Smithy's Cruise Blog

We spent our honeymoon in Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria all those years ago. And we also used to come to the island for Easter holidays when Louise and Michael were small. We usually stayed at the Costa Canaria Hotel in San Augustin.

We also had a wonderful holiday with the Holts in Maspolomas when Katie and Louise were toddlers. That place made headlines last week when a boatload of refugees from Africa arrived on the beach amongst a group of naked gay men, who quickly scattered, fearing that the boat people might be infected with ebola.

When Jane and I came to Las Palmas on the maiden voyage of Queen Mary 2 – our first cruise together – in 2004, we decided to locate the honeymoon hotel and were somewhat upset to find that it had been converted into what looked to be a rather run down apartment block!

This time we thought we would take a taxi to the south of the island and find the Costa Canaria, but before leaving the ship I looked at Trip Advisor which revealed that the hotel was in the middle of major renovations. There were some very disgruntled holidaymakers who had sent in negative reviews. So we decided to give the south a miss.

We wandered into Las Palmas and were about to watch some traditional dancing in the square, when the heavens opened. We scurried to a cafe with large umbrellas outside. The dancers fled and we eventually ventured across town, but the threat of more rain curtailed our exploration.

The sun is shining and the 8 metre waves and Force 8 gale have been left behind. We are some 200 miles from Lisbon and will be on our berth in Funchal, Madeira by 0800 tomorrow.

Today we were entertained by the legendary voice of F1 and motorsport – Murray Walker. He was due to speak at 1100 this morning, Wednesday, but the start was delayed as they tried to shoehorn into the theatre the masses of people who wanted to listen to him. He was brilliant, telling plenty of stories about the personalities of the motor racing world and a multitude of tales of his gaffes while commentating. He is of course renowned for his faux pas, many of which he told against himself.

This is not easy but we will get through it! Five ports in five days. We are not trained for it. We like a port and then a few sea days to get some rest and build up the stamina with plenty of food and plenty of Malbec for me.

It was sunny and hot but we had to get back to the ship to get ready for a formal night and dinner at the Captains table. The Deputy Captain Simon Love was the host. He is the man who went to sea as a young man, but after marrying decided to go ashore and join the family business. Some 18 years later he was persuaded to return to sea and after retraining he joined Carnival. He must be well on his way to a command in the not too distant future.

Remembrance Sunday – 9 November 2014. We are excited to be joining Queen Victoria again for two back to back cruises, the first to the Canaries and the second to the Western Med.

We have 3 days at sea before our first port – Madeira – which strangely was our last port back in April, but more of that later.

The last 3 days from Madeira to Southampton passed quickly.

Would we do it again?  Yes we would!

We are back in Europe!  Madeira was sunny but a bit nippy when we tied up at 0800.  Last time we were here it rained heavily all day and we were unable to leave the ship.  There were mud slides, massive flooding and houses and dogs were washed into the sea.

This time the Atlantic crossing was gentle with no big seas or winds. An uneventful passage but there was plenty happening on the ship.  Jane took control again in the jig saw department. We had some new table companions for dinner – John and Pat Thompson stayed – but as Jim and Liz Burnett left in Fort Lauderdale we were joined by Bernd (Bernie) Hochstadt and his wife Leah Smith Hochstadt who spend their time between Berlin and New Jersey.

The journey took us through an area of forest that had been ripped apart by fire last year.  We had a number of stops for photos and at Santo we had a comfort break and coffee at the Golf Hotel overlooking the course that hosts the Madeira Open each year.  It appeared to be in excellent condition but there were very few people playing.

From Santo we wended our way down slowly to Machico on the east coast and then to Santa Cruz and the airport.  We probably all know about the Funchal airport and its reputation as one of the most dangerous in the world.  We drove under the runway, which has been constructed on stilts, and despite the runway being 2780 m it looks very short.

When the new runway was opened in 2002 a jumbo apparently landed on it and didn’t fall off the end.

On Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, there was a large disembarkation, including all those who had boarded on 12 January in Ft Lauderdale.  Theirs was a 94 day voyage that qualified as a Full World Voyage!  In the main they were US citizens.

There was the usual horrible delay in getting through the US immigration formalities to get ashore.  The delays led to various degrees of unpleasantness by a few Brits. Some questioned why there was a separate lane for wheelchairs when that line moved more quickly than theirs!  Horrible people.  

We made a quick visit to Macy’s and Jane picked up some amazing bargains – 75% off and then another 10% for being a foreigner!

We now have 7 days at sea, a visit to Madeira and then 3 more days at sea before we are home.

It is not often that you get to shake hands with two astronauts in one day.  Well I did it yesterday and today in the Lido Restaurant.

Hoot Gibson had been a fighter pilot, attended the Navy Fighter Weapons School “Topgun” and the Navy Test Pilot School before being selected as an astronaut. 

After 19 years with NASA, Dr Rhea became a Medical Officer in Nashville, Tennessee and then a Professor at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.

“Attorneys at Law” the sign said.  I thought It was another jewellery store in the shopping mall but I was wrong. It was a very impressive office, but this is Grand Cayman.  Packed with 554 Banks plus Trust Companies, Insurance Companies and all sorts of financial institutions.  I decided to leave the lawyers to their own devices.

This is a smart place and very much geared up to the cruise industry as well as being a tax haven. We knew that other cruise ships would be in port and as we sailed into George Town, Grand Cayman, the Ruby Princess and Brilliance of the Seas were already at anchor.

 Queen Victoria

We anchored and the tenders were made ready.  It was a beautiful day and passengers were quickly making their way ashore when yet another cruise ship appeared, the Disney Fantasia. So four ships were at anchor, all fairly close to the shore.

 Disney Fantasia

You can walk around the town in an hour. Apart from a small chuch and small museum, both overlooking the water, the rest of the waterfront at ground level consists of jewellery outlets and touristy stores. It is great fun and when 4 ships are in port there is plenty of bustle.

Prices for watches and gold and silver all appear to be really competitive with 25% savings on UK prices.

Aruba is about 18 miles north of Venezuela and is now part of the ABC group of islands – Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.  Formerly a part of the Netherlands Antilles, it is now a separate entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Aruba is small – 19 x 6 miles – with only 20 inches of rain a year, so it is not a lush paradise but rather a dry, desert like land packed with cacti and aloes.

The island flourished in the 1820’s with the discovery of gold.  When mining gold became uneconemical in the 1920’s, two oil refineries were built on the island.  In the early days, one of the refineries was the largest in the world and was producing more than 400,000 barrels a day.  Refining oil has declined on Aruba but tourism has taken its place and is an expanding industry.

This area is Eagle Beach and is packed with 5 star hotels and a beautiful beach.

It was a hot and humid day, but we found an air conditioned taxi at the terminal building and set off on a tour of the island.

Cloes was the driver.  We were told that he was a good driver. He was, when he looked where he was going, but he often turned round to talk to us, and he often took both hands off the wheel to help his explanations!

Aruba is short of places of real interest.  Stop 1 was for a collection of odd shaped rocks.

I climbed them, but the view from the top was not sensational.  We then drove to the northern Atlantic coast.  An impressive rocky coastline with large waves breaking heavily.

It was Stop 2. The Natural Bridge. Sadly it collapsed in 2005 as you can see, but a new mini natural bridge is there with the appropriate warning!

 Stop 3 was the Chapel of Alto Vista. The road to it was blessed with white crosses and extracts from the Lord’s Prayer and other biblical quotes.

 Also known as the Little Chapel, the pews outside are apparently always packed with worshippers.

 

Stop 4 was the California lighthouse named after a vessel of that name that had been wrecked on the rocks at the northern point of the island.

Stop 5 was Palm Beach and Eagle Beach. Both are magnificent public beaches serving the superb hotels that sit alongside.

In the sand there are numerous divi divi or Watapana trees whose branches are bent at right angles to the trunk by the ever present trade winds.

Aruba impressed us. It is the sort of place you could come to for a week of sunshine in a luxury hotel. That said the island does not offer a great deal more although it is clean and friendly. A pleasant surprise for us.