The lift was built by the French architect Raoul Mesnier Ponsard,an apprentice of Gustave Eiffel.

The views from  the viewing platform is magnificent.So is the exquisite roof tiling.Masterpiece.

The lift links The Baixa quarter of Lisbon with The Largo Do Carmo in The Bairro Alto.

Lisbon,Elevador De Santa Justa,the neo-gothic lift built at the turn of the 20th century.

Yes, the most wonderful thing about cruising is waking up in a city like Lisbon.

Lisbon, the Lovely.
3000 years ago the Phoenicians,traders from Lebanon,sailing for the tin of Cornwall,named the then tiny settlement Alis Ubbo,a calm roadstead. Over the centuries with new conquerors of this fortunate  slip of land,it was renamed Olissipo,then Felicitas Julia (after Julius Caesar), then Al-Oshbuna. In 1147 the English crusaders assisted the first King of Portugal,Afonso Henriques,to take Al-Oshbuna from the Moors,who had it under control for 300 years,and probably from this time the city was known as Lisboa.
In 1498 Vasco De Gama discovered India.Spice trade followed.Lisbon benefited greatly.Portugal became one of the richest countries in the world.
In the 18th century gold  and diamonds poured into Portugal from Brazil.
Then a disaster struck.In 1755 earthquake,fire and tidal wave destroyed much of central Lisbon."The silver lining to this horrific event was that it acted as a precursor  to the scientific study of seismology".
The destroyed section was re-build  in a grid pattern - the streets interact at right angles  and form a pattern of squares  when viewed from above.
In 1910 the monarchy was ousted.
In 1932 Salazar became The Prime Minister.
In 1974  The Carnation revolution disposed of Salazar. Called Carnation, because the soldiers filled the guns with carnations, not bullets.
In 1985 Portugal became member of The EU.
Lisbon has  the second largest suspension bridge in Europe ( The largest in Europe,The Great Belt Bridge,is in Denmark. Japan has the largest suspension bridge in the world.) Completed in 1966 on the lines of San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge,at first known as The Salazar Bridge,now called The 25 April Bridge,after the date of the Carnation revolution.No foot passengers are allowed on the bridge.
One day I am hoping to climb The Statue of Christ (resembling  that in Rio De Janeiro).Apparently paid for by the women of Portugal in thanksgiving for the fact,that the men were not  actively involved  in The Second World War.

The joy of cruising is waking up one morning and finding yourself in a town like CADIZ.

Cadiz the enchanting,was founded about 3000 years ago by Phoenicians,traders from Lebanon,who named it Gadir-Castle.
Julius Caesar held his first public office here and the town was the third most important town in the Roman Empire.
When America was discovered,Cadiz became a haven for the fleets leaving for the New World and then bringing from there  the goodies.
In 1587 Sir Francis Drake,a British sailor,burnt all ships in the port.
By 1770 Cadiz was wealthier than London.In 1812 it was the capital of Spain.
Cadiz is  situated in Andalucia on the Atlantic coast,and the winds can be strong and cold,as I found out when I was sitting on the upper deck of the Hop on Hop off bus.The town's 140 000 inhabitants  and the visitors enjoy the sun,sea, horses, sherry.
Today brandy and sherry from Jerez, and olives and olive-oil  from  Seville, are exported from  Cadiz.
Cadiz is famous for flamenco,the music of the gypsies.

The cruise on Britannia, to Canary Islands, 23 September -7 October 2019

had too many "gremlins",as the captain called  the numerous  problems we had encountered during the 14 nights on board ( every cruise is counted in nights, not days),I would call them great big "shreks".
No internet for 4-5 days,no TV for as many, and when the services were "back to normal",the signal was lousy.I connected to the wi-fi outside the ship only,the best internet was  in the Port of Cadiz, quite excellent, in fact, as was everything else-comfortable seating in an immaculate area,toilets spotless.
Marco Pierre White,the first British and the world's youngest chef  to win three Michelin stars, was on board the last 3 days.He hosted a masterclass at £100 per person  and a dinner at £150  per person.I took part in neither.
The entertainment was mediocre,there was nothing of interest for me except  BALSTAF, a French/English  acrobatic duo. Quite excellent.Had seen them once already, and  knew would enjoy the experience.
FlyRights gave several concerts.Having seen them twice on other ships,I cruelly re-named them FlyWrongs and did no want to be disappointed again,so  gave them a miss.
The juggler Pete Matthews and his flying axe I liked  enormously on three occasions,this time I decided to watch a delightful  animated film TANGLED,in my cabin.
I went to the cinema to see POMS with Diane Keaton and was shocked how thin, emaciated her  body was.The film was thin on story,too.
I thought I would enjoy  THE FAVOURITE.I did not. It is an unpleasant film.I do not understand why it was made.The film reminds me of EAST is EAST, I think it is called,a film about a Pakistani family in England.Quite  a distasteful story.
I did sit one afternoon in Crow's nest,at the very front of the ship  on the 16th floor, the latte was weak and the milk  had the strangest of smells,as is so often the case on a cruise ship, they use dried milk I dislike.
The library is next to the Crow's nest.It is the worst library I have ever been to at sea.The designer had no idea whatsoever what joy reading a book in a cruise ship's library can be.No joy in this pokey small space with uncomfortable seating,no side tables.
The library on the Queen Victoria - divine. On the Queen Mary - spectacular.Cunard really knows what the traveller wants.
And Britannia is a flagship in the P&O fleet.The library is not the only trick the P&O had missed.The minuscule cabins like mine, C 622, with not enough storage and a bathroom you shouldn't try to swing a cat in.The balcony too tiny to make oneself comfortable in.The mattresses hard and the pillows like bolsters.But the dinners were second to none.How an elephant of a ship manages to provide every evening excellent meals for so many people,is truly remarkable.
The joy of cruising is waking up many  mornings in a new city, or in  a new country.

Gran Canaria

My husband was a workoholic,he used to relax by playing cards,but this was not for me,I always loved several days by the sea.At one particular time I suggested we took a break on Gran Canaria,I had read an article about a five star Hotel Tamarindos there and knew we would both love it.But my husband thought 4h of flying were 2 too many,so I asked him if he would mind my going alone.He looked surprised-you would never go without me,a little girl from the sticks-referring jokingly to my being born in a tiny village in Slovakia.An hour later I had booked the flight and the hotel.And that was the beginning of a beautiful  eaqually footed partnership.My husband had never underestimated me again.And the hotel?It was full of Germans,one of them,a doctor, with a handicapoed little daughter,had courted me.But what I remember the most,was a morose chambermaid.And sunbathing in the nude on Maspalomas.Over the past 9 years I have been  to Gran Canaria several times,always on a cruise.I would never fly to come here.I dislike the capital Las Palmas,it has nothing going for it,not even a decent cup of coffee.And I drink to that with a second glass of freshly pressed orange juice.

Yes,I am on my first cruise since returning from the trip around the world at the end of April.

On the 23 September I sailed on P&O Britannia to Canary Islands for 14 nights.If ever I needed a break, this was the time.Having waived goodbye to my guests at 7am on Sunday 15th,I  knew I had to  go away,anywhere,just away for at least a week.  From 13 August until 15 September  I had a stream of visitors for 6 nights to 4 weeks.I love having people stay,but am going through a massive overhaul of my life,the responsibilities I have had since my husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer's,through the years of coping with this cruel relentless illness,then
 his death and its fallout,have not diminished to the present day,so many a time I just want to close the doors and see no-one for at least a day.And on the 15th Sept  I knew I had to have a break.First thing Monday morning I booked the cruise.The 3 days it took us to reach our first port,
Madeira,were excellent, the second day the balcony was drenched in the most glorious sun,the first time ever did I experience weather like it on this stretch of water.Strangely enough I was slightly sea-sick and I rarely get sea-sick.Madeira was warm,but mostly cloudy,La Palma the following day completely overcast.Today we are in Tenerife and the sky is blue and clear  and bright and I am having the most wonderful time.

The Eurovision song contest took place in Israel last night.

I have the  fondest  memories of the country and the people, be it Arabic, or Jewish,having spent some months on a kibbutz  there.
But the film "Spy" was also on TV.  It has the immensely likeable Jason Statham.I have never liked pretty pretty boys.My husband used to joke I only like the "monkey" faces,as my favourite actor had always been  Walter Matthau.      Now it is Mr Statham. Even though he is very handsome.
Mr Statham's  self aggrandising  soliloquies in "Spy" are hilarious,  delivered with such  aplomb.He is a fine comedy actor.  The three  men clad in silver foil and some strange concoction on the head, singing  in German and dancing on stage, is the funniest moment  in the whole film and the producers should have made more of it.

"Forget money,marriage and health are key to happiness"

Daily Mail, 16/05/2019.   "...living with another person who has promised to stick by us no matter what
is the foundation of reliable love and,therefore,bound to improve our chances  of a happy life."

"Voting arrangements for blind people are unlawful

because they cannot sign their ballot papers without help,the High Court has ruled."

There are 800 000 Muslims living in Great Britain who cannot read or write in English,many cannot read or write in their mother tongue. Yet they take part in all elections, their   X   is accepted on all ballot papers.

How can their vote be lawful and that of the blind people is  not?

E.P.Thompson,British Social Historian,

said in 1975: "This "Going Into Europe" will not turn out to be the thrilling mutual exchange supposed.It is more like nine middle-aged couples  with failing marriages meeting in a darkened  bedroom in a Brussels hotel  for a group grope."

"Europeans  have lost  their  "collective libido" for each other,Jean-Claude Juncker  has said before  attacking the weakness of British politics in the face of Brexit."        Daily Mail, 04/05/2019.

"We don't love each other.We have lost our collective libido," Mr Juncker said in an interview  with Germany's Handelsblatt  newspaper.

I am  laughing  my sides have almost split!

I have been waiting with abated breath how far the SUDANESE SPRING will go.

It reminds me of  Czechoslovakia in 1968,when the political change was so near and yet so far.
The problem is that once a man sits himself in the seat of power,it is very hard to let go. And it gets even harder to relinguish it  when he gets his snout in the trough.

In Las Palmas yesterday the UK immigration officers boarded the ship,

to carry out on board face to face passport  control.
This morning without any waiting whatsoever I sailed through it, and I even had the time to joke with the very handsome officer- please make sure it IS me, after 3 years on this cruise I am not so sure myself if I am who I say I am!
He burst out laughing and was still laughing as he was seeing people who followed me.And that is the way to do it,in a pleasant, civilised way.Thank you, UK.
We have three days to go before the Queen Victoria docks in Southampton.
We are sailing through the North Atlantic Ocean, humorously referred to as "The Pond".[My lovely god-son Adamko on his first holiday in Croatia called the Med a big swimming pool.]
The Atlantic Ocean occupies roughly 106,400,000 sq km.The deepest point is the Puerto Rico Trench at a depth of 8,605 metres.

The entertainment.

Philip Hitchcock is a very likeable magician.He has performed on the London Palladium,at he Tropicana in Las Vegas and does the cruise circuit,too.
Georgina Jackson is a BBC Big Band and Ronnie Scott's vocalist and trumpet player [I love jazz and have been to Ronnie Scott's}.She has a pleasing voice and a pleasing personality.
Jacqui Scott had starred  in many London's West End musicals-Evita,Cats,Miss Saigon,Chess.She belts out the songs for effect  rather than emotion.
Mike Doyle,the comedian, has done three Royal Variety shows and two Royal Garden parties  at Buckingham Palace,three his own TV series and five TV specials,so he has the credentials,and he is good,but not in a class of his own,unlike  the crossover singer  Roy Locke    [not cross-dresser,  crossover, being able to sing different genres of music, like Catherine Jenkins},truly a king amongst princes.
And we have  the broadcaster Jennie Bond on board   [yes,that Jennie Bond]  talking about the British  Royal family. Not being the lover of things royal, her lectures are of no interest to me.

Since the evening of 15 April we have been sailing towards the Canary Islands,

where we should be docking tomorrow morning.
On the port side we passed Cape Verde.
On the starboard side  we passed Africa.
Starboard side is the right side of the vessel or an aeroplane when facing a bow or a nose.
After Namibia  there was at a smaller or greater distance  Angola,Congo,Cameroon,Nigeria,Liberia,Sierra Leone,Senegal and yesterday afternoon we sailed adjacent  to Mauritania.Where,I hear you ask.
I could find some reference to this country in dictionaries,but no travel book in the ship's library.The country  lies in the North West Africa,in Sahara.Lonely Planet in their beautifully illustrated "The Travel Book"[updated in 2018, truly  the nicest present any-one could be given] says:...Before  recent security issues made Mauritania out of bounds to traveller,it was traditionally the safest trans-Sahara route for overlanders...How very sad that from the safest it has come to persona non grata.
This afternoon we will be crossing  the Tropic of Cancer.Thanks to the proximity of the Canary Islands  to the Tropic and the African coast,the weather on the Canary Islands is subtropical,it rarely falls below 18 C.
It has  been mostly windy and often cold since leaving Namibia,cannot wait for tomorrow.The weather on the  Canary Islands  has never let me down.

Singapore was the 82nd country I have visited,

for one day only,on this World  Cruise.
It is  very well run  and very easy to negotiate,all three  Hop On Hop Off  routes  start from one point and return to the same point,the stops clearly marked,the bus drivers helpful and polite.
I had the time  to see the whole of the island,not in detail,of course,leaving the yellow line last,as I wanted to linger in Orchard street,the shopper's paradise,to look for sexy evening ankle boots on a low heel[ found none].
Singapore is one place I would very much like to visit again,if not for anything else, then for the spectacular Changi airport,easily a small town in itself now, that  two days ago,on 17 April,  Jewel Changi Airport   was opened.
It has the tallest indoor waterfall,gardens, a hotel,and about 300 shopping outlets and eateries.It promises to be quite an attraction and I am attracted!

We had The World Voyage Country Fayre on 17 April,

many "pre-loved" [as they are now called] clothes, shoes and various nick-nacks had been donated by the travellers.I volunteered to help and was allocated to host the  Buzz Wire Game Stall nobody wanted [I said I would do anything], as it was not glamorous, the 2nd Hand Rose stalls  were much in demand both by the volunteers,all women,and the buyers,and of all the stalls they  made most money.There was a raffle at the end of the two hours and a live auction,where The Chart of The World Cruise went for $4,000. The auction made in total just over $9,000.The money will go to various charities, including one in the Philippines,as  much of the crew is from there.I am very happy some money is being donated to the Help For Heroes.So little is being done for the soldiers who return from the senseless wars damaged physically and mentally.Every little will help someone and their families.
Today I received a lovey  thank you letter signed by the captain Mr Tomas Connery, Sadiki,the Social host and Sally, the Entertainment manager.

I have had lovely neighbours since Cape Town, an English couple, Mr & Mrs Jackson,

where I have had several different people since 10 January, as only about 700 out of  2000  or so are doing the full cruise.There was a delightful American couple, he about  10-15 years younger than his  elegant,beautifully turned out,confident and  charming wife,it was obvious he adored her,neither of them had an idea where Slovakia was,and to their credit never pretended otherwise.I never heard them boast about where they had been,what connections they have,no pretentiousness at all.They were replaced by a Chinese [or similar}pair who left their good manners at home.I was glad  when a pleasant looking woman and a man were seated at the table.He knew when to talk and when to stay schtum,she chattered endlessly and was  a tad too loud,but her voice was pleasing and melodious, Welsh,I thought, by birth,but didn't  ask, I never ask questions.
  I talk a lot,too,but hope never to the annoyance of my neighbours.To hold an animated conversation, serious or lighthearted, is one thing, to be loud is most unpleasant.
And talking about  loud.There was an Australian  couple in the self -service restaurant the other day,both beautifully turned out and well groomed.
She:If you meet someone, do not let me stop you, do not think about me,have a nice time.
He said nothing.
She:Like this neither of us is having a good time.
He:I didn't want to come, you insisted.You didn't want to travel alone.
She: You could have said no.
He: How many times you phoned me, ten at least.
She:You should have said no.
I really felt sorry for them.I know how hard it can be to be alone.Yet hell can be other people.
I finished my meal as quickly as I could and left.
Mr Jackson and his wife are delightful and it is going to be a pleasant ride to Southampton.

To date,Thursday,18 April 2019 we have sailed since Sunday,10 January 2019

61,343.796 km.
To  the end of the cruise,28 April 2019, we have  7,809.884 km to go.
For me the cruise had started and will end in Southampton,England,and the km reflect this distance.
Today at 12.30 we are crossing the Greenwich Meridien, from the Eastern to the Western Hemisphere.

Namibia is the 88th country I have visited.

It has 2,533 794 inhabitants [2017], occupying 823 328 sq km.
London has 8,787,892 [2018] population[I have looked up several sources  and the figures are different],  living on  1,579 sq km.
It was surprisingly cold [20 C]  when we docked in Walvis Bay,the town that has nothing nice to say for itself other than it has the largest and most important port in Namibia.
Treasures of Namibia was the name of the tour I had chosen to participate in,as I very much wanted to see the prehistoric  Welwitschia Mirablis Plants unique to Namibia, and  so called after Welwitsch,a Portuguese botanist,born in Austria.They produce two leaves only in their lifetime.The two large woody leaves  lie on the ground, animals nibble at them,but cannot swallow. There is a conelike structure  between the leaves,very hard to the touch.The plants have a lifespan of 500 - 2,000 years.
We had to privilege to see lichen plants,too.Lichen is a "symbiotic association of a fungus and an alga,"it is a kind of crusty patch or a very,very low bushy growth that comes to life  in contact with water,as the tour guide had demonstrated.
Then there was the Dune 7 of the Namib Desert, at about 55 million years  the oldest in the world,where tourists come to wallow in the soft warm sand,and the  surreal moon landscape where Mad Max 2 was filmed.
The Namib Desert is a home to  The Palmato Gecko and The Desert Sidewinder.
The tour guide informed us  that in the arid nastiness that rarely sees water live various animals including giraffe,zebra and baboon, and told us to watch put for them.
My eyes were peeled yet I saw nothing and expected to see nothing.I told Okey,the very likeable guide, I did not believe an animal could live without water or food and therefore no animals other than those that live under  the ground can live in the Namib Desert and the surrounding land.Maybe, I said, years ago, when there was water and living edible plants, but not now.He was quite taken aback,I do not think any-one had ever doubted his word,
We passed the uranium mine owned by the Chinese,all uranium is shipped to China to use for nuclear energy.There is an 80 km long pipe that supplies water for the mine.The Chinese are paying  for it all. Any work [ the little we have seen] being done in Namibia is done in partnership with China.Should Chinese banks call it in, they would own the best of  Namibia,if not all of it.
We passed salt mines,they produce 500 000 tons of salt a year, 80% being exported to South Africa.
We stopped in a delightful oasis for the most excellent drink, delicious bubbly and very,very tasty snacks,included in the tour price.They also sold  incredibly looking oh so tempting cakes,but I left my debit card in the truck,so could not buy any.The almost five hours of the tour passed so very quickly.Even a bumpy ride was somehow an acceptable  part of the whole experience.
And as we were saying good-bye, I was so very happy to hand a bag-full of clothes to Okey to give to his wife.Not everything I wanted to leave,but most of it, I simply had no room for it all.   Oh,and the weather inland was at least 30 C,The Namib Desert is never cold.

Port Elizabeth

was the first port we docked in in South Africa.It exports 8,000-10,000 cars a month.It may seem a lot,but it is not, and the number  reflects the decline in motor industry worldwide.And that decline can  be sen all around Port Elizabeth.It is a drab, sad city,as if carrying the problems of the whole country on its shoulders.80% unemployment is a horrific figure.And this is what Port Elizabeth has.The surrounding land is acidic,nothing can be grown,so agriculture in the area is non-existent.There are two patches of rich soil, one of them grows citrus fruit only,with 80% of it exported.

Volcanic Experience 2

As we were driving down the new coastal
motorway towards the road that would take us across the island  to the volcano,the temperature began to fall,the rain drops began to beat against the windows and the fog began to appear like a speckled hen.We made our first stop.Outside an Australian woman was shivering in  a  skimpy top,so once inside the bus I had  lent  her a long sleeved T shirt I was hoping to have the opportunity to give to someone.We continued towards the highlight of the tour.The temperature outside had dropped considerably,in the bus almost as much.The rain was pounding down with greater and greater intensity and the swathes of fog had quadrupled in size.The trees and the greenery gradually disappeared  until  the terrain became one black mass with formations of lava strutting out, often in spectacular dunes.Some scenes from The Star Wars and The Planet of The Apes had been filmed there.The bumpy road with more holes than Swiss Ementhal made me thankful I had light breakfast.Then we stopped.And there it was-Piton de la Fournaise  shrouded in white  mist,not an outline to be detected.As a consolation prize there was a "dry" toilet in a shack a short walk away.I did not dare to investigate.So we boarded the bus again.The temperature inside 13 C, outside 11.A German man and his wife with a massive mole on her forehead, were constantly opening the window taking photographs,  with no regard for a frail American lady sitting in he seat in front of them,who had asked them twice not to please do it,as the rain was coming down on her.In the dining room a German harridan talks  as if she had verbal diarrhoea,her shrill voice grinding on my ears making me want to abandon the ship.What is wrong with these people? Who behaves like that?We drove for almost an hour exactly the way we came until we stopped for lunch.The starter -some local vegetable-was excellent,as was the red wine and white sliced bread.Fish dish, meat dish,both in identical sauce,  not to my liking,were served with rice.Surely nice dessert and a cup of coffee would make up for the disappointment.,I thought, until fruit salad landed in front of me,followed by lukewarm black muck.In the pouring rain a mad dash to The La Maison Volcan,supposedly a museum.Few pictures on walls museum do not make.Seats in the 3D cinema uncomfortable, film made by amateurs.After  an hour and a half  back on the bus.An American woman missing.It took the tour guide 20 minutes to find her.There is an idiot who spoils it for every-one on every tour.
The best thing about the 8 and a half hours of disappointment  was the competent but oh so frighteningly young coach driver and the polite  smiling tour guide who endearingly was the first to laugh at his own  jokes.He was very diplomatic and economical with the truth Re the way Reunion makes a living.Reunion is an overseas  territory of France,one of the few dependencies that still exist.It has been in French possession since 1642,except between  1810-1815,when the British owned it,yet it those short five years they had done more for the island than France in 300 years,they replaced the coffee plantations destroyed by cyclones with sugar plantations.Today sugar accounts for 85% of all exports by value.With at least 35% of unemployment a large part of the population relies on handouts from France and no doubt this expensive appendix  France could do without.But how do you get rid of an island you have owned for centuries, unless the islanders ask for independence and this they are in no hurry to do,they get the same wages as the French in Europe,  they get benefits as  the French in Europe.The tourists they get are 85% from France.I certainly would never want to come to Reunion voluntarily.I was overjoyed when after almost nine hours of "Volcanic Experience"  that never was I returned to the ship.The dinner was excellent, I even finished without a murmur the pastry chef's strange rendition of a blueberry cheesecake,which was a mousse in a cup with a dollop of biscuit base and some berries thrown in.God knows stranger tings have landed on my plate!And so to bed. At 8.And I slept like a baby.

Volcanic Experience [1]

Was the name of the tour I took a part in on the island of Reunion,wanting to see the Piton de la Fournaise,one of the few active volcanos in the world.Expecting to hear it gurgling,spitting,throwing up lava about and maybe even make me run for my life,as it erupts every year.And in the absence of that hoping it would at least give me a nod,a wink and a smile.So we sat out in a not very comfortable coach at 7.30 in the morning (the seat was too high,my 159 cm barely touching the floor,and it also slanted awkwardly,my shorts rising up).The temperature was 32 C.

Yes, tomorrow am going on a tour of the island of Reunion.

Reunion is an overseas department of France,one of the very few dependencies  still existing.It is very likely a burden on France, and many people living on Reunion would like independence,too,but with the subsidies from France gone, the island would not be able to survive.At least now they have some kind of life, then it would only  be  a kind of existence.
Reunion has about 855 000 people living on 2,512  square km, with the inner inhospitable part mostly empty.And this is what I want to see  tomorrow - the volcanic Reunion.
Piton-de-la Fournaise  evolved some 380 000 years ago.It stands  at 2,631 m and is one of the world's most active volcanoes.
Since 1998,the volcano has erupted  almost every year,the lava flows down,spilling into the sea, adding to the island's area.Over  48% of the island has been designated a UNESCO natural world heritage site.

The voluptuous Jacinta Whyte performed for us again last night.

She can sing, she can dance. I can't.But my curves are almost as nice as hers.

My friend Laurin has written to me:"Well, I must say you are seeing both the high life

and the low life of the world!"
How right he is.
We are in Port Louis  for the day.I have no plans other than to  enjoy myself in this capital of Mauritius, the 86th country I have visited,and shop!
Over the past weeks I've bought the odd present,regretted not buying more,I've even found the loveliest of dresses  and a jacket in Yes,Pleats in Singapore, and two pairs of Skechers.  But of all the countries  we are docking in,it is Mauritius I want the credit cards do the talking.To help the developing textile industry on the island  employing some 100 000 people,and to give me pleasure,too.
For tomorrow  we dock on Reunion  an I am  booked on a tour for almost 9 hours.

The last word on Seychelles.

The visit to the capital Port Victoria [or just Victoria] was short but not always sweet.It rained intermittently and the locals were jumping with joy,and by golly they had a reason to! The water came down in buckets.    So having decided not to take a taxi to the Beau Vallon beach,I cannot judge its beauty.And people come to Seychelles for the beaches. But staying in Victoria,one of the world's smallest capitals gave me the  chance to see it  in more detail  than it deserved.It is not only small,but very plain,too.That said, in The Sir Selwyn Selwyn-Clarke Market I saw a hand made cotton  bag I now regret not buying as a present,but having left the 1st floor restaurant in the Market  without touching the food I had ordered, [the smell put me off,even though I did drink the freshly pressed  fruit juice],I just wanted to get out of the  colourful but unpleasantly reeking Market and the unpalatable food.I also regret not buying  an utterly divine white feather necklace in the Kankan,where I'd already purchased an utterly divine  necklace with equally divine  matching ear-rings and another  divine set or ear-rings.I cannot swim and to me all beaches are a much of a muchness, but an utterly divine necklace is to be treasured for a lifetime.

The wonderfully amusing juggler Pete Matthews came back last night.

I have seen him twice before with two axes  ( yes, axes, not ex's),  now missing, and  a one wheel bicycle,now present.And again he could not have been funnier.Not just a juggler, but a fine funny- man,his rapid-fire wit thrown about faster than his balls [the juggling balls!]
The publicity photo does not do him any  justice,he has grown so much more handsome now that he has cut his hair and shaved his whatever it was he had.He needs a new photo.

At 19.30 this evening The Queen Victoria slipped her lines in Seychelles,the 85th country I've visited

and set sail for Port Louis,Mauritius,where we should dock  on Friday,5 April 2019.
The transiting through the pirate infested waters has been trouble free.Many people have been scared, some take all their meals in their stateroom.
I am not one of them.

I am not a fool, I am fully aware the Queen Victoria would be a dream  catch for  any pirate,but I do not dance to fear.

Today,Tuesday,2 April,2019,The Queen Victoria docked in Port Victoria,Mahe Island, Seychelles.

I had me a plan - walk to the centre of the town, buy postcards, get stamps at the Post office,a rare  easily reachable site  in most ports,the last time I got stamps at the Post office was on the island of Tonga.Have a cup, or two, of latte,while writing the 11 cards, then give this little town,one of the world's smallest capitals [it has  26.450 inhabitants] a quick once over and then  a taxi to the nearest beach called Beau Vallon,that is  some 3-4 km away.

It all went well until I sat down to write the cards. It started to spit, then rain, then pour.But I was in no hurry to go anywhere and yes, by the time I  had finished the sky was clear again. I decided to go to the Selwyn Selwyn - Clarke Market.I was barely inside when the first  drops came  clung clicking  on the tinned roof.  Then the heavens opened. I almost had lunch ( I ordered, but did not like the smell, made an excuse not to eat it so as not to offend the staff ), I did have freshly pressed juice, played with my mobile and decided to return to the ship the moment the sun came out.There was a couple in their 50s sitting at the table next to me having the most unpleasant verbal exchange,the relationship appeared to be at the death door.Why do people do it to each other?  Luckily I did not have to wait long for the rain to stop and for a good half an hour the sun was shining merrily. Then the heavens opened again.I  happened to be passing  by some  shops and walked inside  one called Kankan. The most beautiful necklaces, ear-rings and rings everywhere.I just could not resist getting a necklace,matching ear-rings and another set of ear-rings. The rain was relentless. The owner  said her daughter would give me a lift back to the ship.How kind. True, I did spend there a lot of money [ 6,430  RUPEES, converted into  EUR 413.21], but she did not have to do it, and I certainly did not expect it.

The daughter was gorgeous [ as was the mother ], and the moment I said I was from Slovakia, she said - Bratislava, I was there last year, beautiful city and very nice people, very kind, like at home in Seychelles. I was so surprised and so pleased. Many  idiots on the ship have never heard of Slovakia, only one American lady knew  what it was and where it was,she had engaged with me in a conversation about the country's history,etc. She even asked what  my views on the EU were and when  I said in my inimitable  way I wished we were never a member, she laughed heartily.It is the amusing way you say things, she remarked.

Last night an Irish songstress Jacinta Whyte graced the stage of The Royal Court Theatre.

Finally a woman with three B's - Bust,Bum,Belly. And she carried it off with aplomb.And she can sing.

Sri Lanka is the 84th country I've visited.

For over 2h I'd walked the ramshackle streets of Colombo,the ramshackle tuk-tuks decorating a row after a row of ramshackle houses that prop each other up knowing if one gives and leanes,they all would crumble like a pack of cards.Women sitting in doorways,chatting,preparing food,clothes hanging limply on the lines in the steaming heat.Strange odour chasing me up and down every alley,every street.Little has changed here in a century.And there is something missing.Yes,a pile after a pile of rubbish,a sight so familiar on Bali,in Vietnam.There is dirt,there is poverty,all-pervading,overpowering,overwhelming poverty,but no squalor.These people who with so much dignity survive on so little,deserve so much more.

As I write am sitting on he floor in the corridor just outside my stateroom

taking part in a safety drill in case we are attacked by pirates.
"Between Sunday,31 March at 8.30 pm and Tuesday,2 April at 11.00 pm,Queen Victoria will be transiting  The Indian Ocean,including  an  area  well documented in the world's media for piracy."
So the ship has put in place a security plan - closed curtains  in the cabin when the light is on,just  common sense on the travellers' part. Returning to the cabin  and sitting in the corridor "in the event of pirate activity."
I am on the 8th floor, below me several floors down I can see 8 balconies  jutting out.If the ship command thinks I would be idly sitting in the corridor if pirates are trying to get onto the ship through these balconies, they are greatly mistaken.All heavy furniture  I can lift will fly down on the pirates and boiling water,too.But I am sure it will not come to this  as the ship has measures to protect us all.
What they are,they are keeping to themselves.Probably jets of water, ear-drum busting whistle and very likely guns,too.  After all many airlines have  an armed  marshal on board if a plane  carries  300 passengers and crew, whereas a ship the size of Queen Victoria when full has just over 2000 passengers plus about 1000 crew,so they must carry guns to protect us all.

Colombo,Sri Lanka, 29 March 2019.

The ship had laid on a shuttle bus to  the centre of town, some 8 km away,but as always I thought I  knew better and could easily walk the distance.It was 9.30 in the morning,the temperature outside good 26 C and rising.What is a km or two when  I have my lemon water in the bag and  a pair of comfortable sandals on a pair of good legs?  So I walked through the  industrial port,no sign of life except  the odd car stopping offering  me a lift,a taxi or two offering  service, one

insisted he would take me for free, I must have looked such a pitiful sight, a motorcycle stopped,then returned and said - madam,please, I am very safe.Even a bicycle man with a huge smile  and no teeth thought I would be better off  with him than walking!  But no, I had to do it my way,And after about 3 km  there was life,people, shops and the beginning of two most unforgettable hours  where in a street after a street I was the only European face,where a smile  got me  a wave  in return,a wish of good morning,a permission to take a photograph of a sacred temple. That was my reward for my  aching feet and sweat pouring down my face and my back,as the temperature was now at least 32. And when I had no energy to walk any longer I hailed a tuk-tuk [a motorised three wheeler] to take me to the Hilton hotel,a ride not for the faint-hearted, the ramshackle rickshaw  weaving in and out of traffic, the seat moving precariously underneath me,I had to grip tightly whatever I could to stop me from  falling out.The driver was talking and talking and asking questions,but I understood little,his accent strange  and English poor. The ride cost 150 rupees,a pittance, really. I gave the driver 200 and two individually packed  biscuits from the ship.[ I had twenty  and handed them all with some money to the men sitting barefoot in old rags on the ground by the entrance to every temple.] And I was inside the beautiful,immaculate,massive,cool lobby of the Hilton.Standing there for a few seconds  I was aware of the most awful stench enveloping me.And I was the stench. My top reeking,my hair reeking.I had soaked in the smell  of the streets.
I did have a clean top in my bag to change into,but was too tired to look for a restroom and to my left I could smell coffee, glorious coffee. Latte was excellent, a massive jam doughnut delicious, wi-fi instant and strong and the smelly me was soon forgotten. Bliss.
And as I was sitting there comfortable and content, a thought crossed my mind-wouldn't it be wonderful  if I  did not have to return to the ship and could stay in this lovely establishment for a week.
I made a decision there and then that one day I would come back.

Michelle Pfeiffer's character Countess Olenska in "The Age Of Innocence"

was hers for the taking and by golly,she took it.The posture,the voice,the longing in the eyes of this exquisite woman  for someone she could never have.
Ms Pfeiffer is 62  and beautiful.She does not appear to have had anything drastic done to her face.How much longer will she be able to resist?
Goldie Hawn  is 74, in the "Cactus Flower"[1969] utterly delightful.  In the "First Wives Club" [1996] a caricature of her former self.The face barely moves and that awful,awful trout pout. Aargh!
At 58 Meg Ryan does not resemble much  the woman  she once was.The botox and the fillers have done their worst.
And one face lift after another destroyed the looks and the marriage, [to Antonio Banderas],
of the sexy and oh so desired by every man  who had seen her in "Working Girl",Melanie Griffith [61].

The face,the body changes with each passing year of every  single person,be it a woman or a man.
George Clooney once considered so handsome,is not ageing well. Being married to Amal does not help.She is too thin, her make up  too heavy,

often makes her look like a drag queen.They do not mesh well.
But I digress.
Ms Pfeiffer has finally, according to her, joined the social media.Instagram.She could not find anything she could feel good  about putting on her body."So I decided I was going to see if I could develop a fragrance that would raise a bar",she says in a magazine article.
Really,Ms Pfeiffer? The preposterousness  of these women  who put their name  to perfume and clothes and suddenly they become the "noses" and designers.
There is no harm in  well known personalities  advertising a product if the public is gullible to buy it. [Yes, I am an advertiser's nightmare.I have written I have never bought anything on Amazon and it had been brought to the attention of  the founder, Mr Bezos!]
David Beckham makes  £ 30 million a year by putting his name to anything and everything.[No to an envelope yet.] But he does not claim he invents or makes  what he advertises.
So,Ms Pfeiffer,many people will buy the  fragrance you had "developed", but  I will not be one of them.I abhor hypocrites.

Malaysia is the 83rd country I have visited.

We are sailing for three days  to Sri Lanka and on Friday 29 March we dock in the capital,Colombo.
As I write am sitting on the 12th,the highest level of the ship,reserved for the Grill travellers only.The  sun-beds are of the quality I have not seen on any other vessel,thick and very comfortable. Even here there are coveted spots and this morning I have managed to collar one - yes,they are the ones at the end of a marquee,where you can move the bed comfortably towards the sun and back in the shade.It gets hot, very,very hot,scorchingly hot.It rained last evening and it rained all night, but did not pour and the air is slightly fresher, be it temporarily.It is going to be a wonderful day.

Singapore is city,island,country rolled into one.

"...the economy is believed to be among the most powerful in the world,chiefly because of government efficiency,the exceptional infrastructure,minimal corruption,and a skilled workforce..."[DK Eyewitness Travel]
Any person convicted of littering faces a fine of up to  S$ 1,000 for the first offence.Repeat offenders  up to S$ 2,000,including a stint of corrective work order,cleaning public places.
It is an offence not to flush public toilet  after use.Those convicted  face a fine  of up to S$ 150 for a first offence,S$ 500 for a second and  S$ 1,000 for subsequent offences.
In places where smoking is not permitted, the fine for smoking  is S$ 1,000.
There is a smoke free zone in Orchard Street,probably the most famous shopping street in Singapore.
Tipping is not encouraged, as 10 % service charge is added on the bills.

There is one regret I have about Singapore,

and it is that I never had the chance to have a Singapore Sling at the Raffles Hotel.
The hotel is closed,it is undergoing refurbishment.
It was opened in  1887 by  three Sarkies brothers,immigrants from Armenia.
Singapore Sling was  first  concocted  by a bartender Ngiam Tong Boon  in 1915.
It consists of  gin,cherry-flavoured brandy,triple sec,Benedictine,pineapple juice,lime juice,Grenadine.

Paris ties with Singapore and Hong Kong as world's priciest cities.

Last year Singapore  alone  had the honours.
In September 2018  the family Tsai  [originally from Taiwan] paid for a bungalow the size of 4  836 sq m,   93,9 million  Singapore  dollars,this is about 55,6 million British pounds

As I got off the bus in Chan May

As I got off the bus in Chan May, there was an old man in raggedy clothes and worn-out sandals sitting next to a rickety bicycle,an empty water bottle in the basket.

He was not begging,just looking hopefully at  passers-by.I only had 10 000 dong left and two t-shirt,so I took off my Skechers and handed them with the clothing and the cash to the man.10 000 seems a large amount,but in Vietnamese currency it is a paltry sum.I looked back at the man, sneakers on his feet.I am size 4,he must have had small feet for a man, but then he was a small man.

Vietnam was conquered by France in the 19th century.

The World War II brought enormous changes in the world order.Vietnam wanted independence,but France would not give up what they thought was rightfully theirs,they thought their troops and fighting prowess was  far too superior and  in their arrogance underestimated the Vietnamese.In 1954 they suffered humiliating defeat. In 1954 Geneva Accord divides Vietnam  at 17th parallel into North Vietnam and South Vietnam.Elections pending.
But the French  would still  not take "non" for an answer.Through fraudulent referendum they installed their puppet,Ngo Dinh Diem,who had been away from Vietnam for two decades,as the head of the South Vietnamese Government.In 1963 Diem  was assassinated by his own officials, together with his brother,who was the head of the security.The coup was US backed.
In 1965  the American involvement in Vietnam escalated,by 1967  Lyndon Johnson had sent  to Vietnam 500 000 American troops and 100 000 Allied troops [ mainly Korean, Australian, New Zealanders}.

On March 16,1968  in My Lai  in 3 hours  more than 500  Vietnamese civilians, mainly women and children,were killed in cold blood.Not a single shot fired at the American soldiers.
And the young Americans had enough of this senseless war.The public opinion had turned against any further American involvement.On 30th April 1975 the last American troops  and diplomats fled by helicopter from the American Embassy.In 1976 Vietnam was officially reunited.The war was over.The nightmare began. 

The poverty the Vietnamese people had  suffered in the 80's is unimaginable.There was no food,many people  starved to death.There was no medicine.The children died in thousands.In 1993  the American Administration  led by Bill Clinton allowed  the release  of International Monetary Fund  loans to Hanoi.How magnanimous of America.First you bring a country to its knees and then you "allow" help for  the starving millions.
I have seen  poverty that will haunt me for the rest of my life.

I have seen beautiful houses and wealthy neighbourhoods. 

Life is getting better.

But it is a slow,slow progress.
An American  had said to  the tour guide-the Vietnamese are  so slim,it  must be their good diet. 

No, replied  he, we often cannot afford to buy food.

"Graceful,historical Hoi An

is Vietnam's most atmospheric  and delightful town...beguiling riverside setting..."[Lonely Planet}
Hoi An is a UNESCO world heritage  since 1999.
Japanese covered bridge built over a steam in 1593 connects  Japanese and Chinese districts.
The old house of Tan Ky was built to withstand floodwaters  in the rainy season.The exterior of the roof  is made of tiles,inside  the ceiling  is made of wood.This keeps the house cool in summer and warm in winter.Tan Ky house has been preserved through seven generations.
17th century Phuoc Kien Temple is dedicated to  Thien Hau,goddess of the sea and patrons of sailors and fishermen.
The China beach is a stretch of 30 km of white sand.It is not politically correct to call it  the China beach, but My Khe,at least that is what the 6 km  near Da Nang is named as My Khe is practically a suburb of  Da Nang
Marble Mountains are just off the China Beach Rd.Mountains have five tops with pagodas on the highest level.The residents of the  villages at the foot of the mountains work with marble and the creations are delightful,but even the  minute ones are too heavy,being marble,and the jewellery I found too old fashioned.I almost liked some, but not enough to buy.
Many restaurants, shops, hotels in Hoi An do not have English speaking staff, getting a freshly pressed  fruit juice had turned into a farce and in the end it was easier to walk out.
We had stopped in a couple of shopping outlets,one specialising in making and selling silk items and lanterns.  I  looked at black trousers,but did not like the shape  of one pair,and there was nowhere to try the ones I liked,so gave them a miss.In the other shop there were pyjamas I liked very much and wanted to buy them in  deep red to wear  separately  in the evening [yes, teaming them with different  items and wear not in bed, but to a restaurant,etc.],but could not find anywhere to pay for them,so good-bye pyjamas.
The English of the tour guide - the very expensive tour booked by Cunard - was awful,his mannerisms strange,no rhyme or reason to anything he was saying and not even  half way through it all I lost the will to live.Had he kept quiet the heat and the  often bumpy two hour ride to Hoi An and two hour ride  back wold have been more bearable.And then there was the most obnoxious Australian couple to listen to, he of the loud voice commenting on anything and everything,most of it crap in the first degree,she adding to the misery with her nonsensical  shrieks.Oh,Ozzies, when you are good,you are very good, but when you are bad, you are awful.
The magic of Hoi An made up for all the misery en route.
One day I would like to return and see a it all again.

Hong Kong is the 81st country I have visited.

It was leased by China to Britain from 1842 to 1997,now firmly back in Chinese hands with some autonomy. It is one of the most densely populated areas in the world.About 7.5 million live on 1,046 sq km.[Slovakia has 5.5 million of people living on 49 .036 sq km.] For a small "country" H K packs quite a punch.It is the world's most vertical city.Public transport travelling rate exceeds  90 percent,the highest in the world.The income per capita is one of the highest. H K breathes prosperity.
What astonishes me is the size of the designer shops, given that  space is at a premium  [and no,I did not see any sexy evening ankle boots, was not even tempted to try any Laboutins.] In the shopping centre next to where The Queen Victoria had docked,  practically the whole of the massive  basement is devoted to designer  boutiques for children.
The women in H K are well dressed, many a time I thought what a lovely outfit.In Sydney, Australia, there was one  woman only I considered stylish.One.She was tattooed top to bottom, wearing 50's dress.And she pulled it off.
H K,small as it is, deserves another look and I would very much like to look  again.
.

I found out yesterday the tour

to a rice farm may not take place for the lack of interest,so have booked another tour I think I will like.And in a way I am glad,it will give me the chance to hand out some of my clothes and shoes and bits.In Nha Trang after the Vinpearl I so much liked we had to board the boat to take us to the ship.Nha Trang was one of the ten major air bases operated by the US Airforce during the Vietnamese war. In 1971 the Americans withdrew from the air base,and a month after the North Vietnamese captured the city on 1 April 1975 the war was over.Nha Trang bay is considered to be one of the world's most beautiful bays.And I had seen the mainland only fleetingly.This new tour will give me the chance to explore a litttle the local way of life be it in a completely different part of Vietnam.

Evie has spoken!

Hurrah.She is American.One Yank  who doesn't talk.
Evie is my table companion on the Crystal Bus tour in Hong Kong.

She almost fell off her seat when I extended my hand to her and introduced myself.The same bewilderment at the Captain's table at dinner the other evening.

Hong Kong

Excellent wi-fi the moment you step off the ship.Now that is the way to welcome us.

The morning after Darwin

I woke up with bite marks all over my body,except the face. Something had a feast and I was the dish.I could see no flying object in my cabin,smothered myself with soothing cream and gave it no further thought,even though was keeping an eye around me.

Two mornings later I knew I had a problem,red blotches all over my torso and my lips had acquired the shape of a trout pout.

Still I could see nothing.

In the evening a tiny blood-sucker, slightly bigger than a moth, greeted me by the door flittering about happily, his dinner was coming! Not if I can help it! We were chasing each other til midnight and I won! In the morning I could not believe my eyes,another bleeder.He had the moves, I had determination.

Still I could not hit him.And then I thought to use my brain,spread a blob of honey on a tissue and placed it on a bed.After lunch I could see a tiny spot on the tissue.The blood sucker was dead.

Life and laundry on the Queen Victoria.

With my grade of the cabin(P1) I get 4 items laundered-washed and ironed every day.I never take the full advantage and do a lot of washing myself.The service is excellent.On a striped red and white T-shirt they got rid of a stubborn dark spot I could not dispose of.Why do I pack stained clothes,you may ask.I did not notice,I must have bought it like  that and it was at the back.I want to give it away together with numerous other items at the end of the cruise.The ship's  men worked their magic on my silk shirt I have had for years and take on every holiday,it has a tiny grease mark no more.

The entertainment.

The world's fastest pianist Australian Ashley Carruthers in his finale,that came far too soon,jumped on the piano with his back to the key-board and played.I have seen things, but this...
Still, a nice man, nice playing.
The Spinettes.
Retro glamour is their middle name.Polished act, I loved the songs,not the singing,attacking every song.Not for me.
The performance of acrobatic artists  Frenchman Philippe and his English wife Rachel was polished and breathtaking.
She must be 40 if a day,with the graceful body of a teenager,I have never seen splits like hers.He is athletic,with a nice sense of humour.
I never stopped clapping.

I have had an invitation to dine at the captain's table tonight.

It is a coveted invitation,there are only 10  places at the dining table and about 1 800 passengers.
To date I have had 8-9 v invites to various do's hosted by the captain [there is a cocktail party  every week or so], but i is not for me.     This time I have said yes,anything to get away from the roly poly's manic laughter and the American's lectures.
When I went to iron my staple  "gala " white blouse  I pair with funky midnight blue trousers and ankle boots, I noticed a large  stain near the 2nd upper button,luckily a blue necklace I bought in Aruba  will cover it.

Two years ago I had travelled around Latin America.

The poverty I had encountered was shocking.But poverty I understand.I was born into poverty.What became incomprehensible to me was the squalor accepted as  the way of life.At the end of the 45 days I thought I had seen it all and could not be shocked again.
And then I came to Bali.
The cruise terminal in Benoa is nice and clean.The tender provided by the port authorities  to ferry us from the ship to shore was luxurious  in comparison with the Queen Victoria's own boats.The bus  that waited to take us on an 8 hour tour to the Water Palace and the village of Tenganan was comfortable and had  a working air-conditioner.
As we drove away from the port  the island of Bali appeared no better and no worse than many other islands I'd visited-personable buildings  mixing with those that could barely stand,the occasional pile of rubbish or a broken piece of furniture leaning against a wall or a lamp-post.
And then the personable structures became sporadic,the shacks prevalent and the pile upon pile of rubbish and broken beds,chairs and other pieces of furniture everywhere.And when I thought it cannot get worse it got worse, much,much worse and  I came to realize  that one man's paradise is another man's hell.
The squalor the likes of which I had not seen before, everywhere.
Bali is a part of the Indonesian Archipelago. Indonesia is  the world's largest Muslim country.The ethnic mix in Indonesia is overwhelming.The riots in recent years have pitched Muslims against Christians,developing in the Maluku Islands and in Poso in Cenral Sulawesi into full-scale civil war.
Bali is Hindi.There are 100 ethnic groups,speaking more than 300 different languages on the island.
In 2002 there was a terrorist  bomb attack in Kuta on Bali.
Having seen how the Balinese live I understand the resentment many  of these people who have so little feel towards the foreigners who appear to have so much.
What I do not understand is why the hotel chains do not do more to help.

What have I done to deserve this?

In the  Princess Grill dining room in front of me an English roly poly laughs like a man possessed.
At the back of me an American  holds court from the moment he sits down  to the moment he gets up.No-one says anything to him.No-one asks him anything. Yet he talks.Non stop.The laugh I can put up with.But the incessant talking would drive the most tolerant of the tolerant to scweem and scweem and scweem!   If he does not get off in Hong Kong or Singapore I am jumping the ship!

There were "Jumping Croc" tours on offer in Darwin.

Are we being asked to participate  in some special local do  wearing crocs, I wondered.  Perhaps this is the dance for my two left feet!
No,not the dance, the crocodiles had food dangled above their heads to make them jump for it.  

In the heat of 40 C [104 F]  I wouldn't sit in a  boat even if the croc jumped into my arms and  kissed me!
We were promised a spectacle of thunder and lightening at 16 00. We did not get it.
Something akin materialised  in the evening. No thunder, just lightening.Electric lightening.
A groom all in black being  kissed by a bride in spectacular white robe that changed shape  as she  embraced  him at times   tenderly and fleetingly, at times with a fervour and unbridled passion.
A spectacular good-bye to Darwin.

A speedo man on board.

Yes, I spotted  one this morning,the dip between his buttocks  visible from a distance of  200 m. And what were the people near him privy to as  he was looking  for  a spot to sit,I shudder to think.

There is a spot, off the ship!

If Darwin was a woman,there would be only one word to describe her - plain.

In 1942 the Japanese destroyed 90% of the town in 64 bombing raids.
In 1974 cyclone Tracey did an equally good job.The town was rebuilt on the same site.
Darwin has two seasons - the "dry" season from May to October and the " monsoon" season from November to April.
As I write at 14.00 local time the temperature outside is 38 C [ 100 F.]
It is hot, it is sticky.
The Hop on Hop off bus was half empty,I never heard cameras clicking and I myself didn't even bother to take my camera out.There is simply nothing of note to see in Darwin.
The shopping mall is plainer than plain,the one promising boutique in a side street was closed. But I did buy some  magazines and postcards and stamps, the children in my family love getting the  cards addressed to them,they so proudly show them to their school-friends. the post box was very visible and that is a rarity. As is buying stamps together with the postcards.So while writing the cards
I had some freshly pressed juice and could not resist  a cake, similar to a  Madeira cake but taste-wise far too superior.
There was a very old Aborigine male  beggar sitting in a door-way near the letter box and I gave him all my loose change that came to about 14 Australian dollars,he was quite shocked when it landed in his palm and kept repeating what I presume was thank you.
Then I boarded the immaculate  shuttle bus and 20 minutes later was sitting in the Princess Grill having the  plainest of the plain lunches. Aaah, Queen Victoria, you never surprise.

There are two Yorkshire men in the Princess Grill,

one quiet,the other not. One nicely chubby,the other like two barrels and a half. And the large one laughs.My God,how he laughs. No-one says anything and he laughs,someone says something and he laughs,he sees a waiter and he laughs,he doesn't see a waiter and he laughs.My mother would have said - he laughs  like a fool who had just seen a naked bottom [ in Slovakian it is very funny.]
There are two German ladies at a table next to them [we all are allocated  the same  table to eat during the cruise],and as the men are short and wide, the women are tall and narrow. They have become friends, go on outings together,one of them being  to  The Great Barrier Reef.
Yesterday at lunch  the four of them  were showing their neighbours the photos taken from the tour and the double barrels and a half said loudly for the whole dining room to hear - when he speaks I always hear every single word even though I sit several tables away-when I saw myself in the wet suit I was horrified, I have always thought I look wonderful.
Now, if you are wondering  why this man would ever wear a wet suit,the answer is, that in the waters around Australia there are the "stingers" [box jelly fish] between October and May and getting bitten by it can be lethal,so  the swimmers are offered black wet suits to protect them.
" I have always thought I look wonderful." That is exactly what I always think until I see my  photographs!
He said it so endearingly, I still chuckle when I think about it.
The Great Barrier Reef is a coral reef  in The Coral Sea,the largest coral reef in the world,2000 km or so, along the coast of Queensland.

Comedian Jeff Stevenson performed for us last night.

I know the name, I know the face,I know I had seen him in the recent past,but cannot find anything about him in my notes.I only know that I liked him when I heard him the first time and I absolutely loved him last night.Mr Stevenson, you are a very witty performer.I am never going to  miss your performance if you come on my ship again.

BRISBANE

The Beautiful.The shopping arcade  on Adelaide St.is lovely. Bronwyn in this  most  unusual boutique equally lovely,her skin faultless,no wrinkle,no blemish.And so nice to talk to.The next time I come to this enchanting city, I will get her to run me up an outfit.

Australia is big.

It covers 7,692.024 square km,The USA  9,629.091.
For 3 days now we are  sailing to Darwin, Australia's only  tropical city.Apparently every afternoon at 4 pm like clockwork thunder and lightening shakes the city to its foundations.It must be a breathtaking sight.A shopping centre and rain go hand in hand.And we will have a shuttle bus from the port to the  city centre.Lubbly jubbly.In Brisbane The Brisbane Arcade on Adelaide St is magnificent.The wi-fi is free and excellent,the seating provided  luxury itself. the choice of  outlets serving food  second to none,some shops are  glorious and I had discovered a little treasure trove called "Irma J. Smith" owned and run by Bronwyn.She has style rarely seen these days and is so beautiful,her skin peachy and wrinkle free, at the earliest opportunity I am going to  ask what she puts on her exquisite  face,it is neither botox nor surgery,I am sure. And if I ever go to Brisbane again, I am going to have an outfit run up by her seamstresses,everything she makes is one of a kind.
There was a silk dress I found in a  boutique,all fluff and frills, to the knee,pinkish with a gentle flower pattern, utterly adorable, but as I have 4 utterly adorable dresses on this cruise I have not worn yet,I thought no, not another dress I am not going to wear.And now I regret not buying it. I am an accidental shopper and find that what I buy on impulse I never regret. Only what I don't buy. Aaah,well.

Selfie

RIB

Rigid Inflatable Boat.
Imagine driving on the bumpiest of terrains when you feel the livers are being shaken out of you.
Now multiply it tenfold and you get a pretty good idea what chasing the waves  in a RIB is.
The first half an hour is exhilarating.Then it is NOT.And I had an hour of the NOT ride  there and  an hour and a half of the NOT  back.Where was it,you may ask.To the Whitehaven beach.
Now, I cannot swim,I can barely float,I sank in the Dead Sea where it is impossible to sink.But I did. My swimming is akin to my dancing.
So I never book a tour where a beach is involved, even though I love walking on the warm soft sand and where it is possible to walk to a beach,I do so.But the Whitehaven beach,one of the best in the world, I could not resist,thinking  the Ozzies keep it in a pristine condition [they do not,maybe because hardly any-one goes there.]
Only we docked in the Airlie Beach  port,where tenders had to be used. Why do the massive   ships go to ports where tenders have to be used,is beyond me,when there are hundreds of  other beautiful  ports  to visit,that  the big ships can dock in comfortably.There we were,the longest tender ride I have ever been on, 40 or so minutes from ship to shore.And The Queen Victoria absolutely not capable of handling this simplest of the operations.
We were an hour and a half late  to begin our "tour."That was unpleasant enough, And after the most torturous boat ride I was  hoping for  something wonderful to happen.What followed was   a  very unpleasant walk to the viewing platform from where the enchanting vista  of the Whitehaven beach opened up before me.Awful "ecological" toilets.Another most unpleasant walk back to the RIB.Quick  lunch.I had  an overcooked potato salad and overcooked  fruit de mer I could not stomach and handed back almost untouched. Luckily I took several pieces of red melon and pineapple,but there were far too few on offer and I did not go back for more knowing others may want some,too.Then I went on the beach,spread the towel and for 11 blissful minutes  soaked the sun trying to dry my completely wet shorts [I stepped from the RIB into the water up to almost my waist.]Several other people left the boat, most remained seated, waiting for us to turn  back.And that was the  promised  2 hours on the Whitehaven beach.

Brisbane is named after the river on which it sits

which in turn was named after Scotsman Sir Thomas Brisbane,the governor  of New South Wales  from 1821 to 1825.
During the World War 2 the city was the South West Pacific headquarters  for the American general Douglas MacArthur.In 1942 Brisbane was bombed by the Japanese 59 times causing extensive damage.The present day Brisbane rose from the ashes, the Australians   have done a marvellous job rebuilding it.
The city has sub-tropical  climate.Yesterday it was humid and sticky and it rained intermittently.But I did not mind,The shuttle bus  provided by the city ran on the loop transferring the passengers  from the cargo port where the Queen Victoria had docked, to the centre of Brisbane.The journey took 45 or so minutes either way and sitting in the luxury bus was a joy.Never on any cruise  have we had a comfortable vehicle like this at our  disposal. And it was free.

Sri Lanka has appealed to the International Monetary Fund

to revive a $ 1.5-billion  bailout suspended after more than seven weeks  of political upheaval in the country.The crises greatly alarmed the IMF,it suspended the bailout programme - that began in 2016 - just as it was about to disburse another instalment.
I will never understand why poor countries  that so heavily rely on foreign aid,cannot live in harmony and work to make their country more prosperous and self-reliant.
But as long as they know that "rich" foreigners will help,this will never happen.

That said,having re-read the above on 2 march 2021, I hope with all my heart Sri Lanka got the money and is spending it wisely.

I fell in love with the country and its people who retain dignity and kindness in poverty I had not seen before.

Still more entertainment.

She breathed  on stage in her red swirly short  dress,wide smile, hardly any make-up and let the sax do the talking.The song fast and tuneful,the way I like it when I am on a cruise and not at a funeral.
Benny Hill's signature tune followed - you know the one, he is chasing the girls  with a wicked smile on his face.She tap danced,can caned,did the split - and gracefully made it up.
Diamonds are a girl's best friend followed, her high notes not quite high enough,she forgot two words, but I did not care.I was enthralled by this delightful bubbly creature.And then she was gone.Breath of fresh air called Amber Jane.

Sydney has 115 museums,

75 theatres,74 cinemas,49 galleries,2 300 parks and gardens and 5 999 outlets selling UGG-ly boots.

Cycling to work is a lot of hard work,

a lie down is in order.

The Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney

had freshly cut grass.I haven't smelled freshly cut grass for a long time.It was intoxicating.

The Museum of Contemporary Art,The Sydney Harbour was a joy to spend time in

I liked The Aboriginal Art.And not a trace of Tracey and her "Bed."

In Sydney it was the lovely Marriott hotel

that provided comfort,excellent coffee and first class wi-fi.

Brisbane

the sub-tropical.This is where I am sitting.

More entertainment.

Tenori.Tenori.Tenori.Wonderful.

Wonderful.Wonderful.Amusing.Witty.And can they sing!
And they do keep to half of my credo-if the photo does not make you look ten years younger, do not let the world see it.  Please,Tenori,take a new publicity photograph  and make sure  it  makes  the little one look  at least 10 kg lighter,to do him justice, because wide he is not.Wide or narrow I absolutely loved your performance.
"VOX is at the forefront of contemporary choral music in Australia."
They sang for us on 27 February,mostly a cappella. It was a joy to listen to.Thank you.

The Sydney Opera House as seen from my balcony

last night when leaving The Harbour for Brisbane.

WOW, WOW, WOW

This is how the world looked this morning,28 February,from my balcony.

Last night we moved to our new spot

and this was the view from my balcony.

One of the buildings I wanted to find

was the Cadmans cottage.And it found  me!There it was in all its glory as I was making my way to the Bridge yesterday,the oldest standing building  in Sydney.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge has a pedestrian walkway.

And I have walked the walk.From one end to the other and back again.

The Sydney Opera House was 14 years in the making

The Sydney Opera House was 14 years in the making, completed in 1973.

Truth be told it is not my type of a structure,it looks like flying saucers glued together,but it is an iconic building people love and who am I to contradict them.

In 2017 Conde Nast Traveller voted Sydney the world's favourite tourist destination and 18th most beautiful city in the world.Topping the list was Venice,followed by Hong Kong.

I vote Sydney Harbour the loveliest harbour in the world.

In Sydney our spot in The Harbour

was occupied by The Carnival Spitit for the day,so tender was used to ferry us to a pier ashore.What a tender!Unedultarated luxury.What a pier! Next to the Sydney Opera House.