Saturday 27^th April – Day at Sea.

The weather was a little calmer (but not much!) so after breakfast we sat in Scott’s Lounge again and played cards.

Tonight was supposed to be the Formal Night (our ninth, and this time real, Captain’s Farewell Party) but at midday it was announced that because of the bad weather it had been postponed until Monday as a better weather forecast had been received.

Well – what an effect a simple announcement like that had!

People immediately began complaining to the Cruise Director and Reception…Examples of complaints were: - How were they supposed to have their packed suitcases outside their cabin doors by midnight if they were in their tuxedos and posh frocks until 11-30? How could the photograph with the Captain and the cruise DVD be produced in time for an 8am arrival at Portsmouth? And, more to the point for us, eleven of the fifteen “lifers” had booked into the posh Explorers Club Restaurant for a final night meal…and the Explorers is closed on Formal Nights!!

Suffice it to say - after many discussions/negotiations with Paul (Assistant Cruise Director), Ben (Food and Beverage Manager)  and Martin, Austin and Sue & Wally – we have managed to arrange for the Explorers Club to be opened - so this means we can go to the Captain’s farewell “do” followed by Martins cocktail party AND have the posh meal…Phew!

In the evening we went to support Kelli-Ann, one of the entertainers, who was doing her first ever solo singing spot and then went in for the quiz but unfortunately it was too hard for us and we were unable to add to our collection of prizes.

Sunday 28^th April – Day at Sea.

The sea was a lot calmer this morning (hooray!) and we both went to the church service at 9-45am.

A long time ago (I think it was in Barbados) we noticed Paul and the entertainers rushing off ship and getting into taxis. When we enquired, they explained that the first thing they ever did in port was get to the nearest burger bar!

Apparently rich food every day can become tedious after a while…

Regular readers of our blog will know that Bill arranged for us both to have a burger and chips meal in our cabin one day, so we asked why the entertainments team couldn’t have burgers on board. Apparently, this was not possible as the ship does not possess a “burger making machine”! To cut a long story short we have been trying to arrange for them to have such a meal ever since and today was the day! After the main restaurant closed at 1-30pm a table for 10 was laid and Nesta and Ian joined the eight entertainers in their own very special double cheeseburger and real chips meal!!

In the afternoon we packed our cases and then went to the Captain’s Farewell Party… Latest joke from the captain: - What is the difference between an optimist and a pessimist? An optimist looks forward to the future – a pessimist is a well-informed optimist!

After that we had champagne in martin’s suite and went into the Explorers for our final evening meal. The food was good, the wine plentiful and the company great. We will miss our fellow “lifers”.

Finally we went to the quiz (in which we were terrible again) and watched the entertainments team’s “best of” show and then to bed… L

 

                             Finally - the team get their burgers!!

Monday 29^th April – Portsmouth, England.

147 days after leaving Portsmouth, we return to it.

It’s been a fantastic trip and we have met lots of nice people and seen places neither of us thought we would ever see.

Thank you for following this blog – we have really enjoyed reading your comments and hope you’ve been entertained along the way.

Cheers,

Nesta & Ian

Wednesday 24^th April – Ponta Delgada, Sao Miguel, Azores.

The weather wasn’t too good – low cloud and intermittent rain – which meant that some of the amazing views were non-existent and it is still too early in the year for there to be many flowers out… We saw a lot of the island, though, and the natural hot springs were spectacular – especially the sight of steam coming out of the drains in the main street!

After a small lunch on board, we braved the rain and went ashore. One of the ship’s junior bridge officers was on the shuttle bus with us and when he heard that we had been on board since the beginning of December asked us if Voyages of Discovery were paying us!

We found a really good supermarket where we topped up with last-minute essential “supplies”!

                              Hubble, bubble etc

                               Is that sulphur I can smell??

                           This is a really diverse island - they grow pineapples here as well

                               and tea! (The variety they grow is called char!!) Honest...

Thursday 25^th April – Day at Sea.

The first of four and a half days at sea back to Portsmouth…The weather is still too bad for the “outside areas” of decks six and eight to be opened and as the lectures were not of much interest we spent some time playing cards and talking to other passengers in Scott’s Lounge.

The “old lags” or “lifers” as the 15 of us doing Portsmouth to Portsmouth have become known were invited to a special reception and lunch in recognition that we’ve been on board for longer than the crew!

The lunch was really lovely (no pork in sight!) and the wine flowed freely.

Martin came to the drinks reception but didn’t come to the meal as “he doesn’t do lunch” so Glynis was invited to the photo-shoot and also got to stay for the meal.

In the evening, Ian stayed up after the quiz (in which we came second) to listen to “Bogdan plays Elvis” whilst Nesta managed to sleep with the aid of some medicine…

 

Friday 26^th April – Day at Sea.

Weather is still a bit “lumpy” but not as bad as feared. (Force 7 with a swell of 7.5 metres). Fortunately the wind is in the “right” direction but this ship rolls around on a flat sea, so you can imagine what it’s like in rough seas…

Two bits of good news: Firstly the clocks go forward tonight – so we’re on the same time now as home and secondly we won the quiz again. We are going to have to do something with all these Voyage of Discovery Pens… We’ve tried to give them away, but not even the other passengers want one!

 

 

 

 

Monday 22^nd April – Day at Sea.

Another rough day but not as bad as yesterday and actually became a bit calmer by evening. It was still too lumpy for Nesta though and even Ian’s planned haircut was postponed because of the weather!!

Another day where no lectures or activities were attended…

They actually showed a film in the Darwin Lounge in the evening – “Les Miserables” – and lots of us were!!

 

Tuesday 23^rd April – Horta, Faial, Azores.

Horta is the main town on the small island of Faial in the Azores and we arrived at 7am. The weather was mainly cloudy and showery with a temperature of 18 degrees but even though this meant layers of clothes and waterproofs, it was so nice to be walking on “terra firma” again!

We did a trip in the morning around the island seeing the extinct caldera of a volcano and also the additional 3 sq. kilometres of land created when another volcano erupted in 1957.

In the afternoon we walked around the port area and found a chemist that sold us 60 double-strength Sturgeon for 3 euros… Result!

In the evening we drank with Wally & Sue and took part in the Great British quiz…Unfortunately it was about “famous” buildings and works of art – so we didn’t score very highly.

Our final port of call is tomorrow L

                 Horta - a lovely little town on an island that seems to be still in the 1950's

                   The additional piece of land that was created in 1957 when a volcano erupted.

 

 

Thursday 18^th April – Day at Sea.

Today is the first of five and a half sea days… Just 1,750 miles to go to The Azores!

Quiet morning, punctuated by the noon update from the Captain. Apparently we have now left the Bermuda Triangle and he apologised that he was unable to produce any monsters from the deep nor could he provide any missing ships or planes… This captain has an interesting sense of humour!

 

Friday 19^th April – Day at Sea.

Happy 33^rd Wedding Anniversary to Kevin & Glynis and Happy 55^th birthday to Kevin. (Good idea, getting married on your birthday – means you are less likely to forget your anniversary!)

A slightly stormier day and certainly a lot colder although it was still sunny, if you could find somewhere sheltered to sit.

Glad we had the birthday celebrations in the Explorer Club to look forward to. The chefs made a lovely double anniversary/birthday cake and Kevin promised he would wear his T-Shirt in the crew bar later on.

On the way back to the cabin we noticed sick bags on the stairwells… not a good sign!

 

Saturday 20^th April – Day at Sea.

Stronger winds and bigger seas today – luckily, Nesta’s supplies of alcohol are still holding up and the doctor is still prescribing Zopiclone – so she’s ok.

We changed course in the early afternoon because there was a yacht nearby who didn’t answer the ship’s radio call. We went to check if all was ok and thankfully it was. They too are on their way to the Azores and we are glad that we’re in this boat not theirs!

After persevering, Nesta has decided that Art Classes are not for her. She feels she needs beginner’s lessons and with so many passengers signed up for the classes the lecturer is unable to help.

She has also decided to give the choir a miss, as their rehearsal room is the lookout lounge – not the best place to be in rough weather!

Funniest overheard comment of the day:-

A passenger went to reception and asked to speak to the Captain. When asked why she said that she understood there were five sea days in a row and this wasn’t good enough. Surely the Captain could find a small island in the Atlantic where we could stop and have a break!

(She was serious!! Glad we’re not THAT bad).

It was supposed to be a formal evening tonight but the ship postponed it for safety reasons…Do people hurt themselves more if they fall over in tuxedos then??

 

Sunday 21^st April – Day at Sea.

It was certainly a “lumpy” night L Fortunately Nesta had taken her medicine and slept soundly throughout!

Outside of deck 6 and the whole of sundeck 8 are now closed due to the rough weather. (Wouldn’t want a passenger being blown overboard)

According to the Captain’s midday update we are experiencing 35 to 40mph winds (force 8 or 9) and seas of 7 to 9 metres high... (Glad we’re not in that yacht!)

One issue the weather has thrown up is that there is not enough space in the public areas when passengers cannot go outside, so lots of people are spending hours in their cabins.

Tony, this cruises bridge host, has chosen today to invite us both up to the bridge room on deck 8 for supervised play!! Nesta wasn’t looking forward to it – but we both duly went and actually enjoyed the experience…

In the afternoon, we went to the church service and in the evening we will go to the quiz again. It’s about time we started winning again!

 

 

 

Editor's note:
We like reading your comments, so please carry on responding to our posts.... Thanx....

Monday 15^th April – Day at Sea.

A quiet day for us – we didn’t fancy the lectures but the weather was pleasant. We didn’t go to the quiz in the evening as Paul and Kim were singing in Scotts Bar, so “the old lags” went to support them instead.

 

Tuesday 16^th April – Day at Sea.

Well, we were planning another quiet day – until Nesta was asked by Andrea and Paul to take part in the “crossing of the line” ceremony. Apparently, like the Equator, when someone crosses the Tropic of Cancer for the first time on board ship, a ceremony is held. Not to let the fact that we had already crossed it on the way out get in the way of a party, Nesta accepted the invitation!

She duly dressed up in old pyjama trousers and a T-Shirt and was well and truly covered in jelly, cold baked-beans and pink blancmange! What’s more, Ian has the video to prove it!!

The lectures continue to underwhelm… not sure of the relevance of learning about the Inuit Peoples of the Arctic (unless, of course, we plan to take a more northerly route home than advertised!)

In the evening we entered the team trivia quiz again but found it involved filling in the “blanks” in obscure country and western songs' lyrics that no-one had heard of. We guessed well and came second – so no free wine!!

                                      Before........

                                      and after!!!

                             The Captain and the Staff Captain look on...

Wednesday 17^th April – Hamilton, Bermuda.

“Happy Birthday Jean!”

She was a solo passenger on-board from Montego Bay to Valparaiso and a great friend of Austin, Wes and Martin. She lives in Bermuda and realised that Voyager would be in Hamilton on her birthday so invited us to her birthday party!

Bermuda is a lovely island, but you need money! Starting price of houses is $800,000! If you are a foreigner, though, the only way you can buy one is to marry a Bermudian or have a spare $4,000,000 lying around!

We went to the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club for Jean’s party, with a few special people from Voyager, and met some of her friends from the island – including Mervyn looking resplendent in Bermuda Shorts and Len, originally from Bournemouth, who bought property in Bermuda twenty years ago and has lived there ever since…

They were all very friendly and it was nice to taste fresh fruit and vegetables!!!

The wine flowed so there was no need for Nesta to have her medicine when we sailed!

As we left Bermuda, Jean and her friends were to be seen waving their balloons from the Yacht Club wishing us Bon Voyage!

A really good day and one of the places we would come back to…

 

 

                              Nice little house in Bermuda...

 Now that's what I call Bermuda Shorts!! - Nice one Mervyn!

 

The Voyager Guests

 

Saturday 13^th April – Day at Sea.

Nesta continued with her art classes and medicine… The lectures are not very inspiring so far on this cruise so we had a quiet day.

The sea was calm, though, and the weather hot and sunny – so could have been worse!

The “old lags” quiz team failed to win the quiz again, must be something to do with the fact that alcohol wasn’t the prize!

 

Sunday 14^th April – Nassau, Bahamas.

We were dwarfed at the quay by three other “monster” cruise ships. The bad news was that there were lots of mainly American tourists in town – the good news was that at least Nassau was open! (Editor’s note: Please see all the other times we have arrived on a Sunday to find everything shut!)

We had a wander round and actually managed to do most of the sights on foot. We also stocked up on Nesta’s medicine in the local duty-free, so we should be ok now for the Atlantic crossing!

We had intended to catch the local ferry over to Paradise Island but having seen the massive hotels/casinos etc. decided to give it a miss.

Managed to buy a T-shirt for Kevin’s birthday which had the slogan “Talk like a sailor. Drink like a fish”. Hope he likes it… at worst he can wear it in his garden in Skye!

We went to the church service in the evening and later didn’t manage to win the quiz again!! As the prizes were a torch and a cotton bag, though, we didn’t mind too much. We have, after all, got enough of both to open a stall on Portsmouth harbour!

 Can you see our ship? If you look hard enough you can make out the top of the funnel over the building to the right of the big ones!!

                    The Supreme Courthouse, Nassau... Thought it looked grand!

Tuesday 9^th April – Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Went for a walk round to the yacht club this morning, just for some exercise… Later on in the terminal building we found a present suitable for Graeme’s 60^th!!

Back on board for lunch and then attended our last lifeboat drill.

Nesta has started on the wine – well it is doctor’s orders!!

 

Wednesday 10^th April – George Town, Cayman Islands.

We were supposed to anchor in the bay but there were two large cruise ships already there when we arrived, so in order for us to be near enough to the shore for our tenders to work easily the Captain opted to potter around (i.e. drift) all day as near to the quay as he could. Good on him! The other remarkable thing was that both lifeboats are now working…

George Town is full of shops calling themselves “duty free” – but cheap, they are not! $40 for a bottle of gin, whiskey etc. We declined their kind offer!

We walked the two to three miles around the coast to Seven Mile Beach (so called because it lasts for…) and spent a lovely three hours swimming in beautiful blue water and sitting on glorious white sand watching all of life go by. At last… a Caribbean beach that lived up to the picture postcard image.

We got a taxi back though!

                       Voyages of Discovery - Pirates of the Caribbean! - enough said

                              Seven Mile Beach

                             Is it a boat? Is it ia bus? No, it's a busboat!!

                                 Look out Nesta - there's a big ship behind you!

Thursday 11^th April – Day at Sea.

Today Nesta signed up for (and attended) Art Class, Choir and Genealogy… well, she’s got to keep busy on the many sea days there are on this cruise!

We went to our obligatory two sessions of what was our last Captain’s Welcome Party L and as a result, didn’t bother with the evening meal. We can definitely report deterioration in both the quality and variety of food since bill got off and the service is poorer since Goran left… We won’t starve though!

 

Friday 12^th April – Havana, Cuba.

We were a little disappointed with Havana. There were people begging in the streets and hassling us to buy newspapers, swap money etc. neither of which we expected. The old part of Havana is being renovated but that meant that when we got off the ship to explore - lots of men were digging up the streets, using pneumatic drills and generally making a lot of noise and dust.

We managed to get a last minute booking on the rum distillery and cigar factory tour… another Voyages of Discovery special… both are closed on a Friday afternoon - so we went to a rum museum and cigar shop instead! At least they threw in a panoramic city tour as well, which we enjoyed, and we’re pleased we managed to do the tour. The old buildings are “distressed chic” and the old American cars are everywhere. Our guide was very good – really proud of her country - but was a little worried about the future. On the good side, people are now allowed to buy cars, houses and even run their own businesses (they’ve only been allowed to do any of these things for the last two years!) She puts this down to the fact that Raoul Castro (Fidel’s youngest brother) is now the President… but the not so good side is that visitors are still not coming to Cuba in big enough numbers… our ship is the only cruise ship that has visited Havana this year!

                              The Capitol Building, Havana

                                Want a ride anyone?

                              Smoking can damage your health! - He's only 37...

                                 Even we cannot afford this... $1,700 a bottle

Saturday 6^th April – Day at Sea.

Went to Air Marshall Sir Christopher Coville’s lecture on the Red Arrows, whom he commanded on two separate occasions. It was very informative and interesting and didn’t pull any punches especially when he was talking about their two recent tragedies.

As Nesta hasn’t been herself for a number of days, she went to see the doctor (well, actually the doctor rang her in our cabin! Think that maybe Mary had had a word). His diagnosis… she should smoke less and drink more wine! We therefore obliged by going to both sessions of the Captain’s farewell party…

 

Sunday 7^th April – Montego Bay, Jamaica.

We docked at 9am and as we remembered that Montego Bay itself is not very nice we just went for a stroll round the terminal building. For the rest of the day we just stayed on board and had a thoroughly relaxing time.

In the evening we had our final game of “marathon” with Andrew and Alison (they go home tomorrow) and Nesta followed doctors’ orders and increased her wine intake!

The entertainment this evening included Bogdan (the pianist in the Classical Duo) singing and playing Elvis Presley blues songs! He was fantastic!

Nesta slept quite well until 4am when she was woken up convinced that the ship was moving… fortunately, it wasn’t!

 

Monday 8^th April – Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Happy birthday Graeme J

We had a nice day. Went off in a taxi with Austin, Glynis, Richard and Lin and our first stop was a bird sanctuary. We were allowed to feed the humming birds and Nesta actually had them sitting on her finger!

We then travelled the 70 kilometres to Negril Beach were it rained!! Highlight of the day was jerk burger and chips in a beachside restaurant (nice to get plain food once in a while!)

Nesta went for a swim in the Caribbean – in the rain – and we then went back to the ship.

The new passengers had arrived by the time we got back and the ship is totally full for what will be our ninth and last cruise back to Portsmouth… L

 

                        That really is a humming bird on Nesta's finger!

                              Austin, as smooth as ever, shows how it should be done!

 Well done Glynis - you finally got one to feed!

                                  Richard, Lin and Glynis on Negril Beach

                                   Just singing in the rain!!

Tuesday 2^nd April – Port of Spain, Trinidad.

Not a very exciting day…went ashore but found that the duty free doesn’t sell cigarettes, so Nesta not too happy!

We went for a stroll along the sea-front but decided against walking into town as the “characters” we saw from the bus yesterday were not very appealing. This is another place we would not recommend.

On a more positive note we saw evidence of stores being loaded onto the ship J

We were due to leave at 7pm but were unable to because the locals, who were refuelling the ship, spilled oil into the sea which meant the ship was covered in it. A team of cleaners with some form of chemicals, judging by their “ghost-busters” outfits, had to wash the hull of the ship. Apparently we will not be allowed to dock in any Caribbean port with oil on the outside of the ship! The Captain and Kevin were taking lots of photographs and there was a lot of activity on the quayside…. Quite entertaining!

Nesta took the opportunity to be fast asleep before we sailed at 10pm whilst Ian and the team won the quiz in her absence… Another Voyages of Discovery pen!!

 

Wednesday 3^rd April – Day at Sea.

Nesta went to sea-stretch this morning and then we had breakfast before the port lecture on Aruba…Don’t think we learned much, unfortunately.

Highlight of the day (?) After four months, Ian finally played bridge!! Even more surprising, we weren’t bottom… in fact we finished equal 5^th out of 10. Ian was really tired afterwards (aah) and we’re not sure if we’ll repeat the experience – takes too much out of you!

In the evening quiz the “Old Lags” won again but - as Nesta went to bed because she was feeling dizzy and Wes decided to leave as well - Ian, Austin, Sue and Wally had to drink the prize of two bottles of wine between them! The evening show had an unplanned comedy moment when Paul tried to sit on a non-existent chair and did a full backward roll. He and Andrea then had trouble singing because they were laughing so much… wonder if they’ll keep it in?

Incidentally the clocks go back half an hour tonight for our visit to Venezuela… Does anybody know why those 30 minutes are so important?

 

Thursday 4^th April – La Guairá, Venezuela.

Today we have officially circumnavigated South America!! We were last here on 29^th December… seems ages ago.

On Glynis’ recommendation we joined her on the full day tour to the Topotepuy Gardens and El Hatillo. This involved driving round Caracas. The traffic here is much worse than Bristol! Kamikaze motor cyclists everywhere (even going the wrong way against three lines of traffic!) and free for all’s at roundabouts, junctions etc. etc.

The Gardens were lovely with lots of humming-birds, exotic flowers and excellent views over the city.

El Hatillo was originally a small town but has now been swallowed up by Caracas, but it still retains a lot of its charm. The locals seem to be concerned about the weakness of the bolivar ahead of the Presidential elections in a fortnight and were offering four times the official exchange rate for dollars – so lunch was quite cheap!

That evening there was a quiz (our team got absolutely hammered) and an “Abba party” on the Lido deck but Nesta still isn’t feeling too good so went to bed again.

                                The Bird of Paradise flower

                                   A humming bird

                      Photographing you photographing me! Lin & Richard do the honours

Friday 5^th April – Oranjestad, Aruba.

The Captain had great fun parking as it was windy. Got a line ashore at the bow but had to shoot a line ashore at the stern. This was attached to a port authority truck which then tried to pull the ship into the quay. Unfortunately, a ship weighs quite a lot and there was a scary moment when the truck was actually being pulled towards the sea. The driver jumped out and his colleagues just managed to untie the rope narrowly averting disaster! The ship went round again and this time with the help of a tug that was pushing us towards the quayside, we managed to “park”.

Did the “best of” tour so saw most of the island. This is the most prosperous Caribbean island we’ve been to. Little sign of poverty – the guide confirmed that no-one sleeps rough and although there wasn’t full employment it was almost 100%. His only worry was that about 65% of the population had jobs in tourism so if something happened to that the islanders would be in a very precarious position.

In the afternoon we went for a walk and found a supermarket so stocked up on gin, tonic and mouthwash! No cigarettes again though L

Had another cards evening with Andrew and Alison (the last one because they are getting off in Jamaica) and because Nesta is still not feeling well she went to bed and Ian and Andrew (again) put the world to rights over a whiskey or three!

                                  Eagles beach, Aruba

                                   Nesta paddles in the Caribbean (again) !

                                           Oranjestad, Aruba
 

Sunday 31^st March – Day at Sea.

Happy Easter J

Nesta slept ok but woke at 5am and stayed up. We both went to the Easter communion service and then Nesta went back to bed and slept until 2pm (missing lunch!)

Ian went to the Discovery Club party where Adam (the new Eddie) was less than helpful when speaking to the “Grand Voyage” passengers i.e. Austin, Sue and Wally.

Went to some lectures in the afternoon but not the evening entertainment as it was Andrea singing jazz… not our thing.

Nesta did however go to the line-dancing rehearsal as she is in the show tomorrow night!!

 

Monday 1^st April – Port of Spain, Trinidad.

Arrived exactly on time even though we had left Devil’s Island a couple of hours later than planned.

We checked out the port facilities but they were closed… probably as it is Easter Monday!

We had been booked to do the Scenic Highlights and Maracas Bay Beach tour tomorrow but as we are now having an extra day in Trinidad we decided to change it to this afternoon… Bad choice!

As could have been predicted there was a lot of traffic because the locals were going to the beach as well, so we were stuck in a traffic jam. We ended up not doing our scenic drive past the cocoa and coffee plantations of the Santa Cruz valley and we didn’t even see the beach never mind get our promised swim. Real pity as this beach is one of the three best in the Caribbean. The city highlights tour was also a washout as the coach didn’t stop for us to take photos and most of the historic buildings could only be seen properly from the other side of the bus… Complaint form was therefore completed on our return!

We’re upset because we won’t ever come here again and wanted to do the trip…

In the evening, the Coddrington Family Steel Band, who were playing on the quayside as we docked, were invited aboard to do a half-hour show. They consist of Mum, Dad and the six children, one of whom is the world champion solo steel drummer, and they were brilliant!

Also this evening saw the premiere of the entertainment team’s new show which featured a line dance performed by six of the passengers including… Nesta! (Yes, honestly!)

Because of this we missed the evening meal so had our first experience of the “midnight buffet” – or at least we had cheese and biscuits at 11-30pm!

                                This was as near as we got to the beach!

                                   Brian Lara's house

                                                                    Below is the (public) botanical gardens

                              The Coddrington Family Steel Band

                                          Yee-haw!!

Wednesday 27^th March – Alter do Chao, Brazil.

Both tenders were working today! (Although as we were not sure how well tender 2 could reverse, we made sure we were in tender 1).

Alter do Chao is a lovely upmarket beach resort but because it is the rainy season most of the white sand depicted on the postcards is under water! Nesta did find a small beach, however, and went for a paddle…

Later on in the evening, we managed both sessions of the Captain’s welcome party again!!

                               This used to be a beach!!!

                                See - the ship's lifeboat can be a tender!

Thursday 28^th March – supposed to be Macapa, Brazil.

Well – this was supposed to be a full day stop, the highlight of which was a trip to the equator where we can stand with one foot in each hemisphere but: the harbour master refused us permission to dock and also refused the request to use the tenders… so… we didn’t actually go there!

Eventually the ship managed to arrange for us to dock for an extra day in Trinidad so we set sail for Devil’s Island (again) earlier than planned.

Lots of rumours around the ship as to why permission was refused – the most likely being either that there was a fatal accident on the quayside earlier in the week and no ships were allowed in or the authorities realised that the six containers of food and supplies waiting for us were from Germany and contained nothing from Brazil so they refused us permission as a penalty.

Either way our food etc. cannot now reach us, apparently, until we get to Aruba!

We have noticed a decline in the quality and variety of meals on board. We dined in the Explorer tonight and had the Oriental menu which was ok but the service was not as good as on previous occasions.

We have spoken to Vladimir and Raffi about our concerns and they have said they will escalate them.

Later that evening, there was a Latino Party on the outside deck which was really good. Weather warm with a fresh breeze and we danced the night away!

 

Friday 29^th March – Day at Sea.

Nesta slept until 2-15am which was when we left the Amazon and turned north. There was a force 6 wind with a 5 metre swell from the side of the ship. Consequently on this ship (which, as you will remember “would roll on a damp lawn”) the movement was such that she spent the rest of the night in the library playing on her DS as she couldn’t sleep.

As we are now out of the Amazon, the lecture programme recommenced but there was nothing of interest for us. We have decided to make the Bridge Room on 8 our new lounge, so we spend time in their now when there is no bridge being played!

Unfortunately the evening meal in the Veranda was not great. It was almost cold as there is a problem with the hot-plates and there was little choice… oh well, only another eight days until we restock!

 

Saturday 30^th March – Devil’s Island, French Guiana.

These are a little group of three islands (Iles du Salut) of which Devil’s Island is the smallest. Difficult to land there (I suppose that was the point!) so the one we tendered to is called Ile Royale. There were prisons on all three islands so we visited the remains on the biggest island.

There was a big swell and it was windy so there was a bit of a delay getting passengers ashore - because the captain had to manoeuvre the ship as best he could.

Eventually we got on the second tender of the day but got held up for thirty minutes whilst two catamarans (the local ferries to the mainland) unloaded and picked up passengers…You can imagine how happy Nesta was bobbing around in a small boat for ages!

The island was interesting, once we got there, and we saw what were the cells, governor’s office, church and slaughterhouse… it was here that guard used to slaughter animals and pour their blood into the sea in order to attract sharks to discourage prisoners from attempting to escape by swimming!!

Despite the really strong currents, there were holiday makers (there is a small hotel on the island) swimming within sight of the “no swimming” notices – but not us, though!

We did, however, spot one of our passengers (Lenny) sunbathing naked… oh dear…

Had a drink in the hotel and returned to the ship for a shower and lunch.

Watched the port lecture on Port of Spain and then sat on deck 7 talking to Rich and Lin until it was time to get ready for our evening meal. The “twisted team trivia” starts again tonight so the usual team of Wes, Austin, Sue, Wally, Nesta and Ian (all “lifers”) will once again take on the brains of the rest of the passengers! We’ll let you know how we get on!

 

                        Devil's Island - we like the sign... surely that was the point!


                         Below are the old cell blocks