Viking Cruises

If I could not live in London it would either be in Rome or Venice, as they are both like endless museums. There is no place like Venice, and to think that this breathtaking city could sink in the next fifty years is remarkable and sad in equal measures.

It is really a pinch-your-cheek moment when one lands in Venice, as it is a fascinating creature to behold but I had barely a moment to take it all in before we were away to our next destination; a luxurious Cruise ship.

The name of the company we were to travel with is called Viking Cruises, and although they have only been going for 20 years the company already has 60 ships and 4 ocean liners. Maman and I had been invited to try out their new ship; Viking Sky.

It was my first cruise on a actual Viking ship, built by actual descendants of the Vikings and although I was mildly disappointed that we were not going to raid any merchant ships, I was exceedingly excited to go on a cruise as it's always been a dream of mine. We were guests on a shakedown cruise that lasted eight days and every day was full of exciting new experiences.

It was a impressive ship; huge and full to the brim with state of the art equipment like a floating five star hotel. In fact, this ship could be compared to a floating five star town it was so vast!

I am not ashamed to admit that was the first ship that I have ever been on and that it stole my heart. It was magnificent piece of craftsmanship, and it made even the Titanic look small in comparison. (I am glad to say that we did not end up like the Titanic, which is fortunate as I intend to do many more cruises in my time!)

Equally important was the food which was incredible, although not so great for my diet. By the end the chef knew us very well and I would like to think we provided him with a bit of a challenge. When one goes on a shakedown cruise there are a lot less people on the cruise ship than on a normal voyage. Therefore, everyone invites everyone else out for lunch, bearing in mind that the food is free. I remembered having three meals every day, and it was blissful.

The food was defiantly one of the most important aspects of travelling for me. If one were to tempt Alexander then one must use food as it is the only chink in his armour. The best dinner we had together was in the expensive gourmet fish restaurant. Ironically we had chosen a window seated table to look out on the forbiding dark ocean as we tucked into our feast. It was a five course meal. My mind kept on wondering towards the fishes in the ocean giving us angry looks as we ate their next of kin.

The other highlight of the cruise was meeting Jeffery Archer at my first ever book signing event. At the time I had no idea who he was, however I now know him well enough after having read all his books and it is safe to say that it was my one regret of the journey that I did not invite him out for lunch on the cruise to hear more about his art of storytelling. I was nervous when I met Jeffery Archer yet he was polite and I was riveted listening to him lecturing on how he creates his stories.

Overall the journey was unique and I hope it will be the first of many. When we disembarked from the Cruise ship, I turned my head around and gave the ship one last glance. What really struck me was that I thought the ship looked rather sad to see us depart.