Gibraltar

Captain’s Log, June 4th: After the friction from passengers at Tunis, it is good to be finally at a port where they have nothing to grumble about. About a half of them have taken the tours of the ‘Rock of Gibraltar’. I don’t understand why they are particularly keen to see the famous monkeys, although what does it matter so long as they pay for the excursion?  The rest have gone shopping, probably for cheap drinks and cigarettes.

Mrs Cropworthy was able to rejoin the cruise after flying from Naples. She did ask whether we could help out with the cost of her flights, but I pointed out that this might compromise her claim on her vacation insurance, which she quite understood. I did think it was petty of her to ask, as we had already given her a $50 voucher to spend on board. The four passengers that missed the sailing at Vado Ligure arrived also. They wanted to discuss compensation, but I said that it was their own fault that they missed the sailing. They tried to argue that the ship had sailed early, but I reminded them that ‘time and tide wait for no man’, and said that the ship and it’s owners had no liability in such a situation.

However, my main problem today is not with the passengers, but with the Chief Engineer. He wants to stay an extra day to allow more time for maintenance of the engines, but I have had to overrule him. He’s a typical engineer, fussing about his machinery as if that’s the only important thing. He says he thinks that the sound of one of the engines is slightly different from usual. I think it’s probably time for him to be retired.