Virgin Atlantic, Flight VS400 left London Heathrow some 20 minutes late a shortly after 2130 hours GMT. It was a smooth flight in the affable company of two members of the Royal Navel Fleet Auxiliary returning to their ship in Dubai for a four-month tour of duty supplying Royal Navel vessels currently protecting shipping in the Indian Ocean against the inevitable Somalian Pirates.
We touched down in Dubai some 6 hours and 51 minutes later at shortly before 0830 hours and even after waiting for what seemed an age for baggage I was through immigration and had been transferred to the ship by bus and was ensconced in the Palms Café with a coffee by 0930hrs local time – so 0530 hrs. GM with a friendly “Oh no not you again!!” but all meant in good humour! And of course there was the usual cheery greeting from the many members of the crew who instantly recognise you. It really is like meeting old friends.
Yesterday disappeared in a whirl of unpacking and I was delighted to be reunited with the baggage that I had sent forward and which I last saw on a very wet Sunday afternoon in late December. I was even more delighted to learn that some careful packing had left jackets free of creases.
As I write it is mid-day on Wednesday 29th January and we are cruising at a leisurely 11knots in the Gulf of Oman on our way through the Straits of Hormuz and en route to Muscat where we arrive tomorrow morning. The shipping is mainly huge 300 metre long container ships on their way to or from the commercial port in Dubai. These days there are not many tankers since the oil from the UAE states is now pumped through a pipeline across the peninsular from the Persian Gulf to Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman thus avoiding the Straits of Hormuz that have always, and I suppose still are, a possible source of pressure from Iran. Its 25C outside and sunny with not a rain cloud in sight! I was heartily pleased to leave the 4 inches of thick, squelchy mud on my drive behind for the next 52 days!!
It’s the Captains cocktail party this evening so time to get the ‘dickey’ bow out and don my penguin cuff links for the first formal evening of this cruise. It’s a hard life!!
So what is the origin of he title of this posting? I think the photo will have given you a pretty good clue as to the answer in that for the descent into Dubai we were offered some sweets that took the shape of a small tube of ‘Love hearts’!! I hadn’t sucked one of those for more years than I care to remember!!
Finally for now have you also worked out my deliberate error in the previous posting? It should have read ‘Myanmar’ (Burma) and not Miramar – my apologies for any confusion caused.
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