TLCOhio

The Lotus Tower is Colombo's best known landmark. At 1,153 feet tall, it is symbolic of Sri Lanka. As of 2019, the tower was the tallest self-supported structure in South Asia and the second tallest structure in South Asia. As we departed the temple, we had a perfect angle view of this landmark as it change colors from green to red to blue. AND, the sky was very perfectly clear that night offering an excellent photo opportunity to cap our first visiting time there in Colombo. During the day there, the "hazy" and/or air pollution limited it viewing quality. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

The top highlight/star for our first afternoon/evening in Sri Lanka was visiting Gangaramaya Temple. It is one of the most important temples in Colombo, being a mix of modern architecture and cultural styles. Located near the Beira Lake, it was completed in the late 19th century. The temple's architecture demonstrates a mix of Sri Lankan, Thai, Indian and Chinese styles/architecture. In addition to being behind schedule and hitting this temple as it was getting dark, the big surprise/bonus was hearing a bunch of drummers and marchers approach the temple in the street. What was happening. Pure good luck!! It was a part of welcoming ceremony for new priests. Many colorful costumes. Wonderfully exciting!! THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Athens & Greece: Visuals, details from two visits in a city and nearby with great history, culture and architecture. Now at 63,423 views. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1101008 From Colombo, Sri Lanka, here are a few sample for the wide variety of styles and designs in this large Buddhist complex.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) During this special ceremony at this famous temple, here are just samples of the various items worn and used by those participating.: Below is my attempt to export this video with one of the participants doing dramatic somersaults, back and forth as a part of this ceremony. Just click on the pointed right triangle to start the video. Hope technically this works OK. Let me know your feed-back.: IMG_0184.mov

In Colombo, Sri Lanka's largest city and center for much of their commerce and government, it is varied mix of traditional, Colonial architect combined with many news, innovative, dramatic high-rises, etc. Shifting from India's Hindu-focus, Buddhism is practiced by about 70 of the population here in Sri Lanka. BUT, there were also Christian, Muslim, etc., churches, temples, etc., that we saw. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Amazon River-Caribbean 2015 adventure live/blog starting in Barbados on the Silver Cloud for 26 days. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, San Juan, etc.). Now at 74,284 views: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2076101-live-amazon-river-caribbean-many-pix’s-terryohio/ Below is a small sampling for the old and new in Colombo, the top city in Sri Lanka. The curved building was wrapped in unique, diagonal lighting.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) The older Colonial government and commercial building are mixed in with newer high-rises. Lots of building and construction happening here.: Our late afternoon "refreshment stop" was at the Galle Face hotel overlook a large park and beach area. This iconic and colonial-style hotel, was built in 1864. Below was our sunset view from the patio where we had our tea, little sandwiches, desserts, etc. The interior flowers give a sample for the class and style of this location.:

Sorry, neither of us have had a chance to play Trivia, yet, on this sailing. Been busy, busy with other "things". Will share your friendly greeting with my wife, Penny. For our first ship's tour in Sri Lanka in the later afternoon on Feb. 17, we did "LIFE & LORE in COLOMBO": 4.5 hours. Explore the religious and cultural history of Colombo during a tour of this capital and major port city. Your half-day excursion features a scenic drive through Colombo City, and tour of the National Museum. Next, stop for refreshments at a high-end, beach front hotel, then visit the Gangaramaya Temple." Many details and visuals to share. The first challenge was the heat, 90+F, including having over an hour at the National Museum. Nice interesting collection, but it required lots of time/patience to go through BOTH levels of this un-air conditioned building. Below is an exterior view of this impressed structure built by the British in 1970, plus a small sample of their large collection.. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Venice: Loving It & Why??!! Is one of your future desires or past favorites? See these many visual samples for its great history and architecture. This posting is now at 111,257 views. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1278226 From their National Museum, with an 1870's British-era exterior, below are also a few examples of their wide-ranging collection.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) Their collection including historic items such this "olden days" fabric loom. The highlight, in my view, might have been this "throne chair" used by their past Kings. Pretty fancy? Just like what you have in your home when you give out the orders?:

Appreciate these great comment and follow-up regarding this Kalseki dining venue.. We'd like to try it later in the cruise, especially since after doing the added two days in Singapore, we will return to the USA via Tokyo and American Airlines Frequent Flyer miles. We will have two and a half days in and around Tokyo. From Feb. 18, our first day in Sri Lanka, the Silver Moon had as entertainment a fun, colorful and exciting musical/dance group on the ship to perform. How did things look? See below: We always love and appreciate when the ships brings on "local" color and entertainment. All of those attending were very impressed. Do this visuals reasonable summarize the variety of costumes, dance styles, etc.? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Sydney to NZ/Auckland Adventure, live/blog 2014 sampling/details with many exciting visuals and key highlights. On page 23, post #571, see a complete index for all of the pictures, postings. Now at 249,047 views. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1896175-solstice-live-australianzhawaii-many-pix’s-jan-20-feb-3/ Titled "Expression of Sri Lanka", these various dancers and drummers gave us an upbeat sample for local entertainment that goes back hundreds of years on the former island/colony of Ceylon.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!)

YES, available. Maybe on our second, upcoming sea-day, or that morning before we arrive in the afternoon in Thailand. In suite 657. Let me know what works best for you. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

That Goa tour we did was titled with this background: "GOA HIGHLIGHTS with LUNCH at SPICE PLANTATION: 7 hours, An overview of Goa. Visit some beautifully preserved Catholic churches with impressive old architecture as you are taken back in time to the 16th century. Proceed to travel away from the city through small towns and villages. Amidst lush green surroundings visit a typical Hindu village dedicated to Goddess Durga and later a spice plantation. Take a guided walk through the trees as you smell, taste and learn about the myriad spices for which India is renowned. Points of interest seen on this excursion include: UNESCO World Heritage churches and convents, Hindu temple, spice farm, local lunch. Start: 9 am till 4 pm. Difficulty: Moderate Activity. $99 value." Excellent question. Keep 'em coming!! That tour worked fairly well, especially compared to some of our other, later excursions that had some aspects of "average", too much riding time in a bus and/or being a little disorganized. More on that later. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise from Copenhagen, July 2010, to the top of Europe. Scenic visuals with key tips. Live/blog at 250,568 views. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1172051-livesilver-cloud-norway-coastfjords-july-1-16-reports/

YES!! My fat-finger, bad eyesight goof. 518 is the correct number. Will be somewhat off-line for the next two days given two, back-to-back, ten-hour tours in Sri Lanka. Lots to catch up and share during the upcoming two sea day. Thanks. Enjoy. Terrry

Our first stops that morning on February 6 in Delhi were driving past some of the older forts/palaces and then arriving in the area of the Red Fort and India's largest Mosque that can hold up to 100,000 people in its large courtyard. See some of my visual sampling below that have not previously been posted here. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Amazon River-Caribbean 2015 adventure live/blog starting in Barbados on the Silver Cloud for 26 days. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, San Juan, etc.). Now at 74,284 views: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2076101-live-amazon-river-caribbean-many-pix’s-terryohio/ Here are some images of the Red Fort and the Jama Masjid in Old Delhi. This mosque was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan between 1644 and 1656 as a symbol for Muslim/Islam power in that period and well into the later colonial period. The mosque and Red Fort are next door to the Chandni Chowk, the oldest and busiest market area where we next explored.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!)

As we approach our afternoon arrival in Sri Lanka's Capital City of Colombo, I am now going back with more depth, detail and "color" for our arrival in India. It started with American Airlines flights from Ohio to New York City. Then arrival in Delphi to start our private tour of the famed "Golden Triangle". See more below. Feel free to ask any questions and/or add in about your experiences in these three cities of Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. More photos and details will be added later today and after doing our two and a half days in Sri Lanka. After the former Ceylon, we will have two and a half sea-day. More time to catch up and share more. Like the plan? Sorry, have hundreds and hundreds of visuals to check, fine-tune and only focus on sharing the "Best of the Best" for pictures in this amazing and fascinating country that is now the world's largest at 1.4 billion people. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Venice: Loving It & Why??!! Is one of your future desires or past favorites? See these many visual samples for its great history and architecture. This posting is now at 111,257 views. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1278226 Our February 2024 "Around the World" adventure started in New York City, flying over Manhattan and Brooklyn enroute to JFK air where an American Airlines' 777 like shown below would take us to Delhi with about 14.5 hours of flight time.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) The Taj Mahal New Delhi on Mansingh would be our first stop in India and we were fortunately staying on the top floor with access to the Taj Club for breakfast and afternoon tea, etc., during our three days in this huge and super busy city. First shown below were the two ladies welcoming us at check-in that first evening, then more visual samples from this amazingly high-quality hotel. Excellent, friendly, helpful staff with first-class design details, etc., as the below pictures can verify and prove.: After sleeping in slightly to recover from the long flight to India, we met our wonderful and super skilled guide, Parveen Paul, in the lobby of the colorful Taj hotel lobby. Parveen and our skilled driver were with us for six amazing days. Our Golden Triangle tour was arranged through Ganeve Rajkotia in Delhi with Nexxtop India. I will explain more later as to how I hooked up with Ganeve. That was a great connection that made all of the difference in having the same experienced team traveling with us for all of these six days. And not having to drive here, keep us alive and safe in areas where traffic is both "creative" and chaotic. Is that an understatement for traffic in the major cities of India?:

Love this above fun, great (and true) comment about the pool deck chairs. On the first sea-day, the competition for prime seating around and near the pool could be challenging. Glad the "Great Banana Debate" has been settled thanks to Billc23 from New Hampshire. Now, I will not have to worry any more for that issue. But on technology, I assume those on the non-premium ship Internet will have to learn to live without YouTube for this cruise. Right? I think I can survive!! THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Sydney to NZ/Auckland Adventure, live/blog 2014 sampling/details with many exciting visuals and key highlights. On page 23, post #571, see a complete index for all of the pictures, postings. Now at 248,606 views. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1896175-solstice-live-australianzhawaii-many-pix’s-jan-20-feb-3/ After our Cochin boat tour around their busy harbor, the ship excursion finished with a Kathakali "dance" performance. To be "kind" it was "different". They switched from the originally-promised Taj Malabar hotel location to another secondary location in a small, crowded, narrow, long room that did not allow good viewing for the first half when the performer just sat there on a chair doing various hand and face expressions. The second part warmed up a little, but there was not much "dance". Interesting, colorful costumes and make-up as my visuals illustrate. The Taj hotel is undergoing some major renovations and looks interesting from the outside.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!)

Earlier, I promised to post updated and detailed counts for the passenger and staff nationalities. Got it yesterday from the CD. Here are the specifics: Total passenger count of 418 from 45 different nationalities. Leading the way, maybe a slight surprise, is the UK with 241 on-board. Second is the USA at 148. Victory by a wide margin to the UK!! Germany is third with 29, Australia at 27, Belgium 15, Switzerland and Netherlands each at nine, Canada eight, Austria and Spain five, France four, Ireland three, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Mexico and Russia all at two, plus one each from India, Luxembourg, Ukraine and South Africa at one each. Interesting passenger mix?? The crew totals 400 from 45 nationalities. As expected, Philippines leads with 155, India is second with 88. Next are Indonesia at 33, Italy 14, South Africa 12, Ukraine nine, Zimbabwe eight, Brazil and Bulgaria both at five, Germany, Honduras, Hungary, Mauritius, Mexico, Peru, Tunisia and the UK all at four. At three each are Argentina, Morocco and Nepal; at two each are Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Thailand, Uganda and USA. At one each are seventeen different countries, including that single crew member from Belgium, Canada, China, France, Serbia and Sri Lanka. Lots of folks with varied and interesting backgrounds/history. We enjoy chatting with the staff and passengers. Yesterday morning I chat with the sub-Captain, number two in charge for the whole ship. Both he and the Captain are from Bulgaria. Interesting to have both from the same country. He explained that the ship, after the fuel fill-up in Malta sailed on just that one tank full to Cape Town. As someone who followed the daily Africa circumnavigation closely, I asked about the stop along the western coast in Dakar. He said that was not for fuel, but for medical reasons to let off an ill staff member. That staffer departing there was OK, flew to Cape Town and rejoined the Silver Moon at that South Africa location. The bottom line is this ship can sail at least sixteen days on one complete re-fueling. Therefore, no fuel challenges for the Silver Moon going non-stop from Cape Town to Mumbai. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise from Copenhagen, July 2010, to the top of Europe. Scenic visuals with key tips. Live/blog at 250,332 views. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1172051-livesilver-cloud-norway-coastfjords-july-1-16-reports/ Below are some visuals from our Cochin boat tour around their busy harbor, including for seeing their famed fishing nets that go long back in their history of this region.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!)

Great tip from Wes to catch Jonathan's show. I especially love Sinatra medley, including NY, NY. Plus, of course, "My Way"!! Will share Dr. Ron's greeting to the CD. Will check more later as to the good Star Link question. Keep 'em coming with the comments, questions, greetings, etc. We have now departed India and will arrive later this afternoon in Sri Lanka. Below is the current ship position. We are traveling at 17.8 knots. Seas are rated "moderate", Not totally smooth, nor rough. As to the banana question from savvy Fletcher for my dinner at La Terrazza, I don't think that was such a fruit. It was either a curved carving of a potato or maybe Spin's guess of polenta. There was so much food, even with our limited ordering that night, that I focused on the meat and sauce, not that little extra "dressing" on the top. Below are some night top deck view of the Silver Moon, plus an exterior visual of the front while docked in Cochin. Plus, a surprise "entertainment" show as the pilot boat came next to the ship right below our sixth floor cabin in order to pick up that port sailing guide as the Silver Moon was completing its sail-away. My iPhone camera worked fairly well capturing that night "action". Right? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Barcelona/Med: June 2011, with stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Great visuals with key highlights, tips, etc. Live/blog now at 257,791 views. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1362155-solstice-livefirst-timer-reportspix’s-italycroatian-june-7-19/ Here is how the pool area looked at night yesterday from the 11th level with people doing The Grill being below. Second is the nicely-lighted ship logo.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) Here is the angled front of the Silver Moon while docked yesterday in Cochin's busy port. Second is the Celebrity ship that docked next to us in this port as it was departing late afternoon.: Right below our balcony suite last night, we had a front-row seat to watch the pilot be picked up after the sail-away process was completed. Fascinating process that requires skill and close coordination. Notice the busy container ship operations around this Cochin port?:

Yes, will try to share with Jeffrey. On my laptop from our suite with it being on YouTube, it does not seem to work, but it might off of my cell phone. Apparently the ship Internet has YouTube block. Not 100% sure. Will double-check. DINNER LAST NIGHT? Yes, we did just fine at La Terrazza, doing that dinner venue for the first time on this cruise. Dine outside and enjoyed the ocean sounds and views. Need proof and visual evidence for the food? See below. Plus, the view from our room as the sun was setting is shown, too. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Sydney to NZ/Auckland Adventure, live/blog 2014 sampling/details with many exciting visuals and key highlights. On page 23, post #571, see a complete index for all of the pictures, postings. Now at 248,606 views. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1896175-solstice-live-australianzhawaii-many-pix’s-jan-20-feb-3/ Here is last night's sunset view from our balcony.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) From La Terrazza, here is first the sampling tray brought prior to ordering. That's almost a whole meal in itself. My first item was some wonderfully taste Risotto, then my favorite of Ossobuco. Can you guess this Italian dessert? Does it start with the letter of my first name and seems to be spelled like Tiramisu?:

Yes, as I have chatted with him several times, Jonathan seems very nice, approachable, open, listening, hard-working, etc. He'll do a solo show later in the cruise featuring his excellent singing voice. Below are a couple of visuals of the Cruise Director on stage last night, plus another visual while his running a very busy and well-attended Trivia session in the Dolce Vita area. Recognize anyone in the crowd at Trivia? Or, any "most wanted" there from the "Witness Protection" program? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Dubrovnik! Visual samples, tips, details, etc., for this super scenic and historic location. Over 52,917 views. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439227

Talked more last night before the show with Jeffrey. Yes, he still does do that show at times in the Panorama Lounge. I showed him the picture of him serving me that I posted here on Cruise Critic. He loved it!! I told him that if any Hollywood talent scouts call me, would he allow me to be his official agent and take a 10% commission. He agreed. No calls, yet, but ready to get him in the movies and/or on TV with his winning personality and fun style. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Kotor/Montenegro: Various visual samples, tips, details, etc., for this scenic, historic location. Over 54,648 views. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1439193

To update my jumbled memory, the exact customer count for those boarding at Mumbai for passengers is 514. Some did cancel, a few others had late health and/or visa issues happen, etc. I know of one UK lady who had a visa/health question in Mumbai, had her bags delivered to in her cabin, but the Indian officials would not allow her to board. She has supposedly flown to Cochin and will be boarding here today. Maybe?? Hopefully!! These health/visa issues do happen and can be complicated. CD Jonathan Shade is getting me the exact list for the numbers from each different country and will share later. Also learned last night from the CD that there will no guest lecturers/speakers on board for this now-shortened 15-day cruise. Jonathan said several had been booked, but cancelled as scheduled got adjusted. They tried to find replacements but either schedules and/or visas could not be arranged. For me, the ship speakers are one of the top highlights during such sailings with Silversea and other cruise lines. The SALT manager will do a couple of programs, but that is not quite the same thing as we have previously enjoyed. Below are some visuals where the Assistant CD, Sashell Beck, a former Voices of Silversea, did a nice program featuring "Opera Meets Broadway". CD Jonathan came out for one of the songs and did a nice duet displaying his excellent vocal talents, too! See more at the bottom of this post. Sashell grew up in California near Pasadena and now lives in Germany seeking to gain more opera-connected singing performances. Nice dress and jewelry?? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Here's Jeffrey, my number one, top, most favorite server in the fifth floor Dolce Vita bar area of the Silver Moon. My margarita came, exactly as request, frozen with salt, etc. What's better? And, Jeffrey excellent, super fun personality makes it all TOTALLY WONDERFUL!! Any past Silversea cruisers remember Jeffrey? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

There around 540 passengers on this cruise. UK outnumbers USA folks by about 240 to 140. From Australia, it was 25 as the number. That adds to the FUN!! The Cruise Director announced the first night the exact numbers and said he would send them to me. Very "international" group of nice and interesting people. Will send the exact numbers when the CD gets them to me. Good, interesting comments from David in the UK. Will have more to share later. Sorry, did not have dinner on our balcony at the Oberoi. But, I gained many nice sunset and sunrise picture of this "icon" from our location. The Taj Mahal is not lighted at night, so the balcony experience might have been limited. Ate downstairs at their main dining area. Good food!! Classic location and style. Great service at this amazing hotel. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Here are some additional visuals from the Silver Moon, exploring this ship in the afternoon of this first sea-day that is somewhat "fresh/different" for us. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Canada 2022/2023: Scenic visuals, details from Canada Maritimes (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton Island). Plus, new from Aug. 2023, exploring historic/charming Quebec City. Visual/Info Summaries: www.flickr.com/photos/196555480@N08/albumsmmer Here are three visuals from the Arts Cafe and its unique interior styles/art, casual dining options, etc.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) For La Dame, here are few design samples, including for the unique glass art works.: At the Panorama Lounge, Rakesh is ready to fulfill our beverage needs, plus this afternoon, the outdoor deck area was very "private" and not in any way crowded. Plus, the famous Silversea orchids are there and at other locations throughout the ship.:

Here are a few visuals from the Silver Moon, exploring this ship that is "new" for us. As noted below, we did the Silver Muse in the summer of 2019, but not this more recent class of ship/design with new features and styles. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Summer 2019 Calgary, Jasper/Banff National Parks, Western Canada Rocky Mountaineer rail adventure, Vancouver, sailing up to Alaska on Silver Muse, post-cruise excursion to Denali, etc. Many visuals, Our firsts in these scenic areas! Now at 20,657 views. Live/blog: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2682584-live-terryohio-silver-muse-alaska-canadarockies-pix’s/ This morning when doing breakfast, my wife discovered the La Terrazza area doing the juice mixes. Serving her, as I recall, is Pranab.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) Below at lunch are some pool visual samples, including for a bar where they are ready and well-stocked. Today on this sea-day, they had a special buffet at lunch in addition the regular burgers, chicken, etc.: Here are some visual samples for the art and "looks" in and around the stair areas on the Silver Moon.: Tonight on the first of three planned "formal" nights for the Silver Moon, we are scheduled to dine at La Terrazza. This area definitely looks larger on the Moon compared to the Muse and the earlier, older ships. For lunch today, these visuals offer some examples of the friendly staff and the set-up/sweet offerings. Shown in the middle picture is Jack Buttle who is campaigning to be ranked as the best dining room manager in the world. We'll see how he does this evening! Right?:

Here are a few more visuals from yesterday in Goa during our first excursion from the Silver Moon. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio From late 2018, see “Holy Lands, Egypt, Jordan, Oman, Dubai, Greece, etc.”, with many visuals, details and ideas for the historic and scenic Middle East. Now at 22,402 views. Connect at: www.boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2607054-livenautica-greece-holy-lands-egypt-dubai-terrypix’s/ As we made our landing off of the Silver Moon, here was the local welcoming band.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) Views on the way to these two famed Catholic Churches and nearby.: More from the Goddess of Peace Temple.: Here our expert guide explained the details for growing and producing the different types of pepper produced in this region. Plus, learning more for the other types of spices coming from India. Second is what a shell looks like in producing one of my favorites . . . cashews!:

Well summarized above by Stickman1990. We would have loved to havedone and added the National Park location for tiger spotting, etc. But, however, our time and money were not unlimited. Nor, have we won the MegaMillions Lottery, yet, maybe? Sure glad with did the Golden Triangle, especially for Jaipur, which was super wonderful way above expectations. From yesterday's tour, we saw two of the top Catholic churches in this area with its unque history from more than 400 years of Portugal ruling and control here. Our first stop was the Basilica of Bom Jesus. It is visited mainly for the precious relic it contains. Hereyou can view the body of Saint Francis Xavier (d.1562), which lies partially exposed in a silver casket. Sorry, no pictures were allowed inside this well-crafted, red stone church The Se, or St. Catherine's Cathedral, was commissioned to be "a grandiose church worthy of the wealth, power and fame of the Portuguese who dominated the seas from the Atlantic to the Pacific." This white church shown below was the largest Catholic Church built by the Portuguese in Asia. Per Wikipedia, Goa is India's smallest state by area and its fourth-smallest by population. Goa has, however, the highest GDP per capita among all Indian states, two and a half times as high as the GDP per capita of the country as a whole, rating it as having the best quality of life in India. The Portuguese invaded Goa in 1510, defeating the Bijapur Sultanate. The Portuguese rule lasted for about 450 years, and heavily influenced Goan culture, cuisine, and architecture. Vasco da Gama commanded the first circumnavigation of Africa, relying on stories and maps from earlier Portuguese voyages. THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Amazon River-Caribbean 2015 adventure live/blog starting in Barbados on the Silver Cloud for 26 days. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, San Juan, etc.). Now at 74,092 views: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2076101-live-amazon-river-caribbean-many-pix’s-terryohio/ There are two different Catholic churches at this location. Both large and with so much significant history, especially as relates to its Portugal connections. These Catholic churches together form a UNESCO World Heritage Site, reflecting the Catholic influence on Asia from these colonial periods starting in the early 1500's.: (Open your screen/viewer wider to see these visuals larger/better!) And this Hindi Temple.: Here is a friendly local offering her treats at this temple.: From the Spice Plantation where we had lunch, here were a few visual and colorful highlights. It was hot, HOT yesterday afternoon: Goa is famed for its amazing beach. Here is a quick sample as we drove back to the ship. Sorry about the window reflections on the glass.: And, then there is the return to the Silver Moon and climbing back up those stairs after a long and heated excursion to sample a small part of Goa.:

From our major and exciting day in Jaipur, the Pink City, it's amazing. Need proof? Below are just a small sampling of the day's experiences. Recognize some of the Jaipur locations and experiences? At a nearby elephant rescue location, my wife got "up close and personal" with this amazing and fun creature. We fed her bananas, sugar cane and learned the differences for elephants in India versus Africa.: And here are a couple of night-time visuals from Jaipur, including Prince of Wales/Albert Hall and then a sunset view of a famed ruler from this area's colorful history.: THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio Lisbon, NWSpain, Bordeaux/Brittany: Live/blog, June 2017 from Portugal to France along scenic Atlantic Coast on the Silver Spirit. Now at 34,457 views. Many pictures, details for history, food, culture, etc.: www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2511358

Here are four quick visual samples from our journey from Agra to Jaipur. This includes of Agra's Red Fort. We stayed and super enjoyed in the "Pink City" for two days prior to flying via Air India to Mumbai on the 11th. Look interesting? THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio AFRICA?!!?: Fun, interesting visuals, plus travel details from this early 2016 live/blog. At 55,670 views. Featuring Cape Town, South Africa’s coast, Mozambique, Victoria Falls/Zambia and Botswana's famed Okavango Delta. www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2310337