David's Cruise

Today, Monday 31st January, would have been my brother’s 80th Birthday.  Therefore, today’s blogs are dedicated to him.  If he was still with us, reading these blogs, he might have been “quite amused.”  Thomas, born 1942 was known as Tommie, and by family as “The Thos.”

Yesterday felt like one I never wanted to end.  Courtesy of Cunard, I enjoyed the challenging and extremely scenic hike along the coastal path.  Being a Sunday, Philipsburg was not quite as vibrant as it might otherwise have been. But there was still that ambiance of joy with local music belting out from an al fresco bar only yards from the piers where MSC’s Seaview, and Cunard’s QM2 were berthed.  Back on board at around 5 30pm, I just needed a cup of tea to chill out from the afternoon’s exertions.  This was forthcoming in the King’s Court eatery, already being laid up for buffet dinner.  The sun was setting rapidly and the usual magnificent Caribbean sunset soon exhibited its splendour and the sky appeared to be on fire.  Soon, it was time to change for dinner, where Jack Joan, Jean and I were joined by a couple from Kent.  At the show which followed in the Royal Court Theatre, the singer for the night Zoe Tyler, sang a bunch of (usually) well known songs with the passion of an artiste at the top of her game.  Favourites of mine were her among her repertoire. I was not ready for slumber quite yet, and ventured to the pool area aft on Deck 8 where dancing under the stars was drawing to a close. The novelty of warm nights in January never wears off.

This morning, I awoke gently, and the News on the TV was its uninteresting predictable self.  We are safely tied up at our final Caribbean destination, Road Town, Tortola.  This afternoon, again, courtesy of Cunard, I get to tour this tiny island on a safari bus, which I understand are quite common on this Island.

My blogs have not mentioned the impact the pandemic has had on everything; the cruise ship industry, those employed therein, the entertainers, the countries we visited, and their populations.  More than once, the ship’s entertainers have expressed thankfulness at being able to perform, after almost two years of being unable to.  The waiters and restaurant staff can now continue to serve with enthusiasm and sincere care.  Small countries seem to be beginning to recover, and it is a privilege to be able either visit for the first time, or return, as many passengers on this voyage are doing.  While cruise ships can be frowned upon from an ecological point of view, there is no doubt that they are a godsend to such remote places as the Caribbean, Alaska and elsewhere where tourism has become a vital industry.  Now, it’s time for breakfast and a little exploration of this last Caribbean call…maybe just for the time being.

My shore excursion begins at 13.20. Despite a late breakfast of porridge and a decaff coffee, I will relax once again in the Britannia Restaurant for an early not very heavy lunch.  Another TUI (formerly Thomson’s) cruise ship Mein Schiff 1 is berthed alongside QM2.  This is  massive cruise ship.  Hopefully, I can take some decent photographs later.  Here are couple taken from on board in the late morning.

Many thanks for reading,David, 11.50, in the shade of a life boat (tender) on board QM2.

Time for lunch!

Blog 713 has a few mistakes which I missed when reading for publication. A slightly better “tidied up” version can be accessed via Google on http://www.davidscruise.wordpress.com.

Time to prepare for dinner.

All the best, David 19.06 hrs, still on a sunlounger under a starry sky! Magnificent!

Since booking the Coastal Scenic Hike a few days ago, I had been somewhat alarmed by the warnings in the brochure of steep, uneven and rocky terrain over which we would walk. Those with heart conditions, dizziness, vertigo etc., need not apply. I did!  On the day, one of the guides assured me there were no “mad hills.” I breathed a sigh of relief.  However, if I knew what this hike would actually be like, perhaps I would have chosen not to try it. 

However, there were sections of steep rocky and uneven pathways, as described in the brochure, and indeed, I did struggle. Whether others did, too, I’m not sure. The tour guides were brilliant.  The girl would group us together to explain what we were looking at.  To assist with balance in some of the difficult places, I was issued with a hiking pole, just like the one I never use at home!  It was a godsend.  To be able to spend a warm afternoon, still in January, admiring the Atlantic breakers, and looking across to neighbouring islands was a rare experience.  I am seriously giving thought to Cunard’s bargain basement offer on repeat voyage via New York.  But if I do decide to exile myself for another four weeks, I doubt I shall do this walk again, although I would be more used to the terrain.  For the real walkers, I doubt that this would be considered “difficult,” although the tour guides assured me they had encountered far worse participants than me on this particular hike.  The views were fabulous.

I did wonder whether I would make it back to the coach, but I did, and as we sail towards Tortola, and the sky turns fiery red,

I look back on a wonderfully “landmark” day.

Tortola is our final Caribbean island call tomorrow. Then, there are six days at sea as we head east towards a more familiar time zone. With luck, the warm weather will hold out to one day after our final port of call, Santa Cruz de Tenerife. Then, it’s back to the familiar throws of winter.

I can only write in glowing terms about this afternoon’s shore excursion. The tour guides and driver were outstanding and very informative.

It is now dark outside, and still hot and sticky!

Many thanks for reading, David, at sea en route for Tortola. 18.53 hrs. GMT-4

Another day of glorious hot weather with temperatures in the 80s Fahrenheit predicted, if it is not that already. And perhaps, not the most suitable conditions for a hike over steep and tough terrain, a shore trip which I opted for, partly because of its late start time, and partly to keep up my (so far) ineffective exercise regime! So far, I have exceeded 11,000 steps on all but two days, when I came reasonably close.

St. Maarten lies just east of the British Virgin Islands, one of which, Tortola, we call at tomorrow, bringing the curtain down on a wonderful island hopping in the North Atlantic and Caribbean. St. Maarten gets its name from the time Christopher Columbus “discovered” the island, landing there on the Saint’s Day commemorating St. Martin. The Dutch and French continue to share the island in agreed territories, and I am told that the Euro is the main currency here. I have a mere 80 of them from a previous holiday! That should get me a t-shirt.

This morning, I was awake before 7 am when I was expecting the “bongs” to arouse me from my slumbers. Last night, after an enjoyable day in St. Kitts, I joined earlier table companions Alan and Sue for dinner. We were shown to the regular table of Jack Joan and Jean, far more established travellers than I will ever be, and whom I have come across on recent previous travels. None of us were enthusiastic about the show on offer. We relaxed in the Queen Elizabeth inspired Chart Room on Deck 3. Before dinner, I watched with continued amazement at how quickly the sun sets in this part of the world.

This morning, although awake earlier than usual, l had a fairly late breakfast of porridge, banana, yoghurt and mixed fresh fruit including strawberries, retrieved from the back, out of sight! I then visited the Future Tours Office to ascertain rumours that bargains were to be had continuing this voyage back to the Caribbean. Indeed, I can go home for four days, get back on again and return some time in March. Ye Gods, I’m sorely tempted! I also went to the library where I had some Internet time reinstated after failing to log out correctly.

My walking tour does not start until 13.20 hrs. I thus decided on an early lunch in the Britannia Restaurant at a table with magnificent views, apart from a bog-standard lamp post, which, needless to say serves an important purpose.

Notes. M.S.C. Mediterranean Shipping Company. N.C.L. Norwegian Cruise Line RCI Royal Caribbean International.

Even if you dine every day in the main restaurant, there is always a sense of occasion. A line of immaculately turned out waiters and restaurant personnel are at the entrance to greet you, and show you to your seat. Arrive early, and a window seat is assured!

I shall write about the Coastal Hike later tonight

While I remember: Last night, a medical emergency necessitated a hasty run to Philipsburg where, shortly after 10 o’clock, the ship was met by an ambulance team. However, we were not allowed ashore until this morning.

Many thanks for reading, David, completed over lunch, posted after the hike at 17.20 hrs.

Greetings from Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis.

Today the Caribbean weather is as it should be, hot, dry and sunny.  We are docked in the Capital, Basseterre and predictably, I opted for the Scenic Train journey, over a restored 18 mile stretch of railway, constructed for the transport of sugar beet. That industry no longer flourishes and the railway was “re-purposed” in 2005, as a tourist attraction with a small number of industrial diesel shunters which haul a rake of 5 specially constructed double deck carriages, and, next to the locomotive, a generator car to supply A/C and refrigeration for cold drinks etc. The journey is, indeed, very scenic.  But annoyingly, the commentary through a crummy P.A. system is constant and ear-piercing almost throughout.  I’m glad I went, however.  I returned to the ship for lunch and an attempt to update this blog.  A very helpful shop assistant in the souvenir shopping area of the town managed to get me connected.  Here is a selection of pictures taken yesterday on the isle of Dominica, as well as some taken today at Basseterre.

Many thanks for reading. David, 16.44 hrs GMT-4, Basseterre, St. Kitts.

Today, we are docked at Roseau on the dramatically scenic (as was Grenada, yesterday) island of Dominica.

So far, we have called at Lisbon, Portugal,

Bridgetown Barbados,

St.George’s, Grenada,

and today, Roseau, Dominica.

Apart from Lisbon and Barbados, the island ports we are calling at are places I have not yet visited.  Barbados was much as I remember it and will be revisited again this year on my way from Southampton to Vancouver. 

Grenada, I was assured, would be a suitable replacement for St. Lucia, I presume cancelled because of the continuing pandemic.  I found it to be dramatically scenic with a huge abundance of fruit bearing vegetation, just like a page out of the National Geographic Magazine.  Had it not been overcast, the colours would have been vivid. At least, the rain is warm here! We were docked at the capital, St. George’s, later to be joined by Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Epic.  St. George’s was founded as a settlement by the French in 1650.  Exports include cacao, nutmeg, and bananas, etc.  Sugar processing and rum distilling are local industries.  During the almost eight hour exploration of Grenada, we called at something like The Diamond Chocolate Centre where the finest pure chocolate was available for purchase.

We continued high into the hills where a fine lunch was being kept piping hot on some kind of long charcoal burner.  I didn’t get to photograph the tropical landscape visible from the large covered eating area. After further exploration by minibus, we were soon back at the quayside.  I had already bought a t-shirt earlier in the day.

It had been a fascinating day, not too far removed from a similar trip yesterday.  Steep hills covered with tropical growth and the ability to be self sustaining.

To be continued

Roseau, Dominica.

This was another trip into the mountains, calling first at Morne Bruce Garrison from where panoramic uninterrupted views of the capital of Dominica, Roseau, could be enjoyed. The first illustration explains the original “purpose in life” of this military location.

We continued to a Botanical Garden where I made for the loo, along with several others of a similar age! The heavens opened up, and most of us became drenched as the warm tropical rains fell. We then ventured to the hills for yet another astonishingly scenic but arduous drive to Hibiscus Falls, also known as Jacko Falls. It was worth the all too brief visit where a choice of fruit and alcoholic and non alcoholic beverage was on offer.

To be continued.

Many thanks for reading, David, on the isle of St. Kitts. 15.56 hrs, GMT -4.

Isn’t this fantastic; we are just 12 degrees north of the Equator.  Last night, we departed the port of Bridgetown, Barbados and I took some final photographs, walking back to Queen Mary 2 from the Terminal. “Will I ever see this now quite familiar place again?” I wondered, as by now, feeling much more tired, I tried to maintain my resolution of 10,000 steps each day. For the first time this voyage, I did not achieve my daily steps target. I had become overwhelmed with fatigue.

I went to bed early last night (before 10pm), in need of a long sleep.  I awoke several times including at 3am when I took a shower and a travel sickness pill in the hopes of falling asleep prior to the long day ahead.  I felt slightly travel sick on the bus yesterday, and felt that it might have been wise to take a sea-sick pill.  Knowing that today would involve several hours on bumpy bendy narrow hilly roads, I took a pill at 3am and that did the trick. I enjoyed each hairpin bend bump and sudden braking with no discomfort.  The tour guide was first rate, and not overwhelming. But his knowledge and enthusiasm made for the most enjoyable trip possible.  In a nut shell, we toured most of the island of Grenada, around the coast, and to the highest road point, 1,910 ft above sea level.  Sadly, the weather was overcast with frequent rain showers – even in the dry season.

Our tour guide gave information appropriate (with a touch humour) to everything we saw during about 4 or 5 hours on the minibus.

Here are some images of today’s trip.

All in all, a wonderful full and well spent day, with an excellent lunch of local dishes.

Thanks for reading, David, 18.00hrs on board QM2 about to leave for Dominica.

Today was splendid.  I thoroughly enjoyed the Atlantis XV submarine exploration. It might have been “a bit touristy” but journeying along the sea floor, past an impressive wreck, 150 below the surface, and skirting over coral reef was an incredible experience. Back at the Terminal, as you will know, I was able to post photographs with ease and thus the blogs from around Lisbon; this blog will be sent from the Cruise Terminal tomorrow also.

I walked back to the ship from the Terminal, taking the opportunity for photographs at every turn.  Cunard’s Queen Victoria suddenly showed up and made an interesting silhouette against a fast setting sun, annoyingly hidden behind a huge grey cloud.  While the setting sun was not visible, the post sunset sky was a mass of salmon, purple, grey, blue, and colours in between.

Tonight, I joined Joan, Jack and Jean for dinner in the Verandah. Service and food were unsurpassable.  The show afterwards in the Royal Court Theatre was also enjoyable; something which I might well have gone to “on land.” 

Below are images of Cunard’s Queen Victoria which has now docked in Bridgetown, Barbados.  “Two out of Three Ain’t Bad.”  I understand QV is acting as some kind of covid hospital ship.  It’s scheduled to re-enter revenue earning service in April.  There was something special about its rare appearance tonight which I tried to capture.

Many thanks for reading. David, 00.04hrs 26/1/22 in my cabin.

Published 26/1/22 20.52 hrs on board QM2 heading for Grenada.

The trick is to be the last in the group; when they have looked at everything, you can admire in an empty room to your heart’s desire. This is what I tried to do today, and while unknowing of what I was looking at, the house contained some phenomenal artefacts including a room full of cameras from maybe the 30s or early 50s to almost the present day. Sadly, no guidebook to this interesting place is available. This is a pity because much of what the guide explained might be, and is by me, soon forgotten. Photography was encouraged, which helps.

Prior to Afternoon Tea at Sunbury, we had refreshment (rum or fruit punch) at the lovely Atlantis Hotel, once a railway station. Apparently, the sea-salt corroded the coastal infrastructure, thus deeming the narrow gauge sugar railway unviable.

I am back at the Cruise Terminal where the WiFi isn’t quite as good as it was yesterday.

Thanks for reading, David. I had better walk back to the ship now.

Isn’t life miraculous!  Again this morning, I was awake fairly early. It was (and is) Wednesday. Moments before 08.00 hrs, PMQs (Prime Minister’s Questions) was just about to begin on the BBC World Service.  All of a sudden, it was like being back at home, watching the leaders of the two main Parties “battle it out.”   To be able to watch live events thousands of miles away surely is miraculous. I felt too groggy to be able to really work out who came out on top this week. Politics can be a dangerous territory in the confines of an ocean liner! 

That it’s somewhat cloudy this morning doesn’t really matter.  The mid 70s Fahrenheit prevail.  Later this morning, I shall take a shore excursion by coach to the Sunbury Tea Plantation, to be shown around, and served afternoon tea.  Shore excursions can either be irksome or highly enjoyable. But they do offer an efficient way of exploring somewhere in a relatively short time span.

M.S. (or M.V., I’m not sure which!) Queen Victoria eventually berthed last night almost opposite Queen Mary 2. 

One of the Tui Marella Explorer, ships, Explorer 2 came in this morning and is now safely berthed in front of QM2. (Pictures to follow)

We have to be back on board tonight by 18.00 hrs. This really is the start of the Cruise to the Eastern Caribbean. I have derived much  pleasure from seeing the comings and goings of cruise ships in Bridgetown, Barbados. Covid restrictions feel more restrictive right now; face masks are worn in the street and temperature checks seem to be everywhere. 

The shore excursion to the Sunbury Tea Plantation house and grounds was very much well worth joining.  We were taken around much of the island, if I remember rightly, 28 miles long by 14 miles across.  The tour guide imparted much information throughout the drive, without being irritating. Those on this trip (but not me) appreciated her “tourist humour,” which thankfully was just enough!

I shall describe the visit to the Sunbury Tea Plantation House in the next blog.

Many thanks for reading, David, Bridgetown Cruise Terminal, Barbados, 26/1/22.