MSC Sinfonia Durban-Portuguese Island 09 March 2018
I got up on the day of departure way before the birds starting chirping – well I didn’t want to be late for my flight you see. I did my on-line check-in for my flight on Mango, the night before and once safely buckled up in my “window” seat, I promptly dozed off for the duration of the gentle 1 hour, 5-minute flight to King Shaka International Airport in Durban.
I don’t know about you, but I always feel that I’ve arrived at some distant exotic location when I land at King Shaka International Airport – me thinks it’s the sultry heat and laid-back vibe that does it! Of course the fabulous welcome from our head office team standing by to meet and greet and point us to the next stop was a highlight you won’t get on every cruise you take but don’t worry, you can be sure you’ll get an equally warm welcome from the ship’s crew, no matter where in the world you’re boarding your cruise.
Registration done, it’s off to the coach for a short journey to the ship. Oh, the excitement! I challenge anyone to say they don’t feel a thrill of expectation, a tinge of fear, a bucket load of awe when the sheer majesty of your home for the next 3 nights comes into view. Mysterious, majestic, awe-inspiring. Right, eh?
Once on-board and drinks package vouchers were in hand, we headed straight for the top deck with oodles of sunshine, weird and wonderful sounding cocktails and the hum of happy people’s chatter …..ah the life…! It’s not long before everyone is on-board and the ship’s horn blares announcing our departure. The intercom crackles with the announcement about a safety drill – yep, compulsory and if you ask me, I’d rather be safe than sorry!
SOOO, let the weekend begin! It’s off to our cabins – yay, it has a porthole! There is nothing wrong with staying in an inner cabin you hear – but you just can’t beat being able to stare at the horizon beyond and wonder what lies yonder. Of course, if budget allows, a balcony cabin is the place to be!
Dinner in the main dining room with delicious food and entertaining fellow diners before heading to the theatre for the night’s entertainment.
Saturday morning we’re off to Portuguese Island for a “survivor” challenge. A 15-minute ride across the ocean waves on a tender boat that if memory serves me correctly, seats about 100 people at a time. Once on the island, I couldn’t wait to get rid of the foot gear and drag my feet through the soft, clean sand – bliss! Our survivor challenge? Oh, I can’t tell you how much fun we had – I felt like a kid again albeit that the body parts hadn’t got the memo! An exceptional day. Of course, the ship’s kitchen had drinks and snacks and a barbeque lunch organised – what else would you expect! Fabulous! Tried, but happy and not a little sunburnt (I could vividly see my hat propped on the pillow at home- sheesh!), I made my way back to the ship and my cool air-conditioned cabin. Aaah, this is the life! So, I told you were on conference, didn’t I? Sunday rolled around, and we met in the conference centre – well you didn’t think we’d loaf around the whole weekend, did you? Small, compact with a little stage and theatre style seats, it was just small enough to be cozy and big enough to lend some grandeur to the occasion. I felt like a bit of the star on the last evening I tell you – we had the whole theatre to ourselves for the awards – names flashing across the screen, lights, music, flashing cameras – it was magical! Sigh all good things must come to an end, Monday morning arrived too soon, and it was off to the airport to take the flight back to Jo’burg. If you haven’t cruised yet, why not? And if you’ll forgive me for repeating what I’ve previously written on my website home page “how else can you visit more than one country (overseas cruises), eat as much as you like, shop until you drop, gym until you’re slim, relax at the pool, watch a show, mingle or find a quiet spot, have a pedi, climb a rock wall, dress up, dress down…and unpack only once!”