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We are sailing across the Indian Ocean on our way to Mauritius. The sea is calm, the sky is blue and the temperature outside is a very comfortable 24 degrees.

This is the longest voyage for the whole cruise so I have decided to take the opportunity to add some photos that haven’t yet appeared either because they do not specifically relate to a port of call or were taken by others and arrived too late to be published. So here they are.

(1) – Dining Table 222

Our table for six, became the centrepiece of a memorable Valentine’s Day after Dave and I – just the two blokes – went above and beyond, with Dave successfully negotiating with the ship’s florist to acquire a bouquet for each of our four ladies.

The photo at the top shows Dave and I looking pretty smug having brought tears of joy to three of our lady companions.

However, we were soon to learn that our fourth lady, Randi, had received the honour of an invitation to the Captain’s table for dinner that evening. This left us with no alternative but to present her flowers in person, right there before the Captain and his distinguished guests.

As we approached the table, an unsettling silence descended, and my imagination conjured visions of a plank extending over shark-infested waters. However, the tension quickly dissolved into relief as the Captain greeted us with a warm smile and this was followed by a burst of applause that rippled through the restaurant.

The flowers were delivered much to Randi’s delight and with appreciative acknowledgements from the other table guests.

On a ‘formal dress’ night towards the end of February we had the pleasure of the company of Tom, the cruise director as he joined us at our table.

The theme for the evening was the 1920s and some had dressed accordingly, especially Tom who looked a little bit like Al Capone. In the photo below from left to right we have: Margaret, Dave, Christine, Tom (standing), Ruth, Me and Randi.

We are all British except for Randi, she is from Norway and had specifically requested to dine with British passengers, I think this was to improve her command of the English language and to learn more about our way of life.

Sadly, Randi, who had just booked for half of the cruise, had to leave the ship when we reached Sydney. She was very good company and we are all missing her.

We decided that a certificate of her achievement in becoming ‘one of us’ should be awarded on her final day, and I was tasked with the job of providing it.

Kindly printed by the ships office team on the finest card, below is a copy of the certificate that we presented.

I think she plans to have is framed.

Restaurants, Dress Code & Captain’s Table – How it Works

There is a self-service restaurant with an informal dress code – shorts are perfectly acceptable and formal attire is never required.

There is also a table-service restaurant, where the dress code is normally ‘smart casual’ (i.e., shorts are not allowed) but there are formal evenings about once every ten days when it is ‘best bib and tucker’.

Everyone has a seat allocated in the table-service restaurant but can opt to use either whenever.

The captain only dines at his table in the table service restaurant on formal evenings.

Regarding who dines at the captain’s table, the standard response from staff is that the captain personally selects them. This is likely to be true in some cases, especially when dignitaries or celebrities are onboard. However, I think the maître ds fill any remaining places. I may be wrong but there doesn’t seem to be a strict selection criteria, I think they simply aim to ensure a smooth and harmonious experience by making wise choices, and I’ve not heard any complaints.

Will my name come up? I doubt it after our valentines day  escapade, but you never know.

Also on some formal nights ship’s officers join selected tables and on those occasions, like on the captain’s table, the wine is provided by the officers. We’ve had officers join us on two occasions.

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(2) – Atacama Amigos

The Atacama Amigos are the group that did the trip to the Atacama desert earlier in the cruise.

The photo below was cleverly taken by the guide who by day showed us the desert life and by night demonstrated his astronomical expertise. A wonderful evening’s star gazing in the hotel grounds.

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(3) – Late Nights in the Piano Bar

I spent many a happy late night session sitting around the piano singing along with Brad Moodie, a pianist and vocalist with a repertoire (he claimed) of over 1,500 songs from the 50s, 60s and 70s.

The songs just kept coming. ‘Do you remember this one’, he would say, and each was followed by a ‘name the song and singer’ contest.

Sadly, Brad had to leave the ship in Sydney, but the sessions may recommence after Mauritius with a new pianist.

So that’s it for now. We are due to reach Port Louis in Mauritius on Sunday where I am planning to visit the Ile aux Cerfs, a private island just off the coast.