the battlefields. Rock hopper penguins are the ones that look like punks with the head crest. I had a 15 minute break between the two tours so I stood a good chance of missing the second. I left the ship on the second tender of the day and we set of from the Falklands quayside at 8.30 in a four wheel drive pickup. To visit the penguins required a 90 minute cross country journey. It was very rough and tough on the spine. We travelled in convoy so they could pull each other out of the mud if they got bogged down. It was the ultimate way to see the countryside which the locals call the camp.
The rock hoppers number about 500 to 600 animals and inhabit a cliff top which seemed wind swept and cold but obvious a palace to penguins. They would let you get within a few feet of them and mainly ignored you. They were noisy with several arguments going on all the time. They seemed to mainly dispute the ownership of small stones and twigs. There were no young birds but many half grown penguins without the rock hopper crest. I managed to video a lot of penguin life since they allow you to get very close to them. The colony is situated on a 10,000 acre sheep farm and the farmer organisers the tours. I wondered why they had chosen a cliff for a colony since it was a long way down to the sea and food. Tourism is basic on the Falklands and the farm have built a one room shack near the colony and made us a cup of tea while the rain past over and the sun came out.
The return journey was as back aching as the initial one but with amazing views of the country of hills, stone piles and small lakes. There are no trees on the Falklands but apparently they are making an effort to plant them. Personally I did not see one. The driver got me back to Port Stanley in times to join the second trip of a visit to the battlefields from 1982 or rather those near Stanley. We started by driving to Fitzroy, a sheep station near to where the landing ships were hit by Argentinean aircraft and over 40 Welsh guardsmen lost their lives. If you remember the scenes were the lifeboats came into shore that is the place. There are now a series on memorials to the dead. It is a nice little bay until you remember what happened here. Fitzroy itself is a cluster of wooden houses with cast iron roofs. It looked run down and the best building was the kennels for the sheep dogs.
We then followed the route back to Stanley which also is the route the army took fighting for control of each hill. They are all quite small but steep sided and with little cover. The guide was an islander who was in Stanley during the occupation and told stories of what went on. What struck me was that all the hills (e.g. MountKent, MountLongdon and Tumbledown) that saw a battle are very close together so that the fighting was continuous rather than series of separate engagements. We got back to Stanley at 4.30 when the last tender was due to depart but found a long queue. This sometimes happens with ports when tenders are used.It took about an hour to finally get on a tender.
As we left the moorings we saw some elephant seals swimming in the sea. They are simply enormous animals. Next dolphins started to follow the ship and finally we saw some seals swimming near some rocks.
Our next stop is Cape Horn which we round tomorrow about . Hopefully we can film the event.
We had a rough night with a lot of movement but during the early morning the sea calmed. It is now a bright day if a little cool due to a cold wind blowing across the decks. We went to see Bonny Langford last night and she was warmly received by the audience although we thought it was a little mixed probably best summarised as good in parts.
As it was cool, almost no one was outside so that everywhere was full of people reading or talking. I went and walked around the deck while Chris read in our room. When we returned to the Raffles bar later it had emptied so we drank coffee, read and watched the world go by.Raffles is a bar towards the bow on deck 8. We often have a drink here in the evening. It has the grand stairway that links decks 8, 7, 6 and 5 emerging in the middle of the bar. The music from the pianist playing in the Champagne bar on deck 7 drifts up the stairs. Raffles bar is intended to emulate the one in Singapore with dark wood furniture and potted plants. From our first trip on the Aurora we have always frequented Raffles.
I had some Open University work to do (i.e. marking assignments) this afternoon so while I marked Chris went to see Bright Star. She was not impressed since it was slow with the best aspect being the costumes.
Tomorrow we should awake to find ourselves at Port Stanley in the Falklands.
The temperature is dropping as we steam into the South Atlantic. It is still pleasant but a cool breeze is blowing across the deck so few people are sitting out today. There are mainly just the walkers circling the promenade deck. As I walked I saw a group of dolphins swimming across the ships wake. I assume the passage of the liner disturbs the fish so the dolphins are able to catch them easier. It was difficult to count the dolphins but at least a dozen and perhaps many more.
The sea has changed colour to a dark turquoise or green and there is more swell. It is probably going to get rougher as we approach the Falklands. We can already feel the motion in our cabin. Basically, the higher you are the greater the motion so on deck 11, we do sense small changes in the weather. The tour staff keep warning us that we will only land on the islands, weather permitting. The ship is too large to dock at Port Stanley so we go ashore in tenders which are essentially the liners life boats. They hold fifty passengers or so and you board them via a pontoon which floats alongside the ship. It can be quite bouncy and to land at Port Stanley we have a two mile trip in the tenders.
We had breakfast in Café Bordeaux which tends to be our habit. It is a circular open plan area in the centre of deck 8. It is intended to resemble a French street café and it does. It is open 24 hours a day but operates in four different ways during the cycle. In the morning up to it serves breakfast (i.e. mainly continental breads, cakes and fruit but with eccentric options such as sausage baguettes), from 11 to 5 it offers lunch. In the evening, it becomes a Marc Pierre White restaurant serving dinner for an additional charge until when it becomes an all night café offering hot chocolate and sandwiches. It is one of our favourite places. The two headwaiters are both cricket fans and you can get a good conversation if you mention the game. The best things to eat are the cakes.
Sea days are quite restful and calm with few people out and about the ship. The only busy place is the laundry room which is always busy except when the ship is in port. The entertainment tonight is Bonnie Langford. For those of you interested, the water does go the opposite way down the plug hole.
We had a magic night at a Tango show and dinner. The show is performed in what is a converted sausage house. These are long and narrow houses that were the homes of multiple families of immigrants in the 18th and 19th centuries. This one had been converted into an elegant theatre with a barrelled roof, stage at one end and seating for about 200 people. It had been made wheelchair accessible with a dipped step, lift between floors and a slope down the theatre so you could get right the front. Visibility was excellent from all parts of the theatre.
We started with dinner which being Argentinean was centred on beef. The beef steaks were mouth wateringly tender about 2 to 3 inches thick and covered half the plate. This was accompanied by a couple bottles of wine. The live show lasted about two hours and carried you away with the music and dance to another world. There was a tango band, singers, dancers as well as a Andean pipe band, gaucho and individual singers. It was none-stop and because the theatre was small you were close to the performers. One of the best nights of entertainment we have ever experienced.
When we leave for a trip here they pick us up on the quayside so we only have a few yards to walk. However, for some odd Argentinean reason on the return journey we have to be dropped of at the Port Terminal and go through security checking before being bussed back to the ship. This is OK if you are not in a wheelchair but having to get on and off buses not designed for disabled people is no joke. The security was also a joke since we had to send our bags through the X-ray machine but they allowed me to push Chris through the metal detector in her wheelchair setting off the alarms but then simply waved us on.
One of the lasting memories of this port is the sound of containers being moved. We are berthed in the heart of the container port and the huge cranes are continuously moving them around. When they move there is a warning noise that sounds and we have been woken up each day by this continuous bleep. They don’t always find a berth for cruise ships that is glamorous; often it is in the working port with lorries and cargo moving a round.
Today, we will leave Buenos Aires to sail to Port Stanley, Falklands. We will be arriving on Sunday, 30th January. We will then return to the Argentinean city of Ushuaia that is one of the most southerly cities in the world. It is near Tierra del Fuego.
We awoke to find the ship sailing into the harbour at Buenos Aires. It had been delayed by another ship so we could slowly see it manoeuvre into what seems like a very small space. As the ship was late, so everything else. We were due to depart on a trip at but we went at instead. It is also one of those ports were they cannot organise a flat gangway for wheelchairs so we went down a flight of steps with the help of four fit young men.
The trip around the city was interesting and included a visit to Eva Peron’s tomb but it showed the considerable poverty in Argentina which was missing from Montevideo. People were sleeping in doorways – many young and some with children. There are scanty towns under the motorway flyovers and around Boca Juniors football stadium the houses where very run down. The stadium itself could do with a coat of paint. In contrast some of the affluent areas breathe wealth. There is clearly a huge gap between rich and poor here.
The cathedral is interesting although it has too many statutes that look like painted idols for my taste. It is in one of the main squares with the Casa Rosada which was made famous by the musical, “Evita”. Eva spoke to the masses from the balcony of the Casa Rosada.It means literally a red house. There were women and children begging at the Cathedral doors and also a protest in the square of Argentinean Falklands War veterans demanding higher pensions.
Buenos Aires is often described as the Paris of South America. However, the trip this morning did not convince either of us that it was. We are going out this evening to a Tango show with dinner since the ship is staying here for two days so I am writing the blog earlier than usual.
We arrived in Montevideo about and we left the ship at to go on a tour of the city. In order to get off the ship if you are disabled they normally open a gangway on one of the lower decks (i.e. deck 4) so that it is level with the quayside. If you are on a tour they arrange for you to leave ten minutes earlier than the rest of the party since you move slower than they do. They also reserve a front seat so you don’t have to walk too far. However, what other help you get depends on the guide and coach driver. So far, we have had good assistance.
The tour was very good but it was very hot around 35C so you tired yourself just doing normal things like short walks and getting on and off the coach. Montevideo is an attractive city with some nice parks, tree lined streets and pleasant boulevards. It has a long sea side along the River Plate which is an estuary rather than a river and very wide. It divides Uruguay from Argentina. The city was cleaner and far quieter than Rio. It looked prosperous with a lot of new building and far less people around. Although apparently January is the main month everyone goes on holiday here. Part of the tour was a ride on a restored steam train with “Manchester Carriages”. It had been beautifully restored.
Tonight, we are cruising the 120 miles up the River Plate to Buenos Aires in order to arrive at about tomorrow morning. We have just left the dock in Montevideo and have past a couple buoys that mark the resting place of the Graf Spee which was scuttled after a battle with British ships in the Second World War. The ship’s anchor is on the quayside in Montevideo.
Another warm and sunny day in what seems an empty ocean, cruising south towards Montevideo. Today, we have seen other vessels in one tanker and one container ship but otherwise we have the sea to ourselves. It has been a lazy day of reading, watching the waves, walking around the deck and in my case catching up with my Open University creative writing course. At the moment I am attempting with little success to write poetry.
The passengers on a round the world cruise are not drawn from one part of society. They are cosmopolitan and have come from many different backgrounds and places. One of the few things they have in common is that they tend to be retired since who else could take three months off from work. Although, even this is not universal with a small minority still working. I suppose they also have in common the money to pay for the cruise. But in almost all other areas they are a broad group. We have met on this ship: colliery managers, bank managers, care home owners, school teachers, police officers, antique dealers, hairdressers, nurses, shop floor foremen, cleaners, football and cricket fans, non-drinkers and headmasters. They have presented views that are religious, racist, homophobic, caring, Christian, socialist, conservative and fascist. These are just the people we have met who are a small subset of the 1800 passengers.
People do many different things while on a sea day. There are fanatical bridge players who seem to want to spend each waking moment with a pack of cards in front of them. Many people sit on deck sunbathing in many different postures. Some lie motionless in the full sun, while other hide in the shade. Many read and by observing the titles you could undertake market research. A few embroider, cross-stitch or knit. On one side of the ship you are allowed to smoke and the smokers cluster there. A few walkers circle the deck either intent on power walking or out for a slow stroll. They zig and zag their way through the sunbathers. Few things galvanise the crowd but at , the tea and cakes appear on deck and cause the groups to stir and hasten for the best cakes.
Tomorrow, we are going on a steam train and a coach to see the sights of Montevideo.
We left Rio at about last night and watched the lights of the city and the port as we sailed out. We passed a strange boat possibly for oil exploration with a crane, helicopter landing zone and with every light blazing into the night. It was the sea going equivalent of a Christmas tree with all its lights on.Two of the best moments in a cruise are often sailing into and out of harbour.It was a brilliant evening with a wonderful display of stars in the black sky. It’s rare to have so little light pollution to be able to see the stars in all their glory.The constellations are still familiar even though we are in the southern hemisphere but they have been shifted in their normal positions.
The cruise is divided into five sectors or legs and the first ends in Montevideo. With each leg there are different entertainers so Pam Ayres leaves us in Montevideo and JohnnyKingdom who presents a wildlife programme on the television comes on board. He is giving three talks, the opening one this afternoon. They also start showing a new batch of movies.
Today, we have returned to the open and empty seas with no sign of any other vessels nor flying fish or dolphins. The temperature is about 25 C, the sea is calm and it is not too humid. People are now starting to return to mundane issues such as washing and ironing. The self-service laundrette is packed and people are queuing to iron and dry clothes. We decided to send ours to the ships laundry and escape the queue.
A perfect day for sitting with a good book and watching the world go by.
We awoke in Rio with large black birds circling around using the thermals to glide. They were a mixture of frigate birds we had seen earlier and buzzards. On the nearest hillside was one of the infamous Rio slums built on the steep side of the hill. In Rio, the rich get the flat ground and the poor the slopes. The harbour is on the huge bay that is crossed by a nine mile long bridge that we can see from the port side of the ship. We are on the starboard side.
This afternoon we went on a trip around the city and a visit to the Sugar Loaf, a large mountain with views over the whole city and coast. On our way to the mountain we drove alongside the Copacabana beach which was an amazing stretch of brilliant sand. There were thousands of people on the beach, swimming, sunbathing, playing volley ball and building sand statues. The sand is apparently so hot it can burn bare feet.
The Sugar Loaf is reached by going up two cable cars. The first journey was to a smaller mountain and then a final leg to the top of the Sugar Loaf. It was quite busy and we had to use a series of disable lifts which took a long time, not least since you had to have a member of staff operate them. On the way down we did it ourselves to save time.The view at the top was breathtaking. The cable car was not for those with a fear of heights.
On the way back we stopped at the new cathedral which is a pyramid shaped building that can hold 15000 people. Inside it was spectacular with huge stained glass windows. At the door volunteers were organising the distribution of aid for the victims of the mud slides that have hit Brazil in recent weeks.
Our guide was a German Brazilian and he was excellent. The temperature was 33C and we felt drained by the heat. We leave at to sail to Montevideo, Uruguay. We arrive on 25th January.
Another beautiful warm day and after 12 days when we have only seen one other vessel, today, there has been a stream of them plus oil platforms and some islands on the horizon. This is probably not surprising since we are sailing parallel to the Brazilian coast.The oil platforms also brought pollution in the form of oil drifting alongside.
The ship was surrounded briefing by dolphins this morning and someone claimed to have seen a whale. We will see more as we sail further south. Normally when they see a pod of dolphins they announce it over the loudspeakers but inevitably by the time you get outside they have gone. You need to be on the right side of the ship and outside or on a balcony to see them.
On a large ship like the Aurora with 3000 passengers and crew you would expect always to be in a crowd but the opposite is true. Most of the time, you can see very few other passengers and often you can go days before you bump into someone you know. It is only at the theatre shows or in the main restaurants that you see a lot of people.
Tomorrow (very early) we arrive in Rio but since there are also two other liners arriving then it is likely to be congested. They have already warned us that the landing terminal we have to enter the country though will be 500 metres from the ship and the bus a further 300 metres away. I expect some chaos tomorrow with queues.
Another lovely day, it’s about 25 C but not as humid as other days. We are sailing south towards Rio in calm waters. We are on the 11th Floor of the ship. Its has 13 floors with the top one being the sun deck and floor 12 with swimming pools and a self service restaurant. There are more swimming pools at the rear of deck 10. The two formal restaurants are both on deck 6 – the Alexandria at the stern and Meridian in the middle. We eat in the Alexandria at . There are two seating with an earlier one at . In order to move around the ship there are three sets of lifts at the bow, middle and stern of the ship with corresponding stairways. Chris is using her Shoprider Valetta powered wheelchair which has been a great success. It is highly manoeuvrable and great for carpeted corridors and giving her independence. Unfortunately it is no-use off the ship since the kerbs are high and even the pavements are full of holes. We switch to the manual chair then so we can get around.
The Valetta has excited a lot of interest since it is quick, easy to control and gets neatly through narrow openings. If we had a franchise I am sure we could already have sold several. There are other powered chairs on the ship but these are mainly large and designed for outdoor use. The Valetta is mainly an indoor chair. I doubt the larger chairs would cope with the environments in Recife, our last stop.
To get off the ship in harbour you need to go down gangway which are often steep but the ship do help with a team of young men who push or pull the chair up and down the gangway. However, you almost always have to climb steps into a bus. These can be quite high but again drivers and guides are often helpful. When leaving the ship they checked you out so that they are aware if you are late back but the ship normally will not wait. To get back on the ship you go through security which involves x-rays machines and metal detectors. It’s a sad world when these are needed on holiday.
We listened to a Port talk on the Falklands today. It sounds quite rugged and we need to be tendered ashore. This involves using the ships small tenders ferrying you back and forward to the shore. It takes a long time and if it is rough you get bounced around. We are hoping to see Rock Hopper Penguins there. The entertainment tonight is Pam Ayres who is providing a second show. Last night we saw a magician who was very good. Although I like magicians generally audiences tend to be small which is a shame for the entertainer who was very good is.
Time for lunch and then an afternoon reading on the balcony with an occasional gin and tonic.
Three iamges show Neptune from yesterday's crossing the line ceremony, entering Recife harbour and a view of the city from a river boat.
We docked at Recife about today. It is a large city and we have berthed in the industrial harbour which is not too picturesque but luckily we are on the side facing out to sea which is rather beautiful. It is hot about 35 C. We went for a boat trip around the local rivers since the city is built around six rivers and numerous canals. The locals kept telling us that it was like Venice but it does not look like it. There is a real mix of poverty and affluence in the city with men fishing with nets in the rivers and new high rise building. The sun was fierce and you need a hat or you cook. The local rivers are tidal and as we sailed around them at low tide there were many sand banks and mango swamps. The place was full of egrets feeding in the water. We also saw a sea eagle circling the docks. The locals told us that this was one of the host cities for the 2014 World Cup and that was why there were so many new buildings.
We had a brief look around the shops which were in a market built into an old prison with each cell a different small shop. They were selling quality cotton clothing, jewellery and toys. It was an interesting place with lots of statues and decorated cow heads (Not sure why). You can pay for goods in Reals – the local currency or dollars. Prices were ok but not particular cheap. However, there were good quality products.
The time zone is GMT – 3 so we are three hours behind the UK at the moment but tonight as we sail down the coast we gain an hour because we move through another time zone. Brazil is a large country with three different time zones. I think we will get very confused by the time changes as we travel on.
We will be at sea for the next two days as we travel down the coast to Rio de Janiero. We arrive on 22nd January.
The ship is now rapidly approaching Recife in Brazil and we will be spending tomorrow there. We have booked on a boat tour of the city since it has many canals and rivers to see the city from. We have also been organising other trips for later stops including going to see rock hopper penguins on the Falklands. This involves an hour in a 4x4 across open country so I am sure we will get thrown around. Anyway that trip is over a week away.
We have been followed all afternoon by two different types of bird. They are apparently frigate birds and Gannets. Although, no one is entirely sure which-is-which. The surprise is that we are still more than 100 miles from land. There are apparently a few islands but they are over 20 miles away. The birds glide alongside the ship and occasional plunge into the water after fish. After a variety of attempts to photograph them I have given up since all I got was sky.
I had to change the virus protection software on the laptop and since the connection from the ship is quite slow I did it at when I do not have to share the bandwidth with anyone else but it still took over an hour to download the AVG system.
We are about 700 miles from Brazil and will cross the equator into the southern hemisphere this evening about 2am (our time – we are currently GMT-2). Today has been quite a lazy day with a warm but humid day just right for sitting on the balcony and watching the sea go by. We saw more flying fish this morning. There was a large shoal of them possibly 50 to 100 fish.
Last night Pam Ayres was the entertainment and she was excellent in particular a poem about packing for a long holiday which everyone recognised as true to life. She is going to do an extra show while on board. In the different bars around the ship there is often live music ranging from pop to classic pianists. You can choose your own preferences.
We went to hear an astronomy talk by an enthusiastic amateur astronomer who also happens to be the entertainment director. He is going to explain in a series of talks what starts and constellations we will see in the southern hemisphere. He was a professional dancer but clearly is heart is in astronomy.
This is best called the day of the flying fish. Shoals of these small fish break the surface together, rather like a group of butterflies and then individually plunge back in after skimming the surface. We saw hundreds of these creatures alongside the boat. In the middle of the Atlantic there was little else to see with no other ships in sight all day and only the occasional drifting plant or weed floating by.The sea is calm and the temperature continues to rise to 25 centigrade. The sunshine on the water is blinding almost as if reflected by a mirror. From our balcony we can see many miles but it is almost impossible to tell how far since there is nothing to judge distance against.
Sunday is like any other day on the ship with the same activities. Many people simply sit on deck or on their balconies reading and relaxing. I watched the Liverpool and Everton game in the Champions bar. It summed up Liverpool’s season so far with a brilliant first half but only one gaol followed by ten minutes of Everton pressure giving them, 2. The final score was 2:2.
The entertainment tonight is Pam Ayres who we have seen around the ship with her husband. She is acting like just another passenger enjoying the trip. When you see people in a new context it can be difficult to recognise them.
The picture is the view from our balcony of the Atalntic near Cape Verde Islands
One question that I am often asked is what do you do when the ship is sailing between ports. This is important at the moment with five days at sea crossing the Atlantic in front of us.There is a daily newspaper that publishes all the activities that are available to you. This covers many different things so that if you are a fantastical bridge player you can spend every waking moment with the cards. Yesterday is probably a reasonable example of what we do:
we listened to a talk on Rio de Janeiro which we arrive at on 22 January
we sat in the sun on deck reading a book or in my case I walked for 13 laps or 4 miles to keep healthy
Lunch
2 to 4pm Sat on the balcony of our cabin drinking wine and in my case studying my Open University creative Writing Course trying and failing to write poetry
to We watched a movie “Moon” – so poor Chris went to sleep
answered e-mail
we got ready for a formal dinner – this means Dinner Jackets etc
Pre-dinner drinks
Dinner
Late Night Show – The Merseys who played lots of sixties music and were excellent
That’s the hectic life on board. Time flies by ………….
Last night we sailed out of Madeira and on our way to Brazil. It will take 5 days and we will cross the Equator on about the fourth day. Our landfall is Recife in Brazil. The weather is calm and we have been sitting on deck watching the world go by.
Our first port of call today – Madeira – sunshine and warmth after the cold of the Atlantic. We have been here several times before so we simply went for a walk around Funchal, the main town. It is an attractive town with lots of pedestrian areas so we could move around with the wheelchair although someone needs to explain to the local builders about the need for drop pavements. The town was flooded last year and they are rebuilding part of the harbour. The picture shows the view from the promenade looking onto the hills surrounding the town. The local beach has black sand showing the volcanic nature of the island.
The local shops are aimed at the tourist trade with embroidery, cork and leather goods. Prices are high probably due to the pound/euro exchange rate. Many of them are not easy to access since they have high steps. Lots of local people stand in the street and talk to each other. It seems the local pastime. Traffic is intense and I would not like to drive here. The bus drivers seem to feel they own the roads and charge out onto each roundabout with enthusiasm.
The weather has improved today with calm seas which is blessing. Even very large ships such as the Aurora move around a good deal more than is comfortable when the wind blows and the waves rise. The cabin is on the 11th Floor so has a dramatic view from the balcony even if it is too cold to sit outside until we get further south. As normal on cruises we have been talking to the other passengers and exchanging each others life histories. We met a hair dressing magnate from Wigan today who is on his third world cruise.
Passengers are divided into two groups: those that walk around the deck and those that do not. I am a member of the former who are in a small minority but today walking around (10 laps or 3 miles) I could observe the tough passengers in both groups who are prepared to brace the cold wind off the Atlantic to sit outside or walk around. The ship is moving at 20 knots so it generates its own draft to add to the normal sea breezes. The smokers can only smoke in a few designated areas on the ship and one is a small section on the deck so there is always group outside no matter what the weather is like. There are the hardy souls who sit outside and read even on the coldest day. The couples who stroll very slowly around the ship and the speed walkers who rush pass them. A mixed bunch but normally they are very friendly.
Tonight is the Welcome Aboard dinner when you get the chance to meet the Captain but only at the cost of a long queue so we normal attend the dinner but miss out shaking his hand. It is long dresses and dinner jacket’s event and the food is intended to be very special
The first part of any journey south means that the ship has to sail through the Bay of Biscay – that is, the Atlantic. At this time of year it is often rough and at the moment we cannot go out on deck due to high winds and spray. No surprise – so it is the cinema (The Educationalist) and dinner rather than walking the deck today.
The trip down to Southampton was by taxi and uneventful. John, the taxi driver got us to the ship by 12.30 and as always as quickly as we unloaded the suitcases they were whisked away by the porters. The booking in hall always looks very congested but the process is quick and painless. The security checks resemble those carried out at airports but are always applied in a friendly and professional way. Twenty minutes after we walked into the booking hall we were on the Aurora.
The ship left about to the sound of fireworks and passengers drinking ice cold champagne. This was not the most appropriate beverage on a cold January evening – probably a hot toddy would have been better.
The first night on any cruise is always spent unpacking and finding your way around the ship. This time complicated by our second wheelchair going missing. We found it with the help of the cabin steward.
