Capnpugwash is off to the Mediterranean

[capnpugwash]

Update No 12

 

Another thing that I noticed today was the quite large number of men in their 60’s plus, who were wearing either cargo shorts or worse still, cropped trousers. These are what kids wear, not grown men. They are normally dark blue and made from nylon or some other synthetic material and have replaced the shell suit as preferred dress. We were discussing this at dinner tonight and a lady pointed out that there is usually a bandage or sticking plaster visible beneath these trousers which does nothing to add to their charm. We had a lovely meal this evening, the tablemates are all very pleasant and we have a good laugh. We were among the last to leave this evening. We left our mooring at 9.30pm as advertised and are now steaming in a very quiet sea to Barcelona. It is only a little over 100 miles away and we are due there in 9 hours so we will be killing time overnight. We have a force 9 headwind blowing as we steam northwest, so the sea may become a little more boisterous.

 

Overnight the ship was gently rocking from side to side, probably the wind but as the night progressed and perhaps we sailed into the lee of the land it subsided and the rocking stopped. The wind is now a force 4 with very slight seas. It is 7.15 and we have just sailed past the harbour wall into the port of Barcelona, sunrise is due in just under 1 hour and the forecast is better than yesterday with no rain and partially cloudy skies and the temperature should reach 53/12 degrees.

 

There are 11 tours of the town and local attractions for passengers today and they start from 8.30. They are of varying durations, from 4 to 9 hours. Personally I can’t imagine anything worse than a 9 hour trip, but maybe that is just me. I think that it is time for breakfast; I will have to remember to order the porridge without cinnamon or any other spices.

 

More later.

[northernsailor]

Still following and enjoying the posts.. pity the seas aren't doing anything interesting for you though! :)

 

Chris

[Miss Independence]

Good morning. Just popped in to catch up with your journey.

I am really looking forward to Barcelona, my husband & I visited on our honeymoon in 1965 and I hear they still haven't finished that church:)

Manana eh?

Keep the reports coming they are very enjoyable.

Thanks.

[capnpugwash]

The Sagrada Familia remains unfinshed even now.

 

Update No 13

 

What a beauty today has turned out to be, it is bright sunshine with not a cloud in the sky and the temperature must be 70 degrees, absolutely wonderful. I have just finished in the gym and steam room and feel totally revitalized, I was sitting in the sun up in the solarium and it felt like a summer’s day, on February 1st no less. This is a nice time of year to be away if the weather is like this, it is not so good when it is rainy and cold like yesterday. Let us hope that it stays like this for a few more days, 11 to be precise. The ship’s hooter has been sounded perhaps a dozen times this morning, I can’t see who they are greeting and am unable to work out why, unless it is all happening on the starboard side where I am unable to see. There might be a collection of RCIL ships visiting Barcelona today!

 

I have been having problems sending email messages for the last two days, I tried every remedy that I knew and in the end had to phone my ISP this morning, he solved it in less than two minutes by having me change the outgoing server port number from 25 to 587, why 587 is the right number is a mystery to me but it worked, so I can be my usual efficient self responding to clients and similar stuff. It is strange how being unable to communicate nowadays is awful, quite pathetic really our reliance on technology. I remember sending telexes, typing them out and then feeding the punched tape into a reader, and then the wonderful facsimile machine came along. Now we send and receive email messages on our phones. Where will it end?

 

The two gangways at this port are provided by the port rather than the ship and they lead onto an elevated walkway which takes you the short distance to escalators to the ground where coaches and cabs await, lurking on this walkway to catch the unwary passenger are two ship’s photographers accompanied by two bullfighters, dressed in all their finest matador paraphernalia, so now you not only return from Spain with a sombrero and a donkey but also a $24.95 snap of you and someone that you don’t even know. How sweet!

 

More later.

[capnpugwash]

Update No 14

 

I have been sitting on the balcony in the sun for an hour or so and a while ago the Pilot boat went out to an approaching cruise ship. It turned out to be the Louis Majesty, which is a line that I have never actually heard of, it was quite a nice looking ship about three quarters the size of this vessel, the decks crowded with waving passengers. It is great to see ships pulling into port; it reminds me of our island and nautical heritage. What I took to be a cruise ship is in fact a large ferry as it has just sailed out, two hours after arriving. The tranquillity of the scene is disturbed on a regular basis as large ready mix concrete lorries travel to and from a site 300 yards along the harbour wall. It appears that the wall is being strengthened or reconstructed as these machines disgorge their contents which are then pumped by two other machines over the wall where it is then used for whatever purpose. There must have been 50 or 60 lorries in the two hours that I observed and if I recall correctly they are each capable of carrying 9 cubic yards of concrete, which means that whatever hole they are filling is fairly sizeable. The operation continued after I came in out of the sun.

 

I was speaking this morning to a lady who was busy telling me that she is very keen to get to Gibraltar, when I enquired why; she informed me that the main reason was to enable her to go shopping in Morrison’s and Marks and Spencer. Isn’t it strange what people like doing on holiday, but stranger still that she tells me about it.

 

I went to Sorrento’s, the pizzeria on board. The pizza was a little bit flabby rather than thin and crispy as I prefer, it was certainly edible and tasted ok. What was really nice was the “Mexican pizza” which was like a 5 inch mini calzone stuffed with something quite spicy and then topped with a green salsa. I only had one of them but I could easily have had two or three. Do you think that salsa counts as one of your five a day! I am going to have go there again before I get off I imagine. I meant to say earlier that one of the strange things on board is that when you call a lift and it arrives, the warning gong is almost imperceptible and if you don’t see the car arrive, it is often gone before you notice. Another little thing is that people seem to press both the up and down call buttons regardless of their desired floor, when the car arrives they will get in and ride the opposite way to their intended direction rather than waiting for the correct one, so when you finally notice it’s arrival it is already full with people just riding up and down needlessly. Not a bad hobby maybe, better than living to go shopping in Morrison’s.

 

More later.

[Miss Independence]

I was speaking this morning to a lady who was busy telling me that she is very keen to get to Gibraltar, when I enquired why; she informed me that the main reason was to enable her to go shopping in Morrison’s and Marks and Spencer. Isn’t it strange what people like doing on holiday, but stranger still that she tells me about it.

 

 

 

Nowt so queer as folks eh?

We were very disappointed with the shopping in Gibraltar - it certainly did not seem very much cheaper if at all! On this up and coming visit we will forget shopping and go up the Rock and meet with the apes.

[moniquet]

Nowt so queer as folks eh?

We were very disappointed with the shopping in Gibraltar - it certainly did not seem very much cheaper if at all! On this up and coming visit we will forget shopping and go up the Rock and meet with the apes.

 

M&S in Gibraltar is very small and the prices higher than the UK. So are Morrisons although you can get a litre bottle of whiskey for about £4:cool: Couldn't imagine spending even half an hour in those places when on holiday.

[The Real PM]

Update No 14

 

I have been sitting on the balcony in the sun for an hour or so and a while ago the Pilot boat went out to an approaching cruise ship. It turned out to be the Louis Majesty, which is a line that I have never actually heard of, it was quite a nice looking ship about three quarters the size of this vessel, the decks crowded with waving passengers. It is great to see ships pulling into port; it reminds me of our island and nautical heritage. What I took to be a cruise ship is in fact a large ferry as it has just sailed out, two hours after arriving. The tranquillity of the scene is disturbed on a regular basis as large ready mix concrete lorries travel to and from a site 300 yards along the harbour wall. It appears that the wall is being strengthened or reconstructed as these machines disgorge their contents which are then pumped by two other machines over the wall where it is then used for whatever purpose. There must have been 50 or 60 lorries in the two hours that I observed and if I recall correctly they are each capable of carrying 9 cubic yards of concrete, which means that whatever hole they are filling is fairly sizeable. The operation continued after I came in out of the sun.

 

I was speaking this morning to a lady who was busy telling me that she is very keen to get to Gibraltar, when I enquired why; she informed me that the main reason was to enable her to go shopping in Morrison’s and Marks and Spencer. Isn’t it strange what people like doing on holiday, but stranger still that she tells me about it.

 

I went to Sorrento’s, the pizzeria on board. The pizza was a little bit flabby rather than thin and crispy as I prefer, it was certainly edible and tasted ok. What was really nice was the “Mexican pizza” which was like a 5 inch mini calzone stuffed with something quite spicy and then topped with a green salsa. I only had one of them but I could easily have had two or three. Do you think that salsa counts as one of your five a day! I am going to have go there again before I get off I imagine. I meant to say earlier that one of the strange things on board is that when you call a lift and it arrives, the warning gong is almost imperceptible and if you don’t see the car arrive, it is often gone before you notice. Another little thing is that people seem to press both the up and down call buttons regardless of their desired floor, when the car arrives they will get in and ride the opposite way to their intended direction rather than waiting for the correct one, so when you finally notice it’s arrival it is already full with people just riding up and down needlessly. Not a bad hobby maybe, better than living to go shopping in Morrison’s.

 

More later.

Yes, that happened to us with the elevators too. And one day there were some young teenagers who were having a great time pushing every single number in every single elevator. It made the ride a little longer. I guess they kids get bored on a ship sometimes!

[ollienbertsmum]

Update No 14

 

I was speaking this morning to a lady who was busy telling me that she is very keen to get to Gibraltar, when I enquired why; she informed me that the main reason was to enable her to go shopping in Morrison’s and Marks and Spencer. Isn’t it strange what people like doing on holiday, but stranger still that she tells me about it.

 

Do you think that salsa counts as one of your five a day! I am going to have go there again before I get off I imagine. I meant to say More later.

Don't worry Capn, if the Salsa is spicy it counts as five of your five a day. Eat 14 and you are done for the fortnight.

 

 

I would laugh at Lady Looking Forward to Morrisons but she is one of the people who makes the Gibraltar branch of Morrisons (it upsets me but there is no apostrophe there) their busiest branch. There am I trying to find a packet of tea and eggs for tea and all these PEOPLE on a trips fill up the queues in front of me.

 

On my last cruise we enjoyed shopping in Corsica. We got stuff that we didn't recognise, surely that is the whole point of travelling.

 

BTW I checked the shipping movements and your stop by was for medical assistance.

 

I was actually checking the day you come back. I work through the day and though I might catch sight of the Indy through a window I have decided to leave work early enough to go for a good walk up the rock (weather permitting) and watch you leave at 6 pm. All being well I will post my piccy of the outcome.

 

 

I was curious where we are going next and so I got out my RCI brochure. We have a day cruising and then 3 days in Italy. I am really going to pay attention because those are 3 ports I am visiting in the summer and I want to know what to do. Are we going native or do we have to get a ship tour?

 

Have a good day at sea, ready for the Italian trilogy.

[ollienbertsmum]

Yes, that happened to us with the elevators too. And one day there were some young teenagers who were having a great time pushing every single number in every single elevator. It made the ride a little longer. I guess they kids get bored on a ship sometimes!

 

I avoid the elevators, walking makes me feel like I deserve 3 desserts for lunch and afternoon tea. (the fact that my clothes shrink in the sea air proves that maybe I am not walking quite enough)

 

It is also quicker and you get to see the works of art.

[capnpugwash]

Update No 15

 

It is just after 5pm and it is still sunny, albeit very cool in the shade, three fishing boats have just returned to the port, they must have had a good day today because each of them is being followed by about 500 seagulls, swooping, soaring and crying out, hoping to get at the catch. I don’t think they will be too successful but they may end up with the bits of fish that the fishermen discard, so everyone ends up happy.

 

I was part of a discussion the other day concerning the lifts and the fact that they don’t behave logically sometimes, they pass floors even though they have been called. Part of this conversation was a lady who couldn’t understand why the aft lifts went to deck 14 yet the forward set stopped at deck 12. I was sitting in the steam room this morning when the observation popped into my head and it came to me, there is no deck at the front above deck 12 so how could the lifts possibly go up there. It never occurred to me when we were talking but of course it is blindingly obvious now.

 

Tonight is another casual evening and the meal was mostly Indian, with curries, samosas and biryanis, it was all very tasty. After dinner I had a martini in the Champagne Bar and then headed up to my cabin at around 11.30. Tomorrow is a sea day so the ship will be full. The sea remains very slight and we have light force 3 winds, but we do seem to be heading into cooler weather as we sail to northern Italy. The forecast is 46/8 degrees for tomorrow, which compared to today, could be described as very chilly. We are only sailing at 11 knots as we have plenty of time for our journey.

 

More later.

[capnpugwash]

Update No 16

 

I woke at 4am this morning and was dreaming that I was travelling with my son on a London underground train, rattling along swaying from side to side. It very soon became apparent that the wind has increased to storm force 11 which equates to 70 mph or 114 kph. It is blowing from the north as we track northeast across the north-western corner of the Mediterranean towards Nice. We are rolling a little and there is a slight pitch to the forward to aft movement, I suppose that it is a gentle corkscrew motion that we are experiencing. The waves are not that large, but rather long and rolling, perhaps 12 feet high. The real cause of the movement does seem to be the howling wind, the doors to my balcony are whistling as it blows across them. I am tempted to venture out to feel the strength of the gale but it is pitch dark and it might be more prudent to wait for sunrise, which is in three and a half hours time. I should probably try to get back to sleep but I am not sure that I will be able to.

 

More later.

[Illinoisgal]

English for baked potato :D

 

thanks :) that is what I thought but wanted to check. that is one I hadnt heard before.

[capnpugwash]

Update No 17

 

I wasn’t able to get back to sleep and the time here is now 7.30am. The sea state remains unchanged but the wind has dropped significantly to 50mph or 80 kph which is force 9, we are only 50 miles or so southwest of Marseilles, level with the Spanish border, so I believe that either the land may be affording us some shelter or the wind has blown itself out. The ship is still corkscrewing and the sky is lightening in preparation for sunrise in 19 minutes. I just ventured outside and it feels quite cold but the sky is a baby blue again with very few wispy clouds and the wind strength has reduced to a force 7 in the past 15 minutes and is now blowing at about 35mph. I just went into the bathroom to find that the towels which were hanging on the rails were all on the floor, obviously caused by the ship’s motion, but why are the rails all made from round tubing rather than using a square section? Wouldn’t that simple change stop this happening? All of the night’s excitement seems to be over with the lessening of the wind so I think that I will go and have some breakfast. I think that there will be few of us down there this morning!

 

More later

[northernsailor]

Cap'n,

 

At last something from nature! ;) Are there many kids aboard? I would hope most would be at school.. but you never know :/

 

What would you say was the average age compared to your other cruises of this time of year?

 

Chris

[BMT]

M&S in Gibraltar is very small and the prices higher than the UK. So are Morrisons although you can get a litre bottle of whiskey for about £4:cool: Couldn't imagine spending even half an hour in those places when on holiday.

 

I agree. Amazes me that down here so many people travel to Gib to do their weekly shop. The reasons appear to be that it is much cheaper to buy petrol there and that as their pensions are in pounds, their weekly shop is cheaper. I don't get it really - the shops are more expensive and they are using quite a bit of petrol to get there!!:eek:

 

We are perfectly happy with Carrefour - and Supersol and, down the list, Mercadona. El Corte and PB are enough of a day out for us.

 

Beautiful sunny day down here - cool again. Off to Marbella this afternoon. Parking seems to be the problem there - we shall see - will go at about 3.00pm when it should be easier. Siesta time everyone!!!

 

I am going to try and see if I can see Indie travelling down the coast to Gibraltar. I don't know if I am seeing Africa or whether there is an oil rig out there!! High structure during the day and well lit at night!!

[capnpugwash]

I would say that there are about 60 kids on board, most below school age. Average pax age about 65 ish

 

Update No 18

 

There were only 10 of us at breakfast initially but by the time I left at just after nine the number had increased to a little over 100, and there was a queue to get into the room as usual. The Captain apparently announced last night that we were heading for high winds but they should reduce and stop by 10am, sadly I didn’t hear it. It is 9.45 now and I am going up to the gym for a while. I am just back having completed my cycling and rowing, neither of them is supposed to be high impact but my knees still ache a little. The wind does seem to have lessened to a force 6 as predicted by the Captain, he is very good, but then I suppose he should be. We are running parallel to the south coast of France, just south of Marseilles heading past Nice, Cannes and Monaco and on past Ventimiglia on the Italian border to Livorno tomorrow.

 

Tonight is the penultimate formal evening; the last one is in 9 days time, two days before we arrive in Southampton. We have had one already so we will only have a total of three during the entire trip. It seems strange that we have been away for 8 days already, but it also seems strange that we have only been away for 8 days, if you understand me.

 

The American activities host, Steve Davis, from Milwaukee has just been on the tannoy announcing that bingo cards are available for sale for the next thirty minutes and that the prize will be some amount of dollars. He seems to be a reasonably pleasant individual but fairly dim, very smiley but no depth of knowledge or apparent common sense. He reports on the Morning TV Show that he went out for lunch in Palma and had a dish of Mussels in a cream sauce and having eaten the entire dish of mussels including those that hadn’t opened, was surprised that his stomach was upset. He had apparently never been warned of this fact. I thought that it was common knowledge or Seafood 101. Maybe I am being harsh but I think that he would be more suited to a job as a barker with Barnum and Baileys travelling circus.

 

More later

[Mrs Miggins]

Really enjoying these posts - booked on the Indie in October - I see that the good Capn spends a lot of time on cruises ! Lucky you. Just curious though - I realise you have probably visited all these locations before - but not quite clear as to whether you actually get off at any of the ports. Your onboard post is so enjoyable and funny - could only be improved by some of your thoughts on the ports !

[upwarduk]

I am enjoying reading your journal, as we are booked on Indy 04.01.12.

Can anyone explain what a 'knockoff' is?

in Italy it is now LAW that the PURCHASER, not the seller, can be prosecuted for buying knockoffs.

[BMT]

I am enjoying reading your journal, as we are booked on Indy 04.01.12.

Can anyone explain what a 'knockoff' is?

 

Knockoff = copies, fakes. ie Rollex, Lewis Vuiton etc. etc.

 

Have to agree with PC about Steve - love the description:D I do think they make an amusing pair - Joff is so John Cleese and Steve so.....cheese!!!:D:D

[vtbobby]

...or worse still, cropped trousers...and have replaced the shell suit .

 

OK. I'll bite. What are 'cropped trousers' ? "Shell suit"? :confused: If 'porridge' is really 'oatmeal', I can only imagine eating it in very cold weather...and with lots of cinnamon. :rolleyes:

 

Actually, loving your reports, as usual, Jim.

 

Cheers:cool:

[Frenchlu]

Yum yum. We have porridge every morning, even when it is 40 degrees. It is slow release and good for the metabolism. Very good if dieting. Never had it with cinnamon, just a little Golden Syrup as opposed to the salt used in Scotland. These cultural differences are great.

Last year I got stuck in the toilet at a cafe in Pompei, (meaning that the lock was stuck) and when I told the story later an American thought I meant stuck in the toilet bowl!!! Thats the difference between "English toilet " and "American bathroom". Lol

 

Loving the review, BTW.

[capnpugwash]

cropped trousers are what you call Capris, I believe, a shell suit is a shiny track suit type of suit that is favoured by trailer park folk.

 

Update No 19

 

There were only 10 of us at breakfast initially but by the time I left at just after nine the number had increased to a little over 100, and there was a queue to get into the room as usual. The Captain apparently announced last night that we were heading for high winds but they should reduce and stop by 10am, sadly I didn’t hear it. It is 9.45 now and I am going up to the gym for a while. I am just back having completed my cycling and rowing, neither of them is supposed to be high impact but my knees still ache a little. The wind does seem to have lessened to a force 6 as predicted by the Captain, he is very good, but then I suppose he should be. We are running parallel to the south coast of France, just south of Marseilles heading past Nice, Cannes and Monaco and on past Ventimiglia on the Italian border to Livorno tomorrow.

 

Tonight is the penultimate formal evening; the last one is in 9 days time, two days before we arrive in Southampton. We have had one already so we will only have a total of three during the entire trip. It seems strange that we have been away for 8 days already, but it also seems strange that we have only been away for 8 days, if you understand me.

 

The American activities host, Steve Davis, from Milwaukee has just been on the tannoy announcing that bingo cards are available for sale for the next thirty minutes and that the prize will be some amount of dollars. He seems to be a reasonably pleasant individual but fairly dim, very smiley but no depth of knowledge or apparent common sense. He reports on the Morning TV Show that he went out for lunch in Palma and had a dish of Mussels in a cream sauce and having eaten the entire dish of mussels including those that hadn’t opened, was surprised that his stomach was upset. He had apparently never been warned of this fact. I thought that it was common knowledge or Seafood 101. Maybe I am being harsh but I think that he would be more suited to a job with Barnum and Baileys travelling circus.

 

More later

[vtbobby]

cropped trousers are what you call Capris, I believe, a shell suit is a shiny track suit type of suit that is favoured by trailer park folk.

 

 

Men of any age in Capris/Pedal-Pushers? :eek: A horror in any language!

 

I must admit: I do wear Sportif Cargo shorts, but only in the tropics or on a sailboat. :rolleyes:

 

The heavy winds that you encountered would have been the 'Mestral' off Catalan...and the 'Mistral' off Provence. ;)

[capnpugwash]

Update No 20

 

Dinner and the ensuing conversation were very entertaining and our table was the last to leave the dining room, it was almost 11pm by the time we left. I had a couple of after dinner drinks and then headed off to bed, a little after midnight. The night passed without any repetition of the previous night’s weather conditions and this morning, as we approach Livorno at 6.30am, the sea is flat calm, and there is a slight breeze. We have just entered the harbour of Livorno and are manoeuvring slowly towards our berth.

 

There are about 30 coaches and 50 taxis on the dock waiting for the various tours today. The sun is shining in a cloudless blue sky, in the distance the snow capped Italian Alps are standing invitingly.

 

I have just spoken to the friend who is meeting me today and he is about 30 miles north of Livorno so hopefully he should be at the ship by midday, and then we intend to go into town, eat and drink a little and hopefully get back on board before we sail at 6.30 tonight. We then have a short hop to Civitavecchia which is the port that serves Rome, the Eternal City. Trouble is that it takes an eternity to get to Rome from the port. It is about 2 hours each way which means that any tour has to be quite a long one.

 

More later.