Capnpugwash is going to the Caribbean for Christmas 2011 on P&O’s Arcadia.

[capnpugwash]

Update no 6

 

I have finally worked out how to turn the TV display off on the proper upright bikes so I was able to watch my slow progress to expend 200 calories, it wasn’t either too hard or too long and I am told that cycling is low impact which is supposed to be good. I gave rowing a miss and headed out to the Neptune pool for 35 minutes of swimming and water exercises, whilst there, about 6 of the crew were clambering about on the glass roof with window cleaning mops and squeegees. I went into the spa and 25 minutes later the roof was opened and slid back to allow the sun to shine inside. I think this must mean that we are in for some fine weather, not that it is bad at the moment.

 

There is a very light scattering of clouds but it is basically sunny, we are dawdling along at 15 knots, the sea is slight and there is not a ship in sight, it would be quite perfect if it were a little warmer. When we arrive in Madeira the forecast is for warmer dry weather with temperatures of 19/66 degrees.

 

As I returned from the spa I walked through the shopping mall and thought that I might buy myself a bottle of Eau Sauvage after shave, I used it in my youth and I remember that I like the fragrance. I found a bottle and it was as nice as I remembered so I picked one up and took it to the desk, in passing I asked how much it was and was shocked and horrified to be told that it was £49! When did it get that expensive, for heaven’s sake it was never anywhere near that price even allowing for inflation. To make me feel better and to try to regain the sale she explained that it was over £100 off the ship. When I bought my first car in 1971 it only cost me the price of three bottles of after shave so needless to say I returned it to the shelf and walked away smell-free and with my money in my pocket.

 

The noon announcement has just been made and we are 280 miles from Funchal, and have 260 metres of water beneath our keel, a slight sea and a temperature of 16/61 degrees. I am going to skip lunch today and then will try and play a little better at whist this afternoon; although the truth is that you can only play the cards that you get dealt, it’s a lot like life really. And so it proved, we play 12 hands and an average score would be 6 or 7 points per hand, after 4 hands I had amassed a score of 12 which is an indicator of a terrible time. Nonetheless it was fun and the 34 passengers who attended all got on very well and seemed to enjoy themselves.

 

A quick cup of tea followed with a mince pie or two, the pastry was all butter and the filling was packed in and was so very tasty that the second one just jumped onto my plate. Then it was back to the cabin to collect the papers for Spanish and now, just before 5pm I have 30 minutes until the individual quiz starts at 5.30. What a hectic life this is and it is supposed to be a holiday. As we are in Madeira tomorrow there won’t be a Spanish class but normal service will resume on Thursday. It is getting warmer and warmer since the roof was opened and it is now 19/66 degrees which is quite comfortable. The sea is slight and is very pancake like and the force 3 breeze is negligible, there is a slight cloud build up but the vast majority of the sky is clear blue and lovely.

 

The quiz was a disaster and I only just managed to scrape 11/20, I should know that you were allowed 5” of bath water during WW2, the first non-human Oscar was won by Mickey Mouse and that Argentina won the 1986 Football World Cup, I do now of course. The dress code for this evening is Smart so as I have previously expressed, it won’t take me too long to prepare.

 

More later

[lynnpresco]

sounds like you found out the joys of table for six

[Scrapnana]

Update no 6

 

What a hectic life this is and it is supposed to be a holiday.

 

 

Capn'

 

I have friends who say they would be bored on a sea day with "nothing to do". Next time someone says that to me I'm going to have them read the account of one of your journeys!

 

Kathi

[capnpugwash]

Update no 7.

 

The meal was a delight and we had some very good conversations although we did have 2 no-shows who appear to have moved away, I think that it their loss. The quiz went quite well in that we knew 19 of the answers but only selected 16 of them and on the other 3 made the wrong choices. We ended up second out of 20 teams by 1 point, so it was not a shabby result by any means. The time is 11.45pm and it remains as warm tonight as it has been this afternoon, the sea is calm and there is a very slight force 2 breeze.

 

Today is Wednesday December 21st and we have arrived at Funchal, we are moored on the furthest end of the protective harbour mole which protrudes like a long finger from the land and forms the harbour wall. Funchal is placed at the south eastern tip of this semi-tropical island which is about 500 mile west of North Africa. It is 8.15am and I was woken by someone making an announcement over the ship’s public address system about the excursions. I am going for a stroll around this pretty town later this morning which may well involve a visit to a café or a restaurant.

The weather is partly cloudy and 18/64 degrees with a gentle breeze from the east, I am just off the buffet for breakfast. Weetabix and coffee was again the order of the day and I came back past the pool and found that the roof was already open although the air felt cool; it will warm up as the sun gains some more height. I am getting changed and will go ashore within the hour. Funchal has provided a free shuttle bus to take passengers to the centre of town rather than have us wandering around the working port area and getting run over by a passing stevedore.

 

More later.

[conniedoug]

On my way to breakfast I bumped into a young Filipino girl, who had been my steward on a trip on the Artemis well over a year ago, I guess that I must either have been a good or a poor tipper as she remembered me by name and we had a nice chat reminiscing over the passing of that particular vessel. It is quite incredible when you think about how many people she would encounter during her contract on board.

 

More later

You know what they say, Jim... "Once seen, never forgotten":D

 

Delighted to read that you are enjoying your trip so much. Reading your excellent blog is punctuating my days and l find myself questioning, yet again, why you never sit down to complile your blogs into a book?!

A very Happy Christmas to you & yours.

Anamaria

[u2cruiser]

Update no 7.

 

The meal was a delight and we had some very good conversations although we did have 2 no-shows who appear to have moved away, I think that it their loss. The quiz went quite well in that we knew 19 of the answers but only selected 16 of them and on the other 3 made the wrong choices. We ended up second out of 20 teams by 1 point, so it was not a shabby result by any means. The time is 11.45pm and it remains as warm tonight as it has been this afternoon, the sea is calm and there is a very slight force 2 breeze.

 

Today is Wednesday December 21st and we have arrived at Funchal, we are moored on the furthest end of the protective harbour mole which protrudes like a long finger from the land and forms the harbour wall. Funchal is placed at the south eastern tip of this semi-tropical island which is about 500 mile west of North Africa. It is 8.15am and I was woken by someone making an announcement over the ship’s public address system about the excursions. I am going for a stroll around this pretty town later this morning which may well involve a visit to a café or a restaurant.

The weather is partly cloudy and 18/64 degrees with a gentle breeze from the east, I am just off the buffet for breakfast. Weetabix and coffee was again the order of the day and I came back past the pool and found that the roof was already open although the air felt cool; it will warm up as the sun gains some more height. I am getting changed and will go ashore within the hour. Funchal has provided a free shuttle bus to take passengers to the centre of town rather than have us wandering around the working port area and getting run over by a passing stevedore.

 

More later.

 

Cap'n, probably too late now as you won't get back to the computer.

There is a lovely hotel in the old town, on the sea front, called Porto Santa Maria. We called there in November for a drink and to use wifi. Very nice pool area outside, overlooking the ocean, to get a cooling drink and a coffee. Excellent staff and I'm sure lunch would be very good there. :)

[capnpugwash]

Update no 8

 

I got off at about 10am and the shuttle bus dropped me off on the main road opposite the marina, I needed to have a screw tightened in my sunglasses and fortuitously it dropped the passengers next to the Ocularios, I popped in there and the screw was tightened on the wobbly arm which solved the problem. Next call was to an ATM and armed with some Euros I went in search of somewhere with free Wi-Fi, the Gods were smiling because within 150 yards I had met 2 friends from the ship who had the same quest and we found a bar which met all of our requirements. 2 cold beers and 20 minutes on the internet and we were all set. They went off to the fish market for some bizarre reason and I headed down to the marina where I found a whole raft of restaurants in the bright sunshine.

 

I went to the first one that I came to, it was called something Marina and I recommend it, not having any good reason to pass it by and ordered a beer, the beer arrived and I then asked for some calamari, the waiter delivered some shellfish and I pointed out his error, he apologised and explained that the dish was actually limpets from the coast of Madeira. I must say that they looked rather like mussels on a round shell so I said that I would have them anyway. I am so glad that I did because they were delicious. Having eaten those he delivered the calamari and there is no comparison between that dish and the nasty rubbery offerings that we get in England. They were great, I needed a half bottle of vinho blanco to accompany it and some bread ( o pao) to dip in the sauce, and it was all fantastic. While I was sitting there a German couple arrived and had 2 pints of beer each and shared a large plate of chips. Then some crew from the ship arrived and I knew that I had chosen my restaurant well. I believe that the Captain of the Arcadia may have been among them. These are the circles in which I think I move! I followed my meal with 3 espressos and 3 ports, the whole meal was less than 40 Euros including the Wi-Fi and was truly delicious, the sun was shining and one cannot ask for much more than that on the shortest day of the year in the UK. I really like Port and thought that it would almost be a sin to come here and not drink some even though it is a drink that I seldom have nowadays, the past is a different matter of course and I do have some tales of vintage port extravaganzas in which I have taken part, they are wonderful memories even though they are somewhat hazy.

 

I am now back on board as I want a steam; I will give the gym a miss this afternoon as it doesn’t mix with seafood, wine and port, and just basically relax. I have no idea what time we are due to sail but I believe that it may be 6pm. We will then start our 2600 mile journey to Antigua, we have 5 days to get there and at 500 miles per day I think that we will have to put the pedal to the metal and average over 20 knots rather than the pedestrian 15 or 16 that we have been making.

 

The sun is still shining and it is 2pm, I am off now to sweat the port from my veins so that I may do it all again later. I accomplished my simple task and to cool off I spent 30 minutes in the Neptune pool, the roof was still open and it was glorious. The temperature reached 27/81 degrees, the clouds disappeared and there was a cooling on shore breeze. You could say that it was just another day in paradise.

 

A quick historical note for you; Madeira is part of an archipelago which was discovered between 1418 and 1420 by Portuguese sailors under the direction of Henry the Navigator. We are due to sail later to Antigua which is the largest of the Leeward Islands with a reported population of 70,000; this will take us 6 days so we will arrive on December 27th. How Santa Claus will find us in the middle of the sea is a mystery, but possibly has something to do with GPS.

 

More later

[capnpugwash]

Slooow internet, double post

[capnpugwash]

Update no 9

 

When we arrived this morning the Fred Olsen ship Black Watch was already docked and later in the morning we were joined by the Aida Bella. We let go our lines just after the individual quiz started and we sailed out from the harbour, dropped off the Pilot and commenced our west south westerly crossing to Antigua steering 248 degrees at 19½ knots through a slight sea, the air temperature is now 19/65 degrees. 16/20 was all that I could achieve in the quiz so no cigar there I am afraid.

 

Tonight the dress code is casual so I only need to find a shirt to wear which shouldn’t be too difficult. I put some shirts in yesterday morning and on P&O ships the laundry operate a returned within 3 days service, however they are normally back within 36 hours. I don’t know why it would ever take that long but I suppose they like the leeway that it gives them. They don’t operate a same day service for laundry for some reason although they do for their pressing service.

 

I am in dire need of a G&T so I’m off to the Piano Bar. After a few I went into dinner and we had a very nice time, the food has not been great but just about acceptable. As I walked back to the front lifts I saw that the chefs were busy on deck 2 in the atrium constructing a ginger bread Christmas display, they have it every year and it normally looks fantastic. They will finish it overnight and it will be unveiled in the morning. Apparently we have a couple of minor celebrities on board as passengers, one of them will have the pleasure I think. I know that Jane Macdonald is one of them; she is a singer who made her name on a TV programme about singing on board a cruise ship and the other one is an actor in Coronation Street, but I have no idea who he is or who he plays.

 

We were successful in the Syndicate Quiz scoring 18/20 and winning the wine. The current weather is a comfortable 18/64 degrees, the sea is slight with low swells and we have a south easterly force 3 breeze. We are making 20.5 knots on a course of 250 degrees. We gain an hour tonight at 2am as we head towards the Caribbean Islands.

 

More later

[jenny wren]

Thank you for these entertaining posts Captain....it's really helping to get us in the mood for our upcoming transatlantic on Oceana...our third (previously crossed on Oriana and Ventura) we really love the sea days, and are glad to hear that it is getting warmer now you have left Madeira :)

[capnpugwash]

Update no 10

 

Overnight we continued our smooth passage and now at 6.45am on Thursday December 22nd nothing has really changed, the weather is unaltered except the temperature is now 19/66 degrees, the sea state is slight and our speed is almost 20 knots. Sunrise is in 36 minutes and the sun won’t set for a wonderful 10 hours and 23 minutes, the temperature is expected to peak at 20/68 degrees.

 

Even having gained an hour overnight the ship is very quiet this morning, I went to the buffet for breakfast at 7.45 and on the way I stopped by the gingerbread display to take some pictures, there are no trains running around which is a slight disappointment to me and a crib scene has appeared at one end. I can’t say too much about that addition as it is probably quite appropriate in this season. The buffet was almost deserted and there were only 30 or 40 people there. Having had my Weetabix and coffee I am ready for what the day has to offer me.

 

I visited the gym and did 100 kcals of cycling and a paltry 75 kcals of rowing, even looking out through a massive window onto the shiny Atlantic Ocean it is still mind-numbingly boring and I was delighted to finish and go outside into the Neptune pool for a further 45 minutes jumping around and swimming. I then went to the hydro-pool in the spa which is like a very warm bath, I was the only person using it and I did notice that the tiled floor surrounding the pool was very grubby and stained as though it hadn’t been mopped for a good while. While talking about the floors in the spa, they are mostly covered with shiny ceramic tiles which when wet are absolute treacherous, walking on them with wet feet is equally unsafe. There are warning signs posted in most areas and some rubber mats are available in the spa but the majority of areas are terribly dangerous.

 

Returning to sit and cool off by the pool I was confronted by a large pool of vomit on the deck, the cleaners were just arriving to deal with it. I can’t believe that it was caused by sea-sickness as the sea is almost flat but apparently the protagonist had been drinking for a couple of hours and at 10am decided that it was time to throw up. Those of you who have a little maths can work out that he had been drinking since the bar opened at 8am; obviously passengers are free to spend their time as they choose but beer at that time of the morning may not be the most popular breakfast food and clearly didn’t work.

 

We have just had the noon announcement and it was quite uninspiring, often the officer is amusing and witty whilst imparting the information. Not this one, he must have just returned to duty after a particularly successful charisma by-pass. I am unsure for how many days the officers are on a particular shift but I hope that his rota changes soon and we get someone a bit livelier to do it.

 

I want to skip lunch again although I do know that they are serving Belly of Pork in the restaurant which is a favourite of mine, but I am made of sterner stuff and will stay in my cabin otherwise if I am wandering around I am sure to wander into the restaurant. Whist is back on today as it is a sea day so at just before 2pm I will head to the Orchid restaurant to continue my quest for victory, or even for a few decent hands.

 

More later

[Bell Boy]

"These are the circles in which I think I move in ! " (#32)

 

You can say that again cap'n ! ..... otherwise you'd have not been sitting at the same table as me the other week ;):D;)

 

I'm off to Mary's party the day after New year, 'where you'll be sorely missed.'.... However, I'll keep your Bar stool warm for when you next return.

 

Thanks for daily updates........ even if thy are P&O ;);) (sorry folks only an in joke... don't reply back !)

 

Happy Christmas Cap'n to you and your family.

 

Bell Boy:)

[capnpugwash]

Update no 11.

 

Whist was OK if you are an active member of Exit; I barely scraped 60 tricks in 12 hands which put me 32 behind the eventual winner. It was a quite disastrous hour really but even though I didn’t score well, it was still good fun. It is almost time for my Spanish lesson and I wonder if we will have some no-shows who prefer to sit in the sun rather than in a classroom, it doesn’t sound like a bad idea really but I must persevere. The teacher is a young lady named Siobhan Longano, her family come from Northern Ireland but she doesn’t have a trace of an accent. The temperature is 23/73 degrees and the wind is now a force 5 but the sea is still slight and we are making 19 knots. I must say that it doesn’t feel at all like 3 days before Christmas with this lovely sun shining down on the ship. The Spanish lesson went well but it is scheduled for 45 minutes and the time really flies by, she does a basic lesson in the morning and a large number of the class for improvers also go to that one which increases the depth of exposure that they get. It doesn’t suit me as it interferes with my gym/spa/swimming routines and I am only really looking for an excuse.

 

I have 30 minutes now until the individual quiz starts, fortunately it is only 2 decks down and is next to the forward stairwell so it takes very little time or effort to get there. Our current position is roughly 350 miles west of the Canaries and we are due south of the Azores, the weather conditions are unchanged again. The quiz was won with 18/20 and I managed 16 so it was no disgrace really.

 

Tonight is a formal evening and the entertainment in the theatre is provided by Bobby Knutt who states that he is a 66 year old comedian, I have neither seen nor heard of him so I will tell you about his show tomorrow when I find out some more about it.

 

Dinner was very good conversation wise but again the food was ok but not great, it is really matter of degrees but the chefs somehow just don’t quite make it. I realise that it is mass catering so I do make allowances for that and I am more than prepared to let some matters go by unaddressed, and I have yet to make any complaint to the waiters. The best that I can say is that it is ok and the staff do try very hard and nothing is too much trouble for them.

 

10.30 was quiz time and after deducting our 1 point as a handicap for winning yesterday we still managed to tie for first place with 15 points net. The tie-break question was “what year did Wimpy open their first premises in the UK”? We answered 1956 and the correct answer was 1954 so as another team had picked 1955 they won. Ironically on each of the 4 questions that we got wrong, we had discussed the correct answers but elected to go with another one. So it was good fun and we shall do it all again tomorrow.

 

It is 12.10am and we continue on our course of 249 degrees, the sea is slight with low swells and our speed is 19 knots. The air temperature is 21/69 degrees and we have an easterly force 6 wind.

 

More later.

[tom_uk]

...the entertainment in the theatre is provided by Bobby Knutt who states that he is a 66 year old comedian, I have neither seen nor heard of him so I will tell you about his show tomorrow when I find out some more about it.

 

He comes from Sheffield and is, I think, very much a northern comedian, probably of the old school. He's done quite a bit of TV over the years - never the starring role, but supporting parts. He was in Last of the Summer Wine, for example.

 

What he's best known for in Sheffield is that for many years he starred in whatever Christmas pantomime was being staged at The Crucible or The Lyceum theatres. I think a generation or more of Sheffield people will have fond memories of him from those pantos.

 

But he's obviously not doing panto this year.

[capnpugwash]

Update no 12

 

Today is Friday December 23rd and the time is 6.45am, the ship is sailing along very quietly through a smooth sea with low swells and there is barely any motion, the air temperature is 21/70 degrees and the sun has just risen into a quite cloudy sky. I am certain that during this morning the sun’s heat will rid us of that cloud cover and it will be another lovely sunny day. I am awake early because the clocks were put back 1 further hour at 2am this morning so in reality the UK time is 8.45 and I have slept in.

 

I am just reading Horizon which is the daily programme on board and my eyes fell on the opening times in the buffet. The service is continuous, 24 hours per day with the exception of 11.45am to Noon, and 5pm to 6.30pm. How is one to cope I wonder? Of course the answer is room service which operates on a 24/7 basis, most of the selections are free but some of the do attract a charge like £1.50 for a chicken and bacon sandwich and £4.50 for a seafood pie. The description of the pie makes it sound very attractive but I still don’t really understand why these and other items are chargeable, there is probably a very plausible explanation if I were to enquire.

 

I am going to breakfast shortly and I hope that the buffet is as quiet as it was yesterday. It was and I met with the Spanish tutor and we sat together and chatted about all manner of things, sometimes in Spanish and others in English. She is a really nice girl and has only recently got married so her husband is travelling with her and acting as her assistant, to me that seems like a great way to spend your first Christmas together.

 

The time for the Spanish lesson has been moved today to Noon as there is a Hanukkah service this afternoon in the room that we usually occupy, in the grand scheme of things it doesn’t really matter but it throws my usual schedule into a bit of turmoil. I still want to do everything that I normally do in a day but I may just have to skip the gym in order to be able to fit everything in.

 

More later

[lannp]

The buffet is closed 5:00-6:30 pm.?? So if you want an early dinner and don't wish to dine in the dining room you must order room service? Hmm.

Skipping the gym, tsk, tsk. No dessert tonight.

Linda

[capnpugwash]

He comes from Sheffield and is, I think, very much a northern comedian, probably of the old school. He's done quite a bit of TV over the years - never the starring role, but supporting parts. He was in Last of the Summer Wine, for example.

 

What he's best known for in Sheffield is that for many years he starred in whatever Christmas pantomime was being staged at The Crucible or The Lyceum theatres. I think a generation or more of Sheffield people will have fond memories of him from those pantos.

 

But he's obviously not doing panto this year.

 

Apparently he was OK and is doing a panto on board on Boxing Day

 

Linda please see below re dessert

 

Update no 13

In the end I took a stroll around deck 9 and the pool area sampling the sunshine which was glorious, the force 6 winds do take the edge off a little and I can imagine that this evening the restaurant and bars will be full of lobster like people who didn’t notice the sun burning them. We must have picked up some Germans in Funchal as 75% of the sunbeds on the sunny side had towels laid on them by 9am with no-one in sight. I sat there for about 45 minutes and no-one returned to claim the beds, I was really tempted to remove all of the offending articles but in the end I just couldn’t be bothered.

The sea is building a little and is now classed as moderate with similar sized swells so there is a distinct rise and fall as we move across the water at 18 knots. I had a coffee in the Crow’s Nest bar a little later an in spite of it being made with an individual plastic filter pot it tasted quite insipid reminding me that I should have gone to one of the two commercial coffee outlets on board. There was just a call for the Assessment Party to attend an incident on deck 2 in the restaurant, after less than 5 minutes they were stood down and it seems that there was a small fire in an electrical locker which was quickly resolved. It is good that we got the chance to witness how a real emergency is dealt with, especially a fire which has to be one of the most serious threats on board any vessel even if it isn’t on its own in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. So I must say well done to the crew of Arcadia.

I am just back from the Spanish class and there were 15 of us there, it was great fun and very educational. It is a very good group that we have and we are becoming more comfortable with each other and with speaking during the lesson. I now have just about an hour before whist is due to start; I am taking my swimming gear with me to head straight to the pool to get some exercise and some sun while it is still nice and warm. I will skip lunch today especially as I am missing out the trip to the gym and I won’t be going to the buffet for tea after the whist so I will certainly be ready for dinner this evening. The dress code is smart tonight so I will have to search out a jacket to wear.

Whist was better today and I actually had 10 good hands out of 12 but I still didn’t manage to win but I was only 8 tricks away from the winning score which was a lot better than it has been thus far. I did skip both lunch and afternoon tea and I went to the Neptune pool but the sun had moved down in the sky and it was quite cool in the water. I managed to put up with it for half an hour and then went to warm up in the steam room. The individual quiz starts in an hour so I am back in the cabin having a rest before it starts.

I did very poorly in the quiz only scoring 15/20 but the winner scored 19/20 so I would have needed an amazing performance to even tie with him. I am just getting ready for pre-dinner drinks and I know that Christmas can’t be far away as they are showing Frank Kapra’s film “Wonderful Life” and then playing Slade on the radio. The ship is pitching a little this evening as the sea state has increased a little to be classified as moderate the temperature is 21/70 degrees with an easterly force 6 wind.

I had a couple of G&Ts before dinner which was actually very nice, I started with Bury Black Pudding and a duck egg, lentil and ham soup which was delicious the steak and mushroom suet pudding. I skipped dessert and thoroughly enjoyed the meal.

Afterwards in the quiz we made the tie break again but were wrong in the answer that we gave. It is now 11.50pm and the ship is bumping along quite a lot even though the sea state is shown as moderate. We have a force 6/7 wind but are making 19 knots through a balmy 21/70 degrees.

More later

[Pemcorgimum]

Teaching a class of Spanish on a cruise ship? I could do that, or a French class. Now why haven't I thought of that?

 

Jim... if you get a chance could you ask your Spanish teacher how she got the job? :D

 

Enjoying your reports as always.

[capnpugwash]

Teaching a class of Spanish on a cruise ship? I could do that, or a French class. Now why haven't I thought of that?

 

Jim... if you get a chance could you ask your Spanish teacher how she got the job? :D

 

Enjoying your reports as always.

 

She got it through an agency and I will try for the details.

 

Update no 14.

Overnight the rocking continued and now on Saturday December 24th it has reduced a little, the time is 8am and I have just woken. The morning has quite a thick sea mist obscuring everything; we are making 19 knots through a moderate sea with a force 7 wind blowing across us from our port side. The swell size has increased from small or low to moderate as well. The term moderate seems to cover a multitude of sea states, from almost calm to quite lumpy. The swell size has as much, if not more, effect on the ship’s movement than the sea state especially when the sea is almost benign. The temperature is a sticky 23/73 degrees currently although it will probably increase as the sun strengthens. We didn’t gain an hour last night but will tomorrow morning as a Christmas present. I think that there will be one further change after that before we reach Antigua in 3 days. Speaking of presents, upon returning last night I found a box containing a rather fetching black plastic credit card holder embossed with the P&O rising sun logo, I assume that it was the P&O logo rather than a sign depicting the country of manufacture. I know that it is wrong to look a gift horse in the mouth but this nasty little thing is my reward for loyalty and is the gift for Gold members of the Portunus programme. I will treasure it for moments.

I am heading for breakfast now and I actually indulged myself with bacon and tomatoes which apart from the rather fatty bacon was quite nice. I should just have had the tomatoes as they were delicious. I realise that most bacon when heated exudes a nasty white foamy substance but that is cheap cured bacon I believe, dry cured bacon doesn’t have the same problem but it is more expensive but with the purchasing power of P&O or Carnival I would have thought that it wouldn’t be impossible to obtain at a decent price. I know that on Cunard the allotted daily spend on food equates to a little over $10 per person so if you converted that to sterling and called it £10 each it might mean that there isn’t the money to buy decent bacon.

On my way back I went via the aft pool on deck 9 which is called the Aquarius pool, it is half the size of the Neptune pool and is a little deeper at the maximum of 7 feet. The nicest thing about it is that it is open to the sky and has the benefit of the sun until it sets as there are no really high superstructures around it. I discovered that what I assumed was mist was actually misty rain; I don’t expect too much sympathy from you at this news and hope that it will pass soon, it’s now 10am though and it shows no sign of stopping. After that adventure I went to reception to obtain a provisional bill which had no nasty surprises and as there was no queue I spoke to the Future Cruise staff about next Christmas, the fares seem about 12½% higher for a similar trip and rather than £250 per person on board credit that I received this year, the offer is only £100. I won’t be making a booking but I will wait until next December when if it is like this year the 50% discount offers for cabins were being made and I will take advantage of them. I am sure that the Acadia isn’t travelling full for this cruise in spite of what we are being told, there are empty tables in the restaurants. Some of them may be empty because people are eating in the alternative locations but it doesn’t explain them being constantly unoccupied.

There have been 4 weddings on board already since we left Southampton and I think there are 2 more today, they don’t take very long and are mostly held in the Viceroy Room by the Crow’s Nest bar. That is usually the venue for our Spanish lessons so we are relocated to another room if the times clash. Today our lesson is in the Intermezzo bar on deck 2 at 11am for example which is in 30 minutes time.

More later

[perky spain]

Can u please ask teacher if she will b on the world cruise as joining in Barcelona 12 jan and need to improve my spanish!!

Much Gracias

[capnpugwash]

No she gets off in Southampton

 

Update no 15.

 

The Spanish lesson encompassed Christmas carols in that language which was very festive and interesting, there were 18 of us there in the bar area and a few passers-by joined us as we were singing and I think that everyone had a good time, I certainly did. We just had the Noon announcement which didn’t tell us very much other than the fact we are 2350 miles from Southampton and over 1200 miles from Antigua. The sky is still fairly cloudy but at least the rain has stopped. I hope that the sun does come out fully although the chances do seem fairly slim.

 

I am not having lunch today but rather will play whist in 20 minute’s time at 2pm, I intend to go to the gym after that but apathy may well overtake my good intentions and I may just have a Christmas Eve swim and steam. At 4.30 this afternoon Santa Claus will emerge from the funnel and descend to the Aquarius Pool on the aft of deck 9 where the passenger’ choir will be performing. I am not entirely sure why they continue with this event in the absence of children on board, but they do so who am I to say Bah Humbug to it.

 

I was so close to winning whist this afternoon but was beaten by a man who had joined us for the first time, I am not a naturally suspicious person but I should have checked his card to make sure that he was adding the scores correctly. Anyway the prize is only a sticker so I let it go but I will be watching him in future. Afterwards the sun was shining brightly still so I went into the Neptune pool and stayed there until after 4pm, it is not bad is it? There I was in an open air swimming pool in the sun at about 70/21 degrees late on Christmas Eve’ afternoon and the water was still warm as well! A quick steam followed and at 4.40 I am back in the cabin in time for the individual quiz at 5.30. Santa will have appeared on the funnel by now so everyone there will be having fun, I will content myself with a Bushmills and water. It is quite delicious.

 

Tonight is a casual dress code and I am going to get a top up of God after dinner at the Catholic midnight mass. I always attend this service when I am on board as it is so very special to the hundreds of crew members who are so far away from their loved ones and their wives! As it starts at 11.30 it probably shouldn’t be called a midnight mass but it is; that start time will interfere with the Syndicate Quiz which normally lasts until 11.45 so I may have to leave the rest of the team to their own devices. This can be hazardous as they might win and then realise what little I add to their strengths, I can’t wish them bad luck but maybe not too much good luck is not too much to ask especially when considering where I will be and what I will be doing.

 

Happy Christmas or as we Spanish speakers say, Feliz Navidad to you all

 

More later

[capnpugwash]

Teaching a class of Spanish on a cruise ship? I could do that, or a French class. Now why haven't I thought of that?

 

Jim... if you get a chance could you ask your Spanish teacher how she got the job? :D

 

Enjoying your reports as always.

 

Please email me for info.

[Bispham Boo]

Merry Christmas to you too. Reading this with a carol concert in the background in a wet & breezy Blackpool. I think I'd rather be where you are!:)

[NSWP]

CapnPugWash, Feliz Navidad. Great blog you are doing. Keep Arcadia in good nick, we are on her March 9 for 49 days Sydney-Southampton, don't eat all the kippers or drink all the looney juice (cider)

 

Above all, ENJOY !

[capnpugwash]

Update no 16

 

We are more than halfway from Madeira on our trip to Antigua and we should arrive there in 2½ days on Tuesday morning, the sea days are absolutely great but it will be quite nice to step on dry land and probably head to a beach for a swim in the sea. I am not the greatest fan of the Caribbean Islands and always consider that are all very similar with not very much to offer except trinkets and blankets which was what we used to sell to them all those years ago. I think that it is a great shame that very few of them have any industry or businesses that are unrelated to tourism, they all used to but now they seem to just sit around waiting for the cruise ships to disgorge their passengers and then they slowly leap into action running them here and there to the various tourist sights. I guess that I shouldn’t be so critical but it just strikes me as such a shame that they are reduced to earning a living this way. Having said that, if the sea is nice and warm, I can easily ignore the other things!

 

I went to the quiz and once again I was 3 off the mark, I got 15/20 but didn’t know that DVD stood for Digital Versatile Disc or that the Castle Cup is a cricket competition in South Africa, I knew the country as Castle is a great bottled beer that I have drunk there in the past. Back in the cabin and there was a present on the bed from P&O, they normally give cufflinks, shirt studs or a leather box or similar, this year it is a box of chocolates by Charbonnel & Walker and they are very 16 very posh truffles from a shop in Old Bond Street, London but it is still just a box of chocolates. Gift horses and mouths come to mind but I ask you, is this really a proper well considered present? How long will it last? I still have the cuff links and studs and I keep them in a lovely leather box and I am reminded of P&O and Christmas every time I open the box, these chocolates will be gone long before I get off the ship and there will be nothing to remind me in the future. I sound a really ungrateful person but honestly I am not, I am just really disappointed that they are so stupid as to buy these chocolates as gifts. It seems to me that someone at P&O has said, ”oh we can just give them chocolates, it'll be OK, they don’t matter, they're only passengers”. Nice job someone!

 

I went to the Piano Bar and at 8pm was joined by a 40 passenger choir who sang 10 carols and Christmas songs, it was really nice and they gave a great show. At 8.30 they finished just in time for dinner, I had a delicious meal of whitebait, leek and potato soup followed by steamed lamb pudding. The lamb sounds quite nasty but was excellent. A trio of ice creams finished the meal and I am back in the cabin killing time until the mass starts. We witnessed a fantastic electrical storm during dinner with the lightning dancing around and on either side of the stern for about 45 minutes. There is something really exciting about lightning at sea.

 

The sea state has reduced significantly and is now calm rippled with low swells, the temperature is 23/73 degrees and we are making 19 knots with a gentle force 3 breeze. There is no humidity on deck which is probably a result of the electrical storm reducing it. I have decided not to go to the quiz and hope that they do well without me, but not too well.

 

 

Today is Christmas Day and the time is 7.10am, I have just woken to a breathtakingly beautiful baby blue sky dotted with tiny puff balls of wispy clouds, I think that today is going to be a good day. The sun rose at 6.45 and is due to set 11 hours later at 5.45pm, how good is that! The sea seems oily calm and we are making 19 knots on our course of 249 degrees, we have light airs and the temperature is 23/73 degrees.

 

The Mass last night was lovely, I am no religious zealot but there was a very nice atmosphere in the restaurant where it was held. The priest was wandering around before the service in his daytime clothes with a clerical collar and then he put on a white cassock and his vestments and he was transformed into the man in charge. There was a 12 piece choir made up with Indian waiters and a Filipino waitress, the waiters tried very hard but couldn’t really decide which note or key to sing but the waitress had a lovely clear voice that raised the hairs on the back of my neck. The service was quite devout without being too God squad and only lasted 45 minutes including 5 or 6 hymns and carols so the priest did a good job and didn’t waste any time. He is funded on board by an organisation called Stella Maris which cares for the spiritual and physical well-being of seafarers of all nations. There were about 400 people at the mass, 350 crew and 50 passengers so in some ways I felt like an interloper. The crew who participated in the choir and readings all had to practice in their own time and in addition to their usual onerous duties which demonstrates how important the service is to them.

 

I have just heard that my team narrowly lost by one point last night in the quiz so my position seems safe especially as I knew the answer to one of the questions that they got wrong. I am going to the main restaurant for breakfast this morning as I feel that I deserve some special Christmas treatment. As it is a sea day today the Spanish lesson is at 4pm this afternoon so basically I have the whole day to do as I please. Maybe some gym, definitely the pool and spa and a fun game of whist. I have arranged with the restaurant manager that we can have tea and cake served to all the whist players at 2.30 in the card room which will be a nice treat for everyone. The ship’s staff tries to be really accommodating with requests of this nature which is probably why P&O have such a loyal bunch of repeat customers.

 

More later