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.
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