Heather Fell, Olympic silver medallist, writes about her life in the media and sports world.

­I'M aware I should never complain about being abroad as any opportunity to explore more of the world should never be passed, but there is always a fear of missing something at home.

I left the UK when the sun was shining and worried I was about to miss an early glimpse of summer that would be over once I returned. Other than the imagined perfect weather I also get a little frustrated at missing significant sporting events back home in England.

The first event I didn't even manage to find the results of until days afterwards was the Exeter Chiefs winning the LV Cup in front of a sell out home crowd — congratulations to them. The second event was the Cheltenham Festival, although I managed to substitute this with an evening of racing at Happy Valley Stadium, Hong Kong. The humid flood lit track set among a backdrop of high rise buildings and a colourful crowd made for an altogether unique experience.

My reason for visiting Hong Kong was not to find Westcountry cider (see last week's column) or to watch horse racing but to catch a boat. This might seem something of an understatement as I was in town to board The Adonia — P&O's 700 passenger capacity cruise ship.

Now I know I'm retired from sport but I would still class myself as too young to be going cruising and as it turned out the majority of the other passengers felt the same. I had to explain on several occasions that the purpose of my trip was work, not pleasure, although I wasn't completely convinced myself. Aside from a bit of after dinner speaking, I was lucky enough to enjoy some lovely weather and a once in a lifetime cruising experience.