Today it was Stornoway and recently they have constructed a large dock here, big enough to receive the largest cruise ships. The surface had only just been finished and they are still working on developing the larger dock area which I assume will eventually be used for containers and maybe storing windmills as the latter is the up and coming industry in the area. Weather was supposed to be sunny, wind still and 12oC / 54oF but by 11 am. it clouded over and then it dripped  water for the rest of the day. Like drizzle but in big drops. The wind went up from none to about 12 knots just adding enough wind chill to feel right Scottish.

The new dock when it completely finished. This is a design photo from the local authorities with a ship that vaguely resembles either a large P&O ship or one from MSC.  The grey dock are has not been filled in yet and also the sheds were not there yet. (Photo courtesy Port of Stornoway)

In the good days I came here with the ms Prinsendam, and if there was no wind (seldom) I could float in the inner harbour and run a short tender service into the port. If the wind popped up I had to move to the area where they have now built this new dock. It is called the Deepwater Terminal.  Once during such an anchorage, the anchor got fouled and when it came up some thick steel cables were stuck around the flukes of the anchor. It took well over an hour for the 2nd engineer to cut through the three inch thick wires. It turned out that in the 2nd World War, Stornoway outer anchorage was a place for the American air craft carriers to anchor. They were attached with wires to large anchoring stones and when they left, the wires were just left on the sea bottom. Just waiting for the Prinsendam to fish them up again. When I complained to the pilot later on, the answer was, I thought you would have known that. Obviously being convinced that I was intimately aware of Stornoway’s more recent history. While he was the one in the first place who indicated the corect anchoring spot to me. I assume now that when they filled in the whole area for this dock, all the 2nd world war hardware was left and is now  buried under thick layers of rock.

This is downtown Stornoway as seen from the ship. Note the dark clouds. This is sunshine in North Scotland.

Instead of a short tender shuttle it is a now  a 2 mile hike (they have laid out a very nice nature pad from the ship to the town) or bus trip into town. The town had laid on a shuttle service and they must be used to the larger ships by now as they had set up a “Disney swivel” in both waiting area’s to avoid mayhem in trying to get on the bus. They used double decker buses so each load was close to a 100 people. It worked well but they could not really schedule against the fact that everybody went ashore at the same time (11.00 after lunch) and coming back at the same time(12.30 for lunch).

Stornoway inner harbor. This were the shuttle bus stopped and also the ships tenders when a ship does not dock. The blue orange boat is the local RNLI lifeboat. Nearly every port in this area has one as this is a very dangerous coast.

Stornoway is for the area a large town but not that touristy so the number of special -tourist- shops was rather limited for cruise guests hunting souvenirs but the jewelry outlets did rather well. The locally made jewelry is all based on Celtic folklore and there are some well-known names such as Shetland Jewelry, Sheila Fleet, Ogham etc. etc. The designs are quite intricate an although I am not an expert (My Lord and  Master is) I still think those are the best souvenirs to buy as it is something that lasts and can be admired for a long, long time.

A large number of tours leave from here, most of them focusing on the rugged landscape and ruins, left over from the Neolithic days (standing stones etc.) and churches. Of the latter there are lot, with downtown Stornoway already counting 7 of them. That was for use too many to choose from so we decided to go back on board and enjoy a Lido lunch.  The Lido market was  fairly quiet by 13.00 hrs. and thus I could get at the Italian station which is extremely popular but as all is cooked while waiting (one cook, one hot plate) it takes some time and thus I normally avoid it, as even now being retired, I still feel that guests go first.  (I do not think that you can ever beat that out of a Holland America Employee)

At the shuttle waiting area in the town there was this fishing boat bridge standing, with the option for children to climb in and imagine they were a real ships captain. The Lady next to it was having a hard time getting her son out if it, so I think Stornoway has found itself another fisherman.  Fishing is a very important industry for the area and it gives the ship the option to get fresh fish on board on most days,

We managed this evening to get a seat in the Ocean Bar (with the number of Dutch on board the ship does not have enough cocktail capacity) as a couple left and we squeezed straight in. A guitar /piano player from Tennessee was playing from 18.45 to 19.30.  It was the second “dressy” night and the variation in dress code was even more apparent.  We sat in a corner with an ex-hal employee couple ( from the 1970’s) and a group of Finnish all dressed to the hilt with two  tables down a group of what I would describe as “summer labourers” in a nice way. Nobody took very much notice of the other but it dumbed down the glamour of the rest somewhat.

Dinner was “As You Wish” again and now we walked in at 19.30 which seems to be for the 2nd sitting flow the busiest time. Not much you can do about it as with the 2nd show starting at 21.00 hrs. there is not option to come in later. If they would start the show at 21.30 then I think it would take some pressure away from the Dining room as more guests would have another cocktail to avoid an over crowded dining room.

For us the good thing was that with so many tables taken, we were almost in the center of the dining room and thus it was far less noisy, than during the first night, as all the noise could disperse upwards towards the 2nd level ceiling. So if you decide on “As You Wish”  dining (deck 2) try to wiggle a seat more in the center not near the windows. Service was friendly and fast but again not all the dishes or drinks were served as requested and there was not much attention to detail.

Then it was time to go to the Show. The 2nd cast show of the cruise and it was very good again. Now the 2 singers and 6 dancers had teamed up with the band of the Rock Lounge and thus there was a live orchestra.  They just fell short of a standing ovation but they did run to the exit doors of the World Stage and received a lot of complements. Unfortunately I cannot show photos as any form of recording is prohibited although I saw some guests ignoring this.

If I had been able to do so, I could have showed you the “side show” during the show, performed by by two ladies on scooters who came in around 21.30 and rolled into the front area near the stage. Then they leisurely started parking themselves and then hoist themselves out of the scooters into the chairs. This caused some guests to have to re-locate as now the crutches, stuck in holders on the scooters, were marring the view. This was irritating but also quite surreal to watch. Again had the show started at 21.30 they would have probably rolled in on time and avoided hampering those sitting now behind them from enjoying  the show.

Note: for those who read the “lemoncello” remark some days ago. We got to the bottom of it all. There was a bottle on board but it was stored in one bar as there were not enough bottles for the whole ship.  (Full supply is supposed to come next call in Rotterdam) Somebody forgot to advise those in the other outlets were the bottle was.

In red at the top of Scotland, the Island of Lewis and Harris on which Stornoway is located.

Tomorrow we are in Belfast Northern Ireland. That means we will cross from the North West top of Scotland (Western Isles) down to the Green Isle.  Then the day after we are in Glasgow which means we cross the Irish Sea back to Scotland. Then the day after we cross back again, now to Dun Loiaghaire for Dublin. Then we cross partly back again to visit the Isle of Man in the middle of the Irish Sea before we head southward and cross again to get to Cobh at the southside of Ireland, Why all this crisscrossing, well it is the easiest way to get a night at sea with the ship, so all the amenities can stay open. I expect that between Belfast and Glasgow the Casino will remain closed as you have to be 12 nautical miles off shore to comply  with British gambling rules. The Irish sea near Belfast is only 20 miles  wide so you cannot get 12 miles at either side,