Pop, Francesca and Stuart headed off after supper (Francesca driving for the first time in the dark, oh no?) to go and watch the Calypso bands including AJ, son of Arrow who brought Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot to the world.  Each sang of an important social event with great gusto and busy beat but the girls said it made dancing along difficult when the lyrics were all about Aids or the controversial planned Tobacco Factory.  Francesca was actively pursued by Claude Hogan who was determined to make her his next girlfriend.  He gave her his number.  They came back as quietly as spies and crept aboard at 1:15am, inadvertently shining the torch through the hatch into Bob’s face who blinked like a mole, although the music from the shore continued until breakfast time.  They had a good time which could account for the torch ending up in the freezer.

The whole crew set off in the morning, nursing some hangovers, and shuttled ashore to be stopped from leaving the dockyard by an ample officious port official who would not let us cross the line until we had completed all the paperwork. She wouldn’t even let us get rid of the really stinky rubbish.  Pop, Fran and Stu had to pretend very innocently that they hadn’t entered as illegals the night before, twice.  We sorted out the port paperwork but had to wait 20 Caribbean minutes for the Customs official to turn up, sheltering in the port hut from the torrents of rain, which he did eventually and slipped Pop his phone number.  Fortunately it was agreed to dispense with Immigration or we could have spent the whole day there.

We then took a taxi tour with Sam Sword which was absolutely fascinating, although quite frankly we couldn’t hear very much of his commentary above the sound of his sick and straining engine.  Katie was very chuffed to be thought to be the same age as Pop and Francesca by Sam and in celebration bought an amazing pair of “magic pants”, not what you might think, to supplement her wardrobe, remembering of course that she had no room for a full wardrobe because of the brussels sprouts.

The tour was fascinating.  The stark shapes of petrified trees rising above a river of volcanic sand, the roof and veranda of a three storey building peeping out from the rubble and pumice stone, throwing the pumice stone into the sea and watching it float. Amazing.  The view of a destroyed and abandoned Plymouth from Garibaldi Hill was thought provoking.

We all needed a nap this afternoon to get us pepped up for New Year’s Eve and are now pre loading before going ashore.  Oh yes, Bob and I are getting into the mode.