TigerB

Well, I couldn't work out at first if it was a straw or stirrer. After trying to suck up my drink through it, I reasoned it must be the latter.

Me too!

Did you have the willpower to save the chocolate stirrer until last though?

After they return they may go to their locals rags, if they are interested. You can imagine them practising their sad compo faces from now until then.🙄

Fess up folks; who else had to look up paucity? No? Just me, then! 🤔

Excuse me? I didn't say owt!🤭

Thanks, Selbourne. It knocked her for six, but she's better now, but it's taken more than a week to shake it off. You haven't missed it, as I haven't yet posted it. What with looking after the boss, and being tied up with loads of different things after getting home, I haven't had time to tidy it and the photos up. Hopefully, tomorrow night.

Hopefully, neither of your friends have coeliac disease. Our daughter flew on Friday with Maleth Aero to Barbados and, despite ordering one in advance, there was no GF meal for her. In fact, they had no other food on the aircraft that would have been suitable for her. Not good!😠

If, as has happened on a few nights, our menu mirrors yours tonight, I am really glad we are in the Epicurean rather than Opal. As a pescatarian, I always look for the fish dish, and I like sea bream; but it has, what our lass calls, prostitute ham with it, so that would be a definite no-no. None of the veggie dishes appeal to me either.

That dish with the butter in is absolutely unacceptable. Many people love the buffet for breakfast and, from my one and only visit the other morning, I do agree that there are more items available in there than in the MDRs; but that, for me, is the only positive thing about it. We don't like visiting there at the best of times, and it is even more awkward with no trays available, but trying to get breakfast in there with my wife would be an absolute nightmare. We will stick with our leisurely and, almost always, trouble-free breakfasts in the MDRs

I just caught a glimpse of you through the side windows of Pearl

@Selbourne, we can see you off our starboard side. Try and keep up, lad! 🙄

I said elsewhere, no medals for second place! 😂

But your bum looks considerably bigger than ours!🫢

Just the name alone, you know it's going to be full of &#!£ 😂

I think it may be a case of first one there gets the berth. No medals for second place; just a straight run to Blighty. Our driver reckons to be hitting 20 knots; try and keep up! 😂

Judging by all that everyone has been eating on here, you definitely don't want to be down wind of us!🤭

Or maybe with the threatened pilot strike, they want to spread the arrivals out more. Anyway, as they say... first up, best dressed. 😉

@molecrochip, do you have any knowledge of a contingency plan?

I think it's a fantastic port. Then again, I used to live in Grimsby! 😯

According to the port schedule we are due in at 07:15, half an hour before Ventura; so, best berth again maybe.

I swing both ways! Tomato ketchup usually with thick chips, especially when a dippy fried egg is involved. Mayo with French fries

As it happens, I cancelled our breakfast in Aqua yesterday morning as the boss couldn't get out of bed; she is full of cold. So, I had a lay in myself and popped one deck up to Horizon for my breakfast, for the first time ever ....and the last. It will all go in the report!🙄

Back at you.... We saw you on our telly earlier, backing in just after 07:00. It was dark but I could tell it was Ventura because of her big flat backside 🫢 I thought it looked like you were a little farther out. We've seen TUI coaches going back an forth, but there isn't a TUI ship in, is there? I wondered if they were being used for shuttles.

We have heard plenty of gobby folk, but you get that anywhere. The only really drunken behaviour we have witnessed was a guy heckling Yzzy at the end of her middle show in the Club House the other night. She was quick with a comeback. When we left at the end of her set he was laid sparko on one of the benches, being seen to by crew. Further to my post at #8, I was back out on deck later to see the ambulance crew leave the ship not long after 22:00, with the gurney and all the medical equipment on it. I had hoped that was because the patient was fine, but thought it was likely because they had passed away. That was confirmed the next day by a couple who had a relative working onboard. It is not at all uncommon, but still very sad for all those concerned. It is my understanding that we didn't leave until almost 02:00 because the stevedores have gone to do other duties on the port.