Wednesday 26th April – Sea Day

Back into the routine again, up early – take the kit from our cabin, (front of ship, Deck 7) to the Coast to Coast restaurant, (back of ship, Deck 6).  Then it’s up to The Grill (back of ship, Deck 12), for breakfast, (from where Peter spotted a few dolphins through the window), before going back down to the Coast to Coast again to set up the class (back of ship, Deck 6).

At 9.30, I leave Peter to do his thing and then usually walk back to our cabin, (front of ship, Deck 7) and decide what to do for the hour.  Today, I went up to the Britannia Balcony (front of ship Deck 11), to look ahead and watch out for any wildlife. I was dead chuffed to find two Turtle Doves taking a break on the ship, hitch hiking a bit of the way no doubt. At 10.30, it’s back down to the Coast to Coast (Back of ship, Deck 6) to help Peter clear up and then reset for the afternoon class.

We'll be done by about 11.30 and we usually head back to the cabin, (front of ship, Deck 7), to have a cuppa and maybe do admin stuff.  Then about 12.30 it’s back up to The Grill, (back of ship, Deck 12), for lunch.  After lunch we may go for a little promenade around the top decks (Decks 12 and 13).  At 1.45pm, it’s back to the Coast to Coast (back of ship, Deck 6), to get the afternoon class going.  I leave Peter to it at 2pm and then either go back to the cabin (front of ship, Deck 7), or up onto the top decks (Decks 12 and 13) to wander around and see if there is anything about.

At 3 pm, it’s back down to the Coast to Coast, (back of ship, Deck 6), to clean up after the 2^nd class, and then we take all the equipment back to cabin, (front of ship, Deck 7) for about 4pm.  We usually then just wind down for a bit and relax, spending time on the balcony, maybe napping, supping tea etc. Or we may go down to the Living Room (middle of the ship, Deck 5) for a drink and a chocolate chip cookie.

We normally go to dinner at The Grill about 7.30pm (back of ship, Deck 12), and then after dinner we might go to the show. Today though, we went back to the cabin (front of ship, Deck 7) for an episode of Friends and then The Last Ship before bed.

And why have I written in boring detail of all the back and forth on the ship.  Well, I put a pedometer on and clocked up 12000 steps!  This might be why I don't put any weight on when on board, despite eating like a horse.

Tomorrow is another sea day.  We’ll be going through the Straits of Gibraltar about nine o’clock in the morning so the captain tells us, and the hope is that there will loads of birds flying overhead as we go through.  Fingers crossed.

Tuesday 25th April - Cagliari, Sardinia, Itialy

Cagliari is somewhere we’ve been before.  It’s a nice enough place, but I wouldn’t say it was our favourite port, so we weren’t in a hurry, thinking we’d just have a short wander.  We had thought about walking to the Salt Lakes or a nature reserve type park, but they were both a way off, temperatures are rising (finally), and we had to be back on ship for 3.30pm, so we decided to leave it for this visit.  Maybe next time.

Instead, we walked the opposite way around to our last visit.  We knew the layout of the city a little better this time, so we didn’t meander quite so much and made a better job of it.  Today was a bank holiday in Sardinia as they celebrate their Independence Day.  There was a parade going on in the city centre just as we walked through. Police had closed off the roads as the people of Cagliari marched through, waving flags and singing patriotic songs.  There were a lot of people too! All the cars just had to wait.

From there we went on to the Botanical Garden, a cool, pleasant space we’d not visited before; €4 each.  I was really impressed at the way the cactus garden was laid out.

Then on up the hill to the amphitheatre we’d seen last time but couldn’t get into.  Apparently work is still ongoing, but the gates were open this time, and we could go along a path at the top of the site to have a look down.  €3 each.

After taking a few photo’s and watching the hooded crows, we continued uphill until we found a little café for a break. Smoking is much more common than at home in these Mediterranean countries, and the cigarettes have a much stronger, rougher smell, more like cigars.  Not too pleasant to sit next to when eating, but we did find a café and a clear table eventually. And then it was upwards just a little further.  There were quite a lot of view points along our route, but not a very good view to be honest, ports and industrial land mostly.

Eventually we came to a gate inside the old city wall.  Here the streets are very narrow.  Most of the cars that drove through were small, seemingly speeding along narrow streets with pedestrians hopping out of the way to let them pass.   Many of the streets are too narrow even for small cars, with motorbikes and mopeds being the preferred transport.

We arrived at the Cathedral of Santa Maria and Santa Cecilia, which we’ve been to before.  It’s free to visit, inside is absolutely beautiful, and in a condition that I think puts the Basilica in Venice to shame.

A little further on are terraces, sited at the top of the cliff on which the old town is built and giving extensive views of the rest of Cagliari, which looks like a pleasant modern city.

Further along from the terraces, pedestrian walkways slope downhill to a large open square, with a grand arch and more views.  Sadly, there was a lot of graffiti and despite the fact small planted areas were well tended, it looked sort of disused.  A shame really, because it seemed to have so much potential.

From there, it was back to the shuttle bus, the ship and the living room for extra rations of chocolate chip cookies.  Mmm mmm. 

We have a couple of sea days now until Lisbon.......

Read about our last visit to Cagliari here:- 16 June 22 - Cagliari, Sardinia

Monday 24 April – Stromboli, Smoke and Sea views

Well, in essence, not a lot to report really.   Peter has been running his classes, I have been helping him set up and clean up, and we’ve been eating far too much!

It was formal night last night – but as before, I teamed my blue trousers with a posh looking top, and got away with it.  Most of the other women were not in full length evening dresses either, so all is good.

Today was a little bit more interesting scenically.  We sailed North through the Messina Straits, which is the bit of sea between the toe of Italy’s boot and the triangular ball which is Sicily.  Then we went on to have a quick nose at Stromboli, one of the most active volcanoes in the world.  To be honest, it’s best seen at night, as it has been active for much of the last 2,000 years and its eruptions are visible for long distances, making it known as the "Lighthouse of the Mediterranean".   Our visit today happened this morning, but the volcano did blow a couple of puffs of dark smoke into the air, making us feel that as least we’d seen something of its activity.

And I’ve discovered the small deck at the front of the ship on Deck 12 above the Bridge.  It’s perfect for looking ahead dolphin or bird watching, but only when there isn’t much wind.   I’ll be visiting it regularly from now on, but not today cos got really quite blowy out there this afternoon, so much so that them there knickers that have been sitting just outside our balcony since Gibraltar have now gone. Good! I was sick of the sight of them.

Cagliari tomorrow.  We are not quite sure what we are gonna do yet, but I am sure it will involve a lot of walking!