The Adventures of Podge & Tubbs

So, we arrived at the Cruise Terminal (predictably Early), and within 40 minutes of checking in, we on on board and in our cabins, which were all extremely well appointed and liked by all. Phew, that’s the first hurdle over and without a hitch. Debbie’s Mum seems to be adjusting quite well (this is her first time on a cruise) though she was a little daunted at the size of the ship to begin with.  She also thought the safe in her cabin was a microwave!

Anyway, having checked out the facilities, we checked out the paperwork only to find that there had been a change to the planned itinerary, though as it works out, the change isn’t too bad. Instead of going to Saaremaa, we would now be going to Kristiansand in Norway. The reason for the change was that those pesky Russkies wanted to being in one of their naval vessels into our scheduled berth in St Petersburg. Rather than cutting short our stay there, they had decided to move date around a bit which did mean sacrificing one port and finding a new one. Obviously, Fred Olsen have excellent Continuity Strategies :-).

Sailing out of the Port of Southampton, we cam away from the dockside then had to sit there and wait for the QM2 to come out of her berth before heading off to New York, leading the way round the Isle of Wight before she [QM2] turned right (starboard) for the Atlantic and we turned left (port) for the North Sea.

The excellent evening dinner was had in the Spey Restaurant where we met a waiter who remembered us from a previous Cruise of a couple of years ago. Dinner was followed by a show, which wasn’t really our cup of tea (The Can Can is a bit too raunchy for a man of my advancing years) so, as well felt tired anyway, we all gladly went off to bed for an ‘early’ night.

The next day was a Sea Day as we headed toward Germany and into the Kiel Canal.

More Soon.

Cruise Podge, Cruise.

My breathing hasn’t been so good lately hence the lack of training updates. 🙂

Will report back on the training side later.

Hi there, here is my training update for week ending 13th February 2011:

Date        Distance        Speed       Weight       Peak Flow
13/02          58           13.95         209           410

Not as good a week as I’d hoped but hey ho, at least I’m doing something. Weight loss is slow but at least it is a loss. Breathing seems to be dropping but I’m putting this down the affect of the cold air which can impact on the old (some might say very old) lungs. I’ll just have to keep the Vitamin C going: There must be some other supplement, legal, I can take that will help.

Anyway, I have just one more week of free time before I, hopefully, start work again so I guess I’d better make the most of it. Naturally, this week will be full of rain and be generally cold so I the iMagic shall continue to rule.

That all for now.

Go Podge, Go

I’m afraid my update for last week has been a long time coming and I apologise for this. I do however feel that I have extenuating circumstances (excuses) for my tardiness.

Basically from Thursday the 3rd I have been driving all over the country for various reasons, none of which could be avoided. Add to this the plaintive call on the Sunday to inform Debbie and I that Matt had had his passport nicked on the day he was due to fly back from Mallorca. What followed was a flurry of activity on Matt’s part to ensure that he could get home and then by Debbie and I to ensure that he had a replacement passport in time for his flight to Australia on the Tuesday. All went well, and he’s now enjoying himself in Singapore as a break to the long journey. At this point, I would like to express my thanks to the Identity and Passport Service in London. They were brilliant and contrary to all the horror stories you hear over sourcing a passport, this experience was a great one. So Thank You once more to the IPS.

Anyway the upshot is, I only managed 58 miles last week which was actually short of my target. So this week, I have no stats, just guilt and a feeling of ‘I must try harder’

Go Podge, Go 🙂

By way of a PS, I have to mention the experience of actually getting into the Passport Office. Entry is similar to an airport where you have to go through a metal detector and your bags and coats have to go through an x-ray machine.

Before leaving for London, we weren’t sure wether or not to cut the photos into individuals or let them do it. To be on the safe side, I suggested that we left intact and let them cut them: but, just in case they did’t have any scissors I suggested that Debbie place some in her handbag. Anyway, the handbag went through the x-ray machine and the  alarm went up and the machine operated shouted ‘scissors’. Oops, debbie is searched and her scissors are confiscated. For some reason, this was all my fault.

She got them back afterwards though. Fortunately, she didn’t use the on me.