Back from the Seabourn Ovation

Last spring, I had my first taste of life as a 'guest conversationalist' on board a Seabourn cruise ship. This was a short but delightful trip, so I was very pleased to be invited back by Seabourn, for a much longer trip. I was asked to become a conversationalist on a trip that involved flying to Barbados, where I stayed for one night, before boarding the luxurious Seabourn Ovation, with over 500 guests, as one of a team of four conversationalists working alongside the talented, highly capable, and incredibly hard-working entertainments team. 

The trip involved nine sea days as we headed for Morocco, with stops at Casablanca and Tangier, both of which I've visited in the past, and then at Portimao, for the Algarve, which was new ground for me. The crossing was, therefore, even longer than that I had on my trips as a speaker on the Queen Mary, but there was never a dull moment. I met some delightful people from all four corners of the world and had a fantastic time.

My brief was to hold six conversations, about different aspects of crime fiction, and also to host three dinners; in addition, I hosted a murder mystery event, the very first time I've done anything like that on board ship. It was a great experience, made all the better by the terrific performances of the cast - cruise director Nick Martland, entertainments manager Caroline Miller, and entertainers Nicole and Matthew. I was very pleased by reaction to the event and felt I learned a lot about how these things can be done to best advantage while on the ocean wave. I also met (for example) someone who had actually known Gladys Mitchell, someone who told me about G.K. Chesterton's old home in Buckinghamshire, and someone who had (by pure coincidence) brought several of my books on board. 

After so long at sea, it was fun to visit the medinas in Casablanca (and to see Rick's Cafe!) and Tangier, where it was fascinating to visit St Andrew's Church, a unique survival with gorgeous gardens. 

On the Algarve, there was a trip to Cape St Vincent, aka 'The End of the World', which is the south westerly most point of Europe and quite special. We also travelled to the historic and delightful town of Lagos. The ship finally docked at Lisbon, and the journey home took rather longer than the original trip to Barbados, thanks to the new ID requirements and the fact that everyone's luggage failed to arrive at Manchester airport. But it finally arrived the next day. All in all, a wonderful trip. I'm hugely grateful to everyone at Seabourn, not only for inviting me, but for making it such a great experience.