Thursday 16th March

At sea on the way to Apia, in Samoa. The sea was an oily calm this morning with virtually no swell or wind. d*** went to a talk on Honolulu & then on to Spanish whilst Jane was at her Bridge lesson.

At midday in his sing song address to the passengers the Captain described the sea as 'Millpondesque' & it was no exaggeration.

In the afternoon we heard about rescuing stranded whales & how to do it properly, a fascinating presentation. Later we heard the story of how Samoa, in the 1880s, had a civil war, was invaded by the Germans, who were in dispute with the US & a potential minor war was averted when a cyclone sank 3 German & 2 American ships in Apia harbour & 1 British ship escaped to sea. It really was quite unbelievable but it was true.

After dinner d*** went to bed & Jane went to a show.

Friday 17th March - St Patrick’s Day (Pt 1)

Arrived today at Apia, the capital of Samoa, at about 9am. As d*** was still pretty tired after a hard night’s coughing Jane left the ship & walked around part of the town. The island isn’t very big at about 1100 sq miles with a population of about 183,000 of whom 40,000 live in the Apia area. It is somewhat like the Isle of Wight in shape with wooded hills & valleys & reefs around the beaches.

In the afternoon we hired a taxi van & went up to see Robert Luis Stevenson’s house high in the hills set in a beautiful park. Here we had a young lady guide who explained how his life was there & she finished singing one of his poems in a soft but very touching, voice.

After travelling on a few km we came to a magnificent waterfall set in a forested zone & falling about 90m to a pool below. We then returned to Apia for a coffee at ‘Aggie Greys’ a much restored hotel where we caught up with our emails etc. On our return to the ship we rested after a hard afternoon’s sightseeing.

Peter, Jane’s brother married Alison, here in Apia but Jane couldn’t identify the specific Methodist Church so she photographed quite a few in her quest. It is clear that the various churches have quite an influence on the life style of the locals.

The ship sailed at about 6.30 on it long journey towards Honolulu, the next port of call.

After dinner we went to a concert by Les Michael a tall, lanky Polish multi instrumentalist who played, flute, clarinet, alto & tenor saxophones, the latter pair together at once. To say his routine was impressive is to damn him with faint praise, as he lit the whole auditorium with his presence. It also gave the ship’s band a chance to shine yet again & the whole event was quite electric.

Tonight we went to bed knowing that tomorrow would also be Friday 17th March as we will cross the International Dateline & gain a whole day.

Friday 17th March - St Patrick’s Day (Again, as we have crossed the date line & gained a day)

Both had a pretty poor night’s sleep as d*** can’t seem to get control of his coughing, which he only does to annoy Jane.

Usual classes & a couple of talks today plus an unusual concert by 2 pianists on the one piano. One is English & the other is French & their playing was excellent but the connecting patter was somewhat confusing.

d*** attended a talk on Art Nouveau given by a lady who had been on the Arcadia last year & another on ‘Pandora’s Box’, the story of the return of the Bounty Mutineers to England.

He then went to see the doctor again & is now on his 4th different course of antibiotics, as the infection is still active.

After dinner d*** went to bed early while Jane went to 2 shows before retiring.