Stormy Seas

Cagliari in Sardinia was the next scheduled port of call for Oriana.  Now this I was really looking forward to.  It was during breakfast that we made our approach to the port but the weather was fast deteriorating with torrential rain and very poor visibility.  The Sky Weather report had shown a large blue storm cloud covering the whole of Sardinia with a forecast of thunderstorms.  Never mind, I had my wet weather gear with me and I could always shelter in the shops.  But then the Captain's voice came through the speakers with an announcement - rarely a good sign at that time of the morning.  The port had two tugs standing by to guide and nudge us into position on our berth but the winds were increasing by the minute and both the pilot and the Captain decided it was far too dangerous for us to consider docking - our call at Sardinia was cancelled and we were to head back out to the relative "safety" of the sea.

The weather continued to deteriorate and by mid morning the ship was being tossed about all over the place.  For the first time ever I had to leave my cabin and find a more stable point at mid-ships on one of the upper decks.  Here the motion was a little bit less - in my cabin the waves were hammering against the porthole and that damn anchor chain was heaving back & forth in its hold on the deck below.

The dreadful stormy conditions lasted throughout the day and it wasn't until early evening that the seas began to subside.  For some reason there were very few people at dinner that night - but I was there!