Monday 16 February 2015. Our excursion ends and we are back on board the Thomson Dream for the afternoon where we catch Tomas and Maris for their spot at the Open Air Bar on Deck 10 in the late afternoon before dusk.
In fact it started to go dark as we sat listening. As we had docked a day early at Montego Bay the ship was staying in port overnight. We had spent our last hours at sea for this cruise.
But it's not time to be sad just yet as we have another night of fabulous entertainment in front of us. So far south the dusk tends to pass very quickly.
As the sky got darker the ship's lights came on and the scene changed over the stern of the ship as features which had been clear a few moments ago became merged into shadow.
We tapped our feet and sang along and then Tomas had another rush of blood to the head and waved me to get up on the stage.
I blushed and waved him away demurely and shrank into my seat away from the gaze of... what? Yes Fran? I jumped up straight away and dashed for the stage??? Me? Are you sure? Oh... apparently I was up there in a flash and rocking away... Who would have thought...?
We had our last evening meal down in the Orion Restaurant and said goodbye to the waiters who had looked after us all week. Then as we wandered around the ship for a last look I heard my name being called. It was Beverley, who sings with the party band, Strum Jam.
"Are you coming to sing with us tonight?" she grinned. They are a great band and the male singer has a very neat electronic drum kit all contained as a package the size of a single snare drum. I still have nightmares about the pink guitar... lol
But we couldn't spend our last night anywhere but with Tomas and Maris in the Tides Bar. We had made several friends in there amongst the other passengers too, some of whom were already asking if I was going to sing that night.
The last night of a cruise is usually a brilliant night as everyone is making the best of their last night on board. This night was no exception and there was a full dance floor and Tomas and Maris were enjoying themselves and entertaining us with great music and lots of banter between them.
And I did force myself reluctantly to... What??? No Fran, I couldn't have been so eager... ah well... perhaps I was! Thanks to the audience that night - the roar of approval as I took a bow kept me floating long after the cruise finished!
Then at the very end of the night Tomas and Maris sang Johnny B Goode and called me up to play the guitar part. Photo from Maris's phone!
It's always sad saying goodbye at the end of a cruise, but we all know we will see each other again sooner or later. Much sooner as it turned out. The following morning we were told our flight had been delayed by four hours and we would be able to stay on the ship rather than have to wait in the airport.
Which meant we were able to catch another gig on the Pool Deck the following lunchtime! Our flight was now put back to ten thirty that night. The airport was very quiet apart from a bunch of passengers two gates down who were waiting for their own delayed flight to New York. New York was in the grip of horrendous snow storms. The flight crew had been on duty for hours waiting for a chance to depart and as a consequence on reaching Jamaica could not legally fly the plane back to America as they would go over the number of hours they could fly without a rest.
Given that there was a massive festival going on that night in Montego Bay and that every single hotel was full, the passengers were not happy to be told that their flight could not leave until 6:30 the following morning. All credit to the pilot who got a microphone and conducted a question and answer session - far more questions than answers actually.
"I can't answer that - I don't have a hotel myself..." he pointed out. In the end a hotel was found that would allow them to sit overnight in their conference hall where they could be fed and watered. Not a happy bunch of people. We were relieved to be called through and board our own flight back to the UK!
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