Prinsendam 2006 Circle of the Sun, About to begin...

[caltnl]

Dear Ides,

 

I only happned onto your thread a week or so and just finished travel log of your trip.

 

I look forward to reading and looking at Grux's blog.

 

It will be about three weeks from now before I will have a chance, as we leave for Ft. Lauderdale in the morning to board the Westerdam to take us back to Los Angeles via the canal.

 

This summer we will be visiting your country and of my Grandmother. We are looking forward to visiting Prince Edwar Island. According to family lore she wwent to school with the arthur of Anne of Green Gables.

 

Look forward to your furtheer travels and thank you again.

[venicecruiser]

Thanks for taking all of us with you on the World Cruise! I so much enjoyed your descriptive, and often funny, writing!

 

Hope this tradition is continued by the next World Cruisers!

 

Claudia

[Williebill]

Ides and Grux,

 

You are completing something that so many would love to accomplish, Congratulations! Thanks for giving us your time and talents and I hope we cruise together some time. I hope Grux's cousin is healing and her health is improved. Have fun on your last days of the cruise, again thank you!!

[RSGS315]

Ides and Grux,

What will we do now that your journey is coming to an end? It was an unforgettable experience to travel around the world with you. Thank you for taking us along!

Your writing style and sense of humor are incredible, and it reinforced our belief that Canadians are among our favorite travel companions.

Ides, your wonderful travelogue was somewhat responsible for us booking our first World Cruise on the Amsterdam for January 15, 2007. We had been toying with the idea, and came to the conclusion to finnaly do it, as we have never seen a hearse with a luggage rack.

Ginnie

[PAHORNER]

Ides, I happened onto your thread recently by accident, and have had the best times reading it. I'm sorry your trip is over, it has been a pleasure indeed. THANK YOU !!:D

[airlink diva]

I want to extend my thanks for sharing your world cruise. One of my goals in the future is the world cruise. Once again, thank you!!

[Ides of March]

Days 97+ North Atlantic Crossing

Monday April 17th

Well we're down to less than 10 minutes on our second thousand minute Internet package and I have been giving priority to checking office e-mails and haven't been checking this thread so any questions I may be able to answer will probably have to await my return home and unlimited Internet access. Seems hard to believe such an animal exists.

Arland, a great kid who takes care of us up on Lido near the pool developed appendicitis a day out from Madeira so the Good Captain altered course for Bermuda and only today at 1 p.m. announced that Arland had stabilized and we are once again heading for Lauderdale. We are in 12 to 18 foot seas so we are running with the stabilizers out and making 17 kn at best. I just took a GPS reading and have us arriving at noon at the earliest on the 20th unless the weather really changes, which makes our 2 p.m. flight departure unlikely. The joys of travel. There was some grumbling early on that if Armand could make Bermuda he could equally make Lauderdale and thus we should not have diverted. Unbelievable. Some people you just really want to throw off the boat.

The Black and Gold formal dinner went off without a hitch. Matthew, who is a classy guy requested a meeting with the Good Captain in advance and assured him that the purpose was not to embarrass but simply to have a little fun. At the appointed time the Good Captain, looking a little nervous which I believe was part of the act, joined Matthew on the dance floor and after a brief negotiation as to who would lead, did one quick turn and no more than about six or seven steps with him whereupon Matthew broke away and lead an attractive young lady in the first row up to complete the dance with the Good Captain to the applause of all. It was handled with class and humour for the benefit of a worthy cause yet some of the boat were offended. Well to take liberties with the words of Bob Dylan.”The times they have a changed”.

I find it has been somewhat anticlimactic since our last port of call. People still go through the motions but not with the same zest they did previously. No more port lectures and now we have motivational speakers and some twit who we have no idea why they let him near the mike. He was supposed to deliver the last two port lectures on Cadiz and Funchal but got so wrapped up in telling us about a college he set up on Ibizia in the 60’s that failed in a matter of weeks (big surprise), and the Barbary apes on Gibraltar (which he said we had passed the night before when in fact The Rock was still a day ahead) notwithstanding that we were not going there, he never got around to Cadiz. Didn't matter much as most people had left already when he dropped the bombshell that Columbus had sailed to Asia. Thankfully Mike Millwood is still lecturing so we are learning about the Mayflower, the Saints and the Strangers and how they're crossing with all the false starts took about the same time as our entire voyage. We have therefore avoided total mental atrophy.

Our days are still busy with trivia (Bridesmades won 3 of the last 4 so we are awash in travel clocks, silver picture frames and bucket hats, blow up boats, playing cards and mousepads), passenger Art exhibitions (I have to go to the premiere now, Yippee), passenger creative writing recitals (tomorrow, yippee),and dance recitals.(yipes). Actually the latter might be fun to watch in 18 foot seas as a lot of these folks aren't too steady on their pins on dry land. I understand medical teams will be standing by. (Turned out it was a great show and the dancers who worked on their routines the whole cruise did themselves proud) We had the passenger talent show two days ago but the Grux was having tummy troubles so I attended alone returning with tummy troubles. Actually some of it wasn't bad but some of it was excruciating. I think the selection procedure required breathing and not much else. One fellow read a chapter entitled “Love me Tender” from a book he wrote on the world cruise a few years ago. It was like listening to a beauty pageant contestant reading a list of the books she has read. Dotty doing the Hula to a Hawaiian song about her Mumu, was the best part of the show for me although I did enjoy the Millwood's Cajun folk dance about not messing with his Tutu. The rest was BooHoo.

We had a piano recital where Bruce Scudder, Lee the new music director and the other staff pianists performed solo. Each was exceptional although I would've preferred a little more up-tempo offerings like some ragtime because I don't think I have ever dozed and awoke so many times in a one-hour period in my life. Last night we had the International Crew Show and the ACDs performed the finale proving that none of them can sing a note with Ben being the worst by far with Cynthia and Laurie distant runners up. Great show all round with talent galore and a lot of laughs when it was lacking.

Tuesday April 18th.

Arland has stabilized but we are in a force 7 gale with 18 foot seas continuing so I still have us in 3 to 5 hours late but the Good Captain is still hoping for 10 am. A lot of connections will be messed up if I’m right.

Two nights ago we had a Q&A session with the Good Captain, the New Captain, and the Senior officers. The GC was very concerned about the passenger confusion when the fire alarm went off. Turns out that signal was 1 short blast followed by a long one meaning fire but the pax didn’t know this and were counting away. Luckily it stopped after 6 blasts or the 7th deck would have been awash with panic stricken pajamas wearers. We are forced to watch a safety video every time you tune in to check the ships position on channel 40 but they never tell you about the different alarms or man overboard procedures. For the latter you are supposed to contact the bridge ASAP but even if you can find the phones, there are no speed dial numbers on them. The only number I know by heart is room service so I could always order a club sandwich for the guy who just went over the rail. Otherwise same old gripes about the movies and same defensive responses. Oh well. I soon won’t have to watch “From Lauderdale to Eternity” any longer.

Great Captain’s Farewell reception last night, followed by the last formal dinner and Belinda King show. The reality that the end is upon us is setting in.

Wednesday April 19th

Busy and emotional day. Disembarkation Lecture by Bruce that conveyed scant information and was a little too self congratulatory for my taste but did have the ships staff present and funny videos of the ACDs. We hear Chicago Johnny is retiring after NYC so he is getting a lot of attention and pleas to stay afloat..(I sure hope he has told his Mom already). Final Trivia and a loss to the CanAms but a great time anyway. I will dearly miss the BridesMades.

Everyone is exchanging cards and addresses and promising to stay in touch. Feels a lot like high school or university graduation except we know such promises are not likely to be kept except in a few cases. Still it has been an intense experience and hard to stay dry eyed all the time. HAL is rebooking everyone scheduled to fly before 3 PM so we are all waiting to learn our fate but Arland is doing great so big deal.

We are now off to cocktails in Robin and Mary’s suite followed by the final Coffee Club meeting where Ella and Leon will be inducted on our nomination. Then it’s a last dinner with Nancy and Ed after the early show and some final packing by the Grux while I try to stay out of the way.

Thanks for swimming along everyone. Its been hard work but knowing the pleasure I derived from Grumpy and Slinkie’s efforts last year I was glad to do it and would again. Your kind comments are appreciated and I will be more responsive to questions once I have rejoined the real world. I am really looking forward to printing out this tome and figuring out where to hell I’ve been for these last 3 ½ months. Won’t have time to post from the Big Canoe again but will do so from home and so…

Until that time.

Ides.

[Cruising Jake]

Thanks so much for your time, internet minutes and humor.

 

Welcome home.

[serendipity1499]

Welcome Home Ides & Grux & again thank you both so much for your wonderful travelogue Ides & your Blog Grux..Both are so interesting..Have just completed downloading 79 pages of your cruise & the excitement is mounting daily..One week from today at this time (1715 Hrs) we'll be sailing out of the FLL harbor on the Prinsendam which you have helped to make these past 3 months so exciting..:)

 

Have a wonderful flight home & enjoy catching up with your family..

 

Hope that you have another cruise very soon....Will follow you both anywhere!;)

 

Betty

[doverite]

Thoroughly enjoyed your daily reports. I would print off 10 pages at a time and couldn't wait to print the next lot off. Would love to read the Grux's blog. Are you sharing the site? :)

[Grumpy1]

Glad to hear that Arland is doing OK and hope that you make your connections home with no problem. We enjoyed having the virtual cruisers with us on our world cruise. Thanks for taking us along on yours. We will be looking for your posts after you get back home.

[doverite]

Has it really been more than three months since you first set foot on Prinsendam to begin your voyage? It just doesn't seem possible. We really appreciate you taking the time to describe your adventures. I was surprised that the thread did not draw more comments and questions, but in thinking back, your posts have been so thorough that most of the questions were answered without being asked. That's a major difference in our writing styles... I'm a very slow, hunt and peck typist, so I tend to lack on details. Then I have to write twice as much the next time to fill in the gaps. I might have to try one of the dictation programs again. the one I tried years ago left a lot to be desired, but I know they have really improved recently.

 

I also want to thank gruxy for her blog. The pictures and commentary were quite good.

 

Looking forward to your last port post and then you can wrap it up as you cross the pond. Hope to meet you sometime...

 

:)

Where did you find Gruxy's blog? uch appreciated.

[Grumpy1]

:)

Where did you find Gruxy's blog? uch appreciated.

Go back to post 200... the link was posted there.

[tuggers]

Anyone here who can give me any info on inside cabins? Leaving 4/26 and am scheduled for an inside.

The 128 sq ft sounds so small! Anyone know what the floor plan is?

Thanks!

[mim100]

Ides & Grux...welcome home !!! I hope Spring has arrived on your side of the country....thanks again for the wonderful stories....we've had such fun reading them !! :):)

[harrodsfan]

Really enjoyed your posts..real all. Love being an armchair traveler. Have many happy memories when your ship was the Royal Viking and Seabourn Sun...Hope to do the world cruise someday.. did part of it in 1996 when the ship hit the reef near Sharm el Sheik...

Happy Homecoming.

[lizzielady]

I attended a family reunion over the weekend and found out my aunt, a fellow passenger, did not know about your travel journal. I am sending her this link so she can re-live the trip.

 

I'm looking forward to following your SA journey, too. You do a great job informing and entertaining!

[Ides of March]

Greetings All

 

I remember last year at the end of Slinkie and Grumpy’s Odyssey he seemed to drop from sight for a while and now I understand why. There’s a tremendous amount of work in rejoining the real world especially in the spring and it’s taken me a week to be able to come up for air.

Days 104 continued

When I left you I believe I was heading for a final cocktail party in Robin and Mary’s suite and then it was on to the final meeting of the Coffee Club where our table mates Leon, Ella, Ed and Nancy were inducted. We couldn’t get them T-shirts so Grux went to her art class and made small sandwich boards for them to wear conveying the same information. They all seem very pleased with the sentiment although they had spent so much time with us on Deck eight that everyone regarded them as members anyway. As many people were trying to get rid of wine and booze they didn’t want to take home and as HAL returned all the liquor it had confiscated during the trip (including Ed’s bottle of bourbon that so infuriated him that he will never sail with HAL again capping his experience at 470 days with them) we were flying very high and skipped the final show to extend the festivities before the final dinner in the LaFontaine. I have a great video of Leon leading a Can-Can line with everyone singing their heads off and actually believing it sounded good. One hell of a party. Father Perry stopped by for a glass of wine as did Laury, our ACD from NB. It seems we became respectable at the end of the cruise.

Luckily the final dinner was casual and we spent a lot of the time visiting other tables or talking to people who came to ours to say goodbye. The room was full of bonhomie and goodwill even between pax who couldn’t stand each other during the cruise. The booze probably helped a lot. After dinner we returned to the cabin to finish packing and move everything out to the hall. Grux gave me errands to run which were mostly delivering our cards to various cabins and of course the ship was full of folks who couldn’t budge their bags once packed so I did a lot of Sherpa duty. Soon I had to decline the libations offered in thanks or I would never have been able to find my cabin.. We hit the hay just after midnight and I passed out (literally) after an incredible final day.

Day 105

We were up and at’em very early (just after the pain killers kicked in) for the sail into Lauderdale. It was once again a beautiful day and we nestled into the dock immediately behind Enchantment of the Seas, a beautiful boat. We had sailed 30,350 nautical miles which converts to 34,926 miles or 56,208 kilometers. Arlen departed by ambulance for hospital as soon as the ramp was down although he had been stable for a number of days and had returned to his cabin. I hope everything went well for him.

We were at the dock at 9:30 a.m. an hour and a half behind schedule and it took them three hours to offload the luggage. The time was spent visiting and saying goodbye in some instances for the second or third time which I found difficult and draining and so I was very glad and relieved when we left the boat at 12:30 p.m. I tried to control my emotions when saying au revoir to Robin, Mary, Leon and Ella and failed miserably.

We had eight bags four of which went with IPS and four we lugged ourselves. All have arrived safely and except for one flowered cup I bought in Kusadasi, everything eventually arrived without breakage due to the packing skills of the Grux. I didn’t have the wit to save smaller bills for tipping and the porters and bus drivers regarded the Canadian bills I gave them as they would toilet paper. Our flight to Montréal had been changed to three o’clock so we made it with time to spare and had an uneventful trip home to be met by Pirate Scum and Muther who both looked great. A very tiring and emotional day to end our adventure of a lifetime.

Idle Musings

The MS Prinsendam

Just a great boat and I love it. A little dated but impeccably maintained by a loving crew. (I’m amazed there is anything left of the stairwells and elevator lobbies as they are polished and vacuumed so frequently you would think they would have eroded away by now) Amazingly stable in rough seas for a boat that size (or any size for that matter) and the GC explained the reasons to me at the Royal Viking Sun model on 12 forward in an impromptu lecture on naval architecture that I just ate up.

She is apparently going into drydock next summer for extensive repairs and one rumor that escaped from the laundry room on deck six was that she would be sold imminently to another line once HAL acquires a more modern boat of the same size. Who knows? There does seem to be a vibration problem in the rear third of the ship as I experienced on the first night of the cruise. I could feel it in Robin and Mary’s suite on deck 10 aft and in the Lido but it didn’t seem to bother them. You can see the stair railings vibrate 3-4” on Lower Promenade deck aft as you walked by them. The noise and vibration would vary with the rpm of the engines and sometimes were better than others. When leaving port however there was a deafening scream in the aft elevator lobby on Dolphin deck which dissipated as you went up. HAL put the entertainers and crew back there so that must tell you something. They also put plexiglass over the windows as a noise reduction method in the aft cabins on 5 and 6 and I have described what a pain that is. I think they have a slightly bent propeller shaft or a bearing needs replacing but that’s only a guess.

My second word of advice on the cabins is to be sure to get one with a bath as this dictates the configuration of the cabin. With the bath there is a much larger vanity in the washroom and two end tables in the main room. It makes quite a difference on a long voyage. The cabins of a given configuration are pretty uniform on all of the decks (including those with verandahs) so unless you move up to the suite category, you’re not getting much more for C or D accommodations over a category E amidships on Dolphin (5) as we had. As a matter of personal choice I would also avoid a cabin on Lower Prominade (7) as you constantly have people walking by your room, you have to keep the curtains closed at night and you cant see the ocean over the crew life rafts in many cases. I was surprised how many world cruise veterans took a cabin with bath on Dolphin as they said it gave them the best relative value.

The Principal Officers and Crew

GC Gunderson

Just the prince of a guy (no pun intended). Charming, candid, concerned, skilled and approachable. He never missed an opportunity to improve the experience of his passengers hugging coastlines on sail aways, doubling back to give us second and third looks at points of interest even when behind schedule, and running flat out for two days to give us an extra morning in Cape Town. In one coffee chat session he joked that when we arrived in Tristan De Cunha, in perfect weather he was racking his brains to find an excuse why we couldn’t land not been willing to risk his Fiberglas life boats in the tiny rocky harbour and was saved when the locals offered their zodiacs. In the question and answer sessions with the pax, he was the only one who didn’t dissemble or become defensive when a tough question was posed. He handled the dance with Matthew with humour and style. Universally respected, liked, and admired by all on board.

Fekko Ebbans- Hotel Manager

I’m going to disregard the maxim “If you can say anything nice…” because this guy irritated me throughout the voyage. Known by a number of nicknames by the pax, one being the Petty Officer, and other involving the addition of the letter “p” to his name, he controlled everything other than the sailing of the vessel and boy did he run a “TIGHT” ship. It seemed that if you made any request of the front office staff, who were great by the way, they always had to check with the higher ups which everyone took to be him. As a result, the front office took a lot of grief for decisions that seemed to defy logic and common sense. For example our good friend Ross from Toronto decided to leave the boat in Barcelona to visit his daughter and grandchildren in England before flying home. He was on his way to buy an extra suitcase as when he had requested the duffel bag that all passengers were to receive he was told they would not be loaded until Cadiz. We offered him one of the suitcases we had brought and he gave us a letter instructing that his duffel be given to us to use on the way home and in a future visit with him we would give him his souvenir bag and reclaim our loaner. He also asked for his remaining gifts. I delivered the letter to the front-office and was told they didn’t think it would be a problem would have to check.

I was amazed to be informed that it was HAL policy that passengers had to be on board to receive their amenities (but not to pay for them apparently). I have always hated “Policy” especially as a fallback when logic fails. (I once instituted a policy in a branch office of my law firm that I was managing in Toronto that I would only enforce firm policies that made sense to me. My policy worked brilliantly as it appreciably shortened my tenure in management). To add insult to injury I was told there were lots of extra bags and that they could be purchased for $20 in the gift shop. For $20, three world voyage passengers were severely PO’d. Do they not understand the concept of goodwill? When I pointed out that they had lied to Ross as the bags were on board in Barcelona as we received them before Cadiz, a bag mysteriously appeared in our cabin without explanation. Grux asked him personally for Ross’ pewter serving tray with a Delph ceramic hand-painted inlay showing our itinerary on a map that was our last and best pillow gift and was brushed off. I wonder what they did with the extras such as Ross’ as I didn’t see them on sale in the gift shop. Unlike them not to squeeze out every nickel possible.

On another occasion I met a semiprofessional photographer who was on board to photograph the eclipse, this being his fifth such journey. He took some spectacular shots of the diamond ring effect and had prints made up shore side one of which he gave to our beloved hotel manager as a token of appreciation for I know not what. He was stunned to see his photograph scanned, reproduced and being offered for sale in the photo shop. When he complained, the embarrassed authorities agreed that each passenger would receive a free print complements of the photographer which satisfied him. I met him by chance after-the-fact and he asked if I could believe they would do such a thing. I told him that being a patent and copyright litigator I relied on such behavior to earn a living. Ok, now that I’ve vented I feel better.

CD and ACDs

I haven’t cruised enough to know a great CD from a bad one. On my previous cruises I didn’t know such an animal existed. Apparently the gentleman who was to be the cruise director on our cruise was promoted to be the chief CD for the line and now sails a desk in Seattle much to the disappointment of the repeaters. I learned that much of the matters for which I faulted our CD such as mediocre entertainment and lousy movies are dictated by Seattle. One Coffee Club member noted, “as a CD, Bruce Scudder is a great musician”. Grux had him as her instructor in creative writing and loved the guy. I got tired of hearing from him how great HAL was and with his constant sucking up to the hotel manager.

The ACD’s were generally great kids, always accommodating and cheerful and with energy to burn even in their sleep deprived state. A delight to sail with.

The Crew

Absolutely superb. Incredibly accommodating and hard-working and always conveying a sincere concern for the welfare of the pax many of whom I’m sure they couldn’t stand. Murjoni, our cabin steward went above and beyond the call many times for us and we’re sure gave us some of his personal possessions when we asked for something that was not readily available on board. Agus, YoYo, and Theophilo pampered us every night at dinner with never a hint of complaint when we frequently arrived late. At first when every crew member you met said good morning, I felt it was a little contrived but after a while you could sense their pleasure when you gave them a hearty greeting first or in reply.

HAL and The Circle of The Sun Cruise

I know this is on a HAL board and that my candid comments and opinions about them may rile some folks which doesn’t worry me much. HAL does so many things so darn well and then manages to undercut the goodwill they have built up by engaging in some petty practice disproportionate to any monetary return they might receive. At least the ship’s crew or the vast majority of them appear more competent than the ones you deal with in Seattle. Special Services who handle bookings for the World Cruise told me at the time of booking that the platinum insurance plan was not available to Canadians so I paid a lot more for a lot less only to learn from other Canucks that they were not so advised and bought the insurance without problems. Seems there was a change made a year ago the the SS never heard of. Another couple were wait-listed for a verandah on the first segment because they were sold out so took a suite but remained on the list up to sailing. They were asked to vacate their suite early a day before departure in Barcelona so it could be cleaned and were moved one deck down to a verandah cabin that had been empty since Lauderdale. Law suit time? Such tales abounded on our cruise and provided hours of entertainment.

To many HAL veterans, Carnival is a bad word as they see HAL being repositioned downward to a lower price point or at least to stay on the same price point with more gouging of the pax once on board and fewer inclusions. I think I would like to try a line like Crystal if and when I sail again so I can make a valid comparison of value.

Overall I would rate this cruise and HAL as meriting an A minus, with Mumbai as the highlight followed closely by Rio and then probably Cape Town/ Masai Mara tied for third although other ports such as Capri, South Georgia and Malta are very close. Mombassa proper, Cormoros and Salalah are at the other end.

Friends

To me the greatest joy, on this the most epic voyage of my life to date, was the people we met and the friendships we forged. I have never been in such continuous close contact with a group of people for so long a time and experienced so much together with them. If there is such a thing as a formula for bonding, this must be it.

Having sat down and read this thread from the beginning, I realize how much of the voyage I have already forgotten and so for posterity and as an aid to my aging mind and memory (i.e. I’ll never forget what’s his name…) I would like to remember in no particular order, Ella Mary, Robin, Leon, Celine, Don, Ed, Nancy, Howard and Steve, Bruce and Vicky, Melissa and John, Pat and Jude, Don and Alice, Barb and Laurie, Conrad and Lucienne, Scott, Nancy and Jack, the Bridesmaids, Anne, Gerald and Skip, Gary and Marlene, Robin and Marion, the Millwood’s, Dee, Sheila (who would recount to me the dirty jokes of the Red Hat’s i.e. How do you get an 85 year old woman to say F***?, Get another 85 year-old woman to say Bingo”), Dottie and Mike, John and Bridget, Freddie and Lynn, Harvey, Arthur, Dick and Jan, Branwyn and Robert, Ross, Doris, Crystal, Jane, Calista, Doug and Fallette, Father Bob Perry, Rabbi Mintz and Rev Gessel and about 50 others who I will remember as soon as I have posted. Grux knew everyone on the ship so her list would read like the passenger manifest.

So now I have done my duty and will relax and get back to cleaning boats and contacting clients. Grux can’t resurrect her blog but may start a new one and if so I’ll post her URL.

It’s been great folks. Thanks for your comments. I will monitor this board and may add a few extra tidbits as they come to mind or until everyone loses interest and so

Until that time…

Ides

[localady]

Ides-

Thank you so much for taking the time to give us a final chapter to your voyage. I do hope that those from HAL that read the review take your advice to heart.:)

A final thanks for taking the time to share your wonderful voyage with us. I don't suspect I'll be taking that type of a voyage for many years, if ever, and reading your wonderfully written journey entries has been a privilege!!!!!:D

My best to you and Grux! Happy boat-cleaning and such real life excitement!!:cool:

[Grumpy1]

There may be a few points where we disagree, but I found the majority of your points to be spot on... especially as regards the HM. I often had the feeling that if you were not staying in the cabins on decks 11 & 12, you weren't worthy of his time or efforts. He may be the most senior HAL HM, but I doubt that he is the best.

 

We definitely hope that we can sail with you someday, but until then...

I will raise my glass, offer a sincere thank you, and wish you health and happiness in your future endevours. It has been a great pleasure travelling with you on this journey.

[zaandam_2]

ides and grux, thanks so very much for sharing your voyage. it is much appreciated.

[RuthC]

Thank you so very much. :)

(applause. applause)

[mim100]

What a pleasant surprise to hear from you again....thanks for the final wrap-up and happy homecoming to you both....:)

[arzz]

Bravo for a blog well done and thank you so much for taking us with you!

[Cruiseoften]

Thank you so very much. :)

(applause. applause)

 

 

A standing ovation is definitely in order!

 

Thank you both so much! I've downloaded the entire story and will re-read and enjoy. I'd say you have a gift and unless I miss my guess, there's Irish blarney too!:D