Gibraltar

Monday 4th December

For some reason the Cunard ships always leave Gibraltar early. I wonder if it is connected to port fees or to the distance to the next port. This means I have to get up early if I want to spend time in port. I set my alarm and was up by 8.30am.

Before all my recent travels I felt that Gibraltar was a romantic port. I remembered it as our first stop on the family migration from England to Australia in 1953. I remember in Grade 6 in school studying migration and having to plan a trip from England to Australia. That made me look at all the ports that our family had visited. Gibraltar has stuck in my mind ever since.

A few years ago I visited Gibraltar on a cruise and loved it. I met up with a group of people through Cruise Critic and we went up the Rock in the elevator and then walked down. The sun shone and it was a special activity. Since then, all I have done is go to the shops. I have bought some lovely fans in the past, and duty-free Swarovski ornaments, but there is nothing else that attracts me. The buildings are all high-rise and faded and dingy. Lately I have gone in November or December when the sky is cloudy and I can’t wait to get back to the ship. All elements of romance have gone.

It is possible to walk to the shops but I think it would take 20-30 minutes. There are shuttle taxis that take you for 4 pounds or 6 euros return, and I think this is worth the money. I did not stay long. I only bought a Swarovski star and some chocolates. I couldn’t even find any interesting fans. I was back on board by 10.30.

I found that my steps were more and more slow as I walked through Gibraltar and then from the shuttle to the ship. I knew I would have to rest if I wanted to enjoy the private dancing lesson that I had booked for that afternoon. I had seen some rolling pivots on a Strictly Come Dancing clip and wanted to learn them.

Apart from lunch and afternoon tea, and a few photos around the ship to see the progress of the Christmas decorations, I rested for the rest of the day in preparation.

The lesson started with just Dan but Alyona joined us later. Dan started in the side section of the ballroom, in front of the mirrors, making me practise moving my hips around in a circle. He then added a body tilt. It looked to me very like the Samba rolls. Alyona said the same when she arrived. They tried out the steps together and both agreed that practising it like Samba rolls gave a much fuller picture than just moving shoulders up and down. We then added in the pivots. Dan thought we could get into it from a lockstep. I suggested a spin turn. He thought that would not work as we would then be turning in the opposite direction. However, he worked out that we could start in a spin turn but not complete it – move into the pivots instead. That worked well. He then added in a few more steps for a small routine. We completed that in about 20 minutes. What to do with the rest of the time? Dan suggested Viennese Waltz. I said I had forgotten the fleckerl so we worked on that and again came up with a little routine.

After the lesson I hurried to clean myself up and change into a long dress. I was too late to eat in the dining room so I went to the Lido. I went to the dining room about 7.15 in order to meet Catherine and Philip for the Senior Officers’ Cocktail Party. While waiting in line, Martin (a Dance Host) came up and joined me so that he could be my ‘Plus One’, as he was not eligible to go otherwise. We found seats in a corner and sat there chatting after the cocktail party and until the ball started. Catherine left shortly afterwards but Philip stayed on until 10.20, after Dan and Alyona had danced. None of the Dance Hosts saw me in the corner but that was okay as I was weary from my lesson.