Dawn Princess 2010 World Cruise

Dawn Princess 2010 World Cruise
42 destinations in 26 countries and 5 continents

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Day 27 Engine problems

Well not such good news from the Captain. Everyone has been talking about the low speed we are currently doing..... only 16 knots as opposed to 21 it should be,.... also had no engines for 5 hours during the night and finally the Captain announced the bad news. Due to technical difficulties, we may have to miss Safaga and go straight to Port Said. This would be a great shame as for many of us the main reason for this cruise was Safaga and Port Said. Apparently at this speed we will miss our place in the queue to go through the Suez Cana if we stop at Safaga. We are just about to enter Pirate Alley as well, so hoping we don't lose engines there!!! I don't think the pirates here are like Johnny Depp somehow. However if it comes to the worst and we do miss Safaga well its not the end of the world. As long as we see the Pyramids all is not lost,
The seas are slightly calmer today but only 1 pool is opened so we had a swim and a spa this morning. We enjoy the sea days, meet people for lunch and coffee. George and his cronies are playing dominoes this afternoon. They laugh more than they play.

George has fixed the ship and its full steam ahead

Its environmentally friendly and keeps the passengers fit as well. ....... no more break downs
I forgot my RAC membership

Day 26 at sea

Last night at dinner, George wore his traditional Sheik outfit, Roy and another guy also joined him in dressing up. I think its called a dishdash, but not sure if that's correct. He caused quite a scene wherever he went. We had drinks out at the back of the ship till midnight.
 
Overnight the seas have become very rough and huge swell. I thought I would have got my sea legs and no more sea sickness but alas that's not the case. This morning the bathroom was my friend! The ship is rocking and rolling. George has not been sick but he is very tired and we have slept most of the day. We have discovered we are not alone on feeling like this. Yesterday our the engine broke down due to a technical fault. So for a few hours we were just bobbing around, being blown backwards by the winds. Luckily we have not reached the Gulf of Aiden, pirate alley, but still the term, "sitting ducks" came to mind. The Captain did keep us informed of any progress even telling us he was in contact with Los Angeles for instructions. Its probably best it happened now and not in a couple of days when we need full steam ahead. We also had a pirate attack drill....stayed in the cabin with the door open. We met our neighbours for the first time which was nice. The large water hoses have all been put in position incase of an attack, I personally would prefer machine guns, and a sonar thingy...pirates probably have that one covered with ear muffs!! It adds a bit of excitement to the adventure.

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