(15th January 2025)

I woke a few minutes before my mobile phone alarm, set for 5 am, went off. Without disturbing Jamie, I dressed and checked the taxi app to confirm our driver to the airport was en route. Jamie was up and dressed when I made my wake-up coffee, followed by a refreshing glass of coconut juice in the kitchen.

The taxi arrived early, waiting outside the apartments, and the drive to DXB was the quickest and quietest I’ve experienced since arriving in Dubai. It seems that some of this city’s inhabitants do sleep occasionally. Terminal 1 Departures was almost deserted, and our transit to the airport lounge was nothing more than a leisurely stroll, ending with breakfast and a comfortable seat.

Our British Airways flight departed on time at 10 am and arrived 20 minutes early after a 7-hour 15-minute journey. I spent the time listening to a fascinating podcast about Anthony John Horowitz CBE, the English novelist and screenwriter. After that, I watched two episodes of the popular sitcom ‘Gavin and Stacey’.

We landed at a cold and murky Heathrow, and after collecting the car, we joined the traffic on the M25 and M1, soon arriving back home in Harborough. Jamie quickly changed clothes before heading out to the Asfordby Arms pub, where he met Ruth to celebrate his friend Tommy’s birthday along with his girlfriend. Thankfully, with the time difference between the UK and UAE being just three hours, after having a quiche salad and watching a bit of TV with Sue I opted for an early night.

(16th January 2025)

I was wide awake by 4 am and, much to Sue’s annoyance, decided to get up and have breakfast at 5 am. Sue had already packed for our cruise to the continent, so I spent the morning unpacking my case from Dubai and then packing a larger one with warmer clothing for the cooler climate we would encounter next week. After a light lunch around midday, we set off on a three-hour drive to Southampton and an overnight stay at the Holiday Inn Express.  We chose to have our evening meal in the hotel restaurant and finished off the day watching TV.

(17th January 2025)

With the alarm set for 7 am, we invariably found ourselves awake and enjoying coffee in our room by 6 am. We had breakfast at 8 am and checked out of the hotel by 9.30 am. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to pack our universal electrical adapter for the ship’s US/EU sockets, but luckily, there was a Curry’s superstore on the way to the cruise terminal, so we made a quick detour to pick one up.

Gate 10, Berth 102 at the Western Docks, Horizon Cruise Terminal, was just five minutes away. We were soon parked,  handed over our cases to the crew, and had our documentation checked. I had completed all the necessary paperwork weeks ago, so with just a couple of scans of our barcodes, we were on board. Although we were informed that the cabins wouldn’t be ready until 2 pm, we made our way to Deck 9, cabin 9273, and found it was already prepared for occupation, albeit without our suitcases. We were pleased to discover we had been allocated an aft suite with a balcony facing the rear of the ship. Leaving our hand luggage behind, we headed to the buffet for drinks and a light lunch.

Afterwards, we set out to familiarise ourselves with the ship’s facilities – the bars, theatre, restaurants, and so on. The MSC Preziosa is a massive ship with 16 decks and an impressive length, which meant plenty of walking from one end to the other. As an Italian cruise line, its décor could best be described as ostentatious, with chrome, silver, and mirrored surfaces in abundance. It reminded us of the two Costa ships we had been fortunate enough to sail on previously.

By the time we finished exploring, our cases had been delivered to the cabin. We unpacked and stored away their contents before relaxing until it was time to attend a cruise excursion presentation in the theatre. Shortly afterwards, the mandatory muster drill began at 4:45 pm. This involved watching a video in the cabin, then dialling 881 on the cabin phone, and taking our life jackets to the muster station in a lounge on Deck 7, where our cabin cards were scanned to confirm our attendance. Gone are the days when passengers had to line up on deck (in all weather) beside their lifeboat and respond to their names being called from a roster.

We were allocated a 6 o’clock sitting at the Golden Lobster Restaurant for our evening meal, seated at a table for eight. Joining us were a couple from Nottingham (Sophie and Jason) and a single Bulgarian woman now living in Redditch. The conversation was pleasant, and the food was excellent.

We left early to catch a show entitled ‘Bizarre’ at the Platinum Theatre, although we missed the first 15 minutes. We enjoyed the performance so much that, after having coffee in the buffet restaurant, we returned to watch the entire 9 pm performance again.