It is no secret I love cruising, for one it’s simpler and
easier at this stage in my life than packing and unpacking, lugging suitcases
from place to place. On the ship I unpack once, granted you only see a little
bit, but at least it is a taste, and sometimes a day is enough.
On the third day at sea, the captain announced that tomorrow
morning between 4 and 5 in the morning we would be crossing the Strait of Gibraltar,
and the Rock would be visible. I
scheduled a wake-up call for 4:00, I didn’t want to miss it a second of this
event. Yes, I know it’s just a rock, but what a magnificent one.
The Strait of Gibraltar connects the Mediterranean Sea to
the Atlantic Ocean.
It is largely believed that the Neanderthals considered it
home as far back as 125,00- years ago, and as late as possibly 30,000 years
ago. The history is significant, but on this trip, I was only going to see the
big rock, not the tunnels and passageways, nor the flora and fauna.
I didn’t know what to expect, when you’re in the open sea,
it’s pitch black at night, sometimes you see an island, dim lights twinkling in
the distance, another cruise ship heading to a port, or a freighter chugging
along, but darkness is routine. We were moving toward the Atlantic in November,
cruise ships were heading somewhere warm, just like our ship was doing-the
final destination was Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
I thought I’d be the only one out on deck, not so, many
other souls were up, many were in pajamas, sweat shirts, comfort clothes fit
for the occasion. For all of us the first call was to the ever present coffee machines.
The crew was up, and along with the coffee a continental breakfast was served while
we all awaited the big rock. The anticipation was great.
Even in the dark and the huge gap between the ship and the
rock, it was still a monstrous hunk of stone, and even with lights twinkling
everywhere, it was an eerie spot.
At five ten, we crossed the straits, and indeed the big pile
of rock was there, it is huge even from a great distance. I have a couple of
pictures mostly of what looks like a massive dense space surrounded by light.
After the crossing we were on the Atlantic Ocean, bound for
Agadir, Morocco-tomorrow’s stop. As the saying goes there was quite a bit of
motion from the ocean once we crossed from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic
Ocean.
Proof of the movement were the bags placed on the landings.
Delicately phrased, people call them barf bags for a reason. Usually when the
bags come out, I expect some pretty rough seas, and they didn’t disappoint.
It is really strange walking on deck when it’s windy and the
seas are rough-it feels as if you either have lead feet or are floating on air.
I lasted 20 minutes before I gave up, and actually had to sit down and rest for
a few minutes. I was not alone on deck, there were a couple of other souls
floating on air, or not, depending on the wind.
For the afternoon, the captain predicted fifteen feet
swells, the bags were firmly in place and that included the elevators;
otherwise it was life as usual on board ship. They believe in being prepared,
and you know it’s serious when the crew couldn’t walk in a straight
line-their sea legs were firmly in place.
Cheers,
Margot
Justes
Blood Art
A Hotel in Paris
A Hotel in Bath
Hot Crimes Cool Chicks
www.mjustes.com
