My grandfather was born in a huge white house on the Baltic coast of eastern Germany, and ever since I was a child I’ve been fascinated by this enigmatic tideless sea. I’ve travelled along its southern shore, from Germany to Estonia, but I’d always wanted to sail across it, and last month, at last, I did, aboard the Queen Victoria on Cunard’s Royal Viking Adventure.
I joined the cruise in Stockholm (the other passengers had sailed here from Southampton). Why had no one ever told me what a stunning city this is? Perched on a little island, the old town is perfectly preserved — a cluster of cobbled alleys, patrolled by blond, athletic Swedes. As we set sail, the view became even better. The shoreline splintered into a thousand islands, strewn across the water like petals on a pond. I stood on deck, lost in silent wonder, and watched them float past until the sun went down.
When I woke next morning, in my comfortable cabin, we were way out at sea. For a landlubber like me, this was quite a thrill. Before now, my longest voyage had been a brief crossing from Harwich to Hamburg. Our passage to St Petersburg would take two nights, and a whole day in between. I’d always thought it’d be boring spending an entire day at sea. I couldn’t have been more wrong. After breakfast I went for a wander, hoping to kill a few hours. I was still pottering round at teatime, and there were loads of things I hadn’t seen.
Launched in 2007, the Queen Victoria is a thoroughly modern cruise liner, with all mod cons (including a splendid spa), but Cunard has been around since 1840, and the enduring sense of history was what I liked best of all.
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