By: Nancy and Charles Nevil, London to London, May/June, 2009 

Day three, dawn was filled with clouds. Maybe those warm clothes would come in handy after all. The temperature seemed to have dropped about 30 degrees in just 24 hours, and when we arrived (via the ship’s shuttle bus) at City Center, mist shrouded many of the buildings on surrounding hills. Beautiful to see, but a bit bone chilling (or as the locals preferred to say, we were having Scottish weather again). We decided to forgo our planned trip to the country and enjoyed a long walk around the streets and byways of Edinburgh, looked at shops and enjoyed people watching as we strolled along. In the afternoon, the mist had lifted, a bit of warmth returned. We went back to the ship for a relaxing, lazy afternoon.

This evening, we will depart for Londonderry, Ireland, one of our three Irish ports of call. We love Ireland and can’t wait to have another fine time in the old sod. We’ll have another day at sea, a chance to catch up on some reading and just plain enjoy whatever the ship has to offer. We leave Scotland hungry for more of this beautiful part of the world. How we would love to explore the Highlands and the magnificent countryside and meet more of these charming and most hospitable people.

A day at sea will be relaxing and filled with the pleasure that one feels all day, every day, when you sail with Silversea and the wonderful people who give such exemplary service so that your voyage can be a truly memorable experience..

As the sun rose on day four of our cruise, it was clearly a “musical” morning because the ship was rocking and rolling as we headed north so that we could round the British Isles and head south to Londonderry. The quiet of the morning solo treadmill pacing was offset by the challenge of holding tight and timing the dips in the dark gray seas below our bow. Somehow, no others wanted the gym this morning. We wonder why!

The day at sea progressed, with the sun slowly filtering through clouds above. We attended a cooking demonstration given by the ship’s executive chef. It was excellent and left us with many ideas that we could use at home. After that demonstration, our appetites had grown and lunch was, as always aboard this ship, filled with a variety of choices and oh, so tasty. Later, there will be a fashion/jewelry show. There is always something to do on as we sail the day away.

Afternoon shadows are accenting the waterways as we pass the beautiful Hebrides Islands. The seas are calm now, we feel as if we are gliding into the evening and look forward to a leisurely dinner, and evening of music and a good night’s sleep to carry us through to tomorrow and our visit to Londonderry.

The dawn of day five was calm and bright. The sun was a red ball sneaking into the sky as it crossed the rim of the water. What a wonderful welcome to Northern Ireland. Safe at anchor at Greencastle, a harbor about 30 minutes by bus from Londonderry, we took the ship’s tender and ashore where our shuttle awaited. Driving along the coast was a treat. The water sparkled to our left and on the right, green hills enclosed pristinely clean and beautifully maintained homes. Wherever we have gone in Ireland in the past, we have been impressed by its cleanliness and this trip confirms what we remember.

Londonderry (called Derry by the locals) was the site of bitter fighting and occupation during the “troubled” times. There were road blocks and check points everywhere. Today, as you cross the border from Northern Ireland to the Republic, the only issue one deals with is a change from Kilometers to Miles per hour on the road signs. That’s it, troubles are not to be found. Locals told us that while the old timers still debate issues about their mentally ongoing fight with the Brits, younger folks don’t seem to give it a thought.

Londonderry is Ireland’s only completely walled city still in existence. So what did we do? Why we walked the wall and saw lovely sights and learned a lot of history.

Back at the ship, we sat and enjoyed looking at the lush green hills, bathed in sunshine. Formal night tonight aboard ship, and the Penguins will all come out to play again. Tomorrow, Dublin, and all of the glamour of this thriving Irish metropolis.