Garden Reviews
Thursday 24th May 2012
0800 408 6200
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A Garden Cruise Review 'Around Britain' 'Yes indeed, we did have an excellent cruise for nine days aboard the MS Balmoral. The service on board was a delight - crew members all appeared to be happy, for every time we met them they delivered their service with a smile, and excellent their service was. We especially enjoyed the excursions, since we had booked with Victoria Travel in order to see the gardens. They were all breathtakingly beautiful, each in its different way. The large areas at Mount Stewart Gardens Belfast, contrasted with Helen Dillon's beautiful garden in Dublin that had taken 36 years in the making, which was an intriguing comparison to the many faceted two and a half acres of magnificent garden in Lakemount Cork with a different "room" every twenty yards of path. The other excursions that we went on were organised by Fred Olsen Lines and they were very well organised and offered us a range of places and views that we had not previously seen - from windswept Orkneys to busy and historic Belfast and Dublin. The evening entertainment was exemplary and we are sure that the boys and girls and the crew members of the Balmoral were happy with the reception they received from the one thousand plus (mainly pensioners) on board. Of course Bob Webb and Leo Andrews and the orchestra were all excellent. We enjoyed them all. Thank you all for a wonderful cruise'.
THE AMAZON
One day last year we saw in Gardeners World mag That a cruise to the Amazon River could be had And two professionals would be on hand, To make sure the Rainforest we would truly understand. So we booked the tour with Victoria Travel In the hope that at last our dreams we could unravel. We arrived at Gatwick in good time for our vacation Enthusiastic and excited and full of expectation An overnight stay in an Airport Hotel, had prepared us for a trip we just couldn’t miss And we hoped the rest of our journey would be as easy as this.......... But on our arrival at Gatwick, we were ushered outside, in a crowd? With masses of people standing all around We waited anxiously as the clock ticked by It was now only one hour before we should fly! Seeking Airport Officials, we were told “All is fine,” And “You’ll be told when to join the Fred Olsen line” The computers had failed, in fact they were broke And quite seriously our “check in” had become a joke! The queue like an endless snake curled round and round We couldn’t even see to where we were bound Time ticked away slowly, on our endless wait And we feared a night in the Airport would be our fate! But like the true “Brits” that we were, we put on a happy face Chatting to others, all moving at snail’s pace. We began to laugh and there was great camaraderie And we even made jokes about or impending jeopardy! Our feet were tired and our legs did ache We were thirsty and bored. How much longer would all this take? I wished we could move with a little more haste Then thankfully Margaret suggested I sat with her.... on her case! But nightmares usually, forever don’t last And soon we were flying high in the sky, the trauma past When we arrived in Barbados it was all, just a flicker As thankfully, we boarded the good ship Boudicca! The first night in the Neptune Lounge was to be a “Formal” Occasion We all dressed ourselves smartly, without much persuasion. The men in dark suits and ties, done up with a bow And ladies in dresses long dresses, my they did flow. We had our photograph taken with our skipper “Captain Jan” And soon discovered he was a “very hands on man” In the Neptune, he offered us drinks, of the alcoholic kind And by now nobody seemed to mind. Then exuberant and happy we moved on, for our first Evening meal To meet our fellow diners, we so hoped they would be a good deal But we needn’t have worried cos on table 51 The guests that were chosen, were second to none We immediately struck up a happy rapport If we’d handpicked them ourselves, we couldn’t have asked for more! Blessed with two naval seamen the conversation was often nautical And the tales we were told made us laugh quite hysterical. We learned something about a Spot? And a Rivet that was Golden and meant something it was not? Each night like Judge and Jury we put the world right And saying “All Rise” we would return to the Neptune, for the entertainment of the night. Then Tony Russell and David Hurrion, our Gardeners we did meet They showed us slides and shared their knowledge. Oh what a treat! They explained about the Amazonian vegetation And answered our questions without hesitation They set us a bit of a difficult quiz Which got us into a bit of a tiz! One day they took us on a River Boat, too We saw where the Riberino’s live. Then down the River on a Canoe! The Jungle Trek was an awesome affair There were spiders and snakes and dense undergrowth for those who dare We walked on boardwalks high and saw Monkeys and Parrots in the trees And got covered in mud right up to our knees The highlight for me, was Boca de Valeria As it gave us a glimpse of life in the interior The children, holding our hand Showing us the secrets of this intriguing land And slowly and surely the mighty Amazon revealed to me The Rain Forest’s magic and mystery for us all to see Brazil nut trees, exotic plants, mosquitoes and the stifling humidity Illusive Caymans and the Pink Dolphins we just missed.... through our own stupidity Giant Water Lily’s, the people with their Garden’s planted in Canoes River boats, huge moths and muddy shoes The wonders of the vast Tropical Sky Watching magical Sunsets, sipping martini...dry For two memorable weeks, we lived our lives afloat In the confident hands of the Captain of our boat At noon he would tell us, “Boudicca is Dancing with the Sea” And “We are exactly, where we should be” The meals we ate and ate and ate And I know for a fact I’ve put on weight The boys who served our meals, were so helpful and willing I must remember to give them a shilling! Have you seen Wilmer our waiter and would be ventriloquist Performing with his “Baby” and “Little Willie” the philanthropist? We’ve been to the shows and watched all the dancing We’ve laughed with Lee Carroll and heard Andrew Robley singing We attended the morning Quiz, intended for the intelligent And walked the Deck “four” times, trying to be diligent. Listened to the talented Simon Wheal on his piano, playing And sitting through Lectures till our minds were ringing! I must also mention Rikky our Cruise Director and Compere Exec Chef Andreus, his Galley Team and their wonderful fayre Our room maid Poo, has been so efficient, it has to be said As each night we fell into our neatly made bed. The friends we have made, we will remember too Cos we “bonded” at Gatwick waiting in that queue! Tony and David our “Leaders” from the Victoria Travel/Gardeners World Tour. Ray the Deep Sea Diver and his partner Jill, who have both been on lots of Cruises before. We will all remember Ann the great intellectual and her wonderful dresses Jill and Brian and the lovely stories he confesses. Then there’s my remarkable friend Margaret, from Dublin And the charismatic Chris, so beautiful and “thin” Who invited us to share our last day together, on a Caribbean beach Where white sands and aquamarine seas, stretched far beyond our reach And last but not least, with who else would I share this longed for, experience to the end? But my long suffering Brian, my husband and my friend We are all here because of Fred Olsen, a man I have never met But what a remarkable man he must be, to have founded a fleet, the friendliest yet! On behalf of everyone I have met, can I say a big “Thank You” to...... The good ship Boudicca..... Her talented Trumpet playing Captain Jan Thomassen and his dedicated Crew And not forgetting... The wonderful friends we have come to know because we dared to venture On this..... Our Amazing Amazonian Adventure A Review of our Garden Cruises 'regular' cruisers - Mr & Mrs Shorrock, Milton Keynes Our view of garden visits from ships is that you get a quick snapshot of the actual gardens, together with the scents and 'noises' (birds, plants rustling, atmosphere, etc) - pictures cannot convey anything like that. In the case of Madeira, it has given us the inspiration to organise our own trips on non-garden cruises. It is remarkably easy for most people using public transport which is excellent. There is also the cable car which now serves the Botanical Gardens in addition to Monte - or one can also use taxis. We have also, as a result, been fortunate to do 2 land based tours of Madeira - one with Pippa Greenwood and one with Ashley Stephenson and Roy Lancaster - and take in more gardens - and of course stay much, longer in each - truly marvellous. In many cases it is fascinating to see plants that we grow in pots in our houses growing wild and absolutely huge - poinsettias for instance. We have also done a land based garden tour of the Italian lakes, but this was not as a result of a previous cruise. We were initially reluctant to go on a garden cruise - fearing that our knowledge, or lack of it - Latin names, etc - would be a hindrance. We very quickly found that the 'experts' cater for all levels of expertise - its up to you to get out of it as much or as little as you want. If you just like to look at beautiful gardens and admire them then so be it. If you want/need to know all the technical details then they are readily available. It's also very useful to join the get togethers on board - 3 or 4 one hour sessions during a 2 week cruise is something we ought to be able to do - after all we will generally be at sea. At these sessions you quickly find out how much or how little everyone really knows (generally how much more you actually knew than you thought you did) - and they are good social get-togethers. There is more to the Caribbean than sea, sand and palm trees. Get away from all of this by taking a garden cruise and we guarantee that you will be truly amazed. We never considered rain forests in the Caribbean but they exist as do some truly magnificent gardens. |
.jpg_thumb.jpg "Santorini sunset")
