To the Black Sea - Gibraltar Page

We berthed in the dark. I have never been able to photo the sail in to Gib. Up at 07:30. I had a chat to Maiko Mori on the way to breakfast, congratulating her on her performance. The weather was not good. We took the shuttle to the Casemates (£4 each), walked up Main Street & cut down through John Macintosh Square to Queensway Road to look at the bay but you don’t get the view.

There are a lot of fortifications, though. We went round the Cathedral. It started to drizzle & we dived into the Trafalgar pub for coffees (only £3) until it stopped. Then, a nostalgic look at the Trafalgar Cemetary.

We had intended to go up the cable car but after learned that it was not running (again, again). Instead, we went back down Main Street but cut up by the old Library & walked along Governor’s Street before rejoining Main Street. This saved us some of the crowds, to whom, the green plastic mac salesman had done a roaring trade.

Hibiscus in the rain

Governor's Street

Bedlam Court?

We were back at the ship at about midday, chatted to an interesting woman, who had lived everywhere with a quantity surveyor husband, two years deceased, who had been in government service. At lunch, we ate with Susana the Argie, who is a Character. I processed the photos after lunch, which they certainly needed. I palled up with Maiko Mori, the pianist, a conversation replete with gales of laughter. I had fish for dinner. The show was Ralph Allin, who played an electric violin, all easy listening. I thought, & told him, that it sounded more like a cello. He was not technically as good as Joyce but was essentially, a showman. In the Observatory before we went to bed, Holly Hollyoak said what fun Maiko was, which I had already worked out.

Thursday 13th October 2016 At sea

Still flat waters outside. A port talk on Constanta in Romania, then I pounded the deck with Pauline the New Zealander while Avis changed for the Captain’s cocktail party, where they try to sell us cruises. I brought Avis out on the deck for a few paces before lunch. After, I did a few more then read some of my book about Existentialism, more or less my philosophy. Keith gave a talk about the KGB, running grossly over time, so we had little time to scoff tea & the cop finished his two-parter about child murder by a gang of queers. He finds it upsetting to do but his message is to find ways to stop children, meaning our own grand-children, from running away from home because of the mortal danger it puts them in. At dinner, Valerie & Bernard had the guitar treatment & a cake we had for pudding, because of their 50th Wedding anniversary. The show was the Crew Cabaret, five singers, only one woman, who’s quiet notes were too quiet & Yusuf, a character, who sang Diana & Twist & Shout well. We finished the evening in the Observatory Lounge again.

Friday 14th October 2016 At sea

Usual at sea day. The Odessa port lecture & some turns round the deck but in the afternoon, if got rather rough & the salt spray made it impossible to read on the deck, let alone walk & they closed it. David the Cop gave a talk about a murder done for the ‘fun’ of it & Maiko did another piano recital while sea-sick but the only consequence of that was one conspicuous bum note at the beginning of the Wedding Day at Troldhaugen. I took her photo after & a group of us chatted to her. I ordered a print of it. The show was ‘Musical Jukebox’, a new one & not very good, with a load of very mediocre songs in the middle, although the team did ok.

Contact: Ken Baldry at 17 Gerrard Road, Islington, London N1 8AY +44(0)20 7359 6294 or e-mail him
URL: http://www.art-science.com/Tourism/Cruises/BS2016/CR1.html Last revised 10/11/2016 ©2016 Ken Baldry. All rights reserved.