Sailing …

Following Mum and Dad’s treat of a cruise around the Baltic Sea back in 2007 to celebrate their Ruby Wedding Anniversary, we have caught the cruising bug and we’ve headed off on our hols.  This time we are onboard Oceana, another P&O cruise ship and visiting several ports around the Med. 

Callum loved the children’s club and at every possible moment is hassling us to take him to “Treasure Chest”.  There is a party or performance of some description on every sea day (and there are a fair few on this cruise!), so Callum’s been to the Captain’s Coke-Tail Party, Circus show, Fancy Dress, Pirates Party, Easter Party and a whole host of activities during the day.  Oh and he met Noddy and Mr Bump too.

Meanwhile, Jon and I could relax … I finally had the time to read and finish Harry Potter Books 6 and 7 (I finally know who gets killed!) and we pootled around exploring the ship, trying to decide which was our favourite spot (that that tended to be weather dependant!).

There was food available 24/7 so you would be hard pushed to go hungry.  Of an evening we chose the Freedom Dining option and this worked really well for us as you could turn up at the restaurant at a time that suited you (as opposed to 6.30 or 8.30pm).  Food was very good but you took pot-luck with your table company!  However, we were pretty lucky and with the exception of one couple, we wouldn’t have minded their company on another night.  We also ate out at the Horizon Grill one night (and had the whole of the Lido Deck and restaurant to ourselves!) and also at Marco Pierre White’s – whilst the menu did not look that inspiring at first glance, the food was absolutely amazing.

First port of call was Barcelona and a lovely surprise awaited us as we sailed in – Queen Victoria was in port.  The  Captain promised us a lovely sunny day, no rain, so coats were left onboard.  BIG mistake :).  We set off on the tourist open top bus and but after an hour, you could see dark grey clouds rolling towards the city.  We got off the bus at La Pederera, a Gaudi building with a stunning rooftop, and started to walk towards La Familia Segrada, the unfinished cathedral.  Well, the heavens opened and we dived into a cafe for cover.  Thunder, lightning, hailstones and rain …

Next stop Monaco, and we were very surprised that our ship could actually berth in the port.  Great pilot, great navigation as one of the most expensive yachts in the world (Lady Moura) was moored just a few metres off the port side. We walked around the marina and were surprised to see the Grandstands being build for the Grand Prix being held in 5 weeks time.  Absolute highlight of the trip was being able to walk through the tunnel and seeing that really tight hairpin bend by the Fairmont Casino.  The street circuit is so narrow though, you’ve really got to admire the skill of all the F1 drivers.

Pisa was next and we couldn’t wait to see the Leaning Tower.  Must say we were very surprised when we saw the tower – it was not how we imagined it would be.  It certainly seemed to be leaning more than 5 degrees!! Once again, the rain found us but it was quite cool to finally see this iconic building.

We decided that a three hour bus ride and 9 hours in Rome would be too much for Callum, so we had planned just to walk into the port town of Civitavecchia for a couple of hours.  However, it rained and rained all day so we knocked that idea on the head and spent the day onboard.  It was lovely and quiet with the majority of people on excursions! Our plan is to go to Rome for a long weekend later in the year, or even next year which will suit us a lot better.

On the last Tuesday, the day we visited Alicante, Callum woke up with a couple of spots … Chicken Pox.  As the medical staff said it was only “suspected”, we were allowed off the ship today and we were pleasantly surprised by what we saw.  In the background, an old fortress overlooks the town. A lovely long beach just to the right of the dock gates and wide tree lined walkways.

The following day, the Chicken Pox diagnosis was confirmed and Callum was confined to cabin for the rest of the cruise.  The Treasure Chest team were brilliant – they loaned us toys, DVD’s, books and colouring books to help keep Callum entertained … and did everything they possibly could for us.  They even arranged for Noddy to visit our cabin after his birthday party.  Callum was made up and probably made his cruise.  Apart from the spots, you wouldn’t have know he was ill.

Last port of call was Gibraltar and the ship docks a short walk outside of the town.  Just enough time for Jon and I to take it in turns to get off the ship and head into the town to pick up some supplies for the voyage home.  At least all cruises seem to stop in Gibraltar so if we did another cruise, we can take Callum to see the apes. 

In spite of Callum going down with Chicken Pox at the end (and Passenger Services doing their very best to make cabin confinement as awkward as possible) we still had a really good time, but this was thanks to the fantastic staff in the Children’s Clubs and the Ship’s Doctor.

Right, just need to start saving the pennies for the next cruise!!