THE CRUISE - towards Iceland...

Day Four - Tuesday, 21st June

I was up very early today, and got dressed and went right up to the top decks. We were passing between Ireland and Scotland, near the Isle of Skye, and the Captain had said that at this point it was only about 12 miles from one country to the other.

Magic sunrise, and just me and the statue man, and it was so peaceful, (and cold), but I managed to get some stunning shots of the coastline and the sunrise. (Statue man is a featureless figure that appears in several parts of the ship, usually near the pool areas. I don't think he adds much to the decor, but he is there all the time).

We believe the pyramidal mountains are on Skye, and we had seen these close up when we came off the ferry from Harris/Lewis, some weeks ago.

We saw the last of Scotland around midday, (probably Lewis/Harris), and the midday report from the Bridge mentioned them, and the rest of the day and night we were on open sea, and it was calm, but fairly cold. We were at about 56 06 degrees North at 7.30am. The Arctic Circle is 66 33 North, just above Iceland.

We had pizza for lunch. They have a pizza bar on one of the decks and you just turn up and order what you want, and they make them on the spot. Small in size, but just enough for lunch and quite tasty. All this is included in the fare. The only thing you pay for are your alcoholic drinks. They are not cheap, but you have to forget that and just go with the flow, because if you restricted yourself because of your budget, then there are some drinks you couldn't afford on a daily basis. Typically, any bottle you could buy here in Australia for say, $14, would be £12-14 (which is about $20).
(Needless to say, our bar bill formed a substantial part of our account on board!!!) 

We both went to the music quiz today, but the theme was mostly based on British TV shows, so we didn't do too well this time. Tonight is another "straight jacket" night, i.e Black Tie, (they seem to do them on the nights you are at sea), so we had an early drink and then went up to the buffet.

Tonight's dinner theme was Meditterranean, and we tried a few bits of everything, including some moussaka (the Greek version of Lasagne, done with lamb), and other Greek and Italian dishes.
We were able to go back to the Glass House for an after-dinner tipple. On Black Tie nights they restrict access to certain areas, but the Glass House is not included, but you have to walk past and through the throng of 'uncomfortable penguins' to get anywhere. Tonight was also the Gala Reception in the Atrium, right in the middle of the ship, so you can't avoid them.

Lee retired early but I threw caution to the winds and went and saw the show in the Theatre, which was excellent, and was a composite theme of many Broadway shows, so just the thing for me. These shows are the things I would go and see more often, but you have to get there early to get a seat. I was in the back row, just in front of the area where people in wheelchairs can sit. There is a seat beside the wheelchair space for the partner, so it is very well organised. 

The gentlemen behind me were talking about the access they have as wheelchair bound passengers, and they agreed they were well catered for, but one chap was saying that he had to book 18 months ahead, as the accessible cabins are not plentiful.
Nobody gave me a second glance at my attire, which was jeans, shirt,  and a woollen jacket, so what is all the fuss I ask myself.

I think the cruise lines are trying to keep alive a tradition of elegant sophistication that perhaps people don't really want. I believe if any of them offered "Completely Casual Cruising", it would sell out just as quickly! 

Next - all at sea...

The Western Isles - Part Two...

Sunday, 8th May - (Catch-up)

Lewis and Harris are NOT islands! There is no water separating them. Jim, the owner of the B/B told us that the division is purely Religious, and that most of Lewis is Protestant, and Harris is Catholic.

Lee tried the local Black Pudding at breakfast, (I can't stand it), and we had all day to get down to Tarbert, on Harris, for the next ferry trip back to the mainland and Skye.

 Thought we wanted to see a few of the local ancient or historic sites, but even tho you can get to them, because it was Sunday, all the visitor centres attached were closed. Still, we had an interesting time at a Black House, which gives an idea of how they lived in ancient times. It was a shame not to be able to see inside, but you can still smell the smoke from the fires that were lit inside the dwellings. They were simply black from the smoke and the soot.

Then we went on to The Gearrannan - Blackhouse Village, which sits above a small cove, and was only vacated in the middle 1970's. They have thatched roofs, lashed down with rope and heavy rocks, and look quite cosy, (some of the doors were open and we think they are rented out to holiday makers, and seem to have plumbing, etc. You'd pay heaps of money to have a holiday site like this, overlooking a beach etc.)

The next stop was to find and see the Callanish Standing Stones, and the day lent itself to the mystique and eeriness of the site. Again, the visitor place was closed, but we could still walk up to see them. They are all the eerie moody things you imagine, and the rocks are so worn and eroded from the weather. Our photo's don't really capture it well, but the silence all around made it very atmosphoric. Then the rain hit and we had to scramble back to the car for shelter.

There were other groups of stones nearby, and you can see them quite plainly from the car. If not for the weather, we would have spent much more time here.

These two larger photo's were taken within minutes of each other, and how the "mood" changes.

Out to the Western Isles...(Part One)

Saturday, 7th May - (Catch-up)

Today we left Aviemore, and had to get to the ferry at Ullapool. We were advised to leave two hours, but knowing us we left at around 7.00am, and the road is very good and you have to divert a little at Inverness, and go over the bridge at the Forth of Moray.

Very pleasant run, and you come down the hill into Ullapool, which again is one of the many harbour towns, nestled into the cliffs/hills behind the town. 

The ferry people are so well organised and we quickly found a huge parking area where they check your tickets, and have you put your car in a queue line, ready for going onto the ferry. Then, if you have the time and have arrived early as we did, you get wandering time to have a look at the village.

There wasn't much to see, but we found postcards in a huge touristy shop. Some of the shots on these cards are often better than we will be able to take, and so Lee puts them into our album when we come home.

This ferry is quite large and once on, you then get lots of space to either find a seat indoors or wander about on the deck with other passengers (and their dogs!), and take in the scenery.

Leaving Ullapool for Stornaway (Lewis), is just magic. We had a good day with some sun and cloud, but the ferry passes through and by so many changes in the landscape/watercape, it is just stunning.

Our photo's won't do it justice, but there was a 'professional' on deck with all his lenses and whatever, and he would have gotten some great shots.

The day was good and we had a trip of about two and three-quarter hours, so plenty of time to relax and take it all in. The other end is just as efficient and you go down to your car at the announced time and then just drive off to your new adventure. There were caravans, campervans, pushbikes, walkers, you name it.

The ferry took about 90 minutes to get out past all the islands and headlands, and as we went further out, more and more distant mountains kept appearing behind those we could already see.

We had lunch on the ferry and both had beef and ale pie with great chips as a side. I asked the man from the kitchen what they used, and he simply said they only used vegetable oil, but because they did so many chips, they changed the oil very regularly.

We had seen a number of watercolours in our rooms at Aviemore, by an artist called Anthony Barber, and his stuff is just wonderful. It turned out he now lives on Lewis, up at a place called Point Ness, which is the furthest north we will have been in Scotland so far.

So after we landed, we decided to drive straight up to Point Ness, and come back and check in to the B & B later.

Point Ness is a beautiful area, with a beach Australia would be proud of. If it wasn't so early in the season I would have gone in for a swim.

The gallery (see the link), is a small one above the beach, and we had a very pleasant talk to the artist, which is great to be able to do. Would have loved to buy an original, but it would have proved too hard to get back home.

After that we drove back to Stornaway, to try and find our B & B, but got hopelessly lost and had to phone the guy and get better directions

Island of Lewis is quite different to anywhere we've been before. There are little houses everywhere, but there seems to have been no 'plan' whatsoever to where they have been built.
We gathered from someone we spoke to that people just got a piece of land, and built a house. But the randomness of their placement is quite pronounced. Some are clustered together to almost make a small hamlet, but you come across a little white house in the middle of nowhere. Also the fact that there are none, or very few trees, tends to make them stand out.

Beach at Point Ness

And, why are most of the houses in Scotland painted white?? You would think that in Australia, we would use the colour white to reflect the heat, but there isn't the same sort of heat, and you get snow as well. We also saw lots of peaty moors, and even some examples of people still gathering the peat, and turning it over for drying, to use as a fuel in winter. Apparently they are allotted an area to work, and can't take any more.

We had also gone out to the lighthouse on the Butt of Ness, which then became the most northerly place we have been in the UK.

Peat 'farming'

Fascinating outlook, and steep cliffs dropping to rocks and ocean below, and no signs of any kind, warning of the dangers of nearing the edge!

However although we were looking out at the Atlantic Ocean, it was so calm, it could have been Port Phillip Bay in Melbourne.


On the way back we went and found an ancient sight which we thought might be standing stones, but it was just a ancient site of a house(?), and a stone circle.

Got a little lost in trying to find the B & B, and had to phone the owner. Eventually got there, and had a nice room on the first floor with a view over Sandwick Bay. Nice meal down at a local hotel, and were informed that very little if anything would be open tomorrow, (Sunday), as they close the lot down for long-time religious reasons. We were told that in years past even the local children's play park was locked on Sundays!!

Planes and boats and cars and trains...

If you watch the news regularly like I do, you will have seen all the bits and pieces on crashes, engine problems, etc. If I think too much about them, I might never go on another flight, but when you think again, there are hundreds and thousands of people in the air at any time of the day or night, and so the odds of anything happening are really quite minimal.
As we did on our last overseas trip, we have chosen to pay a bit more and do the Premium Economy thing. It just gives you a little more room to spread out, and there are usually only 32(?) people in the section. If I thought I might get stuck in the middle seat of a row of five, in economy, then I wouldn't go!

You also hear from time to time of people being upgraded to a different class. It has never happened to us, but please, by all means, try me! 
I'll take a trip in Business Class anytime, just to see how the wealthy people live!

Our flight with JAL includes a hotel stopover at Narita, so we'll have a small taste of Japan on the way over. We only get most of the first night, and a bit of the next morning, but it might be enough to see if we ever wanted to go back and have a better look.
We've had confirmation of the booking number for our big cruise to Norway, so I went on-line and entered our personal details so they have all the information they need. It just makes it a little easier later on. We have a balcony cabin on the port side of the ship (is port, the left??), BUT they have indicated there are four (4) Formal Nights, which we just don't do. 
Apart from anything else, we would have to carry "good frocks" all the way 'round the world and the UK, just to use it at the end of the holiday. I prefer my days and nights to be casual, and not have to wear a collar and tie at any time! We'll have some nicer gear for other occasions, but forget formal!!!

When we get to Oban, for the small cruise around the Island of Mull, and to Fingal's Cave, we can leave the car in a secure lockup with a local business for the week, and just come back and pick it up after we disembark. It will cost $60 for the week, (about $9 a day), but good to know it will be safe somewhere.

We will also have taken the car with us on the ferries across to Lewis/Harris, and for the benefit of anyone hiring cars for the UK, Hertz are one of the only car hire companies to cover you for taking their cars on ferries. They also let you pick up the car in one location, and then return it to another location, which is very handy.


Trains are another favourite, but we are not sure yet whether or not we can fit a little trip into the itinerary, we'll have to check....