Boarding the Azura.

After months of anticipation today was the day that we would turn those pictures of Azura into reality. We left home at 10.00 am for a very uneventful journey to Southampton. The roads were quiet, there were few road works and no traffic hold-ups, until we got about a mile from the docks. It was here that we got the first impression of how big the ship was and therefore how many passengers would be boarding at the same time as us. Having dropped the car off and relieved ourselves of our luggage we joined the queues for registration. Like at the deli counter in Tesco every one was given a coloured card with a letter on it, ours was Green ‘M’. It was only when the announcement called Red ‘P’ did we realise that we could be in for a long wait. Actually it wasn’t that long and the seats were comfortable and the time passed quickly as we were in conversation with a couple from Sydney, Australia [and we thought we had travelled a long way!!].

In all I guess we spent around an hour waiting but after having had our photos taken, for the identity cards used on board, and the credit card authorised for the on-board spend, we were ready to board the ship.

The first impressions of “Azura” were how big it was and how new it felt. All around the ship was that smell of freshly laid carpet and everywhere was so clean. First stop was the buffet to sample some lunch and pass some time while our stateroom [that’s the posh name for cabin] was prepared. There was a good selection of food available but I will give more details as we get into the cruise.

For this cruise we have a balcony cabin around mid-ship, unfortunately unlike in Australia we were not up-graded so had to be satisfied with what we paid for!. The room itself is well furnished, double bed, desk and walk in wardrobe. A great plus is the tea and coffee making facilities which means that I don’t have to make any late night visits to the buffet for Sylvia’s last cup of tea of the day. The balcony is small with two chairs a footstool and table, but perfectly okay for our needs. While Sylvia unpacked I took advantage of a few minutes on the balcony and Sylvia later joined me.

After the usual lifejacket drill the ship departed Southampton and we had a good walk around trying to get our bearings. We found the specialist Indian restaurant “Sindhu”, and booked for tomorrow night.[A full report to follow the meal]. Here are some photos of our first wander.

The clocks go forward tonight which, until Sylvia corrected me a few moments ago , I thought meant an extra hour in bed tomorrow. So as it’s now 12.15 I better finish. More to follow tomorrow.