5 October 2019
Skye and the Small Isles - Glen Etive
Barbara Riddell
I've just returned from my cruise on the Glen Etive and just wanted to thank you and all the team for a wonderful trip! The ship is lovely, comfy cabins - my bed was so comfy that I slept like a baby the whole trip. Thank you for asking our dietary preferences beforehand; I have so many dislikes that going on holiday is usually tricky. Not this time! Our chef - Angus - is an absolute genius. Everything was catered for; despite this, I still had demands (eg - could I have a croissant instead of toast?, etc). Nothing was too much trouble for him or the rest of the crew. And the food!! Utterly delicious, everything home made - and a constant stream of home cooked cakes, biscuits and scones at every elevenses and tea time. And the meals themselves were divine - and beyond my expectations. We all agreed that Angus's cooking would not look out of place in any London restaurant. Some of us managed to get hold of some of his recipes (the sticky toffee pudding in particular!) and these are being emailed around (with his permission, of course). You should seriously think about publishing a cook book! The crew were wonderful - Michelle, Darren, Angus of course and the multi-tasking Struan - one minute serving toast, the next hauling up the anchor! They all worked so hard, and yet were always checking to see if we needed anything - and Michelle kept the tea and coffee flowing. It was so nice to be on a cruise with only 12 guests, as this allowed us all to get to know each other. And the way the ship is designed there is space for people who want to chat and for those who wanted to read. I spent a lot of my time looking out of the window at the waves, the mountains, the birds - which was very restful in itself. Great to be away from TV (and Brexit!). Of course, being Scotland the weather was unpredictable and it was pretty blowy and rainy (or what we referred to as "Scottish sun") but everyone took it in good spirit and we did manage to get off the boat most days for a walk. We also went into Tobermory for a musical event courtesy of two of the Glen Shiel crew - they were very good! The views of course were spectacular - waterfalls and rainbows galore - and we did see some wildlife too. The nice thing was if you didn't want to go ashore, it was cosy on board ship too. Again, thank you for your efficient organisation and a great trip. All the best, Barbara x
