Last one

Hello again, thanks for your messages boys.We are on our way home now.Went to Morroco yesterday and
on a tour of Casablanca. I enjoyed it very much,would not mind a holiday there.Saw the palace and a
huge Mosque,can't remember it's name.It was very ornate and covered a lot of ground.We were not
allowed to go into it but somebody told us that it was possible around 2pm.We were resting up after an
excellent lunch on deck.I shall really miss these huge barbequed prawns for my starter. Of course it was
Sunday so Beef, with a capital B.I did not have any jelly, I had not read your note then Steve. I am not
going to tell Maureen though. Saturday we moored at Ceuta, Spanish although on the coast of Morocco. It has been pointed out to me
that while Spain makes a 'song and dance' about getting Gibraltar back under their wing, they are deaf
when it comes to pleas from Morocco to get Ceuta back.Hmn. Both Gib and Ceuta are physically
contiguous with said countries but so what !Goose and Gander comes to mind. However we wandered
around and took a few photos but all the shops were shut so we could not look around which is perhaps
fortunate after our sojourn in Malta.So, we shall soon be back to the Bay of Biscay, I wonder if it will be rough.It was fine coming out so we shall see. We had a rough night last night so I am told, I think half the ship was awake.Room service would be busy.I slept until 7am,felt the rolling,took a pill and went back to sleep.It's a good life.Today I have to finish putting the flowers on a tee-shirt.Another project at 'Crafts'.I think all is the same for the 19th, don't know what time I shall be home Chris, it depends on the traffic. Will give you a wave Steve as I pass your 'workplace' GTG now for breakfast, love to all.Mum.XXXXXXXX

Jordan

I am not sure whereI am up to with all the messing about re. the net. BUT my phone has 'given up the ghost' so I can not phone or text,zxcvbn.Chris sweetie will you please put my heating to 20d before you go to school on the 19th. We should dock in the morning and it depends on the traffic after that.Aqaba--Jordan. Well away from pirate alley so all the water cannons?? have gone from the decks at night and 'our' ghurkas can sleep easy. We still see them when we go down the gang way or when they give us a hand getting into the tenders.I enjoyed the tour of Aqaba, we went to a cinema to see 'The Jordan Experience' which had me hanging onto my seat.I assume we were 'in' an aircraft of the Jordanian Airforce as we were joined at one time by three more in formation in front of us which then peeled off and left us to it.We went over Petra and over Wadi Rum where Lawrence led the attack on Aqaba with the Bedouin from.It was brilliant,if I could buy the DVD I would do.Have just realised that I phoned you Chris and Steve from aft deck when I was relishing my G&T so if I have told you that already,never mind.Safaga,Egypt there is no shuttle bus, there is a tour for snorkelling and some of the crew have gone to scuba dive.Fabrice, the Food and Beverages manager will tell me all about it.We are great friends with Fabrice and Rossen the Maitre d' ever since we put in our order for 'jelly with no fruit please' at lunch in the Lido.Last year we used to get it but this year 'they' put loads of fruit cocktail in it. Both Mau and I like plain jelly with ice cream. We started asking the servers,no joy, the waiters, no joy.I told Mau that we should go to the top so I buttonholed the Maitre d'. I knew him slightly last year.I believe that he thought it a strange request but I don't mind people giving me funny looks. No joy but Ross said he had told the chef,so ,up a level to the Food and Beverages manager who is french and a total sweetie.The French are not really into 'jelly' with or without fruit but I knew he would pass the message on.Still no joy BUT our Executive Chef Gavin wears a chefs hat one foot tall and I rekoned an ego to go with it so I 'grabbed' him when he appeared surveying one of his kingdoms.The next day at luncheon the head waiter brought both of us a plate of plain jelly.Mau started to eat hers but it was colourless and I tasted a small ammount---tasteless.!I swear it was Gavins revenge on us Mau was still eating till I told her to pack it in.Explain to the head waiter that we wanted plain fruit flavoured jelly and next day it was strawberry jelly but the funny thing is that it is kept under the counter of all the rest of the cakes and puddings, never on top.Gavin gets his final revenge because all this happened at the begining of the cruise and we have got fed up with jelly but we daren't stop eating it. I rekon it is a battle of wills and he checks every day to see if we have eaten some.Nobody else can because they can't see it.Ah me, at least I shall have strong nails. I think Fabrice and Rossen call us the 'Jelly Girls' and they always stop for a laugh with us when they see us around.As for me ,I am glad that Gavin does not know which is my meal at dinner,I hope.Off to lunch now,and jelly.XXXXX

A little bit more

Hello again, thought I would add a few words as we have got the Internet back on, strange how it has come on as soon as we got to the Med.
We have heard that a Fred Olsen ship has been ‘pirated’ off Somalia, have you heard anything? Gossip goes that the Ghurkhas 'saw them off 'and after having seen ours I can well believe it.
We came through the Suez Canal yesterday, the day before we were in Port Suez and from there we went on a full day tour to Cairo. It took us 90 mins to clear the port but one can understand all the security after that bomb went off a few weeks ago. We had a policeman on board our coach with a big gun and a security car full of police and guns with us. Of course tourism is very very important to Egypt. On our journey our guide told us that by Egyptian law traffic must give way to tourist coaches which incidentally were large and comfortable with excellent cooling system. We went to the Cairo Museum to see the golden mask, throne etc. of King Tutankhamen which were wonderful. I, of course bought three books so you will be able to have a good look Julie.
By the way thank you both for your messages. I can hardly believe the cost of your car repair Steve---clever boy. I am thinking which is my favourite place Jules, have not come up with an answer yet, more on that later.
Have I told you all about Jordan? I shall have to print out my blogs, then I know what I have said.
Cairo, with messing about with security and the terrible traffic we only had time for King Tut. After lunch we went to the Pyramids and the Sphinx, brill but disappointing, they were not in deep desert as I imagined, buildings were quite close and made the scene unreal to most of us. Got to go for lunch now so hasta la vista.

Back on the net !!!!

Port Victoria, on the island of Mahe in the Seychelles. I have tried to get onto my blog to read the comments and can't---again. It is the same as yesterday; Alan says it is a problem with Google so I will just have to keep trying. Anyway, the news since my last blog, Tanga, another stop in Tanzania was O.K. We did not have any tours as it was a spur of the moment halt thought up by Saga head office in place of the missed tours. The Captain has told us that we will also miss La Digue in the Seychelles because we have to be on time getting to the Gulf of Aden to join a convoy going through the Transit Channel .Captain Rentell who left at Mombassa said it was because of pirate activity????No matter we have plenty of guards on board and patrols on watch .I had decided to go on Safari to Tsavo game reserve from Mombassa, it was a two day one night excursion and involved a lot of travel in a type of off road 4by4.It was quite comfortable on the roads but bounced like mad on the paths in the game reserve. The lodge that we stayed at was very nice ,large bedrooms for a family really though they were used as singles. I had two large four poster beds with mosquito nets, very swish. The dining room was self service but really well laid out, two free wines or beers with dinner and no rush to leave after the meal. It was very pleasant to sit and chat, but I don't think many people stayed up late. The roof of the 4by4 lifted up on the game drives so one could stand up to take photos and also to get 'cool' air in as the windows had to be closed and we were not allowed to get out. It was wearying to say the least. I felt a wee bit stiff the next day. We saw lots of gazelles, a great herd of buffalo, a bit of two lions doing their thing in the afternoons, i.e. lying under trees. Only the body of the first one was visible and the head of the next one with two ears sticking up. Still you can't expect lions to get up and do a parade for the tourists. We saw a giraffe, well half one, half a neck and a head sticking up behind bushes. Plenty of elephants with a baby and another bunch on the second day walking along, swinging trunks. All of a sudden we came across a beautiful huge giraffe at the side of the road, just as if it was waiting for us. It stood there looking at us, we all, 5 in the car, jumped up so quickly to photo it it's a wonder we didn't frighten it. Beautiful creature, they have always fascinated me and now I think what a pity they are in zoos and just stand around all day. On the second day we went to a hippo area and saw about nine in a pond, just the heads poking up and the humpy backs. We went to a park type area, more water, very pretty place, more hippos and a crocodile. There could have been more crocs but they are masters of disguise, no wonder people get eaten. There was a lovely lunch in a different lodge in beautiful surroundings and after that, 'home James' which was boring to say the least. Bumping up and down for the first two hours until we got out of the park and then two and a half hours on the roads. The first thing I did was have a cold drink of iced water in my cabin then get rid of my damp clothes and stand in the shower. I thoroughly enjoyed it, would not have missed it but enough is enough. Yes Chris I am the first to admit that I am a wuss, I like my cold water when it is in the 90 degrees, tepid water is just is not the same and air blown into the 4by4 is still hot, hot air and not cooling. A fan in the bedroom is O.K. but it still only whizzes the same air round and round. It was ok in Aden and Singers but I was much younger then. It was wonderful to talk to you two boys today; I do miss you, especially when I cannot get in touch, stupid, stupid phone. So from a prize wuss, byeeeeeee. I am having trouble posting this, try again!!!!

Tanzania

Zanzibar, Tanzania.12 and13 Feb. We went on a tour today round the city. We had to go by tender to the shore as we were anchored offshore. It was 90deg in the shade and the Captain said it would be over 100deg in full sun, it really felt like it. It was uncomfortably hot walking around but thankfully there was some shade up the narrow streets. It is a predominantly Muslim country so 'cover arms and cover knees ' i.e. wear long sleeves and trousers, hot hot. It was very interesting, very narrow streets, some dirty, but we decided not to go into the fish or the meat market which pong terrifically. I got some vanilla pods and some saffron in threads so it should be O.K. It was strange to be in an Arab countryagain. Shades of Aden. I was fascinated by the Arab Dows Chris, they were belting along and the sails were at various angles some nearly horizontal sketched some, I think they are lovely, can't we have one? I can imagine your horrified face Chris !!!We went into a shop selling carvings bracelets, necklaces, clothing, it was great and they had air conditioning glory be. There are some beautiful doors in the little streets, very ornate; I would like to have sketched some of them. We went into a place where the slaves used to be held, terrible, dark, low ceilings stone benches, ugh. We also went to the Cathedral which has been built where the centre of the slave market was.There is a marked circle where the whipping post was. Apparently 'they' used to whip the slaves and the ones who held out longest without screaming fetched the most money. The screamers sold cheaply .What an awful way to find out the strongest. Could not send this, so I will add to it:

Sunday, we are in Dar Es Salam, still Tanzania. We have come here because the cyclone messed up our itinerary and Saga had to find new places for us to go. I enjoyed the tour here more because the coach was air conditioned and we went to a craft market out of town so it was a nice drive to see different types of living accommodation bought --very cheaply ,a Tinga Tinga painting peculiar to this area . A stylised Massai type family. It is very similar here to Zanzibar which is not surprising as it is only a short sail up the coast. Tomorrow, we shall be in Tanga, also in Tanzania so I guess it will be the same. Byeeeeee XXXXX

Mayotte

Thanks to Carol and Mike for the blog,-- when they return that is. Chris, thank you re Aloe Vera and keeping an eye on the house. I do hope that you enjoy your trip at half term. I can not put photos on my blog, I asked Alan last year. Pity about the Kart, but as you say, ' Weebers' have to find things out by themselves. Steve, I thought it said 'new series' in Jan maybe it said in the new year, Ncis I mean. Please keep checking for me. My tour in Mayotte was informative if uncomfortable. It was in the afternoon and I have never felt heat like it. I know it was 86f in the morning so it must have been pushing 100f in the sun early afternoon. The bus did not have air conditioning so there was little relief from the humidity. We walked down a twisting hilly path to see a place where Ylang Ylang is distilled for use in the perfume industry. I got some soap but the walk back up the hill was nearly too much for me. Was I glad to get back on the bus. People have been saying that it was the hottest they have ever known and these are people who have done the World Tour. Later on we went to a beach which was really nice. There were some French people bathing and sitting in the shade. Mayotte is a French Territory so I guess that is why they go there. Julie, M.Guerlain has his own plantation of Ylang Ylang, I wonder if there is any in our favourite perfumes. By the way Jules, did you see my question re. the embroidery that I am doing? We have a sea day today so it is crafts and art. In crafts we are making a necklace by threading tiny beads, I had just got the correct length when the big bead at the end came off. Chaos, beads all over the floor, every single one came off. Maureen helped me to pick them up and I started again, flipping beads. Well its bed time now, XXXXXXXXXXXX

Mayotte

Hello again ,this is where we are ,12 D 47.18 S , 45 D 14.71 E . Mayotte , Comoros Islands and from the deck it looks pretty good. I go on a tour this aft . Have I mentioned that Lord Michael Jopling joined us to give a series of talks and to do 'An audience With ' along with Lord David Steel ? Anyway it was very interesting and Lord Jopling's talk re. the last 50 years of change in Southern Africa was brilliant . Culture and Crafts , can't beat it .I have told Maureen that she is the ' kiss of death ' to my planned tours .When I told her that I had booked for Reunion -- she booked ,I told her I had booked for Nosi Be --she booked -- both cancelled !!! We have both booked seperately for Tsavo National Park from Mombassa so that should be O.K. I have booked for Cairo' the Pyramids and the Nile ,Mau has not but she will ! If there is a riot in Cairo and I can not go , I am going to throw her overboard . Kidding , she is my new best friend ,from last year's cruise . I now go for an early lunch ready to jump in the 'tender , and give Mayotte the once over . Byeeeeeeeeee .

Somewhere.

Well what a to do. We could not go to Reunion or Mauritious re. Cyclone Gael in that area. Today the Captain says we can not go to Nose Be in Madagascar re. the people killed there a couple of days ago. Apparently the F and C Office has made it a no go area so we 'no go'. Saga head office have said that their insurers have informed them that if we do go they will not insure us. Instead, Saga have found us another island. One of the French D.O.M.--T.O.Ms as is Reunion. It is Mayotte, a T.O.M. I believe ie. Terretoir Outre Manche which I learned about in a french class some time ago, that is arranged for tomorrow. Julie, the embroidery that I am doing is Bargello or Florentine stitch, have you heard of it? I am working up to stitching a tapestry which I have wanted to do for a while. Today 4 of us made 2 bracelets from gift wrap, safety pins and a few beads. Fascinating, they are to sell at a Charity Fair. Saga does all sorts of charity things, usually for children in underpriveledged countries, so we are doing our bit. I knew quite a few people here before craft and painting classes ----I know a lot more now. I have been reading on our newsletter about all the snow in England, it is amazing, I can hardly believe it.

Steve , have you remembered that you are going to record NCIS onto DVD for me please ? From FX. I have got 1 to 4. Chris, how are my Aloe Vera plants? It is nearly bed time so bee bye all. XXXXXXXXXXXX

Gael

Steve, thanks for your heartening message re. C. Gael , I read it Thurs night. Cap'n did not tell us until yesterday night ,did not want to worry us unduly I guess .It seems that we are deviating our path to keep away from Reunion , I am shocked and apalled and devastated too .I really ,really want to go to Reunion and have a super tour booked .Have you any more news about Gael ? I am praying that it will veer away .The sea is rough with quite a swell but I have taken my pills so no problems . I wonder if I would be OK without but if I try and am sea sick I shall be sorry.I think that Saga are very good in giving free pills out .When I left the South Cape Bar last night after a drink with Mau ,I went through the dining room to my cabin .All the little round bowls with a flower in were under the tables instead of being in the centre of the tables . Always a good sign that ,'Take your pills '.At the moment the Captain is in contact with the ' High Ups 'in Saga to try to find somewhere else to take us if Reunion and Mauritious are not possible,swear swear swear. Will tell about Maputo later haven't time now , very busy today ,have I said that I joined the 'Crafts 'group ?No , well I have and with painting group and drawing group I hardly have time to call my own . G.T.G. love .XXXX Could not send ,try again .The Captain says that the sea temp is 30deg cent and it is trying to make Ruby 30 deg . Our cooling system is having a hard time of it and we have noticed that it is warmer than normal .Fancy that ! I would like to have a swim in that sea . Bye again.XXXX

Durban

Durban. We went on a city tour but we were told not to go by ourselves into the city centre . Much too dangerous which is a shame as we mostly saw countryside for three and a half hours .We did drive by the beach but could not get out .We saw the skeleton of the football stadium which is being built for the football world cup by which I assume that it will be held here????? It is going to be hugmongous .Wonder if people who come to watch will be able to go into Durban city centre .Andrew Stewart ,our lecturer on Africa says that quite some time ago everybody who lived in Durban itself moved out into the suburbs and he himself would not venture into town .What a shame,pity the World Cup will not be in Cape Town .We made a ' comfort stop ' at a shopping complex but were only given 20 mins so had no time to look around .There was a Woolworths store which sold clothes ,some nice ones but no time to try. Maureen fancied a T.shirt but could not try on so did not buy. We were wanting to spend our remaining Rands as the cash in price was 'not good 'and so we spent them at a little market type place by the ship .Very strange coming back on board .Normally we never see our passports after embarking the ship until we are going home. Saga keep them ,hold them to be checked and stamped by customs and the ' people ' who come aboard to clear the ship. This time the authorities wanted to see each one of us with our own passport before they would let us on board so our staff gave each of us the requisite passport .After the scrutiny and ' stamping ' the man asked if I wanted it and before I had a chance to say oui or non it was whisked away with a stern' No 'from a stern faced female .Well at least I can say that my passport is guarded well .A day at sea tomorrow then Mozambique ,--Maputo . So till then mes enfants,byeeeeeeeeeeeee.

Cape Town

We have left Cape Town--- sadly, I absolutely loved it there. We went on a city tour Saturday also up Table Mountain in a cable car which was no way near as alarming as the one in Venezuela last year , that frightened me speechless. The view from the top was spectacular. We walked around a good way and took photos, I was surprised that there was not too much wind. These 'telepherique' are quite amazing really, one wonders if they ever break down or just even break. However, one tries not to wonder that until one is safely back on the ground, it does not 'do' to panic in a 'pod' with 29 other people. Friday we went ashore to look around, we were moored next to an american warship which was aparently a surprise to our Captain until the night before. Some passengers got Union flags and the loudspeakers played Rule Britannia, as we came alongside, what a laugh. They then played Land of Hope and Glory, our Captain has a good sense of humour. Lots of security, ---men with guns, men with dogs, to come back onto the ship there were the same things as at an airport. I believe that was South African security though. Anyway we walked on the harbour side, lots of super yachts Chris. The 'super ' is an adjective not a noun. There was an American brass quartet playing in a modern type bandstand, cool. Many restaurants and shops. We went to a bar restaurant for a coffee which nearly took the skin off our teeth, great. We did some people watching and listened to the small local group, magic. There was a car parked nearby, a beautiful shining blue and almost every man who walked past went to gaze at it and inside it. So did we when we left, it was an Aston Martin DB 9 I think---may have remembered wrongly. I asked our server to whom did it belong and he said, "me"! Joking apart it belonged to a South African man, rich family as one would expect who was probably out on his yacht . We had a lovely time poking around, it is a great town. We went back in the evening, same bar, had a couple of glasses of wine, South African of course and it was exactly to my taste. We went back for a 'last wander', Sat evening. We left at 11pm and once out of the harbour the fireworks started. They were absolutely magnificent and lasted for ages,
I think that they were better than in Soton. You can say this about the 'Brits', they neither arrive nor leave quietly. Bet the Americans are glad we have left. Julie, Steve said that you wanted to know why I had not gone ashore in 2 places. I can't say 2 ports because there was no port, everybody had to go ashore by a 20 minutes tender trip. The tours are rated E--easy, M---medium and S--strenuous. At one place the tour was S, which I would not attempt especially in equatorial temperatures. The other was the one with no shuttle bus, only a 1.5 K walk to a native shop after a 20 mins tender trip. It was too hot Jules. Had we been moored at a dock we would definitely have gone for a little walk. Those places are not tourist friendly really, it is because we were in west Africa and cruise ships do not go there normally. We made up for it in Cape town though. I would have liked 2 more days there really .Time for dinner now, I wonder what delights await. Byeeeeeeeeeee XXXXXXXXX

namibia

Steve, I have just read your message. We shall be in Capetown Thursday evening so I can ABW. ring you from there.I can not think why the asap if nothing is wrong. Julie sent me a message though which was just normal so I must assume that 0 is wrong. We have been in Namibia today , I switched my phone on this morning and it just switched itself off again so it is in reception being charged up.I have just been to Reception but my phone is no different so I dont know what is wrong, they are trying again . I have just tried to send you an e.mail but I can not , there are three of us inhere trying to get thro' all different providers but no go. Thats £2.76 down the drain ,it can't be helped . Anyway I shall save this as I doubt that I could get to post a blog .We have had a 'Polywog' day as we did last year for crossing the equator.Mau and I are 'Shellbacks' now as we crossed last year .It was good fun , I quite like to see people' kissing the fish '. It is quite disgusting and smelly .Burns night was good , the Haggis was piped in followed by by two kilted men ,one passenger and one of the golf pros. We had some haggis, tatties and neeps and were given a tot of whisky .Afterwards Maureen and I went to the South Cape Bar and had a 'Robbie Burns '. One wonders if these ' specials ' are made up on ' Ruby '.Scotch , Benedictine and Sweet Vermouth. I asked for some of the ice to be left in because it looked as lethal as 'Rolls Royce ' was. I went to the Recital before dinner which was excellent again ,I shall really miss them after Cape Town .Today in Namibia ,we went on a 'Dolphin and Seal ' watching tour. I did not like the look of the small boats which were half open to the sky but I soon found out why . The driver of the boat ' called ' to some pelicans nearby and they took to the wing and came to get some fish from him ,what beautifull birds and so big .The next thing we knew a huge seal jumped on board and came right up the middle of the passengers and lay there waiting for his fish .We could stroke him and he turned and looked at us ,huge eyes they have ,it is quite amazing how wonderful they are .A smaller seal came on board at the back of the boat and no.1 growled just like a dog so he had to abandon ship .I never thought to see anything like today's sights. We saw dolphins escorting us and leaping up it was amazing when I think how close they were.I will try to post this for a couple of minutes if I can't , maybe tomorrow .I am going to take a motion sickness pill before bed. The Captain said there will be a 'bit of a swell tonight ' and that means it could be a 'big bit of a swell ' .

0 deg 20.19 N ,6 deg 46.07 E

Sao Tome.I think itis friday but forgive me if it is not, it does not really matter on a cruise .The only day I am sure of is Sunday because there is always half a roasted cow up in the Lido restaurant . Today was a tender port with no shuttle bus into town on shore. A 1.5 k walk in over 30deg heat to the only shop did not appeal to us so we lazed on deck and read for a while------too hot. But , Chris you will be surprised to know that I painted a little landscape of the shore. I am quite pleased with it . I also painted one at Cameroon when I stayed on board , see ,I have used my paints !Yesterday was the rowing race around the ship . There were four lifeboats , two with passengers rowing ,one with male officers and one with female officers. What a laugh .One of the 'passenger ' boats lost their coxwain -- a twisted ankle so Joe ,our Entertainment Supremo took over.She is as fit as a flee , runs 4or 5 miles a day round the deck and is full of herself .In other words ---no contest .She was standing on the stern shouting out the strokes and the blokes were trying their best to keep up , it was hilarious . Of course they won , they daren't not .The male officers retired , their engine cut out but quite why they needed an engine in a rowing race is beyond me .I only know one thing ,if we have to abandon ship I want to be in Jo's lifeboat .It is great on this ship Maureen and I know many people .Jo bought us a drink in the South Cape bar two days ago, we know the Maitre d' , the head waiter, the Executive Chef ,the sous chef , some waiters and lots of passengers who were on the South American tour. Great ! Alan is here again helping people with the internet, he is here now having his ego massaged . He is well loved for the help he gives .I am going now to the sailaway . I will put our position on ,I could not send texts ,I thought it was quite interesting hanging around on the equator , The southern tip of this island is actually on the equator . ByeeeeeeXXXXXXXXXXX.

Limbe

Chris ,you would be O.K. here on your Atkins diet, plenty plenty meat and fish. You could have minute steak for breakfast if you got
tired of bacon . I hope that you and Steve get the boat sorted out when you go down to Dartmouth .Don't forget to take your cold
weather gear. Julie , I have asked Steve to save the Obama inauguration prog for me but I am telling you .in case he forgets .Yes Africa
is different from anywhere else I have been especially since we are calling at ports in west Africa . Normally cruise ships do not call
here .We have not seen any since Tenerife. No wonder that all the Africans are surprised to see us .Chris, is that correct that Hull is twinned with Freetown ? I know that we have Freetown Way but I did not think that it had any
significance. If that is the case it will obviously be connected to slavery. There is a gate in Freetown , when slaves walked thro' it and
reached the other side, they were free. The lady who gave a discussion re. above is going to put a reading list at Reception so I shall
get it.We really do have the ' Island Mentality ' in Britain don't we ! We have Lord and Lady David Steel on board and Lady Judy gave a talk the other day about the explorer Mungo Park and the Niger
where he did his exploring .It was very interesting but there were no photos as Lady Judy had not forseen making the talk, it was off the
cuff one might say.We are moored off Limbe, Cameroon today. I did not go ashore as there was a problem getting passengers into the lifeboats to get to
shore. Quite a swell and it was so hot that it would not have been pleasant walking around. Tomorrow will be a good laugh . The
Master has arranged for there to be a boat race. The cadets and some deck officers will row a lifeboat and some passengers will row
something else--not sure what .The race is around the ship and this is going to be on the equator ????? I shall be all eyes .Almost
time for dinner so byeeee.XXXXXXXXXX

Try again

I have just left a recital by The Brodovski Quartet which was excellent so I am still a bit 'away with the fairies'.The last piece that they played was 'The Arrival Of The Queen Of Sheba'.It was amazing, I never realised that there is a solo for the second violin and a duet for the viola and second violin . It is quite different seeing a piece played and hearing it on radio or disc. David --lead violin said that normally a quartet or a group go round a circuit and play the same 5 or 6 pieces probably adding one now and again but that they had quickly realised once they came on board that they had to quickly enlarge their repertoire .He thanked us for this and said how much they are enjoying it . They will leave us at Cape Town, pity .Yesterday we were at Lome, Togo . Maureen and I went on tour to a Voodoo show an hour's drive into the country , a lot of the time on dirt roads , very bumpy . It was very colourful and quite amusing, They buried a cockerel which looked comatose and then dug it up 15 mins later.' Brought back from the dead ' yeah, right . It did flap it's wings and make a heck of a row , probably scared stiff. One wonders how often it had been buried like that, bet it stopped it crowing in a morning , more likely trying to sneak off into the bush. It is nice to go ashore in out of the way places though . I know what a monkey in the zoo feels like now .Tomorrow we are going to Limbe , they have never had a passenger ship there before so that should be interesting .I am wondering if it is easy to access the net tonight or if it will be another £3 no go. Night night y'all.XXX.

Africa

Yesterday we were berthed at Freetown ,Sierra Leone. I had not originally reserved a place on a tour but I changed my mind as I am unlikely to pass this way again .The Deputy British Ambassador, Charge d'affair came on board to give a little talk about Sierra Leone . I know that there was a war here not too long ago but I did not know that the UN War Trials were still being held here . It is one of the poorest countries in the world but is improving little by little. The British are held in high regard here as Britain and others probably ,ceased to tolerate the atrocities and Britain sent in a force that took over and 'sorted ' things out. Anyway we berthed at 8am and on shore was a building with a balcony which was crowded with people watching us come in. It is 20 yrs since a cruise ship came in, re the war. Our tour was very enjoyable ,the poverty is obvious but the people are clean and smiling. We saw the huge cotton tree that was planted years ago by resetled slaves who came here after William Wilberforce did his wonderful job of abolishing slavery. The Cathedral is lovely and has plaques on the walls to many people who have died here, some saying 'friend of the negro' .When we had our 'Sailaway' party on deck with cocktails and a group , lots and lots of people came to wave us off . On the balcony , down the steps and all along the quay until we left land behind . What a day! There was a Cocktail Party last night for Britannia Club members of which I am one. The Master gve a speech which was as usual very amusing . Dinner was amazing .The three choices for the main course gave me a headache deciding which to have . Giant scampi, which are my favourites , tenderloin steak or guinea fowl which I have never had . I had scampi because I had steak the night before but Maureen said it was delicious so I shall have that next time . Nigel had the guinea fowl which he said was excellent so I might have that. Decisions, decisions all the time. Time for lunch so byeeeeeee.Well I did not manage to post that Fri or Sat. Alan was not here between 4 'n 6 so I could not get help. He will be here today so I may as well add to it while I wait.Today we have been on the shuttle bus into Takoradi ,Ghana. We went to the market, many people sitting by the side of the road selling fish, meat fruit and veg.The strangest thing is that I did not see any flies. I cannot understand that. It seems quite a poor country but we saw many many white garments and there was not a speck of dirt on them .The children were lovely , I took quite a few photos of them and they were overjoyed to see themselves, pity that I could not print some off for them. After about 45mins we got back into the bus. It was boiling hot and so humid but it was nearly mid day and we are almost on the equator so one can expect it. I sat on the deck under an umbrella and had a gin and tonic when I got back----it was after 8 bells after all. I enjoyed the trip and am glad that we braved the sun. I think that Alan will be here soon so I will say au revoir.XXXXXXXX.

Busy doing nothing

Hello again , we are at Tenerife today and the weather is warmer and sunny. I have not gone on a tour as I have'done ' the island with Steve, Julie and the boys.It is pleasant to laze around on deck and do the daily Sudoku andthe crossword .My fav. drink today is apple juice. We should sail tonight for Dakar .The internet facilite is 'down' so I am doing this and hoping to save it until the fac. is up and running again.Fliping internet!!!!There was a Captain's cocktail party two nights ago which I enjoyed very much. Plenty of gin and tonic ,whiskyand wine. Captain Rentell is a very good speaker so a good time was had by all .Super meal afterwards , I was spoilt for choice. Last night after dinner I went to a recital by our visiting string quartet .It was brilliant and theBritannia Lounge was full to bursting ,people sitting on the window sills and on the steps down to the dance floorwhere they were performing. They will perform again on Sunday, so I shall go.Now to see if I can save this . Wow it worked, thank you Stephen .Internet was 'up 'yesterday but I was too busy to come down and look .I sunbathed and did the crossword before lunch and snoozed in the sun . Marvelous lunch ,it was Sunday so there was a full side of beef in the Lido restaurant .I must say ,I like seeing my beef sliced from the 'hunk ' and not justserved to me on a plate. That says something about me but I am not sure what .Last night I went to another classical concert by the string quartet which of course was excellent .The first violin is a real character .Well here I go----- let's see if I can put this on the blog. Byeeeee.

number 1 message

Everything ok, more later. Love Mum.