You can Click here for Part 1.

Shame on the person who made her feel so bad! Mary has worked hard and long for this chance to see the world and I think it is so generous of her to share so much with us all

So Mary,Mary,Mary,PLEASE come back to us!

At Joe’s request I will finish of the voyage, only one week more and then home.

At Safaga in Egypt 18 coaches and over 900 passengers left the ship at 6.30 am for the Luxor and Valley of the Kings tour and the Captain was on the Quayside to wave us all off. Because of all the previous troubles the coaches travelled in convoy with military and police escorts, so a tip if you ever find yourself in this situation do not go early, go for the last coach because if your on No.1 coach you have to sit and wait until they all fill up. We were in the last coach because a group of us decided we would all travel together and it was called the “fun” coach. However, there did seem plenty of fun back at the ship as there were several tug of war teams, crew versus passengers on the quayside which obviously kept everyone amused.

I can honestly say I never had any great interest in Egypt but I have been totally converted, Karnak, Valley of the Kings are just breathtaking but what enthralled me most was, as we travelled for 40 kilometers along one of the Nile tributaries life took on scenes from Biblical times, amazing to see the simplicity of the daily life of these people, donkeys were the mode of transport, wells for drinking water and the simplest of abodes, fields were cultivated and the most heart warming thing was the smiles on each and every face as we passed by, it made one wonder, they may not have the things of the materialistic western world but they sure seem happy with life.

Of course there were the various checkpoints we had to pass through where there were soldiers with guns but to be honest I never felt uneasy at any time.

We left the temple at Luxor with the setting sun on the banks of the Nile and oh what a sight that was, we retraced our journey earlier in the day and found these same people in the fields and going about their business right to dusk, from there it was into the desert and nothing to be seen and as it was over a 3 hour journey the fun coach started to sing, well if you can think of any song then I am sure it was sung that night, over 2 hours solid we were at it, but what amazed me most was the darkness outside and the stars in the sky, never have I see stars like this, just millions of them, at one time the Port Lecturer advised us that they used to stop the coaches in the desert, put the lights out and let everyone off to look at the stars but that was not possible now because of security reasons.

Arriving back at the ship the crew and passengers were lined up along prom deck to welcome us back.

Then 2 days later it was a 4.15 am start from the Gulf of Suez for the Cairo and Pyramids tour, but I had to forego this tour as I wanted to go through the Suez Canal. We anchored off and the night before the tenders were placed in the water in readiness for the next day and I can honestly say I never heard a thing, I slept through it all. We entered the canal in a convoy of 22 ships at 7 am, we were No.4 in line and once again it did not disappoint, it was totally fascinating, the West Bank all green and lush and habited and the East bank desert as far as the eye could see. 160 kilometers long and it took all day to go through, we had a pilot on board and were accompanied by a tug. What was most interested all along the way were pilot stations with electronic time boards and if the pilots did not keep us on time at all these stations then he was fined. On the desert side we passed by a big contingents of Egyptian Army with tanks, armoured carriers etc., all waving to us and 2 minutes later passed a kind of salt pan full of flamingoes, such diversity!!!

What was heartwarming though was the small and very primative army camps on the West Bank, on seeing us approach the soldiers would run hell for leather across the camps down to the waters edge, some with binoculars all for a closer look at Aurora as she passed by and everyone who watched whistled for dear life all the way along the Suez. It was a very special day.

On arriving at Port Said it was like parking this huge ship in middle of town and we would see the Med up in front awaiting, we anchored there to pick up the returning tour passengers from the Pyramids, when lo and behold this snake pontoon thing appeared and we was led right across the water to the ship, the stairs from the ship were lowered right on to this thing, what a marvel it was to watch.

Then yesterday it was Kusadasi in Turkey for Esephus, like Egypt many of you will have visited before and I hope this will jog the memories of these wonderous spectacles, like the whole city of Esephus, I cannot find words to justify the grandeur of these places.

Today its Athens Acropolis and the Plaka and one more Port of Call Barcelona and home. I am excited about getting home but will be said to leave Aurora, which to try and explain this its not like a long cruise, it’s a different feeling, its been like home for 3 months where some people have come to look on each other like an extended family, its like a village atmosphere where you leave your cabin to go somewhere and never reach it because you have met someone and you sit and talk for a while and before you know it, 8 bells are sounded and it’s the noon announcement and lunch. I had all these great plans that I would go to this class and that class and learn to play bridge etc., etc., and I have done nothing like that, the days just whizz by, of course many ports we could have had at least 2 days or more but have crammed as much as possible in the time allocated, but the glamour of cruising is when you are so exhausted by it all there are those lovely relaxing sea days to set you up for your next frenzied port of call. I have collected enough memories to last a life time and I hope that you all appreciate that it is only enthusiasm, keenness and earnestness that makes me want to write about this and nothing else!! I still think about it all in disbelief, its been like a fairy tale to me.

Southampton:
We were in the Alexandria restaurant to Sydney then swapped to Medina, however we were back in the Alexandria the other day for the RWC luncheon which lasted 3 hours by the way, and as you know it is right above the props and I can tell you that the noise has increased extremely compared to what it was before the rescue damage, so things are still not right with the Starboard Prop, so it will be interesting to see what happens when we arrive back in Southampton next week.

By the way I noticed the Ocean Majesty and Agean 1 in Pireaus this morning, along with the most ferries if have seen in any Port.

Paddy.

Paddy, not only the bar bill, but the bill for the excursions!

You'll soon be 'toastin' yer taes at yer ain firside!!!

For Paddy.
"P.S. What will your bar bill be like???"

Don't think Mary will take offence if I say that in Scotland the usual reply would be - "Money and civil words".

I am leaving on Sunday,8th,to join the ROTTERDAM's World Cruise for the final 15 days.When I get home on the 25th,no doubt you and I will be emailing back and forth comparing notes,albeit mine will not be quite as memorable as yours but still enjoyable.

Do have a safe trip home to Scotland,Mary!

I am SO glad that you decided to continue posting! I have enjoyed reading your posts and picturing everything in my mind's eye.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime trip and you have every right to "brag" about it (even though we all know you aren't bragging)! I hope to be fortunate enough to take a world cruise some time; but until then, I'm enjoying yours!

I would just like to thank you all for your kind comments during this topic, it has been a pleasure to share it, a wonderful experience, and even although it was 3 months the time just flew by, the only thing I can say is that during the first couple of weeks, it was the greatest feeling on earth knowing that it was not going to end immediately and that there was still lots of weeks to come with lots of new places to see, so I can recommend to all the avid cruisers out there that it is worth it all, as it is a very different experience, after all we only come this way but once and if you can make it happen in any way then go for it….

I probably could write a book about it all, but I will try and end on a light note about just a few of the eccentrics and characters that you find on a longer journey.

Always try and picture the scene, one elderly gentleman carried this little shopping bag around with him everywhere, and I mean everywhere, even when in formal dress (white jacket etc.,) at cocktail parties, prom deck et al then we discovered what was in the bag, seemingly about 3 or 4 weeks before he left on the cruise he met the love of his life, it was too late to get her on board and he couldn’t cancel or he would have lost his money, so he carried around this framed picture of her, and when he had any photo’s taken he would hold up the framed picture as well so it was included in the photo, at first I did not believe the story, but one day looking through the picture gallery sure enough there he was embarking from the ship like you do, stopping at the lifebuoy for a photo shoot, he was holding the framed picture, then as the cruise progressed there he was in every photo with the picture, I suppose it’s a lovely story really to think no matter what age you are you can fall that madly in love. Talk about eccentric though, I used to see him very early in the morning on Prom deck carrying the bag of course but I always thought he must have been sharing in an inside cabin and he got dressed in the dark so as not to disturb the cabin mates, as you have never seen anything like this, I feel a bit guilty actually at mentioning it but it was so funny I just cannot resist, from bottom to top it went like this, brown sandals, red socks almost up to his knees, bright blue shorts, white/yellow/brown striped short sleeved shirt and the jazziest tie you have ever seen, I got I looked forward to seeing him in the morning to see what the next combination would be. I only wished I had purchased one of the photo’s of him with the framed picture.

Then there was the lady 90 if she was a day, who played the roulette, the scene was the same every night, she would slowly walk in and they would get a chair for her, she then would start searching in the cavernous bag she called a handbag for her chips and would slowly pull out sandwiches, fruit, biscuits (cookies) before finding her casino chips, we never found out why she had all this food in her bag, maybe stocking up for us sinking or something, we will never know.

There was one Scottish lady who done well over 100 cruises all with P&O, and another that came on Aurora at the beginning and has never got off.

There were many more and if you are one of those people that are observers then this would keep you well occupied, if there was any place that you were able to observe human nature at work then this sure was the place to do it, as I said before you would not believe the amount of people who would moan about this and that, I think it is a British way of life actually they are not happy unless they are moaning even the comedians would remark on it, and of course there were the usual comments Oh this didn’t happen on the Oriana, and there were even some saying this didn’t happen on the Canberra, poor Aurora didn’t stand a chance with those old stalwarts, but as I say I thought it funny to make these observations, there were people from all walks of life, a real mixed bag.

Mercy: regarding the seasickness etc., well I was well prepared with a 90 day supply of pills and can say I only took 4 the whole trip, there was only one really bad night to speak about, the night after leaving Kagoshima in Japan, where during the night everything that was loose on the dresser tops fell to the floor, I tried to pick things up on my hands and knees but gave up and crawled back into bed, but never at any time did I feel sick.

Gizmo: I did buy a picture of the gollies but only at the end of the cruise when all that was left was a Soft Focus job, yes honest they had a soft focus one taken of the gollies, and I cannot remember if I took any myself of them, but will soon have all my films back and will check then.

Joe: Sympatico has suggested that I send some pictures, if you think that they may be interesting I could send some of the Suez, and some of Aurora with Victoria going through the Gatun locks at the panama canal. Let me know if you think it would be appropriate.

I have so enjoyed all of your posts and this finale sums it all up. I would love to do a three month trip and one day ......

The story about the lovesick chap really made me laugh, but he was not quite lovesick enough to lose the cash he paid for the cruise!! Well I suppose we all have our limits!

Cheers
Mary

I've got lots of questions: Like, how do you cope with cruise food for three months? Did you have to order beans-on-toast a couple of times just to stay sane? How do you pack for such a long cruise? How did you plan your wardrobe? How many formal outfits did you take? Did you take all your toiletries, etc. with you or did you restock on the ship or ashore? ... etc., etc., etc.

Thanks for keeping us up to date as you went along. I think we all enjoyed it almost as much as you did.

quote:

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Originally posted by Colin:
Welcome Home Mary,

I've got lots of questions: Like, how do you cope with cruise food for three months? Did you have to order beans-on-toast a couple of times just to stay sane? How do you pack for such a long cruise? How did you plan your wardrobe? How many formal outfits did you take? Did you take all your toiletries, etc. with you or did you restock on the ship or ashore? ... etc., etc., etc.

Thanks for keeping us up to date as you went along. I think we all enjoyed it almost as much as you did.

Regards, Colin.

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I'm with you Colin on the food question - after 10/12 days at sea I order 2 baked potatoes - salt. pepper and butter only - hold the sour cream and other trimmings!
Hadn't thought of baked beans - next time I'll try that. Am I a pleb?

There were many on board who already have next year’s World Cruise on Aurora booked, but I am not one of them, I think they fall into two categories they are the 4 share in a cabin job, mostly in the 70 to 80 age range obviously getting away from the winter, and the millionaire’s.

I don’t know if I would do it again or not, you should always never say never, but I think the long sections like Southampton to Sydney would be more of an interest to us and then maybe do a bit of exploring down your way.

Another factor for some people was that they didn’t fly, so it was the only way to see the world for them.

Colin: Coping with cruise food well….. I was worried about that myself, but to be honest if you have a strong enough will power a cruise ship can be like a health farm (actually cheaper Id say) because you could eat very healthily each day if you wanted – healthy but boring Ha Ha. I did actually watch what I ate for the first 7 weeks, then said och to hang with this I might as well have whatever I want within reason and did that and I am glad to say I only put on 3 lbs the whole trip. I did exercise as well up until 20th March then did nothing after that, so I was very pleased with the result. I went to my hairdresser the other day and the first thing she said was not how was the trip, no it was Oh you didn’t put weight on, I think she was disappointed and expected someone walking in like the Michelin Man.

You could have beans and toast every morning if you wished, because in the Orangery they served the good old British breakfast, which meant a big pot on beans bubbling away, actually there wasn’t anything that I missed, as there was a kettle in the cabin I could even have a cup of tea/coffee/hot chocolate day or night.

The packing was done with an organised mind, thinking about every eventuality, the first thing I did was check the temperatures of every country we would be visiting at the particular time, and knew that there were a few places that would be very cold, and they were like Japan, China, so I was glad that I had packed suitable heavy clothes, the biggest problem was in the evening, as on P&O we had 30 Formal Nights, 26 Informal Nights, and 34 Casual. Now on P&O Informal means Informal, no open necked shirts etc., but it was easier for the women, we really had to repeat wearing the same outfit, but we could wear one long skirt with lots of different tops. What I did was draw up a plan of how many nights there were and judge about a third being formal which was actually spot on in the end, then write down all the outfits and combinations, then I knew before I went if I had to buy some more. I had more day clothes than I needed, but everything else worked out well, because I did not want to spend any valuable time ashore looking for things like toiletries, last year I started to write down the date that I started something like toothpaste, shampoo, moisturiser, body lotion, conditioner etc., and how long it lasted, from that I then calculated how much I would need for 3 months, I did not want to take more than I needed or less, and I am glad to say it worked out spot on. I think the cabin steward when he went into the bathroom thought he was in a chemist shop. I also took personal items to put in the cabin which made it feel more like home, like 3 enlarged photographs which were properly mounted on card, I stuck them to the wall with Velcro which peeled off easily at the end of the trip, of course they had to be scenes of our beautiful Scotland, eg: Black Rock Cottage in Glencoe, sunset in Loch Broom, and the village of Sheildaig.

There was a little shop on Aurora where you could buy the basic toiletries, also sweets like Mars Bars etc., but you just had to take what they had in stock so if you really liked a particular brand of toothpaste etc., then its best to take it with you.

Green, Baked Potatoes were in the Orangery every day as well, so no need to make a special order, butter was a plenty, but sour cream well you would have to ask for that, there was none around.

A point to note anyone thinking of doing the trip, the route Aurora took around the world meant that there were lots of nights where we put the clocks back in effect gaining an hour which was nice going to bed at 1 am actually was only 12 and so on, now on Oriana they went in the opposite direction which meant they lost an hour all the time, which would be a killer especially if you were getting up the next morning for an early tour.

The handiest thing that I took with me was a chain and card holder for hanging around your neck that held my cruise card and door card (two separate cards on P&O by the way), it meant no searching around in a handbag or pocket for your cruise identification card getting on and off the ship, it could be put safely away in a bag once you got on a tour coach etc., and it also came in handy when swimming, rather than leave it lying around on a sun bed, better to be safe than sorry.

I also took the duct tape that so many from this board suggested and it was put to very good use taping up the ½” gap in the balcony door so it really was completely private Ha Ha., I could have made a fortune selling the stuff.

Cheerio
Mary