Boudicca at an extremely wet and windy Leixoes, the main
port of Portugal on 8th January; also ourselves outside the Churches
of Sts. Francis and Clare separated by the narrowest house in Europe [hopefully
to keep the nuns and the monks apart]. Then a shot of the sea coming over the
harbour wall shortly before our departure.
Saturday 9th January
Sorry that the first posting was a shambles – the ship
satellite Wi-Fi is so slow that after 30 minutes we could not even tell whether
it was working. So we have removed the photos, made them smaller, and will
include them when we next get a good connection, perhaps ashore somewhere.
There is still a persistent swell and a strong wind but the
temperature feels warmer today and the sun comes out – what a welcome sight! In
the morning we attend a lecture on the Cape Verde Islands, followed by the
Antiques Roadshow lecturer, John Sandon,
telling us in an entertaining way all about famous fakes and forgeries. A bit
of exercise after that walking up and down the deck (forward shut off as too
wet and windy) to work up a bit of an appetite for lunch. The afternoon
consists of choir for Jan, another talk from the policeman and then a lovely
recital by a young classical guitarist, Stephen Joseph. No sooner is that over
than we have a quick change before attending a Readers Offers Cocktail Party.
You can see how the days can pass very quickly if we were to attend everything
on the daily programme! We are met by the
Cruise Director, who has sent an encouraging letter saying he is very
interested in John giving a talk(s) in the second half of the voyage – ‘My
Journey into Music’, and perhaps in the future on another Olsen voyage talking
on Inland Waterways of Europe.
We forgot to mention in the first blog that there are 560
passengers on board, 300 short of maximum on this leg. There are going to be
even fewer on the second leg from Durban – so …good for us, not so good for
Fred Olsen. We shall be visiting 14 countries, and 28 ports of call. We were
introduced to our Captain, Sten Ronny Jensen, and his crew at the cocktail
party prior to our first formal dinner on the 6th January. He
strikes us as very good-natured with excellent people skills, while at the same
time inspiring confidence by his competence!
He is about 5ft 6” as opposed to his second in command, a very tall
Bulgarian about 6ft 11”! Many of the catering and room staff are from
the Philippines – they are all so friendly and helpful.
Sunday 10th January
Today it’s Funchal, Madeira! We are up bright and early,
even though the weather is not quite so bright – cloudy but dry. After
breakfast we go ashore for our independently organised tour with Up Mountain
Madeira. Miguel arrives in his 4 x 4 jeep and off we set, just the two of us
which turns out to be a good thing as we can stand up side by side facing
forwards hanging on for dear life when we go ‘off piste’! ‘ Off piste’ consists
of steep ascents up and up very narrow and tiny roads out of Funchal and later
along bumpy rutted forest tracks. We pass immaculately kept houses, an
abundance of vegetation – bananas, vines, loads of fruit, vegetables, fruit
trees grown in every available nook and cranny in the rich volcanic soil.
Miguel shows us an example of a levada. Levadas are irrigation channels which
were constructed around the 16
th century to distribute the water
emerging from springs all over the island. There are 10,000 km of them, Madeira
is approx. 35x13km and 1,600km have adjacent footpaths, which are enjoyed by
walkers. As we continue precipitously up, all the time hanging on to the bull
bars, the view becomes ever more dramatic – looking down to Funchal, the
neighbouring islands, the light on the sea, and up to the extremely steep
valleys beyond. We stop and look over at Chicken Village perched on the edge of
a cliff. – see photo.
Next viewpoint is of Nun’s Valley so called because a long
time ago some nuns, whose convent was being raided by pirates, fled up here to
safety carrying all their treasures. We pass through forest tracks surrounded
by eucalyptus trees and mimosas in bloom and then wend our way downhill a bit
stopping at a country bar for a glass of the local brew, poncha. We watch the
burly guy making it by combining fresh orange juice, mangoes, and tangerines
plus 50% proof rum!
3 litres of rum to 5
litres of fruit juice. [Photo].
Regaled by this powerful concoction we then go
to Cabo Girao, the 2
nd highest vertical cliff in Europe with an
overhanging walkway, so an excellent view of the sheer drop below. [Photo].
By
now the sun has come out fully and it gets warm for the first time on our
cruise. Miguel drives us down to the touristy fishing village of Camara de
Lobos where Churchill often painted when he stayed at Reid’s Hotel. Then back
into the centre of Funchal where we say goodbye to Miguel after a thoroughly
good day out which has given us a great overview and flavour of Madeira. We
stop at a café and then wander slowly back to Boudicca along the esplanade and
past a replica of a 16
th century ship which to our eyes seems tiny.
We depart Funchal at 1700, thinking it would be a very interesting island to
revisit.
Monday 11th January
This is the day we were meant to be on an independent tour
on Tenerife but alas it was not to be. Jan had a tummy upset and was sick late
on Sunday night. She informed the doctor as per the ship’s strict instructions and
as a result both she and John were confined to our cabin for the next 48 hours.
That’s one way to make the blog shorter! Luckily it proved to be nothing serious. She
slept most of the day and we hope to be
released from quarantine tomorrow evening.
Tuesday 12th January
Jan is feeling better and back to normal. The ship’s staff are
very attentive. We have room service for the duration – at no extra cost! We
are now en route to Mindelo, one of the Cape Verde Islands where we arrive the
day after tomorrow and from where we shall endeavour to send this missive!
Wednesday 13th January-16th January
Oh no we won’t! John now ill as well – we are in our cabin
for 5 days in total. All being well we shall escape to the outside world at 1100
on 16th January. Got photos of the places we missed from our
porthole. We brought loads of entertainment so last night watched Matthew
Bourne Swan Lake. When John was a boy scout he was told to “Be Prepared” VG
advice! Pity to miss Tenerife and Mindelo and Praia on the Cape Verde Islands,
though Cape Verde not at the top of our
s‘must see’ destination on our itinerary.
If this post is successful will try to send small versions
of photos. You may have to work out for yourselves which bit of text each
belongs to. Clue: they will be in chronological order.
Saturday 16th January
Yes- it does indeed prove to be Liberation Day! It feels
rather strange to be ‘let out’ and wander the ship at will. John writes a thank
you letter to the Captain saying how well we were looked after. It turns out
that the gastroenteritis like symptoms are on the increase and the ship has
increased measures to prevent the spread – no self service, sauna, Jacuzzi,
washing machine use etc. We go outside
for the morning - and breathe in the welcome
fresh air. The temperature after coming all these miles south is extremely
pleasant indeed! The sea is very calm. We relax and enjoy it all in the shade
and then Jan walks 2 miles round the ship, spotting flying fish and, she
thinks, pilot whales. In the afternoon she returns to the choir and then there
is a very interesting talk ‘ Licensed to Thrill’, by Keith Muras, a diplomat in
Moscow in the 1980s. This evening is a
formal dress evening – quite a contrast to our recent evenings in the cabin!
Beautiful dinner, which we are able to enjoy, followed by a talented young
soprano. We are now on passage to St.
Helena where we are due to arrive on Friday 22nd. Today the nearest land is Sierra Leona –
about 300 miles away. It is strange to think of us sailing past all these
countries and with their many problems.
