Thanks so much for your regular updates Bob, so interesting for me as I’ve visited many of the places mentioned on a cruise many years ago. Its lovely to see the photos too, enjoy your last few days.
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OldGreyFox is back in the building…‘Hooray’ I hear you say…got loads to tell you…After I’ve attended to the mountain of mail on the doormat…And caught up with two pages of e-mails…And kept out of the way while other half attacks the washing…Although she’s not happy cos it’s raining.
It’s a long way from Southampton to Doncaster, and it was an easy and enjoyable drive when I was a courier, but something seems to have happened, has England got longer? or is it just me getting older?
Thanks Val, appreciate the comments.
Welcome back Bob, glad you enjoyed your cruise. I hope you will have more holiday pics to show us when you settle back in. 
Welcome home Bob, I’m glad you had a great time.
Welcome back Bob 
you have clearly had a very busy time I hope you enjoyed it.
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Thanks for the welcome home Meg, Mags and Jem.
So soon holidays become a memory, with just the photos and suntan to remind me. Back to normal with a five mile run on Friday morning and an eight mile run yesterday, they were both slow and hard going, so I’ve got some work to do now. Maybe the half a stone I seem to have collected might be responsible. It was nice though.
This was a blog I wrote last Sunday, I had run out of credit on the Internet [It cost about fifty quid thus far] so was unable to post it.
The Cruise – Day Eleven – Sunday
After leaving Ajaccio in the afternoon on Saturday, we steamed through the night and all of today. We would reach our final port of call [Cadiz] on Monday morning. So today being what’s called a ‘Sea Day’ we would relax around the ship and probably visit the café on more occasions to avoid malnutrition. One of my favourite pastimes on ship is leaning on the rail or sat on our balcony staring out to sea and wondering what mysteries lie beneath the waves, hoping for a glimpse of some undersea dweller being curious of my world. Apart from some discarded man made items floating past the ship [especially in the Med] some interesting observations have been made: My first sighting was of a turtle flailing around as it passed by the ship, probably disorientated after being pushed aside by a hundred and sixteen thousand ton floating island of steel, travelling at 23 knots [about thirty miles an hour] – A small squid – A couple of Minky Whales and the fleeting glimpse of about a dozen Porpoises off to the rear of the Port Side of the ship while eating in the restaurant one evening.
Later in the day the Captain [in broken English because he was Italian] issued a statement over the tannoy stating that:- ‘We would be making a detour to Malaga due to another medical emergency’ Although there are a few young people on board, there is a large proportion of the older generation [the only people who can afford a cruise] and at times the ship looks more like a nursing home than a travelling hotel, so medical emergencies are part of everyday life on board ship. So today’s entertainment was provided by Ventura sailing as close to the rocky coast of Spain as possible, while a small craft arrived to take off the ailing passenger assisted by a couple of medics. We drifted around until the small craft returned with the ships medical staff, and at full speed, set about regaining lost time, the Captain assured us that he would do his best to arrive in Cadiz next morning on schedule. After making several enquiries [Gossip] in the lifts, toilets and restaurants to fellow passengers, the details of the sick passenger could not be established, so I’ve declined from making anything up.
Cooling off after Sunday’s run around the deck…
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My running track for the last couple of weeks…
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My favourite part of the ship.
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It must have been exhilarating running next to the sea Bob 
Maybe the half a stone I seem to have collected might be responsible. It was nice though.
Oh dear, it always seems to take a lot longer to take it off than it did to put it on doesn’t it 
Never mind Bob you have the memories of a lovely holiday to think about when you are running at home and the weather this week seems set to be fair which is a bonus too.
My running track for the last couple of weeks…
Mmm… I can almost smell that sea air, Bob 
Robert, sounds like you had a brill holiday. Hope you feel refreshed by it.
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Thanks Meg, Mags and Myra…
It was very nice running round the deck, and the scenery was superb, but it’s not the freedom of the open road. Small changes in training can have large effects on the body, especially as you get older, and I was always apprehensive about running while on a cruise. It was nice, at the time, to be able to stretch the legs, but since coming home Myra, I feel far from ‘Refreshed’ in fact, it’s been hard to pick up where I left off with my running, and I feel so tired most of the time…Must be ‘Ship Lag’
But it was a great holiday, and I leave you with Day Eight - The visit to Florence…
The Cruise – Day Eight – Thursday
Just as the sun rose we entered the enormous port of Liverno, there were already two large cruise ships tied up in the harbour [Equinox and Epic] with a sprinkling of container ships and ferries coming and going, some being assisted by tugs front and rear. One such ferry, [Moby] was about half the size of Ventura and brightly painted with a selection of Disney characters. Liverno is the nearest port to Florence, which is about an hour and a half away by coach.
With no time for a run, [we barely had time for breakfast] at eight thirty we made our way to the dockside where the coaches were waiting. A numbered sticker was attached to my shirt and we boarded the coach. As we sped through the Italian countryside it looked no different to the English countryside, except for the Electricity Pylons that spanned the hills and fields; there were some very interesting shapes, and quite different to those at home.
Florence was clogged with early morning traffic and going was slow, but we eventually found our guide for the day and departed for a swift ‘on foot’ tour of the city. Some less able members of the party were struggling under the hot sun and frequent ‘re-grouping’ stops had to be taken. Florence has many places of interest tightly packed around the city centre, so tourists were congregated in a small area, which made for very busy streets. It was a relief to be told that the tour had ended and we could wander around by ourselves. The wives disappeared into the shops, while Michael and I did a quick traverse of the riverside walks over the various bridges, finally meeting up on the steps of the Cathedral trying to find some shade until the return of the transport. More traffic as we slowly made our way out of the city and towards Pisa. Although it was late afternoon when we arrived at Pisa, the sun was still as hot as it had been in Florence, and the half mile walk from the coach park to the leaning tower was energy sapping. It was worth the walk though, the domed church and tower were magnificent, despite the thousands of tourists who flocked like ants around the ancient monuments trying to perfect a photograph of companions appearing to hold up the tower. We were soon winding our way back through the Italian countryside back to Ventura. It was only about an hour from Pisa back to the ship, but despite that it was still quite a rush to be dressed and down for dinner by six thirty.
A ferry entering the port of Liverno, featuring all of the Disney Characters.
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Sunrise over Liverno, our early morning visit… Just got to find a parking spot for a 116,000 ton liner…
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The Cathedral in Florence…
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Neptune…
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Looking back to Florence as we wind our way up the hill to Pisa…
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I don’t think this tower needs any introduction…
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Bob the builder…Can I fix it? No sorry…
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The visit we most looked forward to - Rome
The Cruise – Day Nine – Friday
The Rome visit today, and after the ship cruised through the night, at first light it inched closer to the dock in Civitavecchia where it was secured. After a hasty breakfast and sporting a new number stuck to my chest we boarded the bus for another day of adventure. It was almost two hours before we arrived on the outskirts of Rome, and after taking on board Antonio the guide, we were dropped off in a street full of other coaches close to the city centre. My first impression of Rome was the intense heat and the hundreds of people alighting from the other coaches, and trying to assemble into small groups herded by their frustrated guides. Our group had been issued with small radio’s that hung around our necks complete with a badly fitting ear piece, and Antonio was soon giving us crackly instructions from fifty metres up the road. He had attached a silk scarf to a selfie stick and was brandishing it high above his head, we followed, and were soon free of the confusion. We stood in the shade open mouthed and gazed at over two thousand years of history while Antonio described the view, I can’t hope to remember most of what he was telling us, but occasionally it went in, and I was amazed over and over again. This would be the pattern of progress, moving from one magnificent site to the next, with a flawless commentary from Antonio, he always tried to keep us to the shady side of the street, and would regularly pause for the stragglers to catch up, he taught us our first word in Italian – diarmo – [excuse the spelling] which means ‘Lets go’ and it would become the word of the day.
A meal was included with the tour, and at lunchtime, we were whisked away by coach to a small restaurant on the outskirts of Rome, where a four course meal was provided, the Lasagne was the best I have ever tasted. We returned to the city centre and were fast tracked past rows of queuing tourists who were waiting for admission to the Vatican.
As we passed magnificent statues and beautiful works of art, we arrived at the Sistine Chapel and Michael Angelo’s famous ceiling, the doors of the chapel were closed after being counted in, and everyone stood in silence while prayers were said. A very moving experience.
As I was submitting to tiredness and about to be overcome with sleep on the long coach ride back to the Ventura, a thought crossed my mind – What buildings and works of art will people view in another two thousand years, the legacy that we have left behind? I suspect nothing will remain of today’s world, we are too obsessed with money and time to create masterpieces like our ancestors produced.
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The entrance to the Vatican.
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Inside the Vatican.
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Unfortunately Photographs are not allowed inside the Sistine Chapel, but this was the long corridor leading to it full of works of art and thirteenth century maps that were as accurate as anything produced today without the technology…How?
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The domed Cathedral inside the Vatican.
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Every Wednesday the Pope has an audience with the people… Just Here…
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Lovely photos Bob … I think I would have liked that visit to Rome too.
Your pics are great Robert. I’d love to visit Rome.
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Thanks Myra and Megs, yes the Rome trip was the best trip by far, it would have been nice to spend a little longer there.
I couldn’t resist buying some chocolate biscuits today while wandering round the isles at Tesco, they were on special offer and it would have been rude not to buy them. So while I was busy dunking them in my mug of tea later, I wondered why cabbage doesn’t taste as good as chocolate biscuits, perhaps if it did there wouldn’t be an obesity problem and we would eat more healthily. Perhaps something for the scientists work on.
Moving on…Here is day ten of the cruise…
The Cruise – Day Ten – Saturday
After completing the trips over the last two days, today would be a more relaxed day visiting Ajaccio on Corsica. It was Sue’s 65th birthday today, and after completing ten laps around the Promenade Deck I assisted while she opened her cards and presents. Ventura was unable to dock in Ajaccio due to the births being occupied by a German cruiser [ Mein Schiff 2 ] registered in Valletta and bearing the Thompson logo, and a smaller cruise ship called Zenith, also registered in Valetta. It is a busy ferry port with regular visits by large yellow ferries bearing the logo of ‘Sardinia Ferries’ So we had to be tendered in by one of the little orange lifeboats. It was only to be a half day visit, and after one of the tenders was commandeered for a medical emergency large queues developed in the waiting areas, and it was midday before we finally strolled down the sea front in Ajaccio.
Ajaccio is not a large town, predominantly French, and the birthplace of Napoleon Bonaparte, it is situated in a large bay protected by a range of mountains on the landward side. Sandwiched by two sandy beaches either side of the harbour, and what looks like an old fort, the attractive narrow streets are filled with memento shops and cafes, with a large market selling mainly fruit, veg, and cheese.
After taking the mandatory photographs, we had no difficulty finding a suitable refreshment provider, and sat outside in the warm sunshine discussing our future in Ajaccio. It would be brief, as the last shuttle left the dock at 2:30pm, so after a saunter around the perimeter of the fort [now used by the French Ministry of Defence] we took our place in the queue for the return to Ventura.
Sailing into Ajaccio harbour at sunrise…
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The German ship beat us in so we had to be shuttled in on the lifeboats.
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Ajaccio, A nice little resort and a good place to stay in the future for a better look at Corsica.
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The German ship that took the mooring. Part of the Thompson Holidays group, and a very nice vessel.
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This has been a good read OGF & well illustrated.
I’ve been on a few cruises & I would be delighted to have written such a journal, well done.
Thanks RJ, I really appreciate your comment. Since joining various forums a few years back I discovered a love of writing, I love reading travel stories, so I decided to do a journal documenting my own humble adventures. It was mainly to keep a record and attract like minded people to join in with their stories. I didn’t know if my writing was any good or not, so it really is a bonus to hear positive comments.
Thanks again RJ, I’ve got a visit to Guernsey coming up and hope to post some reports on Bob’s bits in the Channel Islands. … You lucky people…
I’ve only just caught up with you Bob. I too have enjoyed reading about your travels. For some reason I can’t see some of the pictures but not to worry, I got the picture reading your wonderful journal. Thank you for sharing it all with us. I think a cruise is a holiday which stands out from the rest because of all the different places visited, you’ll remember and talk about it for many years.
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Thanks to everyone who has been following and commenting on ‘The Cruise’ I appreciate the feedback and it gave me something to do between eating and drinking.
Sorry to hear that you can’t see all the photos Val, but glad that you enjoyed my reports.
It has taken a while to get back into running properly, but glad to say this mornings ten was very enjoyable, apart from the rain. Took O/H in to hospital last Monday to have a Ganglion removed from her wrist, it was so large it had a name [George] and it’s left a rather large wound so I’ve had to step in with the washing up. We had run out of dishes.
The laundry’s not too bad as I change my clothes every fortnight whether the’re dirty or not…She should be okay to do the next wash.
I had a ganglion on the back of my hand and I was told they used to recommend dropping the family bible on it to burst the cyst. However, mine went on its own.
Good on you to take on the laundry and washing up duties Bob. If you’re good at it you may get the job for keeps !! 
Glad to hear you had a good outcome with your Ganglion Val, Sue’s had attached itself to a vein and was tricky to remove, it’s left a big hole and with all the strapping, she has to wear a plastic bag over it to have a shower. It’s getting her down, so I do what I can to help. Laundry is easy, don’t know what all the fuss is about, just whack things in the machine, and away it goes…If you throw in the iron on the last spin, they even come out with no creases in…Going to the cinema today in Meadowhall to watch ‘Spy’ it might cheer her up a bit…Lunch is on me…She’s such a lucky girl…