Category: Cruise Ships

Together in the UK. Valentine’s Day.

Satchmo

As followers of my blog will know my partner is a musician on a cruise ship with his band Funky Blue. We say ‘goodbye’ a lot ‘Standing on the Docks in Southampton’ (Lennon and McCartney) and ‘Hello’ in lots of different countries as I travel the world to be with him. This year has seen a huge change in our lives. We flew back from Cuba in March and have been together 24/7 ever since. I’ve missed the travelling, but loved having him around.

Wherever we are in the world, together or apart, this is our song- the iconic Mr Louis Armstrong with All the Time in the World.

More Funky Blue…

“Music is the moonlight in the gloomy night of life”

John Paul Friedrich Richter.

There has been nothing roaring about 2020, but music has been a lot of people’s moonlight in these dark times.

And on that note here is a little bit more from the Funky Blue gig at the Grove Theatre, Eastbourne last month (October 2020).

Johnny b Goode
Relight my fire medley.
Take a little piece of my heart.

Funky Blue gigging again. 💙

‘…if you love what you’re doing, you can’t stop. It’s obsessive.’

Labrinth.

Sunday 25th October saw Funky Blue back on their first gig since Lockdown in March. Held at the Grove Theatre in Eastbourne, East Sussex in front of an invited audience this intimate gig showed that nothing had been lost in Lockdown.

Photos by Emily Dudley

Many of us have missed live music in 2020 and this felt like a small step in a positive direction. The venue felt safe to be in with all Covid measures in place. Thank you Grove Theatre Eastbourne.

Have a look at the night here…

https://fb.watch/1po9fOs97i/

https://fb.watch/1poZARMatg/

Willemstad waterfront in Curaçao.

The vividly painted architecture lining the Willemstad waterfront in Curaçao did not happen by design. The capital city developed after the Dutch claimed the island in 1634. The only materials available for construction, mismatched bricks scavenged from ship ballast, were finished with lime plaster made from crushed shells, which dried to a dazzling white facade in the intense Caribbean sun. Apparently a former governor of the island suffered from severe headaches and thought this was made worse by the sun’s brilliant reflections off the white buildings. He ordered that building exteriors be painted any color but white. Despite later discovery that the governor was a shareholder in the island’s only paint store, the tradition of painting in vivid colors has endured, making Willemstad’s Dutch and Spanish colonial style architecture a stunning Caribbean sight.

Willemstad, Curaçao, the last of the ABC islands to visit, was the final port of call on our Six week West Indies and American cruise. A cruise that had it’s ups and downs due to the start of Covid-19. Unfortunately although we could dock here, we didn’t get to go ashore. Another time, another cruise…!

Cartagena, Colombia.

Cartagena is a port city on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. The walled Old Town, founded in the 16th century, has squares, cobblestone streets and colorful colonial buildings. It was a South American stop on our Caribbean and American cruise. During the fabulous sail into port my head was full of Pablo Escobar and his drug charged career. This was soon forgotten when we hit the streets of the Cartagena, the Colombian capital. A riot of colour and noise filled the senses and left me reeling. The atmosphere was electric, the weather hot and sultry. My only regret for this beautiful and vibrant city was that I didn’t buy an emerald!

Cartagena, Colombia, South America.

Cartagena port oasis.

Cartagena port oasis, the sustainable zoo, is located on the Cartagena cruise port grounds. It is a government initiative showcasing a variety of the country’s natural resources and Colombia’s desire for a sustainable environment. The animals are not ‘wild’ as such, but many- the monkeys and parrots- appear to be free to come and go. Entry is free- you just walk through the zoo out of the port. The Cartagena port oasis initiative won the Organisation of American States’ First America’s Maritime Award in the category of Sustainable Tourist Destination Port.

The port is fun and informative and a fabulous surprise.

Limon, Costa Rica.

For a real glimpse into the daily life and culture of Costa Rica go to Puerto Limón with its strong Afro Caribbean culture.

It is an important bustling port city and has a long and interesting history dating all the way back to 1502 when Columbus landed at this port while exploring the New World.

Colourful and vibrant Limon, Costa Rica

We had fun exploring the city and wandering the slightly run down streets before making our way over to Grape Island seen here from the port.

Antigua, West Indies.

St John, Antigua was our next port of call and we hired a jeep off of a friend on the island. Antigua is famous for it’s cricket and one of first stops was The Sir Viv Richards Cricket Stadium, named after local boy and hotshot batsman Sir Vivian Richards. Fast bowlers Andy Roberts and Curtly Ambrose also hail from Antigua.

We then moved onto Half Moon Bay in the Parish of Saint Philip. This crescent shaped bay is just one of Antigua’s stunning beaches (there are 365, one for each day of the year). It rests on the south eastern coast, facing the Atlantic and is almost a mile long, with amazing surf and calm turquoise seas.

After a drive around St John, we tucked into some tropical ice creams at Tropical Time Out Ice Cream Parlour and Deli. The ice cream is made fresh to serve with a whole host of flavours include pistachio, passion fruit sherbet, bubble gum, birthday cake and caramel crunch, to name but a few.

We have been to Antigua a few times and it never fails to delight. The island is beautiful and the locals friendly. The Caribbean cruise season is sadly nearly over now, sadly cut short this year with the corona virus issues, but hopefully we will return again winter 2020.