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Never go to sea in October is a rule that I have more honoured in the breach than in the observance. Many unhappy October day has been spent waiting in Holyhead or on the Scillies for a local boat to take me to a lighthouse - or worse waiting on a lighthouse for the return trip. So here I go again, the 1st of October sees us in a taxi to Southampton to go on a cruise.
Day 1 Wednesday The forecast was not good as we sailed on Fred Olsen's MV Boudicca down the Solent, although sunny when we started the breeze was picking up and a westerly gale was expected and that was due to be followed by a Northerly once we got to the Bay of Biscay.
 Casting Off
Still we went on deck to see our former workplace at Cowes until a squall forced us back in. We were due to drop our pilot near the Nab tower but before we arrived there a medical emergency was declared and we waited until a passenger could be airlifted off. Not the easiest of manoeuvres, winching a stretcher up from a smallish cruise ship at night, in near gale conditions, even with the bulk of the Isle of Wight giving us some relief from the wind and seas. Shortly after the helicopter flew away to Southampton, we dropped the pilot, another task more easily said than done.
One of things that can be a lottery on a cruise is who you will be seated with for dinner. Presumably sometimes there is a selection process other than fate. Perhaps the price of your cabin (certainly a factor on Cunard) or any hint of your occupation (P&O). Your fellow diners can make or spoil your cruise. We have been both blessed and cursed in the past but on the first tonight's showing its going to be OK. They are a couple who are on their first cruise and a mother and her son, who have been on Fred Olsen lines before but not on Boudicca.
Once you have been on a cruise comparisons are inevitably made. In our case our four previous cruises; Norway and Iceland on Arcadia in 2002, The Baltic on Oceana in 2003 (both P&O), Antarctica on Discovery in 2005, Galapagos, Panama and the Caribbean on Discovery in 2006 form our benchmarks. The present ship is at 28,000 GRT is a a lot smaller than either Arcadia or Oceana (around 70,000 GRT) but a bit bigger than Discovery (20,000 GRT), part of the comparison will be how she crosses the Bay of Biscay in a gale compared with crossing Drake's passage between Cape Horn and Antarctica. Like Discovery (the sister ship to that used in 'Love Boat' ) Boudicca looks like a ship not a block of flats. Certainly as we had our meal, watched the show, lingered in a bar and settled down for sleep she or her stabilisers were coping well with the channel gale we were plugging into. The fish was overcooked at dinner though!
Day 2 Thursday Didn't sleep too well. Our cabin is an inside one, on the lowest deck and quite near the middle measuring from bow to stern. This was a deliberate choice, partly as these are the cheapest cabins but also because the position gives the least movement, don't book a top deck stateroom if you suffer from motion sickness! By and large we hardly noticed the slight motion as we lay in bed but every so often a bigger wave would rattle the whole ship. I would then lie awake waiting for the next one, or having got off to sleep wake up with a start when something rattled more than usual. By the morning the motion was much worse as we were 45 degrees on to the wind and waves. Throughout the day the motion got gradually worse still, we were still in fairly shallow water and the westerly gale was still with us. It was now dangerous to go on certain areas of the deck and the starboard deck doors were all roped off.
We did get to breakfast though and launched ourselves once more into the orgy of food and trivia that makes up a cruise day at sea. For those of you that have never been on a cruise there are some common themes no matter who you travel with, there are quizzes, dance lessons, keep fit sessions, lectures etc and food food food. We are now starting to 'rate' this cruise. Nothing so far has been quite as good as on Discovery but is still of a good standard. The lecture on the history of cruising was beset with technical problems and punctuated by the lecturer coughing into his 'open' mic. We seemed to be rushed through our meal last night and it wasn't only the fish that was marginal. The show last night was a little hackneyed and seemed off balance, we found out later that a dancer had been injured in the first house and was unable to carry on. Considering that by then the ship was moving about quite a bit and the show lounge was on the sixth deck its a wonder they could stay upright at all. However tonights show consisting of a magician and a comedian was very good.
Tonight was our first formal dinner so it was on with the tuxedos, dinner jackets and posh frocks etc. We saw one girl wearing a dress so short that I look forward to seeing her again when long dresses aren't the rig of the day. We were a couple short on our table, so wondered if they had tired of our company already and had gone instead to another restaurant. It transpired that it was just a case of sea sickness. Doreen has been wearing pressure bands on her wrists all day and had ensured that our sea-sick pills were readily to hand. These two measures sufficed to keep us well. I'm not sure why things like that work but in the case of seasickness which I'm sure starts in the mind, it seems to.
The staff are really friendly and attentive they are mostly from the Philippines, but some from Korea, Vietnam and Thailand, although as you might expect the master, senior deck and engineering officers are from Scandinavia. It does lead to names that we English find humorous, our chief waiter is 'Bong', our cabin stewardess 'Moo' and someone else's stewardess is 'Poo'. We all met the captain tonight and had our photos taken with him. That is another 'given' on a cruise you get photographed all the time. We have spent lots in the past on photos that have lain in a drawer on our return so we don't bother buying them anymore. Anyway the skipper is from Denmark, and he has the slowest delivery of a joke or an announcement that I have come across. "Good Afternoon..(pause)... ladies and ..(pause)... gentlemen ..(long pause)... This is the captain speaking ..(pause)... from the bridge ..(pause)... it is 12 o'clock ..(pause)... noon" and so on. We were all introduced to his senior staff at the cocktail party prior to dinner tonight. He forgot the name of the doctor, probably hasn't seen much of her, she's been rather busy. Its not just the doctor, cabin staff have been delivering more room service than normal (probably to the partners of the afflicted) and there has been quite a lot of extra clearing up. People are telling us about various acts of kindness they have received from the staff today. A little tip: your cabin will have a TV one of the channels will in daylight give a forward view from the bridge, that will give you a horizon to look at if you can't get on deck and for many will improve how you feel.
Day 3 Friday Sunshine. Sometime during the night the wind came around to the North and although it had only started its drop from a force 8 down to a 5 and the sea was still categorised as 'very rough' our course had changed and the motion of the ship improved. To be honest our trip across the Bay of Biscay wasn't as bad as I had prepared myself for but I notice that I didn't take any photographs. So here are a couple from Friday morning.
Friday Morning Still Windy
This is the area from which the helicopter winched the casulty on Wednesday night, given all the obstructions you can see, not the easiest task. During the night we seemed to have lost a light fitting! Well as these brave souls on deck show all it takes is a little sun and the prospect of lunch from a different venue to get people on deck. The Captains noon message talked of much calmer conditions to follow and he was right. Soon everyone was getting about again.
Perhaps I should give you more idea of a typical day at sea, most of this will be similar on any UK based cruise ship. When you return to your cabin after dinner you find a newsletter detailing all the activities for the next day. As for us that was about 1 am it didn't get more than a cursory glance then. Most cabins have coffee and tea making facilities, although this isn't universal, so when I woke up I clicked on the TV (sound muted) and looked at the view from the bridge, (if there is a view it gives me a clue about the time!) A change of channel to the chart tells us where we are. There are normally a choice of restaurants and the option to eat outdoors. So if its fine and breakfast is started I leave my wife to slumber with or without a cup of tea depending on her level of consciousness and nip off to have an alfresco coffee and light breakfast. It is perfectly possible to return to the cabin, get ready, and hobbit like, go to a restaurant for a proper second breakfast later. The advantage of my foray out is that when I return to the cabin I can give an accurate report of the weather conditions which as we study the days 'events' will determine what we do.
They weren't serving breakfast outside today so after taking in a few laps around the Lido deck (5 times equals a mile and the gym staff supervise a group walk early each morning) I went back to the cabin and reported the weather conditions, after studying the 'Boudicca Times' events letter we had breakfast in the main restaurant, from the buffet rather that being served from the menu, and then went our separate ways. I picked up a quiz sheet and a library book (most ships have a library and an internet cafe) and spent a quiet time before attending a port lecture about Lisbon and Cadiz. Doreen went shopping, shopping? Yes, in fact the larger ships have malls! On smaller ships like Discovery and Boudicca they tend to sell glittery accessories, a small range of evening wear, along with ship souvenirs like mugs hats bags and T shirts, there is normally sections for essentials: pharmacy items, books, sweets and even crisps! What in case you are hungry!! In this case it was a foray for throat sweets as the air con had dried us out, I don't rule out the possibility that Doreen had a good look at the glittery stuff though, as a new pair of earrings appeared at about that time. She watched the port lecture from our cabin. These port lectures vary in quality and on some ships are an undisguised hard sell for the ships tours. Indeed the tour manager gave the talks on this trip but I thought she gave out a fair bit of information about how you could proceed ashore on your own. I then went on deck took some photos and we met up before lunch in a forward lounge, where a pianist who rejoiced in the name of Theng Theng Thong sat playing for a while, as we sat looking at the view with the sun flooding in.
Boudicca
After lunch we went our separate ways Doreen for some sun and to attend a fitness presentation, me to have a read before meeting up at 3pm to attend a dance class. On cruises there is always some sort of dancing taught. There are also mysterious people called dance hosts who shuffle round the dance floor with those without partners. Now I don't find dancing that easy, mainly because having attended lots of lessons at home I realise how bad I am, so I am more bashful about demonstrating my lack of skill. However on a ship that is lurching about even the professionals have difficulty so we are all reduced to being inept. We were taught a dance that you won't see on Strictly Come Dancing but which will work for just about any slow tune that isn't a waltz so that was OK actually its one I remember so it was a stroll apart from turning corners on the small dance floor.
Later that afternoon went to a quiz, that's also a common theme of all cruises, on Boudicca there were often three sessions a day. Warning, although the prize is something like a keyring, people do this with a passion and there is normally at least one group cheating! They also argue about the answers, sometimes even the questions. It can be very hard for say a Croatian or Thai member of the entertainment staff asking questions about which they probably know nothing, say about Coronation Street or Harold Wilson, especially if there are misprints or the question is ambiguous. I much prefer the daily quiz sheet with no prizes, a crossword and a couple of sudoku on the back, however on that day having only managed two answers on the quiz sheet on a first run through, we managed to get the second highest score in the live quiz.
At some point, probably just before the dance class, I eavesdropped on part of another lecture, this time it was about wines and wine tasting and was a precursor of a wine tasting session that you could pay a nominal charge (£5) to be part of. As well as dance there are always some skills that you can learn on a cruise. On this cruise we also had a bridge teacher and a golf pro - only the drive taught presumably - and a water colourist all giving lessons at various times and that is a typical mix for all cruises. Ships vary on what they offer and what activities you have to pay for, previously I have enjoyed cocktail making lessons, skeet shooting, and even a water colour class. There is also the one off fun things like napkin folding and making paper flowers and yes I've done those as well.
We avoided afternoon tea, it is in my view essential to miss some meals, if you don't you will put on around a pound a day during your trip, I have read that some put on a kilo a day! Even if your ship doesn't have a 24hr restaurant there is normally no hour in the day when you can't get food and at night there is cabin service. Norovirus is a huge risk on cruise ships so there is normally someone to see that you use the supplied hand cleanser on your approach to the restaurant or servery. On this ship there are two sittings for dinner 6.30 and 8.30, we are on the second one which gives us much more time especially if you have been ashore so a snack at tea time isn't always ruled out. However we never went to the buffet served between 11 and midnight, honest. That night was to be casual but with a theme, in this case a 'British night', which they helpfully advised us was about wearing red white and blue (other nationalities and colours acceptable). There are normally dress rules in the restaurants that apply at all times, like no bare chests or swimsuits but this depends on the ship. I prefer it that they are strict about this, even just for the sake of aesthetics, some people obviously do not look in the mirror! This ten night cruise had two formal, five casual (three of which were themed) and three informal nights, which they tell you about before you board so you can bring appropriate clothes. I'm not a great fan of fancy dress but putting on a blue and white shirt and wearing a pair of reddish trousers didn't seem too much of an imposition. Actually all this dressing up is easier for the women. From 'casual to formal all ladies really need is something smart and long then add bling as appropriate. Men have to have different stuff for each. Anyway off to dinner then as a group we went to a quiz and just made it to the show. Its really nice when the whole table does stuff together. We went to a lounge where a duo played until midnight and then the DJ until 1 or so. A full day.
Day 4 Saturday Lisbon. We approached Lisbon in the dark but as I compared our position with the map we had been given, I became aware that we weren't going to berth where the port lecture had indicated. Not that it really matters but I just like to know where I am. Apart from a brief announcement that the local custom and immigration procedures had been completed there were few announcements. I like that, on other ships the departure of each tour was announced along with all sorts of trivia. Here they treat you like adults if you are on a tour your ticket says where you should meet and when, and unless there is a problem that's all you hear. There was a shuttle available from the quay entrance to the town centre so as soon as it was announced we made our way ashore through two lots of security. Your cabin card is linked to a photo of you on the ships security computer so as you enter and leave the ship you are looked at and booked in and out. When you return any hand luggage purchases etc are x rayed. To various degrees this is also carried out by the port authorities shore side. This was the first time I had been to Portugal but Doreen had stayed in Lisbon for a few days not long ago, so she was our guide. Of course one day ashore doesn't give you much more than a brief taste of a city much less of a country so its all about first impressions.
We took an open topped bus around the city getting off about half way around, so that we could walk back to the city centre on a route through the old town, that an online travel guide had suggested, isn't Lisbon hilly and devoid of public toilets? So we did what everyone else does and went to coffee shops and bars for rest and the use of their loos. I had wanted to find a nice restuarant and have sardines for lunch but in the limited time available couldn't find sardines on anyone's menu. Still we had a really lovely day in the sun.
Our time in Lisbon is short, the ship is due to leave at 5pm and we have to be onboard by 4.15pm. If you are on a tour organised by the ship and your bus is late they wait for you if you are on your own they don't, so we tend to get back early. What was nice about sailing away at 5pm was that there was plenty to see as we left, and our impressions? Already planning to go back to Lisbon with the van but I'm pretty sure we won't be driving the hilly streets near the town centre.
I've just realised that I've made all those mentions of our cabin, but no photos of it. I'll remedy that here, these were taken later a couple of days later in the voyage but Part II is getting full so I'll slip them in here, look at the telly for a preview of Malaga (or the mirror for our en-suite loo and shower).
Link to Part II |
Germany
