bettty45

OK...maybe we are the minority...but really don't care if we get towel animals. When we do, which by the way is every cruise, we tell them to recycle it in another room and that we do not want them to take their valuable time doing this for us...we would rather they go in town earlier and enjoy time off. Only our opinion.

We agree :)

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Agree with Coral.

I agree too.

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We just spent 15 days in 1946. There was little to no engine noise. It was a wonderful location!! That being said we were in 1824 for 7 weeks in the fall and loved that location too.

 

 

 

Cheers, Denise

Thank you so much for the info. It's good to know you loved the location. I appreciate you responding.

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I'm about to spend two weeks in 1964, the very last cabin aft on this deck. Spent 70 days there on a Grand Voyage a few years ago. Engine noise not an issue.

 

 

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Oh perfect!!!! Thank you for that information. We currently have a very quiet inside location and we don't want to trade it for an outside room if that room will be noisy!! Are you on the Grand Asia?

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Yes. There are 2 back doors, port and starboard to a small aft deck where you can watch the wake. There may or may not be lounger chairs there, sometimes, but it varies. It's also accessible from the the lower promenade deck just above via a staircase. m--

Do any of you know about rooms on the lower deck with windows? We are thinking of upgrading to a window in room 1950 but we are worried about engine noise being so far aft? I have tried to research some of these rooms but no reviews on them. Thanks!!

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We have cruised enough with HAL to achieve 5-star status, took half of the GWV in 2014 and again in 2017 and have experienced the decline in the product that Bill and Mary Ann mentioned. I feel it is a waste of time to complain about it. We vote with our feet. Our next cruise will be on the Diamond Princess.

We have had some wonderful cruises on Princess too. The food was amazing, great entertainment and wonderful staff and accommodations. The beds and pillows were some of the best!!

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It is interesting that a letter from his office had so many typos such as two or three words running together without any spacing!

 

We all recognize "form letters". While it is appropriate that they respond' date=' it is disappointing the letter is almost patronizing.

 

Thank you Bill and Mary Ann for all your blogs, photos, and comments. The are truly appreciated.

 

Regards,

 

Puddles' splashes[/quote']

 

 

 

My thoughts exactly

 

 

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For those who are interested, this is the response wereceived from the Office of the President of HAL in regards to our final reportof the changes we noticed while sailing on this year’s world cruise. In our opinion, their comments are no moreand no less than what we expected to hear.

 

 

 

If their promise to share our comments with the appropriatedepartment heads for consideration, then perhaps we did our job well. Time will tell…..

 

 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

 

 

 

May 23, 2017

 

Thank you for contacting Mr. Orlando Ashford regarding your2017 ms Amsterdam Grand World Voyage. Mr. Ashford has reviewed yourfeedback and as President’s Club members, has asked me to respond directly toyou on his behalf.

 

 

 

It is always important for a company such as ours to knowthe areas in which we are meeting and exceeding guest expectations and thoseareas in which additional attention or change is needed. We greatly appreciate yourtime in bringing to our attention the constructive comments and suggestionsgiven only for our benefit; especially knowing that as long time cruisers withour line, you have experienced many changes throughout the years. Weacknowledge that, especially on long voyages that attract many long-timeMariners such as the Grand World Voyage, our Mariners do appreciate thelong-standing traditions Holland America Line is known for. While we do work tokeep many of these traditions alive, we also work to offer variety and freshnew alternatives that keep our sailings evolving.

 

 

 

It is important to note that our cruisers have a wide rangeof interests and abilities and we do strive to offer something for everyone *and understand that some of our offerings do not fit the needs of some;however, feedback is important in choosing what aspects are embraced by most.We have compiled your detailed comments and shared them with the variousmembers of senior management as they constantly work to improve upon the serviceswe offer in all aspects of a guest’ssailing.

 

 

 

Thank you again for contacting us. On behalf of Mr. Ashford,we look forward to welcoming you aboard another sailing very soon. Until then,we wish you all the best.

 

 

 

Kind regards,

 

Daphney

 

Special Advisor

 

Office of the President

It would be great if you would get a response on the particular items at some point and not just a response saying they got your letter.

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Easy ETA @ $9.99 USD per person. I've used them twice before with no problems & will be using again this December.

 

 

 

https://easyeta.com/

 

 

 

Be well.

 

Bob:)

 

 

 

(we'll be taking our first Princess cruise (Dec.TA aboard the Pacific Princess, followed by a HAL WC: can't wait!)

Hi Bob, I've been trying to get on touch with you. There are about 5 couples from AZ that are meeting about the Grand Asia cruise. Can you please email me and I'll catch you up to speed?? Bettty45@gmail.com

Thank you. Beth Davis

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Happy to add it for you Strath :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks betty45. Why it's always best to specify the # of days. There are 2 Grand Asia's :o

 

 

 

I'll move you to the 80 day one.

Thank you and Bettty has three T's. :)

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Please correct mine. Bettty45 is my CC name. Going on 80 day Oct 1, 2017 Grand Asia Amsterdam You have me for 30 day segment. Thank you !!

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I love to travel vicariously through the blogs many put together, but yours is by far my most favorite and the one I never miss. Thank you for your generosity of time and effort to bring us along.

Thank you for your reply. I look forward to reading you summary of the changes. Also do you know the name of the artist in residence that was on your cruise this time? Beth

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Report # 130 SailingTowards San Francisco, California May9, 2017 Tuesday Partly cloudy & 72 degrees

 

 

 

We had a pleasant day as the ship steered northwesterlyalong the coast of Baja California. The temperatures have dropped even more since yesterday, as we suspected. But then, so has the humidity. Many folks we talked to are pleased that thesticky, humid weather has been left behind.

 

 

 

Barbara H has continued her talks which today included one onSan Francisco, a city that is near and dear to our hearts. Born and raised in the city by the bay, ithas been the center of our world with family and friends either living in or onthe outskirts of the city. Despiteknowing every nook and cranny, we still like to listen to her lectures. Of course, the bottom line, is selling thetours, of which there are only 2 offered. That is kind of interesting since the scheduled stay there is from 8amto 11pm. Perhaps the tour booklet thecollector voyage guests get is different from the continuing guests. Anyway, there is a scenic city tour for 3 ½ hoursfor $65, and the hop-on, hop-off bus for 2 ½ hours. That was $45. Finally, a tour of the city with a transfer to the airport for 4 ½ hoursfor $104 works well for disembarking guests with late flights. One funny thing that is mentioned in eachdescription is the fact that fog may obstruct the views. Oh, do we remember that well…..

 

 

 

The Mexican Ambassadors are still onboard with music anddancing in the Lido Pool area, and later on they were teaching how to shopusing the Spanish language. ExecutiveChef Petr turned up the heat in the Culinary Center with a cooking show. He is the most approachable and friendly chefwe have known for a long time. Passionate about food, he loves to talk the trade. Thanks to him, he has explained many of theproblems that have cropped up with the stoppage of the BBQ’s onboard and someof the buffets we used to have. Alsointeresting is the fact that the HALships cannot take produce onboard from many countries we have recentlyvisited. For instance, some of the SouthAmerican countries as well as Central American nations where some of the nicestproduce grows, is no longer available to HAL ships. All of the fresh producehas to be sent via containers. The few exceptions that we noticed was fresh fishcatch of the day, particularly on the world cruise, was allowed to be broughton for the guests.

 

 

 

We enjoyed a cheeseburger and a hot dog from the Dive-InGrill, except we took it to our room to eat. Mostly because there happened to be a really good movie on TV called TheEagle Huntress. It was actually more ofa documentary of a 13 year old girl who trained to become the first female tobecome a huntress using a trained eagle in Mongolia. Excellent story as well as scenery in a mostdesolate part of the world. The funnything was that this movie was shown in the Wajang, but also televised, probablyby accident. Should have been on TVtomorrow. Oh well…lucky for us..

 

 

 

Between walks on the promenade and packing, the day flewby. Visiting with friends passed therest of the day until dinnertime. Tonightwas the final gala evening for those of us that are leaving in a few days. We have noticed that there has not been anycaviar or escargots on this two week trip, but we guess that only happens onGrand Voyages. The entrees tonightincluded rack of veal, which we both ordered. It was tasty and tender, but way too much food. Had to save room for flourless chocolate cakeand an ice cream sundae. One more nightof desserts, and that will be it for sweets, at least until we come back inJuly for two weeks.

 

 

 

The show tonight was the Talk of the Town, as performed bythe Amsterdam’s singers and dancers. Good music from the big artists of the not-so-distantpast was as good as the first time we saw this performance.

 

 

 

And the good thing was that the clocks went back one hourtonight. We are finally on Pacific timenow, and very close to have gone full circle, ending where we began thisjourney on New Year’s Day.

 

 

 

 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Thank you for all the time and effort you put into giving us so much enjoyment. I hope you enjoyed every moment. Hope we meet someday.

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You beat me to it - I was going to ask the same question about the Neptune Suite and first day lunch in the dining room. Looking forward to the answer.

 

 

 

Want to ask about being a "1 star Mariner"...I thought I've read that they don't count CCL voyages any longer...? Do we just tell them our CCL status/number at time of booking?

I would like to know if they count our Carnival status as well.

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What room have you been on for this journey? We have an inside room for the Grand Asia but are looking at a window. Just wondering about the location of window rooms and if some are in areas that might be in noisy areas. Can you advise us?

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Sounds like a spectacular day for you!! Our trip in Dec thru the canal was lovely weather but once we got into the Caribbean it was rough seas and very windy and hot.

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Great as always!! What was the name of the artist in residence? Sounds like you will soon be grieving the end of this wonderful adventure. Are you in the Grand Asia in October of this year?

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Thanks for that info :). Hope I get to see them!!

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Report #109 Funchal,Madeira, Portugal April 18, 2017 Tuesday Partly cloudy & 73 degrees Part #1 Of 4 87 Pictures

 

 

 

This morning we woke up early to see the tiny, glitteringlights on the hillside city of Funchal as we entered the harbor well beforesunrise around 7am. What a perfect wayto start the day, which happened to be a birthday for one of us. Our final port of this voyage, it is also oneof favorite ones.

 

 

 

Funchal is the capital of the island of Madeira, which ispart of the country of Portugal. Thepopulation of Portugal, including these islands, is 10,708,000 natives thatspeak Portuguese and Mirandese. Portugalis known for palm trees, plazas, bright-colored houses, and ivory whitedomes. The streets of the cities arefilled with cobblestone lanes, complete with boutiques, bars, and restaurants. You will also find medieval castles,white-washed villages, wine estates, and cork groves. There are granite peaks, lush inner valleys,and virgin forests. The people areexuberant, family-oriented, and passionate about food. Right up our alley…..

 

 

 

The best time to visit is from March to June, then September. If you want to bake in the sun, come in Julyand August….sizzling.

 

 

 

Things to see are Lisbon’s Castelo de Sao Jorge, Torre deBelem – the famous iconic monument in Lisbon, as well as modern art and Moorisharchitecture. Palaces in Sintra, aUNESCO World Heritage Site, and the walled 14th century Evora.

 

 

 

Things to do include discovering boutiques in dusty alleyswith bars, restaurants, and clubs in cool Lisbon. Or see Moorish old timer Alfama inLisbon. See the dramatic cliffs,scalloped bays, and gold sand beaches on the Algarve. Or tour a port wine lodge in Porto and hikerugged peaks in Parque National de Peneda-Gieres.

 

 

 

How about the food? Eatcaldeirada, a seafood stew, or cataplana, a seafood and rice stewed in a copperpot. Drink lots of wine with your mealssuch as a vintage port from Douro Valley.

 

 

 

Trademarks are fado? (not sure what that is??), football(Ronaldo, who we saw today at C7 in Funchal), salted cod, cork, and wine(Madeira wine).

 

 

 

An old Portuguese saying about four of the largest citiesis: Porto works, Coimbra studies, Bragaprays, and Lisbon plays.

 

 

 

Finally, Funchal is an island of Madeira and is locatednorth of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. A year-round resort, this island firstsettled with Portuguese citizens in the 15th century. These days, Funchal welcomes more cruiseships that any other port in Portugal, or in the other archipelago of theAzores. More than one million touristsvisit here annually. And we are happy tobe in those numbers.

 

 

 

Madeira happens to be volcanic with the last recordederuption 6000 years ago. Because it isvolcanic, it has the best growing conditions for growing wine grapes, amongother produce.

 

 

 

We hear that if you visit here during New Year’s Day, youwill treated to the largest fireworks show in the world, making the 2006Guiness World Records. There is a sloganadopted by the citizens: Madeira is gold…it’ssea, nature, silence, hospitality. It’sblue, a source of energy that never runs out 365 days a year. And according to the World Travel Awards in2015, Madeira is considered to be the world’s leading island destination.

 

 

 

Tours offered here today were a drive to see Cabo Girao at1902 feet high – the tallest sea cliff in Europe, and the second largest in theworld. Camara de Lobos is the fishingvillage where Winston Churchill spent a lot of time relaxing and painting. Funchal’s Botanic Gardens contain over 2000plants with spectacular views of Funchal. A drive to Pico do Arieiro at 5937feet in elevation is thrilling, while a visit to Monte Village is a must. There is an exciting toboggan sleigh ride intraditional basket sledges that dates back to the early 1800’s. Back then it was a quick transport for theworkers to the port. There are tworunners dressed in white that drive the sleigh, wearing “straw boaters”(traditional hats) for a 2 kilometer, 10 minute ride with speeds that canexceed 30 kilometers per hour. It was so fun, we did it twice over the years. There is a cable car ride up to Monte, a tripthrough Farmer’s Market, and a tour of the city center. And also wine tasting. The tours run from 3 ½ to 7 ½ hours for $55to $130 per person.

 

 

 

What did we do? Well,none of the above, since we have done it all several times over the years.

 

 

 

After breakfast, we got off of the ship by 10am. The weather seemed about perfect, with thesun mostly out. It was also humid, whichwas probably due to the damp fog that kept creeping over the tops of thecliffs. Although there was acomplimentary shuttle to the downtown area, we have always walked from the shipto town and back. We would do the sametoday.

 

 

 

We were the only cruise ship in port today, although therewas the local ferry that we always see here. This was nice, because the city did not seem over-crowded today. We made our way out of the terminal, werehanded excellent maps, then walked the water front towards the avenue along thesea. Passing the marina, we noticed thatthere were gelaterias, restaurants, and harbor boat rides. Nothing was opened yet, but the prices andtimes for the dolphin-watching boats and catamarans were 25 to 30 euro for 2 ½ to3 hour tours. Seem to recall that we didsee dolphins on our way out of the harbor last year.

 

 

 

The two hop on, hop off buses were accessed at the marinaalso. The tickets for these rides were15 to 20 euro, and 13 to 22 euro, depending on the route you wished totake. In this town, theses buses are areally good way to go. Running into friends,90 plus year old Eddie and Lee, they told us they had taken the free shuttle,then walked all this way to find the large veggie and fish market. But first, Eddie asked us to take theirpicture with his cameras. Besides a cell phone, and a small camera, Eddie usesan ipad. Since we don’t own one, it isdifficult for us to see the screen or the button to push. Lee always laughs because she admits she doesnot like it, nor does she know how to use it. Ending up using their cellphone, we were successful in getting theperfect picture of them. Later on, wedid run into them at the Farmers Market.

 

 

 

Continuing on or way, we ended up at Plaza do Povo where thereis room for special events, we are guessing.

 

 

 

The next landmark was Plaza da Autonomia and the river outlet.Near this is a small and large rocky beach, where sunbathers and a few swimmerswere enjoying what there was of the morning sun. There is no way that laying on those rocks iscomfortable, unless you are a lizard heating up for the day.

 

 

 

A better choice of activities has to be the cable car orTeleferico that takes the visitors up to the village of Monte, 1800 feet above thesea. The cost of a one way ride is 11 euro, while a round trip adventure is 16euro. Usually there is a long line toget tickets, but today, it looked like you could walk right into their basestation, and get right on. We have takenthis ride, as well as the one that starts at the Botanic Gardens….both arereally thrilling.

 

 

 

Continuing on, we ended up at the Forte de San Tiago, whereit costs 3 euro to tour. Frankly, mostof the best photos are taken from the outside. There is a little swim clubhere, and a few brave locals were swimming in the boat launch marina. They certainly are a hearty breed of people. Next to the mustard-colored fort isRestaurante do Forte, a ship-recommended upscale dining in the Old Town.

 

 

 

This led us to the Socorro area, Old Town, where betweentiny cafes and shops, there are painted doors reminiscent of the past. Checking the menus at the cafes, we foundthat besides Portuguese entrees, there were many pizza places. Little was open this early, but it is alwayson option to remember.

 

 

 

We back-tracked to the Mercado dos Lavrodores or the FarmersMarket. It is housed in a two storybuilding with a central patio full of flowers, veggies, and the chance to buyseeds, bulbs, and flowers native to Madeira. Many of the varieties of protea, bird of paradise, and hydrangeas aregrown and sold here. The only problemfor us is that we are forbidden to bring these items back to the USA. Packages seeds are OK to bring, but we havenever had any success in getting anything to germinate at home. Best to onlytake photos.

 

 

 

We headed directly downstairs to see the working fishmarket, but only for as long as we could take the smell. Among the large fish like tuna, swordfish,and shark, there are some unique eels and long fish that we only see here inthe Madeira Islands. One such creatureis the marbled moray eel at 31 inches long, or the black scabbard fish, alsolong and skinny with black skin and tiny sharp teeth. You would not want to be swimming in thewaters they inhabit.

 

 

 

Going up to the second level, we found more unusual fruit aswell as the typical fruit we have at home. They are big into peppers here, many of them dried and hanging inbunches tied with string. Garlictoo. The vendors offer tasting of someof the local fruit up here. One of thequestionable tastings was of a blossom of a philodendron, a houseplant where wecome from. Something that looked justlike an orange, contained a seedy creamy substance. They also grow noni fruit, touted to be thecure-all for about everything. A betterbet, was purchasing one Madeira t-shirt with blue hydrangeas on the front. Wanting to clean out a purse-full of change,the vendor was happy to take it, even though I was one cent short of herprice. She simply said obrigado, as shehanded the bag over. Of course, that isthank you in Portuguese.

 

 

 

Going out of this market, we followed the street that tookus past shops, boutiques, cafes, and bakeries. This avenue was most crowded. Weran into Jane and Bill, who had just done the toboggan ride down thehillside. Showing us the photo theybought, it sure looked like they had their thrill of the day. Resembles the same photo we bought ten yearsago doing the very same thing. Too badthis couple are not coming back on another world cruise, as they are so muchfun.

 

 

 

Continuing on, we spotted Handler sitting on a bench,people-watching, while he waited for his wife, Leslie, who probably wasshopping. He was happy to be relaxing insuch a busy place, which is nice.

 

 

 

From here, we made our way to the Municipal Garden, asmaller complex than some of the upper gardens, but nice since most of the treesare very old growth. “Sticky” people(tour folks from the ship) were wandering around here, as it is a stop on oneof the tours.

 

 

 

Going around the Rotunda do Infante, a beautiful fountainroundabout, we hiked uphill to the multi-level Santa Catarina Park. It is beautiful up here with spacious lawns,swan ponds, huge trees, ending in the official residence of the President atQuinta Vigia. Today, the guard saidtickets were needed to go inside the gates. Last year, we were welcomed to walk the grounds with no fee.

 

 

 

Further up this hill is the huge Casino that overlooks theharbor. Near here is a narrow littlestreet that led down to our lunch venue at Casa Velha. After hiking for three hours, we were sohappy to find this café uncrowded and about hidden from the huge crowds. They had patio dining, surrounded by gardensof palms, ferns, and banana trees. Weordered local beer with a chicken salad and Bolognese spaghetti, served withgarlic bread. We shared on dessert of analmond pastry, a moist, nutty, cake topped with a very creamy vanilla ice cream. All excellent. A group of 20 year oldsjoined us on the patio to enjoy omelettes. No pizza here, as their menu was very Mediterranean.

 

 

 

Leaving around 2pm, we found our way back downhill, passing atiny chapel called Chapel da Penha de France. The street was so narrow that we had to duck inside the church gate forthe cars to go by. And they do not slowdown, even going down extremely narrow steep cobbled streets.

 

 

 

There was an impossibly steep street where the sidewalkturned into stairs with a railing, thank goodness. As we came down at the bottom, a group of ourcrew took the steps two at a time, getting to the top in less than 30 seconds. Oh, we remember the days we could do that…..

 

 

 

It was a short hike back to the ship from here, but we stillhad some change from lunch to spend…..4.40 euro. So a tiny denim purse was negotiated at thelast kiosk before we boarded the ship. Running into Woody and Susie, we thanked them for the gift of acustom-painted birthday card Susie had painted in watercolors class. We have a collection of three other cards shehas gifted us over several years, and now we have a new one to add to thegroup. Sweet.

 

 

 

Of course, we worked on pictures and putting together thelast details of the report for Funchal. Where has all this time gone??? We did go out for an hour to see thedolphin-watching boats come back into the harbor, as well as watch the gullsand terns as they dove for rolls or buns that people were throwing from the aftdeck or their balconies. Probably notthe best thing to feed them, as it can eventually kill them as the bread swellsin their crops. Most folks do not knowthat.

 

 

 

Sail away came upon us quickly, and we barely made it todeck nine as the ship pulled away from the pier. Even though there was no “party” at the aftpool, many folks were there today in hopes of seeing some dolphins. For the first time in over 100 days, Barbjoined us at the railing. She brought usluck….we saw dolphins jumping in the wake, the same as last year. We were out of the harbor quickly, and headedout to sea. Captain Jonathon hadmentioned that we might be heading for some rough seas and rain in a fewdays. Unavoidable as we have seven dayssailing west to do over 3300 nautical miles to reach Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Sure hope the storms track in a differentdirection…..

 

 

 

Dinner for us was in the Pinnacle Grill, a quiet and privatecelebration. That is until a chocolatecake arrived with a personalized message on the top…Happy Birthday Bill. Our cute waitress even sang to him verysoftly, as they do not do the song extravaganza that happens in the diningroom. Good way to end the day. Oh yeah,even better, we got one hour back on the clocks tonight. There will be more to come over the nextseven days….

 

 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Happy birthday Bill![emoji512][emoji322][emoji324]. What a way to remember your birthday. Here's to many more travels and birthdays.

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I am a recent widow, and ironically so is one of my best friends. We have started taking cruises together, so we aren't looking for solo cruising options since we share a cabin, but we are looking for a cruise/cruise line that caters more to older adults who are single.

 

 

 

We recently sailed on the Regal Princess for 7 days and while the whole experience was excellent (great food, ambiance, service, cabin, etc.), we felt that the clientele were just a bit older than we were. I'm not sure if this is just a Princess Cruise line dynamic, or if we chose the wrong time of year (early March). We enjoy a fun dance/bar scene and we enjoy fitness classes. The fitness classes were way below our level and consisted of about 3 people. I'm just saying that while we are 60 years old, we are far from sedentary or quiet. We don't play bingo and we don't want to dine with married couples. I think we were probably the only people on board who weren't married.

 

 

 

Please help me out. What cruise line would be best for us? What destination would be best for us? We are actively planning out next adventure and don't want to make the same mistake twice.

 

 

 

Thanks for any help given!

We are in our mid 60's and married but active. We have sailed Norwegian, Holland America, Carnival, Princess and Royal Caribbean. We have found Holland to have the oldest clientele. Our favorite lines are Royal Caribbean and Princess but we have found good groups on all of them. We loved the Panama because of the history. My husband loves pickleball and Princess had courts!!! We also did the Baltic in the summer and had lots of younger folks. Maybe it was the time of year too. So keep trying and if you have questions about any of these lines please ask. We have done 47 cruises so far :).

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Report #94 Piraeus,Greece April 3, 2017 Monday Mostly sunny & 68 degrees Part #1 Of 3 87 Pictures

 

 

 

Our second stop in Greece was Piraeus, the port city ofAthens. One of the world’s oldestcities, Athens dates back as far as 7000 years. It happens to be the capital of Greece, and also the birthplace ofdemocracy. Probably the most famous iconin this city is the Acropolis Of Athens and the Parthenon dedicated to theGreek goddess Athena. Constructed in 438BC, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And a must see.

 

 

 

Other sites include the Panathinaiko Stadium , the site ofthe first modern Olympics, but that was back in 1896. It was made entirely of white marble, and itquite impressive.

 

 

 

The National Archaeological Museum houses the largestcollection of Greek antiquities in the world. And the nearby Plaka is quite popular, especially if you like shoppingor dining on Greek cuisine.

 

 

 

An interesting fact about Athens is that it has 148theatrical stages…….the most in the world. The most famous of these theaters is the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, whichsits on the Acropolis. It was erected in161 AD.

 

 

 

Ship tours offered here ran from 4 hours to 8 ½ hours,costing from $55 to $225. Most of theexcursions toured the sites in Athens with a lunch, or a simple transfer for 4hours in total. A few trips took peopleout of the area to see Cape Sounion and ancient Corinth. As for us, we have been on every tour offeredhere….some more than once. By the way, one good option for the transfer toAthens from Piraeus is taking the hop on hop off bus for 20 euro. And that would not restrict you to only 2hours in town. You could spend all daytouring Athens, and come back before or after dinner today, since the ship was stayingovernight.

 

 

 

So we spent the day in Piraeus, which we find just asinteresting as Athens. There is a lot ofhistory here as well. Much of thehistory here has been lost over the centuries, but there is evidence that itcould be as old as 2000 BC. Back in theearly days, Piraeus was the only shipping port for Athens. It was also the site for the navalships. Even today, there are numerous shippingcompanies and ship owners offices. Thereis also evidence of ruins of tobacco factories, tanneries, textilemanufacturing, and oil and flour mills.

 

 

 

By the 5th century BC, Piraeus was the largestnaval and commercial center of the entire Mediterranean and the Black Sea. That’s some big shoes to fill. The opposite harbor across the peninsula fromthe Central Port is Zeas Port and Marina. This is where the ancient naval shipyards were located. Today it is a beautiful sheltered harbor forsmall boats to mega-yachts. This was oureventual destination today.

 

 

 

We left the ship around 10pm, to mostly cloudy skies. Until the sun began peeking through the clouds,it was chilly. So we did wearsweatshirts just in case, although as the day wore on, we did not need them.

 

 

 

Our hike began from the ship, which was docked much closerto town today. Last year, we had to takea shuttle bus to get to the terminal building. We picked up a tourist guide booklet,complete with maps of the main part of the city, and plenty of excellentinfo. We walked the waterfront, past thebig Greek Orthodox church, St. Nicholas. Last year it was undergoing restoration, and this year it looks beautiful. Continuing on, we went to the ferry docks towatch them load up with cars and passengers. Even though today was Monday, they were busy here. Weekends are much more crowded though. And summertime must be ridiculous forsure.

 

 

 

This is the point where we always cross the street, and findthe central marketplace. There is a hugebuilding with fresh fish by the tons, young fresh lambs, cut in half, veggies,fruit, and kitchen utensils. It is alsovery noisy with the vendors calling out their prices for the day. Or should we say yelling their prices. The Greeks are very high energy people. All the surrounding streets are full of small traditionalshops selling everything to do with food. There are shops that sell herbs and spices, local bakeries, nut shops,olive and olive oil shops, soaps, and housewares. Many places sold affordable clothing ontables outside their stores. This iswhere we found a good deal on leather belts. Yesterday, one of us was looking for dress belts, but they were mostly10 to 20 euros each. Today we foundexactly what we wanted for 3 euro……same belts, but not in the touristy arealike Rhodes.

 

 

 

From here we planned on walking over the hills to get to theZeas Port. But somehow, we took a wrongturn, and ended up lost. From thestreets up on the hillside, you cannot see the water on either side of thispeninsula. You get buried in apartmentsand highrise buildings. When the streetsdid not look familiar, we pulled out the map, but could not find any of thestreets. One problem was that many ofthe streets were not marked, and we discovered where we were walking was noteven on the map.

 

 

 

So the next best thing was to ask someone fordirections. That happened to be a niceelderly Greek lady dressed in black, of course, who did not speak one word ofEnglish. We showed her the map, andindicated that we were looking for the Zeas harbor. She understood, but had a hard time pointingout the correct streets. Lucky for us,we happened to be standing outside a car shop, and the owner came out to help. He did speak some English, and said we werenot far from the correct streets. He musthave asked the lady to take us to the right intersection, because she motionedfor us to follow her. Obviously olderthan us, she could outwalk one of us going uphill. Up at a main intersection, she pointed for usto go left, where we would find the harbor. We thanked her as she continued on her daily walk going the other way.

 

 

 

By the time we walked about one mile, we began to recognizethe side streets and the cafes and taverns. It was a bit early for lunch, so we walked to the far end of the harbor,and sat on a bench, enjoying the warmth of the sun that had finally peeked outof the clouds. We have done this on previoushikes here, but never went down to the water and walked around the outside ofthe marina. We were surprised to comeacross some of the nicest yachts…..some of what you would expect to see inMonte Carlo for instance. And rightacross from this area was a row of very nice-looking restaurants and taverns. We discovered at dinner later that ourbuddies Barb, Susie, and Woody went to one of these restaurants for lunchtoday, and also had great pizza. Sincewe were walking around there about 12:30pm, we must have missed them by ½ houror so. Guess where we are going tomorrow? Right here, especially after seeing Susie’sphotos of the food on her phone at dinner tonight.

 

 

 

We hiked all the way back to the opposite side of the harborto the Parmigiani Restaurant, where we have gone to lunch for the last threevisits here to the harbor. We orderedtwo draft beers, one margarita pizza, and one order of Bolognese spaghetti withparmesan cheese. The meal began withfive slices of salted pizza bread with assorted olives. Sure tasted good. Even though there is a restaurant, we havealways sat outside across the road. Several other establishments also serve food from across the street,because sitting on the seawall is so pleasant with the view of the harbor below. We stayed until after 2pm, when the all ofthe cafes were starting to get busier. Locals eat much later in Greece, often having lunch at 3pm, and dinnerat 9 or 10pm.

 

 

 

Taking no chances on the side streets for any short cuts, wewent back over the hills by the street we know will take us to the Central Portand the ship. It really is not as far,but we still did 7 or 8 miles today. Forsure, we will sleep good tonight. Got torest up to do it again tomorrow.

 

 

 

We had hoped to do a little grocery shopping, but the localCarrefour market was gone. Stopping at asmall market yielded nothing we needed. So tomorrow will be a day to find some new markets for some room snacks.It might be worth mentioning that this is one port, where everyone goes throughthe security check in the terminal. Whatis different about that is the fact there is a duty free store after thesecurity checkpoint. Besides the typicalsouvenirs, they sell some food products, as well as alcoholic beverages. Many folks were purchasing bottles, becausethere was no xray on the ship. We didsee the wine, beer, and alcohol collection table on deck A, but when we gotback onboard, it was unmanned.

 

 

 

There was a nice surprise waiting for us at the ship. A new security officer joined the staff today…..CopperJohn, as he is known on Cruise Critic. Having just gotten an email from one of our friends telling us he was onthe way, it was surprising to see him standing at the gangway so soon. Still recovering from jetlag, he was ready toget working. Nice to see that he didremember us from previous cruises, and also nice knowing that he still followsour blog.

 

 

 

The rest of the afternoon, we worked on the computer whilewatching Barbara H’s talks on the upcoming ports of Nafplion, Iraklion, andMykonos. They are all new to us, so weneeded to catch up on all the info we can absorb.

 

 

 

Dinnertime found that we had company….Susie and Woody. All of their tablemates had other plans, sowe welcomed them to our table for the evening. For the first time in weeks, we had a full table of ten, with verystimulating conversations, sharing our exploits of the day. Mostly, we were glad that a new pizza placehad been uncovered for us to try.

 

 

 

The show in the Queen’s Lounge was a local group of Greekfolk dancers. It was a one-time performanceat 9:30pm, so none of us were able to attend. We have seen similar show, if not the same as recent as last year.

 

 

 

So today ended another segment, with the final segmentbeginning tomorrow. And one moremandatory muster drill left to do.

 

 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Looking forward to the next segment and your excellent reporting.

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Report #93 Rhodes,Greece April 2, 2017 Sunday Mostly sunny & 63 degrees Part #1 Of 3 87 Pictures

 

 

 

Well, here we are in Greece, our first European country wewill visit for the better part of this week. There are 10,737,500 citizens that speak Greek. The capital is Athens. The best time to visit here is from Easter toJune, which is not the peak season, and the weather is simply fine.

 

 

 

There are so many things to see and do here such as visitthe Parthenon on a hill overlooking Athens. A sunset viewed from the island of Santorini’s Oia Village is amust. The Monasteries of Meteora wasunbelievable, and experiencing a Greek Easter in Corfu, seeing priests in theircolorful vestments during a midnight candlelight church service is moving.

 

 

 

Greece is also the birthplace of springtime sweet breads andcolored Easter eggs. The knights Quarterand Turkish relics of Rhodes walled old town really was a most wonderful place to tour today for us.

 

 

 

Other things to do are hopping a ferry in Piraeus to access nearbycountless Greek Islands. Some of ourfriends will be doing that tomorrow, after arriving to the port of Piraeus forAthens. Having spent countless previous visits to Athens, they will ferry tothe next port of Nafplion, and spent the day and night there.

 

 

 

Dining in a harborside café to enjoy the world’s most under-ratedcuisine is a destination in itself. Youcan hike up Mt. Olympus to watch for the mythical centaurs and satyrs, or even spotGreek gods. Seeing the dramatic viewsfrom the Holy Monastery of Rousanou, Meteora was a trip our buddy Ruud tooklast year. The timing was perfect,because their group was there right at Easter time. He did get to see the candlelight Mass andwas most impressed.

 

 

 

How about the food? One specialty is saganaki, or fried cheese. Gemistes are stuffed peppers, and spanakopitaare spinach-filled cheese pastries. I have mastered the art of making thesetreats, finding them a big hit at dinner parties. Another specialty are soutzoukakia, ormeatballs. Grilled octopus, calamari,and roast lamb are on the top as well. Andto finish a meal, you can sip ouzo, a grape brandy with anise flavoring. Also popular are retsina, wine with resin,and Greek coffee.

 

 

 

Trademarks are the Acropolis, of course, Kalamata olives,old women in black, Zorba the Greek, white/washed villages, and Homer.

 

 

 

Ourport of call today was Rhodes, the fourth largest of the Greek Islands. The Medieval City has 10,000 residents andworkers combined. The total populationof Rhodes Town is 117,000 people. Thereis evidence that this area has been populated since the Stone Age. The island has 157 miles of breath-takingcoastline. And it has been occupied for213 years by the Knights of the Order of St. John. They are the ones that built the city’s walland gates, along with hospitals and so many churches you cannot countthem.

 

 

 

Todayit is considered a most beautiful paradise with a temperate climate with mildwinters. It earned the distinction ofbecoming a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988.

 

 

 

Tourshere today were from 3 ½ to 8 hours and cost from $55 to $175. The longer tours went to Lindos, while theshorter ones took in the walled city near the ship.

 

 

 

Wehave never been here, so we decided to stay in town and see the old walled city.We were not disappointed since this city was within walking distance from thepier. Yes, we do have to agree that itwas touristy, but if you look beyond the numerous shops and cafes vying foryour business, then the true beauty revealed itself.

 

 

 

Withinthe double-walled city surrounded by moats and steep rock walls, we foundstone-paved streets that led to castles, narrow alleyways, small houses,mosques, fountains, quiet squares, and so many churches we lost count. The walls are massive with old gates dating backcenturies ago.

 

 

 

Weaccessed the Virgin Mary Gate across from the harbor. We spent over four hours exploring one end ofthe city to the other. At 10am, it wasnot crowded yet, and many of the businesses were not opened yet. In fact we learned that this area just openedup for the season yesterday, when the Pacific Princess was in port. Some of those establishments were not openedat all today, because it was Sunday.

 

 

 

Findingour way to the top and the Palace of the Grand Master, which was not opened, wehappened to cross a bridge that took us out of the old city. Now we were sort of lost, but found we werewalked parallel to the outside walls and moat. Truthfully, the scenery from this end was even better than being in themiddle of it. A series of wooded parkslined the roadside. So we followed itwhile walking under the shade of cypress, cedar, and sycamore trees.

 

 

 

Weended up going back into the walled city at another gate that crossed over thedeep moat. Somehow we found a narrow streetthat brought us to a café called MangoRestaurant. What caught our attention was the sign advertising pint draft beersfor 2.50 Euro. Since it was high noon,we thought it was a fine idea to sit for a spell on the outdoor patio and sipsome ice cold beer. We were the onlycustomers there, which was great. All ofthe cafes down at the main entrance near the harbor were way too crowded forus. So this was a lucky find.

 

 

 

Sittingin a sheltered corner of the patio was so nice, we asked if they had amenu. Of course, the first thing we sawwas margarita pizza. That sealed thedeal. We stayed to enjoy a deliciouspizza cooked perfectly. Our waitresssuggested some dessert, so we indulged in a vanilla sundae with strawberrysauce on top. So good. By the time we were ready to leave, some of ourcruise buddies happened to be passing by, asking if this place was good. So they took some seats, and ordered lunch aswell.

 

 

 

Followingsome street signs, we found our way back to the port. But not before passing by several barkers forcafes, trying to get us to go to their restaurants. It sort of got annoying, so we left a gate tothe harbor road. The day was stillearly, and there were more places to watch along the water’s edge.

 

 

 

Wemade our way past Kolona Harbor, over the thin peninsula that faced Mandraki Marina. Got some awesome photos from here, beforeheading back.

 

 

 

Westill wanted to find a small treasure that had Rhodes printed on it for akeepsake. So we headed back into the OldCity at the Arnauld Gate to check out those shops. We ran right into Susie and Woody, who weredining at a very nice outdoor café. Tookabout ½ hour to catch up on current ship news before we continued onward.

 

 

 

Finallywe located a small shop that was selling pottery, jewelry, and clothing, wherewe found the perfect souvenir……a shotglass in the shape of a boot with “Rhodes”printed in the design. Perfect. One of us was tempted briefly with some ofthe silky tops we have bought in other ports such as Phuket or Singapore. The big difference was that the price was 20Euro ($22 USD) compared to $5 in Thailand. And they do not bargain here from what we saw. One shotglass was fine.

 

 

 

Wemade the great escape past the pesty vendors and went directly back to theship. By the way, we found a small buildingthere that had a wonderful detailed map of Rhodes and the Old City. Better late than never.

 

 

 

Allaboard was 4:30pm, and the planned sailaway was held in the Crow’s Nest. We found out why when we went out on decknine. The winds were fierce, and gettingreally chilly. Going down to the aftpool deck was a bit better, and we stayed there as the Amsterdam swung aroundand headed out into the Aegean Sea. TheCaptain followed the west coast as we took a southwesterly course towards ournext port of Piraeus (Athens), where we will spend two days. It should have been Istanbul for our next twoday stop, but that was scrapped months ago…….way too dangerous, which was ahuge disappointment to all. Safety comesfirst.

 

 

 

Welasted outside until well after 6pm, visiting with friends, Diane and Mike. They had also enjoyed this port, as did manyfolks that have never been here before. By the time we were sailing down the coast, the aft deck had cleared outcompletely, as it was way too cold. Weneeded some of that special tea that Diane and Mike were drinking to warm up.

 

 

 

Dinnerfor us was in the Pinnacle Grill at 8pm. Normally, this venue is not crowded on a port day, but since tomorrowwill end this segment, many folks were celebrating with their final meal inhere. We understand about 56 folks willleave, and about 37 new passengers will join for the final segment back to Ft. Lauderdale. Cannot believe three months have already goneby since we started in January. It goesby faster every year……

 

 

 

Bill& Mary Ann

Thanks again for another great blog. I too feel as though I am traveling with you!!! I can't believe how quickly your trip has gone.

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I've got osteoarthritis in both knees. Because of a history of ulcers I can't take the majority of arthritis meds that are currently available. I'm pretty much limited to Tylenol. I'm finding that a routine of steady physical therapy designed to strengthen the surrounding muscles helps me more than anything else. Therapy sessions are almost always followed by ice and elevation.

 

For my cruise last week, I chose to go have cortisone shots the week before I left in both knees. I'm so glad that I did that. I had a fantastic week and by 1 o'clock every afternoon I had met my step goal for the day. I even managed the stairs when going up or down 1 flight. More than that and I chose the elevator.

 

Everything was great until I got out of the Van Sunday night when I got home. My left knee has decided to really hurt and swell up. At least it waited til I got home.

 

- Iris

Try Aloe Vera juice for your stomach. I too have osteo and just had a partial knee replacement. I couldn't be happier and pain free. No swelling anymore. I do take Celebrex when I really ache and it has never bothered my stomach. They say that is why so many folks like it because it is easy on the tummy :)

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Marianne,

 

Sorry to hear that nasty respiratory infection is still on board. I first noticed "the cough" on January 21 as we were sailing between San Diego and Hawaii. I saw certain passengers blowing their nose and leaving their infected tissues either on the table or in the chairs in the queens lounge. So the surfaces became contaminated. We took half the world cruise and I was glad we've got off in Hong Kong. I came down with the infection when we were docked in Shanghai and my husband two days later. We were both very sick and it lasted for about three weeks. It is a bacterial infection. We saw a doctor in Hong Kong and both got put on Antibiotics and I on prednisone and an inhaler. We were in Hong Kong for 5 days and remained pretty sick and miserable. We flew home and we saw our family doctor then a speciality doctor, it took 2 more rounds of different antibiotic and another round of prednisone for me. All I can say is shame on the ship for not doing deep cleaning and changing their air filters. With norovirus, the ship has to report it to the CDC and the ship actively works to bring the numbers infected down, with a respiratory infection they do not have to report in to the CDC unless a certain percentage are sick which is measured by the passengers seeing the doctor onboard. And we all know most of the passengers on these long trips carry antibiotics and self treat. So the numbers seeing the ship's doctor with the respiratory illness is artificially low.

We will be on the Grand Asia in the fall and I hope things are better then. I don't really know how we can avoid it other than hand washing and sterilizing within our own room. We always put our remote in a baggie and we do a thorough sterilizing of our cabin with clorex wipes. We are careful about what we touch always but if they are doing more remodeling it will be tough to avoid those germs and dust [emoji20]

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Report #82 Muscat,Oman March 22, 2017 Wednesday Mostly sunny & 77 degrees Part #1 Of 3 85 Pictures

 

Well, here we are in the country of Oman with a populationof 3,419,000 people that speak primarily Arabic. It has a total area of 119,467 square miles. The capital is Muscat, and that just happensto be where we are docked since last night. Muscat is a pivotal trading and military point,and has been for thousands of years. Ithas a most sheltered harbor, although was invaded by the Persians, andeventually the Portuguese, who controlled the area for over 100 years. Evidence of this occupation stands today withtheir forts and watch towers facing the Gulf of Oman. The sultans eventually took over in the 18thcentury and have remained ever since. And they have big, big money, and are not afraid to show it with massivepalaces and two extravagant yachts in the harbor. Products that keep them in the $$$ arepetroleum, trade, and porting. Tourism hasbecome number one, ever since Sultan Qaboos bin Said took over in 1970,deposing his father. Now you see upscaleshopping as well as souk bargains.

 

Surprisingly, Oman has diverse natural beauty….the main drawto tourism these days. It is moreaccessible than Saudi Arabia, safer than Yemen (by far), and more traditionalthan the Persian Gulf Emirates. Oman isArabia’s most rewarding destination, especially if you ask the Sultan, whoresides here.

 

Bedouin traditions show through the forts, villages, and allrelated architecture. The mostinteresting draw in Muscat has to be the Mutrah Souk, an Arabian bazaar fromthe past, come to life. Where else can you see and smell real incenseas clouds of it emits from the incense burners from one end of the souq to theother?

 

There are also beautiful stretches of natural white sandbeaches, but you will see little swimming. If locals go in the water here, the ladies will be fully dressed inblack burkas. If you are searching for aplace to show off that bikini, best go to one of the modern hotels. Still a conservative country, the best timeto visit is from November to mid-March. Or you may find yourself in the middle of a monsoon. It did happen one year when we stopped inMuscat, to find they had been having so much rain, that the souq wasflooded. A river was running through it,and everything was closed.

 

Things to see in Muscat include the best bazaar, Portugueseforts, mosques, castles, palaces ( viewed only from the outside), and unspoiledbeaches. The craggy mountains make for abeautiful backdrop in this picturesque city on the protected harbor. Nizwa is another inland town to see. It boasts a 17th century fort, andanother huge souq. Mughsail’s jaw-dropping bay with sheer cliffs is a goodplace to find frankincense and myrrh. Manyyears ago, we bought small containers of the resins, but have yet to burnit. Reminds us of church when we werekids growing up.

 

Things to do in Oman could be a walk through Wadi Shab, agreen gorge that looks like paradise. Orsee copper-colored dunes of Wahiba Sands by camel or 4WD. A drive over Hajar Mountains brings you toUbar, the lost city. Another place ofinterest is Musandam Peninsula, a dramatic Omani outpost the guards the gatesof the Gulf.

 

So what do people eat here? “Harees” , steamed wheat, boiled meat (usually lamb), lime, chilli,onions, and garnished with owaal, which is dried shark. Or try shuwa, marinated meat cooked in anearth oven. Chicken, fish, and mutton isserved with spicy sauces, drizzled with lime or lemon. We did see barrels of dried brown-lookinglemons and limes in the souq today for that purpose. Kebabs are popular, especially with mutton. Visitors to Oman are only allowed to drinkalcohol if they buy drinks from licensed hotels. Western fast foods, such as KFC, have found theirway here. So has Starbucks, weread. The local favorite drink in Oman is camel’smilk. Wonder if they serve that atStarbucks?

 

Trademarks: Considered a former “hermit” sultanate, Oman has become one of the mostopen Arabian Peninsula states. You canfind the khanjar or the curved dagger (yes, we own one), frankincense (quitevaluable in days past), ancient forts, and palaces. Bedouins, sands of the Empty Quarter, andcamel racing are huge here.

 

A random fact: Thecoastal oasis of Sohar will forever be remembered from the “Arabian Nights” asthe starting point for Sinbad’s epic journeys.

 

Tours offered here by HAL’s shore excursions were from 2hours to 8 ½ hours for $63 to $200. Theyincluded a hop-on, hop-off bus for $63, dolphin watching, tours to museums, thepalace, and forts. There was a visit toNakhl, Muscat and the market, a cruise on an Arabian dhow, or tea at the AlBustan Palace Hotel. There was a 4WDvisit to a wadi (dry river bed), but with the recent rains, it was cancelled.

 

We were not alone today, as the Vision of the Seas (RCI),docked in the slip across from us as we ate breakfast. It is classified as a large resort ship withpleasant décor for casual family-friendly cruising. Built in 1998, it is 78,491 gross tons andholds up to 2435 passengers. We happenedto have sailed on her many years ago from Hawaii to Vancouver. It was not the best experience we have had,so we never went back to that line. Heardthings have improved immensely with the building of the newer mega-ships. They are the destination in themselves wehave heard.

 

Having done every tour here, we chose to take thecomplimentary (and mandatory) shuttle to the Mutrah Souq. We were handed an Omani landing card, theboarded one of the many shuttle buses. There was supposed to be a stop at the terminal, where we should havedebarked, gone through their security, then reboard the bus to town. Well, that did not happen that way. An Omani man boarded the bus near the terminal,and counted all of us, and perhaps was looking for large back packs. We were OK to go straight to the gate, and onto town. That was good. Sometimes thisprocess takes up to ½ hour.

 

Took all of ten minutes to arrive at the entrance to thesouq. It was around 10am when wearrived, which turned out to be perfect, since most all of the passengers onboth ships were on tours. It was notoverly crowded. It was obvious that therain last night had left major puddles from the bottom of the souq all the wayto the top. Not enough for any shops toclose, thank goodness.

 

We were not looking for anything in particular, but moreinterested in taking some colorful photos. Although some of the shops here are not inexpensive, like the jewelry stores,the rest of their treasures are negotiable. Never hurts to pick up a few Burberry scarves, not exactly the realdeal, but pretty good looking. One of usalready has a healthy stack of fabric from here, so we looked, but only tookpictures. Also picked up adiamond-jeweled black jacket, commonly seen on the local ladies. The bargaining was just as much fun as the actualpurchase, which was way less than half of the asking price.

 

We zig-zagged all the way to the top, where the souq opensup into a street full of local shops. Weheard later that if we had been interested in buying anything out here, theywould not have taken any US dollars. OnlyOmani rial at .38 to one US $. Like wesaid, things could be expensive here. The vendors in the souq readily took the dollars.

 

We spent more time running into people we knew and chattingthan buying things. Had to check outevery shoe shop, but had no luck in finding white dress shoes or sandals. Gold, silver, or copper color? Not a problem. Finding the right size……a big problem.

 

Back down to the entrance, we crossed the busy street, andwalked the corniche, or what they call the waterfront road. It was so overcast today, we felt like itcould rain any second. Of course, wepacked the umbrellas, assuring us that no rain would fall. It worked. The sun finally peeked out in the late afternoon. We looked for the tropical fish we know arein the harbor, and saw a few. The tidewas out, and the rocky shoreline was full of gulls eating bread that a localgirl was tossing to them. On past tripshere, we have seen café owners tossing lots of stale bread in the water for thefish. We had hoped to see some sting raysand turtles as well, but no lick today.

 

We made our way up towards Riyam Park, where we ran intofriends Peg and Rich, that had taken the shuttle last night to town. They found a good place for dinner, saw someshops that had stayed opened in the souq, then got back before the rain camedown hard. Some folks are just lucky,but we are sure some were not. At leastit was not too hot to walk the seawall today, so we didn’t mind it. Hard to get the best photos without the sunhowever.

 

We went back to the ship with a short wait for the shuttle,without ever having to go through the terminal. Good deal. All of us handed overthe Omani cards before we went up the gangway, since we did not intend to goback. All aboard was at 4:30pm, and theexpected sail away should have been sometime around 5pm. That would not happen……..

 

Captain Mercer announced at the sail away around 5pm, thattwo trucks bringing deliveries to the ship were delayed. They were expecting fresh produce, flowers,and much needed medical supplies. Wewaited until the goods were loaded, but ended up leaving around 6:30pm, over 1½hours late. The good part was thatleaving in the dark, gave us different photos to take. And exactly at 6:17pm(sunset), all of the minarets in town sounded the prayer call. Reminded everyone that could hear this that weare NOT in Kansas anymore. The bad partwas that we had been invited to a special President’s Club party in the Officer’sBar at 7pm. It would take a quick dashto the room, change, and be at the meeting point on the Dolphin deck by7pm. Made it by the skin of our teeth.

 

Most all of the President’s Club members onboard were linedup in the hallway to go down the “secret” staircase to deck A, or take theelevator down one deck. We were led tothe Officer’s Bar and had the opportunity to mix and mingle with some of theofficers and staff. Many of the juniorofficers were present, but hugged the bar for the most part. Seasoned officers mingled among us, includingShiv, Henk, Gene, Christel, and of course, Peter, who spent the most time withour group with Don and Barbie and us. Many elegant canopies were passed among all of us, as well as copiouscocktails of our choice. Manny alwaystakes good care of us. Only the best isserved here. Thankfully, only our smallgroup (about 30) had been invited, as compared to last year, when deck sevenfolks had been included. We were stuffedin like sardines back then. That isprobably why our buddies, Eddie and Lee, did not attend tonight. Earlier in the day, we ran into them, andthey thought the invite was for tomorrow evening, a sea day, instead. Now that would have made sense, right? We certainly appreciate the invite to thisspecial event, but tomorrow may have been better….a sea day, not a port day. And who knew we would be leaving so muchlater? In their nineties, it must havebeen too much for Eddie and Lee to handle, so they did not attend. The hour flew by, and it was time for dinner,although we could have called it night….wewere full already.

 

We joined our table to find we had company. Both watercolor instructors, Carol and herassistant, Kelly, were there. It is thefirst time we met Kelly, although she has dined here when we were in thePinnacle Grill. It was a nice evening,and our dinners were served on hot, regular plates…..no bowls for any of us. Barb had gone to Philip last night, and askedfor plates from now on. So, it wasdone. Now we do hope, it continues.

 

The entertainer of the evening was a singer by the name of PeterCutler…..variety at its best. Did weattend……no, it had been a very long day, and nothing sounded better thanturning in by 10pm.

 

We did not take our usual walk on the lower deck, since allof the lights have been turned off now. Security teams roam the deck on constant watch, a reminder that we arein some of the most dangerous waters in the world right now, and will continueto be for several days.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Another great blog. Have you met Scott and Karen Bonnis from Congress, AZ. They are going on the Grand Asia this fall. We are to meet them in May.

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