Day Four–Cadiz and the Indian Buffet.

As the ship was due to arrive in Cadiz at 8.00 this morning we decided to breakfast in our room, a large tray of fruit, cold meats, cheeses and pastries being delivered at 7.00. We sat on the balcony and watched as the ship was manoeuvred into it’s mooring with the assistance of an assortment of Spanish dockhands. A Holland America ship was docked across the harbour but surprisingly with two cruise ships in town, Cadiz was quiet, few of the shops were open and the locals had yet to surface on this bright Sunday morning.

The cathedral ,above, is the focus of the town with numerous narrow lanes radiating from this centre . As you walk down these streets various smaller squares come into view with several churches. Although we visited the town separately from the Shinglers it wasn’t  very long before  we came across them in the square.

As with many Mediterranean towns the gardens and the various flowers around the town were superb, the pictures not really doing them justice.

 

Although it was only a fleeting visit [we had to be back on the ship by 1.00], Cadiz appeared a really pleasant city, although it would be difficult to find enough to occupy a full day. One major criticism though was the amount of dog mess there was on the streets which meant you had to look at your feet rather than the sights!! I’ve nothing against dogs or their owners, but please clean up after them.

After setting sail just after one o’clock, we passed through the Straits of Gibraltar late afternoon. Our side of the ship was facing South which gave very clear views of the North African coast.

During this passage the wind picked up causing the sea to swell which gave a little rough end to what had been a hot and sunny day. In fact after lying on the deck earlier I now have those pink legs I referred to yesterday.

This evening was 60’s Night with a show in the theatre entitled “My Generation”, a mixture of music from The Beatles, Kinks and other such artists. Poppy and Joseph joined us in the theatre and were both very well behaved. Poppy loved the dancing and singing while Joseph sat open-mouthed throughout the performance.

After leaving the children in the Kid’s Club to watch a film we moved on to the buffet, for the famous P&O Indian spread. Oliver was salivating as we climbed the last flight of stairs and he wasn’t disappointed by the selection. Samosas, Bhajis, Kormas, Tandoori, Vindaloo.. you name it, it was there. After several platefuls each of main courses we moved onto the sweets……

To be fair Ollie didn’t eat all of these but he did have NINE dough balls. A great way to end the day, we’ll all sleep well tonight, although I may need the Alka-Seltzer!!!

Well Done Naomi, UTC does indeed stand for Universal Time Co-ordinated.