The magic of arrival and departure by sea. Like at Lisbon:
Exotic coastlines. The Moroccan coast, so tantalisingly close. Where the Tuareg? Where the Foreign Legion? Is Rick's Bar still there in Casablanca?
My very first-ever sighting of Gibraltar:
The dawn quayside, here Lisbon:
The joys of the ship itself. A kind of elegance not seen in the modern monsters. Comfortable lounges, a ballroom, the dining room, the passageways, landings and staircases, the inviting decks...
The beautifully-presented food...
The chance to dress up a bit. Here's Dad:
And the nice people you get to know. Knut and Liz from Denmark, for instance, whom I first met on my early-morning promenade walks:
Or this sprightly ninety-two year old man, who told my Dad that he had a lovely daughter:
I think he meant that I was lively and cheerful, and assiduously at Dad's side to help him, rather than that I was in any way attractive!
And this group of congenial people whom Dad and I did evening quizzes with, in the Polaris Bar:
Then there were the crew, some of whom we got to know well...
Other boats and ships would pass us, such as this tall ship:
Or we'd see ships anchored off ports, or dolphins playing:
But for me this set of sunset shots near Gibraltar, only possible from a ship, illustrates the very best reason for taking a cruise:
Goodnight.
