I had booked a City Sightseeing boat trip aboard the White Lady for 11am. This little cutie was built in 1943 and it's always wonderful to see the older ladies given lots of love. Boarding was by the fish market. It was quite busy but the top deck seats were taken fast. We turned right after leaving which gave some great angles for all four beauties, especially Black Watch and Boudicca, and did a circular route up as far as the Askøy Bridge. Upon our return almost 90 minutes later we could hear music coming from the shore near Braemar. I headed that way after disembarking and saw a band playing behind a taped barrier. Passengers and crew were nearby dancing, talking and generally having a wonderful time A bit later were the cheerleaders from Braemar, Boudicca and Black Watch. I'd seen Braemar's rehearsing as I arrived after the boat trip. A tug-of-war followed. First were the ladies. Boudicca's were pitted against Braemar while it was Black Watch versus Balmoral. For the men it was Balmoral versus Braemar and Boudicca versus Black Watch. The atmosphere for that was electric with many getting behind their ships' team. Unfortunately, I had to go back to leave before the finals to charge things up before sailaway but Braemar were the champions of both which was handy as there was just one trophy. Passengers also could do a treasure hunt and visit the other ships if they didn't fancy tours or the dockside entertainment. |
© Patricia Dempsey 28th July 2015
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