Tangier (clocks back)

Saturday 26th November

It was a morning of good timing. I did not see Jenny at breakfast but phoned her room and caught her just as she was leaving. We decided to wander around together.

We found a shuttle bus to take us to the port gate and from then on decided to wander on our own. We could have joined a walking tour or hired one of the numerous guides offering their services at the gate but we declined.

I found Tangier to be very run-down but with touches of interesting architecture or decoration. The area we visited was full of narrow alleys set out in a random fashion and it would be easy to get lost if you didn't know the area.

We kept saying no to all the shopkeepers we passed but walked into one shop where we were not hassled. Jenny saw a plate she liked and decided to buy it. There was one plate I liked but did not know what I would do with it. The shopkeeper kept offering a lower and lower price and whispering (‘But don’t tell anyone’) and I kept saying no. Eventually he said €20 and started to wrap it up for me. I was really amused. I could have walked out but the entertainment had been such good fun that I decided to take the plate. (It looks rather nice on my dining room table.)

A very nice, friendly gentleman spoke to us in the street and said we were in the wrong area and we should go to the Medina. He started to guide us through narrow, deserted alleys. Jenny had experienced this before in Morocco and decided we were turning back. I don’t know how far ahead of us he got before he realised we weren’t following him!

We found a food market with lovely fresh food. It was obviously where all the locals shopped as it even had an area with soap powder, etc.

From there we came into an open area where another gentleman started talking to us, explaining what we could see. 

He was friendly and said he was an artist and had lived in England. He reeled off the names of places he had lived in. He then told us we should visit the souks and the factories where they made things. He was on his way there and would take us.

He was friendly and took us through busy streets to a large shop, obviously run by people he knew. We understood what was going on. He got a commission on sales. We had a lovely time looking around the shop and appreciating the carpets and talking to one of the salesmen and there were no hard feelings when we did not buy anything. We then asked the way back to the ship and were led in that direction. At that point the man started saying that this was his work, he had helped us out and he was sure we would help him out. He told us €20. We knew the game. I didn't think we had been with him long enough to pay that amount, and he had only shown us one shop, not a market. Jenny suggested €10 so I handed that to him. He muttered that it was better than nothing and turned around, all friendliness gone. You could either say ‘We were had’ or we had a good time with a typical Moroccan tourist experience. I think we paid for our entertainment and it was worth it! As we got back on the ship I spoke to another couple who had paid €20 for the same type of guide.

My hair was absolutely soaked by the time I got back to the ship. Our guide told us that Morocco was in need of rain. I wish they’d waited another day to get it! I had to use the hair dryer before going to lunch.

There are always a few characters on board ship. One sat down next to us as we finished our lunch and proceeded to talk and talk and talk as though we were best friends. I had encountered her once before in the ballroom and so she felt she knew both of us. There are some people who really need to travel with friends, as they like constant company.

One theme of this cruise seems to be daily problems with my keycard. I was already on my third key. The others would just cease to work. The cards are sensitive and don’t like magnets in handbags or ipads or anything electrical. Usually I keep my keys in a leatherette wallet but had left that at home by mistake. By the time I got my third card, they said they would do something different with it so that it would not play up again. This time I left my room without my card and so could not get back in! I could not face going back to Reception for a new one so I hunted around until I found a steward who would let me in. I proved my identity to him by showing him a photocopy of my passport inside the room. It’s good to know that they are security conscious like that.

I had several days of my diary to catch up on, and then the internet. Time always goes too quickly.

Jenny and I attended the Salsa dance class at 5pm. Once again there were far too many ladies and I was not prepared to spend 45 minutes dancing and perhaps only dance for 2 minutes with a partner. I mainly watched and then danced the man’s part with Jenny. To my delight, along came Jay, one of the Hosts from the Dancers at Sea programme (a private group that happened to be on the ship) and danced the steps with me. That was worthwhile.

We did not have enough time to get ready for dinner after the class so we chose to eat at the Lido buffet instead. It was a bit of a rush but we got down to dancing by 7.30, ready for the first dance session of mixed sequence, ballroom and latin. Jenny, Francis, Sarah and I sat together and hardly danced. Francis was so disgusted that she didn’t bother coming back for the later session. Some people stayed and danced to recorded music between the two dance sessions. I was asked to dance once in that hour by one of the other passengers. (I stayed in order to save seats ready for the later session.)

The later session started at 9.15 and in the first hour I had only had one dance. Jenny and Sarah were just as badly off. There were lots of ladies but some of the Dance Hosts were dancing with the same ladies over and over. Only David was systematically working around the room, dancing with everyone in turn. A few of the Social Hostesses were there, those responsible for the Hosts, and they could see the problem and were not impressed and said they would be having words with the Hosts. By the end of the first two hours, when Jenny and Sarah gave up and went to bed, I had managed 3 dances while Jenny had danced 5 or 6. I stayed until midnight and had another 7 dances in that last 45 minutes, as there were very few ladies left. I would no doubt have had more if Joachim had not gone back to his room.