Covid restrictions return

 

This morning the sea was calmer. There were none of the jolts and bumps we felt durung the night. No sight of land on either side, altough I did espy lights on the Chinese side when I woke in the middle of the night. No sign of any vessels either, whether commercial or military.

 I noticed that a number of cabins in our corridor had received their tickets for the Japan excursions. As we had not received anything I thought I ought to check this out with Destination Services. When I got there, I came across a short queue and a rather loud and complaining passenger trying to get his refund for not taking part in the Singapore by night tour. We all listened with embarrassed silence as the guest rattled on about not being treated with respect and demanding to know why the refund promised him the day before had not yet materialized on his account. “I’m speaking,” he shouted like a real arsehole as the clerk, as the poor man was politely trying to offer him an explanation. “I am the customer, you’re the staff” the irate man continued, “I want this sorted now while I am standing here.”. The clerk, who I suspect was Filipino, tried to point out that the account would be amended as the entry had been made, but difficulties with the internet still prevented that from being translated into a change in the account. Every third word he said was an apology, but he eventually convinced the boor that the account would probably be corrected the same day. We were all quietly muttering to each other in the queue, but in the end the man behind me let rip, “Come on man, there’s a queue here, get on with it,” and when the difficult passenger actually left, we all let out a polite but still audible cheer. When I got to the clerk, he told me that the tickets would definitely be with me as soon as the maid had done the room. I thanked him for his patience and politeness. The incident was remarkable in that it was so rare that the usual relations between passenger and crew had unilaterally broken down.

I went for a walk around the promenade deck still faced with a cold strong wind. Others too were buttoning up and marching around the ship. Some casually happy to exchange a quick greeting and some with an intensity etched on their faces that brooked no chance for anyone to interrupt their daily ritual. Each time I walk around I come across a group on the starboard deck near the prow whom I call the day watch, as they stand their braced against the cold, talking to each other and making sweeping movements with their binoculars as they observe the horizon with great intensity. “What are you looking for/” I asked one of them today, “birds or ships?”. “Whatever we can find.” He replied. I guess most of the time they find nothing. Here in the East China Sea a freighter or tanker appears about once an hour. On the far horizon “Happy hunting”, I thought. I returned briefly to the cabin. Albina was still dozing in the bed, having been up all night. Also, our Japan tickets had now  . arrived.

I came to the library for my meeting with Sammie, the Entertainments Manager. At close quarters she is as charming and as charismatic as she appears in public. She appeared more business like in her glasses, as mostly she does not wear them on stage. I confirmed to her that my lecture is ready now and takes me about 35 minutes to read aloud. Even with some interruptions and technical delays during the presentation I should be able to fit it all in within the required 45 minutes. She had not yet found a slot for me but said she should be able to do it before we reach San Francisco. She said that as soon as she had allocated me on her timetable I will be able to contact Tom, her right hand man, and he would assist me with the technical details to do with my pictures. I am especially keen to have my two world maps showing our route and Fogg’s route around the world together on the screen, with one on top of the other. I also mentioned to her the very positive article about Fred Olsen cruises being popular with their loyal clients which appeared yesterday in the Daily Telegraph. Last thing, I praised her organizing skills and asked her jokingly if she could arrange for some warmer weather. “I shall put it on my next agenda,” she grinned as she answered.

On my way back to my cabin I ran into a couple I know, probably returning from the poolside. She was dressed in a rainproof jacket, and he wore a T shirt and had wrapped a towel around his midriff. “Been swimming?” I asked tentatively. “Far too cold for that,” she replied. But they had been in the jacuzzi and did not want to face the low temperature as they avoided emerging quickly. “Anyway,” she said. “I’m dressed for the winter, and he’s dressed for the summer,” she added.

At his daily midday bulletin which he read over the tannoy, Captain Rommel Pineda delivered a shocker. That evening we are entering Japanese territorial waters. In accordance with the Japan International Cruise Committee guidelines, everyone on board, crew and passenger alike, must wear a face mask and respect social distancing on the ship while it is in Japanese territorial waters, starting with 6pm tonight. That will be very socially awkward, after not wearing a mask compulsorily for nearly 2 years. Does that mean o more shows in the theatre? Will there be social distancing in the View buffet restaurant? Sammie had not given me any hint about this. It would be very difficult for her to reorganize everything. Hopefully our 10pm General Knowledge Quiz schedule will not need to be changed.

Albina and I went for lunch at 1pm. The buffet restaurant was so cold she put on a woollen jacket, something she might wear in London for late autumn. Then I tried to get to the Indoor Shuffleboard contest in the Morning Light Lounge at 2pm, but, unfortunately, I arrived too late to be registered. I had been busy trying to find a TV channel for her to watch. There were around twenty contestants and each item consisted of a couple. Even though I wasn’t playing I watched the play off from the side-lines. I joined Albina again for high tea where Albina stuffed herself with banana pancakes with maple syrup and I enjoyed some rolls of pulled pork and a couple of scones with the usual trimmings. That may sound like overindulgence, but our undeclared aim was to avoid dinner at a later hour. It seemed to be the healthier option.

After 6pm we were also obliged to wear facemasks in every public part of the ship. It was dispiriting at first, especially as it was to last until the final excursion to Tokyo six days from now. I sensed that most passengers were wandering around downcast like muzzled dogs. It was a reminder of the bad old days from which we had all now psychologically recovered. However, we understand that if we did not impress the Japanese health authorities coming aboard the day after tomorrow at Hakata, we could be refused entry to Japan altogether.

The perfect antidote to this gloom was the Artist Paintbox show put on in the theatre by the redoubtable Borealis Theatre Company. Again, it was not just the choreography and the athleticism, not just the vocals and the astonishing costumes of which all ten performers had to change their clothes about 7 or 8 times. It was also the sound and light show and the depiction of some twenty songs in rapid succession depicting different colours. Every song had a colour key to it with appropriate lighting and costumes to match:  Mr Blue Sky, Black is Black, Pink Limousine, Nights of White Satin, Yellow Submarine, Whiter Shade of Pale, Show Your True Colours, to name but a few. It was exhilarating to watch and to listen, and it cheered the masked audience no end.

Back to the cabin and Albina showed me new instructions delivered to us on Japan, this time on how to complete the individual landing cards and customs declarations. The immigration section of the Borealis had done most of the hard work. Funny thing is that everyone on the ship has to complete it, including those not leaving the ship. That even includes that handful under quarantine in their cabins. I know of only one passenger who is ill and I ignore the rumour mill concerning the total number. Albina and I completed and signed the key documents, and I submitted the landing cards to Guest Services on my way to the Quiz Night at the Morning Light Lounge.

As for quiz night itself we scored a miserable 7 out of 15. Perhaps because Ranald had not joined us. Must remember to put my watch forward again before I go to sleep..