We're off again!
This time it's a long stint away from Australia and will take us to a number of places to which we have never been and a couple of revisits.
Determined not to leave too much of an inheritance for the kids when we take that journey from which nobody returns, we're getting in our last few trips abroad while our bodies still work sufficiently well to lug baggage about, drive hire cars, climb stairs, drink pina coladas, and do all the other things tourists usually do - aging tourists that is.
The first cruise aboard Princess Cruises Sapphire Princess leaves from Singapore and after 37 days, docks at Southampton, UK. The map above shows it's trek.
 |
| Sapphire Princess |
It will be of particular interest to visit Dubai, UAE and Salalah, Oman again to see how they have changed since we lived nearby at Al Ain. But, would you believe it, it's over a decade since we left Al Ain?
Time seems to go faster as you get older (and hair grows where you don't need it) - it's not fair.
Before we head off from Singapore, we're going to Bangkok, Thailand for a week to have a look around. Christina has been there before, but not Robin.
Initially, we were contemplating getting some dental work done at Bangkok, but having spoken to a couple of dentists in Australia, we're thinking we'll get the work done locally when we return. Robin has had several visits to a periodontist and has been asked to wait three months before getting anything done so the periodontist can see whether his intervention has worked and what future work needs doing. So, it's probably pointless getting work done overseas beforehand after already investing so much.
After arriving at Southampton, we have about a month before we take cruise number two from Southampton around the British Isles. The map below shows the trek.
We'll tour the southern parts of England we never got to during our previous two visits before joining the cruise. This time it's on Princess Cruises
Crown Princess for 12 days.
On return to Southampton we fly to Bangkok and will probably spend a few more days there before flying to Siem Reap in Cambodia.
A friend from Alice Springs has just recently established the Mango Villa Guest House at Siem Reap so it would be an opportune time to stay with him and visit the Angkor Wat temple complex which we have been keen to see. Then it will be back to Bangkok and head home direct to Adelaide via Singapore Airlines.
It's a hard life retirement, but Robin is always mindful of this verse from his favourite poet, Omar Khayyam (The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam):
Ah, make the most of what we yet may spend,
Before we too into the Dust descend,
Dust into Dust, and under Dust to lie,
Sans Wine, sans Song, sans Singer; sans End!
Strangely, the National Anthem wasn't played by the band, but the presentations took place, the two recipients of the awards then used an old wine press to press two baskets of grapes into a barrel - see photo.
