Update on Woody the lost dog.

Mum called the vets and he has been rehomed in the same village my parents live in,he is now a happy dog in a loving home.
I am so pleased i did not ignore his cries for help in the woods on 23rd December or i doubt the poor little fella would be with us now but would be in doggie heaven.
I am so happy for him, a great dog, lovely personality and now warm, loved, and well fed and walked.
Hope i see him soon when i am out and about.

Helping others with depression

I thoroughly enjoy helping others with mental health issues, it is something i do anonymously and no one knows about it. Currently i am in contact with a BA crew member who takes high dosages of anti-depressants, i am on 20mg he takes 60mg per day as he was on the verge of committing suicide.
He was pretty low but what has made matters worse is that his partner walked out on him just before Christmas, he broke down completely and i was trying to help out as best i could, saying the right words, telling him how special he was to others, his family, friends but i was at my own parents hundreds of miles away so could not be there.
He is getting there now, he has become stronger and more positive, i am happy he will not do anything stupid.
Mental Illnesses are very very common, but society and their ignorance of it make it difficult for the individual to recognise or talk about.
Joe Public are under the influence that we are all "mad".
What has helped me this Christmas is seeing mum and dad in their new car which i paid for and their happiness. BY sending my oldest nephew a Christmas card and presents and receiving a "merry christmas" text message was also nice and comforting.
I am happy with that.
I do not know what the future will bring as far as BA is concerned, many rumours about changes in contracts, terms and conditions and pay. We will all have to wait and see.

Lost Dog

When out walking my own dog i was saddened to come across a lost spaniel, he was all dirty, cold and starving, i only had the one dog leash so had to call home for someone to meet me with another lease, i was about half a mile from home in a large wooded area so the little fella happily followed me home, we hosed him down, fed him massive amounts of food, he was ravenous. I used a hairdryer to dry him off and make him feel warmer. We took him to the vets and he was not chipped,they relunctantly decided to take him in as a stray as RSPCA were not available as it was 23rd December at 330pm, luckily a lady was seeing the vert with one of her dogs and she heard our tale and she rescued spaniels and promised to find him a new home. We called him Woody as he was found in the woods and i think of him every day.
Mam was very upset when we left him behind but a cage in a vets with food, water, and a blanket is better than under a tree on top of some leaves in a freezing wood.

Good Luck Woody!!

Just a couple of famous people. Alistair Stewart the ITN newsreader coming back from the Beijing Olympics and Freddie Ljungbeg travelling out to Seattle, the Arsenal Footballer and Armani model...very handsome and a good friend.

Bangkok

This was a trip i picked up after being on standby , we flew out to Bangkok and had 48 hours there and then flew to Sydney for 36 hours then, supposedly, back to Bangkok, however, two hours before landing into Bangkok we were informed we were diverting to Singapore as there had been riots in, and around the airport which deemed it completely unsafe for us and our passengers.
After landing in Singapore the Qantas flight to London had been held back and our First and Business class passengers were immediately transferred to that flight, the World Traveller ( economy) and World Traveller Plus ( just a little better than economy) were de-planed and taxied to a range of hotels in Singapore.
We went to our normal hotel, our flight crew had 12 hours rest and flew the 747 home empty, we have to have 2 nights as our industrial agreement states,then we are positioning as passengers back home to London.
We usually get Business class when we are on duty travel but as these are extreme circumstances it think things may not pan out that way and i could be chewing my kneecaps for 13 hours.
I will post the outcome of this flight once i get back to good old blighty!!

QRS Sofitel Heathrow Airport

QRS or Quick Response is something i get rostered about twice a year, it is a dreaded duty to see on your roster as it takes over such a long period of time that you can make no plans.
Day One....check in at LHR pick up the works allocated mobile phone and check into the Sofitel joined onto terminal 5 at heathrow, this duty is 0700-1500 so an early start leaving home at 0530.
I was not used on day one so i left some items in hotel as we keep the same room and i went home to my own bed.

Day Two...i left home at 1200, i did not re-start my standby until 1500 but i thought i could have a relaxing bath in my room and chill out..at 2300 i was still here so stayed in hotel as the following day is the same again but starting at 1100.

Day Three...found an orange in my bag and made myself a cup of tes, the milk is in a plastic tube...yuk!! standby today starts at 1100-1900 then if i do not get used i will check on and start another standby tomorrow but with a 24hour call out period.,..this now is 45minute call out....so you have to be ready to go.

Hotel is new and very modern, minimalistic but very comfortable. Photos below!!!

The New Car

Dad had a current change of heart about his new car, i think the main reason was because the Nissan Quasqai did not fit into the garage, he has also always been loyal to Toyota so went to see the Avensis and decided it was too good a deal to turn down, so their new car is now at it's new home, a sad day for Carina ( the old Toyota) that after 156,000 miles and still going strong she would probably be sold for about £400 or scrapped....i think mam will have had a tear when she left her on the garage forecourt, but she was tired and old and now they have a new baby to drive. I suppose that fact that i bought it for them is a huge pleasure in itself for me, to be able to do that made me feel proud that i can,at least look after my parents.
MY nephew Christopher is now texting me and i will be sending him a card and gift for Christmas, No one else will get anything as it is not agreed and i am not strong enough to have my gifts returned like last time, it was too hurtful, too nasty and mean!!!!
Christopher has turned into a fine young man, he is polite and the fact he smokes is neither here or there, he has, and probably is mixing with the wrong people and maybe some guidance at an earlier age may have helped but i am proud of him as a human being and the fact he is my nephew.

Aerotoxic syndrome

After posting a forum on my depression i received a reply which was really interesting, i was unaware that some of fumes and toxins are bled back into an aircraft cabin via the air conditioning system, very scary if you ask me and something the airlines are covering up.

Reply:-
You are really brave to bring this subject up and I admire you. "loss of patience and easily irritated" sounds very like the symptoms of emotional volatility that is just one of the nasty effects of Aerotoxic Syndrome. I have a really good handout on how to cope and how to get your loved ones to realise you are suffering even tho you look normal. It's been written by a pilot who suffers from Aerotoxic Syndrome and it's very helpful. I know depression can be caused by many things but one of the main causes is a chemical imbalance in the brain - and we are inhaling toxic chemicals that affect our brains on a regular basis.
I have a Government advice paper on exposure to organophosphates and it says this causes " depression with suicide intent." This is one of the reasons I have been fighting for clean air for several months now - the CAA should be protecting our health but it isn't. I do hope you feel better soon, if you contact the Aerotoxic Association at http://www.aerotoxic.org or Sue at toxic free airlines http://www.toxicfreeairlines.com you will get practical,confidential, caring help from people who really do know how you feel.
People who are affected by Aerotoxic Syndrome will find they become sensitive to chemicals in food and drink so be careful of alcohol, caffeine, sugar, salt, MSG etc a spicy meal can make you an emotional wreck the next day.

American Historic Elections 4th November 2008

This is a truely historic day for America, the first Black President in history, 43 years after they were first allowed to vote.
I this Obama is ambitious, driven, hard working and an obvious family man, i would happily accept him as the Prime Minister of UK, he would be far better than the useless people who are now running this country.

I wish him good luck in his new position, things will not be easy with the credit crunch and the huge black cloud which is hanging over the world but i am sure things will get better.


Full results by state
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President Senate House Governor Ballot Measures Exit Polls Your Races Battleground States

ObamaMcCainOther/No Answer


Vote by Sex
Male (47%)

49%
48% 3%

Female (53%)

56%
43% 1%


Vote by Age
18-29 (18%)

66%
32% 2%

30-44 (29%)

52%
46% 2%

45-64 (37%)

49%
49% 2%

65 and Older (16%)

45%
53% 2%

Anniversary Weekend

I seem to have not stopped since i flew to Newcastle on Thursday 23rd October to celebrate my Parents 50th wedding anniversary with family.
We had the flowers to pick up and the cake, we had to dress the room as best we could and make it look presentable with the gold tablecloths i had made in Pakistan, we had the banner to go up which i paid for and the music to sort out, balloons to blow up and that was just the half.
I took my parents to Lumley castle on the Friday for dinner,it is an exclusive dinner venue set in a real Castle, very expensive but they are worth every penny.
We had a great meal and chatted non stop.
The Saturday was party day and all i can say it was lovely to see everyone under happy circumstances.
The meal was lovely with a menu of:-

Pate
Vegetable Soup
Braised Steak with Veg
Apple Pie with Cream or Ice Cream
Cheese and Biscuits
Coffee/Mints

It was all piping hot and tasted lovely.

Dad's music system using his I-Pod was fantastic and diner music, dancing music was superb.

With the stuff i bought to help out for the party, gifts of £1000.00 and the purchase of their new car it worked out a very expensive weekend of about £16500.00

I also got to see the X factor when i got home on Sunday so did not miss a thing, pleased Scott has been eliminated, he is a moody arse!!

Hope you like the party photographs.

The Rainbow Bridge

There is a bridge connecting heaven and Earth
It is called the Rainbow Bridge because of the many colours.
Just this side of the Rainbow Bridge there is a land
of meadows, hill and valleys with luch green grass.

When a beloved pet dies, the pet goes to this place,
Theis is always food and a warm spring weather.
The old and frail are made whole again.
They play all day with each other.

There is only one thing missing. They are not with
their special people who loved them on earth.
So, each day they will run and play, until the day comes
when one suddenly stops playing and looks up!
The nose twitches! The ears are up! The eyes are staring!
And this one runs from the group!

You have been seen,
and when you and your special friend meet,
you take him or her in your arms and embrace.
Your face is kissed again and again,
and you look once more into their eyes of your trusted friend.

Then you cross the Rainbow Bridge together,
never again to be separated.


( Megan is still with me but having a bad day and dread the day i have to make this awful decision, i am sobbing now as i type)

Day three with a sick doggie

I have now slept for two nights downstairs on the sofa, Megan cannot attempt the stairs and hurts when she does.
She is still instable on her legs although has eaten her dinner and still likes the odd treat so nothing wrong with her appetite, however when she did attempt to go through french doors into garden ( small step) her back legs gave way but she picked herself up and carried on.
I hope and pray this is the medication on a high dosage making her drowsy and drunklike.
I will carry on sleeping downstairs on the sofa until i know she is ok to be on her own and not attempt to climb the stairs during the night or jump on bed and injure herself.
We all love our pets dearly and to see them deteriorate is nothing but the most upsetting thing i have ever had to go through in my life.
I think we are less emotional when we are younger as we had a lovely dog called Scamp, a miniature blue merl collie, he was almost 15 when dad drove him to the vets to be put to sleep, mum and me waved from the window but i remained tearless even when dad knew he was not coming home after he told us he was going for an operation.
So here i am now, an emotional wreck, worried about my little girl, wanting to help her get better but not knowing how too, wanting to try and make her walk a little but not knowing if it hurts too much.
I still massage her gently and rub her paws, i get down on the floor and give her lots of cuddles and kisses.
I will keep those of you who are interested in this updated via this blog and hopefully things will improve.
I am not an over religious person but i will admit to saying a prayer to God today for her recovery.

Bad Days

We all have bad days in our lives, days we would rather forget, things happen we regret and hope to make bettr.
Megan was limping badly two days ago, i left for my annual exams leaving her with Ged, when i came home she had not been out and was not well so we took her to the vets, she had a blood test, examination and a pain killer injection.
The following day i had m last day of airline exams and hated every minute of it, worrying all the time knowing she was at the vets under anaesthetic having x-rays done.
We picked her up at 6pm and she was all wobbly and sleepy, i stayed with her all night sleeping on the sofa so i could keep an eye on her.
Today, 27th September she seems a little better, her legs are still wobbly but she has eaten her dinner and drank some water, she has had her full dose of medication, 150mg of Rimadyl.
The only good thing that came out of yesterday was the my mum and dad arrived in Barcelona for their cruise,the flight was on time considering the ATC computer collapse, the hotel was lovely, they got ugraded from an outside cabin with window on deck 3 to a Balcony suite on deck 9. They deserve that and it took many emails to "people in the know!" to get them that upgrade.
I would have paid for it if i could afford it.
I did not tell them about Megan as no need to spoil someones holiday with your own personal problems as what can they do....nothing...exactly, so why tell them.
They are in Cannes today and the weather is good.

Secret Millionaire

I have just watched two hours of this channel 4 programme "Secret Millionaire" and i am humbled by these wealthy successful individuals who live in poor communities for up to two weeks and root out the local heroes, the people who keep their communities together, who look after the poorer and needy then present them with cheques to either fund their projects or money for themselves and their families.

It would make me so happy to be able to do this, i love to give and see joy it would bring to others but unfortunately i am not in a position to do this.

If you're reading this now and are wealthy, go out and do a good deed for today, maybe a poor mother struggling with children who need things she can not afford, or a poor older person who sit in one room as cannot afford to heat the house.

We sit in our homes with our own personal luxuries and take them all for granted, what about those less fortunate than ourselves.

I am going to think this one through, i may not be able to write cheques for thousands like they do on the tv show but i will help wherever i can, it make only be a small thing but for someone else it may mean the world.

Clinical Depression

After looking this up on the internet i discovered the following are common symptoms:-

Symptoms of Depression


ALTHOUGH it is often classed as 'mental illness', clinical depression often has as many physical symptoms as mental. The feelings or emotions that are depression symptoms actually begin to cause the physical effects. How this happens is a vital part of understanding depression and the symptoms that come with it.



If you are depressed at the moment some of the following symptoms may sound familiar:



You feel miserable and sad. ( often)

You feel exhausted a lot of the time with no energy .( sometimes)

You feel as if even the smallest tasks are sometimes impossible. (rare)

You seldom enjoy the things that you used to enjoy-you may be off sex or food or may 'comfort eat' to excess.( comfort eat often)

You feel very anxious sometimes. ( quite often)

You don't want to see people or are scared to be left alone. Social activity may feel hard or impossible.( not sociable at all right now)

You find it difficult to think clearly. ( seem ok here)

You feel like a failure and/or feel guilty a lot of the time.( failure , yes!!)

You feel a burden to others.( always)

You sometimes feel that life isn't worth living.( more recently)

You can see no future. There is a loss of hope. You feel all you've ever done is make mistakes and that's all that you ever will do. ( this is me)

You feel irritable or angry more than usual.( get angry more than i used too)

You feel you have no confidence.( sometimes do sometimes ok)

You spend a lot of time thinking about what has gone wrong, what will go wrong or what is wrong about yourself as a person. You may also feel guilty sometimes about being critical of others (or even thinking critically about them). ( always)

You feel that life is unfair.( very)

You have difficulty sleeping or wake up very early in the morning and can't sleep again. You seem to dream all night long and sometimes have disturbing dreams.( sleeping pill addict)

You feel that life has/is 'passing you by.'( very quickly)

You may have physical aches and pains which appear to have no physical cause, such as back pain.( back pain yes)

Miami

As i had been on a mission to take Photographs for www.shipparade.com i was disappointed to find out we were not staying by the port in Miami but 15 kilometres inland.
However on approach to landing we flew over the port of Miami and i managed to take a Photograph of Carnival Imagination, not a bad attempt if i say so myself.

Shopping

I was in Kingston-On-Thames today for some material from John Lewis to have a new blind made in Islamabad and a new kettle and toaster, i ended up with a pair of G-star jeans which cost more that the kettle and the toaster together, never paid this much for a pair of jeans before but i suppose when you can, you do!!!




Mam and Dad rescheduled their Golden wedding anniversary party from 13th September to 25th October, i wonder what excuses will be made this time for certain people not attending, they are such family people and i think those who do not make the effort should be shot, i suppose it is their way of being childish, immature and trying to score a home run, doesn't bother me though, past caring!!!!!

777 Crash

Although the Boeing 777 from Beijing Crash landed over 8 months ago, the investigation is still ongoing and engineers work on it daily as well as crash investigators.
Below are some recent pictures, however the tail has now been removed and the aircraft is a total right off.

24/08/2008

I am a very passionate person. I am stubborn as hell but I will admit when I am wrong. I care to much at times and I really don't care. I worry to much about things but that is part of me. I will ask for help when needed. I will do anything for a friend with in reason. I like to help out or volunteer. I have had two real loves in my life and one is my lovely dog. They are my everything. I believe in God and he has been there when no one else has been. He is my rock. I have probably been bipolar all my life but only really found out recently but not diagnosed so like some people I do not know what normal life is like. It is part of me but it is not what defines me. I embrace it because God made me this way and I can expect it and I have. I am me and if someone doesn't like it is there loss not mine.
I try so hard to love all those close to me but most of the time they do not notice or too stubborn to admit that life is too short and we have very little time on this planet.
I for one have not made the best use of my life and i should try harder, no-one knows what tomorrow may bring so if your healthy enjoy life to the full if you can as one day it will be too late for anything.

Confusion!!

Life can deal some cruel blows at times, i think we are all guilty of falling into a trap, a life where we feel comfortable, content and a degree of happiness but sometimes we are being complacent with ourselves and trapped in contentment.

Life also is either full of friends and a diary bursting at the seams, or a dull friendless existence where your dog is only thing you can have a decent converstation with and of course they never answer you back.

Being a prisoner in your own home can have many disadvantages, there is no effort made to do anything as the thought of going out does not appeal, when you agree to go out you spend days in panic wondering if it will be ok.

I am not saying i am a recluse, i leave the house to go to work and i work with people, however these people are not what i would call "friends" just work colleagues and acquaintances.

I have met friends in my career but they have wandered off into their own world and i become the annual email or occasional funny email without a "hello, how are you" attached to it.

However my life is good, i have a home, a lovely dog, a great job and the fact i like my own company the majority of the time is my business and something i enjoy.

Apart from that life on 22/08/08, from the Marriott hotel Miami is fine, a little tired maybe but i have three days off once i am home.
The thunderstorms last night here were impressive, visibility went down to almost Zero and the rain was very heavy with thunder and lightning.
It is hurricane season here so i guess the cruise ship guests have had a stomach churning ride to and from the port today and last night.

Beijing Olympics 2008

I was honoured to be rostered a trip to Peking ( Beijing) during the Olympics 2008, the flight was quite busy, mostly with family, friends and workers connected with the games, the atheletes had already arrived almost ten days ago.

The weather was sunny when we arrived but soon became dull, overcast with showers.

Some crew really into the games and will try and get to some events tomorrow, however i would be interested in just a couple of Photographs of the stadium to say i was there, and then go shopping. Rumour has it the markets are very expensive as trying to rip off the tourists and make the most of the influx Olympic fans.

A Sunday

I have never been a great fan of Sundays, always too quiet for me indoors and outdoors too busy as everyone who works Monday to Friday has to cram everything into a Saturday and Sunday.
Today the park was full while walking the dog even thought the skies were heavy with rain, we did manage to get back without getting soaked through to the skin.

It was a normal day to me, up, out, walk, breakfast,tv/computer/ds, walk.tv.lunch, tv, walk bed...wow...i did not realise how boring my life was until i typed it.

However as Aircrew my next trip is Beijing for the Olympics so really looking forward to that. I will try and get to the stadium and have my picture taken to say i have been there and then shopping. Lots of fakes just like many other Asian countries but seem better quality in China, how does the saying go, "made in China!".

Going to go out for the afternoon tomorrow and make and effort, maybe somewhere new for a different walk with Megan.

I have my parents 50th wedding anniversary party on 13th Sept, shall i go!!! This is the question, who else will be there.
I have passed the phase of caring and being false so i will just act in a way that is civil, i would prefer others to not "TRY" and be civil if it is not meant, after all we hate each other immensely and i have no time for two faces idiots who are gold-diggers.

Time of Life

It seems when you reach 40+ you begin to realise that half of your life has already been used up and only good health and good luck can guarantee another good few years.
It also makes you think about things you have done which others have not which self motivates yourself into believing you have led a good life, however on the other hand there are things i have not done which i still would like to do and things which cannot be done eg Concorde, QE2 and possibly more.

Many International wonders i have not seen, even the Taj Mahal which one day i would like to spend with my true love and enjoy its beauty and romance.

Helicopter rides over crystal clear waters, amazing hotel rooms on stilts in the ocean, woodland walks hand in hand, european weekends away.

I suppose we can all dream, we can all hope that one day our lottery numbers will come up, and i know what i would do if i won, new house, new car, new life, new beginning and my parents could have anything they wanted and bollocks to everyone else.!!!!!

Family Divorce

If anyone knows if it is possible to "Divorce" your family could you please let me know, as far as i am concerned i have no family and would like it to stay that way.
I am happy when i am not associated with selfish people, and part of my family are just true DIVA trouble makers, if you have heard of the expression "make a mountain out of a molehill" well guess who falls into this category!!!

I don't think the word HATE is strong enough for the way i feel and as i said, i am happy it is that way, they can all just wallow in their own self importance, or should i say ROT in it!!!

Goodbye, and if your reading this and are offended, well , don't read it.

Costa Cruise 18th-25th May 2008

112,000 tons of metal, 3500 passengers, restaurants, bars, theatre, casino, 1400 staff, and as many cabins that could fill the largest hotel in Las Vegas, welcome to the Costa Serena, a one year old super liner that dwarfs many of the other ships that sail the Mediterranean.
We first saw her as we took our water taxi from the Westin Lido to the port, she was alongside the vast MSC Musica and even dwarfed her.
Our cabin had a rear view balcony, first time at the rear and we never missed anything with ther panoramic view and of the course the water going away from us from underneath the ship.
Our 7 nights on the water would start in Venice, Bari Italy, Katakolon Greece, Izmir Turkey, Istanbul Turkey, Dubrovnik Croatia and back to Venice. I will add to this blog in time with detailed port activities and more photographs.

Venice.

After arriving and finding the people we were cruising with had decided not to wait for us worked out expensive for us, an £80 water taxi to the Westin Lido, a beautiful Moroccan themed hotel south of Venice, the rooms were spacious and had material walls and ornate lamps and fixtures.
After we settled in we got the free hotel shuttle boat to mianland Venice where we walked through St Marks Square, saw both the bridge of sighs and rialto bridge, we almost got lost and missed the last shuttle boat back to the hotel but we made it by the skin of our teeth.
The next morning it was truely the worst thunder and lightning storm Venice had seen in years, torrential rain and the hotel basement where they served our free breakfast became flooded.
We left the hotel at 1200 and arrived at the port all in one water taxi, after confusion as to what we were supposed to do we waited about an hour, filling in forms etc and then we were on board.
The cabins were all ready and keys inside, there was a short queue to register the credit cards and we were all done and ready for lunch.
As we were the only party with a balcony all our friends gathered on out balcony ready to sail off , it was pouring with rain and we sheltered under umbrellas before going for dinner in the same clothes we had had on all day as if you have never cruised before the delivery of luggage to your cabin can take some time.
We all retired to bed about 11pm after a long day and would awake in Bari in the heel of Italy.

Bari Italy

Bari is situated in the heel of the shape of Italy on the east coast, a beautiful small town which is still the home to many Italians that have not relocated to many of the larger cities like Rome and Milan.

We walked quite a way from the ship following the crowds like sheep....BAA BAA!!! we diverted away from the crowds like you do when you enter a theme park, if you start with everyone else you will queue and queue, if you walk to the end then make your way backwards it may be a little lighter in folks.

We found a beatiful Italian working church, being such a huge population of catholics there are churches everywhere, people were lighting candles and praying, photography was allowed so we browsed briefly. After that we walked around the town, finding a small shop to buy water and supplies for the ship as mini bar and buying stuff is always expensive on cruise ships, this is how they make their money.

/div>

.

We got back to the ship and had lunch



Katakolon, Greece

This was a place we had been before but the others had not, after a long walk from the ship to the small village that had been built just for the tourists since we were last here in 1999, it was all souvenir shops, bars and restaurants. After a stroll about we found a bar where we could sit an relax, we had lost the girls to the shops so were pleased of the peace and quiet.
We sat overlooking the harbour area where Ocean Village had docked and full of English people, i found myself slightly jealous as although we were on a newer and larger ship the fact that it was full of Italians made you feel a little excluded so i craved English company or at least the English Language.
I strolled back to the ship alone as wanted to beat the crowds and i faced no queue to reboard so was bakc in the air conditioned haven in no time. Did not but anything but our ship was also joined by Princes Danae, an older ship and MSC Musica which was following us around the Med, both these ships had to tender the passengers ashore as our ship and Ocean Village had taken up the only two berthing areas.






After we all arrived back at the boat it was time to prepare for the first formal night, suits or even dinner suits, everyone came to our cabin and posed for pictures on the balcony.

Izmir..Turkey.

The Costa Serena berthed and we all looked forward to our day our at the ruins at Ephesus, they were truely amazing. Many had been repaired so there was a touch of 20th centure mixed in with 200AD which was really strange to see.

The Day was very very hot and i was pleased i was wearing a cap as the sun was beating down, this was only May and apparently by July and August it is unbearable.

The tour guides are on strict time scales as the boat has to sail at it's allocated slot time and so it only take a couple of people to wander off, stop at a shop, or dawdle and it holds everyone up and the tour then becomes rushed as we endeavour to make up the time we lost.

We were back on the ship in time and pleased of the cool shower as it had been a hot and sweaty day.

We did have a half filled coach with the majority of cruisers being Italian so we were lucky there.

Istanbul

Our Balcony was such a panoramic idyllic place, there was lots of action on the water with a count of 25-30 boats bobbing about at any one time,little did we know that the front of the ship was facing the Blue Mosque and Haggia Sophia where we were to take a tour.
The tour started outsid ethe Blue Mosque, an incredible building with tall minorettes and it stood large and proud,it was quite close to haggia sophia from the view from the ship but it was stilla coach ride from one to the other. Both amazingly impressive and the carpets were in great condition inside as no shoes are allowed.

My favourite place was the Bazaar, being a shop-a-holic it was like being thrust into shopping heaven, rows and rows of stalls selling everything from copies so ornate plates and Turkish souvenirs, oh yes, Turksih delight which i bought for dad and Pomegranite and apple tea which was served to us in the store where we were led like sheep to see the carpets and not allowed out until we had sat through a talk on how they were made etc etc, probably because the tour guide was on commission.
We still had time for the Bazaar and bought some amazing things.

This is the kind of place you need to have a long weekend in to appreciate it properly and take it all in, this is the one down side of cruising, time is limited and you feel like your rushed.











Dubrovnik

What a beautiful, picturesque town, situated on the coast of Croatia. There is a cruise ship docking port 2km form the city or you can dock, as we did, right in th bay of Dubrovnik and tender into the town, well worth the tendering for the great views.

We walked around the town which is built for tourists and then around the walled city, although it was hot we had spectacular views and took some great photographs.
We were joined by Zenith, another cruise ship which used to belong to the Celebrity Cruise ship group but now belongs to Pullmantur and kept it's original name.

I loved this place and another "one for the weekend" which i must return too in the future, and with direct flights from London Gatwick with BA it is only a stones throw away.

Venice.

Arriving back at your disembarkation port is usually about 6am and most guests fast asleep, Venice was different, it was 10am so we were all on deck to enjoy the views of the city as we sailed in as it had been so wet and rainy when we left the previous Sunday so this was a treat and a perfect photgraph opportunity.
We disembarked with ease and were in the airport hours too early. We found a table near a cafe and squatted there until it was time for our flights.