Got up about 8.30 am and went out onto the balcony, where the temperature was still pleasantly warm. While Trevor went up to The View for breakfast, I made do with some fresh fruit and enjoyed a cup of coffee in our cabin. Looking at the Daily Times programme, there wasn’t anything in particular we wanted to do; it was just a case of relaxing, socialising with the other passengers, walking around the decks and making the most of the all-inclusive drinks package and the delicious food available.
So the morning passed in its usual pleasant way, and at lunchtime we went, once again, to The Poolside for a bite to eat. Before we went, however, Captain Rommel Pineda’s voice came over the Tannoy with the noon navigational information. He said that the Borealis was making excellent time, steaming along at 23 knots, and we would therefore be arriving in Lisbon tonight, rather than tomorrow morning. When we looked at the wake foaming and surging and rushing below our balcony, we could certainly see that the ship was speeding along.
As it was Friday, Trevor decided to have fish, chips and mushy peas while I enjoyed a scrumptious Santa Fe salad, washed down with a chilled glass of cava. We ended our meal with a fresh fruit meringue and Chantilly cream.
The Borealis String Trio set themselves up on the bandstand, and we listened for a while to the relaxing music as we did a spot of people-watching, waving to and acknowledging those who we’d got to know.
Then we sat at the poolside bar and partook of the cocktail of the day, which is included in the drinks package (all other cocktails are half-price, that is £3.50).
As the weather was so pleasant, we decided to do a couple of laps of the promenade deck. When we reached the stern, we looked up to where we could see our balcony. Trevor decided to return to the cabin on Deck 6 while I waited on Deck 3, and wave down at me! 🙂
Afterwards we wandered down to the shops on Deck 5 to see if there were any bargains, and I tried out some of the perfume samples. As we walked through the Botanical Room, just off the Morning Light pub, we saw that Michael, the resident artist, had placed a notice on his easel to say that he had good news – “Harry the Hare”, the brown hare wildlife painting he’d been working on, had been returned safe and sound after being “held captive” for five days. Whoever had removed the painting may have been pricked by their conscience and had therefore returned it. We’ll never know exactly what happened, but Michael was very happy and he said his faith in human nature had been restored! 😊
Around 3.00pm we returned to 6227 for a power nap. Trevor then decided to go up to the Observatory where they were doing a demonstration of navigational chart reading, but I remembered they had this on the Bolette in April and, when everyone had gathered round the long table to have a look, I wasn’t able to see properly. When you’re less than five feet tall you get used to never having a good view of anything! I said I’d just wait in the cabin for Trevor to return; in fact, I used the time to get showered, shampooed and blow-dried my hair, then I sat and did some of this blog.
At around 5.15pm the bloke came around with the canapés, and shortly afterwards Trevor returned. Then we just watched the news and got ready in a leisurely way for dinner. When Trevor said they’d been demonstrating the chart reading on a large screen, I wished I had gone after all. Maybe I hadn’t been the only one not to be able to see when they’ve held this event previously! Trevor said the talk had been very interesting, and that the Borealis was probably the fastest cruise ship (I’m not counting ocean liners here, only cruise ships) and she could do up to 25 knots. That is certainly fast for a cruise ship! 😊
Soon dinner time was upon us again, and we made our way to the Borealis Restaurant and table #222, where only Colin, Angie and Richard were already seated; June was not feeling well. We all spent some time regaling each other with what we’d been up to yesterday and today; there was certainly never any shortage of conversation on our table!
The show tonight was called “Hits from the Flix” and we realised we’d seen it in April on Bolette, as well as last year on the Borealis. That’s the trouble with cruising on the ships of the same fleet; the production shows tend to do the rounds on all the vessels, so you’ll see them again and again. Especially when FOCL only has three ships. It’s the same with Cunard; they only have three ships as well.
Colin and Angie said they’d see us later, but Richard decided to come with us to the Morning Light pub, where we waited until it was time to go into the show. Then the three of us took our seats in the front row, ordered a drink each from a passing bar waiter, and soon the introductory music of Make Me Feel So Good by Adam Skinner rang out, signalling that the show would start in three minutes.
As the show title suggests, the music consisted of the most popular and lively songs from the movies. Despite having seen the performance before, we still enjoyed the singing, dancing and colourful costumes as we sipped our drinks.
Then it was along to the Morning Light as usual for the quiz, which we didn’t win as usual. A lot of the time you put down what you think is the correct answer, then allow yourself to be talked out of it. There were a couple of points we could have gained if we hadn’t changed our mind about some of the answers!
Meanwhile, we noticed that the Borealis had entered the River Tagus and was slowly making her way up to her berth.
After the quiz Richard said he was going back to his cabin to see how June was doing, and Colin and June said they’d see us later on in the Observatory where, due to popular demand, they were putting the Silent Disco on again.
When we got there, however, it was anything but silent, as several people were singing along, slightly off-key, at the tops of their voices. The most amusing songs were those that required actions, such as Agadoo, Superman and Oops Upside Your Head – you couldn’t hear any music, but you could see people doing the actions all in time. It really was a good evening with lots of laughs. 😊
While we were there, we enjoyed a few cocktails and the conversation with those on nearby tables. Then the disco started at midnight which we took as a cue to return to 6227. As the Borealis was now tied up in Lisbon and the weather was still pleasantly warm outside, I decided to take a glass of cava back to our suite and enjoy it on the balcony as a nightcap.
While I was out there, I noticed we were tied up next to Saga Cruises’ Spirit of Discovery. I sat out there in the dark, enjoying my drink as I looked at the harbour lights and the twinkling lights of the Spirit of Discovery. It looked a lovely ship; we haven’t tried Saga yet but will have to do so one day.
It was about 1.00am when I went back inside again and settled down to sleep.