The boat for our trip was reasonably comfortable, but the air conditioning was not good. My intrepid travelling companion found it very hot in our cabin. I was slightly too hot but seem to have a body which prefers a little heat. However, I did not enjoy the constant fumes from the engine while we were moored. Of course the engines had to be kept running for the lights and air conditioning. There were several locks along the course of our travelling which were the occasion of loud bangs sometimes in the middle of the night. This was not a problem, just something to savour as a part of the experience. When we were out in the country there was a bit of a problem with the mosquitoes but we had come prepared with repellent and cream for afterwards. This was more a problem for my friend. Strange to say I was bitten one night on my return home and suffered much worse from that than in Russia. On the boat there were many stairs to climb to get to our restaurant, consequently I ended the trip being much fitter than before! As you can see there were few downsides. I did have one more problem; on returning home I found solid land did not suit me. I had had no problems on the boat but arriving home after a few hours sleep I got up and looked out the window only to feel the whole apartment floating down the street!! It took me about four days to recover from that.
I have written in previous posts about disasters. In the case of Concorde, decisions by people, plus other factors were directly to blame for the event. In the case of the Penlee disaster it may have been avoided if someone had made a better choice in the time beforehand and as a consequence brave men and the ship's crew and the captain and his family died. 9/11 was certainly the result of wicked men committing a terrorist act, but even in this there was heroism notably by another Cornish man, Rick Rescorla who helped many to safety and left it too late to help himself. In situations like this we see what the human spirit is capable of both good and evil. What of disasters that come on people because of the earth restless movement of tectonic plates. Often people live near volcanoes because the land is rich and fertile and they have the chance of a better life there when the volcano is resting. We cannot blame them for that but sometimes people become complacent...
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