Thursday – Please Do Disturb
This morning, a man came round to close the porthole hatches (I can’t remember the technical term for them… deadlights or something… I think). This is a sure sign that we’re most definitely on the last leg of our voyage; over the next few days, we’ll be crossing the Bay of Biscay and hoping that the sea remains as calm as it has been today.
I have to say, though, that this was despite the fact that I’d hung the ‘Please Do Not Disturb’ sign on the door (because I was working this morning). I knew who it was, and why they were coming round, because I’d heard them knock next door, and the sound of hatches being locked down travels, and is quite distinctive. However… call me old fashioned, but surely, the whole point of a sign that says ‘Please Do Not Disturb’ is that you don’t wish to be disturbed. A similar thing happened a few days ago; again, I’d hung the ‘don’t disturb’ sign on the door because I was working. I was actually only wearing shorts and t-shirt (because we were still in warmer climes) when a knock came on the door, and I called out to ask whoever it was to give me a minute (while I slipped some trousers on)… he didn’t… some engineer simply came waltzing in, saying that he needed to check the taps in the bathroom… I’m stood there like a complete idiot, in a semi-clothed state, trying to act normal. As it happens, neither instance presented a problem, but I’m thinking of other passengers who might be unwell and trying to sleep, and hang the sign up to prevent disturbances… or there are other examples I could think of if I really put my mind to it…
In this afternoon’s classes, I had them painting an egret. It’s mostly a negative painting exercise, carefully painting around the bird, building up the background with a series of increasingly darker washes, but leaving the long, reed-like grasses as untouched highlights. It went well, with most of the participants producing good results. I was up against the captain this afternoon; he was involved in a Q&A, along with the chief engineer, in the Marco Polo Showlounge; fortunately, it didn’t seem to affect my numbers too much. By all accounts, the questions were mostly technical in nature, and Captain Nikolaus Michaloliakos, is not only very articulate, but has a great sense of humour.
This evening, we were entertained by Laurence Robinson, an opera singer. Opera isn’t really my thing (at all), but he seemed a nice enough chap. He interspersed his selection of Italian classics with a few non-operatic, ‘rat-pack’ numbers, and made it fun, with a smattering of audience participation; by the end, they were calling for more…
