Time to buy an anorak?

Yesterday I drove for two hours from my house to Southampton to pack up my daughter and her many belongings at the end of Year 2 at Southampton University.

It was a beautiful sunny day (which makes a very welcome change) and the countryside on both sides of the M3 looked glorious.

I hadn’t seen my daughter since the middle of April due to her exams and coursework deadlines and was very much looking forward to seeing her and bringing her back for the summer, but as I approached the town, I realised that I also had a real urge to go down to the docks and see which cruise ships were in port.

This got me thinking about all the beautiful ships I have been lucky enough to sail on and how even after selling cruises for nearly 25 years (yes I did start at age 10!!!), I still get excited about new ships and seeing old friends in dock.

There is something so special about boarding your cruise ship and entering your new home for the next week or two. I remember a taxi driver once dropped me off beside Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas and asked me if I was really going out to sea in “that block of flats”. “Too right I am” I smugly thought as he headed back to Kent and I was 5 minutes away from two weeks of fun, fine food and sunshine.

I have discovered that the rooftop car park at Ikea in Southampton is a good viewing point…..Is it time to buy an anorak?