Apart from sailing into New York City around five days ago, the only view from my stateroom balcony was the Ocean, which was everything from furious, mountainous, to an eerie but beautiful flat calm of just two days ago, early in the morning. It is said that QM2 had battled its toughest westbound transatlantic crossing in its history. At the time, that was easy to believe. While I myself probably prefer smooth relaxing seas, I was excited and exhilarated by those turbulent seas with mountainous swells and ship-covering sprays.
But enough was enough and boy, did I welcome the increasing calm and warmth of the last three days. This is the first of five consecutive port days, which, apart from today is a repeat of my previous voyage here just over a month ago. And it’s still February today, albeit with just three days before St. David’s Day. Being born on that day inspired my main christian name.
Below are rough sketches of our progress from the U.K. to NYC and then south to St. Thomas.
And the views from my stateroom.
My stateroom is aft on the port-side of the ship. Presumably, cabins in more uncomfortable parts of the ship are set aside for those who chose Saver Deals, as I did. The savings far outweighed the disadvantages, e.g. not being able to choose your cabin, no on board spend, no invitations to cocktail parties. My cabin is above the Queen’s Room where dancing until midnight can disturb an early night, particularly if a pop group is playing there. Still, no big deal; I can live with that. However last night, there was a penertrating loud hum which did disturb my slumbers, and again, I slept fairly badly. Somehow, the effects of this wore off as the day turned into one of the most enjoyable so far. In the morning after breakfast, we ventured mainly to the shops and stalls near the quayside. I hadn’t quite woken up, but welcomed some really hot weather as I wrote postcards and Jo explored the shopping possibilities. We adjourned for a light lunch in the Boardwalk Cafe High up on Deck 12. I had chicken burger and salad, Jo, a vegi-burger, again, salad, no bun or chips.
Views of St. Thomas and Paradise Point Skyride.
Jo is not overly keen on organised shore excursions; they are overpriced and somewhat regimented. I, on the other hand, find that in places I am not familiar with, they offer the best use of the limited time available, but can also be irritated by the incessant chatter of some tour guides through dodgy ear-piercing P.A. systems. Nevertheless, Jo did join me for the above tour. Our transport was a safari bus which I wish I had photographed. The guide, a local man, took us up into the hills and around much of the island. We stopped at numerous points where spectacular views of the nearby British and U.S. Virgin Islands could clearly be seen on such a lovely clear and warm day. We returned to the foot of the hills from where we transported upwards once again in the Paradise Point cable car. We both enjoyed the tour, and the relevant commentary throughout. After a final walk to the ship, through the security boundaries etc, and past various shops, and a lone steel band and dancers in attractive yellow costumes, we boarded the ship, eventually making our way to the sail-away party outside aft on Deck 8. I lay on a sunbed, the warm breeze caressing my tired brow. Indeed, I was in Paradise debating whether to splurge on a third such voyage in March! (I don’t think so!)
Many thanks for reading, David, the next morning, Sunday 27/2/22, 08.18hrs
David's Cruise 