Tothesunset

Bon Voyage to the Mystys.

Reminds me of a bus ride in Hong Kong where the younger man opposite, a soldier from Sek Kong, was asking his father, who was visiting, how he liked Hong Kong. "It's fine," he said. "But too much foreign food."

To be fair, the basis of all shampoos is, essentially, Fairy Liquid. I find it funny the shampoo manufacturers seem to think that adding tropical fruit to a product somehow increases its efficacy. It makes me wonder if shampoo manufacturers in tropical countries hoodwink their customers with promises of "essence of cabbage and beetroot" or the hair-nourishing addition of "rhubarb and shallot"?

Which will be reflected in lower D2D cruise fares? Mmmm...

Doubt it.

I hope he does his one-man musical show in the theatre on your trip. And if you're really lucky he'll do an impromptu session in the Paranoia Lounge one night where he does stuff that he doesn't do on the stage. One of a kind.

Moss Hills is by far our favourite CD. Not only is he a true hero, he is also musically talented, good company and a complete gentleman.

Ooh. I've no idea if it's a tender or not. Good point.

I see the ship docks at Newhaven, 0800 to 2200. The dock is very close to the retired Royal Yacht, Britannia. For an active person it's a 15 minute walk. I'm sure the SS "VIP" excursion will be silly expensive so if you'd like to visit Britannia (and you really should - it's magnificent) either walk or get a cab. If you are ex-military, entrance to the yacht is at a lower cost. From Britannia you can get a bus (I forget the route number but Google maps will tell you) from right in front of the building to Princes Street where you'll find the Scott memorial, Scottish National Gallery (free entry!) and can walk across to the Castle, Royal Mile, Holyrood House. And after a good day's foot-slogging get the bus back to Newhaven. Whatever you do I'm sure you'll enjoy Edinburgh. It's a fine city. You also get to visit my old hometown of Belfast! Looks like a great itinerary.

It strikes me that anyone who takes out their frustrations on the hard-working crew members exposes only their own inadequacies.

Mostly with SS shows after 20 minutes it feels like over an hour.

Did spellchecker remove the 'h'?

See, I told you. Whatever next? Cowboy hats in the restaurant?

Oh, I think they'll look after Mysty and Mr Mysty all right They wouldn't dare do otherwise!

I'm beginning to sense that, for various reasons, the intimacy and personal service that we always found on SS ships is now slipping away? I know all companies evolve their product ultimately, they hope, to the benefit of the bottom line. That's just good business. SS seems to be evolving into a more mass market product at the expense of service to the passenger - not just the direct personal service from individual crew members but also in terms of food, ambience and SS's uniquely customer-centered ethos. SS is morphing into just another cruise line. That makes me sad. Am I wrong?

Oh, no. How very sad. Those who don't have the privilege of having pets just couldn't understand the special bond we have with them. The only comfort at times like this is knowing that this unique little individual has had the best possible life and receives the very best of care.

Mainly political biographies. So, yes, fiction.

You can say that again.

Is there an option to ask for a bar of soap?

Brad Pitt's let himself go a bit.

Is it unusual? Or is it the extent of reporting that is unusual? Or unusual to us because it's gained a life of its own on this forum? On a worldwide scale, this sort of ship/nature interface isn't that rare.

It's important to remember that trial by social media is not guaranteed to be impartial or even intelligible.

And how that will affect property prices.

I hadn't realised there were so many Master Mariners and Forensic Detectives on this forum!

Enjoy your rutting.