Month: January 2025

Here you will find a collection of Sun-Type Photos. Being on the water allows for some fairly dramatic views. These are in no particular order although I typically take a few pics of the same event maybe several minutes apart, or of a different cloud-sun formation. These usually result in several different exposures and/or looks. They may, or may not, have any commentary attached to them. I hope that you enjoy them. If you get the opportunity, don’t delete this one and open it up on a laptop or desktop, the photos obviously reproduce better that way!

Sunsets seem to be an appropriate way to sum up a Cruise, so I will leave you here. But ‘no worries’ (as they say Down Under) plans are frantically being made by the Logistics Department for more Travels Afar and Adventures Yet Realized.

Stay tuned for developments as they……. develop!

Alright boys and girls, it’s time for Art Class!

No! No! No! Please not another one of those paint-splattered-on-canvas drivels! We’re beggin’ ya! Please, say it ain’t so!

It ain’t so.

Well, what is it then? Some more Pandy Andy Wyeth stuff?

No…. No Andrew Wyeth.

Is it some of your favorite Mississippi school outdoorsy paintings?

No…. it is not some work from the Hudson River School artists.

Ok….. we give up.

To be honest with you, until a few days ago I had zero knowledge about this artist but when I learn something, you all do too! So, stop kicking and screaming, I promise that this will be painless. Take a few looks at some representative items and then you may decide for yourself if you would like to know more!

            (Sigh)…… Ok.

For starters this artist is still alive. And he lives in the Seattle, Washington area. He has several studios in this region, but he has ties to many other cities around the US that have museums and /or workshops that feature his large-scale glass sculptures. You may have seen some of his work without knowing anything about who was responsible for them. I am not going to get technical here with lots of info/data about him, you can look that up yourselves. Fortunately, he seems like a regular guy, good rep, easy to work for and with, no drama (except when some glass breaks! But that is always expected)

            And he has a cool name …. Chihuly…. Dale Chihuly.

            And while he may not be a household name, he does in fact enjoy world-wide recognition as an artist. While we were visiting Darla and Sandra (from the World Cruise) we went to a studio in St. Petersburg (no not Russia, this is the Florida edition) not only to view his work and learn a bit about him, but to also watch the definitive glass-blowing demonstration in maybe the world. Attached to the Chihuly Gallery is a glass-blowing studio or “hot shop”. This is a feature of the Morean Arts Center which is located in a nifty downtown section of St. Pete. I took a ton of photos so I’m going to let them tell the rest of the story starting with how this fascinating process is accomplished.

First, remember that really cool glass-blowing demonstration that you witnessed at the Craft Day, County Fair, Artist Colony, or even on the island of Murano in Venice? Ok, now forget them. Not that they aren’t legitimate or fascinating because they are. But they show small pieces being made. Wait until you see LARGE pieces evolve from small, glowing blobs into pieces that measure 18’ or more across. Here. Now.

                        Pay attention 😊

Well kids, that’s the end of today’s Art Around the World class, I hope that you enjoyed it and maybe even learned something. I’ve learned that even in the least expected spots on the planet, i.e. a side street in St. Peterburg, Florida, that you can come across some amazing things! Class dismissed!

If you are having issues with getting the photographs to open, then read on, the solution is embedded herein along with some other stuff!

            I hope that you all have enjoyed your voyage with us as much as we have enjoyed having you all along. But I have to admit that sharing our stateroom bathroom with all of you did get a tad annoying at times. Next Voyage we will book two rooms so that those of you that wish to come along may have your own room, albeit shared with the rest of you!

            Just a word here about some tid-bits of housekeeping info.

            Quite a lot of you have subscribed to the E-Mail Blast kind of distribution. This is the one that just gets copied and pasted into your email Inbox.

You can see if this is the version that you are receiving by scrolling to the bottom and seeing if you can read any “Comments.” 

If you can, then you are getting the entire Blog Post.

If you can’t then you are missing a few (nonvital) aspects.

                        First, you cannot read any of the comments that you, or any of the other readers, have posted. You also cannot read my responses to them. I respond to each and every comment that is made, so If you are looking for a response to your contribution, then you need to do this next step:

                                    At the top left of every “Email” post you will see

                                                Read on blog or Reader.

                        All you need to do is click on the Read on Blog and it will magically transport you to the main Blog Site where you can see several other things.

                        First, at the bottom of every Post you will be able to see and read the Comments and their respective Responses.

                        Second, you will notice the Archives there. If you are a relatively new reader and would like to scrutinize our travels of the Past, then all you need to do is click on any Month of any Year and Presto! You will be conveyed back in time to Places Since Remembered and Traveled. This might be something that you’d want to do at say….  3AM when you’re having trouble sleeping, or you just want to be In the Know in case there is a random quiz in the future!

                        In any event, clicking on the Read on Blog feature gives a somewhat nicer version of the Post with a pleasant tan background and the body of the Post fits a little better on the page. This is also the route to take if you are one of the Readers that have some difficulty getting photos to appear (this is because some iPhones block the photo file from being loaded). So, clicking on Read on Blog will get you those photos. In the end, viewing on a laptop, desktop, or tablet always produces the best rendition. If you usually use your phone, then turning it on its side will sometimes give a better opportunity for the page to be laid out in front of you. You be the judge.

If any of this is confusing, please just email me at donhall930@gmail.com and I will help you out.

I hope that you can tell that I enjoy writing these Posts and illustrating them with some fun photos! And as much as I like these things, you need to know that all of my enjoyment comes from your enjoyment of experiencing places past and vistas yet to be realized! So fasten those Virtual Seatbelts because we’re not stopping any time soon!

Thanks for Travelling with us!

Love,

 Don and Paula

It went something like this:

                        Scene: In a motorhome parked at Yetter’s Diner in Northern New Jersey some years ago. The lady is admiring a pop-up ad that appears as she scrolls through Instagram.

                        Paula: “Can we go into the City and see that Neil Diamond musical?”

                        Don: “Sure we can! I love Broadway!”

                        Que: Interlude Music…. (for an extended time)

                        Paula: “I heard that the Neil Diamond musical is closing on Broadway, I think our chance to see it just went Kaboom!

                        Don: (oops!) Looking at the availability of tickets to a popular play that is closing…. “Ahh, sorry babe, that’s not going to happen.”

                        Paula:  ☹

                        Don (an avid watcher of Romper Room when he was a lad) puts on his ‘Thinking Cap’ and starts to plan his Master Stroke. Remembering that they live in a house on wheels that can travel anywhere at almost any time, he scours the Internet for locations that the Touring Company of, “The Neil Diamond Musical -A Beautiful Noise” will be at.

                        Success!

                        And what to his wondering eyes should appear,

 But a performance of his Quest,

 In Fort Lauderdeer!

(Poetic License invoked)

                        “Hey! This is great!” (Don exclaims to himself not wanting to get “anyone’s” hopes up) “Let’s see when it’s going to be there! Hmm…. Ok…. we’re leaving on the Cruise on December 1^st, getting back on January 21^st in Fort Lauderdale…. It opens on January 21^st…. OPENS ON JANUARY 21^st!!!??? FORT LAUDERDALE!!!??? This is awesome! I’ll get tickets for Opening Night and surprise Paula!!!

                                    And so, the saga continues with Paula eventually in the Know as too many Logistical Determinations needed to be arranged to keep this a Total Secret.

                        A few nights ago, was the Opening Night for The Neil Diamond Musical: A Beautiful Noise at The Broward Center for The Performing Arts.

 We stayed in a residential-type hotel/condo place that was within walking distance of the venue. This was planned (obviously) which severely limited the selection of hotels because this one is the only one within walking distance, especially at night. It is called flow, (yes, little ‘f’) and it even has one of those rooftop infinity pools. The best part is that it is located on the ‘River Walk’ of Fort Lauderdale which is really nice!

We had dinner at a little café-style Italian place which was possibly the most authentic Italian place we’ve ever been to right down to the items and their preparation and cooking. They even had heavy Italian accents!

            The Broward Center for The Performing Arts is located on the New River, specifically on the cool-sounding ‘Sailboat Bend’ section of the Riverwalk. Designed in 1991, this project was a true collaboration of the entire Fort Lauderdale community and it’s # 4 ranking of most visited venues in the USA gives credence to that partnership back in ’91. The 2,658-seat Au-Rene Theater (the largest of four venues at the Center) is as legitimate a theater that you will find anywhere. Think the larger Broadway theaters, complete with those Boxes that line the walls, and you will get the picture.

            Ok, the stage has been set, the performers are warming up, all we need to do is add the most critical element of any performance and that is the audience! Because there is no ‘performance’ without at least one person in attendance! Have no fear, the patrons are here and en masse! Visualize, if you will, 2,658 rabid Neil Diamond fans. If you do that then you have seen 2,658 folks that average around 70 years old (us!) who cannot wait for this to begin. Yes, do the math, and you will find that age group being the most prominent as it was us that were there from the beginning of his career!

            If you have seen this show, then you will know where I am coming from. Without spoiling anything, the show centers around some therapy sessions that Mr. Diamond had over his career, and through these sessions, the genesis of most of his songs is revealed, very effectively I might add.

            The young man who portrayed Niel Diamond (then) is Nick Fradiani, who won American Idol back in Season 14 so we know that he can sing. What we all don’t know is that when he was just four years old, his parents brought him to his first concert which was (you guessed it!) Neil Diamond! I know… you can’t make this stuff up! He channels Mr. Diamond so well that it is impossible (?) to discern the difference between the two when he is singing, right down to that signature gravelly-toned voice that we all know and love. This is not an exaggeration! When I listen to music, most of the time I do it with my eyes closed (except while driving) especially when a singer is involved such as, contestants on The Voice. I like to concentrate on what’s important and shut out the rest. So….. during the show, when I closed my eyes and listened, all I could hear was Niel Diamond coming through loud and clear…. and I have seen him in-concert back in the day!

            Obviously, there were no photos or recordings allowed so I’m afraid that you are just going to have to take my word for it 😊

Audience participation was sincere, and thankfully only apparent at the appropriate times, no one “interrupted” the performance unless invited to and that was when the theater was “transformed” into a concert from years ago and we were the concert goers. That held true throughout the performance until the raucous-nano-second-instantly-delivered standing ovation at the culmination of the second act. Then the fun started. The reprise of the participation-encouraged Sweet Caroline was both loud and sincere, as you might expect!

            I hope that I have been successful in at least trying to relate the fantastic performance that we witnessed that night. If this Production comes to a Theater near you, run, do not walk, to your nearest Internet-Providing Device and with credit card in hand get yourself a few tickets. Then you too can say… “Niel Diamond? Yea, I know him, he once sang to me and told me his story.”

                        +++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scene: An older couple walking at night along the Riverwalk in Fort Lauderdale, just outside the Broward Center. The lady is obviously enthralled with what she has just witnessed.

Paula: “That was really good! I mean really, really, really good!”

The man, clearly relieved that the lady is happy stops admiring the boats along the Riverwalk and replies:

Don: “Yea, that was about as good as it gets!…..it’s a good thing that we waited to see it!”

Paula:  ☹ (sigh)

We quite often have some pretty cool birds that follow us along. Some are true pelagic birds, the ones that live most of their lives at sea and only come to land to breed. Others make their appearance when we get a little closer to land. Either way, their gliding, swooping, and soaring around make them ideal subjects for Portraits! In no particular order (except some!) please find Birds of the Sea, here for your viewing pleasure!

(Que Top Gun music) Maverick and Goose are testing, and teasing, the extent of the bogey’s nerve in a game if “Chicken.”

The enemy aircraft have now teamed up on Mav and Goose! Goose, with his head spinning from side to side, is trying in vain to look behind them, he yells to Mav…..

Maverick has just gotten back in the air after Goose died and he is reluctant to get into the fray…. but his flight-mates are depending on him…. finally realizing this, Maverick gets back into the fight….

And you all wondered what we do (Ok, just me) with our time when we have a Day at Sea!

Our last Port was that of St. Kitts and Nevis. These two little islands are separated only by a relatively shallow strait. They are remnants of the old British Empire, so they drive on the wrong side of the road! This was an interesting Port as it is smaller than Martinique, but the Port itself is larger and routinely has FOUR(!) cruise ships pulled in on any given day.

We had no plans to do anything of importance and with the Port just a piers-walk away, we could disembark and walk around at our leisure. One thing that we did want to do was get a few items for our crew fav’s. They all like snacks like potato chips and cookies and one of our really nice guys likes beers, so we found a grocery store and did a bit of shopping. They use something called a Caribbean dollar here which trades out at one C.D. equals about $.37 cents US. It all works out fine in the end. We were unable to get some KFC for Grace, one of our Security Officers because the line there was well over an hour long!

This entire Port was crazy because there were three ships in for the day so with all of the passengers and at least some of the crew (since it is in walking distance it’s good for the crew who has less time). In port were the NCL Viva, the Carnival Dream, and us. Our sizes and passenger manifests were comparable so that meant that there were a potential 12,000 plus passengers and crew available to clog up the place!

One of the best parts of this particular day was that we were scheduled to leave the Port first. You know what this means!

Yes! We get to blow our horn (for ALL to hear) while everyone else is getting themselves ready to go. What made this even better was that our Captain “gets it.” We were pulled in next to the NCL Ugly and it was like a canyon between us. They had a rather annoying DJ down on the pier between us blasting Reggae music along with his unintelligible banter all afternoon long.

To say it was annoying is a giant understatement. Everyone was hoping that we could blow them out of the water when it came to departure, but we really didn’t know how to get a message to the Captain pleading our case. It turns out that this was unnecessary. Right before Departure the Captain gets on the announcements and says something (in his best Italian accent) like this: “Ahh Ladies and Gentlemen, I sincerely hope that you have had a nice day in our last port of call, St. Kitts…. we will be leaving in a few minutes, and I hope that I can count on all of you to help me out here. We are going to use our Love Boat theme on our horn and blast that NCL ship away. I need you all up on the rails screaming and shouting and waving your arms as we depart. As usual… chiao for now.”

He played it ten times!

How much do we love this guy!

Well, that was our last Port of Call 😢

I’ve got a few more “Fun” posts for your hopeful enjoyment over the next few days!

We were supposed to visit the tiny island of Dominica, but the Captain discovered that we would encounter, upon arrival, a Parking Problem of Grand Proportions.

                        You see, we weren’t going to be the only act in town.

            When the Captain arrived on board in November shortly before we embarked on this Voyage, he did what he always does. He went through the Itinerary with that fine-toothed comb that usually turns up the negatives and this time was no different.

            Ship’s itineraries are conjured up at Headquarters almost two years in advance and then arrangements start to be made with the different Port Authorities for all of the reasons that we have previously discussed. This usually works out just fine but every now and then a glitch develops, not necessarily one that HQ would think is a big issue, but it was one that an experienced Captain could have problems with.

                        Ours did.

                        Apparently, there is enough room for several ships to be in Port at the same time if….

                        If one of those someone’s would like to be at anchor and tender the passengers back and forth from the ship.

                        Ours did not!

                        Apparently when that “apparently” is left in the hands of the Desk Jockey, some “good enoughs” make their way into an Itinerary. According to the Captain, this “good enough” was far from that. Apparently, this anchorage is not an ideal situation and somewhat sketchy when it comes to an example of being a model anchorage.

                        In other words, he didn’t like it….. at all!

And….. there was an alternative just one itty-bitty Island away…. Martinique!

                        So, the Captain tugged his Captain’s Hat down snug, picked up the various phones on the Bridge and waved his Twenty-six years of experience magic wand and poof! we appeared in Martinique….. all by ourselves! No other Cruise Ships in sight!

                        It’s nice to have an experienced Captain.

                        Martinique is a French Overseas Department meaning that it is a wholly owned and governed by territory of France. It is part of the European Union, uses the Euro, and the folks here speak French and a local dialect of Creole. They cannot pass their own laws but there is a procedure that regularly takes the local wants, needs, and customs into account when laws specifically for the Island are considered.

                        Martinique is also volcanic, and it was not too long ago that Mt. Pelée erupted. The year was 1902 and that eruption killed 30,000 residents of St. Pierre the former capital, situated on the other side of the island. Since then, the capital has been moved to Fort-de-France where it remains today and that is where we docked.

                        The weather was forecast to be as sketchy as our original itinerary, so we did not make any hard and fast plans for exploring. Besides, making decisions about utilizing Excursions, either by Princess or TBL, sooner or later the “Budget” comes into play. So, when this very nicely situated, able to walk off directly into the Town Center, became available we did not go crazy looking for things to do. Make no mistake here, this Island is gorgeous, the waters fantastic for snorkeling and swimming, and you can travel to the other side of the Island and throw yourself into Mt. Pelée, but this is no longer any fun because this volcano is dormant. Martinique is the perfect example of getting a taste of a place on a Cruise and then putting it on your “Places to Return To” list, next time for a longer stay.

            We disembarked onto their very nice Cruise Port Pier (as opposed to some of the Container Ports that we’ve been in lately) and there we came upon one of our new Cruise Friends, Ina. Ina is from California and up until a few years ago lived on her 35’ sailboat.

                        And loved it!

            Ina was by herself, so we invited her to accompany us as we had the same thoughts for the day…. just walk around and get a feel for this area. We found everyone very welcoming and nice. We all know that the French can have a ‘tude when it comes to just about anyone else on the planet but down here in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, they could care less what their distant relatives think in France. We wandered around the downtown area, just meandering and we found the Cathedral, which in its island simplicity still positioned itself nicely among the Beautiful Churches of the area.

We then decided that we would like to take the ferry that goes across the bay to an area that has some reportedly nice beaches. So back towards the ship we went, needing to get back to the harbor. The line was fairly long to get the needed tickets and even longer to board the every forty-five minutes or so departures. While waiting on line for tickets a lady came stomping towards us and announced that “the ferry was on strike” and the next one wasn’t going for a while. This is all well and good if you want to take some chances, but for us, who needed to have firm “return” commitment, having the possibility of the guys on the ferry walking off for good and leaving us miles away was a deal-breaking finality. Off the line I came, and we found a little beach up the road that the girls could wade in for a bit.

                        The walk back across the boulevard and past the Park brought us down a small street with a local market on it. This was a “finer” things market, but still a retail-type store. The guys were super friendly, and we had a good time with the four phrases that I know in French and the conversational English that they enjoyed. We bought some cool beverages and some European Chocolate Cookies in case one of us needed a chocolate fix. They graciously cleared a small hi-top table in the back that obviously served as a desk of sorts when I asked if we could sit there for a while. There, amongst the strange items that seem to be only available in Europe, we sat and snacked. As it turned out, more than one of us needed some chocolate!

“Au revoiring” and “merci beaucouping” our way out of the store we asked where we might get an “authentic” local lunch. Directions in hand for reference when we got hungry, we went down the Rue looking for the Library which comes with a nifty note of distinction. The Bibliothèque Schoelcher was built and designed in France, displayed for while in Paris, and then shipped down here and re-assembled. The year was 1887, the designer was Pierre-Henri Picq, and his vision was one of mixed styles including Byzantine, Moorish, Art Nouveau, and both Egyptian and Neo-Egyptian. One look at this building confirms that it is indeed a building of mixed-breed heritage!  Mr. Picq also designed the church that we visited up the street, Cathédrale Saint-Louis. The Library was the brainchild of Monsieur Schoelcher, the most prominent person behind the abolitionist movement in France and Martinique. His 10,000-book donation is what was originally housed in this Library that he had designed and built. It was originally for the education of freed slaves.

            We had our lunch in a small spot that had great reviews. They were most welcoming and explained the way that their food was served. We all got the same thing, a more-than-adequate portion of a roasted chicken dish with rice and veggies. None of this is “ethnic”, but the flavors were! And again, we had fun working our parlez-vous Frenchglish into the conversation.

            As full as we were, we rolled ourselves back towards the Ship and were quite satisfied to allow the elevators to raise us up to Deck 9 and our stateroom where we collapsed, full and sweaty! (It is sunny, warm, and humid down here!) The Weather Idiots were wrong….. again, as the forecast was for mostly rain and clouds and we received mostly sun and clouds, hence Paula’s slight sunburn and our somewhat sweaty clothing.

            Sail Away is always fun and by now you know how much we get a kick out of our Horn that plays the Love Boat Theme. Luckily the Captain likes it too because he lets it roll several times as we cast off our lines and bid a Port farewell.

Today was no different. 😎

                        Our Days at Sea can be both repetitive and easing at the same time. They are never boring. This is because the Ship does its job well and along with its Staff, they make sure that…..

…there is plenty to do (if don’t you want to)

…and……

…plenty not to do (if you do want to!)

                                                Confused?

                                                Don’t not be!

                                                Life aboard a long-distance cruise is not anything like a glorious 7-Day Getaway to destinations selected. An extended Cruise is an experiment in living with life-altering results. It is impossible not to be affected by spending a selected amount of continuous time with strangers that eventually become friends. Only if you undertake a Voyage of Months with the idea of being a recluse in order to finish that novel that’s been left undone for too long can you not end up with getting to know someone else.

                        My original thought on all of this has reversed course over the past two Long-Distance Expeditions of Global Exploration.

                        Originally, I was petrified of getting on board, being assigned to a dinner table with eight other travelers. This would be fine except I was positive that there would be the usual guy at the table who was a total blowhard, would never shut up, so no one else could get a word in edgewise and I would end up being the only one left at the Table because all of the rest had the guts to switch tables, and I would be stuck there because I didn’t want to hurt anyone else’s feelings.        

                        Ok, I got that off of my chest.

And I found a solution, or at least I thought that I had.

A Table for two (only!)

This does fix my problem once and for all. 

But it is contrary to those who are not working on their novels. On board, the pace of the Acquisition of Acquaintances is like speed-dating on steroids.  Normal time periods are condensed and warped as if they were entering the time-space continuum on the event horizon of a Black Hole.

                                    That is, really fast!

For example (in everyday Terrestrial Suburban Life) we move into a new area, or get a new job, etc. and in the course of PTA meetings where the Mom’s eventually meet, talk, see each other at Pick-up Time, and sooner or later get to the point where they say, “Let’s have a Play Date!”  In due course, the Dad’s meet at a soccer game, and this goes on for months until someone gets invited over for a BBQ. Onward and upward the relationship goes until years later you’re scheduling vacations together!

            Quite normal, expected, and satisfying.

            We are social animals.

            Here on the water, confined to the microcosm of the Ship with a specific number of souls on board, it is hard not to get to know someone. It is now that ‘crunched timeline’ makes its play and soon the effects of spending basically 24 hours, Three Meals (plus snacks!) a day, Excursions, Trivia Contests, and Beverage Imbibing Sessions together all take their toll and in no time the phones come out, grandkids photos are being bragged over, common past destinations examined and compared, and soon enough, seriously fast friendships are born.

            We hastened that process even further on the World Cruise when I requested a table for four. The deal I made with the Matre’d was that we would let Nancy the hostess fill the other two seats with folks that wanted to ‘share’ or we would tell Nancy that we had the seats filled for the night with a couple that we wanted to invite. This worked incredibly well and got to the point where we met several folks that we wanted to spend more time with, so they had standing invitations to specific nights of the week. Harold and Sherry, Darla and Sandra, Steve and Sandi, and Brian and Kristine are all folks that we met on board and have visited several times in the past two years since that Cruise.

            No worries about being stuck at the Big Table suffering from insufferable insufferables!

Breakfast and Lunch in the Dining Room are two totally different experiences from Dinner. Tables are not reserved, but you can opt for ‘shared’ if you want to have some nice conversations, get to meet some new peeps, and not be bound forever to them. Upstairs on Deck 16, the Buffet is obviously always available up until around 11 pm when the service reverts to the 24-hour International Café. Here is an example of common sense and where the real preferences of passengers take over. The reality is that only a handful of passengers even want to eat a full meal or graze to their hearts content at 2:30 AM so, having all of that available all the time is quite a waste of money and resources, like labor. That means that the days of the Midnight Buffet and the like are reserved for special occasions and that practicality takes over the rest of the time. But rest assured, if the Munchies, Snackies, or Mealies take hold of you at some ungodly time of the night/morning, that all you need to do is visit the International Café or call Room Service and select something from their very adequate menu. Problem Factor Zero!

We have opted more and more to hit the Dining Room even for Breakfast and Lunch. The portions are intelligent, and the service is understated and quite nice. The hustle and bustle of upstairs in the Buffet where jockeying for position to get to the Bacon has developed into an art form, and trying to find a seat (there are plenty but getting a good one by the huge windows can be daunting) as you wander around following each other and then finally realizing that you should have settled on the first one that you saw, is frustrating. These are not negatives, just again, realities that have alternatives, aka the Dining Room. It does take longer in there, but if you’ve got enough time before your next nap or event, then it’s very nice to just sit and be served. And it’s all included.

                        As I alluded to, Days at Sea can be somewhat repetitive. The shows are always changing but the static aspects of shipboard life remain somewhat constant. Trivia is at 10:00 and 4:00, Fitness Stuff is in the morning, the Shoppes are open all day and into the evening (they must be closed while in Port), add in a myriad of other Activities all planned and supervised by an incredible Cruise Director and their Staff, throw in some Food (!) and the ensuing recipe yields enough fun for all of those that are not sunning themselves out by the Pool!

                        I also said that the Days at Sea were ‘easing’ or maybe restoring. This is because Cruising can be a tad hectic and is not necessarily a good way to deeply experience specific locations. Do you remember the movie from the late ‘60’s titled, “If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Belgium”? That title alone can describe the Wham! Bam! aspect of many Port Days in a row. At its best, cruising can deliver a very satisfying taste of a region or city, enough so that it may trigger a return visit for a lengthier, in depth, stay. But the repetitive actions of ‘on and off ‘ the ship, ‘in and out’ of vans or buses, in and out of sites and sights, Port Procedures, etc. can, and do, have an effect on us. Mind you, this is in no way a complaint! It is just a comment on this reality. There are in fact, folks that rarely get off of the ship. These passengers are not here for the travels, they have already accomplished that part of it. They are here for a place to stay and live for a goodly amount of time. (continued below)

 For example, I have probably more Cruise Days than most people on the planet……. with the exception of those that have more days.😊

“Gee Donny, thanks for clearing that up!”

Wait! I’m not finished yet!

We consider ourselves to be rather well traveled….. until….

Until we get aboard one of these Longer-Than-Normal Cruises where it seems that everyone has at least accomplished what we have and then significantly more! When this Cruise is over, I will have amassed 256 days of cruising in my lifetime and Paula is only a few weeks behind that. We have met, on board, folks with over 1200 days of cruising on just Princess ships alone! Some of these people come under the heading of what I was alluding to before and who we shall call, “Exist Aboards”.

Many of these E.A.’s do not contribute much either to the bottom line of the Company or to the daily experience on board. They are here to simply occupy a stateroom, get as many “freebies’ as possible and constantly look for ways that the Cruise Line is “ripping them off” (that’s a quote).

As much as we would like to think that we may enjoy that many days cruising, the reality is that affording that many days on board (however Value-packed they are) is financially prohibitive, but definitely attractive for many reasons!

In your Basic Fare, (which is usually competitive) these are included:

• All your food, served to you all the time, (NEVER cook again!)

• Full cabin steward service all the time, (NEVER clean again!)
• Entertainment all the time, (Never pay for a ticket again!)      

• And….. (when you get to this level) NEVER do laundry again!

            If you do not buy a Drink Package, Wi-Fi Package, or contribute to the Daily Allowance for Gratuities (which are optional), don’t go to the Casino, and don’t go on Excursions, then that Basic Fare will get you on board where you will just exist nicely, but that’s about it. This type of passenger is, in fact, not a good customer for the Cruise Line and I will go to an extreme to make an example. If all of the cabins were filled with this type of passenger then the Line would have two options, either cease doing business or be forced to raise Basic Fares where they would cover major operating expenses. The Cruise Lines business model is not based on those E.A.’s. It is based on folks coming aboard and spending some extra monies for things that enhance their Vacation Experience and in so doing, helping the Cruise Line make a profit, which I’d like to point out is not a dirty word. Take that from anyone who has been involved in any type of business, either running it or being employed by.

                        It is interesting to listen to some of these E.A,’s talk about their upcoming plans….

 “When we get to Fort Lauderdale, we get off of this one and get on the Sapphire Princess for a 21-day to the Caribbean and then when that’s over we sit for a day or so before we can get back on here for a re-positioning to Los Angeles where it will stay on the West Coast for the Alaska runs. After that we may stay for a bit or go home and look at some other cruises in a few months.”

That is an example that can be overheard at any time, and I promise you is not an exaggeration, especially considering the Level of the passengers on board.

            Like all Transportation Companies, Princess has levels of loyalty that can be attained by spending more time with them. I think that the airlines started this way back because the term Frequent Flyer Miles has become generic to just about any Rewards Program across the business models.

            Anyway, we have obviously stuck with Princess for many reasons and this concept works when it comes to loyalty and the value of that. Paula and I have both attained the Elite Level of Passenger Loyalty and this comes with a laundry list of perks, including these highlights:

– Discounted Wi-Fi and Insurance (both of these amount to some serous dollars)

– Free minibar in our room (which we give away to the Staff!)

– Preferred status on the long lines that form for any event including debarkation and Tender Ports,

The status of wearing that Black colored Medallion (Levels are color coded, newbies are White, then Gold, Ruby, Platinum, and finally Elite) which on this and the World Cruise is akin to the old saying, “Yea, that and a quarter will get you a cup of coffee” because most folks on here are Elite. Which means that the most important feature of attaining Elite Level gets diminished. 

              That feature is Free Laundry!

 Before getting this Important Feature, most of the time you would use one of the Laundromats conveniently located on each deck That is unless you wanted to pay about $3.00 for each one of your undies to be laundered! So getting this for free is a big deal! ……until….

                        Until everyone has it and the Laundry Mavens have a ton of undies to wash and fold! Now this requires some intensive planning because there is no way that you can get your laundry back from downstairs in anything less than three or four days! So, that thought of bringing a lot less clothing on board for the Big Trip requires some strategic thinking because you need to build in that Lag Time and plan accordingly.

                        Many a passenger has washed something out in the sink (like us!) or made a trip to the Laundromat for an occasional “Fill In” load. This is done usually before 4AM so that I don’t have to deal with the masses and fight for a dryer when my load is ready. I’ve heard nightmares of folks travelling from deck to deck in search of unused machines. I can’t even handle that so it’s way easier to just get up and do it all at once while everyone else is sleeping!

                        One of the other perks is the Captain’s Reception Cocktail Party where you can mingle with the Captain and his staff. On this one, and the World Cruise, that Party needed to be held over two days with two separate times assigned each day because tons of folks qualified for this Event.

                        It only makes sense that the percentage of Elites would increase as the voyages got longer. This is what everyone does, it’s that simple.

                        In contrast, let’s go back to the 7-Day Cruise in the Caribbean. This cruise has lots of Newbies and a lot more “Occasionalsies” aboard. Embark on this one and your Elite status sticks out like a whale breaching right next to the Ship!

                        You may even get your laundry back the same day!

                        We spent the last couple of days in Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

            Brasil (Brazil) is a Portuguese speaking county as it was at one time a colony of Portugal, and for a while, roles were swapped when it actually became the seat of the Kingdom of Brasil which included Portugal. That’s what happens when a monarch says, “Hey, I wanna go over there and live!” Just a note here on the Portuguese language. I don’t know why everyone has such a hard time trying to understand it! It kind of looks like Spanish, they share the same Iberian Peninsula, and they even roamed the world in conquering ships back in the day, so what’s the big deal when it comes to speaking Portuguese?

                                                Everything.

                                                I will admit that the Portuguese language has lots in common with Spanish and the other Romance-based languages…. Yes, lots …..they use the same letters.

That’s it.

                        They may as well have been speaking Wookie.

                        We are going to fast-forward through all of those Historic Periods because most of you don’t care about the dates. Rest assured, all of the usual Battles for Freedom, Battles over Land, and Battles that included disheartened Soldiers and Slaves all occurred between 1565 and the late 1800’s. Please don’t think that I think that this stuff isn’t important (you know that I do!) it’s just that I know of one other person who reads this thinks that way and You will need look it up!

                        There are just a few things that exist that can be immediately known by a one-word moniker, or mononym, and most of them are people. Cher, Madonna, Yoda, Elvis, and the list goes on, I’m sure that you get my drift here. When it comes to places, the same examples do not really work. Places have nicknames like the Big Apple, Music City, Motor City, etc. but none of them gets to be immediately known by their first name…..

                                    “Wanna come to Los with me?”

                                    “I’m heading into New, want to come?”

                                    “How do I get to Chi?”

            Now, let’s try this one…..

                                    “Hey! Wanna come to Rio with me?”

                        I’ll bet you had no problem conjuring up images of Carnaval (kar-na-vaal), colossal soccer stadiums, the Christ the Redeemer giant statue, or those incredible beaches of Ipanema and Copacabana!

And that is for a very good reason…. It deserves its own mononym!

I can tell you how cool Rio is…… the weather was far less than perfect, and we still had a great time! And the places that we went to need great weather in order to experience them at their fullest, and we still had a great time! And these places were jammed to the gills, and we still had a great time!

                        Do you get what I’m saying, or do I need to go on?

                        To add to this accomplishment, Rio did not start off on a very good foot. We had another TBL tour scheduled, and it required some initial homework on my part, that of procuring some time-sensitive tickets to the two hottest places in the city, Christ the Redeemer and Sugar Loaf Mountain. Both of these require special transportation i.e. cog railways and cable cars/gondolas in order to reach their summits. Try as I may, I was unsuccessful in procuring these Imperatives. Needless to say, our Guide, Ana Maria, was adamant about getting them procured correctly. I was envisioning a rather icy reception when we finally met, and I would need to deliver the má notíca (bad news!)

                        On top of all that, our entry into Brasil was delayed by the “Authorities” well, because……because they can! We were secured to our pier at 8am and we were told that it could take up to three hours for the Authorities to clear the ship. Which meant that our proposed 9am meeting went overboard, and all plans hinged on a new time which was a complete unknown. Even when they deemed us worthy to step on their soil (and drop a copious sum of Brazilian reáls [$$$] ) there was no way of pinpointing a new time because all 3500 passengers needed to exit the ship simultaneously! But it works like a funnel, no matter how much is up top, only a prescribed amount exits the bottom at a given time. Rats!

                        That icy reception was thankfully unavailable as nothing could have been farther from the truth!

                        After hugs-hello, Ana asked pointedly, “Did you get the tickets?” My reply was a downcast “Kinda?” She waved her arms and said, “Don’t worry, we’ll fix it when we get there.”

                        And off we went to find Carlos, our driver for the day. This guy is a Driver(!) and part-time chariot racer. It was his skill and recommendations along with Ana’s experience that got us through the day. We cannot imagine trying to accomplish this series of events ourselves. Not even a teeny-tiny bit!

                        Carlos paraded us through town as Ana described the sights to us. Our first stop on the way to the Redeemer was a set of steps that lead up to a convent and church. The world famous Esacderia Selarón or Lapa Steps (because they are located in the Lapa neighborhood) are the work of Chilean-born artist Jorge Selarón. He was a tad on the eccentric, flamboyant side, kind of like a Salvador Dali (who he even resembled). He had lived on these steps for years and in 1990 started to renovate them using whatever materials and discarded tiles that he could scrounge up locally. Interest increased and he requested that people from all over the world send him ceramic tiles from their regions and he would redesign and totally remake these steps. After twenty-three years his efforts ceased in 2013 when he was unfortunately found dead on his steps. But his Legacy is deservedly assured!

This was our first introduction to the ‘Hordes’.

Crowded would have been OK.

Shoulder to shoulder, still doable.

This (and the rest of the day) was chaotic!

 But maybe that was the needed element to put an accent on this experience. I’m positive that if you arrived early in the morning, with hints of sunlight penetrating down through the trees and buildings to the steps below, that it would have been just as impactful, but in an entirely different way. This is how and when you realize that return trips to some places are definitely warranted.

Our next destination was the Christ the Redeemer statue that sits on top of 3200’ high Mt. Corcovado, in the middle of a National Park/Forest/Jungle(?) just behind Rio de Janeiro. This project started in the early 1920’s and finished about nine years later. It is the largest Art-Deco statue in the world and is included on Modern Seven Wonders of the World list. Interestingly, the cog railroad that brings everyone to the summit was in existence before the statue was erected because the views from up on the summit warranted a way to bring folks up there.

            Luckily when we arrived there only half of the world’s population was waiting to get on the railway for their trip up to the top. Had the entire world’s population been there it would have taken a little longer. As it was, Ana did some magical thing and turned and said, “Follow me.” Being the scared and very attentive tourons that we are we never let her out of our sight and the next thing we knew we were ‘first on line’ to board the next tram. Phewf!

            The weather left something to be desired.

            That is an understatement.

            The weather could have only been worse if it had been raining.

            As it was, we were in and out of various drifting clouds that either parted for magnificent cloudy-bright views of far down below or we were surrounded by a surrealistic fog that made looking up at the Statue even more ecclesiastical. Again….. a reason to return?

                        The next item on our venture was the trickiest. The trip to, and ascent of, Sugar Loaf was questionable. This was because of the already experienced cloudy/foggy situation. While we were up at the Statue, we could gaze way down below us and see Sugar Loaf Mountain which is right next to the bay and the city.

                        It was, at that time, in the clear!

                        So, a decision was made to try for its summit!

            We arrived at the base of Sugar Loaf and Ana proceeded to get her climbing gear out of the trunk. Lines, carabiners, pitons, and hammers slung around us, we walked to the base of the almost vertical granite face and started to climb, Anna leading the way. There were fixed ropes already there which made our ascent relatively easy. We got to the top of the stairs (admit it… I had you there for minute didn’t I?) and Ana once again got us to the front of the even longer line (than we had at Christ the Redeemer) so that we could board the first of two giant high-altitude trams (think Swiss Alps) that went from the base to a south summit where we exited and went (again to head of the line) to get onto the second Tram that would carry us across a really wide and deep abyss with only the jungle below.

When we arrived at the Summit, we found a veritable small ‘town’ complete with shops, facilities and several restaurants. Ana led us to the Classic Sunset Club Urca. No, no killer whales here….Urca is the name of this particular mountain.

            Before we get to eat, I’ll answer the question that is burning in your minds. I do know that at least one of you is dying to know this so you’re all going to get the answer….

You….in the back of the room, go ahead, ask away!

“How come all those knobby-type mounds, hills, and mountains are all sticking up in all of the pictures that we see from Rio de Janeiro?”

Thank you for asking that, Karen! You get extra points for class participation! And you’ll be delighted that our old friend, Mr. Plate Tectonics, is back with us today…… (But only for a minute or two!)

The area around Rio is not that active when compared to its cousin over in Chile, but if you will notice its proximity to the coast and where it would fit into Africa when everyone was one big happy Super-paleo-continent, you can realize that there is some activity present. Couple that with a few magma-type flows way down deep which are pushing those hills and mountains up like bubbles on a well-done pizza crust, and you can now see those results in the topographical granite/gneiss features all around Rio! Throw in some good old-fashioned weathering and erosion and you’ve got some really striking geologic topography!

The reason that we needed to know all of that before we had our late lunch is because we are sitting directly on top of one of those granite knobs that are sticking out of the ground, and…… this one is sticking out to a tune of 1200 feet of elevation!

Luckily for us the entire summit of Sugar Loaf was enveloped in thick clouds!

  Ok, you’ve got us there Donny, how and why would you even consider this as lucky?

                                    Because…… same as before, we get to come back! We had a blast up there and it was a no-show-view-show! Can you even imagine how great it could be with nicer weather? We could stay up there for days! Especially if the food and beverages hold out!

                        I kid you not folks, when you see what has been constructed on the top of this knob and you start thinking about how in the world did they even get a few 2×4’s up here, never mind tools, rebar, concrete, girders, electrical equipment, supplies, and decorations! I can hear it now….

                        “Hey Mikey! (who is standing on the edge of the abyss waiting for the next worker-tram to come and get him) Where’re ya goin?”

                        “I forgot my hammer; I’ll be back in an hour or so!”

            You are totally amazed! It’s a wonder it got built at all!

We had a few burgers and fries and a special local alcoholic concoction by the name of Caipirinha which is really good and it’s a good thing that it does take a while (even with Ana leading the way) for anyone to get down as that allows a person to un-indulge before motoring away.

            Down here, (as opposed to up by Christ the Redeemer) we were a lot closer to the action of the City. Ana could pinpoint her apartment that sits right on Copacabana. Ipanema is just out of view on the other side of Copa and is now considered a tad posher than its big sister. Ms. Cabana (Copa to her friends) has the requisite hotels strung along her length which is about 5K. The Palace is the granddaddy of these havens from the real world having been here since 1923. Marelene Dietrich, Walt Disney, Princess Di, and Justin Bieber are among the many, many notables that have over the years made the Palace their home while in the city. Cementing its position in the hierarchy of not only local, but also worldwide hotels, is the handful of retail stores that can be found on the ground floor. H Stern, Sauer, (both incredible jewelry stores) and Gucci all succeed in keeping the Hoity-Toity happy.

                        After another cloud rolled by and obscured our view of Copacabana, we took the gondola back down to the mid-level where we would get another gondola that would bring us back down to city-level. When we walked to get the next cable car, we passed a line that was well over two hours in length for those folks to get from the midpoint up to the summit. It was now 5:00 pm and the last gondola down is around 8:00ish! And it wasn’t even a nice day!

                        When you spend this much time among that many people, you cannot help but notice how they are coifed. On top of that, are the folks themselves, their basic features, etc.

                                                These people here are all ‘pretty’.

                        And I mean that in all the best sense of that word, both masculine and feminine. I don’t recall another place on our planet that has produced a consistently good-looking populace. At least from what we saw and the places we went.

I will admit that we did not go to any favelas, the poorer sections of town. These neighborhoods had a dicey beginning and can still suffer a questionable reputation at times, but by and large, they are filled with good, hard-working people that are just not as fortunate as others. But they have made great strides in the past few decades with the help of a Civil Police Patrol of sorts that has lent an air of security and stability to the sections that they are located in. These favelas are kind of ‘world famous’ and there are tours that can be had that bring one through and around these sections of the city. On an interesting ‘contrary’ note, they possess the best views in town as they are mostly constructed on the hillsides of all of those knobs and hills that dot the local landscape.

There is no question that hosting the 2016 Summer Olympics had an effect on this city. Over where we were docked there was an inviting Cruise Port that at one time faced a crumbling elevated highway. Now that highway is buried in a tunnel and above it is a mass transit tramway and pedestrian mall with murals and the like connecting the areas of the Waterfront. A nifty Future Museum is adjacent to this section. Other areas of the City received some TLC as you may expect, and the results are a logistically easier city to explore.

On our second day in Rio, we just walked to a local church and then went down by the Naval Academy and waterfront. It was a hot and sticky day that did not lend itself to a lot of further exploration.

We were careful to report back to the ship well before our “All Aboard” time as we did not want to be one of those “Pier Runners” that are frantically attempting to regain the gangplank before it is retracted. Fortunately, we did have a few that were late enough for announcements to be made on board, thus assuring that the rest of the 3500 passengers were hanging on the starboard side in eager anticipation of their late arrival. When they hit the gangplank the roar of the crowd rivaled the sound of the fans in the local soccer stadium after a game-winning goal.

I am quite sure that the color on their faces was not the result of a sunburn.

                        +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 I hope that you can tell that despite the weather not being perfect, that we had a really great visit to Rio de Janeiro!

 I also hope that you understand that it is impossible to cover all aspects of a visit to a place and that any omissions are the result of my inexperience with local intricacies. I do know that most Guides will be honest with us, but few will be brutally honest when trying to put the best face on their hometowns.

I further hope that you can see the value of these visits to foreign places and are enjoying them as much as we are!

                        We have three Days at Sea before we pull into our next Port, that of Fortaleza, Brazil. The next Trivia Contest is calling us, and there are Snacks to be Eaten, so we best get going, see you around the Ship!

So here you are.

We are now back in Montevideo…. kind of.

(We are actually off of the coast of Brazil……… on our way to our next Port, Rio de Janeiro.)

            The first day that we were in Montevideo, Uruguay was on New Years Day. It was quiet to say the least. Not only was it early in the morning, but it was also a Holiday. Most places were closed but we got off the ship for a while and walked around the local streets. When we received the Itinerary from Princess, we looked at the local sights that were offered and realized that unless we were ready to travel into the interior for the day, that nothing else deemed itself “worth” the expenditure. This was any easy “walking” port so that is exactly what we did. When the Itinerary was modified later on and we found out that we were going back there a few days later, well, that meant that we could explore the first time and possibly expand it the second day.

            Why in the name of All That is Scheduled did you repeat a Port?

            I’m glad you asked that Mr. Logistical Itinerary Scheduler!

            The answer is quite simple….. I do not know.

            What?! Mr. Cruise Guy doesn’t have an answer???!!!

            Nope, but there are several things to consider and plan for when putting a Port on an Itinerary and if any of those variables change between the proposed and actual Itinerary then all bets are off and it’s Any Port in a Storm (to use a possibly bad analogy!). So, the Cruise Line needs to come to a decision, eliminate it or find an alternative port to add on, and this of course, depends on availability at the needed time. In this case, since I was not consulted, I have a guess as to what transpired. First, you need to know that this is the start of the third leg of this Voyage. This one goes from Buenos Aires back to Fort Lauderdale. This is basically a three-week cruise and as is, would have only had four Ports after the original one was cancelled (I don’t remember where it was, but it was somewhere between here and Fort Lauderdale) There was an exchange of passengers at Buenos Aires so about 1500 peeps were new and they had not been to Montevideo, so…… the Port was apparently available…… put two and two together and come up with four (for the new guys) but three for the rest of us!

                        Anyway, that’s my guess.

                        That also meant that after our first day of roaming around in Montevideo (and being satisfied with that) on top of having the previous day be an all-day boating excursion, and (I forgot to tell you) Tomas’s air conditioning was not working in his car, so all in all, it kind of whipped us. Consequently, a Day of Non-Activity was voted for by the majority of our group (2) and that’s what we did!

                        So, here are a few pics from that first day and a few “Operational Activities and Doom Practicing” by the crew pics to peruse.

                                    Thank you for your understanding.

Did I mention that on top of repeating this Port that there were two other ships in at the same time? Did you notice how small those streets and pedestrian areas were? They are quite adequate for one ship in town, two would be crowded, three is certifiably out of control. That was another reason to stay on board!

While in Port the time aboard is often utilized by the Crew for Practices and Drills. These go on all day long and they occur with a very satisfying frequency. That very last thing that we want to hear when an Emergency occurs is having a crew member utter the words….. “I wonder how this thing works?”

Hence the drills. This day’s drills included: “How to Pilot a Lifeboat in Three Easy Lessons” or “Let’s Play Bumper Boats!”

These next photos are taken from the balcony outside our stateroom

I hope that this Post was worth the wait. 😁

Thank You.