Mauritius.

We stepped ashore at last and the ground stayed still! Not knowing what to expect, but having been told that there was a union dispute between taxi drivers and ‘official’ mini-buses that were to transport us to our chosen destination, we were told to say – were we to be asked – that we were going on a ‘shopping spree’!

In fact, we were heading right across the island to an  upmarket resort. The landscape (apart from the dramatic mountain range) was reminiscent of Queensland, with sugar cane and pineapple fields. Remnants of the country’s French past were evident in the avenues of tall trees lining the roads – roads in surprisingly good condition – together with some distinctive but weathered French architecture. The resort was full to bursting with guests from all over the world, but mainly from Europe. We met a Swedish young man with wife and family of four small boys in tow, from London. Escaping the winter, he said.

Yesterday we did a fascinating behind the scenes tour of the ship. Three hours later, we’d been to the anchor room/foc’stle  (ropes and chain links big enough to pull a house down) and learned about how the ship is secured and brought alongside a berth. From there we visited crew quarters (almost 1500 crew on board), officers’ quarters, the engine control room, waste disposal system, desalination plant producing 630 tonnes per day of fresh water that fills the potable water tank on board with over one million gallons of water, then on to the incinerator system etc, eventually making our way to the galley area and those intriguing facts and figures:

The ship boasts 21 large refrigerated store rooms that hold an average of 200 tonnes of provisions. We visited the butchery, the fish room, bakery. On a  normal sea day 16,000 meals are prepared. On a world voyage, such as this, stock can be ordered with 2 months’ notice and delivered to the ship anywhere in the world.  On a short transatlantic voyage, 20,000 litres of fresh milk is consumed, along with 50 tonnes of fruit and vegetables. In one dinner sitting, 1,000 bottles of wine will be opened.  Egg consumption 6,000 per day, daily bread roll bake 5,000.

Heads reeling, we were treated to a champagne tea before moving onwards to the biggest seaborne theatre in the world, and eventually on to the bridge. The grand scale of this vessel can only be appreciated from the bridge. All highly technical and computerised of course, but still operated in the old fashioned way by highly skilled and highly trained and qualified officers.  We were treated to a talk by a female third officer and the Captain, and had a computerised simulation of how the ship can be turned 360 degrees in it’s own length (although he admitted that 20 meters of slack was preferable! The ‘steering’ wheel is only the size of the average car’s. The bridge is on the same deck as our stateroom, but seemed to be twice as far from the ocean waves, and of course, movement was a lot more pronounced on the bow. And so, with a final photo op with the Captain, we went back to our room to prepare for the Roaring Twenties night!

We’re now steaming towards Durban, where we lived all those years ago, and where Greg, our first son, was born. Nostalgia – we’re not sure! We have been advised on the do’s and dont’s when ashore, but I don’t think we’ll venture too far. So many memories flood back. So much has changed.

PS: Photos take forever to attach, so a selection will be forthcoming when we’re disembarked in Cape Town.