Captivating the Canary Islands [Portugal Morocco Spain Cruise]

Fortunately, the rough seas did not  prevent our docking at Funchal, on the beautiful island of Madeira. It was a relaxing morning, onboard, before our early afternoon departure for a tour of the area. There are several mountains around this harbour area and our skilled driver took the bus up and down the narrow, winding roads on a few of them.  At the peak of the highest one, we enjoyed the local cherry liqueur and Christmas cake, and could see the valley community that was originally the refuge of a group of nuns who fled the harbour area to escape pirates. The Christmas cake is a local custom. About December 8 th or 10 th every year, the fruitcake is made from a family recipe that includes local molasses, and probably local rum for soaking. Many cakes are made, and the last of the cakes from the year before are eaten on the day the new ones are made. If last year’s cake isn’t up to standard, a new recipe is required.  We had a great guide and an amazing driver, so it...

It seemed like a very early morning, since once again we set our clocks ahead an hour. Daylight Saving Time started today in Europe. We met Joan & Bob in the theatre and left on a terrific tour of the Santa Cruz area. We visited a high area with great views (through it was hazy), an amazing garden, the best market yet, and the opera house. We couldn’t go inside but walking through that area was delightful. Our guide is a teacher/historian and provided an amazing description of the history and life style of the islands. This is where Adm. Horatio Nelson lost his arm, but the local forces offered him help and he became friendly. There’s even a street named for him. I had hoped to see a Palm procession, but didn’t. Church bells were ringing though. We lunched by the pool, then relaxed in our room. Trivia was the best day yet – just 1 wrong answer, but we were 2 nd . Still – points. Of course, one person had suggested the right answer and we voted him down. Typical. Oh well We watched ...

We had ordered a very early room service breakfast, so were up in time to watch the arrival and tie-up at Las Palmas. Our tour set out at 8, starting with a photo stop overlooking Las Palmas. We drove to Teror, a lovely village in the mountains. We visited the beautiful church and enjoyed the square. It was early, so the town was just coming alive. There was quite a bit of damage from a severe tropical storm last Tuesday. We were glad to have missed that. It may account for our rough tendering at Algarve. On to Arucas, where we admired the church from the outside and strolled the main street. Another lovely town. The whole island is beautiful and it sits in a strategic position relative to trade winds and ocean currents. Christopher Columbus stayed here at the beginning of his historic voyage to the new world. It is also very fertile. They can harvest potatoes 3 times a year. Coal used to be shipped here from the UK to refuel boats heading to the Americas or the east. Rather than retur...

  A day at sea was very welcome to all the weary passengers. We had a late breakfast in the Compass Rose dining room. Joan & I went to a bracelet-making class, then went and played bingo. Didn’t win, but had fun.  We relaxed, had a late lunch, and relaxed some more. I decided to try the Mensa quiz and tween that and trivia, finally collected a few points. (we were 2nd in trivia).  A very late birthday dinner at Prime 7, meant we missed tonight’s show, but was a great way to celebrate his birthday. All Photos of the Day

  Today we seemed not to be playing with a full deck. Literally, I guess, since the first thing that happened was that I lost my key card. Easily replaced, thank goodness. Agadir is an interesting place. It is a modern city, unlike most in Morocco. It was an ancient city but was completely destroyed by an earthquake in 1960 and was rebuilt with wide avenues, lush parks and seismic-resistant buildings. Our first stop was called Fantasia, where we saw a show, consisting of local music, acrobatics and snake-charming.  The most dramatic part was a charge from the fare end of the field, by 5 warriors on horses, who fired their very loud rifles as they arrived. That happened 4 times. We could see why a Berber attack was a very frightening event. Next was a visit to an agar(?) oil production place, where we heard about the oil, local to this area, and how it is made. From there, we moved on to the biggest souk in Morocco. Our guide said we could stick with him or meet back at the ent...

The seas were rough from dinner time until early morning. It became much calmer as we approached Casablanca. This is one of the few countries where our phone plan doesn’t work, so we just have cameras, no communications.  The tour today was disappointing. The bus wasn’t in great shape, including the sound system, so it was difficult to hear and understand the guide. The constant chatterers ahead of us didn’t help that. At one stop, there were crowds of people and by the time we got off the bus, our guide was out of sight. We caught up with 2 other wrong groups and stayed with each for a few minutes before we realized they weren’t ours. Finally, we found the right one, but walking around it was even less possible to hear and understand him.  We visited the huge beautiful amazing mosque that is visible all over. We couldn’t go into the mosque itself, but spent some time in the museum. We drove through a great variety of neighbourhoods, rich and poor, beautiful and shabby.  ...

We anchored at Portimao and tendered to shore. Rough ride! The captain even mentioned that it was a near call whether to cancel. However, we made it to shore and boarded a very comfortable bus for our 4-hour panoramic tour of the area. We wandered through Silves, a lovely old town and a mountaintop group of craft shops and restaurant. [Photo of curious Beach Volley Ball Tournament] The views were a bit Hampered by haze, but still most impressive. Back in Portimao, we drove through the tourist area (many high-rise hotels and suite hotels) to a waterfront restaurant for fresh orange juice. Oranges are the biggest local crop and this is their peak season. So – yum!! Once back on board we had a light lunch by the pool and put our feet up until time for trivia. I found a great team – Almost There – and we had fun but didn’t win any points. I had somehow managed to find an incorrect menu for dinner so my pre-order didn’t work. They still gave me a great meal, but we were awhile at dinner, so...

After a nice breakfast and pack-up, we took a taxi from the hotel to the cruise terminal. The boarding process was easy, and soon we were enjoying lunch beside the pool. The afternoon was for resting and settling into our stateroom. The sail-away party at 5 was fun, with appies and drinks and music, poolside, as we sailed out through Lisbon. We enjoyed music in one of the lounges until dinner time. After a delicious dinner, we were back in the lounge again until time for the welcome-aboard show in the theatre. It was great and we look forward to excellent entertainment on this cruise.

  We slept in, so were a little late joining Joan & Bob for breakfast, before we made our leisurely way to the train station. A kind attendant helped us buy the correct tickets and get to the necessary platform for the train to Sintra. When we got off the train, we were approached by a woman named Flower, offering touring services. After some conversation and debate, we decided to do the local area with her. We drove up the mountain to where we had a great view of the castle,  and she told us its story. We opted not to tour the castle, but just enjoy the view and its history. Then Larry and Bob sat while Joan and I went with Flower up a path to see the Moorish fortification on another mountai n. The history of this place is so long and so interesting and the surroundings are so very beautiful. We were very happy to enjoy all the green leaves and spring blossoms after the miserable winter at home. It’s a great place to visit. We had lunch on the outdoor patio of a local res...

We hit a few areas of turbulence over night, and none of us slept a great deal, but we arrived safely at Lisbon airport around 9 am local time. It didn’t start well – we had to leave the plane on the tarmac and stand through a rather long, rough ride to the terminal, where the lines for Immigration were unbelievably long. Larry and I missed the one for handicapped people and the other for holders of e-passports and stood awhile in the general line. An attendant moved us to the handicapped line, or I think we’d still be waiting. Meanwhile, Joan & Bob had quickly moved through the e-passport line and were having a coffee and Portuguese tart when we caught up. It was an extremely long, and poorly-marked walk to Baggage claim, and then back to the taxi area. We quickly found a cab and soon were at the Hotel Acta Moa. Our rooms were not ready, but we left our bags and went to the nearby Restaurant Dona Maria for a delicious and reasonably priced meal. The hotel is pleasant, but modest. ...