MY FAVOURITE PICTURES OF THE NEW SPIRIT OF BRITAIN

the date was the 13th of April 2011, two photos of the brilliant new P & O FERRIES ship SPIRIT OF BRITAIN, my favourite pics of this fantastic new vessel so far, a spectacle of colour and light, enjoy, please click to enlarge

CALAIS EXCELLENT VALUE FOR MONEY

I think I have mentionned this before, Calais is one of my favourite places to photograph ships, with so many competitive rates on offer these days we can be spoiled for choices, just cross the channel from Dover on a mini cruise,  going there for one day shopping or take your car and exploit the city and the surrounding area, there is plenty on offer and of course one can box in some good bargains. Going back to shipping vessels here included are SEAFRANCE NORD PAS DE CALAIS,PRIDE OF BURGUNDY, PRIDE OF CALAIS and SEAFRANCE BERLIOZ

BACK AT SEA ON THE SEAFRANCE MOLIERE

April the 13th I was back at sea travelling from Dover to Calais on the SEAFRANCE MOLIERE. Pictures enclosed are the ship loading and getting ready for sea, then at sea and the SEAFRANCE BERLIOZ approaching Dover at the end of her crossing from Calais, photo taken from the SEAFRANCE MOLIERE

FORMER P & O SCOTTISH FERRIES ST CLAIR

The ferry ST CLAIR seen here in 1997, photo taken during the tall ships races at ABERDEEN was built in 1971, she was sold in 2002 to Saudi Arabia and is still in service today, sailing as the BARAKAT, the ship was employed on the Shetland and Orkney Islands service, nice trip down memory lane, very good looking ship

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PRIDE OF ROTTERDAM

The P & O FERRIES PRIDE OF ROTTERDAM is seen here fresh from a refit in March 2011 at berth in Hull the ship is one of the best cruise ferries in the world, with a GT of 59.925 she is also one of the biggest, she was built in Italy by FINCANTIERI and departed from Rotterdam to Hull on her maiden voyage on the 20th of April 2001 so the ship has now been in service for a decade, I have travelled a few times on the ship she is really smart, spacious and comfortable

MSC MUSICA BUILT SAME YARD AS THE QUEEN MARY 2

SAINT-NAZAIRE is known worlwide for Ship building, seen here in Barcelona the new MSC MUSICA in 2007, the ship has a GT of 89.600 and a top speed of 24 knots, she is operated by MSC CRUISES one of today´s biggest European cruise line operators.

TRASMEDITERRANEA FERRIES

TRASMEDITERRANEA was established in 1916 and based in Barcelona, since 2002 the company was bought by the ACCIONA GROUP and nowadays is based in Madrid. Some photos taken along the years, remembering the TRASMEDITERRANEA colours, all in Barcelona, maritime city

QM2 AND QUEEN ELIZABETH WILL VISIT LIVERPOOL THIS YEAR

September will be a great month for ships enthusiasts particulary for those living in MERSEYSIDE, both QUEEN MARY 2 the CUNARD flagship and the new QUEEN ELIZABETH will visit LIVERPOOL, the dates are the 8th for the QE and exactly one week after on the 15th QM2, it´s almost two years to the date that CUNARD new flagship first visit the city for the very first time, some photos of the event

THE M/S MARCO POLO

The M/S MARCO POLO was built in 1965 as the ALEXANDR PUSHKIN for the Soviet line BALTIC SHIPPING CO, between 1990 and 1993 she was laid-up and rebuilt as the MARCO POLO, since than she has been operated by ORIENT LINES and GLOBAL MARITIME, she is currently under charter to CRUISE AND MARITIME VOYAGES, company based in the UK. The ship has a GT of 22080 and a cruising speed of 19 knots and she is a frequent visitor to UK waters. Photo included shows the vessel in Barcelona in 2001

BRITTANY FERRIES TO SPAIN

If you are planning to travel to Spain either on business or holidays and take your vehicle, or simply doing a mini-cruise, there is more options and choice than ever with BRITTANY FERRIES. The Cruise Ferries PONT-AVEN and CAP FINISTERE sail on weekly basis from Portsmouth and Plymouth to Santander and Bilbao, this last destination introduced on the 27th of March 2011 with the CAP FINISTERE, the sunday departures offer an extra stop at ROSCOFF on monday morning for changing of the crew which is a bonus if you planning a mini cruise, two nights onboard going southbound, both vessels offer the highest standards of comfort and an excellent cuisine, best I have seen on any ferry operator, of course for all information please visit the BRITTANY FERRIES website. Images with the CAP FNISTERE ready for sea

TALL SHIPS RACES BACK IN THE CITY OF SAINT-MALO

SAINT-MALO will host once again the TALL SHIPS in 2012 from the 5th to the 8th of July, make a note on your dairy, take the BRETAGNE from PORTSMOUTH to SAINT-MALO and you will wonder with the beauty of this incredible city and of course follow one of the most entertaining spectales on earth, truly not to be missed. Two photos from the event in 2006

SOUTHAMPTON ON TOP FOR PASSENGER SHIPS

SOUTHAMPTON is the UK major port to see and follow passenger vessels it`s close to London and there is always deep water, I have done many photographs there and witnessed many remarkable events like maiden arrivals of the new QUEEN MARY 2, AURORA, QUEEN VICTORIA, MISTRAL and I am looking forward for this year, come April the season really kicks off, few photos taken along the years here included, the tug is saluting the maiden arrival of the new QUEEN VICTORIA back in December 2007

BRITTANY FERRIES ARMORIQUE

ARMORIQUE is the newest BRITTANY FERRIES cruise ferry, she was built in Finland and started her maiden voyage from Roscoff to Plymouth on the 10.02.2009, the ship was named after a park in Brittany, she has 22542 GT and a top speed of 25 knots, ARMORIQUE is seen here in February 2011 from the CAP FINISTERE at her berth in PORTSMOUTH

LISBON AND LUIS MIGUEL CORREIA

Lisbon is of course the portuguese capital, a place associated with the maritime world, names like VASCO DA GAMA have developed their enterprises from Lisbon, PEDRO ALVARES CABRAL with the colonization and introduction of Christianity in Brazil, the first nation to put together fleets to navigate the world´s oceans, what is known today as globalization is in a way something those navigators created, the exploits of  PRINCE HENRY and FERDINAND MAGELLAN have booked a place in the world´s history forever, today the world we live in tends to neglect culture, intelligence, the incredible speed we live the day to day live, the technological evolution, doesn´t give us time to wonder and marvel on those incredible adventures. I was born there and I am very proud of that, everyone dedicated to the maritime adventures, shipping and love for the sea will have for Lisbon and PORTUGAL a special bond.

Today all ships enthusiasts and anyone with a maritime passion think of LUIS MIGUEL CORREIA. I have known him for 28 years, it´s dificult to think of someone that puts such a passion and commitment for an industry, his work is remarkable and we ship´s devotees should be proud of it, I know we are, everywhere I am going to photograph ships when I meet and start talking about our common passion  to other fellow enthusiasts his name is always mentionned as a reference, and that´s exactly what he is, and we all rely on his work for information and advice, so this post is a praise to LMC´s work and I trust the best is yet to come. Everytime I am in Lisbon my camera obviously comes with me and I try to get as much photos of shipping as possible, so please enjoy the ones here published, all mine as well as text.
ALBATROSS,  EBORENSE,  PRINCESS DANAE,  PRINCIPE PERFEITO, QUEEN VICTORIA, SEA PRINCESS all 2008, last picture the very last time I saw the QE2 in Lisbon, October 2008

LISBON CITY OF LIGHT

PARIS is known to be the city of light but it is an artificial light, LISBON on the other hand on a sunny day and they are plenty, has a natural light like no other place I have visited so far, a paradise for ships enthusiasts, some photos for everyone to enjoy, ships included  AIDA ORIANA FUNCHAL QE2 and QM2