At Sea to Dubai

And so we left Sri Lanka having four days at sea before arriving in Dubai for the flight home.

On the 3rd April we entered  a High Risk Area (HRA) for piracy which was somewhat alarming.  There was an anti-piracy drill on 29th March and upon hearing the alarm we had to return to our deck and sit outside our cabin (as we had a balcony - those with inside cabins could sit inside).  Our steward then checked that we were all safe and accounted for.  On the actual day the promenade deck with off limits from 6.45 pm to 6.45 am however smoking areas on the upper decks (9, 10 and 11) were open for smokers.  Lights in the cabins were to be kept at a minimum and we were not allowed on to the balcony during these hours. 

Our Captain (aptly named Cook) was very down to earth and likeable.

On the 4th the ship passed North of Ras al Hadd in Oman and we entered the Gulf of Oman.  I was very pleased to see dolphins off the starboard side.

We had a Naval guy on board and he arranged for RFA Fort Victoria (A387) to come along side which was fun.  She is a Fort-class combined fleet stores ship and tanker

During the night we passed through the Strait of Hormuz which is a narrow stretch of water between Oman and Iran and forms the gateway to the Arabian Sea. In the early hours of the 5th we arrived in Dubai where the local pilot saw Arcadia safely into port.

We had hoped to see the Burj al Arab but unfortunately it's some way off.  We did however see the Burj Khalifa which is the world's tallest skyscraper.  Also the QE2 was berthed - smaller than I thought.

And so we come to the end of our journey.  I hope you've enjoyed it.  One thing I forgot to mention is that when we were waiting to board in Singapore who should we see but John Sergeant!  Turns out he was guest speaker on board.  Stephen and I went to one and he was very interesting and funny.  He too disembarked in Dubai.

Sri Lanka

We picked up our coach in Colombo which is completely mad.  The Tuk Tuk drivers seem to know no fear as they weave in and out of the traffic and squeeze themselves down the side of coaches and lorries!

We finally arrived at Colombo Fort station to catch the train to Kandy.  I think the train was laid on for us as we all had seats and there were no stops.  I don't think the rail system has been updated since the British left.  The track is wide gauge but I don't know if that's why the train was so hilariously bumpy.  We were given a small and unexpected breakfast of a sandwich, a yummy samosa and a muffin.  Tea and coffee were offered but Stevie and I passed as most people seemed to end up wearing theirs!

When we arrived in Kandy we were taken by coach to the Botanical Gardens which are very pretty.  There were many school parties of very polite, beautiful children.  Our guide (who at 6' 5" was unmissable) told us they wear white as it is the colour of purity in Sri Lanka.  There are many native trees in the gardens and a few were full of very large bats (fruit I think).

Tree full of bats!

From here we went to a hotel for lunch.  I had hoped if would be food typical of Sri Lanka but unfortunately they felt obliged to cater for British tastes and although very nice was an odd mixture of pasta, chips and curry.

After lunch we were supposed to go to the Temple of the Tooth.  We had two queues, one female and one male and entered a small booth to be checked out by security for correct dress.  I thought I was OK in a long dress and shawl to cover my arms but Sheila was turned away as her dress was see-through.  After two more tries (having purchased a sarong) she still wasn't allowed in and then I was told my dress was also see-through although I didn't think it was but hey ho.  So we then had to hang around the hotel until the rest of our group returned.  As it happened the tooth isn't even there!

Then it was back to the train for another hilarious journey.  We had a small fire in the generator providing the air-con (2 large ceiling fan) which caused a certain amount of consternation.  Again a small meal was provided which was nice.  Refreshing cloths were also handed out.

This seemed to be some sort of protest.

Local Laundry

Tug of War competition

Kandy Station

Our guide

Police box

Phuket - South Island Cruise

Something of a misnomer as no sailing was involved!  However the coach trip was interesting and Phuket is a great place.  It's hard to believe that all the bars and shops were wiped out by the Tsunami in 2004.

The wiring is an electrician's nightmare!

Safety doesn't seem to be an issue here!

The Chinese Temple

 Every few minutes fireworks were let off in this structure, frightened the life out of me!

The extremely beautiful Bhuddist temple which I much preferred to the Chinese one.

Pictures of the King appear everywhere and he is highly revered by the people as he has set up health care centres for people living in remote areas, has initiated projects to improve the children's education and also has a keen interest in agriculture.

There are many shrines to Bhudda in the shops and houses.

This is presumably where they buy their shrines!

A Thai garden centre especially for Stevie.

The coach dropped us back to the beach so we took the time to have a cold beer in a local bar and a look around the shops before the heavens opened and we had an almighty downpour.  I decided I didn't want to wait until it stopped (could've been an age) so we headed back to the pier to get the tender back to the ship, suitably soaked through!