At 11.00 am on Monday morning, 11 November, we docked in Cartagena (Cartahena) which still bears all the hallmarks of having been a military city, defending Spain, including the cannons at the ready. Strategically positioned on the Costa Cálida, a sunny shoreline in Spain's Murcia province, Cartagena is one of the most important Roman sites in Spain, where more is constantly being uncovered.

We were driven in a tour bus to a vantage point high above the city dedicated to their one-time illustrious Mayor, Alfonso Torres. From there we got a view of the ship docked in the Harbour with the modern amphitheatre in the foreground and me on a wall! Peacocks roamed freely but none of the males were showing off their plumage.

It was a pleasant enough outing, and we did get a good view of the city from a leafy area above, but we didn’t see anything spectacular on our tour or get a real feel for what the city has to offer. It was actually a very short day as the ship sailed at 6.00 pm for North Africa.