Some time ago, a couple of London-based Freemasons thought that it might be a good idea to organise a group cruise for other Masons. They floated the idea on Facebook, and when I mentioned it to Sue, she thought that it would be a good idea to book a couple of places … so we did!
Tuesday 1st April: Southampton
Having packed on Monday night, all we had to do was to get up, get ready, have some breakfast, load the car, and then set off for Southampton. Sue and I had planned to leave by 8.30am but were slightly delayed and didn’t finally set off until just after 9.00am. We joined the M25 at the Dartford interchange some twenty minutes later, and despite there being a 50mph speed limit in place for a large part of the journey around the southern part of the orbital motorway, we joined the M3 not long after 10.15am. We had reached Winchester Services by 10.55am, and after a short comfort break, we were back on the road to Southampton by 11.05am.
For some reason, the postcode we had been given for the cruise terminal proved to be incorrect, and after a somewhat frustrating drive across the suburbs of Southampton and along the main road that runs alongside the docks, we finally arrived at the valet parking area for Ocean Terminal just before midday. We booked our car in, handed our luggage over to a porter, and made our way into the terminal building so that we could do all the pre-boarding procedures before we went aboard MV Iona.
Because of our experience on our Christmas cruise, we booked assisted boarding for this cruise … and this speeded up the process of getting aboard. I was whisked by wheelchair to the booking-in desk, and once the formalities were completed, taken to the security gate. My hand luggage was scanned, I was given a pat down search whilst in my wheelchair, and then I was pushed aboard. My pusher made sure that I visited the right Muster Station to book in before taking me to the Pearl Restaurant (Deck 6 Aft) for lunch. Once I was seated comfortably, she left me to it and Sue and I have a very nice buffet lunch.
At 1.30pm a general announcement was made to the effect that all cabins were now ready for occupation, and ten minutes later we set off to find our suite. It was on Deck 11 Forward … and getting there proved to be somewhat more difficult than we had expected. Luckily, our Cabin Steward – John – was on hand to help. He brought our luggage into our suite and checked that we had everything that we needed.
The view across Southampton Docks from our suite balcony.
We had begun unpacking when our butler – Anil – arrived. He had served us on our previous cruise and we were able to have a chat with him about his period of leave after he left MV Ventura in January and before joining MS Iona in March.
After Anil had left, we complete our unpacking and had time for a short rest before going to the Clubhouse (Deck 8 Aft) for an informal meeting of the Freemasons and their partners. By this time the ship was off Portsmouth and we saw two Royal Navy minehunters that were apparently making their way back towards the harbour as we sailed past them.
Portsmouth's Spinnaker Tower dominates the skyline.
One of the two Royal Navy minehunters that we saw off the coast near Portsmouth.
The second of the Royal Navy minehunters that we saw.
Sue and I met up with two other couples, one whom were from Hertfordshire – the Masonic Province that I am a member of – and the other who were former prison officers who had met whilst working at our local prison, HMP Belmarsh! We were enjoying a quiet drink and a chat when it was announced that the family disco was about to start in the Clubhouse, and that a ‘celebrity’ would be joining everyone soon afterwards. The disco turned out to be very load and the ‘celebrity’ was some poor member of the entertainment team dressed up in a Wallace costume and carrying a large Gromit under his arm! At this point we all gave up trying to talk and made our separate ways out.
Sue and I have just enough time for a short spell in the open air on Deck 18 before returning to our suite to get ready for dinner. We had a pre-dinner drink in the Crow’s Nest (Deck 17 Forward) before going to the Epicurean Restaurant (Deck 17 Forward) for an excellent dinner. After dinner we returned to our suite to read and rest before getting ready for bed, but we were both so tired that we were both in bed and asleep by 11.00pm.
Wednesday 2nd April: At sea
Overnight the ship’s clocks had been advanced by an hour and when we awoke at 8.00am Iona was sailing slowly along the south coast of England.
We were in the Epicurean restaurant having breakfast by just after 9.30am, after which we went into the Crow’s Nest to sit and read for a while. In fact, we stayed there until nearly 1.30pm. The sunlight streaming through the windows, coupled with the gentle rocking of the ship, made it very soporific and extremely restful in there ... and both Sue and I dozed at least once during our stay.
On our return to our suite, we discovered an invitation to go to lunch with some of the other Freemasons who were on the cruise, but as the lunch was at midday and we didn’t see the invitation until it was over, we missed this opportunity.
Just after 2.45pm, Sue and I went down to The Quays (Deck 8 Midships) for a snack lunch. It was very crowded when got there, but by just after 3.00pm people began to leave in large numbers, and thirty minutes later most of the tables were vacant. After a walk along Deck 8, we returned to our suite to read and rest, and that is how we spent our time until we had to begin to think about getting ready for the only formal dinner of the cruise. We had booked places at what is known as The Chef’s Table. This was held on every formal evening in part of the ship’s self-service restaurant – The Horizon – which is on Deck 16 Aft.
We decide to go for a pre-dinner drink in the Crow’s Nest before taking the lift down one deck and walking from one end of the ship to the other. After an excellent dinner – during which we had interesting chats with the couples on the adjoining tables – we returned to our suite, watched the news on TV, and were in bed reading by just after 11.00pm.
Thursday 3rd April: Zeebrugge
Sue and I awoke just after Iona docked in Zeebrugge at 7.30am. We were in the Epicurean Restaurant eating breakfast by 9.15am, after which we went up to the open deck area on Deck 18. Once the bulk of those going on organised trips or taking the shuttle bus to nearby Blankenberge had disembarked, Sue and I went back to our suite to prepare to go ashore.
At 11.10am we took the shuttle bus to the centre of Blankenberge. The journey took about twenty minutes, and we were dropped off in a square adjoining the railway station, the local town hall, and the main police station. From there, we walked up the main street that leads towards the beach, doing window shopping along the way.
The Saint Antony's Church (Sint-Antoniuskerk), Blankenberge.
Blankenberge's main shopping street.
It is some years since we last visited Blankenberge and we were struck by how many shops seemed to have closed down and not been replaced. Luckily, our favourite chocolate shop – Moeder Babelutte – was not one of them and we stocked up on a variety of their excellent chocolates.
(It was interesting to note that the grumpy salesman who was working behind the counter the last time we visited is still there. The only difference is that he has gone grey, but his manner is still as terse as it ever was!)
Sue and I had hoped to be able to find somewhere to sit and have a drink, but those bars that were open – and there weren’t many – were full. In the end, we gave up and caught the shuttle bus back to the cruise terminal in Zeebrugge. This wasn’t there the last time we were in the town, and everyone had to get out of the shuttle bas, pass through the security checks, and then board another shuttle bus back to the ship!
Once we were back aboard Iona at 1.30pm, Sue and I dropped off our coats and bags in our suite and then went up to the Beachcomber Bar (Deck 18 Forward) for some much-needed liquid refreshment. After we had drunk our drinks, we set off for the Horizon self-service restaurant for some lunch. We ate lunch, had another drink, and by 3.15pm we were back in our suite reading and resting. Our butler visited us at 5.00pm, and after a chat with him, we watched some TV before getting ready for dinner.
Sue and I had a pre-dinner drink in the Crow’s Nest before walking almost the full length of the ship to have our meal in the Coral Restaurant (Deck 7 Aft). After dinner, Sue and I returned to our suite to read for a time before getting ready for bed.
Friday 4th April: Le Havre
Sue and I were woken up at about 7.30am by the sound and vibration of Iona using her thrusters to turn so that she could come alongside her berth. As a result, we were able to get washed and dressed at a leisurely pace before going to have breakfast in the Epicurean Restaurant. The weather was predicted to be warm, so after breakfast Sue and I went up to the open deck area, only to discover that it was overcast, windy, and cold. We then returned to our suite to wait until the excursion coaches had left.
The view of Le Havre from our suite's balcony.
At 11.00am we made our way down to the accessible gangway on Deck 6 Midships, only to discover that there was a long queue to get off. Apparently, the second gangway was being moved by a dockside crane, and this meant that everyone trying to disembark was having to use one gangway. Furthermore, the dockside crane was moving through the area disembarking passengers had to walk past to get to the cruise terminal, and for safety reasons this necessitated frequent pauses in the disembarkation process. Sue and I finally made it ashore by 11.30pm and joined the queue for the shuttle bus into the centre of Le Havre. Unfortunately, only two of the coaches being used were accessible for passengers with mobility problems, and we had to wait until one came along before we could travel to the centre of the city.
To put it bluntly, Le Havre proved to be a disappointment. We were dropped off near the Hotel de Ville (Town Hall) and had expected that the area would have lots of bars and cafés as well as numerous interesting shop whose window we could look through. As it was, the town hall was on one side of a pleasant little park, but on the streets around it we were only able to find one café that was open … and that was full of cruise passengers from Iona!
Le Havre's Hotel de Ville (Town Hall).
The park in front of Le Havre's Hotel de Ville (Town Hall).
As to the shops … well, we found one selling fresh seafood, another hiring out electric bicycles, one selling orthopaedic shoes, and one selling expensive clothes and accessories. We knew they were expensive as nothing had a visible price tag!
In the end, we gave up trying to find somewhere to get a drink or where we could buy a souvenir and caught the next shuttle bus back to the ship. In the terminal building, Sue did mange to buy a Le Havre shot glass to add to her collection, and by 12.45pm we had arrived back at our suite. By this time we were both very thirsty, and after dropping our coasts and bags off, we made our way up to the Beachcomber Bar to have a drink … only to find that it was shut! As a result, we ended up in the nearly empty Crow’s Nest, where we were finally able to get a much-needed drink!
Suitably refreshed, Sue and I returned to our suite, and whilst I began drafting the text of this blog post, She wrote up her cruise log. We did this until just before 3.00pm, at which point we went down to The Quays for lunch. By sheer coincidence, Sue and I sat next to a table that was occupied by a fellow Hertfordshire Freemason and we chatted with them as we ate. We parted company just after 4.00pm, and after a spell sitting together in the open area on Deck 18, Sue and I returned to our suite to begin the process of packing our bags.
We took our time doing this, and took several breaks. During one of these, our butler – Anil – came to wish us a good journey home and we were able to have a long chat with him about his career with P&O. After Anil had left us, we finished packing all but one of our bags, and when we left our suite for dinner, we left this luggage outside our door for collection.
After a lot of deliberation, Sue and I decided that we were not very hungry and looked at the various options available to us. We rejected the three-course menu available in the main restaurants, and almost all the other informal dining options were either booked or their menus were unattractive. In the end, we had our pre-dinner drink in the Crow’s Nest and then went to the Horizon self-service restaurant. I had steak and chips and Sue ate a ham salad … and that was more than enough for both of us.
Once we had eaten, we returned to our suite and finished packing our last bag before putting it outside our suite's door for collection. We were both feeling quite tired, and were in bed by 11.00pm.
Saturday 5th April: Southampton
We set our alarm to go off at 7.00am, but the sound and vibration caused by the operation of the ship’s thrusters as the ship moored alongside her berth at the Ocean Terminal in Southampton woke us up well before then. As a result, Sue and I were ready to go to breakfast in the Epicurean Restaurant at 7.45am.
By 8.30am we had finished eating and were on our way to the Limelight’s Bar (Deck 6 Midships) which was the meeting point for passengers – like me – who had booked assisted disembarkation. As soon as I was booked in, I was seated in a wheelchair and – accompanied by Sue – on my way to the gangway.
Once we had reached the baggage reclaim hall, the person who was pushing my wheelchair summoned a porter, and with Sue’s help they collected our luggage. Within minutes, we were through Customs and on our way to the valet parking area. Once there, the wheelchair pusher collected our car keys for me and then wheeled me to our car. At the same time, the porter accompanied us and loaded our luggage into our car. This was even more efficiently done than the assisted boarding process on Tuesday!
We drove out of the car park at 8.50am and were soon on our way to the M3. However, soon after joining the M3 we noticed signs next to the motorway that announced that it was shut between junctions 7 and 6.
Sue and I decided that we needed to stop at Winchester Services and work out how we were going to get home. In the end, we used Goggle Maps as it is better at finding alternative routes than my car’s sat nav. It directed us down the M3 as far as Junction 8 … which meant that we ended up stuck in a traffic queue for over half an hour. However, once we reached the junction, we turned right towards Dummer whilst everyone else turned left towards Basingstoke and the A30.
(This turned out to have been a sensible thing to do as there were reports of several accidents on the official/recommended diversion route.)
Our route took us down a number of country roads until we joined the B3046, which took us to the A339 and thence back towards the east of Basingstoke. Just before the A339 passed under the M3, we turned right and followed some more country roads until we drove under the M3 and joined the London Road (A30). We drove eastwards until we reached the junction with the A287, where we turned right towards Junction 8 of the M3. Once back on the M3, we soon reached the Fleet Services where we stopped for a quick drink and a comfort break.
Less than thirty minutes later we rejoined the M3 and by just before 12.30pm we had joined the anticlockwise M25. There was a 50mph speed limit in place for much of the drive, and we were further delayed by a car crash near the junction with the A2 that had caused a minor traffic jam.
Sue and I finally got home a few minutes before 2.00pm. Our journey – including two stops – had taken us about five hours … which is twice as long as we would normally have expected!
