Two good reasons to celebrate

Valentine's menu - click to open and read it

After Gabrielle had posted her blog yesterday evening and we had consumed the chocolate strawberries (oh, yum, by the way) we steadily prepped for our Valentine’s night out. Given that neither of us had felt that good, really since we came back from Atacama, this was the first real effort we had put in. The powers that be had ordained that, for this auspicious occasion, we would be able to buy Taittinger Rosé at a £10 discount per bottle. Guess what? We grabbed two! So once scrubbed and primped, we decided to pop a cork. We’d not had a drink for two or three days - horrors - and so it was something of a shock to the system to have alcohol again. 

Opening the Taittinger Rosé

So the bottle opening was fine until the cork came out. Champagne poured from the neck onto the table so, staying classy, I swept as much as I could into my glass and we mopped up the rest. I resisted squeezing the tissues into the glass too!

We had a lovely dinner in the restaurant- probably one of their best to date. They’d pushed the boat out with a Valentine’s menu that included deep fried Camembert, halibut and tarte tatin. All reinforced with half of a bottle of Campo Viejo (second half tonight). Delicious!

On our return to the cabin, we were captivated by the strange effect of birds flying past the ship at night, circling and swooping. There were about ten of them and they seemed to be intent on their game of chase in the darkness. 

Michelle, post-Cartagena destination talk

Our day this morning began as usual with breakfast and then on to see Michelle deliver her destination talk on Cartagena. Apart from the fact that this looks to be a delightful stop, she mentioned the local Museum: “There’s not much in the way of artefacts but there are some nice torpedoes!” Never change, Michelle. 

I had a sudden thought that I’d lost the cork from last night’s bottle of pop. Those who know me will realise that this is a major crisis as my champagne cork collection is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. Gabrielle had, of course, rescued it and all was saved. 

Gabrielle had a FaceTime catch-up with Becky and then both of us went online to chat to Pam. It’s great seeing familiar faces and underlines how far we are from home and how much we miss seeing people. That’s not to take away in any respect from the fun of the cruise, but sometimes you just need to touch base. 

As we progressed up the Peruvian coast towards Manta in Ecuador, the weather became warmer and more humid, yet still not stifling. We anticipate that our trip into the rainforest of the National Park in two days time may however be a different matter. 

It was positive news, and a reason to celebrate, that we were both feeling considerably better, although still not at peak fitness, so we took it gently and instead of our usual charge around the deck, took our exercise lightly. This was the time to walk though because, while others lunched, the wildlife came out to play! It started with a pod of dolphins that were breaking the water about 400 yards away from the ship. Then a second pod was spotted, but both were too far away to see properly. We continued on our walk and then, on our last lap, a whale broke the surface and spouted, right next to us. Although the mass was under the water, it was evidently huge and we continued to see its fountain of spray from time to time over the next minute or so. Most exciting. 

The other exciting thing is that we have another cause to celebrate today: it’s the 5th anniversary of my brachytherapy operation to fix my prostate cancer. To say it’s been a success is an understatement and I shall be forever grateful to those medics who spotted, identified, treated and monitored it to bring me to where I am today. 

And so to our fun facts for today: since midday yesterday we have travelled 330 nautical miles at an average speed of 14 knots. There are 270 nautical miles until our destination of Manta tomorrow morning.

Yesterday's floaty gown

Floating off down the corridor

Tonight is formal night so it’s penguin suit time for me and Gabrielle will, as ever, look stunning in something floaty and diaphanous, just like last night! The second half of yesterday’s pop and red wine will also be addressed. Should be a fitting celebration!