Thar she blows

GLUTTONY is the second of the seven deadly sins, yet almost unavoidable on the cruise ship Black Prince. Multi-choice breakfasts and lunches, followed by high tea at 4pm, and then a five-course dinner is the daily norm.

And if anyone is still peckish, there is supper at 11.30pm.

The five-star cuisine is prepared by master chef Mathieu Loos and a 29-strong army of specialist cooks.

They serve 2,000 meals a day to the ship’s 412 passengers and 186 crew, made up of 17 nationalities.

The meals are never the same two days running.

And while he serves up nothing but haute cuisine for his passengers, Monsieur Loos sometimes has a yen for the more simple things of life – like a snack of fried egg and sardines.

He was drawn to cruise ships because of his love of travel.

“You work on a cruise ship, you want to see different places. It costs you absolutely nothing,” he explains.

With prompt, efficient restaurant service and cabins cleaned twice a day, the crew take seriously the motto of Edward, Prince of Wales, the original Black Prince, of Ich Diene, meaning I Serve.

The 42-year-old Black Prince is the smallest of the Fred Olsen line, its size enabling the ship access to some lesser-known and intriguing ports that cannot be reached by larger ships.

Designed as a joint passenger and cargo vessel, the ship used to ply to and from the Canary Islands in the summer, and between England and Norway in the winter.

The vessel was converted to total passenger service in 1986.

Our trip from Liverpool called in at Cobh, near Cork, Eire, and then to Oporto, Portugal, before anchoring at El Ferrol, Spain.

The highpoint of the cruise for many is the excursion by coach from El Ferrol – the birthplace of Spanish dictator Franco – to the beautiful Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, where it takes five monks to swing the heavy incense burner – used before the advent of aerosol deodorants – to sweeten air heavy with the body odour of thousands of pilgrims.

Folklore has it that the Romanesque cathedral is built over the grave of St James, one of Jesus’ 12 disciples.

Black Prince’s small size also meant that the following day it could slip into Bilbao, in northern Spain, home of the iconic Guggenheim Museum, showcase of surrealist art.

The more traditionalist visitor will be impressed with the beautiful city of Bilbao, with its clean lines and streets, inviting squares, parks and tree-lined avenues.

Then, as the passengers slept, the ship headed for the Point de Grave, three kilometres from the village of Le Verdon, and the vineyards of the Medoc wine area of Aquitaine.

A transit coach took us past a marsh full of egrets and marsh harriers to the resort of Soulac with its little church, beautiful in its unadorned simplicity, and built for pilgrims heading for Santiago.

Next day came Brittany and the narrow entrance and exit – denied to bigger ships – of L’Orient, which was the home of Hitler’s U-boats, the scourge of the North Atlantic convoys.

Unable to destroy the pens, the Allies took the terrible decision to flatten the city to cut supply lines to the submarines.

A short excursion away lies the city of Quimper, with its gothic cathedral complete with wonderful medieval statues and side chapels, surrounded by streets of halftimbered houses.

The beauty of a cruise is that it not only avoids the hassle and stress of waiting around at airports, but you can choose whether to be on your own or to socialise. Making friends is easy in the relaxed atmosphere that is cultivated on board ship, with its many organised activities.

The Black Prince offers a range of en-suite cabins – single, twin, triple and four-bedded. But, with a choice of comfortable, airy lounges to escape to, there is no reason to hole up in your cabin.

Maestro Felix Abellana, resident pianist for the trip, provided the perfect excuse for escape to the Aquitaine Lounge.

While we were at sea, the skipper, Captain Olav Sovdsnes, held a party for veteran cruise passengers, several of whom had chalked up more than 200 nights on board a Fred Olsen ship.

He confessed to a particular fondness for the Black Prince.

“It is the smallest ship I have ever captained, but she has personality. It is a very social way of life. I like social contact with people, I enjoy being with people.”

We encountered pilot whales and common dolphins on our way home through the Irish Sea. The unexpected sight of jets of misty air exhaled from the whales’ blowholes, appearing like mysterious geysers, brought passengers rushing to the ship’s Excitement deepened with the sight of the mammals’ flukes and arched backs – the icing on the cake for many homeward bound passengers, as dolphins swam close to the ship.

TRAVELFACTS

Prices for this cruise start from £834 per person, including a Cruiseaway Discount of 44 per cent.

The price is per person, based on two people sharing an inside twin cabin and includes all meals and accommodation on board and port taxes.

More details of Fred Olsen cruises can be found at fredolsencruises.co.uk.

To book, call 01473-742424 or see your local Abta travel agent. You can also book online. Top tip: To make the best, stress-free and comfortable start to your holiday, travelling from the North-East, catch a TransPennine Express to Liverpool Lime Street, changing at Manchester Piccadilly, with 40 minutes to spare.