‘We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open’. Jawaharlal Nehru.
Living in the enclosed cabin was not a problem for Lesley and I. She filled her sea days with painting, drawing, trivia team questions, bocce, putting and other should I say aimless activities. She loved the cruise if only to avoid thinking of meals, cooking, washing up and housework. For myself I had time to think, write and read. The self-discipline I had initially to read improving books gave way to reading page turners but overall it was satisfying my curiosity about those far-flung countries I had hitherto only read about. Essentially the cabin was only for sleeping and watching TV. We met only for meals during the day. The passenger list came to about 1200 but many did not do the whole cruise and only some segments. The crew numbered 400. I had great difficulty in coming to terms with the rudeness of some Americans who let down their nation. They obviously had no concept of being in an enclosed space for such a long time. They cannot be so selfish and inconsiderate of fellow passengers For instance we wanted to watch a movie and had some seats for friends. This was not acceptable to a loud mouthed American and his wife so they barged past us and sat in our friends seats which they had temporarily vacated. He was wearing a Stetson hat obscuring the view of the passenger behind him. He was asked if he could remove the hat . “Perhaps” was the reply,” if it is not too cold”. And he had a huge head of hair. That is just one example. I think they would behave differently at home but maybe that is how they conduct their lives. I have complained but do not think the powers that be will do anything. Perhaps a strongly worded letter to the Seattle HQ of Holland America might be worthwhile. Perhaps it is me who is angry old man but at least I was brought up with manners as opposed to these louts.
‘Like all great TRAVELLERS I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen’. Benjamin Disraeli.
Luanda, Angola is a city of opposites, or an oxymoron. They had an ongoing civil war beginning with independence in 1975 and was one of the most prominent armed conflicts of the Cold War. But now with peace they have found diamonds and oil offshore. It is billed as the most expensive city in the world (pardon the pun). There are an enormous amount of new buildings with beautiful high-rise adjacent to rundown apartment blocks with external air conditioning throughout. Most investment has been Chinese funding which is extremely common in these emerging nations. The tour was designed to show the changing face of Luanda. Our first stop was the Igreje de Senhora de Nazare a small beautiful church that is a national monument. The streets were narrow and busy but not nearly as bad as some other cities we had visited. The old iron Palace was designed by the famous architect Gustav Eiffel. The Angolan national Museum of anthropology demonstrated an array of traditional masks along with our, sculptures, tools, weaponry, jewellery, clothing and musical instruments. We visited the San Miguel Fort built in 1576 to defend the port from the French Spanish and Dutch invaders. The Agostino Netto Mausoleum, a huge stylized and rather impressive obelisk, is the gravesite of Angola’s first president and was a gift from Russia. We saw the presidential Palace, the Prime Minister’s office and the Ministries of Defence, Immigration, Justice , Health and the British Embassy. The parliamentary buildings were very impressive and similar to Washington’s governmental edifices. The beautiful Catholic Igreja de Jesus church completed the tour. During the Civil War South African soldiers were fighting in Angola against Cuban Russian and Chinese soldiers as well as Angolans. The war finished when the rival Savimba leader of the rebel group died. Overall Angola is getting back on its feet from its previous Portuguese colonists and the Civil War but the Chinese seem to be taking a large part in the Renaissance. Luanda has a population of 1.5 million and Angola a population of 15 million.
‘Live, travel adventure, place, and don’t be sorry’. Jack Kerouac.