Safaga - Egypt - Arcadia

Good Day Everyone and greetings from our Safaga cruise.

After five glorious sea days it is good to touch land again and what a beautiful morning this has been for Arcadia to sail into Safaga. Everyone was up early today and Breakfast started at 0600 hours! By 0700 hours we were safely alongside and the ship was clear - we had one Immigration Officer travel with us from Dubai to complete the formalities and then some local officials joined with the Pilot boat this morning at 0600 hours. By 0715 hours the gangways were non stop as our excited passengers and tour escorts made their way to their coaches taking with them all the excitement of knowing that they were off to Luxor, Karnak and Valley of the Kings. The coaches all travel in convoy with police escorts.

I have been there and it is well worth a visit. The Temple of Kanark is one of the greatest places of worship in Egypt's history. When you get to Luxor you drive across the Nile to the West Bank and the Valley of the Kings. This is also known as the City of the Dead as this is where the dead were buried due to the life-giving sun which set in the west. The longer a Pharaoh reigned the larger and more elaborate his tomb. Sixty four tombs have been found however the largest and most famous on the whole of the Valley for the Kings is that of Tutankhamen - which was discovered in tact in 1922. We have all seen the movies!

It is good to feel the earth under your feet! The buzz of the quayside. Meanwhile on board my staff are all geared up and ready to dispatch our tour passengers.

Marian our Shore Excursions Manager who is well known on the blog along with Bill Allison who is a passenger with us. Many of you who have travelled with P&O Cruises in the past will recognise Bill as he was one of our top Cruise Directors for many years and was very involved in the creation of our own 'in house' Theater Company. When Bill retired from the Cruise Director post he then returned to P&O Cruises as a Guest Port Lecturer.

Have you got everyone? Is the escort on the coach? How many passengers? Who's gone back for their camera? Where's my wife? Is there a toilet on the bus? What's the local currency exchange rate? Are they any taxis? Will we have time to post our card when we get back?

Don't sail without us! We have dreamed of this day - and you have made it come true! Where else would you get it?? Thanks for seeing us off! Your staff are brilliant! Just some of the many comments you hear and receive on the quayside.

On my first trip to sea I was Shore Excursion Officer on the Sea Princess fly cruising in the Med from Athens, Dubrovnik and Venice so I have never lost my love of the Tours Department! This is the great privilege that I have enjoyed in my career with P&O Cruises, P&O Australia and Princess Cruises - that I have been able to work in all departments within the Purser's remit. This gives me a broad view and a greater understanding of what impacts the business. At the beginning I thought it was a rather slow career path working through the ranks, however when my opportunity came for this position it stood me in good stead.

James and Bill on the quayside. Bill Allison was the first Cruise Director I met in 1983 when I walked on board Sea Princess (Victoria) and I always appreciated the advice and guidance that Bill always provided. Bill is a true professional. I have never seen Bill in a bad mood! He is always jolly and upbeat and an inspiration to others. When Aurora turned around on her Maiden Voyage to return to Southampton a Lady cornered Bill and demanded to speak to the Purser! When Bill asked what it was concerning she said it was to do with the cruise being ended and that it has ruined her day! Bill replied 'Madam - one can not make a complaint, one can only make a comment'!! A brilliant line and one that I will always remember. Bill is off touring today to the Valley of the Kings.

Even at 0730 hours in the morning we had many well wishers out on their balconies to wave good bye to their fellow passengers. Passengers love their balconies and for many this is a standard requirement on their cruise holiday. We are fortunate to have so many on Arcadia and with the glass panels they ensure that the view from the Stateroom is not compromised. It is a full time job for my Cabin Stewards to keep these clean. Let's hope there are no sandstorms today. We have just about got rid of all the sand that was blown onto the ship in Dubai! Every inch of this ship has been washed down since we left Dubai. The sand storm there left us completely covered!

Two friendly local bus drivers.

Safaga is a large grain port and ship's call here simply for access to the tour destinations. Arcadia will remain alongside until 0700 hours tomorrow. Therefore when our passengers return late this evening it will be a very peaceful night for them. Safaga consists of a collection of mud brick houses on the Red Sea Coast. It exists solely as a commercial port on a two-way basis. Grain is imported from Australia and the United States and aluminium is exported. So apart from the very native element Safaga holds little interest to the tourist, but the great advantage of this port for the day tripper is that it is only 140 miles from the Valley of the Kings.

After all the intense Immigration work that my Officers and Staff have been through to date on this Grand Voyage, it was great to be able to allow many of them shore leave today to go on tour, some as tour escorts and others on a Crew Club organised excursion - it is always good to get a break from the ship and explore new places otherwise what is the point of working away from home for such long periods. Sam our Crew Manager, Simon Assistant Administration Manager and Sheldon Front of House Manager are all away together. The ship is like a ghost town on days like this and for those passengers who have done it all before they like to enjoy the wonderful facilities of the ship to themselves. I have asked everyone to take loads of photographs and to bring back the good ones for my blog. I look forward to sharing these with you. No port would be complete without Graham or Port Presenter and I saw Graham off on the dockside today so we will look forward to his report on the touring today.

Have a relaxing Sunday whatever you are up to and just think next Sunday will be Easter Sunday! Best start packing!! While everyone is away today I will be catching up on some jobs that only I can do and preparing my handover notes for Peter Thomas who is joining the Arcadia at Lisbon on the 13th April for a handover between Lisbon and Southampton.

Next stop - Suez where we will disembark by ship's tender our tour passengers for Cairo and the Pyramids. Once this is complete the ship will transit the Suez Canal and we will then pick up our

our returning tour people in Port Said. From there we will proceed to Civitavecchia in Italy.

All good wishes from the Arcadians,

James.

Don't be afraid to go out on a limb - that's where the fruit is.