Cruising to the Canaries – Part One

Day One – Saturday

As I have made the Baltic level of the P&O Peninsula Club, I have a few perks on this holiday, one of which is an early boarding time. Today I am allowed to board P&O’s Ventura from noon. According to Apple Maps, the journey from Worthing to Southampton’s Mayflower terminal should take 1 hour 22 minutes, so I plan to leave at 10:30. That means, unlike previous holidays when I have had to get up at ridiculous o’clock to check in at Gatwick, I have time to wake up naturally, carry out my ablutions, eat a leisurely breakfast and catch up with the news before departure.

I have seen there are five biggish cruise ships in Southampton today, so I expect the town to be busy. As you drive along near the docks you often see Philippine and Indian crew scurrying to the West Quay shopping centre to make their purchases from their tips. I had preloaded the car with my suitcase, carry-on bag, waterproof jacket and parking pass so as the clock hit 10:30 I was off.

I know the route, having driven to Southampton quite a few times, so I cut through the back of Worthing and out on to the A27 with hopes of an easy run. I should have known better. The first queue was at Arundel, only a few miles up the road. But that was nothing compared to getting around Chichester. There was a queue at every roundabout. Every traffic light was against me. On the single-lane bits, I was stuck behind either a learner or someone crawling along.

Eventually I was on the M27, and that had miles and miles of roadworks and a 50 mph speed limit. It was gone noon when I turned off the motorway on to the A3024 into Southampton, and even when I was nearly there, every set of traffic lights was red. It was almost 12:30 when I turned in through Dock Gate 10 for the Mayflower terminal and got a merry wave from the dockyard security on the gate. Now my luck changed; the road to the cruise terminal was virtually deserted, and I was directed to a lane of cars checking into the cruise car parking right in front of where I needed to drop my suitcase.

The ‘Receptionist’ was instantly there to do the paperwork and take photos of the car. The pictures are in case there is a car damage dispute, but interestingly they now take the pictures with you in the car. I wonder if there have been shenanigans with the pictures in the past. Two minutes later I was over the taxi drop-off road and handing my suitcase to someone who dumped it on a conveyor belt, and it disappeared into the bowels of the terminal.

Last time I travelled from this particular terminal was when I was on a long cruise (36 days) to the Caribbean. It was December and freezing, with a huge queue to get into the building. What a difference — there just wasn’t a queue at all, just a couple of men taking a quick look at the boarding pass to make sure I wasn’t arriving before my boarding time. I was directed up a slope to the long row of check-in desks where another girl looked at my boarding pass and, another Baltic tier perk, directed me to the ‘priority boarding’ area where exactly no one was waiting.

A minute later I was checked in, my boarding pass stamped ‘Cleared to Board’, and I was off to the hell that is the security check. It’s the usual rigmarole: your bag and any metal, like coins, wristwatch, phone, keys and belt, are all X-rayed, while you waddle through a metal detector arch trying to hold up your trousers! At least you could keep your shoes on.

Finally, it’s up an escalator and across an airbridge on to the ship. I suppose they call it an airbridge as a ship’s bridge is for the captain to steer from, and it is up in the air. Once again the boarding pass is needed, but this time it’s scanned to confirm you are onboard. Nearly there — just one more stop, this time it’s to have the boarding pass scanned at my muster station, just to prove you know where it is. So, it’s up in the lift to Deck 7 for the scan, then back in the lift to my cabin on Deck 11. There is an envelope waiting for me in the letter rack outside the cabin door, and from experience I know this contains my cruise card, which serves as a credit card everywhere on board, a cabin door key, and is scanned when getting on or off the ship.

I’m in the cabin, and it is much like any twin balcony cabin on any of the older ships. Unlike the younger ships, there is no slot by the door to put your cruise card in to power everything up. The power is always on, and there are light switches by the door. The other thing is the shower has one of those clinging plastic curtains. I much prefer a cubicle with a door.

It’s still not quite 1 o’clock, so I suppose I have done OK. No suitcase yet, so I read through the pile of stuff on my bed. Excursion tickets for trips pre-booked on shore (it’s cheaper), a voucher for a free drink at the Sail Away deck party (Baltic tier bonus), a card confirming my allocated restaurant, table and sitting in the Main Dining Room (from now refer to as the MDR), and a card to tick to say I would like to go to the Baltic Tier lunch. Of course I do — it’s a cracking meal and all the booze is free. Finally, it’s today’s copy of the Horizon newsletter, the news about what’s on, at what time and where. Mind you, it has many things that are of absolutely no use to me. I don’t want to know about the Art Class or the LGBTQXYZ+ get-together. Much more important are the bar and restaurant opening times.

Time for a bite to eat, so it’s up to the Poolside Grill for a hotdog and chips and a cold drink. It’s still very quiet on board. I suspect the free long-distance coaches haven’t arrived yet. So, I have a pleasant lunch in the sun looking out over the Solent. Back down to my cabin, and my case has arrived. Do I have a snooze and then unpack, or unpack and have a snooze? I opt for the latter and am soon sliding my empty case under the bed. Time for forty winks, I think.

I was rudely awoken by the Captain announcing that everyone was onboard and that he was about to sound the ship’s alarm — seven short and one long blast — just so everyone is familiar with it. Impossible to sleep through that racket. Anyway, it’s nearly 17:30 and sail away time, so I pop up to the open deck for a free glass of white wine. I have no idea what it was, apart from cold, medium dry, and quite pleasant. We slipped our lines about 17:40 and were soon belting down the Solent. The breeze generated on the open deck was chilly, so I popped back to the cabin to write up this log.

I woke up at 19:45 and decided I had better get ready for dinner. I am on second sitting and its doors open at 20:30. The lift deposited me outside the restaurant just as the doors were opened, and I was guided to table 131 — a table by a window for six — and I was first to arrive. In fact, I was the only one to arrive! I have no idea where my dining companions were; perhaps a long journey had proved too much for them and they had gone to bed — who knows.

P&O have changed the presentation of the menu since my Christmas cruise, and I approve. But what I am not so sure about is the introduction of several items that you have to pay extra for. I shall be sticking with the main menu unless something I particularly fancy turns up on the extras. They have also introduced a ‘Home Comfort’ item on the starters and mains. Tonight, the starter is a Scotch egg in sausage meat and black pudding, and the main sausage toad. However, I started with asparagus and hard-boiled egg with garlic mayo and finely chopped onion — it was excellent. For mains, it was a pork loin steak on a bed of mash served with crispy kale and a ragu of baby mushrooms and pearl onions. My, was it good.

For dessert I chose sponge pudding with a citrus sauce and good old custard. Again, it was delicious. I finished up with a cup of coffee — my only disappointment — it wasn’t the best. Jinnie would have hated it! Maybe I’ll have a cup of tea tomorrow; it might be better. Now I’m off for a vodka and lemonade. There isn’t a Crow’s Nest on this ship, so I will try the Metropolis, which is high at the rear of the ship, and they project changing cityscapes on a wall.

Day Two – Sunday, at sea

I woke up shortly after six to a calm sea and scattered cloud. According to the navigation channel on the TV, we are heading southwest out of the Channel and into the Bay of Biscay. It’s 24°, and we are doing 17 knots. Disappointingly, there doesn’t seem to be a weather forecast channel on this ship. I am in no hurry to get up, as the MDR breakfast is in the Saffron Dining Room and doesn’t open until 08:00 as it’s a sea day. Of course, I could head for the buffet — otherwise known as the trough — it opens at 06:30, but as I have said many times, why pay for service and then serve yourself amid a scrummage?

One small problem this morning — the battery in my travel alarm clock has died during the night. I hope the ship’s shop sells CR2032 batteries. No doubt if they do, they will be packs of four when I just need one — and I have some in the drawer at home. If I do get a battery, I will have to struggle with resetting the clock to the right time and date. It needs to be set to the year first so that it knows about leap years and what day of the week a date falls on. I’ll let you know if I get a battery later.

I joined a sharing table for 8 (but only 7 there in total) for breakfast. As usual, it was pretty good. Started with my usual Rice Krispies but followed it with scrambled eggs, bacon and black pudding. Of course, I had a glass of orange juice to wash my pills down and several cups of coffee, which I am pleased to say was a great improvement on last night’s, which on reflection I think was stewed. I nearly forgot I also had square toast.

Tipping a bit to the cabin steward at the start of the cruise seems to be paying off — the cabin has been serviced while I was at breakfast. The sun is on my balcony, and it is very pleasant sitting there in the sun watching us overtaking cargo ships and tankers. I can’t look for a battery yet — the shops don’t open until 10:00 hours. I will have to drag myself down later. Now is the time to sit in the sun on my balcony, write up a bit of this post and a bit of Jinnie book 9, read a bit of Jack Reacher killing people, and snooze.

The Officer of the Watch woke me up with the 12-noon daily update about where we are, how far we have come, and how far it is to go before we reach Madeira (1,110 miles). Now I am awake, it’s time for lunch. Today it’s just a burger and chips and a bottle of nicely chilled Doom Bar to wash it down. Back to catch the last of the sun on my port side balcony as it transitions to the starboard side. Then I will make my way to the starboard side promenade deck with my Kindle.

Tonight is a formal night, so I must drag out my dress suit and shirt and a bow tie. I made my way to my allotted table to find I wasn’t going to be alone tonight, as a couple were already there. Very pleasant company — a retired army officer and his wife, both in their 80s. But once again, no one else arrived. But what astounded me was all around were empty tables. I guess the idea of dressing up for formal night is no more. Still, they missed a cracking meal.

The ship always makes an effort to put on a special meal on a formal night, and this was no exception. We started with an amuse-bouche, then for a starter I had ham hock terrine. Next came pea soup (no rude jokes please). I went for the fillet of beef, medium rare, for my main; it came with a fondant potato, green beans, carrots and cabbage and was fabulous. Dessert was an individual apple Tatin and cream that tasted much better than it looked. Finally, it was tea or coffee and petit fours. After last night’s stewed coffee, I had a cup of tea — much more to my liking — hot, strong and with a dash of milk. I really enjoyed my meal. Now to finish it off with a nightcap in Metropolis, which is quite nice, but not the Crow’s Nest.

Day 3 – Monday, at sea

There is no point in closing my balcony curtains as we are about 75 miles off the coast of northern Spain, about level with Vigo, so no one is going to look in. Anyway, I like to wake up and see what the weather is like. At 06:10 this morning it was misty and cloudy with some white horses, so I turned over and went back to sleep. An hour later the sun was peeping through the clouds and the mist had gone. Anyway, I got ready for breakfast and wandered down to the Sapphire restaurant. There was a queue — not normal at breakfast time. I had just got to the head when the man squirting hand sanitiser told me they had decided to also open the Bay Tree restaurant, as the queue yesterday had become enormous by nine o’clock. What a pity they didn’t tell anyone.

Five of us on a table for six, including the couple who I had been chatting with in the queue. One rather deaf man on the table asked for prunes. The waiter asked if he wanted a large or small serving, and he said he wanted 12. The waiter asked if that was bowls or individual prunes. It turned out to be a large serving and not bowls. I had my usual orange juice — it’s perfect for washing down pills — and Rice Krispies. I followed that with a mushroom omelette (it’s not on the menu), hash browns and bacon and, of course, square toast. The deaf man’s wife said that she had learnt something this morning, and tomorrow she was going to ask for a mushroom omelette as it looked so good. The other woman said she was going to ask for square toast. I will have the whole ship converted soon.

Back to the cabin and the balcony is now in full sun. I know where I will be spending the morning writing and reading. A most enjoyable couple of hours on the balcony finishing my Jack Reacher book. As usual, he leaves behind piles of dead bodies and the female interest having cleaned up the town. I shall have to find something new to start after lunch.

I decided to go to lunch a little later today to cut the gap between lunch and dinner. I’m not sure if I did the right thing — it was madly busy around the main pool where the Poolside Grill is located. Still, the burger and chips were excellent as usual, but today I had a nice cold Pepsi Max instead of a beer. I just fancied it for a change.

Back to the balcony, I cannot be bothered fighting for a sun lounger, in such a busy area, I’m sure I could find one on one of the sun decks if I really wanted to but why bother when I have the sun on the balcony.

I picked a Michael Connelly book at random from the library on my Kindle and headed off into a story about an American football player who was third string on his team and not very consistent and got the sack. I had just got to the part where the only job he could get was playing in Italy when I fell asleep. I think it must have been two hours later when I woke; the sun was no longer on the balcony, and it was a little breezy. So, I popped inside to do a bit more reading.

It’s a casual evening on board tonight, and that suits me better. I don’t object to black tie events, but it is a bit of an effort getting dressed up. Only 3 of us again for dinner. Tonight, I have opted for a crab starter, followed by a veal loin in a mushroom sauce with broccoli and fried potatoes. It was delicious, and on to dessert — tonight it’s dark chocolate mousse and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. I must say the food on board has been really good so far. My only little moan was the stewed coffee on the first night, but since then I have stuck with the tea and not been disappointed.

Day 4 – Tuesday, still at sea

This morning the sea has calmed right down; the white horses have completely disappeared, but it is a little cloudy. The sun is coming and going, but the air is warm. So, it’s off to breakfast in the MDR. A sharing table for 6 this morning. A woman travelling with her two 50-year-old sons who are still in bed. A couple from Lancing — she is black, originally from the Caribbean, and he is white from London, and he introduced her as his partner. The two gay men from Margate, one with a huge belly threatening to bust the buttons on his shirt and his partner with a big bushy beard just like Grandad in Only Fools and Horses.

This morning it’s orange juice, Rice Krispies, scrambled eggs, square toast and tea. I am going light because it is the Baltic Tier lunch today and that is usually a blow-out. Last cruise it was a huge meal, and I wasn’t hungry when it got to the evening meal. As tonight is another black-tie extravaganza, I might just skip it and get something light in the buffet; that way I can skip dressing in my finest. In the meantime, it’s back to my sunny balcony.

It’s not my normal burger/hot dog lunch today as it is the Peninsula Club Baltic Tier lunch. It’s usually a pretty good bash in one of the MDRs, and today is no exception. A greeting line of senior ship’s officers, including the Captain, then a glass of champagne, and I am shown to my allocated table. I’m on the one next to my normal dinner table, so it’s my normal evening waiters, and they greet me like an old friend. There is even a name tag at the various seats, so we all know where to sit.

The menu is rather nice. I started with crab and salmon fish cakes, but I noticed nearly everyone else had a tomato and parmesan salad. I would have enjoyed that, but cheese is a big no for me. Then a nice sharp lemon sorbet. I chose lamb rump for my main, and it was pink and really tender. For dessert I had pecan pie and cream. All the time the waiters were hovering and topping up the free wine. It was a fabulous meal and even the coffee and petit fours were good. I am a bit full and a little drowsy, so it’s time for a nap.

It’s a black-tie night tonight, and I really am not very hungry or bothered to get dressed up for another big meal. So, I popped up to the buffet for a snack. I had pâté and crackers, followed by a slice of marmalade tart and custard, after which I was full again, so I had a coffee and a think. As it’s formal night, the dress code for the Metropolis is black tie, so I had to find a bar with no dress code for my nightcap. I have no idea what the one I found was called, but it hardly mattered — I was served with my regular vodka and lemonade.

In Part 2 – Madeira
 

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