21st June 2022

Embarkation Day

We had three days to get ourselves sorted for our next adventure, to the largest island in the world and, rather misleadingly, named Greenland. Alongside catching up with a mountain of domestic chores, we had to take and upload an antigen Lateral Flow Test to be granted access to the ship.

Equally important on Saturday was catching the Tigers v Saracens final at Twickenham, which I managed in good company with several chums in the garden room. For the day to be truly successful, I wanted a negative outcome for the LFT and a positive one for the Tigers, and both boxes were ticked!

Sunday was Father’s Day. Charlotte and family kindly invited Sue and me over for lunch, which also helped ease the pressure of our tight timetable before departure. Jamie and Sarah couldn’t join us: Jamie was busy with a track day at Brands Hatch, and Sarah was with her in-laws in Skegness.

On Tuesday, we travelled to Tilbury Cruise Terminal, situated on the Thames just outside London. Coincidentally, this was also the day the Rail Unions had chosen to strike for better pay and working conditions. With no trains running, we anticipated the roads would be unusually busy, so we left home two hours earlier than necessary, only to find them remarkably quiet. (Does everyone now work from home?)

With time to spare, we headed to Tilbury Fort, just a few hundred metres from the terminal. Although the well-preserved stronghold was closed, we enjoyed a leisurely stroll along the riverside path that circled it. We had parked near the 17th-century World’s End pub, so we rounded off our wait with refreshments in this charming and historic inn. Inside, on one of the walls, we spotted an original copy of Samuel Pepys’ account of the Great Fire of London.

Parking at the cruise terminal turned out to be the trickiest part of the day, largely thanks to contradictory instructions from the organising staff. Still, we made it through check-in and security with impressive speed, having submitted all required information online over the weekend. Many fellow cruisers, being of a more senior generation, were still navigating the paper trail.

We were among the first to reach our cabins, and the first to the buffet lunch. Unpacked and well fed, we were finally ready to set sail!

After a brief exploration of the ship, we returned to the buffet to refresh ourselves with coffee and tea. Once satisfied, we headed back to our cabin to relax before preparing for the evening meal, which would be taken in the Buckingham Restaurant on Deck 7. Unlike the usual two sittings for meals, this ship operates on an open dining schedule, where guests arrive between 6 and 8 pm and are seated with others who arrive at the same time. We arrived at 6:45 pm and were seated with two other couples, both of whom turned out to be pleasant company. After dinner, we joined one pair in the Purple Lounge for a trivia quiz, then headed to the Palladium Theatre to meet the entertainment team.

Our cabin, located high on Deck 11, is the last one at the stern of the ship, at the end of a very long corridor. It’s incredibly convenient for accessing most of the ship’s facilities and, hopefully, will be quiet and stable. The night will tell!

22nd June 2022

A calm sea, gentle vibrations, and the complete darkness of our inside cabin ensured we had the best sleep in nearly a month. No Malagasy dogs barking in the distance, no worries about oversleeping and missing breakfast, or worse, the coach to the next destination.

Having cruised so many times now, we slipped into the ship’s routine effortlessly. Meals, activities, lectures, and showtimes are second nature to us now. Even locating venues has become second nature; there’s been no wasted energy in long corridor marches to nowhere or frantic dashes to catch the start of a quiz or musical recital. This is a far cry from the lives of those we witnessed (but did not share) just a week ago. With very different priorities, aspirations, and circumstances, it’s clear that the world is not a fair place.

Unlike me, Sue has an extraordinary memory for faces. She can recognise people from the briefest of encounters, even from years ago, recalling the smallest details of their interactions. From the moment we stepped on board, she has pointed out previous fellow passengers to me. So far, not a mealtime has passed without her enlightening at least one fellow diner about when and where we’ve met them before.

 

Unusually for such an early point in the cruise, the evening meal was formal, featuring a photograph with the captain, a cocktail party, and a Gala Meal. For the second cruise in a row, I had left my bow tie at home. It seems I wasn’t the only one, as the ship’s shop had sold out of them earlier. Unlike on the previous cruise, I had the chance to buy one in the first port of call, Rotterdam. I attended the function wearing my black dress shirt, and no one seemed to notice, not even the captain.

Since Covid, there have been noticeable changes to cruising. Though guests no longer wear masks, all the crew do. All meals are now served on the plate, even in the buffet restaurant, and hand sanitisers are everywhere. There’s been a sea change in attitude, with everyone, crew and guests alike, using them regularly. On the Ambience, evening meal times are open in all restaurants, which is not to our liking. We prefer the second sitting, with the same people at a table for six or eight. It’s a great way to get to know people well (for better or worse) and develop a comfortable routine. Under the open seating system, you certainly meet more people, but it’s hard to move past introductory conversations before heading off to the next activity. We’ll probably get used to it, though, at least Sue will have plenty of faces to remember for years to come.

The theme for this voyage is The Frozen Planet, with six lecturers on board presenting various aspects of the Arctic, focusing on Iceland, Greenland, and the North Sea. Today, we had lunch with an astronomer who will be giving talks about the skies we’ll encounter during the Iceland to Greenland leg of our journey. This is his first cruise and his first lecture tour, and unusually, he had his wife with him for support. He’s a member of the Royal Astronomical Society, so he knows his stuff and should be an interesting speaker.