…and back again

Monday 24 June

Pleasant sail out of Southampton, following the Queen Mary 2 (which I’d never seen before) as she left for New York.

Though we had requested a table for two, we found ourselves being led to an oval six-seater.  Well, we thought, we usually find ourselves chatting with the neighbours, so provided the company is congenial, conversation should be easier.  The good thing is that the table is right by a window, looking out over the wake.  The meal was fine: well prepared and not too huge.

Not a bad night: the beds are very comfortable and the duvets and pillows lofty and welcoming.  Likewise, the dressing gowns are new and very fleecy.  When I looked out first thing, the sea was glassy smooth, and after some twenty hours on board, I’ve rarely been aware of the fact that we’re on the water.  It is a big tub, of course, and the North Sea is uncommonly smooth.  It’s surprising to see how many gas/oil rigs there still are out here.

So far, apart from the cabin, we’ve sampled the Britannia restaurant, the buffet, the Golden Lion pub and the Commodore Club.  The buffet was busy at breakfast time, but we managed to get seats at the window.  We were highly restrained this first morning, settling each for a glass of OJ, two slices of toast and a couple of cups of tea.  We didn’t sample the pub offerings, staying only for the first quiz of the day.  From there we popped into the theatre to catch the tail end of the port presentation of Bergen and Haugesund.  Huge theatre, and less ornate than on the Vista Class.

We have sampled the Commodore Club, the spacious bar above the bridge looking forward: always our venue of choice on these ships.  Nice place to sit with a book or to write the diary, and this ship has flat deep windows, unlike the sloping ones of the QE and QV, so it’s easier to see out.  

It was calm and mild, so we sat on the balcony watching the sun sink slowly below the horizon.  

Wednesday 26 June 

Pleasant day in Bergen yesterday.  We opted for a ride round the city on the top deck of a tour bus.  Charming town centre, with a lot of preserved wooden buildings.  Rather dull and grey as we sailed in, the big tub threading her way through myriad small, arid looking islands.  As one approaches Bergen from the sea, the shore and islands get more and more populated and prosperous looking, somewhat reminiscent of the archipelago off Stockholm.  

We saw a bit of sunshine later in the day in Bergen, and count ourselves lucky: evidently it rains over 200 days a year there.  As we left, some German joker a couple of cabins along was throwing breadcrumbs to the gulls, which were catching them in mid-air with unerring accuracy, and almost hitting us as they swooped in.  We left in brilliant sunshine, but it wasn’t long before the mist came down, and when we returned to our cabin the foghorn was sounding.

When I woke this morning (around 04:00) I could see land through the chink we’d left in the curtains.  It was reasonably mild, so I stood outside for a while to take in the fantastic views of the steep hillside, waterfalls and even a bit of snow on the top of the mountains.  It was drizzling as we sailed up the fjord, but there was brilliant sunshine by breakfast time.  The cloud comes and goes, as one expects at a latitude just north of that of the Faroe Islands. 

We went out on deck for a while after breakfast to soak in the wonderful views.  Flåm is at the head of an inlet, surrounded by steep mountainsides and numerous waterfalls.  It is at the foot of a railway branch line that connects to the Bergen-Oslo line at Myrdal.  The line is evidently spectacular - we have watched YouTube videos thereof - but we were too late to book a ride through Cunard, and the chances of buying tickets are slim when there’s a 3000 pax cruise ship in town and a smaller one, Silver Dawn, bringing in more passengers by tender.  Our plan is to take the bus ride up to the Stegastein viewpoint.  More anon.

As we thought, the train was sold out for the day, so we took a bus ride to the Stegastein viewpoint, and were not disappointed.  Fabulous views up and down the Aurlandsfjord and across to the snow on the mountains.

After lunch and a rest we went and did the quiz with a pleasant couple originally from Glasgow, but living for many years in suburban Hertfordshire.  We won.  Out on deck a little later, Martyn spotted a chap in the pool whom he recognised as Luke, one the YouTube Cruise Monkeys: his partner Gavin was nearby, taking photographs.  We chatted for a while and compared notes about the Queen Anne.  Like most people we have talked to, they feel that she lacks some of the attractiveness of the QE and QV, but welcome the proper shower enclosure!

Thursday 27 June

I was up and about early again, and took a few photos as we wove our way up the Nordfjord.  The early morning light made for some spectacular views.  Olden is a tiny community of some 600 souls, so hasn’t a whole lot to offer.  But it has a tourist office which sold us tickets for the 100-meter cable car ride up the Hoven.  There’s an open top bus service, but it leaves you with a long walk to get a view of the glacier, so that wasn’t an option.

Expensive like everything in Norway, but it offers amazing views along the Nordfjord, down to Olden and up to the Briksdal glacier.  A lot of intrepid hikers were setting out from the top cable car station.  (I’m a little sad that my hiking days are over.)

We’d a lazy rest of day, with a couple of quizzes (we won) a nice lunch in the Britannia and an afternoon nap.  Fine views again as we sailed down the fjord.  Not really a surprise, but I’m finding I enjoy the scenic cruising every bit as much as the places we visit.

Friday 28 June

We half-heard an announcement last night that a poor weather forecast ruled out the planned call at Haugesund.  Instead we have had a much preferable cruise along a fraction of the huge Hardangerfjord, which offers scenery every bit as fine as that we’ve seen over the last few days.  The ship sailed up a steep-sided arm of the fjord and did a sort of pirouette at the top so that everyone could get views of the glacier.  A little further down is the Furebergfossen, an impressive waterfall that delivers the glacier meltwater to the fjord.  So it’s an ill wind indeed. 

As predicted, the weather took a nosedive later in the day, so we had a fairly sporting sail out of the fjord.  Nothing spectacular, since the ship is enormous.

So two full sea days and three nights after leaving Olden.  On our second day, we went to an interview with Robin Cousins, Olympic gold medalist figure skater, actor/singer and general all-round good egg.  On our last night at sea, we came through the Straits of Dover at sunset.

Disembarkation was perhaps the most organised of the cruises we’ve done, with passengers organised in numbered and colour coded groups.  We were off the ship ten minutes earlier than schedule, and on the road twenty minutes later.  The journey home is never straightforward.  After our rotten experience last Sunday on the M25, we opted to go along the coast past Chichester and then pick up a route Martyn used to use.  In the intervening years, it has become much busier, and an accident just ahead of us led us to knit a new route, with limited help from Dotty.  So in the end it took us a full three hours.

The garden is in fine fettle despite the high temperatures while we were away, thanks to watering by Celia and Andy.  Two of the tomatoes are setting fruit, so I’ve started feeding them.  It seemed appropriate to plant a rose called Ingrid Bergman to remind us of our late neighbour Rowena: both succumbed to breast cancer.  Its first flowers opened while we were away, and it’s a beauty.  As for gardening, I’ve limited myself today to watering, dead-heading and a limited amount of weeding.

Out and about again

Most enjoyable lunch with John, and a great catch up with the next two generations - and their large and boisterous golden retriever, Bowser.  Rotten drive to get there: if I tell you that we were getting over 54 mpg on the way, you’ll get an idea of the speeds we were doing.

After that, the ride down to Southampton was a lot easier - and faster, and we were aboard the Queen Anne and installed in our cabin pretty promptly.  We haven’t taken time to explore yet, but the cabin, though smaller, we think, than in the lesser Queens, is well enough appointed, and the shower, at last, has a proper door.  Our dinner companions are pleasant - though we’d asked for a table for two, we’ve been given an oval six-seater, so we’ll see how it works out.

As I write, we’re in sight of the south coast, and still getting a decent mobile signal, so I’d better get this away before we go incommunicado.

Quiet hereabouts

Not so long ago, we heard the sounds of sirens and the flashing blue lights of a fire engine hurtling past the front of the house, followed closely by an incident commander’s car of similar subtlety.  Today it was the air ambulance (a charity we support in lieu of the taxes we should be paying to support such essential public services).  It landed on a patch of grass just round the corner from us, and stayed there for a good hour, presumably while paramedics worked on someone.  In due course, it took off and headed for the William Harvey in Ashford, so I guess it was some kind of cardiac emergency.

Meanwhile we have pottered in the garden, hauling out lots of weeds, cutting the grass: fun stuff like that.  I’ve been hardening off the first two tomato plants, each of which is sporting two trusses of flowers.  They are also putting up lots of side shoots, which I’m nicking off and sticking in water.  A few are rooting already, so I’ll soon have to decide when to stop propagating.  I suppose I could do more and sell a few.

I hope someone’s running the country: the Rt Hon the First Lord of the Treasury seems to be hopping from gaffe to solecism, bringing the country firmly into position as the laughing stock of Europe.  I think I may stay up on election night, and put a couple of bottles of Prosecco in the fridge.

Busy in the garden

Martyn has planted out strawberries in one of the raised beds, and I’ve potted up the first of the tomatoes.  We got the usual six Sweet Olive seeds in the packet, and all have germinated.  The four I sowed in old compost are barely forming true leaves, but the two I put in new stuff are over two feet tall and forming their first trusses of flowers.  Lesson clear.  Annie, meanwhile, has sent some Sweet Apéritif seeds, and the three that germinated are now growing well and potted up.  From the first two Sweet Olives, I’ve taken out some side shoots and put them in water to root.

Ben has top-dressed most of the new bed at the top of the garden, leaving a second bag of muck with which to complete the job.  I’ve taken a couple of buckets of the same and top dressed most of the roses, which were already doing pretty well.  We’re still waiting for flowers on the three roses we planted last back end in memory of Michael, Rowena and Tim.  Michael’s rose looks like leading the field, which is unsurprising given his tendency to use the accelerator as an on-off switch.  

The hanging baskets at the front of the house are planted up and growing well: some geraniums, trailing fuchsias and lobelias.  I’ll need to remember to feed them, since they are rather too tightly packed in. We bought a bunch of new plants last year, including some oriental poppies.  We already have orange and pale pink varieties, and today have the first flower on a blood red one.