Quartzsite Cruiser

On April 28, 2002, on Noordam III, we made our first visit to Casablanca. That day we took the ship's transfer to Marrakesh and explored the town. We were dropped off in the main market square near a restaurant where our bus would pick us up later that afternoon. The entrance to the Souk, which was interesting to walk through. Some of the items for sale To see more of the area, we took a horse drawn carriage ride. That horse was so dirty, we both had an allergic reaction that fortunately cleared up after we got out of the carriage. The Royal Palace in Marrakesh. There are royal palaces in many of the larger towns. A street outside the market area More markets. The restaurant where we were dropped off and where we waited for our bus is upstairs in the second picture. Lenda

Good morning from a partly cloudy central Texas where it is 72F and feels like 72. There is a 3 mph breeze with 83% humidity and a dew point of 66F. The rain is predicted to start about 9 or 10 tonight and continue on and off through Saturday. Our high will be 77 about 11 am and then begin to drop to about 70F. After I run an errand, I hope to be able to get a walk in since it looks like there will be no walks for several days. I love chocolate milk shakes but haven't had one in years. No video games here, but I like national day of encouragement. We all need a little encouragement at times. Today's quote is good. We'll pass on the meal and the drink. The wine sounds nice. We have been to Casablanca twice, and I'll post my pictures in a bit. Another interesting day in history. @puppycanducruise Melanie, please wish your mother A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY for us. @Lady Hudson Katherine, I hope they catch the escapee soon and that life can get back to normal. No matter what happens to your itinerary, remember you will be on a ship. @Crazy For CatsJake, I'm sorry you are missing Bar Harbor, and I hope immigration goes smoothly tomorrow. Lenda

I'm not sure we got enough to count. Being on the lake, rain often misses us. Lenda

Thanks for the pictures. Have a safe flight tomorrow. Tony, I'm glad you had a good day in Halifax in spite of the weather. Enjoyed the pictures. Eva, that must have been weird seeing the blank screens. Jake, thanks for heads up. Any idea what the divers are working on? Lenda

Good morning again from a cloudy central Texas with some sun breaks. I hurried this morning and was finished with the yard by 9 am when the weather radar showed the rain would be here. By then, the radar showed it wouldn't arrive until 10 am. I started pulling more of the crabgrass, and today I was able to dig up some of the other variety that I hadn't been able to pull the last two weeks. I was making good progress when the rain started about 9:40-9:45. As it was getting harder, I closed the windows in the car that sits outside, and put the tools away. I also got the remainder of the trash from the house ready to put in the garbage can. When I went out with it, the rain had stopped. Now, they are saying it will begin raining tomorrow night and continue through Saturday with slight chances of rain between now and tomorrow night. We need the rain, but the forecast of rain for this area is a guesstimate at best. There are certain things you never forget where you were, like the JFK assassination, the Challenger disaster, and 9/11. On 9/11 I was on my way to my annual ob/gyn check up when I heard the first plane had stuck the twin towers. My first thought really was terrorists, but then I thought, no, probably just a small plane. I decided to keep the appointment since I also needed to stop at W-M on the way home. By the time I got to the doctor's office, the second plane had hit the other tower. That was the longest doctor's appointment I've ever had. The doctor was glued to her tv and would pop into the exam room every so often to give me an update before realizing she needed to do the exam and let me leave. By then W-M could wait since I just needed to get home. It was heart breaking watching tv that day and seeing so many people dying including first responders. Many of the first responders and those who helped in the aftermath are still paying the ultimate price for their work. That was also a time when the world came together to support American citizens and the US. We flew to Spain on 9/18, and the people we met there couldn't have been nicer. Lorraine, I hope that since you have not heard anything about Murphy, she is holding her own. I am still hoping for a miracle, and that given time she will heal and gain strength. Annie, no problem about venting here. That is part of being part of this wonderful Daily family. You can only try to be a friend to someone for just so long before you realize the friendship is not longer a real friendship. Bruce, thanks for more great pictures from Oregon. After last week's discussion about Tillamook ice cream, it was on sale here. I bought two varieties, and will pick up some more tomorrow and hope I can squeeze them into the freezer. Nancy, I'm sorry about the brake problem, but was glad you made it safely to a town and that the brakes will be repaired at no charge. Safe travels the rest of the way home. Tony, thanks for the penguin pictures and the pictures of Stanley. Susan, it seems that like Texas, Colorado can use more rain and even the "S" word at higher elevations. I hope they find the missing hiker. Maybe if someone goes hiking alone in out of the way places they should invest in a personal location beacon or PLB. We got one many years ago to take in our UTV when we would take rides way out in the desert. Fortunately, we never needed to use it. It has been interesting reading where every one was 22 years ago and what they remembered. Sharing our 9/11 stories helps us never forget. Lenda

The Ruby Princess anchored off Stanley, Falkland Islands, on February 25, 2015. It was a cold, grey and windy day. We were able to tender tender into the port. We stopped at the visitor center and paid to drive out to the cove to see the penguins. Afterwards, we walked around town. For some reason many of the penguins there and in Punta Arenas had finished molting and were heading out to sea earlier than normal. The tour in Punta Arenas to the penguin colony was canceled because all the penguins had left two weeks earlier. I tried not to repeat many pictures, but of course I had to include a few penguins. The majority of the penguins were on the beach ready to head to sea, and a few were already in the water. There were a small number of penguins that were still molting. During our walk, we stopped in Christ Church Cathedral, where I took a picture of the organ When we are in foreign ports, especially small ports, we like to wander through their grocery store. We found three cans of diet Dr. Pepper for a pound each, and since I had three pound coins, being from Texas, we bought them. We also found this New Zealand wine that we thought was appropriate to be selling in Stanley. Walking back to the dock from the store The seas were already beginning to get rougher as the last tenders were heading back to the ship, and they would get even rougher before we reached Cape Horn. A departing view of Stanley from our aft balcony. Lenda

Good morning from central Texas. It is 71F an feels like 71F. What a change from last week. However, the humidity is 62% with a dew point of 58F. Our predicted high will be 92F. Based on yesterday's forecast, I cleaned house yesterday and planned to mow the yard today. If I want to do that now, I better get outside soon, because now it will be raining by 9 am. With our drought, it takes about an hour to do the yard. I will never forget where I was when I heard on the radio about the first hit on the Twin Towers. Emergency Responders should be celebrated every day. Libraries are important, and were important part of my childhood. Women's Baseball also reminds me of "A League of Their Own". I like the Henry Miller quote. We'll pass on the meal and the drink, but I would like to try the wine. We are 2 for 2 getting into Stanley. The first time was in 1999 on Noordam III in the pre-digital age. The second time was 2015 on Ruby Princess. Another interesting day in history with the publication of "St. Louis Blues". @HAL4NOW Tony, I hope the weather has cleared by now. @Lady Hudson Katherine, I'm glad you are being careful, and I hope they capture the escapee soon. I like the decision the school made on 9/11. @rafinmd Roy, I'm glad you got a good night's sleep, and hope you improve everyday until the virus is gone. @Crazy For Cats Jake, enjoy your "sea day". @Cruzin Terri Terri, I hope the doctor can help you today. Safe travels back home. @Denise T Denise, I hope the MRI shows no growth with the mass. Annie, I couldn't resist this meme. Lenda

Roy, I'm hope this virus runs it's course soon. A couple of things you might want to think about, and I hope I'm not being out of line. Several times, we've had doctors and nurses say an elevated temperature is not considered a fever until it is about 101F. Also, our DDs pediatrician told me that fevers help fight viruses and germs, and advised me not to give the girls anything to reduce the fever unless it was at least 102F. This is just some information for you to consider. Tony, please wish your DM a HAPPY BIRTHDAY from us. I hope I look as good if I make it that long. Thanks for sharing the great pictures. Lenda

Here are some pictures of Ijmuiden on our first and last time there. We saw part of the town on our way to and from the port, but it was too far to walk into town the last time we docked there. The port as we sailed toward the Baltic. The port area on a sunnier day. Across the street from the cruise terminal are some very tall sand dunes. During WWII the Germans built a series of bunkers/gun emplacements in the dunes after they invaded The Netherlands. The gangway being removed in preparation to sail down the west coast of Europe and to the Mediterrean. Views of the port and the beaches as we sailed. One of the DFDS ferries Graham @grapau27 mentioned. As ports go, Ijmuiden is not the greatest. 😁 Lenda

One of our stops on August 8, 2016 was Edam, a very nice town. We did a walking tour of the town before reaching the central square. There were bridges all along the canal for boats heading to open water. Some of the houses along the canal A quiet residential street and some of the many gardens. Busier streets When we reached the central square, we found we were very lucky to be there on a Wednesday in summer. They recreate the Edam Market from the past on Wednesday during the summer. A local church Part of the floor in the church Lenda Rowsby, ger_77, HA

Just a few more pictures from the various times we were in Amsterdam. Many times we'd ride on of the trams just to see where it would go. One of the many parking places for bicycles. One tram ride took us out toward Schiphol, and many of the buildings were like this one. We arrived at the Heineken's Experience too early and decided not to wait for it to open. Of course, the pictures would not be complete without one of the red light district. A busy pedestrian shopping street. Another day, and another tram ride to an area further from the central part of Amsterdam. There were hotels there, but we saw more locals than tourists. A theater A nice hotel One of the many canals we passed as we sailed from Amsterdam. Sailing toward Ijmuiden Lenda

We've been to Amsterdam on three different cruises beginning in 2004 on Noordam III where we were there overnight. In 2008, we spent three days there before boarding Prinsendam on the fourth day. In 2017 we sailed 106 days on Prinsendam beginning in Amsterdam, and returning three more times before heading the rest of Europe and then Fort Lauderdale. We were also in The Netherlands on Prinsendam in 2016, but that year she was sailing from IJmuiden. Besides boarding the first day, we returned to IJmuiden three times, and each time the transfer to Amsterdam was canceled, and we really didn't want to do a tour of the city. In stead we opted for a tour of the windmills in Zaandam and a visit to Edam on the first turnaround day. The second turnaround day we took the Haarlem. Tony @sailingdutchy has shared his pictures of Zaandam and Haarlem, so I'll skip them. I will post some pictures from Edam and IJmuiden in another post. For now, here are some more pictures from Amsterdam. The first day we were in Amsterdam, we took the train to Delft and toured one of the pottery firms. When we got back to Amsterdam, we took a tram out to Vondelpark since we'd heard so much about it. On that visit we also took a canal boat tour. Not all the houseboats are in great shape. Another day we did the Ho-Ho and saw one of the few windmills in Amsterdam. Another time we walked around Central Station and then took the ferry across the river just because it was there. The other side of the river near the ferry dock. We didn't spend a lot of time there, just caught the same ferry back. Lenda

We've flown out of Rome twice, but that was back in 2002 and 2003. Getting through check in, security was not difficult then, but I don't know what changes have happened since them. Tina, we spent three nights at the Movenpick pre-cruise in Amsterdam in 2008. We ate in town two of those nights, and one was at a nice restaurant on the main street between Central Station and The Dam. I don't remember the name, but it was white with a lot of windows over looking the street on the right hand side as you are walking from Central Station. That was our anniversary dinner, and we enjoyed it. The last day, it was raining and we were tired, so we had dinner a the hotel. At that time, they had a set dinner menu that was not too pricey, and beat the ala carte price. BTW, if it hasn't changed, when you're ready to head to the ship, have the bell boy pick up your luggage from your room. They will deliver it right to the baggage area at the cruise terminal. When I was going through my pictures, I found this one of the restaurant I mentioned. It might be for tourists, but we enjoyed it. Lenda

Good afternoon from a partly cloudy central Texas. It is 90F and feels like 90F. 👏 The humidity has dropped to 30% and the dew point is 54F. Not bad out for September, but after getting the house cleaned in record time -- 4 1/2 hours, I'm just going to take it easy. It is nice knowing the whole house is clean; now, if we could just keep it that way. 😁 My first post was quick this morning, so I'll elaborate a little. Both my mother and paternal grandmother were great seamstresses, so many of my dresses were hand made. After my mother was diagnosed with MS, my grandmother took over the dress making while I was in junior high and high school. She was so good that many of the dresses looked just like the store bought versions. She tried to teach me to sew, but found it was easier to do the work than teach me. I eventually took sewing lessons, and made many of the DDs clothes when they were little, but was not good enough to make their clothes once they started school. That's when I turned to doll clothes for the Cabbage Patch dolls, and Halloween costumes. Older DD even won first place for one of the costumes. I tried making clothes for their Barbie dolls, but they were too small to work with easily. My paternal grandfather was actually my father's step-father, but he was the father and grandfather we knew and loved. We couldn't have asked for a better man to fill that part of our lives. My mother's father died in about 1930, so I was never fortunate to meet him, but I did know and love his two sisters. My maternal grandmother was not very domestic, and only had a few special dishes she made and could not sew. She did make me an apron for a school play in elementary school. I still have it, and it's very special to me. Looking at it now, I suspect my other grandmother actually made it and let her take the credit. My maternal grandmother however, was a very witty woman who could tell a good story. She was also the Society Editor on the local paper for 32 years, had a radio program, and was called upon as a speaker many times. In 1950, she was chosen by Life magazine for a 13 picture spread of a week in the life of a small town Society Editor. I still have several copies of the magazine and copies of most of the 1000+ pictures they took the week they followed her around town. Forgive me if I've rambled too long about my grandparents, but I've been going through old newspaper files on line and "reliving" a great part of their lives. I'm also learning a lot about my family from the articles I'm downloading onto the computer. Terri, safe travels this afternoon and tomorrow too. I hope your doctor appointment goes well. I love their French Fries, especially with their mayo, which is so different from what we get in the US. Annie, we flew into Rome in July 2018 on a Delta flight from Atlanta to Rome. We left Atlanta at 4:06 pm and arrived in Rome about 7:45 am. We walked from what appeared to be a new part of the airport to Immigration in the old part near the baggage claim area. There was a line for Immigration, but they had most of the lanes open and some were for Europeans and other were for airline crew. We had to put our passport on a scanner IIRC and press down very hard for it to work. Mine worked, but even with the help of a worker, his would not scan, so he was taken through a crew line. In the meantime, I'd passed the first hurdle and was quickly finished with the one-on-one at a booth. Even with the long walk and the wait for DH to get through immigration. We had our luggage and were waiting for the bus to the ship by 9 am. The lines, even with the glitches moved pretty quickly. Beautiful sunset, Fred. Great sunset pictures, Bruce. Annie, DH bought a 3 sim card several years ago for Europe which can be activated on a month to month basis. It works in some countries but not others. He also bought a smart phone just for Europe. We also have T-Mobile which is good for data, email and text in 200+ countries, but it is slow. It sounds like what's app might be the way to go if you can add it to your Trac phone. Now, I'm going to go through all my pictures from our various times in Amsterdam and see if I can find something different. Lenda

Or a nice red and chocolate to compliment it. 😉 🍷 🍫 Lenda

Good morning from central Texas. It is 72F and feels like 72F with 71% humidity and a dew point of 62F. Our predicted high is 98F, which will be great if it stops there. Yesterday afternoon we reached 100F. We're still about two minutes away from sun rise, but since today will be devoted to house cleaning, there will be no walk. I'll get plenty of exercise in other ways. I had wonderful grandparents and was lucky enough to know three of them. I have a sewing machine that is rarely used. It's always good to swap ideas. Another amusing quote from Mae West, and not a bad idea since it would be something new. We'll pass on the meal, drink and wine today. I've lost track of how many times we've been to Amsterdam, including four days before our first Prinsendam cruise in 2008. Most of the days were either beginning or ending a cruise or were turnaround days. I just checked for the pictures I thought I'd posted last year. That was about the time we got to Texas from Quartzsite, and I guess I was too busy to look for my pictures. I probably hadn't gotten my computer set up by then. I'll look for some different pictures this afternoon after I finish the house work. The invention of the sewing machine was a boon to seamstresses and others who attempted to sew. @luvteaching Welcome home, Karen. I hope your cruise was everything you wanted it to be. @rafinmd Roy, I'm glad last night was a good night, and that you can put Covid behind you soon. Lenda

🤘 I saw this was the first time UT had played in Tuscaloosa since 1902. We both graduated from UT as did DDs and DSIL. Younger DD's SO went to gead school there, and his father was in school there when we were there. Lenda

Without too high expectations we watched the UT v Alabama game. Texas #11 beat Alabama #3 at Alabama. The final score was UT 34 - Alabama 24. Lenda

Thanks for the pictures, Jake. Somehow, we missed the "bar". Sounds like your and DS are making good progress. Good for them, Carolyn. Lenda

Good afternoon from a warm, 95F central Texas. We are under a heat advisory until 9pm. Fortunately, when I walked it was still partly cloudy and the humidity had dropped some. The wind and the clouds help keep it from being to hot. We did a very little bit of rain after midnight, not enough to register on the weather station rain gauge. It was enough for the Silverado sage, which are in full bloom today. All the honey and bumble bees are very happy. Penny, thanks for our pictures. I hope the back gets better and you don't need more surgery. Gerry, that's good news people wanted what you put out for the curbside swap. Carolyn, thanks for the pictures of the real teddy bears. They are cute from a distance. Charlene, I'm glad you made it home before the bad weather hit, and that there was no damage. Lenda

This is what I posted on September 18, 2022. I just realized that no one has posted pictures of Florence. I guess all those who posted their pictures last year, are not here today. I went through my pictures of the days we actually visited Florence instead of touring Tuscany. After our day in Florence in 2016, we decided the crowds were just getting too big. My pictures are a collection from our visits in 2001, 2002 and 2016. I'll begin with the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Flore, also know as the Duomo, and the Baptistry. The Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze, which has the tombs of many famous Italians or at least monuments to them. A replica of Michelangelo's David and another statue outside a church near the Uffizi Gallery, and the gallery. Ponte Vecchio over the Arno River. Looking toward the Uffizi Gallery from the Pone Vecchio In 2001, we took a ships tour to Florence as it was our first visit to the city. The tour buses were not allowed in the main tourist area. We had to board these little buses to go from the parking lot into the main area. Lenda

On several of our visits to Livorno, we have rented cars are toured the countryside of Tuscany. These pictures are from visits to three different towns in the area. We visited Lucca in 2004 while on Noordam III. The two of the gates to the walled city. Inside the walls In 2008 while on the Prinsendam, we drove to San Gimignano, which is known for it's square towers. This is the Piazza del Duomo An interesting building in the Pizza del Cisterna The countryside west of San Gimignano with the town in the background of one picture. Our final stop that day was Volterra, which sits on top of a hill as the name implies. It is a climb from the parking garage to the main part of the town. The first picture is Volterra from the highway. We found the best gelato in a small shop on one of the narrow streets. Lenda

We've been to Livorno seven times and missed it once due to wind. In 2001, we took a tour to Florence and Pisa. Walking into Pisa from the parking lot was one of those moments where it was better than expected, with the Baptistry, Church and Tower backed by a clear blue sky. After that, we have done our own thing, renting cars most times. In 2002, on the Noordam, the Leaning Tower had just opened to visitors, With the suggestion from the port guide, Barbara H, we left the ship early. In fact, we were the first ones off the ship, even before the ship was cleared. The Security Officer told the gangway crew to let us leave since he knew us. They were still getting everything set up for the day. We found a taxi to take us to the train station, but he said he could get us to Pisa quicker, and on the way to the Leaning Tower, he showed us the train station in Pisa. We were at the ticket office by 7:30 am and had tickets for the 8 am climb. Your are allowed 35 minutes to go up and back. Here are a couple of different views of Pisa. This is one of the anchors cables attached to the tower in the latest attempt to straighten the tower. IIRC, it did pull it back several degrees and concrete was poured under the foundation of the raised area. In 2001, the tower was closed because of the anchors and the correction being made to the lean. After 9/11 when the tourist levels fell, the tower was opened for tours to help bring the tourists in. In 2016, on the Prinsendam, we rented a car and drove to Florence and then to Sienna. This is what I call the $120 picture. We were driving through the walled part of Sienna, not knowing we were not supposed to be there. A year later, the day before we were leaving for another long Pdam cruise, we got a letter from Italy, that was a fine for driving in a no auto area. The funny thing was, I got the ticket even though DG was driving, since my name was on the rental agreement. This is the cathedral in Sienna. In 2019, on the Veendam, we were in Livorno three times. Since we had never really explored Livorno, we decided to stay in town that year and avoid the crowds in Florence. The first day, we took the Ho-Ho and visited the village of Santuario al Montenero, by funicular which was included in the Ho-Ho ticket. The next two stops there, we rode the local bus, stopping once at the beach. At several areas of the beach you have to pay to get in, but we found a nice place where we could sit and get a coke. Livorno is not a tourist town, but we still managed to enjoy the days there, since they were slow paced and we could take it easy. Lenda

Good morning from a cloudy central Texas. It is 79F and feels like 84F with 79% humidity and a dew point of 72F. There is an 11mph wind, so it may still be somewhat comfortable to take a walk. Our high is predicted to be 99F on the hourly forecast, but 100F on the daily. I hope the hourly is the correct one. I'll be inside doing laundry today either way. I think there are a couple of the DDs' Care Bears in the attic. I'll celebrate wonderful weirdos, and some might add me to that list at times. I have never figured out Sudoku, and prefer crossword puzzles. An interesting quote by Toni Morrison. We'll pass on the meal and the drink, but I would like to try the Prosecco. We have been to Livorno many times beginning in 2001. I'll look for my pictures in a few minutes. We did spend some time in Livorno in 2019, and found some things to do in town. We honor an important day in US history. @grapau27 Graham, it looks like you are trying to copy our high temperatures. @Crazy For Cats Jake, I hope you have a wonderful day in St. John's. @puppycanducruise Beautiful hibiscus. @Haljo1935 Glad the PT is working and you can do more with the arm. @ottahand7 Safe travels tomorrow, Nancy. @rafinmd Roy, I'm glad you are feeling no worse. Take it easy, rest and drink plenty of fluids. @1ANGELCAT We've been following the manhunt on the news. I saw the prison guard who was supposed to be watching the escapee was fired. @Heartgrove Safe travels and no hiccups with your flights tomorrow, Jack. Lenda

Terry, I'm so very sorry you had to make such a difficult decision yesterday, but I'm glad Lou is comfortable with the decision. Sending positive thoughts and hopes that you both find peace, and that Lou remains comfortable and pain free going forward. I'm glad the family will be able to visit with him. ((((((((((HUGS)))))))))). Lenda