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Published: June 26th 2017
We've been home for just over two weeks now and we feel like we have jumped from the frying pan and in to the fridge. I forgot what 'grey' looked like!! This entry in the blog is really to tie everything up in a nice package. Look on it as an early Christmas present!!
There was so much we had planned to see while we were in Dubai; a trip on a dhow across the creek. To watch the dancing fountains at the Burj Khalifa marina: the majestic Atlantis Hotel on the Jumeira Palm. On reflection, if we ever return we would definitely invest in a hop on-hop off bus ticket. Hindsight, as they say, is a wonderful thing!
Our flight back to Heathrow was at 11am local time. This meant we were up at 7am. (3am UK time)
Dubai airport is one of the most modern airports I have ever been in. It is large and spacious with a duty free area that can only be described as a small department store!!! On passing one aisle, I couldn't help noticing 5kg boxes of Omo washing power. Who in their right mind would buy one of those, I thought?
"Damn! Do you know what I forgot to pack? The Omo washing power. I better nip to the duty free to see if they have any. Well, what d'ya know? I better buy the 5kg box just to be sure!!
Our flight path took us over Baghdad, Istanbul, Black sea, through Eastern Europe, over Salzburg and then across to London.
Speaking of which, Mr and Mrs Salzburg (remember them?? From the Napoli blog??), after we had met them, disappeared from the ship never to be seen again!! Normally, even if you meet someone once, for example, at meal times, you may never have the opportunity to speak to them again but it is likely that you will spot them somewhere on board. Mrs Salzburg was easily recognisable as she looked very much like an Arian Vera Duckworth!! After our encounter with this very likeable Austrian couple, we never once bumped in to them in nearly 2 weeks. Our theory is this: During our one and only meal with them, Mr Salzburg excused himself on several occasions. Mrs Salzburg explained that he had something stuck in his throat but after talking with her husband, she then stated that he doesn't have anything in his throat but this seems to happen from time to time. On our return from our day out in Naples, Roisin noticed an ambulance that seemed to have left the quay where the MSC Lirica was docked. We have to now assume that Mr and Mrs Salzburg were inside. Presumably with Mr Salzburg the one adopting the horizontal position?!
From Heathrow we had a few hours wait before catching the BA shuttle to Manchester. Whilst waiting in the departure lounge I had just returned from W H Smith's with a replacement Puzzler book as the old one is still probably floating somewhere down the Red Sea!! As I approached Roisin, a lady got up from the seat next to her with 2 young children. She looked across at me and smiled.
You know who that was? Roisin asked after the lady was out of earshot?
“Gillian McKeith" I said.
The TV presenter cum reality star (ha!) who no longer seems to go by the title ‘
Dr' (yeah right! And I'm Astrix and Obelix the Gaul's long lost uncle, Bollix!!) looked at me and smiled as if to say,
“Do you know who I am? Go on, say something” I politely smiled back and thought:
“Yes, I know who you are but I'm not going to give you the satisfaction!! Do you know who I am? I'm Bollix. My name is what you mostly talk!!!”
All Roisin was thinking was
: ‘Please don't faint on me right now as my First Aid certificate is not up to date!!'
We have travelled 4725 nautical miles from Genoa to Abu Dhabi. This equates to 5437 real miles! We were now in a taxi on the last leg of our journey. It was almost 9:30 in the evening as we crossed the boundary in to WA8. We had been awake since 3am (UK time)
“We'll need to nip to the shop to get something for tea. We have nothing in.” Roisin said as the taxi stopped at the lights at the junction at St. Michaels. Across the road shone the distinguished neon of the Millennium Indian takeaway.
“I know what I'm having for MY tea”, I thought!!
I have had over 580 hits to this blog during our travels and over 5,200 hits to all travel blogs. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to follow our adventures on the high seas (aargh! me hearties!!) We hope you've taken something from reading about our experiences but most importantly had a bit of a laugh along the way. Be sure that the adventures don't stop here. Think of it as the blog in now on snooze for a few months until February 2012.
We have just finished watching the Grand Prix, live from Yas Island Abu Dhabi and do you know what?? We couldn't tell you who won!! We were too busy patting each other on the back.
‘Ah! There's that bridge”
“Look we stood overlooking that bit”
We wish we could do this all over again (but preferably when the race track was open to the public!!)
THE END
***UPDATE*** Just seen Gillian McKeith on ITV2's I'm a celebrity - get me out now!! now we know where she was going. Who said there's no such thing as a free lunch?? She seems to do OK for herself!!!
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MadABFan
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sort of out of the forno and into the tandoor...nice to finish with food - good one, Chriswell returned!