Capnpugwash is going to the Canaries again

[capnpugwash]

Update No 22

 

The sea has reduced to a flat calm as we approach our berth in Vigo, it is still raining slightly and the bulk of the warmth has disappeared, the temperature is 14/57 degrees and is only forecast to rise very slightly during the day. I went to breakfast just before 9am and the room was very busy, there were no tables to share so I was escorted to a table for two by the window on the starboard side, this is adjacent to the cruise terminal. It never ceases to amaze me that ships maintain tight schedules in spite of the weather, tides and currents. We were due to dock at 9am and at 9.01 I saw a monkey fist land on the dockside from the stern gallery. This knot gives weight to the light rope that is used to pull the heavier mooring line onto the shore to secure the ship. We have sailed 830 nautical miles from Lanzarote through some interesting sea conditions and landed within 60 seconds of our target time. No wonder Mr Rynd has been promoted to the giddy heights of Commodore.

 

As I entered the restaurant I met one of the waiters from my former table and he wondered if our moving table was in some way due to his service, I quickly reassured him that his and his assistant’s service had been stellar, isn’t it nice that the grew on board take such responsibility for everything that happens. After we had chatted for a couple of minutes he understood exactly we had gone and his face was wreathed in smiles.

 

I had a nice breakfast, although no conversation, and got back to the cabin to find an invitation to dine with the new Commodore at his table this evening, isn’t that fantastic! The invitation is also extended to Janette and Richard who are travelling with me. That has quite made my day.

 

If it dries up this morning I will head ashore and explore a local fish restaurant which has been recommended to me by my sister.

 

More later.

[capnpugwash]

Update No 23

 

The weather let me down today in a very sneaky way, at just after 11.30 I was walking down the gangway from deck 2 and I noticed that there was a very fine misty rain falling, you know the type; it doesn’t wet you for a few minutes and then you realise that you are drenched. The result was a quick u-turn and back in to the same security man that had so recently let me out. I explained the rain to him and he looked at me as though I was an imbecile to attempt to go off when it was so obviously going to rain.

 

More good news, the alert level for Norovirus has been reduced to amber so the increased wiping and serving has been done away with, this is good news for all on board, especially the crew who had so many extra duties to perform as a result of the red alert.

 

Looking out of my cabin, the sky is totally obscured by light grey clouds, not a sight of sky and the tops of the hills surrounding the city are fully obscured by mist and low clouds. It doesn’t look very promising for my big day out in Vigo. I suppose it will be fish and chips in the Golden Lion for lunch, thinking about it, that doesn’t sound too bad after all.

 

More later.

[moniquet]

Really enjoyed your "blog" be sorry when your cruise is over:)

[capnpugwash]

Update No 24

 

Lunch was excellent, the fish was juicy and the batter was crisp and light, spot on really. I only had 7 chips in my serving which although it looked somewhat parsimonious was actually just enough. A pint of Spitfire Ale, served at room temperature completed this gourmet meal. Not quite the Spanish meal that I wanted but an excellent substitution.

 

We are due to sail this evening at 5pm, north to Cape Finisterre and then across the Bay of Biscay to Ushant, off Brittany. This will take most of tonight and tomorrow for us to complete. We have 38 hours until we are due at the Mayflower Terminal on Sunday morning.

 

Happy Easter to you all.

 

More later.

[Ray66]

How strange that you have had such poor weather when over here in the UK it has been hot and sunny all week reaching 24C/75F degrees yesterday and the same today.

[Cornus]

Thanks Capn for providing my laugh of the day. I feel for you with the tablemate thing. I have had some "interesting" ones as well.

 

Denise, you couldn't possibly be referring to moi?:eek:...or Kazzie...or Paul...or Angela...or:confused: Sorry we'll miss you on our Oct. crossing. Maybe we'll meet up in 2012?

 

Capn, enjoying your reports and can't wait until I'm back on board the QM2 in Oct.

[Jimsgirl]

Suspect the Cap'n spoke about this to Mrs Rynd, since he seems to have had several conversations with her in the Commodore Club, rather than the F& B Manager (or his staff) reading this page and this particular thread.

[Jimsgirl]

The Quote button did not work, I was referring to Cap'n P trouble at his table for dinner.

 

It is also interesting that he received an invite to dine with the Rynds , as I said it really looks as if it is all a result of conversations in the Commodore Club I am sure he mentioned spoke re his postings of the trip.

[capnpugwash]

The Quote button did not work, I was referring to Cap'n P trouble at his table for dinner.

 

It is also interesting that he received an invite to dine with the Rynds , as I said it really looks as if it is all a result of conversations in the Commodore Club I am sure he mentioned spoke re his postings of the trip.

 

I didn't mention the matter to her at all, and as a matter of interest I met her once for no more than ten minutes.

[Norfolk Brit]

How strange that you have had such poor weather when over here in the UK it has been hot and sunny all week reaching 24C/75F degrees yesterday and the same today.

 

Too damn hot, what?:D I was going to be uncharacteristically kind and not mention it.

 

Sir Martin:cool:

[thranite]

Too damn hot, what?:D I was going to be uncharacteristically kind and not mention it.

 

Sir Martin:cool:

 

Positively Baltic compared to your current residence, I should think.

 

:)

[conniedoug]

I didn't mention the matter to her at all, and as a matter of interest I met her once for no more than ten minutes.

 

Wouldn't you think that, by now, regular followers would have realised that you are the soul of discretion & would never abuse your 'notoriety' in a Machiavellian manner! :D Those of us who have met you immediately recognised that it was your wit & innate charisma that afforded you & your table-mates an invitation to the 'top table'!:) Thanks for keeping so many of us entertained over the past while. Hope you have a great Easter & l trust you get a chance to put your feet up for a bit after all the excitement of QV.

In fact, a Happy Easter to one & all.

Gracias

Anamaria

[capnpugwash]

Update No 25

 

The rain has continued pretty much all day so I went to the spa about 1.30 and spent a pleasant couple of hours there. As I was getting changed afterwards I looked through the window overlooking the terminal and on a rain soaked plaza there were about 8 segways being ridden around by some youngsters. I imagine that they were available for hire but hopefully if you did, you could use them to venture into town rather than just running through the puddles in ever decreasing circles. Maybe they are worried about people stealing the machines so they have to keep an eye on them. In truth you couldn’t get very far on them, although I don’t actually know their range. Our all aboard time is 4.30pm, in 25 minutes time. The hilltop clouds have lifted but there is still no blue sky visible. There is the final sail away party on the Lido pool deck, sadly it is soaking underfoot up there and not particularly conducive to high spirits, you need the sun and some steel band music to get things going. Having said that, as I type, the sky is brightening and the cloud is thinning with the merest hint of blue appearing. I hope this bodes well for our crossing of the Bay of Biscay.

 

I have a gull standing on the handrail of my balcony; it is quite a pretty bird with spotlessly clean plumage and a very nasty hooked beak. It also seems to have webbed feet, which is news to me but logically they do dive into the sea for fish so perhaps they will assist them to swim. It looks very imperious twisting its head from side to side and cocking it to one side inquisitively. I have never seen one up close before and certainly not for two or three minutes, suddenly it was gone.

 

The whistle has just sounded one long blast as we slipped our lines and moved off, it is 4.40pm and we have 680 nautical miles to sail to reach Southampton which we should accomplish at an average speed of just over 18 knots. I just looked out of my cabin and thought that I was taking part in Hitchcock’s famous film “The Birds”. There were a couple of hundred enormous gulls swooping and stalling very close to my balcony. Terrifying really, I assumed that we had disturbed the seabed as we pushed off but it wasn’t that at all, it was the people in the adjacent cabin throwing food off the balcony to them.

 

We have been sailing southwest to clear the estuary that leads to Vigo and will be turning to starboard soon to begin our north northwest track to Cape Finisterre. A mist has descended onto the sea, hopefully it will thicken into fog so that we start to sound the foghorn, I know that it may sound peculiar but I really love the plaintive sound of the horn being operated, especially when the sun has gone down and night descends. It is very eerie and quite spooky but it does make the sailing more real.

 

I went up to the Commodore Club about 7pm and there was a nice crowd gathered, about 7.45 I had to leave to head to the Senior Officers cocktail party, it was held in the Queen’s Room and they had canapés and drinks available. It was quite warm in the room although there were only a little over 200 passengers there. After this it was time for dinner. I reported to the desk of the Maitre d’ and we were escorted to our places on the Captain’s table. The menu was the usual Britannia fare and was excellent as normal. The Commodore and his wife Julie are both really charming people and were a total delight to share a table with, as were all the other guests. Time flew by and before we knew it, the time was 11pm. We all bade farewell to each other and went our separate ways.

 

I went back to the Commodore Club and had a couple of cocktails to relax after the rigours of the day, almost in a flash I realised that 2am had come and gone, I popped into Hemispheres disco and had a couple of dances with a charming young lady who I had met on a previous voyage. After this I headed off to my cabin, where I now sit compiling this missive. It was a great day; I had a lot of fun and chatted to some really lovely people. I feel so privileged to be able to do this and continue to meet such great passengers; it is a further delight when I next see them on another cruise.

 

The sea is feeling a little lumpy tonight but we are in the throes of crossing the Bay of Biscay so some motion is only to be expected. I hope that it will rock me to sleep fairly soon.

 

More later.

[FoghornLeghorn]

CAPN...looking at your "still to come" list, I see that April 2012 is open. I would love to see you and your lovely wife on the April 27 TA on the QM2.

:D:D:D

[capnpugwash]

Final Update No 26

 

The sea state remains pretty much the same this morning and the mist has descended even further, sadly not enough to merit the use of the foghorn. We are just over half way through the Bay and should reach Ushant by the middle of this afternoon. The sky is grey but I hope that the sun might burn some holes through it. Currently the temperature is 56/14 degrees, the waves are large at 3.5 metres and there is a moderate gale of 32 knots blowing. It is quite comfortable, at least for me.

 

I have just had my final favourite breakfast of Eggs Benedict for this trip and am in the cabin mentally preparing myself for the task of packing up to go home.

 

This 10 day cruise has been quite wonderful, it has been a great deal of fun and I have met some lovely people who have greatly contributed to making it so. In no particular order they are Christopher and Julie Rynd, Jane and Norman, Rebecca, Pru and Paul, Iain and Lynn, Janette and Richard, William and Karen and Neil and Arlene. I wanted to mention Trish but she asked me not to.

There have been a few less than pleasant moments since boarding, but I won’t dwell on those as they are of no real consequence to me, the overwhelming and abiding memories that I will have will be totally positive. My glass is half full rather than half empty and I do hope that view never changes.

 

Thank you for allowing me to share my thoughts and views with you and I appreciate the kind and supportive comments that you send. I hope that we can do this again soon.

 

Fin.

[northernsailor]

Thanks for the report, Cap'n. Enjoyed reading all the updates :)

 

Chris

[phoebecat]

Would like to echo all the very good Cap'n's sentiments. It has been a wonderful cruise, and some fabulous people met and conversed with. Very hopeful that Mr PC and I will see them again at some juncture on board this glorious ship or another.

 

Our evg ended like the good Cap'n's with a few dances in Hemispheres, but I wasn't tired on heading back to the stateroom, so did a few pre-packing chores and eventually retired about 4 am. Lie in this morning/afternoon (oops!), packed up, and about to have my final massage and then cocktails to round off the trip. As we have a much longer journey home now having moved house since our last cruise, we will be taking the alcohol consumption easy this evg, but will no doubt enjoy a few drinks and nibbles (at last! at last!) before we depart.

 

Although it has been a fabulous cruise in terms of meeting some wonderful people, one couple on our dinner table just about finished me off last night, so we will for the first time ever break with tradition and eat au casual in the Lido this evg. A lighter meal certainly won't do Phoebecat's podge any harm, but it has been a shame. Poor Mr Phoebecat has bruised legs from where I have constantly kicked him under the table at the snidey remarks coming from our companions. The usual gripe - complaints about things which are not complaints in the true sense of the word, but it annoys me intensely when we get tarred with their brush. The Maitre D' stopped us en route to our table last night, apologising for the slow service this couple had complained vociferously about. We had to explain to him that it was THEIR complaint, not OURs and we were perfectly happy as ever with the service, food, etc. So irritating.

 

A few asides: found the dress code and general manners of fellow guests much improved since we were last on board in August 2009. That can only be a positive. Although a fair few number of small people have cruised along with us, on the whole they were very well behaved - their parents likewise! The crew and staff have been as ever so polite, helpful and kind. They really cannot do enough.

 

It is always a shame to disembark, but we will be back later in the summer, and should anyone wish to hear my musings (which are far inferior to the good Cap'n's and for which I apologise unreservedly for tacking them onto his 'blog' in this instance) I would be delighted to add a few words when we 'do' the eastern Med in August.

 

Until then, au revoir.

[heywood]

Thanks to you both for sharing your travels with us.

What a shame that you too had your dining spoiled.

On our last table for 8, two of the ladies did not hit it off- and it ended with one couple removing themselves. We and the 4th couple thankfully got on with each other and the other two couples separately. This made life a bit difficult sometimes if we met up with the 'couples at odds' during the day anywhere- hoping that we weren't spotted 'conversing with the enemy'.

Thankfully Mr H, who is very sensible said that as it was not our concern we could speak to anyone we chose :p The sad thing is- it spoiled their holiday.

[archie401]

Thank you, Cap'n and Phoebecat, for your fine narratives. Well-written and very enjoyable. I leave in a few weeks to see the Norwegian Fjords on the QE, and your travelogues have raised my already high anticipation!

 

Happy landing.

[wombat34]

Thankyou Captain and thankyou Phoebecat for your amusing and informative travelogue - it's certainly whetted the appetite for my own voyage on the Queen Elizabeth in 12 days time.

I'm glad that you both enjoyed the trip, despite the somewhat (at times) inclement weather and table companions.

And I, for one, would be delighted to hear further tales from Phoebecat during her next adventure afloat!

[north east girl]

Hi Capn and PC, Sad that your journey will be over soon. Have enjoyed reading all accounts of the journey.

 

Next Saturday I will be on a journey of my own. May even try to do a live from, I'm taking my lap top to watch the royal wedding on our journey down on the train. Doing the 5 day trip on QE to Amsterdam, Zeeburgge and Le Havre. Really looking forward to trying QE for the first time.

 

We will be on a table for 6, hope we all get on. Mind you I am a very easy going person, so should be alright.

 

Safe journey home.

 

Catherine

[heywood]

Catherine,

 

have a great time - I am very interested to hear your comments re QE.Your future tablemates are fortunate to have you and Paul as companions :)

 

heywood

[archie401]

Hi, Catherine...

 

I'll be anxious to read your impressions of your voyage on the QE, as I will depart soon after.

 

'Have a great trip.

[north east girl]

Hi Heywood and Archie, Thanks for the good wishes, will be doing a report if not live then when I get back.

 

Catherine

[Aquaphobic]

Thanks, Cap'n, for another interesting and enjoyable read. I've noticed you've also booked the 10 Nov. QM2 Westbound and I look forward to seeing you again.

 

Regards,

Ted