Johnny & Sue Cruise Lecturing

Saturday February 20, Bay of Islands

2010-03-10T16:51:00.001Z

At last, a land where they speak English, well sort of! The Bay of Islands is really beautiful and the weather made it perfect, lots of sunshine and gentle breezes. I had booked a fishing trip while Sue went off with friends to the ancient town of Russell which was the original capital of NZ. You can see some photos of her there and the oldest church in the country.
The fishing trip was just wonderful, six people in the boat which shot off at 18 knots to a bay where the water was around 30 meters deep and we started fishing for snapper. But we also caught , kingfish, Kahawai and Trevelly and in total I caught 22 fish in three hours or so. I was very happy as you can see.

Sorry

2010-02-25T08:56:00.001Z

“If you are wondering why there’s nothing posted after February 14 it’s all the fault of Google. They are in the process of changing the blog access and I am unable to post any more about our trip for the time being, sorry.
I am still writing it and collecting suitable photos of our fabulous trip around New Zealand and when the blogger is working again I will post it all
Johnny”

February 14 Western Samoa

2010-02-14T22:45:00.005Z

We finally arrived in Western Samoa at around 5 pm yesterday evening so had a quick look around but everything was closing up.
Sunday was Valentine's day and the ship put on a very good champagne breakfast for everyone, see photo. then we caught the shuttle bus into town for a look around the flea market which was the only place open. This is a very religious place and everyone appeared to be at church and all closed up except for the famous Aggie Grey's hotel, so it's there I am loading this blog.
Tonight on board the captain is giving a drinks party and after there will be a formal dance, well the ladies love it!
Tomorrw we face the continuing cyclone and head off for Figi, in another week we will be at Auckland New Zealand where we disembark. More news as and when...

Wednesday February 10 Bora Bora

2010-02-14T21:47:00.001Z

Wednesday February 10 Bora Bora
Up early today as I had a duty escorting a group of passengers on a shore excursion around the island of Bora Bora. This really is a tropical paradise, upmarket home to many “A” list celebrities with lots of beach side hotels owned by many of the major hotel chains. Again it was very, very, hot and humid so while I was trucking the passengers about Sue went for a swim on another idyllic beach, you can see her enjoying a snack! The scenery on this very pretty island was somewhat spoiled as they had a cyclone/hurricane here a week or so ago so there was much damage to the foliage and some of the houses and hotels in the area.
This was only a morning stop so we sailed after lunch and now have two more days at sea. The effect of another nearby cyclone is also being felt on the ship, we have force 6 winds and a 4 meter swell so it’s somewhat rocky as well as incredibly hot, 37 degrees C, 98F on the last two days so maybe they’ll come to my next lecture on Censorship.
The weather worsened during Friday evening as the cyclone changed course and we were in it! The waves were huge, many passengers seasick and the boat rocked so much that it echoed to the sound of broken glass and crockery as plates, bottles, flower arrangements and anything which was not strapped down was hurled to the floor. Poor Sue took to her bed for the evening with some soup and a dry roll, I was not affected and went to the one restaurant that remained open for those passengers able to dine. All the evening entertainment was cancelled so we watched a DVD in bed before tossing around for most of the night. There is considerable doubt as to whether we shall get to Samoa at all and I am doing an extra lecture, the Quiz one tomorrow morning. More news on Saturday but it’s certainly not all plain sailing down here in the South Pacific.

Tuesday February 9 Tahiti

2010-02-14T21:38:00.002Z

Tuesday February 9 Tahiti
It was very hot and sticky when we moored at Tahiti over, 90 degrees in old money, so we decided to take the advice of some friends who had been there before and catch the ferry for an hours ride to another island, Moorea. This was much less commercialised and looked like a real tropical island as you can see. We took a taxi ride, 50 US$ for five minutes, (they certainly know how to charge) to a local Sofitel Hotel where they had all the facilities we would need for the day. A perfect beach, white sands, warm seas and fish that fed out of your hand, luckily we had pinched a couple of rolls to feed them with. It was just the most perfect day but we were surprised that although we were in French Polynesia and it was a French hotel we could not pay in Euros. A modest lunch for four of club sandwiches and a couple of beers was nearly $100 US ! though I enjoyed a fine fresh coconut with chilled milk inside for only a few local cents. Anyway we came back very happy to rejoin the Saga Ruby where a team of local musicians and dancers put on a very good show in the ballroom. Later that evening the intention of the crew had been to hold an open air BBQ party on the back deck but the weather intervened and there was a tropical downpour for about three hours until we sailed away for Bora Bora, our next scheduled stop, tomorrow.

Monday February 8, The Passengers

2010-02-10T01:18:00.000Z

Well it was as I feared most of them were asleep after Sunday lunch when I went on at 2pm, rotten scheduling and I’d noticed yesterday that Jock Reid, a former Concorde pilot only managed to attract 29 to his lecture and I only had 47 so it’s not the content it’s the passengers themselves. To explain, I would guess the average age is in the late 70’s early 80’s much older than we last travelled on this ship and I suspect this is a result of the credit crunch which means this is the only age group who can now afford to take a Saga world cruise.
There are very few people under 60 on board and most of the passengers look as if they come to escape the British winter for three months so their principle interests are eating as much as possible three or even four times a day, lying out on the sundecks reading and sleeping and doing the various quizzes on the ship! Sue has noted a similar lack of numbers at the Bridge classes and the Golf lessons. I’ve been going to the gymn and most of the time there are never more than two or three people there.
The only lectures which are well attended are those in the ballroom telling more about the ports we are to visit and giving details of the shore excursions available, though the Captain gave an entertaining one on his experiences at sea as did the Cruise Director who talked on the Mutiny on the Bounty.
It’s certainly different from our time on P&O where I was talking to over two hundred people at a time. Those who did come to hear me seemed to enjoy it and I ran a “Bits & Pieces” competition on Radio 1 with a bottle of champagne for the winner and was somewhat embarrassed when two passengers scored the maximum and after I tried two tie break questions they got those right too so it cost the ship two bottles of bubbly. Proves there are some Radio 1 fans on board.
Today is very wet and tropical, over 90 degrees in old money and we steam along in a heavy swell as there was a cyclone not too far away. Tomorrow Tahiti where the forecast is for more rain....

Saturday February 6

2010-02-10T01:15:00.002Z

At 8.00 we were in a heavy swell off Pitcairn Island, the sun was shining and the island looked small, green and hilly with big waves breaking on the rocky shores. We could not imagine how Fletcher Christian had ever found anywhere to go ashore let alone set up a home for him and his band of mutineers. Once the ship was anchored we saw a longboat filled with Islanders on their way to board us, it being too difficult to get our passengers ashore. I was expecting a traditional canoe but they were in an aluminium boat, about 40 people in all, most of the island’s population out to earn a little income from the tourists. As there are only a few ships calling per year they don’t have that many chances to sell their home made products. They seem to live a very basic life, only 2 supply ships a year so they have to be pretty self-sufficient, and electricity for only 10 hours a day.
They were an amiable bunch of European and native people who were obviously delighted to be on board and set up their stalls in the ship’s ballroom where we bought an assortment of stamps, cards, carvings, local honey and so on. Anything with a Pitcairn Island stamp has added value as they have so few mailing opportunities. Sue and I posted a few cards so look out for those, though we might be home before they are delivered.
The whole population numbers only just over 50 and they are suffering from a lack of young families, there being only seven children of school age. They need young families to grow. Most of the males of the community have served time in the Island prison following the recent trial where they were found guilty of child abuse, a practice which had been pretty widespread for many years until it was discovered by a visiting policewoman and which resulted in a lot of bad publicity for the community. Now with sentences having been served they are trying to put this behind them and with the aid of EEC money are trying to establish a viable community with wind power and telephone via a satellite system.
By lunchtime they took to their boat and went back to their island existence and we sailed away for Papeete on Tahiti where we are due on Tuesday. Tomorrow, Sunday, at 2 pm I am to give my third lecture, this one on Radio 1. The captain has said we might be on the edge of a cyclone tomorrow so I’m hoping for rough weather and rain that way I’ll be guaranteed a large audience otherwise they’ll all be having a siesta after Sunday lunch.

Blog 3

2010-02-10T01:10:00.002Z

Luck was with us and we woke to find ourselves anchored off Easter Island and as we had no tour escorting duties we were free to explore the island. We went ashore on the ship’s tender and met another couple in a similar position so we negotiated a joint deal for a whole day tour by taxi for $ US 125 which was pretty cheap as the ship’s official tour was over £100 for 2 people. Our taxi driver, Patricia, was a lovely lady and between her broken English and Sue’s rather better Spanish we had a good understanding of what we were taken to see.
The island is pretty poor and only the main roads were paved, the rest were dirt tracks and very bumpy. We didn’t get off to a good start either as we drove to the top of an extinct volcano where it was blowing a gale and there was driving rain too so we felt as if we were back in Yorkshire. However as we drove on the weather became calmer, the sun came out as we drove past many wild horses grazing in the fields and peoples gardens!
It was a delightful trip and of course we saw hundreds of the famous “Moai” statues carved by the original inhabitants as a tribute to their former chiefs. The locals believe that the soul lives on through these carved figures and somehow they dragged these huge carvings into prominent positions all over the island. It was an amazing feat by these primitive people who eventually died out through a lack of recourses to sustain their ever expanding population. Might there be a message here for the world at large? The legacy is there for us to wonder at all these years later. You will get an idea of them all from the photographs.
Sue ingratiated herself with the locals as you can see both on the island and on stage back on the Saga Ruby where a local group came to entertain us with their music and dance.
A super day which we enjoyed very much, now it’s full speed for Pitcairn Island, home to the mutineers of the Bounty back in 1789. The names Christian, as in Fletcher, Adams and Smith are still the main surnames on the island today.

Blog 2: Leaving Lima

2010-02-10T00:59:00.002Z

Our departure from Lima was somewhat confused as the transport booked to take us to the Saga Ruby didn’t arrive at the scheduled time, then when we arrived at the ship they said we weren’t expected until 6pm! Anyway we were soon happily settled in a very comfortable cabin with window onto the outside world and the staff and food were of the usual high standard.
We weren’t up to making the most of our first day on Friday as Sue had not been feeling too good and I had a tummy upset. These cruise ships are so paranoid about the Norovirus spreading around the passengers that I was confined to my cabin for 24 hours until the tummy had settled down. This meant missing the Captain’s Welcome Cocktail party and the formal dinner as all I was allowed was a couple of dry biscuits! That will be good for the weight loss. Sue too suffered as the ship’s doctor gave her a large injection in the bottom which eased her upper back ache problem if it did cause some discomfort elsewhere!
Saturday I was to present my first lecture in the ship’s cinema. There is stiff competition for audiences as there are several other lecturers including a Concorde pilot, a transport expert, a retired diplomat, a maritime historian and an ex ITN Correspondent. Thank goodness I had produced my own promotional leaflets for distribution to the passengers and I had a reasonable turnout of “oldies” who enjoyed the wartime nostalgia and obligingly joined in with Flannigan and Allen and Vera Lynn.
Three more days at sea before we get to Easter Island so plenty of time to relax though I have the next lecture on Monday, the weather is good plenty of sunshine and calm seas so we are able to enjoy the trip without too much pressure. The ship put on a fantastic “Jazz Lunch” in the ballroom on Monday with good live jazz music and a spread of wonderful food which makes any attempt at keeping the weight off very difficult as you can see from a couple of photos.
Second lecture on Monday, after the lunch, about the “Good Old Days” of the BBC went even better than the first with slightly increased numbers so the word must be spreading. I’m still having trouble with the technician who doesn’t seem to understand the concept of making my voice sound as loud as the audio illustrations which is somewhat frustrating, I’ll just have to shout or use a different mic next time. But this is easier than P&O as I don’t have another one until next Sunday. Next stop, if the sea isn’t too rough, is Easter Island where we hope to see all those “Moai” statues carved by the locals as a tribute to their chieftain ancestors. The access is via ship’s tender boat so we are dependent on the weather and as I write it’s quite choppy so we keep our fingers crossed.

Lima

2010-01-28T16:21:00.005Z

Thursday 28 January 2010
After a twelve hour flight from a snowy Schippol Airport we arrived in a hot and humid Lima. What’s it like? Think of La Linea in Spain then double the poverty, scruffiness and traffic and you will get the idea! Our journey into the Miraflores Hotel where we were staying took nearly an hour because of the congestion and having lost five hours through the time change we were pretty glad to fall into bed.
Yesterday, Wednesday we woke at 5am local time and after breakfast thought we should use our free day to explore old Lima. We hailed a battered local taxi for the half hour ride but were unprepared for the standard of driving. I realise that South America has bred Airton Senna and Rubens Barachello but we had not realised that all the taxi drivers went to the same racing school. It was very hairy and the seat belts in the rear were not easily accessible so we were somewhat relieved to get out unharmed.
It was pleasant to look around and compared to Mirafores, which is bustling but nothing much to look at, Lima old town has several large squares similar to those found in Cadiz or Pamplona. It was odd though to see many full size plastic cows grazing on the lawns, see picture. What did surprise us was the very heavy police presence everywhere. Not just in numbers but the fact that many of them were equipped with riot shields and large water cannons were parked near them, all this at 9.30 on a normal Wednesday morning. We had taken the precaution of removing jewellery and watches but with that much security we felt pretty safe.
After a couple of hours sightseeing we thought we would take a coffee so found what we thought was a pretty upmarket coffee shop overlooking a square. Sue ordered a coffee with milk on the side but was somewhat offput when she saw that the milk jug had a huge and mouldy chip out of it under the lip and had clearly not been used for about 20 years! The coffee cup itself had most of the glaze missing around the rim! I said the heat of the ingredients would have probably have killed any bugs, let’s hope so.
Yet we have to say the people are very friendly, always smiling and keen to help if you ask the way and the food we had over two days was fabulous, especially Ceviche a sort of sushi like dish flavoured with Lime and chilli. We finished the morning with a visit to the Museum of the Inquisition which was fascinating, neither of us realised how long this had gone on and what terrible punishments the Catholic church had inflicted on anyone who threatened the supremacy of the order. The museum had many waxwork bodies showing all the various punishments and cells where the unbelievers were shown the error of their ways or executed! Made us quite hungry so we went to a local Peruvian restaurant where for around 20$ US we had an excellent lunch.
One observation, from the number of churches, convents and cathedrals we visited, and the number of enormous bank buildings around town it’s clear that all the money is in the hands of the catholic church and the finance houses which sits at odds with the evident poverty suffered by most of the people attending those institutions!
In the evening we had a fabulous time as we booked to go to “Circuito Magico del Agua” which on the face of ii was a local park, the Parque de la Reserva, with 13 fountains. What made it special was that each one was different and illuminated with coloured lights and operated in sync with music. But the real show was about half an hour long, to specially composed and recorded music and operated off a very clever computer programme. They used lasers and moving projection too so that the observer was constantly enchanted as scene after scene took place. It was like the best ever firework show, Sue and I were blown away and left agreeing it was one of the best shows we had ever seen. Disneyworld would go mad to have such a show and I only wish we could publish movie film on this site to show you. You’ll have to make do with a still which does not do it justice.
After the show we went to a combined Peruvian cabaret and dinner and this too was excellent, music off Peruvian flutes of course but lots of spectacular dancing in local costumes, a really special evening for both of us, as you can see from the pictures.
This morning, it’s still dull and humid but we are to join the Saga Ruby at midday so there’s only time to finish the blog, pack and be on our way.
More news when we arrive on land in a few days time...

We are off again!

2010-01-24T14:21:00.004Z

Hello to all our readers. Just to let you know we are off on another cruise lecture and exploration trip on Tuesday January 26th.

First we fly to Lima in Peru for a couple of days then join the Saga Ruby on her world cruise. We will be on this ship for about three weeks sailing across the southern Pacific finishing up in Auckland on February 21st. Once in New Zealand we are driving around both North and South Islands exploring the scenery and sampling the local food and wine, staying in B&B's.

So watch this space for pictures and news of our trip. Time permitting we will probably do our first post in Lima.

FW: Ooop North

2009-08-26T15:15:00.000Z

The other trip which we wanted to do was “ooop north” to Hartlepool where we planned to visit Hilda, a lady of 85 who was celebrating her birthday.

We decided to make a trip of it and set off a day early to explore the North York Moors. We saw the delightful town of Helmsley, the Abbey at Riveaulx and of course Goatland where Heatbeat is filmed. We had a very nice B&B just outside Whitby, where we enjoyed excellent fish and chips then on the next day explored Rusnswick and Staithes, all tiny fishing villages with as much charm as Cornwall and much less commercialised.

The weather was super, hood down on Sue’s convertible all the way and we finally went to Hartlepool to see Hilda for her birthday visit. Stopped off on the way home at Harrogate for yet more fish at Loch Fyne, at this rate we will be growing fins!

After this I was all set up for my operation on Saturday August 22 to replace my old knee. I am pleased to say that went well and now I have to stick to the exercises to get back to normal in a couple of months.

FW: Before the operation

2009-08-26T10:54:00.002Z

Before I am to be immobilised by the new knee operation there were one or two things which needed to be done.

One was a visit to my daughter, son in law and the grandchildren in Kent. So I caught the train down and we had a lovely day on Camber Sands, a place I had not been to since my own children we in their early years. It hasn’t changed much, apart from a large wind farm which as doing good business due to the very strong on shore breeze and the weather was super so we played silly games, paddles and enjoyed a picnic of sandwiches and sand. The day was rounded off with a trip to the pub and a fish and chip supper, so a good time was had by all.

Scarecrows in the Dales

2009-08-13T15:47:00.002Z

My friend Craig has set up the blog site for easy access, so here’s a little test.

This week at the village of Kettlewell they hold an annual Scarecrow Festival.

All the village community is involved and at nearly every house there are various wonderful scarecrows.

Of course it attracts thousands of visitors and when we arrived the vicar was on car park duty, seeing in hundreds of cars with happy families on the scarecrow trail. All funds going to support the local school.

I’ve posted a few of our favourites but the winner in our opinion was the Simpsons.

What do you think?

Johnny

Another month, another cruise....

2009-08-06T17:28:00.001Z

July 16 2009 and we are off again on another P&O Cruise to entertain the passengers on “Artemis” as it sails around The Baltic ocean.

As we have crew status the company requires us to “sign on” before 12.00 so this entails setting off a day earlier and stopping off in a hotel on the way down. We discover one in the attractive town of Brackley, well it looked pretty when we drove in after dark but less so in the colder light of day at 8.30 next morning.

At Southampton port we saw our ship, smaller than the other P&O ones we have been on, and this one is child free so no small passengers to trip over underfoot. We were pleased to find the Cruise Director was Nigel Travers who we had worked with on Oriana. Less pleased though to find ourselves allocated a rather scruffy inside cabin with no kettle and no safe. Sue used all her persuasive powers to have us a passenger cabin and thankfully we were soon settled in a more comfortable room on the fifth floor. As a matter of principle we believe that there is no reason why a guest lecturer should have to live in conditions worse than he/she normally has at home, other cruise lines don’t try to allocate inferior cabins so why do P&O?

Once all the passengers we on board we sailed at 1700, and after a day at sea when I did the lecture on the BBC in World War 2 to an audience of around 400 we arrived at our first stop, Kristiansand in Norway.

Summer was no better here than in the UK which is having one of the wettest July’s for years. Sue and I had offered to act as escorts on some of the shore excursions and I was to take a party on a coach and steam train into the surrounding hills. I’m sure it is very pretty and would have looked beautiful if we could have seen it but with so much rain on the outside of the train windows we could only glimpse mist, rivers and a few pine trees. Then, when I was counting my passengers back onto the bus, after the train journey had finished I discovered two were missing. I searched everywhere and eventually located the two elderly Jamaican ladies seated back in the train which was going nowhere! Eventually we all returned to Artemis where I found an even wetter Sue who had trudged round an open air museum of old Norwegian houses in the rain. We were glad to get back on board and sail for Copenhagen.

Here we it was also raining. I had arranged to meet an old friend Knud Orsted and his wife Birgitte and they live near Elsinor, Hamlet’s castle. We took the train and explored that, had coffee at their charming house then Knud, who worked for Danish Radio all his life, took us on an extended tour of the new Danish TV & Radio HQ which has just been finished, miles from anywhere, on a green field site.
If you imagine something like a B&O piece of equipment then you’ll get an idea of what it was like, It's on a tube line but has no facilities for staff, car parks, shops etc and the news room for TV and radio is in a huge glass box, roasting in summer and freezing in winter according to the news editor who was not impressed with it. What’s more they've had to sack 410 members of staff to pay for the overspend on it. You can get an idea from the pictures, Sue discovered the smallest fire engine in the world and I had to try out the studio, of course!

Anyway by the time we left the sun came out and we went to Tivoli Gardens for a typical Danish lunch of herring and smoked eel, it was delicious and very pleasant to feel some sun on our backs at last as we strolled around.

2009-08-06T10:03:00.009Z

2009-08-06T10:03:00.001Z

Two more days at sea and our next stop was sunny Stockholm where we met up with more old friends Lillemar and Gurt Eberhardt who took us on a boat tour of the city then lunch at their apartment. Being of a similar age to us they have recently downsized and sold their country house and moved into a waterside apartment about 500 yards from the mooring for the Artemis so we were able to have lunch looking at our ship. It was a fabulous situation, looking at sea and watching the sailing boats. I could live in a place like that!

2009-08-06T09:59:00.004Z

2009-08-06T09:59:00.001Z

From Stockholm we sailed overnight to the home of Sibelius, Helsinki. Visited its fabulous church carved out of granite and the Sibelius monument, browsed the colourful markets with super strawberries and cherries as well as massed of fresh peas which the locals snack on, rather as we do peanuts.

2009-08-06T09:54:00.005Z

We were to have stopped next at Visby on Gotland another part of Sweden but due to rough weather the ships tender boats could not do the run ashore so this port was missed. Sad really as neither Sue nor I had been there before and I had to do an extra lecture to fill in the extra sea day.

So two more days we were at sea to get back to Russia and St Petersburg, all the regular sites, the Hermitage, the Ballet for Sue, Peter Hof palace and so on. Sue also saw a folk concert with a man who seemed to have the “biggest balalaika in the world”, makes a change from an aspidistra!

Day one was good but on day two, which was a Saturday I set off escorting a party and we arrived at 0910. We were hustled off the coach by our guide on our way to the palace in the pouring rain, only to find we could not get in until our allocated time of 0945. There was no shelter and no flexibility, “You have to wait!” We pointed out there was no shelter and it was raining cats and dogs but to no avail. This was the system and I had a lot of very angry wet passengers to mollify. Eventually we were allowed in, did the tour, “No Photos!” and emerged to look at the wonderful fountains. These are all gravity fed and very spectacular as you can see.

2009-08-06T09:54:00.004Z

2009-08-06T09:51:00.002Z

Another month, another cruise...

2009-08-06T09:42:00.003Z

Estonia and Tallinn was our next port and I’ve already described this in an earlier blog so won’t waste any more words on it except to say it was as charming as ever.

From Tallinn we should have gone to Gothenburg in Sweden, but again we had to miss out as the ship developed a fault in one of the turbos so in order to get back to Southampton in time we had to steam directly there.
I was to have met another business friend and was going to lend him my large collection of Beatle material which I had carefully packed up but of course that was not possible and I have to bring it all back home.

More extra work for me in the form of another lecture and all too soon we were back where we started, saying goodbye to the many new friends we had met on the trip. Due to the vast amounts of excellent food and too many cream teas on the ship we will both have to diet now to get back to our normal weights.

As we were in the area we stayed in Dorset for a couple of days to meet other friends from previous cruises and drove home on Saturday August 1st. Again it rained nearly all the way but by now we were used to it, after all it’s Summer time isn’t it.

No more travel blogs for a while as I have decided to have my other knee replaced in August so that will put a stop to cruising until the new year.

Madiera March 30th

2009-04-04T11:52:00.006Z

Due to a very sick passenger the ship put on full speed and we arrived early in Madiera which gave us a whole day to explore. Portuguese influence and the currency was the Euro but surprise surprise it was cheaper than Spain. 2.60€ for two coffes and Sue and I wandered the streets of Funchal the capital, finding it very pleasant. Pretty streets and the blossom of the jackaranda just coming out.

In the afternoon we escorted tours, Sue going on a hair raising trip by sledge from the top of the mountain while I did a more sedate tour of the gardens up there. I'm adding a few photos for those interested. Sorry about the sideways one but I can't find out how to rotate it!

After that it was back to Southampton with more lectures on the way. As I do more the presentation gets better and I was very gratified to receive so many warm appreciateive comments from passengers on our last day. Luckily the winds were kind, and we had a very smooth crossing of the Bay of Biscay arriving back on Friday morning at 8 am.

That's it for this blog. We hope you've found it interesting. Who knows where we will go next or when? Watch this space.

St Maarten March 23 2009

2009-03-25T02:40:00.004Z

St Maarten March 23 2009
A mixed verdict on this place as John liked it and Sue didn’t. This difference of opinion may have been due to the quality of the guides we both had on the tour, John’s was a very entertaining, highly educated chap who knew his stuff and put it over in a very amusing way, while Sue’s was rather surly and not very entertaining. Anyway the Island is half Dutch and half French which makes for an interesting mixture of cultures and influences.
Most people seem fluent in all three languages, English being the third one and it was obviously a lot more affluent than previous islands we have visited, very much geared for tourism with several lovely beaches with fine coral sand and very blue seas but there was a more sophisticated way of life and Sue compared it to Florida. It certainly has an airport and runway big enough to accommodate large passenger jets and there are many flights from the US and Canada. Cost of living was much higher too, two espressos cost John $6 US, “How Much?” and while it was a duty free port the prices we pretty dear so we were not unhappy to sail away, along with three other large cruise liners who were also in the port.
On the subject of the sail away the top deck of the Oceana when they hold the evening sail away parties does resemble a scene out of the TV show “Benidorm”. The cost of cruising has come down a lot and this cruise in particular has attracted a large number of families who would normally be at home on the Costa Brava. On the last evening in the Caribbean when the ship set sail for the UK there were 1998 drunken voices singing in unison (not Sue and I), Land of Hope of & Glory, Rule Britannia and God Save the Queen. A frightening spectacle! If you wanted proof that the English as a race are overweight there is ample proof on this ship. I’ll publish some pictures to show what I mean when I am able. Enough said, it takes all sorts.
Tuesday March 24th Antigua
Another day and another island but this one is less hilly and even drier. The main industry used to be sugar cane but the local people didn’t like the hard manual work involved and found they could make more money from tourism. Today there were only two liners in but the locals were very happy to see us and show us around the delights of the island which are cricket, (the Viv Richards Stadium is magnificent), the wonderful beaches and the historical Nelson’s Dockyard which dates back to 1670 when the Royal Navy recognised the value of the place as a base. Columbus has discovered it in 1493 but the Spanish lost out and the Royal Navy built the dockyard in 1725. Much of it has been preserved and restored for tourists, I noticed with a significant contribution from the EEC, why I wondered?
This is our last port in the Caribbean and tomorrow we wet off across the Atlantic for Madiera and then Southampton. For me, John, it’s the start of lectures and tonight I’m doing an appearance on the ship’s radio station to promote them.
More news when we get to Madiera. As I said earlier we cannot publish pictures yet due to the slow speed of the ships internet connection. I’ll put the photo’s in when I get a better connection which may not be until I get home but do look out for them as there are some good scenes.

Our First few days.

2009-03-23T14:32:00.003Z

Here we are again, at very short notice on board another P&O Ship about to give more lectures, this time in the Caribbean on out way back to Southampton.
We had only a weeks notice to pack and go from Manchester to Barbados on Friday, March 20th. So it was a 4 am start and eventually to bed at what was around 2.30 am UK time next day” We saw precious little of Barbados as we landed in mid afternoon, jumped on a bus and were whisked to the waiting Oceana where our luggage duly followed. Our impressions were therefore limited to a view from the bus, fairly flat landscape and a windswept countryside, mostly grey concrete coloured houses and lots of sugar cane fields.
Next morning we woke early due to the four hour times difference with the UK and found ourselves looking at the very hilly and pretty island of St Lucia. Sue and I volunteered for escort duties and were sent off on a lovely tour travelling by catermaran and coach looking after some very happy passengers. Lots of fabulous reggae music on the cat, sailed into Marigot Beach seen in the picture, dancing, a swim in the warm seas and everyone helped along by a generous serving of Rum Punch. There was a pleasant lunch of local food and a tour of the local volcano and sulphur pools, very smelly but we felt no pain from our trip at all. We were little tired by bed time. Couldn’t find out whether Wales had triumphed over the Irish in the rugby final as CNN did not report it!
Sunday, another Island and another tour for both of us around Dominica, less hilly and less affluent than St Lucia it was never the less a very good place to look around helped by some excellent local guides who showed us the volcanic beaches, botanical gardens and the emerald falls where Sue had a dip in the waters. It’s said that a dip in those will take ten years off your life, so she’s now back to 30!
During the night Ocean ahd continued its journey northwards through the Windward Islands and today, Monday we woke to find ourselves in Saint Maarten, half Dutch and half French so we expect the natives to wear clogs and eat baguettes with a tulip tucked behind their ears! Who knows we will explore as we escort our various tours and report more later... Sadnly it's not possible to post picrues as the ship's system is too slow. I'll try to load some later at aninternet cafe.

Final Post of this trip, March 1st Skipton

2009-03-01T17:51:00.010Z

So that's it we have arrived back home after nearly five weeks we are back in sunny Skipton.

We spent our last two days in Sydney, having driven back from Avalon on Thursday morning over the famous Harbour Bridge, what a nightmare trying to navigate to the car hire return address in the middle of town. That evening we had a very special time, started with dinner at Doyles on Circular Quay, you can see Sue in front of the restaurant

and then it was off to the Opera House concert hall where Sue had managed to book tickets in the Sydney Opera House for Ashkenazy’s opening concert as new resident conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, it was Mid Summer Nights Dream but a very avant guard production with a cast of actors performing Shakespeare’s play of the same name. It was an interesting experience to say the least we had a lovely time, when we came out in an open air bar by the Quay there was live jazz from a Stephan Grapelly type group so we had to stay for an hour and enjoy that too.

Friday was reunion day, for lunch we met up with Katheryn and Andy, two friends we met on the Oriana so we went back to the Fish market for oysters and sushi and in the evening it was a reunion with with the honeymooners, Tony and Anne Hibberdine who's wedding we had attended the day before we flew out. They had just arrived on a different cruise from South America so as our wedding present we took them for dinner at the top of the Sydney Tower, a revolving restaurant similar to the London Post Office Tower. While the food was only average the views were splendid as you can see.

Saturday after a last breakafast at La Renaissance, our favourite French Cafe anywhere in the world, we set off on the long journey home. Virgin to Honk Kong and from there to Heathrow. It would have been more enjoyable if we could have travelled business class but P&O only offered "lepper" class and we would have liked two seats at the side of the aircraft but the luck of the draw saw us in a row of four and next to the toilet for 24 hours so that took the edge of our sleeping plans. Nevermind it's been a wonderful trip and we hope all our friends and relatives who have followe dour adventures have enjoyed reading it nearly as much as we did.

Another blog when we set sail again

Blog 9 Palm Beach & Avalon, February 26

2009-02-25T22:49:00.004Z

As you can see in the pictures Pelican Rest lives up to its reputation, great situation and very relaxing. Sue had some fun “body boarding” with the aid of a board loaned by Adrian Cripps our host and John went off for a boys lunch with Malcolm Hill and the “singing rage”, Larry Page. They had a great time reminiscing about the old days and people they knew. In the evening Adrian and his wife Katie invited us for a very enjoyable supper. Their house is above our apartment with a fabulous terrace and an even more spectacular view. We’ll leave the pictures to tell the story.

Blog 8 from the mountains to the sea

2009-02-24T10:10:00.005Z

In the words of the song, “The Sun will always shine tomorrow!” and so it eventually did. We woke on Sunday morning very depressed to find it still damp and very foggy, we were still in the clouds. But we took the advice of Jack the owner of the B&B and drove west, as soon as we reached a lower altitude the fog cleared and we were able to see some of the magnificent scenery of the Blue Mountains area. We drove to the Jenolan Caves, over 400 million years old

and after taking one of the tours when we came out the sun was shining and all the clouds had gone.

We spent a very happy afternoon touring round and seeing the sights including the famous Three Sisters, a few photos will show how good it is.

Monday came and the weather was beautiful as we navigated our way east along the spectacular Bell’s Line of Road, down to the coast north of Sydney, our destination Avalon and a B&B Called “Pelican’s Rest” which really does live up to its name. Delightful views over the bay, a sun deck with pool and Jacuzzi and it was run by an Englishman, Adrian who made us very welcome. So we are now relaxing and enjoying the unspoiled surfing beaches and the excellent local produce.
Tomorrow, John is due to meet up with Malcolm Hill, formerly with EMI and another old colleague from the past, the singing rage, Larry Page who also lives locally. More news of that lunchtime session in our next blog.

Blog 7 Blue Mountains, February 21st

2009-02-21T10:17:00.003Z

We said our fond farewells to David Elizabeth and Alf on Friday morning. Heres a shot of Alf aged 88, looking good.

We had a great time with them on the beautiful beaches south of Melbourne and were surprised to find beach huts.

Our friend Alan Coleman picked us up from Dandenong and we had a day exploring the city finishing up in an authentic French restaurant for dinner. As you can see from the pictures a good time was had by all and Alan booked us into the RAC Club in Melbourne for the night where Sue took advantage of the large swimming pool and spa.

It was very luxurious but next morning we flew back to Sydney to collect a hire car for the next part of our adventure to the Blue Mountains.
It was quite what we had expected, as we drove out of Sydney it started to rain and as we drove higher the rain was coupled with dense fog so we could see absolutely nothing of the supposedly wonderful views. We couldn’t even find a cafe open for a cup of tea until we were nearly at our destination, Blackheath. When we did find one it had run out of bread for sandwiches, so we settled for a meat pie and a scone, with “plastic” jam! Not quite what we were expecting. We drove on and as we approached Blackheath out of the murk Sue spotted the “St Mounts Boutique B&B”, our destination. Not sure ‘boutique’ quite describes it, definitely old and rather shabby, probably dating back to 1900 or thereabouts and looked as if it hadn’t been decorated since then! Some contrast to the RAC Club, but it did turn out to have the only decent restaurant in the area. Dinner finished by 8.30 so we went to bed early in the hope that tomorrow might be a better day. We shall see, log on for the next episode as John & Sue explore more of Oz.

Sorry for the lack of pictures today, I'm having roublewith the local server, will try to add them tomorow.

Blog 6 posted Melbourne February 19

2009-02-19T11:48:00.004Z

Short due to time pressure.
We flew down here on Tuesday morning in the company of 50 or so NSW Fire fighters who were being drafted in to help fight the ongoing forest fires. Virgin Blue held a collection on board the flight, and $750 was collected on our flight alone which Virgin matched so $1500 went to the Red Cross to help the victims. They have been doing this on all flights so a lot of money was raised and we found it very moving, See Photo of some of the firemen.We were met by David and Elizabeth and after a sight seing tour of the area, including a drive round the Australian F1 Grand Prix track we had a very good supper, see photo.The next two days were wonderful as we were driven to lovely beaches where we relaxed and swam in the warm sea. Our thanks to David and Elizabeth for making us so welcome and for driving us around the wonderful, if dry, countryside. Uncle Alf, at 88 was in good form as you can see in the photos. John wants to move here for ever.Tomorrow Friday we are off with another friend Alan Coleman to explore the city and then it’s back northwards to Sydney.

Blog 5 New Zealand, Posted Sydney February 16

2009-02-16T08:42:00.007Z

Blog 5 New Zealand, Posted Sydney March 16
We had a lot of activity in New Zealand as we had stops on two consecutive days. Day 1 at Tauranga, a charming small seaside resort and Day 2 at Auckland, largest city in NZ with the highest sky tower in the southern hemisphere.
In Tauranga after we had explored the town we headed for a local winery, Mills Reef where we tasted many fine wines and decided to stay for lunch. Sue was most disappointed as they had sold out of New Zealand mussels but cheered up no end when they offered as a compensation two dozen oysters, tempura and natural at their super restaurant. The people here are very nice and we were reminded of the UK 40 years ago, thank god there wasn’t any Tony Blackburn on the radio!
We enjoyed Auckland too as although it is a large city it’s very compact and we wandered around, Albert Park was very pretty and from there we went to the Sky Tower where idiots jump off the top in a sort of mad bungy jump as you can see in the pictures and they pay to do it!! John had quite a hard job to even persuade Sue to go up it bu tin the end she loved teh views from the top and was glad we had done it. In the afternoon we caught a ferry from the harbour across to Devonport, somewhat different from its namesake in England, but very charming and old world. We finally had our lunch of mussels but it was at a pub where they took ages to serve us and they weren’t as good as they should have been, too much coconut cream and rather underdone.
All to soon our time on the Oriana is coming to an end. It seems no time since we joined, yet on Saturday John gave his 11th and final lecture which was well attended and much appreciated by the audience. Saturday is Valentine day and that night is a very formal evening with full evening dress and a concert by the ships company of the music of Motown. The standard of performance has been excellent and a few days ago they did a tribute to the music of Queen which really went down well.
On this trip John has managed to read the biographies of two very different Johns. First John Birt, a very readable account of his time at the BBC in which he justifies everything he did and at no time admits to any self doubt and the other of DJ Johnnie Walker. The latter was much more enjoyable and he did have the honesty to admit he treated me very badly by signing to Radio Radio for the money only 18 months after I had given him a chance to return to the BBC airwaves following his abortive and disastrous time in the US.
We got up early on Monday morning to watch the dawn break as we sailed into Sydney Harbour at 6 in the morning as it was well worth doing as it is one of the most impressive sights as the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge come into view. Even though it poured with rain as we disembarked it didn’t dampen our spirits, it’s wonderful to be back here and later the sun shone as we explored Darling Harbour and the fabulous fish market where Sue managed a dozen oysters.
More news when we move off to Melbourne where they have had the highest temperatures for a hundred years and many forest fires, we hope it will have cooled by Tuesday when we arrive.

Blog copy 4, Fiji, posted in Tauranga New Zealand

2009-02-11T22:26:00.005Z

Blog copy 4, Fiji
Another day another country. A couple of days ago, February 9th we arrived in Fiji and even at 8 in the morning it was very hot and humid, though we were greeted by the local police band who entertained enthusiastically and turned up again to send us off at teatime.
We went ashore with a couple of friends, Sally and Tom, to explore this country which none of us had ever visited before. We were somewhat surprised to find everything intact as we knew from BBC News that they had experienced a near hurricane a few days earlier, but it turned out not to have struck Lautoka where we were moored. We took the free shuttle bus into the nearby town but to be honest it wasn’t much of a place, rather scruffy. The locals were friendly enough all calling out greetings of welcome as our bus passed but most of the businesses were run by Asians and there were quite a few mosques in evidence. Most of the locals are employed working in the sugarcane fields, that’s the principle source of money here. We visited the internet cafe to post our blog and caught the bus back to the ship for a cooling beer, then it was into a local taxi to find the nearest beach.
Saweri Beach was the closest, a palm fringed paradise which was also a bit scruffy but it looks pretty and the sea was like a warm bath. No lifeguard on duty and John was worried about sharks. Sue and Sally were quickly offered as bait and as they were not eaten or attacked by any marauding fish John and Tom joined them for a pleasant dip. Soon after this, a local man turned up to ask if we’d like a fresh coconut. Once we gave him the nod he was up the tree like a monkey and tossed a couple down to us. In a moment he produced a giant machete and hacked off the tops so we could enjoy the wonderful milk, then he deftly chopped off the outer husk and showed us how to get at the coconut flesh. It was a great treat and that was our lunch. John managed to paint a little watercolour of the beach and our taxi driver drove us back, rather sunburned to the ship to set sail for New Zealand.
Next day the passengers were offered a double dose of John as he had a lecture to do then he and the other lecturer, Guy Caplin had to appear in the ship’s theatre in a chat show with the cruise director, Nigel Travis. No relation to Dave Lee Travis as far as we could see. Any way you can see them on stage in the picture. More news to follow.

Blog copy 4, Fiji, posted in Tauranga New Zealand

2009-02-11T22:17:00.004Z

Third blog copy from Oriana

2009-02-08T22:28:00.004Z

Third blog copy from Oriana Saturday February 7^th

A day on land at last as we arrived on Friday at Pago Pago, the capital town of American Samoa and very hot it was too even at 8 am when we moored in the very pretty natural harbour. We decided to do our own thing and explore, so we walked into the little town and the first thing we saw was the carved totem pole/statue, very elaborate as you can see in the picture.

The people here are very friendly and happy despite not having any great income, no need for air conditioning, most houses having no windows to let the cooling breeze flow through. They are also the most religious crowd we have come across, many churches of all kinds of denominations and posters everywhere urging the population to live clean lives, give up drugs, not have sex before marriage, not to beat wives etc.

Sue was more adventurous and decided we should jump on a local bus, despite the fact we had no map of the island no idea where it was going! It had open windows, reggae music playing and the driver wore a sarong. Off we set having agreed a $2 fare with the driver and it proved to be the best thing we could have done. In all we must have gone around 20 miles on a tour of the island. The driver stopped at places he thought we might be interested in and even waited outside a small shop while we bought a cold drink. The other passengers were quite unperturbed by this and all waited patiently while we took photos. In conclusion we enjoyed it so much we stayed on the bus for the return journey, giving the driver $10 for the whole 3 hour trip which gave us a very good oversight of Samoa. We even noticed that most of the locals bury their nearest and dearest in the front garden, next door to the house so they are not forgotten, quite neat really.

Sue said it was one of the best days she had enjoyed on this trip and a couple of photos give you a flavour of the scenery.

It was good to get back on board for a late lunch and cool down after which John had to work as we staged the quiz, “Those Radio Times” in the evening after dinner. This proved very popular as the passengers wrestled with their knowledge of old signature tunes, variety shows and so on, all to win a Oriana bottle of wine and a $5 personal radio which John had picked up in a “bargain” store on shore.

Next stop is Fiji on Monday, where we will try to post this and catch up with emails from those of you suffering the large amount of UK snow. We are actually about to lose a day as we cross the international date line so we go from 12 hours behind GMT to 12 hours in front of it so for us, Sunday 8^th of February is the day that does not exist, weird or what!!

Second Report, written as we cross the Equator again February 4 2009

2009-02-06T23:56:00.008Z

Second Report, written as we cross the Equator again February 4 2009

It’s hard to keep track of time when you are at sea for so many days. We are out of satellite coverage from BBC World so we know little of the news except there has been a large amount of snow in London and the south east, ah! Sorry about that.

Our last stop was four days ago, a day at Honolulu, Hawaii where we didn’t have to escort any passenger trips so Susan fulfilled her ambition to go to Waikiki Beach for a swim.

It did not live up to her expectations as it’s surrounded by high rise apartments and hotels and the beach is actually quite narrow and crowed and you have to go out about half a mile to pick up the famous waves, which were not much in evidence. As another passenger put it “I’ve seen better waves in Cornwall”. For John it was also a disappointment as he said “I’d rather be in Marbella!”

So we took a local bus to Diamond Head which is the local viewing point. Once you are dropped by the bus there’s a half mile walk up a steep hill, you can see a good view of the island, and on the way back a man in a stretched limo offered us a ride back to town. In we jumped and you can see Sue in her glory moment, another first.

We rounded of the day with an all American hamburger and a coke before bussing it back to the ship. Not one of the most memorable stops of a life time. As we sailed away into the sunset, the Queen Victoria can be seen in the next dock.

Next we go to Samoa. In the meantime we continue under the tropical sunshine and showers and John continues with his lectures and Sue with her Bridge Classes, she’s becoming a real fanatic. As Samoa is quite small John’s not sure if we can post this there but we will try. February 5 2009.

Sue & John New Blog for 2009

2009-02-01T22:17:00.006Z

Off on our travels again on another lecture tour, this time starting in San Francisco on the P&O Oriana and finishing in Sydney.
Left London on a Monday morning and had a great flight out on BA, for once they did not lose out luggage and you can see the views as we came in over Canada on the polar route were very spectacular. We had an afternoon in San Francisco as the time difference meant we arrived early afternoon and so we did the tourist thing as neither of us had been there for many years. Rode a trolley bus, looked at Chinatown and ate crabs and clam chowder on Fisherman’s Warf.
Next day we set sail late afternoon and for John the real work started as there are 14 sea days and a lecture to be given every day. Luckily the first one went so well they had to move us to a larger venue as there were far more people wishing to attend than 150 seat cinema could accommodate. For the second one on the BBC in WW2 the larger room, seating 350, was also full so it looks as if we are pitching it right for the audience.
The sun has failed to shine since we left San Francisco and it’s been rather cool and cloudy to our surprise but no doubt it will get better as we approach Hawaii. We will post this there and bring more news later. In the meantime we continue to over indulge in the very good food on board, John is full of good intentions regarding the gym but there is so little free time! On Hawaii, we are to escort some of the passengers on a tour of the island. Hope we don’t lose any.
January 30 2009

GOLF & PARTY TIME

2008-11-20T12:35:00.004Z

TANGIER

2008-11-20T12:29:00.005Z

October and November

2008-11-20T12:14:00.005Z

Since we arrived the weather has settled and life has been rather good. Sue has managed the odd game of golf and we have done our share of entertaining.

We held a "British Night" party in honour of our friend Janet Gallick who reached a certain age and you can see Sue excelled herself with the decor and costumes.

Our dressing up served to frighten little kids with dressing up on Halloween. When Sue and I answered the door to them dressed like this they ran like mad!

With other friends, Jan and Mike, we went across to Tangier on the high speed ferry and that was an interesting experience for a day, lots of hastle from the locals trying to sell tourist "tat" but at least they speak french.

Since then the other outstanding event has been the birthdays of Stanley Heydon, 91, and Anthony Armitage, 71, so there was a joint birthday party for them both. Pictures as you can see.

All too soon it will be time to go home for Christmas to the cold and wet of England but we'll be back for the New Year.

If it's not too early can we wish a happy Christmas to all our readers?

TO SOUTHERN SPAIN

2008-11-20T12:02:00.003Z

We left northern Spaina and decided to travel through Portugal. Not that we could see a lot as conditions were terrible, non stop heavy rain for seven hours and thick fog as we got to the tops of mountians so we were left with a poor impression of that country, particularlyas the petrol was even dearer than in England!

We stayed overnight at a Portuguese equivalent of a parador, this was a converted castle but unfortunately the decor seemed to have been done in the 1960's.

We eventually arrived at our home in Estepona and were glad to get there except the bad weather had followed us and instead of unbroken sunshire we had four days of really fierce storms which whipped the sea into a froth as you can see.

IN GALICIA

2008-11-20T11:26:00.007Z

At the beginning of October I came by ferry with the car from Portsmouth to Santander to meet up with Susan and some friends so that we could explore the delights of Galicia.

The crossing was pretty wild and when I arrived the weather was rather like England, damp and still windy. However we enjoyed the scenery whcih was very different from most of Spain and as you can see from the photos, the local barns, "herros", are on stilts, originlly to keep out the rats from the grain stores.

The cathedral at Santiago de Compostela is very large and the object of all the many pilgrims who travel on foot across Spain to visit it to see where the body of one of the saints was allegedly found.

There are many pretty seaside ports around the caost and plenty of good seafood too.

In Spain

2008-11-14T21:11:00.002Z

Not too much to write now as we have been in Spain since the beginning of October.
However I hope to publish a few photos of our Autumn activities in a few days.

2008-09-05T19:02:00.004Z

Monday 1^st September

We are at sea all day as we steam from Helsinki to Copenhagen, weather is pretty good with light winds and some sunshine. It was a good day for John’s second lecture which was on the making of the Beatles Story. Better attendance, around 200 we reckoned, with a lot of interest and they seemed to love the Bits & Pieces competition at the end. All the lectures benefit from doing them in front of a love audience and we are constantly modifying and improving them in the light of experience as we go along. Nothing else of any great interest to post so we will try to get ashore in Denmark tomorrow to post the pictures from Sunday in Helsinki.

The journey is passing all too rapidly and after Denmark we have Zeebrugge to look forward to on Thursday then it’s back to Southampton and home on Friday.

Pictures were taken in Copenhagen.

Today Wednesday September 3 we are at sea again and it was John’s turn to do his last lecture on Censorship of Music over the years. Whether it’s because the word had spread we don’t know but this was by far the best one so far, well attended, lots of people wanting to play “Bits & Pieces” and a very good audience reaction to all the content which they really loved. We also sold a few books after the show which was a good spinoff. Weather a little different as we move back into the North Sea with force 6 to 7 winds making it a little choppy. We don’t care as we are getting a little demob happy now, it’s been great fun and we’ve enjoyed it but two weeks is enough and we look forward to sleeping in our own beds on Friday.

A day in Zeebruge was enough, we both had a free day as there were no escortign duties for either of us so we went to a nearby seaside town and enjoyed a very large serving of mussels and chips. Photo shows this.

What else would you have in Belgium?

Then it was back to the ship for a farewell show and a rough crossing of the channel for home

September 5

We docked at 0530 at Southampton and drove home in continuous pouring rain all the way with a temperature of 14 degrees C, both very tired but pleased with the trip. We learned a lot and enjoyed all those new places. Who know when we will be off again.

WATCH THIS SPACE

Post from Cpenhagen, Tuesday

2008-09-02T08:52:00.008Z

Dressed for the Country evening

Typical Phone box in Helsinki

Helsinki sea front

Helsinki, 31st August
Before we left on Saturday evening there was a themed “Country” night on board, as you can see the two of us entered into the spirit of it as did most of the passengers and the on board cabaret show was excellent. We have noted how very professional all the shows on board have been and we’ve really enjoyed them.
When we woke this morning we were in Finland and had gained an hour overnight so were less tired. For once the weather was sunny but cold, only 15 degrees at the highest and a strong east wind which made the eyes water.
Sue had a party of folks to take on the city tour and John took his bunch on a boat tour of the islands off the port. In our view Helsinki is a bit like the Finns themselves rather dull. When you seen one rock covered island with a sauna you’ve seen them all and the town was not very exciting and expensive though Sue found a bargain in the way of a fur “comforter” which looks cute. We’ll leave you to judge from the pictures.
Monday 1st September
We are at sea all day as we steam from Helsinki to Copenhagen, weather is pretty good with light winds and some sunshine. It was a good day for John’s second lecture which was on the making of the Beatles Story. Better attendance, around 200 we reckoned, with a lot of interest and they seemed to love the Bits & Pieces competition at the end. All the lectures benefit from doing them in front of a love audience and we are constantly modifying and improving them in the light of experience as we go along.

The journey is passing all too rapidly and after Denmark we have Zebrugge to look forward to on Thursday then it’s back to Southampton and home on Friday. Tuesday we have arrived in Copenhagen where I am postign this, another post on Thursday if I can find a conection in Zebrugge.

St Petersburg

2008-08-31T08:11:00.011Z

Friday and Saturday we were in St Petersburg in Russia, but above are the pictures illustrating Tallinn in Estonia.
In Russia things were somewhat different but as you will see from the pictures below there are some magnificent buildings and architecture to be seen. We continued our separate escorting duties looking after the passengers as they waddle from site to sight! John was specially lucky on Saturday when he found himself with only two passengers and a interpreter guide as he went to Peterhof and Tsar Peter’s Grand Palace, which he had modelled on Versailles. Being in a small group gives enormous privileges like queue jumping and he had a wonderful time. Poor Sue had 34 people to look after as she went to both Peterhof and The Hermitage where there were literally thousands of people and trying to ensure she didn’t lose any was a nightmare. Old people are fiercely independent and are always wandering off, not listening to instructions or complaining as she found out when one was stung by a wasp and blamed her for not having any appropriate medicine!
In the evening Sue escorted a party to the ballet, it was a fantastic performance of Swan Lake at the St Petersburg Conservatoire only marred when an enormous man managed to break his seat which collapsed under his weight just as the first act started. He sat there on the floor until the interval and when Sue asked him why he replied “My dear woman, a Gentleman does not disturb other people’s enjoyment whatever the circumstances!”
On Saturday it was another early start for both of us. As we have steamed West the clocks have gone back and back and we are now 3 hours ahead of UK time so to get up at 0630 felt like 0330, the middle of the night! But we were off again this time to the summer palace of Catherine the Great. It is a superb palace as you can see but again there were thousands of visitors and it was John who had the problem of keeping the flock together. Sue got the lucky trip with a mini bus and only 12 people with an excellent guide who obviously had connections because we got a private choral recital in a pavilion by the lake and some shopping therapy on the way back.
Because of visa restrictions no one is permitted to just wander around St Peterburg so we were unable to get to an internet cafe to post the blog, hopefully we will be able to do so in Helsinki tomorrow, the last day of August.
Here are a few reminders of the last two days.

Peterhof palace and gardens

Catherine's Summer Palace and detail inside

Pictures of Tallinn

2008-08-31T08:07:00.005Z

2008-08-28T11:16:00.007Z

Tuesday 26th
Well we’ve done it, each of us escorted a bus full of passengers on a tour of Gydnia, Oliwa and Gdansk. I wouldn’t say they were elderly but Sue and I were the only two with our own hips! Sue had to manage one lady who was desperate for the toilet and there were 41 people in front of her and somehow she lost two passengers but found they were replaced by two Americans who got on the wrong coach. Otherwise an uneventful day and Gdansk is an interesting place. We only knew it for the Solidarity movement but in fact it was here that WW2 started when the Germans launched an attack on Poland from a battleship in the harbour, the rest really is history. Yet despite the Germans and the Russians virtually destroying the city it has been restored over the last 60 years more or less as it was. The pictures will give a flavour of the Dutch influence on the architecture.
We also went to the cathedral at Oliwa where there is one of the best pipe organs in the world and there was a wonderful recital at lunchtime before we returned to the ship. Photo shows the Balck Watch in Gydnia port. Even the weather improved as can be seen.
A good day and according to Sue one of most interesting places she has visited. Next stop is in two days time at Tallinn in Estonia.

We've arrived in Tallinn and escorted our second tours, more complaints and it rained! Sue lost 2 old ladies who had got on the wrong coach!

Tallinn is a very old medieval city, lots of interesting buildings and a chequered history of ownership by the Danes, Germans Swedes and Russians. They only gained independence in 1991.

We had a nice show of local music and folk dancing.

Still eating too much food and gaining weight by the day!

Off to St Petersburg tomorrow for 2 days, that is if the Russians will let us in!

More pictures soon.

News Update from Poland

2008-08-26T08:58:00.002Z

First days of Baltic Cruise on Fred Olsen ship Black Watch 23/24 /25August

Bank Holiday Saturday is not a good day to set off for the coast to catch a cruise liner as Sue and found out at the bottom end of the M3, anyway we eventually boarded and were somewhat surprised to see the ship was full of people mostly older than we were! Does this bode well for lectures on popular culture? We shall see. John’s first lecture on Radio 1 is scheduled for Sunday afternoon. Hope they are not all asleep!
Lecture 1 on Radio 1 went reasonably well with around 50 people in attendance. Would have liked more but maybe some of the oldies thought the subject too young for them and we were competing with the art class and the attractions of an after lunch siesta. They all seemed to enjoy the “Bits & Pieces” competition with a bottle of champagne for the winners and we have broken the “duck” We now have eight day until our next lecture.
We continue our cruise northwards through the Keil Canal to Poland and the port of Gdansk where we have both offered our services as Tour Escorts, this gives us a free tour but we hope nopassengers are taken ill or incontinent.
We’ve arrived in Poland at 7am, weather looks pretty good so we are off to do pur duty and hopefully post this blog... more later.
and photos

Lecture Themes

2008-08-21T11:33:00.009Z

The theme of my lectures on these cruises is "A Lifetime in the BBC" and on this next cruise I'm talking about my book "Radio 1-The Inside Scene", making the 14 hour radio documentary "The Beatles Story" and I take a look at the BBC's history of censorship of music over the years "The Records we couldn't play". All the talks are illustrated with photos and audio clips I've collected over my many years. Who knows perhaps I will run into you one day.

In the Radio 1 talk there are all sorts if quirky things like this "Radio 1 Poster Poser" which we ran on air asking listeners to spot the mistake. Can you spot it?

Pre travel pictures

2008-08-19T20:06:00.003Z

2008-08-19T20:03:00.002Z

2008-08-19T19:35:00.004Z

We are off on our travels again this week as John has secured a position as a lecturer on board the Fred Olsen line's Black Watch. We leave from Southampton on Saturday August 23 for the Baltic and will try to bring news of our tour which will last for 13 nights. Watch this space!

The Last Leg

2007-03-20T11:38:00.000Z

The Last Leg

So our story comes to an end.

We spent a lovely day in Sydney on Sunday as it was the 75th Anniversary of their Harbour Bridge and there were huge bridge Birthday celebrations and fun and games all day which we were able to watch until it was time to fly out for Bangkok.

A long flight, over 8 hours during which we lost 4 hours due to time changes so we arrived in Bangkok at 0230 in their morning. Very hot and tired.

Never the less we were determined to see as many of the sights as we could and spend a hectic two days up and down the river visiting Royal Palaces and Temples until we were “templed out”. You can see the results here. Apart from the river taxis we also travelled by “Tuk Tuk’ as you can see. No Health and Safety rules here!

Of course we also spent a great deal of time and money in the bespoke tailors ordering some new clothes, that was fun, and provided a respite from teh 37 degree heat and humidity.

Tomorrow it’s another late day as we leave here at 0220 to arrive in Heathrow London at 11.30. What a journey, we hope you have enjoyed reading about it and looking at our pictures.

So for now from John & Susan it’s goodbye to the Orient and hello to Europe.

We are both looking forward to a proper cup of tea.

More Reef Pictures

2007-03-16T11:27:00.000Z

Reef seen through the boottom of thre glass bottomed boat

Jb in the stupid Telly Tubby Suit against the jellyfish

2007-03-16T11:01:00.000Z

Great Barrier Reef
From Cairns we took a short flight to Townsville where we joined our reef cruise on a 40 meter catamaran Coral Princess II and set off for an Island where we had our first snorkel off the beach.
Sue was very excited to see a huge stingray with blue spots. The weather had clouded over which was a bit disappointing but the sea was warm.
We were lucky that there were only 20 fellow cruisers on a boat with a capacity of 50 so we all got to know each other pretty well.
Next morning we suffered a rude awakening as the anchor was pulled up at 6am, no sleep for the snorkellers - it was clear we were there to snorkel whether we liked it or not and the regime was pretty strict. Our day was filled with lectures on Marine Biology and the reef, glass bottomed boat tours, snorkelling at various reefs and even cuddling some of the sea creatures from the deep (see picture!).
Unfortunately we picked the wrong time of year to do this as it was the rainy and jellyfish season, the seas were a bit rough and we had to wear Telly Tubbie suits against the jellyfish (see photo)
The first stop on day 2 was for a bbq breakfast at Pelorus Island which was interrupted by heavy rain. Appropriately we were taken on a tour of the rainforest. We stopped in the afternoon at Dunk Island which John had last visited 12 years ago and didn't recognise as the straw-thatched huts had been replaced by a multi-million $ resort.
The 3rd day was by far the best as we cruised to the Outer Barrier Reef and snorkelled over the most beautiful gardens of coral and thousands of fish of every hue.
Next stop Sydney and then our journey home via Bangkok, tonight we ate a supper of mudcrab under the stars and it's hard to think that this time next week we'll be back in sunny (?) Skipton.

Ayres Rock Weekend

2007-03-12T11:15:00.000Z

Sunday Sunrise in the bush

Monday sunrise

Keep those flies off

Ayres Rock
After Sydney we flew to Ayres Rock, what a contrast, 39 degrees of dry heat in an arid dessert, the predominant colour being a dull red, the soil and the Rock itself, mainly due to the oxidisation of the iron ore in the locality, the only relief being some pale green scrubby trees, yet it has a beauty of it's own. It's hard to convey the beauty and majesty of this huge mass of rock which the Aboriginal people believe has so many mystical powers.
We were not booked on any organised tour on Saturday so we walked to a local lookout point to watch the sun go down, not much of a spectacle as the clouds built up at the last minute and we lost sight of the golden glow as it sank. We consoled ourselves in the Outpack Pioneer Hotel where there was the ooportunity to cook a steak of your choice on the communal BBQ, very Australian, see picture.

We can't tell you how many flies there are there, JB bought a special hat with built in net, see picture,
Sunday Morning it was up at 5 am to drive off on the first of two organised trips, this one being to a "Sunrise Breakfast'. Ten of us were shuttled off in a truck to an isolated spot in the bush where the guide sat us down with coffee and tea brewed on a campfire while we awaited sun up at 0640. It was well worth the effort and as the horizon lit up we were offered bacon and egg rolls, see picture.
That same evening was to be the highlight of our whole trip, a "Sounds of Silence" dinner. There were around 60 of us for this, we were driven off into the desert with a fine view of the rock while a lone diggeredoo player seranaded us (if that's the right word) as we supped ice cold champagne and ate little canapes of kangaroo and crocodile! The whole party then moved to the dining area which was laid with elegant white tablecloths and crystal under the stars which was to be followed by a illustrated talk about the stars in the southern skies. Sadly the skies darkened through the evening and lightening flashes started to replace the stars. By the time all the elegant diners had finished their main course the heavens opened and we got absolutely soaked. It hardly ever rains in this part of Australia, the organisers took no precautions and we all had to rush back to our coaches where they drove us to the best hotel in the resort for deserts, coffee and port. Imagine we had travelled over 12,00 miles for this experience and it was rained off, no stars, no magic. We were very dissappointed.
Undeterrred we got up agian at 0500 on Monday morning to go and look at another magical sunrise. The rain clouds had more or less gone and we were rewarded with another wonderful sunrise as you can see in the pictures.
It was a very tired couple of travellers who went to the airport on Monday lunchtime to continue the trip, this time we took off for Cairns. We shall be at sea now for three days so no more blog until we get back to Sydney on Saturday evening.

Please keep emailing your comments as we love to get feedback

Sydney, more of our tale...

2007-03-08T08:36:00.000Z

To finish yesterday's blog, on Wednesday we had an amazing conclusion to our connection with Saga as a couple of our friends met the Chief Executive of in a Sydney street and he invited us to his private party at the Opera House to watch the two Saga cruise liners, Ruby and Rose as they sailed away to continue their World Cruise. A select few met on a private balcony at the Opera House overlooking the harbour, the CEO and his wife, the Finance Director and his wife, the two ships Captains who had changed over in Sydney and us, champagne flowed like water as the ships sailed out together to a fantastic firework display. Not a bad way to end our Saga holiday.

Next morning we were collected by Malcolm Hill who took us on a wonderful tour of the Northern Beaches, amazing scenery and splendid coffee and lunch venues
Malcolm and Sue went to view the aboriginal rock carvings and actually viewed a huge black snake and a big furry wallaby
Then a splendid non-bbq dinner at Malcolm's (rain stopped play)

Melbourne continued

2007-03-07T05:56:00.000Z

Melbourne continued….

Since our tour of the Dandenongs and the Yarrow Valley our feet have hardly touched the ground.

It’s worth explaining that John’s Uncle Alf, who is 86 lives near Melbourne as does his daughter, Elizabeth (JB’s cousin) and her husband David and it is they who have been kind enough to entertain us for a few days and show off the sites.

On Thursday we set off driving south to Sorrento where we crossed the bay to Queenscliffe in search of “The Great Ocean Road” which runs along the south coast of Victoria. The were so many spectacular views that required frequent stops for photo opportunities that we didn’t arrive at our destination, Apollo Bay until around 6 p.m.

Next day we recovered from the journey by swimming, painting and looking around the town before a trip out to Maites Rest, where there was a unique opportunity to study the huge trees and many ferns. Myrtle Beech trees being a feature of the area, providing a canopy under which all types of ferns flourish.

Sue and David managed a round fo golf on the local links, not clear who won while JB and Elizabeth cooked up a BBQ of local fish and wine. We all spelt very well!!

Saturday there was more site seeing, a local carnival of surf riders and then all too soon it was a drive back over the Ottway Mountains and a picnic on route.

Sunday the weather was slightly cooler with a hint of rain but it never developed, pity for the locals who are suffering badly with the drought. So we all went off for a family BBQ at a local park, Gumbuya, four generations of relatives from Alf at 86 to his great granddaughter, Ashlyn at 2 months, not that the latter ate much of the vast array of steaks, sausages, chops etc etc. It was fun and to Sue’s delight there were Kangaroos and many other indigenous animals in the park (see picture)

On Monday we met up with another friend, Alan Coleman who took us for a very fine lunch in Canterbury, which made us feel very much at home. We had not seen Alan since we last met in Spain last year so itwas good to catchup with him, then all too soon it was time for a last family dinner with the Holden and the Humbles. We had a wonderful trip in Dandenong thanks to them all then Sue and I flew to Sydney to rejoin the Sag Ruby for an evening of 10th anniversay Celebrations back on the ship for dinner, chamapgne and a night at the famous Sydney Opera House. The latter was a mixed blessing. The Operas was Alcina by Handle, rather boring and four and a half hours long, something of an overdose of Culture there and I'm sorry to say we left after three hours! Still it was good to meet up with old friends from the ship and a good time was had by all as the Ruby was moored right alongside Circle Quay, opposite the Opera House,a romantic setting as you can see.

Tomorrow we meet up with Malcolm Hill and old friend from London who now lives in Sydney so that's another treat and another story....

Next Leg

2007-03-02T00:01:00.000Z

Blog for Freemantle & Perth

All went very well in Freemantle and we left our friends on the ship and took at short train ride to Perth where we checked into our hotel.
Following Frans Beerling’s advice we took the free CAT Bus around the city and explored the delight’s of King’s Park and a pub, amusingly named "The Lucky Shag!"
Next day we decided to take an excursion to Rottnest Island, about ten miles off shore where we hired bicycles to explore this delightful paradise, there was a threat of thunderstorms but we stayed dry and JB managed a painting while Sue took a dip in the rather cold waters of the Indian Ocean. We were interested to see the little "Quokkas!, a sort of cross between a large rat and a kangaroo! That’s why the Dutch called it Rottnest, because they figured they were large rats!
By Tuesday we were off again this time on a Quantas flight to Melbourne where we were met by Alf, David and Elizabeth. They made us very welcome and we soon felt at home in their home where the temperature was a comfortable 24 degrees.
Since then our feet have not touched the ground as they whirled us around the delights of Melbourne, Dandenong and surrounding areas. On our drive down to Apollo Bat alonng teh Great Ocean Road Sue spotted wild Koala Bears so she was really happy.

You can see photos of us feeding the wild Crimson Rosellas and outside a café where we fed ourselves oh and the Koala too.
More news anon….

We've arrived

2007-02-25T01:05:00.000Z

Singapore

It’s been four days since we left Singapore but what a super time we had. As it was so hot and humid we decided it would be best to look around the Botanical Gardens in the morning, a good move it was too. Fantastic Orchids there, wonderful gardens and a Swan Lake Gazebo with real and sculptured swans. See Photo of Sue there.

As it was Chinese New Year on the following day we decided on a trip to China Town where all the celebrations for the Year of the Golden Pig were in full swing, very busy markets and lots of noise and people.

Some where on route we stopped to buy anew charger for the digital camera and of course Singapore being the home of new technology the shop keeper took one look at my video camera and exclaimed “ That belongs in a Museum, why don’t you give ti to your Grandchildren?” I was a little put out but when he showed us the latest Sanyo miniature video camera we had to have one and what a great little gadget it is too. More evidence to bore everyone with when we get back?

We finished the day at Raffles for a legendary Singapore Sling, see photo and this wa had in the Long Bar. Somewhat disappointing as they serve peanuts in their shells witih drink and the floors are littered with hundreds of empty shells, this couple with rather loud and to our mind unsuitable piped music left us with an impression that Raffles is living off it’s past. A sort of ersatz type of experience!

By the time we got back to the ship we were both exhausted having been on the go all day and were glad of a refreshing bath. Before the ship sailed the cabaret that evening took on an ethnic flavour and among the entertainers was a snake charmer with dancing cobra and a giant python. When he asked for volunteers JB was first up to embrace the golden snake. Much to Susan’s disgust. See the picture.

Since then another experience on board. Last week one of the guest lecturers was an old BBC Chum, peter Dorling who I hadn’t seen for nearly 40 years and by a strange coincidence yet another old friend of mine turned up on board as a guest lecturer this week, song writer Bill Martin who has made millions as a very successful writer of songs like Congratulations, Puppet on a String and DIVORCE for Billy Connelly. Small world isn’t it. See the photo of us together.

I’m thinking I should apply to do some of this lecturing, it’s not that difficult and I think I could be more interesting than some of the speakers we’ve heard.

That’s it for now, only a few more days at sea for us now as we leave the ship on Sunday to start our OZ leg. Sue has caught an awful bug which is going round the ship and which has laid her low and she has lost her voice too! A trip to the ship’s doctor is called for to get her fit for her camel excursion on Wednesday next. JB too is under par with an attack of upset tummy, good way to lose the recently gained weight!

Don’t forget to write to us.

Unfortunately we were unable to post this in Broome as the tidal conditions made us very late in port so all our trips were somewhat curtailed and the internet café had closed by the time we got back so all this will have to be posted in Perth when we arrive on Sunday.

Broome was very hot, 38 degrees, and humid. JB went off on his little light Cessna aircraft trip which was excellent, he was in the air for 3 hours altogether with a short stop at Cape Leveque, a holiday camping resort of about 8 houses with a dirt landing strip. The scenery was outstanding though all the passengers were somewhat alarmed at the number of thunderstorms in the air and the number of lightening strikes which could be seen, luckily none hit the Cessna. See picture

While he was doing that Susan went off on the Camel Safari, lots of fun as they paraded along the beach but again very hot and somewhat smelly. See picture.

When all arrived back at the ship, Broome was more or less closed for the day so that was it, a BBQ on board and some entertainment by local musicians then it was time for the last leg of our trip this time to Freemantle. Nice to get a phone call from Julie with all the UK news before we went to sleep.

After nearly four weeks of fun on board we have had enough now and are ready to more on to see more of Australia. Cruising is great for about three weeks but after that the novelty wears off and it’s time to get back to the real world on land.

More later…

Latest News

2007-02-16T02:39:00.000Z

Wednesday February 7 2007, Port Victoria, Seychelles

While JB was off exploring the island’s capital and the local Cable and Wireless Internet access to send all this, Susan went off on a huge catamaran to explore the St Anne’s Nature Reserve. Crossing turquoise seas to a deserted island for a swim on a coral beach was followed by a fantastic adventure under the sea on a semi-submersible to view the coral and tropical fish. Then snorkelling from the cat over the coral reef was an experience not to be missed

Picture to go in of Susan on the beach

It’s a pretty little island, the most northerly of the Seychelles and a big contract to Africa, unemployment is a lot lower, 6%, and it shows. There is much more prosperity, the streets are clean, the houses well kept and the people happy and friendly.
In the afternoon we visited the local botanical gardens famous for the coco de mer trees and nuts. These are rumoured to have magical aphrodisiac powers, (JB still reserving judgment) and the other major attraction is the giant Aldabran Tortoise. There was a pen of them and apart from eating their main occupation seemed to be to procreate. Perhaps they had been eating too many of the coco de mer nuts because the males were at it all the time chasing the females round the pen and making a good deal of noise as they went about it!

Picture of tortoise to go in

We’ll leave this subject and report on an occurrence the night before. I suppose it’s an occupational hazard with a Saga Cruise but during the night, before we arrived, one of the passengers turned up her toes for good. It seems her husband had been buried on the Island some years before and by some kind of strange poetic justice she died as we arrived so will be able to be buried alongside him. Judging by the state of a few of the more elderly ones we see lying out on the promenade deck, (the living dead as we call them) this lady won’t be the last.

A couple of days after leaving the Seychelles we crossed the Equator. Sue and JB being “Pollywogs” what is people who have never done it before by sea we had to undergo the full ceremony to be initiated my Neptune.

All the passenger assembled on the rear deck, Neptune arrived with his entourage of mermaids, judges and the Captain in a giant hat and epaulettes. He adjudicated and decided as we were all guilty of not paying due homage to Neptune we were guilty and had to be punished. This consisted of having to kiss a giant dead salmon after which we were doused in a sort of cold fish soup, to the cheers of the onlookers. It was disgusting, Susan tried to be nice to the fish saying something like “Nice Fishy” but to no avail, it was opened up and rubbed in her face. We both had to have two showers and a bath to get over it and remove the fish smell. Mind you they did give us a very nice cocktail before the ceremony. Lots of fun and plenty of laughs from our new found friends , many of whom had been there before.

Equator pics to go in

Yesterday evening, Friday February 9 we went to a fabulous show dedicated to the music of Benny Goodman. The clarinettist, Kenny Martin, had managed to obtain many of Benny Goodman’ scores from the 1939 Carnegie Hall concert and together with the house musicians they did a great job which had us all jumping.

One last thing worth a mention is the stars. Very day the ship publishes a “star chart” showing the stars that can be seen in relation to the ship’s position and direction. You can go up on the foredeck where it is pitch black and gaze with winder at the heavens, it is a wonderful sight and makes us both feel very insignificant.

That’s it for now, if you are reading this please do give us feedback or email Johnny@johnnybeerling.com with your comments, it’s nice to know what you all make of it.

Next stop the Maldives, on Sunday.

We were unable to file cope there due to time pressures and the arrival of the President of Shri Lanka which caused the closure of most of Male.

While Sue looked around those shops which were open Jb went off on a wonderful underwater tour of the local reef by submarine. This was spectacular and he saw many interesting fish, turtles, eels and octopus.

In the afternoon the Captain obtained permission to take the ship to a tropical island, Kudobandros. Just like a Bounty Bar advert, white coral sands under beautiful palm trees. Almost the entire crew were involved in setting up a huge open air BBQ and free drunks too. We snorkelled and ate all afternoon before sailing off in tot eh sunet for Singapore.

Pictures of beach and Island to insert

A few days at sea faced us as we sailed to Singapore but as we explained earliern there was no bordom, in fact too many things to do.

Highlights were a “Jazz Lunch” with a huge buffet and jazz to dance to and Valentines Day where we had the most wonderful celebration we have ever had, or are likely to have.

JB had painted a home made card for Susan, complete with poem and written a special longer poem too in a bigger event where passengers were invited to write romantic poems, all of which were published in a special booklet distributed to everyone.

In the evening the Captain hosted a formal farewell Valentine cocktail party, more free champagne, for everyone primarily to say good bye to those passengers getting off in Singapore. There was then a special Valentine Dinner, with dedicated menu’s among the dishes on offer, “First Date”, Crab, caviar and smoked salmon; “Love Potion”, Cream of asparagus soup with nutmeg, “Match Made in Heaven”, fillet of beef on a crouton with fois gras, and for dessert similarly named delicacies. This was an outstanding meal and while we were eating, because it was approaching Chinese New Year, a number of the waiters came in procession as a Chinese dragon.

The dinner was followed by a Valentine Ball, where the entire crew, led by the Captain opened proceedings with a set dance, then the passengers took turns to dance with members of both sexes of the ship’s crew. Susan drew the best straw as on her Dance Card she had the Captain for the opening waltz. That made her evening even if he was no better at dancing than JB! Dancing went on till nearly midnight and after that we went to star gaze before falling into bed at 1 am.
What a wonderful Valentine’s Day, I doubt we’ll ever do anything like that ever again.

Next stop Singapore on Friday 16th where we say goodbye to some of our new found friends and we hope to post all this.

Once again if you are reading it, we’d love to have feedback to johnny@johnnybeerling.com
Because we have no idea of how many of our friends and relatives are checking on our progress, we just hope we are not making you all too jealous.

Dressed for a formal dinner night, about once per week

2007-02-07T06:43:00.000Z

JB on the Bridge

2007-02-07T06:41:00.000Z

Fining our Ship, the Saga Ruby in CapeTown

2007-02-07T06:39:00.000Z

Another day another blog

2007-02-07T06:24:00.000Z

Spot the Camel! Our Table Waiters

Another day, another Blog..

Sunday February 3 and we were in Mombasa, Kenya, along side the dock at the unearthly hour of 6 am, not that we chose to crawl out at that time but there were Kenyan drummers on the dockside to welcome us a little later when we walked down the gangplank.

JB had not been to Kenya since 1957 when he was but slip of a lad who came here from Aden for a spot of R&R, nowadays he’s about 3 stone heavier though that seemed to be about the only change. The poverty is in evidence everywhere and Sue got very upset at the state of the poor trading people who were trying to sell rich tourists their wares. In fact although she was inclined to bargain when buying anything she always ended up buying more than she wanted out of sympathy for the seller who always pleaded “poverty and many children to feed!”

In order to see as much as possible we booked on one of the Saga organised tours, a so called “Panoramic” but the panorama was not up to much. There was a Hindu temple which was impressive if you’ve not seen one before. A stop at Jesus Fort, dating back to the 1500’s and a view of the markets and the shanty towns, all too dangerous to let us out. On top of that it was Sunday so nearly all the shops were closed. Many of the local Christian population were at worship in the open air ( not that they had a lot to be thankful for) and in the large parkland many families were out picnics onde the shade of large trees, watched by one or two scruffy camels! By contrast we were taken to the Nyali Beach Hotel for coffee and this was on a beautiful coral beach where again a couple of camels were taking a bath, (see picture of Sue, somewhat masked by the photographers thumb.) JB found a business centre where he could do the internet access and then it was back to the ship for a late lunch.

Again we noticed the large differential between the way the locals live a few hundred metres outside the hotel grounds and the life style of the affluent tourists staying there. It’s quite upsetting when you realise how big the gulf is between “us” and “them”, yet the problems of poverty, hunger, education and aids will never be cured by a few tourists buying souvenirs. One realises what an impossible task the various helping charities have set themselves in trying to improve things and we can only admire them for trying. If you stop too think about it, and we did, it’s just overwhelming and made us feel somewhat humble and over privileged.

Sailed away to in the direction of Seychelles at 5.30, much food for thought.

2007-02-04T12:03:00.000Z

2007-02-04T11:53:00.000Z

Comoros Islands

2007-02-04T11:41:00.000Z

Comoros Islands

Today is Friday February 2 and we awoke to find ourselves moored off Mayotte in the Comoros Islands. At breakfast it was already 34 degrees and humid so we awaited the tender boats to take us ashore with some enthusiasm.

This soon evaporated when landed to find this French Protectorate dirty and very unattractive. By 10 am it was nearly 40 degrees and a warm drizzle did nothing to cool us, it was much more developed than we hoped with cars and lorries everywhere along with much dirt and general scruffiness. We found a Post Office, very French with long queues, to buy stamps for our postcards.
JB found an internet place where he could get 1 hour for 5€ so he was happy to sort though 147 emails received in a week. Why is there so much junk in my mail box offering to sell me stuff to make parts of my body bigger. Have they been peeping ? Sue decided to go off on an excursion organised by the ship around the inner sections of the Island. As there was no air conditioning or interpreter on the little bus JB chickened out and made his way back to the Saga Ruby for a BBQ lunch and a rest….

More from Sue on her return
We drove at some speed round the north of the island and yes there was a guide, a very attractive young man who explained all about the ylang ylang ( no it does not have a doubtful meaning!) and had lived for some time in Paris. Why on earth anyone would want to return to Mayotte from Paris is beyond me.

I have never seen such extreme poverty at close hand, the inhabitants live in tiny corrugated shacks, animals roam around the streets and there is rubbish everywhere. He explained that people have no environmental conscience so everywhere is littered with debris. We stopped briefly at a couple of viewpoints and yes the views were pretty but the litter of cans and paper was very off-putting.

We drove to a very scruffy beach bar where I was relieved to see that all the drinks were in cans. The sand was dark volcanic and I was not tempted to have a swim.
So that’s Mayotte, I don’t suppose we’ll ever come this way again and I for one will not be sorry!

At Last some pictures

2007-02-04T08:26:00.000Z

Here are a few to amuse you

Daily Life when at Sea

2007-01-31T20:58:00.000Z

People who read this may think life when cruising is boring. Nothing could be further from the truth - there is just so much to fit in.We should explain that there are two main eating locations on board, a running buffet on the Veranda Deck and a five star dining room on the Upper Deck, this has full waiter service and is as good as any hotel we have visited. Everywhere on this ship there is too much good food, keeping the weight down is a constant problem.
Our day starts around 8.30 or 9.00 with a visit to the Veranda where we usually take breakfast outdoors under the early morning sun before going off to do our own thing.JB usually is off to the Gym, then a sauna and a swim while Sue goes for a golf lesson with the resident pro or listens to one of the visiting lecturers. We usually take lunch together back on the Veranda, trying not to be tempted by the vast range of things on offer. In the afternoon there is a water colour painting class for Johnny and Sue takes the dance class where she is frequently chased by elderly men eagerly looking for a partner! JB has asked for 12 cows as a dowry but so far no takers except one Zulu who offered 11. Afternoon tea is at 4.15 in the Ballroom to the accompaniment of the resident pianist
Early evening it's time to freshen up, pre dinner drinks and then depending on the on the function we dress for dinner 10pm is cabaret time and the quality of the entertainment has been excellent, comedians, dancers, singers and all kinds of shows - so far we have not been disappointedIf we don't fancy the light entertainment, there is a cinemaZimmers are oiled and people take a last stagger round the dancefloor to round off the day and it's off to bed and a restful night lulled to sleep by the gentle rocking of the boat as it cruises to its next destinationNot bad for old folks (and us) goodnight readers wherever you are!

EAST LONDON & DURBAN, 28 & 29th JANUARY

2007-01-30T14:32:00.000Z

EAST LONDON & DURBAN, 28 & 29th JANUARY
Despite our misgivings about East London it proved to be one of the highlights of the trip because of our excursion to a native village, Kaya La Bantu, home of the Xhoa people. Their lives seem very much unchanged depsite the march of Western civilisation in the remainder of SA. As we jumped off our coach we were greeted by local children singing and dancing in a spectacular welcome ceremony. Then a lecture by 84 year old Mama Tofu, the village elder. JB was interested to note that in their tradition all the cooking, cleaning and washing is done by the women of the tribe while the men make the beer and go hunting all day. We could learn from these people! Sue says Yorkshire men have already done so. The male guests were separated from the ladies to hear about the local circumcision rites which all males undergo at 18, suffice to say it did not sound like a lot of fun. Anyway an excellent expedition and when we get to an internet cafe we will post photos.
Sunday too was fun. A vist to a Zulu village where they too put on a show, which while it was entertaining was a little "overproduced" in the Hollywood tradition, but it made a good film to be shown on our return. After lunch on a game reserve we were driven through the park by the manager, George, who ensured we came, literally face to face with 3 Rhinos, too close for JB's comfort, and lots of other species, antelope, hippos, zebras,ostrich and giraffes. We saw more in that 2 hours than we had seen in three days when we were here last.
Sailed away from Durban at 7.30 Sunday evening. A large hot and sweaty city where every home is surrounded by barbed wire and electric fences which gave us a very uncomfortable feeling. With 45% unemployment and a large percentage of the population having no formal education what can you expect except competition between the "haves" and the "havenots"?
We are now at sea for three days until Friday February 2 when we arrive at Mayotte in the Comoros Islands. We've just put the clocks forward by an half an hour which seems a little odd and have to get out our Euros as Mayotte is a French Colony. Let's hope they have an internet cafe there.

Setting off on the Ocean Waves

2007-01-28T19:51:00.000Z

While our first day in Cape Town was exceptionally hot , sunny and 41 degrees, the next was the opposite, cloudy and cool. We took an open topped bus tour of the city's more interesting and colourful sights before joining the Saga Ruby at 2 pm.
The ship which is to be our home for the next four weeks is just wonderful. The staff, who are mostly Philippino, went out of their way to make us feel welcome and we were soon settled in our comfortable cabin. We just managed to squeeze in the Afternoon Tea and buffet listening to the sound of the resident pianist. When we first got on board those fellow passengers who had not gone ashore looked somewhat elderly, we thought we had arrived in one of Martin Parmiter's Care Homes by mistake. As the day wore on more people came back on board and we were soon chatting away and making new friends.
As we prepared to "Sail Away" from Cape Town at 10 pm an enourmous BBQ had been set up on the rear sun deck with every kind of meat and fish. Dining to music from the Saga Ruby Orchestra ( it's actually a six piece band ) but good enough to make JB get up and dance the odd jig with Sue. The Waterfront looked beautiful with the twinkling lights at dusk and the backdrop of Table Mountain, as we pulled away from the dock with the aid of a large tugboat. A very romantic start to our cruise as we sailed into the Atlantic, soon to be Pacific Ocean under a moonlit sky.
Winds were force 5 to 6 which meant a slightly choppy ride as we sailed round the Cape of Good Hope to our next destination East London where we have arrived this Sunday morning. Not very impressive at first sight, in fact Sue said,"East London in the UK looks positively attractive by comparison". We are off to visit an African village so more news as we go along. We cannot add photos off the ship's system so you will have to wait for those until we find an internet Cafe at Durban.

In Cape Town

2007-01-25T21:45:00.000Z

The trip over was fantastic thanks to Lufthansa Busines Class. We were worried about the snow in the UK so set off an hour early from Skipton, arrived at Heathrow, Sue's daughter Georgie came to say farewell and we managed to get an earlier flight to Frankfurt. Lufthansa were terrific and we arrived there with an hour to spare to make the Cape Town connection. What a wonderful service, seats like huge armchairs with every possible combination of adjustment and full on screen entertainment. After an excellent meal we reclined the seat s and slept until we arrived in South Africa. The pilot did an excellent job of circling Table Mountian and Cape Town before coming in to land. Great views with a fine sight of our ship, the Saga Ruby in the harbour.

We checked in to our hotel for a swin, 40 plus degrees which was a shock to the system after leaving the UK at 4 degrees but we coped with the aid of lots of cold drinks!

A super supper in the Waterfront area which has over 80 different restaurants, lobster fillet steak etc etc which I am sure you don't wantto know about, we staggered off to bed.

There would have been pictures but it looks as if the silly man in charge of techincalities has brought the wrong USB lead so until he can sort that out there will be ashortage of pics!

More news as we go along, we join the Saga Ruby at 2 pm tomorrow.

Checking

2007-01-22T12:44:00.000Z

We are more or less ready to go, I'm just checking how to add things to this site.

Weather in Yorkshire threatens to be snowy on Wednesday so we have asked for the car taking us to the airport to come an hour earlier. Georgie is coming out to Heathrow to have a farewell drink see us off.

John & Sue World Travellers

2007-01-18T15:12:00.000Z

Hello to all our family and friends

This is a blog set up by us for those of you who might be interested in our progress as we set off for the other side of the world.

We are getting very excited and somewhat apprehensive as we are due to leave the cold north of England on Wednesday January 24. At the time of writing we have exceptional gales, 100mph and storms. We are worried that a heavy fall of snow next week might jeopardise our drive to London where we are due to pick up the first flight from there to Frankfurt, Germany and then onwards from Frankfurt to Cape Town, South Africa.

After one night in Cape Town we board our cruise liner, the Saga Ruby which will be our home for the next four weeks.

As we travel we will try to report our progress and post some photos of what we have seen.

More news as we get on our way.