Land Ahoy!

Land Ahoy!

Sunday 1 April

At breakfast this morning we had our first view of land for almost a week. Cape Verde proved to be a series of dry craggy islands, with little or no vegetation, cliffs that reminded us of Dover, and a sprawl of terracotta that represented the living element of these islands - as they slowly passed by our windows. Weirdly, some of the land masses were shrouded in an ethereal mist and I wasn’t sure at first whether they were clouds reaching down to the ocean in a pinky swathe, or terra firma. We meandered between these volcanic outcrops all the while looking out for birds or even some porofillas – we were told that sightings might be possible as it is the breeding season for these small dolphin-like creatures that live in the waters off Cape Verde. But we hardly saw any wildlife at all – just a couple of gulls winging their way across the sea in search of their next meal. The harbour vessel that came to escort us into port was a comparatively large white rusting vessel with no friendly hands waving in welcome. Reversing a ship of this size into a parking space was quite amazing. From our verandah it looked as if we were heading for a collision with a couple of ancient cargo carriers, but from the jogging track on deck 10, we could see a long concrete arm stretching into the sea, that the captain manoevred the ship safely alongside, with just about twelve inches separating dock and boat. Parking a car in a parking space must be a doddle for him.

The port – Porto Grande – contained several large rusting hulks that didn’t look as if they had seen action for years, as well as a few fishing boats. But the sun was shining and the whole scene sparkled. The gangplank was positioned with a blue carpet at the foot and Rob, the Cruise Director, was soon announcing that passengers could disembark and explore the island till 20.30 tonight – several of the morning activities had been cancelled as we had arrived in port a full two hours early at 11.00. We watched the first few passengers stepping on to the quay and start their trudge towards the awaiting buses and taxis – it took about fifteen minutes to reach proper land. Soon after midday, three large refrigerated trucks rolled up, presumably to replenish our depleted stocks of food.

For us it was time to find a sun-bed near the pool. Usually this area is filled up by the time we go to breakfast – although there aren’t many Germans on board, people the world over have obviously been taking lessons and the towels are unrolled, and books, sun tan lotions and hats are left to claim possession of each lounger – to be fair probably less than half the “staterooms” have the advantage of verandahs, so have no other place to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. We spent the rest of the morning and afternoon stretched in the sunshine, reading, puzzling, and I had my first dip in the pool – a small square shape with a jucuzzi on either side protruding into the centre of the bright blue oasis. When the ship is moving, the water sloshes around like waves, back and forth. The water was warmer than our plunge pool at Buzios - only just – but very refreshing in the heat of the day.

For lunch we found the poolside café served burgers and chips which we couldn’t resist as we hadn’t tasted “junk” food in months – even though these were made with 100% Black Angus beef. They tasted mighty good along with the chips and coleslaw and made a welcome change to some of the rich food we have been enjoying. Around 17.00, as we were considering returning to our room – the sun was moving over, a few clouds arriving and the temperature in the shade was dropping from the warm top 20’s we had had all day even in the freshening breeze – when we met the “Fab Four” from our trivia team – aka John, Stephen, Kwan and Alan. The had explored the island in a taxi, away from the town which they said was depressingly poor and offered next to nothing to see. They found long curves of yellow sand around the coast, one with a large lagoon for swimming, and the scenery in the hills was interestingly barren, but basically there was nothing much on the island.

We showered and changed, and felt our sun tan “glowing” as we made our way to the Martini bar for drinks before dinner. I chose a citrus martini, with lemon vodka, cointreau and a lemon twist that tasted very zingy, while Colin decided on Laphroig, a malt whiskey – not having tasted a whiskey since Australia and this being a favourite brand. Asked if he wanted a single or a double, I piped up with “double” and when it came it was a large whiskey glass full of the amber nectar – admittedly there were a couple of ice cubes dancing in the bottom of the glass, but it was still like a “double, double” at home. Luckily we had an hour to sit and sip our drinks, listening to Aleks playing soothing tunes at the piano, before our reservation time of 20.30 in the Polo Grill.

Making our way into the restaurant we were greeted like long-lost friends. The staff on the ship came from about sixty different countries, and many were still learning English, and lliked nothing better than to pass a few minutes practicing their pronunciation and vocabulary. Many of the floor staff originate from Eastern European nations, but the Captain is Greek, the Head Chef is Austrian and the executive chefs are from Sardinia and France. There is also a large group from Asian countries and a few from South America. Everyone is always very polite and friendly with broad smiling faces, ready to help. We still had half a bottle of wine from last night which miraculously appeared on our table, as we chose escargot vov-au-vont and veal chop for Colin and crab cake with grainy mustard sauce and a rib-eye steak for me. Our appetites are getting smaller the longer we are on this voyage and it is very difficult to do justice to this scrumptious food.

We had promised the “Fab Four” we would attend the ‘Broadway’ trivia quiz tonight, naming the shows from the music we heard. An American couple joined us to make eight, and we set off at a cracking pace – the four guys definitely knew their musicals – I had never even heard of the “the Bells are Ringing”, but in fact, five teams out of seven got that answer right. When music from 42nd Street played Alan (now about 60 years old) got up and did a short tap dance – he had great panache and earned himself extra “O” points. We got a little mixed up between The Greatest Little Whorehouse in Texas, Little Shop of Horrors and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, but ended with a commendable score of 16, coming second only to a score of 18 – so more “O” points for all of us. The quiz had been timed for 22.45 but by the time everyone was settled it started a little late - so by the time the questions were finished and we had chatted some, it was almost midnight – but we had to lose another hour tonight – so it suddenly became 01.00. No wonder brunch was being served tomorrow morning – or should that be this morning – in the Grand Dining Room, as well as breakfast on the Terrace. They are obviously expecting a lot of late risers.