The Dr Who Cruise Part 6

Friday, October 27 – Mexico

The alarm got us up at 6 AM. We crawled out of bed and got to the buffet for breakfast by 6:30. After eating, we slogged back to our cabin for bottles of water for the excursion. We each confessed that we were tired, and debated if we should even go on a 4-hour walking tour of Mayan Ruins. So we went down to the ship’s conference center, where the group was meeting, to tell D we wouldn’t make it to the ruins. Then another elevator ride up to our cabin, where I fell into bed.

About 2 hours later, I woke up and climbed out of bed. Again. We had about an hour before lunch would be served in the buffet, so we went to the card room, where I wrote. Hubby was done with his DW script and had turned it over to D on the only thumb drive he had brought with him, so he didn’t feel he could write. He tried to play solitaire on the laptop but got frustrated when it didn’t react as quickly as he thought it should. He took the laptop back to our cabin and walked until lunch time.

We were joined in the buffet by 2 other DW people, so we had conversation during lunch. Back in our room, we watched “Night at the Museum” (#1) to pass some time before we needed to head for the Music Hall, where Dominic would give a musical recital at 3:30. Dominic is a composer who has worked with the DW show.

We left our cabin about 2:50 and went to deck 8 to stroll through Central Park, which took us right to the Music Hall. We got there about 3 PM. The hall wasn’t open yet. We talked with a couple other early-birds for maybe 10 minutes, then Hubby wandered off into Central Park. I followed him until I found a table where I could sit and continue writing. It wasn’t long before Hubby returned with a couple desserts, which we devoured at my little table. Then back to the Music Hall, where we could now get in and choose our seats.

Hubby picked seats located in front of a small stage set to the left of the main stage. D asked us to move because the small stage was where Dominick was going to be. So we moved to seats at the bar, about 3 feet from where we had been sitting.

The music started at 3:30 and continued until 4:33 or thereabouts. It was great fun, a composition based on DW music. After it was over, we all had to beat feet to the Aqua Theater on deck 6, so the photographer could get our group photo taken. After that, I stopped at the candy shop to buy some jelly beans, and then we returned to our cabin, where I convinced Hubby to lay down for a nap.

About 7, we headed for the social hour at the chosen bar. We traveled aft via deck 5, where we found several members of the DW group waiting to get a group photo, so we joined them. After the photo, we went to the floating bar, which periodically rises very slowly to deck 8. By the time we got off on 8, it was after 7:30, so Hubby and I took an elevator back to deck 5 and joined the crowd collecting in front of the doors for the Main Dining Room. At 7:40, those doors opened, and for once, we were not the last ones to our table.

The Dining Room was offering lobster tails. I think everybody at our table ordered one. Some—like me—also ordered a 2^nd main dish. The lobster tails were served, and several of them were then handed off to people who had ordered one, but wanted a second. (The ship was charging for a second lobster tail, but not for other second main courses.) So, for 20-30 minutes, I sat with a lobster tail in front of me as a favor for my husband. I was hungry, so I ate the carrots and broccoli, which I wasn’t sure he would eat anyway. When Hubby finally finished his first tail, we were exchanging plates when the waiter grabbed the empty plate and whisked it away, then brought my actual main course. It was cheese tortellini, and I enjoyed it a lot. I hope Hubby enjoyed his lobster tails as well.

The Dr Who Cruise Part 4

Oct 25, Wednesday, - Cozumel, Mexico

We got up at 7 and had breakfast in the buffet. We had a shore excursion to learn about Mexico’s Day of the Dead. We needed to be on the shore by 8:45 at Station 4. Just before we left the ship, Hubby realized that he had left the camera in the cabin and ran back to get it. Sensory overload hit me as I reached the end of the dock and tried to find the sign for Station 4. I finally found it, hiding behind Station 5, which was hiding behind Station 6. Oberto was our guide, and he had paperwork for me to fill out. I found a table and chairs in the shade and started filling out the paperwork. Hubby showed up, so I started filling out the paperwork for him, and showed him where to sign in.

At 9AM, Oberto gathered us all together and walked us out of the crowded business section to a place where buses and taxis were waiting. He divided us into 4 different groups and put each group into a taxi van. The taxis drove us to Playa Mia, about 10 minutes from the terminal.

At Playa Mia, there was a tour put together by a cacao company, and that was what we were there for. We walked along a wandering path through a small patch of jungle. Along the way, we were shown a ‘typical Mayan hut’ and given a tiny tostada with a daub of filling as our first taste test. We were shown examples of the various spice plants they add to their cocoa drink and given a small wooden spoon with some cacao candy on it for our 2^nd taste test.

 After that, we climbed to the 2^nd floor of the cacao shop and were given a few minutes to decorate an altar for the Day of the Dead. Then we got to cross a bridge to the 2^nd story of the next building. They handed out small wooden skull faces that we could color using sharpies. And when we finished that, they had more things to taste; enchiladas, toquitos, a deep purple water made by boiling a certain type of flower, regular water, and some Mayan cocoa. The food was okay, and I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about spicy cocoa made with water and not milk, but I tried it, and it was good.

We were given 20 minutes to shop in the various stores, and there were several in the area. Hubby went down the street far enough to find 2 swimming pools and the shoreline. Then we were put back in taxis and sent back to the terminal

Sensory overload again as we made our way through the first building and its myriad shops. When we came out into the sunlight, I asked Hubby where he wanted to go, and he said ‘to the ship’. I said, “Come on, it’s this way,” and he said, “Go ahead, I’ll catch up.” I thought he wanted to find a bathroom, so I walked forward about a short block, and then waited for him to ‘catch up.’ I must have waited at least half an hour before I decided he was a grown man and the location of the ship was obvious, so I made my way to the dock and walked most of the way to the ship, then paused to sit on a bench and rest for a moment. And that’s where he found me. He was angry that I’d ‘gotten lost’ when he had OBVIOUSLY told me to go ‘back to the ship’. Not the way I remembered it at all.

Having found each other, we went to our cabin for our special tumblers, and then went to the buffet to hydrate and eat some lunch. That’s where we found A, another DW cruiser, so we sat and talked for a while.

Afterwards, we went to our cabin and worked on our stories for the afternoon. I laid down for an hour nap, and Hubby got up and went walk-about a couple times. He’s not one to stay sitting for long periods at a time. I also took a quick shower to wash away the sweat from our shore excursion, but by the time the ship pulled anchor and left Cozumel, I was deep into my writing.

When I decided to go to the group’s social hour, the boat was rocking. I felt like I had lost my sea legs. This was a bit alarming because I ‘lose my balance’ entirely too often, even on dry land. But I got to the Schooner Bar safely and found a seat on the fringe of our big group.

Before long, it was time to go to dinner. We had 2 go down 1 deck, and the elevators were mobbed, so we walked down the stairs, some of us gripping the banister as if our lives depended on it. When we got to our table, we found that Tim and George were the ‘monster’ guests for our table tonight. Tim is very outgoing and lots of fun. George has worked with Tim on lots of DW episodes, but this was his first time on the DW cruise. He seemed to be warming up to the group’s off-beat camaraderie.

We did have a touch of drama during our meal. Apparently, a server somehow dropped a bowl of soup. Some of the soup bounced as high as the ceiling, other splatters landed on 3 of the diners at our table. Hubby had a couple drops land on him. The lady next to him went through two cloth napkins wiping off splatters that hit her. Tim got so much soup on his shirt that he went back to his cabin to get a fresh shirt. Many jokes were made about the incident.

Several members of the table decided to go do the onboard zipline. I don’t know if they got their nighttime zipping done; the ship may have been swaying too much for that activity to be available. If not, they were looking forward to barhopping after that, so I’m sure they had lots of fun. Hubby and I didn’t have a beverage package that included alcohol, so we went back to our cabin to write, but that didn’t last long before we started yawning and decided to go to bed.

The Dr Who Cruise Part 2

Monday, Oct 23 – A Day at Cocoa Key.

 

We got up at 7 and went to the buffet for breakfast. The ship had docked at Cocoa Key, but hadn’t given out any newsletters to tell us what to expect. We didn’t know when we could go ashore, or even what deck we needed to go to in order to do that.

Sunday, I had walked 12,250 steps, far more than the 2K I sometimes manage at home. My legs had ached all night and were still ackey, so I took a pain pill. But my legs still bothered me at 10:40 when we left the ship to look around the island. It wasn’t long before I admitted I needed to sit for a while. I found a lounge chair and sat down in the shade. Hubby went off to look around.

 About 1 ½ hours later, when he came back, my legs felt much better, and I was more alert. He was tired from walking almost 10K steps already, so he sat down to rest. I checked my steps, and I had already walked 7K steps. Hubby rested for about 15 minutes, then we walked back to the ship.

We went to Guest Services to ask about internet service. We had brought a laptop for Hubby to work on, but we couldn’t get Word to work because it ‘couldn’t confirm we had an account with Microsoft, so please connect to the internet.’ What a bummer. We don’t usually buy an internet package on a cruise ship because the service is so lousy. But he couldn’t work without Word, so we bought internet service for 1 day to see if that would solve the problem. After all, I had used the laptop for a couple of weeks when my desktop died, and it had worked fine, but it was always connected to the internet during that time.

 We took to our cabin the instructions for signing in, and I sat down to work with the laptop, getting it onto the internet. Hubby laid down on the bed and fell asleep. He almost never takes a daytime nap. He woke up about an hour later and asked how I was doing. I was done, and Word was working perfectly. He rolled over and went back to sleep for another hour. So I changed some color settings to see if he could see the cursor any easier. He had complained how hard it was to see a white cursor on a white background. I played some games, but the color was odd; red cards were black, and black cards were blue.

Hubby awoke about 3, and we went to the pizza place for a bite to eat. After returning to our cabin, he worked on his stories, and I worked on my blog.

About 6 o’clock, we left to explore a section of the ship we hadn’t been to yet, the Boardwalk. It had a carousel, a candy shop, a hot dog stand, a hamburger joint, a sports bar or two and a rock-climbing wall, so it didn’t take us long to explore it.

We still had a ½ hour before meeting the others for social hour. We thought about going to the floating bar and riding it from the 5^th deck to the 8^th deck, but it had already left deck 5 and hadn’t yet reached deck 8. So we returned to our cabin and got the special tumblers that proved we had a beverage package, and then came back for social hour. With a group as large as ours, it’s hard to find enough chairs in any 1 bar, but we did the best we could.

We had a nice dinner with 2 actors who played various monsters on Dr Who. Hubby did his interpretation of a social butterfly, flitting from table to table to talk to members of the talent and some fan writers about some ideas he had for a story. After dinner, we returned to our cabin, worked for about an hour, and then turned in.

Pearl Harbor & Getting on Our Plane

 

Pearl Harbor

Saturday, 4/29 - John got up about 5:45, having had a miserable night. Went for breakfast at the buffet, then gathered our carry-ons and made our way to the disembarkment station. Around 8, we were sent off the ship to claim our luggage and find our tour bus. John nearly had a panic attack because he couldn't find our car keys. We were given a short tour of some sights in Honolulu, then given about 4 hrs to explore the Pearl Harbor Memorial. We saw 2 short movies and took a boat over to the USS Arizona Memorial, where we spent about 15 or 20 minutes. We didn't know if there would be a place to eat at the airport, so we got a sandwich apiece at the snack shop and finished with a look through the gift shop, where I bought a tote bag. By then, John was getting tired, so we slowly walked back to the bus and waited for the rest of the people to show up. The tour bus dropped us off at the airport at about 1:30. Our plane was scheduled to take off at 10:59 pm, so we had a long wait before we could check our luggage and go through TSA. There was no place to eat outside the TSA, so we were extra happy we'd had sandwiches to get us through.

Getting on Our Plane

John searched every one of our suitcases and the carry-on bag for the car keys, which we finally found. We discovered we could get our suitcases checked in 6 hours before the plane took off, so about 5 pm, we hopped up and got started on that. TSA was its usual nightmare for John, or more so, because the x-ray machine claimed he had metal somewhere, and they had to pat him down. Happens to me all the time, but I think it's the first time for him. Then we started walking to our gate. It was a long walk, made even longer by the number of stores that were already closed. We finally came across a restaurant that was open, so we stopped and had burgers and sodas. $50! Just before we got to our gate, we came across a news stand that was still open, though we had passed a couple that had already closed. We sat down and waited. Eventually, I went to that news stand and bought a bottle of water. When I got back, John asked, "Couldn't you just use the water fountain right over there?" My reply was, "The airplane doesn't have water fountains."

There were more people trying to get on the plane than they had seats, including a pair of parents and their 3 young girls. The clerk was looking for volunteers to be bumped so these extra people could get on. As we were checking in to board the plane, this family apparently figured out they wouldn't be sitting together, so they had to go back to the clerk to get something done about that. John and I didn't get to sit together, either. We had a 5-hour flight to LA, and I thought the plane was cold, so I didn't manage to get any sleep. John tried to get some sleep, I could see him from where I was, but I don't know if he managed it.

Nearing the End in Hawaii

Thursday, 4/27 - I got up at 6:30 for our morning excursion to the 'Grand Canyon of the Pacific'. First, we made a stop at a rocky beach to see a spatterhorn in action. That's where the incoming waves go into a tunnel in the rocks and shoots out a hole on the beach, looking much like a geyser. Very interesting.

Then we went to the canyon, which was beautiful, much greener than the mainland grand canyon. We weren't getting back to the ship until about 2, so we made a short stop in a small town, where most people got off and got a bite to eat to tide them over. John wasn't doing very well on the way back, and he promptly lay down for a nap. I took my book back to the library and read for an hour there, then went to the bar in the lobby and got a Bahama Mama. As I sat there, a long line of people walked by on their way to the luau. I heard some 700 people had signed up for that. About 1 1/2 hr after john lay down, I went back to the room and waited for him to wake. After another hour, he stirred and rolled over. I asked him if he wanted supper, and he said no, so I went to the skyline by myself. I was waiting for my 2 desserts (couldn't decide on one) when he walked in and found me, so I guess he did want supper, but he kept complaining the room was warm. After supper, he turned in for the night, and I wasn't too far behind him.

Friday, 4/28 - I got up at 6:30, even though I had set the wake-up call for 7. We had breakfast in the buffet, although we didn't have a shore excursion scheduled this day, then I got off the ship just far enough to use my phone to call John's ENT, but the office was closed. Was it that late? Didn't seem like it to me, even counting the 6 hrs of time difference. Meanwhile, John checked our account balance, then we started looking for face masks for our shore excursion the next day. The Pearl Harbor Memorial, we were told, requires face masks be worn while inside. The ship's souvenir shop didn't have any, but the medical center handed them over cheerfully. We went to deck 11 to do some reading. About 11, we went to the room to pack everything we weren't going to need. At noon, we went for lunch, then John wanted a nap, but was coughing too hard to sleep, so he went to deck 11 to take pictures. I sat in the room writing.

About 5 pm, we went to deck 11 to try to see the beautiful Nali Pai shoreline. The ship had left its dock about 2 and traveled to the east side of the island so people could see this spectacular view before it turned around and headed for Honolulu. It had been a misty day, and unfortunately, as we approached the Nali Pai shoreline, the clouds came down to sea level and obscured the view. So we went to supper at the buffet, since we were already on deck 11. John had a couple desserts, while I had corn on the cob, celery, apricots and walnuts. Back to our room to make sure everything was packed, then John went to bed. I put the big suitcases out to be disembarked for us, and went to bed about 7:45, but because it was so early, I spent some time thinking about the next scene in my Work in Progress.

More Adventures in Hawaii

Tuesday, 4/25 - Hilo, Hawaii (the big island). I got up about 6, the wake-up call came at 6:45. Went to Skyline for breakfast, where we were warned that omelets and waffles could take 1/2 hour to prepare, in case we had a shore excursion. We ordered anyway, and there was no delay. Went to the theater and shortly got sent down to find our bus. Before we boarded, they handed each of us a 'box lunch' and a can of water. Because of my knees, we were offered seats in the front of the bus. We stopped at a Japanese garden, a statue of Kamehameha, Rainbow Falls, Akaka Falls, the zoo (where we ate our lunch), a macadamia farm gift shop and a candy shop. Had to take a detour to get to Akaka Falls, and missed the turn to the falls, so had to turn around on a busy hiway. Got back to the boat about 3:30 or 4:00, went to the talk on our next port of call. Back to our room until 5:30, when we went to Skyline for supper. Long line to get in and had to skip dessert to get to the comedy show, which was good. Back to the room, read for a bit, then went to bed.

 

Wednesday, 4/26 – I have forgotten the names of the rest of the ports we visited and the islands they were on. My notes don’t include that information. We’re still touring Hawaii, and probably hitting the islands to the north and west of the Big Island.

I got up at 5:30 because I woke up. The wake-up call sounded at 6:30, and John got up. To the buffet for breakfast, then to our room to pick up stuff for our day ashore; water, our shore excursion tickets, and so on. Went to the theater to be ready for our excursion. To get to our excursion, we had to get on a tender boat and be ferried to the shore. Once there, we found our tour guide, jumped in his van, and we were off for a "Scenic Taste of Hawaii". First, we went to a coffee farm, where John bought an expensive lb of coffee ($46). Then to a farmer's market, where we bought a book, 2 jars of local jelly, a facial scrub and a bottle of essential oil (TiTree). At a macadamia nut farm, John found a lb of coffee was going for $64! (He didn't get any.) Then to a park on the beach where we got a box lunch and drink for lunch. Then back to the port for a tour of the Kona Brewing Co, where we sampled 4-5 different beers. Got dropped off at the pier about 4:05, and the line waiting for a tender ride back to the ship was a mile long. The last tender was leaving the pier at 5, and they were loading tenders as fast as they could. Once we got to the ship, we went to our room, to relax before our specialty dining reservation at 8:00.

I was not terribly impressed by the French food offered by Jefferson's Bistro. Mostly, I wondered how I was supposed to eat it. Even for the baked pear I got for dessert, I had to ask for a knife so I could cut it up and get pieces on my spoon. 

Maui, the First Island

 Getting a Taste

 Sunday, 4/23 - At the island of Maui. We had a tasting excursion at 8:15, so we got up at 6:30 and had breakfast. Had 14 passengers and a driver/guide packed into a van, driving from place to place to try various dishes. Usually, a 'tasting' is a single bite, or maybe 2, but several of these tastings involved a complete serving. John got over-heated at 1 point, and then got full at the next stop, which surprised me. The final stop was a craft brewing company that served food. John tried the 2 beers they offered for tasting, but neither of us ate our fish taco. Back at the ship, John was wiped and took a nap. Then we had supper at the skyline, which was okay. John read for a while and went to bed. I read until midnight and went to sleep.

Our room had not been made when we got back to the ship about 2. Which meant the bed had not been split. I complained - again - and someone arrived about 3 to clean it. We went to the library until about 4. It had been cleaned and the beds separated so we could use them.

 

Climbing the Volcano

Monday, 4/24 - still at Maui. Had an excursion at 8 to go to the top of the dormant volcano, supposed to be 2 to 1/2 hours, but we didn't get back until 12:30. John tried to walk the last 500 feet to the top of the peak, but only got half-way there before he had to turn around and come back or miss the bus. It was a spectacular sight, but John was running down by the time we got back to the ship. We were going to eat at the Skyline, but it wasn't open, so we went to the buffet. Listened to our voicemails on our room phone. NextCruise wanted to answer John's questions, and she would be at her desk from 2 until 4. We originally went to the wrong desk, but eventually found her. Then back to our room, where John was tired and upset. At 4, went to the talk about the next day's port, Hilo, on the Big Island. At 5:00 was a Loyalty Appreciation party. After about 15 minutes, we left to get supper. Decided to try the Cadillac Diner, but weren't impressed. John ate about half his sandwich and went back to our cabin. I finished most of my meal and went to our cabin. We talked about the luau, which was an evening excursion on Thursday, and decided to cancel our participation, so I went down and cancelled it. When I got back to the room around 7, J stopped reading and went to bed.

Dominican Republic

 

Wednesday, 11/16 - Dominican Republic

We got up at 6:00 and went to the buffet for breakfast. After that, it was a looooong walk down the pier to find our shore excursion, Puerto Plata Culture, History and Heritage. Puerto Plata is either a city, or an area that has a city in it, I'm not sure which.

I had read the tickets wrong, and we arrived at the duty-free shops about an hour early. I remembered being at this particular group of shops at least twice before, but we have been on several Caribbean cruises, so it wasn't that surprising. John looked around at the shops while I sat in what shade I could find to gather my energy after yesterday's 'forced march'.

Thank goodness it was a bus tour, but I think most all the shore excursions here were, since the port was some 25 miles from the city.

The first stop on the tour was a rum factory, where we got to taste several versions of rum. I still think 9:30 AM is too early in the day for rum tasting. The tour started with a room full of rum casks. It was totally dark, except for small lines of lights outlining the path to follow to get to the exit. Then a small theater that could only seat about half the people who were on the tour. (I think there were 2 buses there at the same time.) After a movie about the history of this rum company, we were taken to another room, where they had some historical artifacts having to do with the rum-making process. It was here that they passed out little sample glasses, and gave us samples of about 8 tastes of their rum. The factory store was across the street. But we had already bought 4 bottles of rum during this cruise, so we decided we didn't need any more.

Next we were taken to a jewelry shop that specialized in amber and larimer jewelry. Larimer is only found on this island. We were sent inside for a chance to buy jewelry, but learning the price of one piece was enough to dissuade me from buying anything. I had a lot of trouble persuading the sales person I really wasn't interested in anything. When we came back out and got on the bus, we almost left behind a couple who had been paying for their purchase!

Somebody asked why there had been police there to steer us into and out of the store, and the tour guide said it was to make sure the pan-handlers and peddlers didn't bother us. The police presence left us with a strange, 'you are watched' kind of feeling.

Next, we went to the amber museum, which also has a permanent display on the art of making cigars. Of course there was a gift shop, and John bought... a pound of coffee!

Back on the street, I was wearing down, so I climbed back on the bus with a couple other people to wait. The rest of the group walked a few blocks to see 'Umbrella Street. After about 20 minutes, the bus went to pick up the others, and we started back for the pier. I caught a brief glimpse of Umbrella Street, and they had dozens of open umbrellas suspended over the street.

The Dominican Republic is the only port I remember where as we approached the gate to the port, a guard came aboard the bus and had to see everybody's ship-board card. To prove we had a reason for coming to the port, I suppose.

We reached the duty-free shops with about 37 minutes before we had to be on the ship. John wanted to buy me a Caribbean shirt that would fit me. He knew exactly what store had them. I didn't want another shirt, but to his surprise, I chose a Caribbean-style dress. (He was surprised. I was shocked! I swore off dresses decades ago!) Then we had that loooong walk back to the ship, which took us 7-8 minutes (I timed it). It was a very long pier.

We went to O'Sheehan's for a late lunch, then spent some time in the hot tub. About 7, we went to the theater for a dance show. This was our 'big night' on the ship, so I wore my new dress. The show was okay, the dancing was good, but I had trouble with the plot. I'm not sure it had one.

We left a few minutes before the end of the show to go to the other end of the ship, to the restaurant Cagney's, where we had dinner reservations. John was dragging on the way there, and had a little trouble understanding the menu. (It was past his usual bed time.) Since we were dining on a package plan, certain items on the menu were not available to us. We had a very nice dinner, and as we were walking out, we came across a couple who had been on the kayaking shore excursion with us, so we exchanged a few pleasantries with them. Then off to the cabin for the night.

Puerto Rico

Tuesday, 11/15 - Puerto Rico

It was raining when we went to deck 15 for breakfast. We had to try to run between the raindrops to get to the buffet. Of course that didn't work very well, so we got somewhat wet. And again when we went back to our cabin. But the rain didn't last long.

Our excursion today was the Mofongo and Mojito Experience. The group was large, so it got broken into 2 groups, and our group had to wait around for 15 minutes to let the first group get ahead of us. I was disappointed to learn it was a walking tour of the city, but I bravely set out with them, and was able to keep up for a while. Just as I (and John) were thinking we couldn't possibly keep up the pace much longer, we were led up to the 2nd floor of a 'cultural lounge', where we were seated around tables. Among talking about the history of their rum-making, they gave us appetizers and a mojito (which we hadn't liked on the ship, but these were good). Then they passed out big wooden mortars to everybody. Each had some cassava and a plantain chip in it. They gave us each a pestle and taught us how to grind the cassava and plantain chip into mush. Then they added a small ladle of chicken stew to the mush, and a fork to eat with. This was the mofongo, and it was quite tasty and very filling.

After lunch, they expected us to continue walking! I wanted a siesta. But I tried to keep up with the others. At one point we had to walk 2 blocks up a steep hill. I had to stop 3 times to catch my breath before I caught up to the others, who had stopped to wait for me.

Eventually, we came out on a hilltop near the bay, and we could see our ship sitting at the dock. It looked very far away. I was really dragging, but had no choice but to keep walking. The tour guide was worried about the time, so every time I caught up to the group, she immediately started off again. I didn't have a chance to catch my breath again. The closer we got to the ship, the further ahead the group got, and I didn't care. I didn't stop walking, even though my stomach got to feeling a little sick.

We finally made it to the dock, and John even had time to stop at the duty-free shop and buy a souvenir towel he had noticed earlier. I was wiped, and went to our cabin to lay down. After an hour, we went to deck 6 for cokes, then John went to deck 8 to read, while I returned to the cabin to lay down again.

About 5, we went to the main dining room for supper. Afterwards, we went to the mojito bar on deck 8 to try a couple flavored mojitos. We liked the spicy passion fruit mojito, but not so much the raspberry guava one, which seemed a little heavy on the alcohol.

Then we went to the theater for a comedy show. I thought there would be 2 comedians again, but there was only one. Back to our cabin for the night. I found I had walked 10,522 steps on this day. We went to bed at 8:30, but at 9:30, I got up to plug in my phone to recharge. At 10:00, I got up to take a tylenol, my legs were aching so much. Then up at 10:45 for another tylenol, and I could finally fall asleep.

Rum Factory Tour & St Maarteen's

Sunday, 11/13 - Rum Factory Tour and Tasting

We went to the Savor for breakfast, which was good, but not great. I went back to our cabin and laid down for about 1/2 an hour, and got up feeling much more awake. Meanwhile, John went off to do some walking. Our excursion started at 9:30. I don't remember what island this was, but the roads were the pits.

First, we went to a famous woodcarver's workshop and store. It was beautiful work, but I'm not into abstract or primitive artwork, so we didn't buy anything.

On to see Marigot Bay, which is only accessible by water taxi. We got to 'see' it from a wide spot in the road at the top of a hill. Surprisingly, it looked amazingly like a beach.

Then we were on to a rum factory for a tour and some taste testing. The factory tour consisted of a 2-minute audio tape, an 8-minute video tape, and then a walk to an open room in the factory, where we got a 10-to-15-minute lecture on their process of making rum. Unfortunately, the tour guide did not have a microphone, and they had combined 2 busloads into one tour, so it was very hard to hear her. Then our busload was sent through a labyrinth of colorful carnival characters and into the tasting room. They had about a dozen different varieties out, and we could taste as many of them as we wanted. Those of us who wanted to buy some were shunted off to the factory store, where, unfortunately, the card reader wasn't working. Since we don't carry much cash, we couldn't buy anything. Back to the bus to return to the ship.

The driver and tour guide wanted to show off their new way into town, called the Millennium Hiway. It seemed in even worse shape than the regular roads, until we got into the tunnel, where it smoothed out a bit.

The bus dropped us off at the duty-free shops at the pier. John wanted a pair of water shoes, but he got distracted by a liquor store, where he bought the 2 bottles of flavored rum he'd wanted to get at the factory. I went on to other stores to look for water shoes in his size, and when he finally caught up to me, he approved of the pair I'd found, and we bought those. The only pair I'd found in his size.

We dropped things off at the cabin, then went to a bar on deck 8 to get cokes. John finished his walking for the day. Then we hung out for a while, him reading and me writing. We had dinner in the main dining room. It had very few customers when we got there. It filled up some as we ate, but was still not full when we left about 6:30.

Our excursion for the next day had been cancelled, due to technical difficulties with the boat we would have been using. We went to see if some other excursion appealed to us. Nothing did, so we decided to stay on the ship.

 

Monday, 11/14 - St Maarteen

We got up and had breakfast as usual, but we didn't have any excursion today, as we'd been informed the day before. Since we aren't big on buying souvenirs, we decided to stay aboard and see what we could find to do. After breakfast, we started with some exercise, John doing his walking, and I going to the gym for a bike ride. John was still walking, so I took my notebook and pen to the deck 6 atrium bar for a coke and to write.

Fairly late in the morning, Arts & Crafts set up a table on the dance floor and handed out journal kits for those who wanted to make them. The instructions came in the form of a 16-page booklet of pictures and text explaining how to 'sew' the journal together. They did warn us that it would take us longer than a half hour, which was all the time allotted for Arts and Crafts. I sat at the bar, sipping my coke, and got it done in about an hour. It was fun and not difficult. It reminded me of lacing leather pieces together, particularly in one of the more challenging designs, like Mexican Basketweave. But I didn't have to worry about the lacing getting twisted, because I was using embroidery thread.

John found me, and we went for a light lunch at O'Sheehans. It wasn't as noisy as usual, because we were in port, and the casino wasn't open. Then we went to deck 8 so John could finish his walking - it takes time to walk 10,000 steps! But the bar I sat at to write didn't open until 3:45 or 4:00, so I couldn't have a coke until then.

We went to the noodle station for supper. This is a complimentary restaurant, only open for lunch and dinner. They have a limited number of seats, and once those are all filled, they turn away everybody else, so you have to get in line for it well before it actually opens. The food was good, but it seemed like a madhouse. People closest to the kitchen were getting their desserts before the ones further from the kitchen were getting their appetizers.

After supper, we went to the comedy club, where we could not get a waiter's attention to get anything to drink. The show was good, although we'd heard pieces of it before, when we attended the comedy show in the theater. And then John was tired, so we called it a night. 

St Thomas & St John's

Friday, 11/11/22 - St Thomas

Our shore excursion for the day was Kayaking, Hiking and Snorkeling. We were a little nervous about it, because neither of us had ever been Kayaking. I was worried the hike might become a forced march for me, since I walk so slowly and don't have much stamina. But the snorkeling would definitely be fun!

The 'bus' was a truck with lots of back seats in it, and no doors on the sides. Also, no seatbelts, so one had to be careful not to fall out. The bus took us to the other side of the island, where we received 10 minutes of instruction on how to kayak. Then we were loaded into the kayaks, usually 2 to a boat. (One family of 3 put their young daughter in the middle, and there may have been one woman in a boat by herself, I'm not sure.) I was nervous getting in, but I managed it with lots of help from a couple of the guides. I was in the front seat. John sounded just as nervous, getting into the back seat. The dock was in a small inlet, and I dutifully paddled around, trying to get a feel for this new mode of traveling. But it seemed like every time I paddled, I bumped into somebody else's boat or some bushes. I didn't feel like I had any control over getting it to turn or stop at all.

Soon everybody was ready, and we took off. I paddled left, right, left, right... but the boat kept turning left. I wondered if it was because John and I were both right handed, and those arms would push harder. Then one of the guides realized John was having problems, and came over to give him a second belt to help hold him upright. That was nerve-wracking for me, since I had no idea what was going on behind me, and couldn't turn enough to look. We took off again, already far behind the others, but the guide stayed with us. John said it was uncomfortable for him to sit in the boat, and if he tried to paddle, he sank down into the seat. So... I was paddling alone.

We caught up with the others, for they had stopped to talk about the local flora and fauna, and I bumped into other boats again, still unable to stop. As soon as a guide started out again, I was right there after him, trying not to fall behind again. But we did, and when we finally reached the end point of the kayaking, everybody else had moved on to the hiking stage. John and the guide did that, trying to catch up, but I was pretty winded, so after 100 feet or so, I decided to turn back and go to the tent, where there was a picknik table and benches for sitting.

Before long, everybody got back, and it was on to the snorkeling. Unfortunately, John didn't have any water shoes, and when he took off his clunky shoes, he couldn't walk on the rocky beach to get in the water. Everybody else was already a quarter mile away, so we decided to pass on the snorkeling and waited for them to get back.

Because we had taken so long to kayak to the finish, they sent us back to the starting point in a motor boat, our kayak tied up along side of us. I kind of wanted to kayak back, but in hind sight, there wasn't enough time for us to move back as slowly as we had moved outward. We would have missed the bus back, and would have missed the ship.

We got back to the ship about 1:30, where we changed out of our wet(!) clothes and went to O'Sheehan's for a late lunch. I guess we didn't get wet enough that morning, because after lunch, we changed again and went to the hot tub. Later, we went to the buffet for supper. There was no show in the theater this night, so we returned to our cabin to watch some tv. I slathered on moisterizer, because I was sun-burnt from my head right down to the tops of my feet.

 

Saturday, 11/12 - St John's

For some reason, I woke up tired this day, getting up at 7. Our shore excursion wasn't until 12:45, so after we had breakfast, I laid down for an hour and felt much better. Then I went to the Atrium bar on deck 6 for a coke and to write, while John went in search of a quiet place to read.

We met at the cabin at noon, and went to find our excursion, titled A Taste of Antigua (the city we were in). They loaded us into 3 extended vans to drive us around a little bit and see some of the sites, then we were dropped off at a night club venue for the tasting bit. We were given a half glass of fruit punch to help refresh us as we found seats around several tables. We listened to some history of the island and were given tastes of 3 different ages of rum. We were also given some sugar cane, some local dishes and a native fruit called a sweet apple (which was not an apple at all. It had a slight similarity to a pomegranate, but with bigger seeds.)

After that, we were loaded back up on the vans and returned to the dock. Did not notice any shopping locations at or near the dock, so we didn't get any souvenirs. We rested a bit and then went to O'Sheehan's for supper.

After that, we went to the theater for a musical play about Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis and the small recording company they all started with. I enjoyed it a great deal, since it was mostly early rock and roll. For that same reason, I don't know how John felt about it. Then back to our cabin to call it a day.

Saturday, 8/13 - 2nd English Shore Excursion

The Roman Bath at Bath

The next morning, we were set to go see the Roman baths in the town of Bath. There were a lot of groups for this particular excursion. The theater, which was the place where everybody was gathered to get organized for their excursions, was pretty nearly full when we got there. When they started announcing the Bath excursions, I think half the people in the theater got up to go, but since we were part of that big group, and I don't like crowds, I may be a bit biased about that. Hubby and I had to make sure we got the same # pasted to our shirts so we'd be on the same bus.

And then came a long bus ride. I'm thinking about an hour and a half to get from the port to the center of Bath, where the bus dropped us off in a quarter circle 'bus stop' that took up at least half a block and was wide enough for 3 buses side by side.

After we all got off the bus, we were quickly marched down a narrow street of shops to a corner of a large square with benches, hurried diagonally across the square, and around the corner to the door of the Baths. The doorway was packed with people waiting to go in, and our guide had to make sure he handed out the tickets to people who were on his bus. We were given 3 hours to go through the whole thing, and were told that afterwards, the gift shop would let us out 'down the street by those columns'. I couldn't see any doorway down by the columns, but the guide had gotten away before I could ask any more questions.

Once we got in the building, we were given head phones with a keypad to type in the number of the area sign we were standing in front of, and a recorded voice would talk about that particular area of the building. Unfortunately, Hubby decided he couldn't listen to the head phones and take pictures at the same time.

We found ourselves on a balcony that surrounded and overlooked 2 large pools of water, kind of like fountains, but with no splashing displays. Unfortunately, it looked like these pools had not been cleaned out in a long time, the water was a sick green, and had bird feathers and other trash in it. It was not an appealing sight. There were 2 other rooms off this balcony, I think they were called the East Bath and the West Bath, but we didn't go to those. We had a limited time to get through this, and no idea just how big it was.

We walked around the balcony, taking pictures and listening to numbers, then we went downstairs to a museum-like area. Mostly, the museum was about the Romans who used the local hot springs to create the bath house.

Then we went outside again, and found ourselves under the balcony, on the same level as the bath pools. There was a Roman character there, in full costume, and Hubby got my picture standing next to her. I was surprised that the sick green water of the baths did not smell bad. Hot springs often carry dissolved minerals in the water, and that can lead to a 'yucky' smell in the air. It sure does in Yellowstone, when we visited there when I was a kid.

The day was hot; the air in the bath particularly humid. Happily, they had a small refreshment stand in the shade opposite the 2 pools, and they were able to take our credit cards. Hooray! We each got a small container of ice cream and ate it down. It helped cool us down a little, and took the edge off the hunger we were beginning to feel. Then we set off, sure we were nearly at the end of this adventure.

We took a wrong turn, and found ourselves in what looked like a dead-end cavern, while the earphones talked about the Romans using this area as a workout space. After that, I found somebody who worked there and asked, "How do we get out of here?" She put us on the correct path once again. That path took us through more caverns, some with hot water streaming through them, some where the path was elevated above the cavern floor, and you found yourself walking across glass. Or clear plastic. Made me nervous and very happy that the path had walls, though those were clear, too.

Finally, we found a wall full of cubbies, which was where we were suppose to deposit our headphones. Then up a few steps and into the gift shop. We looked around, but we don't buy a lot of souvenirs anymore, so before long, we stepped outside into the street.

I looked for the front door and the bath building. And didn't see it anywhere. Before I could start to panic, or wonder what to do next, someone started yelling in the street, saying things like the country is going to h*ll and I don't remember what all. I do remember thinking, "He sounds like a Trumper." Which didn't make sense, because we were in England, not the US. Hubby moved away from me, and I followed him to the corner, where he started talking to the dustman, who had stopped his work to listen to the yelling.

None of us had any clue what the Yelling Man was on about, but since we had this nice gentleman's attention, I asked how I could get to the front door of the bath house. If I could get there, I could find our way back to the bus stop. Once the dustman realized we were actually looking for a tour bus, he said, just go up this street. Three blocks and we'd be right at the bus stop. So we said thank you and started up the street.

Sure enough, after one block, we came to the square with the benches. We apparently had 15 or 20 minutes before our bus was due back, so we sat on one of the benches, even though it was in the direct, hot sunlight. At least, I sat down, Hubby kept wandering around, trying to give me a heart attack whenever I looked around and couldn't find him right away. But eventually, he came back and we decided to go look for our bus.

When we got to the bus stop, all half a block long and 3 buses wide, it was crowded with people looking for their bus. Happily, as soon as a bus got all its people aboard, it somehow inched its way out of the mess and onto the street and started back for the port. Eventually, our bus was able to jockey its way into the bus stop area, and we started climbing aboard. One couple was a little late getting back, and the tour guide raced down the street to try to find them, but found them at about the square with the benches, so we were able to head out as soon as those 3 got aboard.

Now for the race to get back to the port, and it really felt like we were racing, that we had gotten a late start back for the port. I don't know if the driver was taking a more direct route or what, but buildings I had noted on the way to Bath, I didn't see on the way back to port.

When we got to the port, there was a frenzy of buses all trying to get close enough to the ship to let their passengers off. For its part, the ship had 2 gangways open and were taking people in as fast as they could at both doors, but still there was a long long line for each of them. I had a terrible thought that the ship would suddenly stop letting people get on, and would shut up the gangways and leave us stranded there while it went on its merry way. Luckily, they didn't do that until Hubby and I were aboard. I assume they waited for everybody who was in line to get on.

I'm pretty sure we went in search of food after that, but I'm not sure where we went.

8/12 – 3rd Irish Shore Excursion

Cork - the Blarney Stone

The next day, we were again in Ireland, in Cork, where we would take a bus to the Blarney Castle, presumably to see the Blarney Stone. First, the bus took us to a little shopping center about a 2 mile hike from the Blarney Castle. This was where the bus would be parked.

Each of us was given a coupon to take to the pub and get a free Irish coffee. So I got into line, and somehow lost Hubby. Probably, he went to find a bathroom, or to take some pictures. So I got an Irish coffee for each of us and sat down at a table in the courtyard for him to find me. I didn't like the Irish coffee. All I tasted was very hot coffee. Whenever I drink coffee (hardly ever), I like it with lots of cream and sugar, to tone that coffee taste down. Eventually, Hubby found me, and tried his own cup. I don't know if he liked it or not; he usually drinks his coffee black and strong, so maybe he did.

We were supposed to meet the tour guide in the middle of the shopping mall in about half an hour, so she could get us all through the castle gate as a group. I was worried about missing her, but found some other members of our group, so my nerves settled down. But where was my hubby? He finally reappeared out of a store, having bought a bottle of coffee beans and 1 bottle of mead to thank the neighbor for watching our house while we were gone. Somehow, I wound up with that sack to carry during the hike to and from the castle, so that he could take pictures.

So we were forced marched guided to the castle gateway, where the staff counted us in order to let us in. Once we were inside the grounds, the tour guide said we had 1 hour to walk the rest of the way to the castle and get back to the bus. We were turned loose. Hubby—and most everybody else in the group—soon left me in the dust as they hurried towards the castle. I traveled at my own speed and enjoyed the walk.

When I finally got up the hill to the castle, there was a line snaking out the castle door and around the courtyard. The people were there to climb a steep set of stairs up to the top of the castle, where the Blarney Stone was located. We could see it from the outside, but of course, you had to be on the top of the castle to have any hope of touching it. And the markers indicated that the line was an hour long. We only had about 45 minutes left to get back to bus.

We had our picture taken in front of the castle, but didn't get in line. Instead, we wandered off to view the 'Poison Garden'. John was snapping pictures like crazy. It wasn't long before I told him, "Well, I have to start back, because I move slower than you do." So I left, and hoped he kept an eye on his watch.

When I got back to the parking lot, all the several tour buses had rearranged themselves. I checked in with the tour guide, and then started down the line of buses, looking for #17, for that was my group. It was the next-to-the-last bus, of course. I found our seats, and then started worrying about John getting back in time. He wasn't the last member of the group to get back, and then we had an uneventful bus trip back to the ship.

I wouldn't mind going back again, perhaps not on a shore excursion, to spend a night or two at the local tavern and do a long walk around the castle, perhaps even check out the stores in that little shopping center.

Thursday, 8/11 – 2nd Irish Shore Excursion

Dublin – Dublin Highlights

Hubby seemed to be feeling better in the morning. He climbed out of bed about 6 and got dressed. We needed to gather in the Stardust Theater by 7:50, so I got up shortly after he did. We went to the buffet once again, and then he wanted to go out on the deck to get some pictures. And probably do some walking. He tries to walk 10,000 steps a day. I went back to our cabin to get our tickets for the day’s excursion.

7:40, I went out into the hall to catch sight of him as soon as possible, keeping an eye on both the corridor and the nearest bank of elevators. About 7:45, I finally saw him walking towards me down the corridor, so I started walking that way, because it was the opposite end of the ship that we needed to get to! We barely made it there on time, and then had to go down to the very front of the theater to find any seats to sit on. But we had just gotten situated when they called the first tour of the day. It was us! So we had to climb back up the stairs halfway, to the deck 6 exit, where we were given stickers to tell us which bus to get on. Then we had to walk down 2 decks, halfway to the rear of the ship, cross to the port side, and finally climb out to board the tender.

It was a 20- or 25-minute ride to get to the pontoon pier. Then a rather long walk to where the buses were waiting. But once we got aboard, it wasn’t long before we were on our way. This was to be a 4-hour tour, with most of it being on the bus. It sounded delightful. No struggling to keep up with a speedy tour guide, no stopping to taste or shop; just sitting on a bus and looking out the windows. Mostly.

Our tour guide was full of information; history, architecture, current events, more history, even a quick lesson in speaking Gaelic.

Our one stop was at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral. After the bus parked in the back of the cathedral, we walked about 2 blocks to get to the front, where we were organized to go in as a group. We were given 45 minutes to look around at the many, many displays, and if we had any questions, we could find the tour guide and ask her. I should have asked her about the circular staircase that seemed to go up through the ceiling. Its outside was decorated with ornately carved columns, but the stairs seemed scarcely wide enough for a child to use, and the entire staircase’s diameter seemed to be about a yard.

I didn’t want to hurry back to the bus, so I left the cathedral after 35 minutes. It took me 6 minutes to saunter back to the bus. Before I left, I had warned Hubby that it was nearly time to go, and to not forget to leave time to walk to the bus. He wasn’t the last to get to the bus, but he was among the last 5 to arrive there. Happily, they weren’t late.

We zig-zagged through down-town Dublin for some time, looking at bridges, statues, Georgian squares and other examples of architecture. Eventually, we left Dublin to head to the pier a few kilometers away. We boarded a tender and rode back to the ship, where we went to the buffet for a quick lunch.

As we left the buffet, Hubby started to complain that he had a stomachache again. When we got to our cabin, he sat down to watch some tv. I plugged in my computer, and then his camera battery, which had run out of juice in the middle of Dublin. Then I laid down and listened to the tv for the better part of an hour.

When I did get up to take my computer to the internet café, I asked what he was thinking of doing, and he said possibly go walking. I wondered if he might have developed an ulcer, and he asked, “Starting yesterday?” Well, those things have to start some time. He came back with the suggestion that maybe he’s been without coffee for too long. He hasn’t been drinking it because the coffee served in the buffet is amazingly bitter. Now, I’ve ‘broken’ my caffeine addiction 2 or 3 times, and I don’t remember a stomachache as one of my symptoms. I hoped he felt better by evening; we had a reservation at the Japanese restaurant.

Wednesday, 8/10 - 1st English Shore Excursion

Liverpool – Charming Chester

Hubby woke up still tired. He has days like that. We had to meet to leave for our shore excursion by 7:15, so we went to the buffet for our usual made-to-order omelet and cream of wheat. When we were sent out to find our bus, it seemed like we walked a couple miles to get there. We hoped there would not be a lot walking today but couldn’t remember anything about this excursion.

It turned out we were leaving Liverpool to visit the charming town of Chester, some 45 minutes away.

Chester started out as a walled garrison for some 6,000 Roman soldiers. It wasn’t called Chester then, but I don’t remember what it was called, due to an adventure Hubby had. More on that later.

After the Romans were chased away, the walls around the town were made higher. You can walk around the inner city atop the walls, a distance of about 2 miles.

Peter, our tour guide, pointed out some sights of the town as we drove through and around it for a few minutes. Then the bus stopped outside The StoryHouse, which has 2 theaters, a cinema, the library and a café. We were supposed to meet back at the StoryHouse to get on our bus 2 hours later, at 11:15. Then Peter took the group south on Northgate Street to the center of town. By then, my knees had started to ache, which is never a good sign, so when Peter said he would take us to the East gate, and then to the Cathedral, I handed Hubby the map of Chester and told him I was headed back to the StoryHouse. He wasn’t happy, but my aching knees aren’t something that can be argued with. So Hubby continued with Peter, and I turned back to climb the hill back to the StoryHouse.

About half way up the hill, I found a bench in the shade and sat down to rest for a while. While I was resting, I realized I was directly across the street from the Information Center, so I crossed over to see if they had any interesting books. They had some history books that looked interesting, but they were £18 or more. I settled on a children’s book for £7, and went back to the bench to sit for a little longer.

At 10:45, I walked back to the StoryHouse and found a bench outside to sit on as I waited for my bus. There were plenty of buses to choose from, but I couldn’t tell which one was mine. At 11:08, I decided I’d better walk across the street and see if one of the 2 buses was mine. One of them was, and as I got ready to board, I told Peter, “I haven’t seen my husband return. I hope he’s already on the bus.”

But Hubby was not on the bus, so I selected our seats and sat down to wait for him. About 11:20, Peter counted the people on the bus, and then asked if my husband was on the bus. I said no, and he said, “He’s the one that’s missing, then.” A few minutes later, he asked if I knew where Hubby would have gone. The last I’d seen him, he was following Peter toward the East Gate, which had a clock tower. At about 11:27, John finally showed up, out of breath and looking exhausted.

We got underway to head back for Liverpool. Once Hubby caught his breath, he told me he had decided to walk around the town on the city walls, a distance of about 2 miles. He started at the clock tower, and walked leisurely, taking pictures. Once he saw the race track outside the city, which was approximately half way around, he decided he’d better pick up his pace in order to get back to the bus. But he didn’t know how much further he had to go. Apparently, he didn’t realize when he got to the North Gate, nor that that was the closest point to the StoryHouse. So he continued to hoof it back to the East Gate, then down East Gate Road and up North Gate Street, where he was vastly relieved to find the bus was still there.

When we got back to the ship, Hubby started to complain that his stomach was upset and he was desperate for a cold drink. We went to O’Sheehan’s for lunch, where he got a particle of food caught in his throat and kept coughing, trying to get it unstuck. He finally drank enough pop to get it washed down, so we went to our cabin and lay down for about an hour, to give us time to recuperate. I took a pain reliever because my knees were still aching.

After that hour, he got up to watch some tv and said he was feeling a bit better. I took my computer and went off to the internet cafe, where I could sit at a table and type. I returned to our cabin about 6:30, and he told me to go have supper without him, that he wasn’t feeling any better, and he was going to bed early. He asked me to bring him back a Diet Pepsi when I came back.

So I went back to O’Sheehan’s, where I had loaded nachos and their Blue Plate Special, which was meatloaf, mashed potatoes and corn. I enjoyed the food very much, but I skipped dessert. When I was done eating and ready to leave, I asked for a diet Pepsi, which I carefully carried back to the room. Hubby was climbing into bed, having forgotten he had asked for a diet Pepsi. He had me put it in the refrigerator, and then I sat and read until 10, when I tried to set a wake-up call for 6 AM before going to bed.

Tuesday, 8/9 – 1st Ireland Shore Excursion

Belfast – Taste Tour

We could have slept in today, too, since our shore excursion wasn’t until 1:15 PM, but we didn’t. We went to the buffet for breakfast, where Hubby could get a made-to-order omelet, and I could get some cream of wheat. I don’t remember what we did the rest of the morning, but it was soon time to decide if we were going to have lunch or not. Our shore excursion was a 4-hour walking tour of Belfast, where we would stop now and again to taste local specialties. So, should we eat lunch or leave room for the tastings?

We compromised by going to O’Sheehan’s and having an appetizer each. After all, how could we know how substantial those tastes might be? Hubby got a couple sausage sliders, and I got some loaded nachos. Then we left the ship to find our bus on the pier.

The bus dropped us and the tour guide, Roisin, off in downtown Belfast. Roisin took us across 2 streets to a pub called The Crown, where we got to sit in a pair of ‘privacy rooms’ that had been reserved for us. The specialty here was a local gin, which was served with tonic water. I was so glad I’d told her I didn’t think I’d be drinking any alcohol, as I got to have a coke. I like my mixed drinks like my wine – as sweet as I can get it.

After the Crown, Roisin realized she had a member of the ship’s crew in her group, and she asked him to bring up and rear and try to keep any of us from getting lost. I was glad she did that, as about 3 blocks later, I didn’t see the group turn, and I just kept going forward until Hubby yelled at me. I came back and eventually got reunited with the group.

Our next stop was a world-class chocolate shop called Daisy’s. They served us all a half cup of hot chocolate, a tiny cannola, and a chocolate liquor ball. I thought the balls were various candies like malted milk balls, but after I sucked on the one she gave me for a moment, I got a mouthful of liquor. I decided I didn’t want any of those. But Hubby bought a pound of coffee beans, which we took turns keeping track of for the rest of the walk.

More walking, and then we arrived at a grocery shop. While the rest of the group went inside for a look around, Roisin brought out some food stuffs for us to sample. There was a bowl full of pieces of bread, a number of toast corners with dried salmon, 2 small bowls of dipping oil (one garlic-flavored, and the other spicy), a bowl of crescent-shaped pieces of butter that was so yellow people kept thinking it was some type of fruit, and a bowl of pieces of a mild blue cheese.

Our next stop was a store called Born and Bred, where we were given about 30 minutes to look around. By this time, I was flagging, and opted to sit on the bench outside, where I could keep an eye on the store’s door. The store next door, I noticed, was call Forbidden Planet Unlimited, so I wandered inside Born and Bred to let Hubby know. He took a minute to pop over and look at the stuff in the window. But even here, there was tasting to do, in that Born and Bred offered crackers with 3 different toppings to try. One was black butter, which is an apple butter made from apples only grown in Ireland. I expected to like that one, but didn’t. Neither did the other 2 toppings appeal to me.

So we continued on, turning off the street into an alley, which the Irish call an entry. Then we crossed 2 streets and went in another alley until we came to White’s, which I seem to remember her saying was the oldest tavern in Belfast. At White’s we were given our choice of a seafood gumbo or a bowl of Irish stew; a glass of Guiness or some white wine. Hubby took the gumbo and a Guiness; I opted for the Irish stew and wine. I liked the stew a lot. Hubby liked his gumbo, too, but spent more time removing the meat from the various shellfish his bowl contained than he spent eating the gumbo at last. His bowl had so many shellfish, that when he finished eating and put the shells back in his empty bowl, they filled up his bowl!

White’s was the end of the tour. A lot of our companions left the group to go exploring on their own. The rest of us walked about a block to catch our bus and were taken back to the ship.

Hubby and I went to our cabin and took it easy for a while. I took the library book back to the library and turned it in. Then I sat on the pool deck, where there was a little bit of breeze, and did some writing. Eventually, it was time for the library to open so I could check out another book (It’s only open for 1 hr in the morning and another hour in the evening), so I went and selected another book, a sf Young Adult novel called Alien Superstar by Henry Winkler and Somebody Else (I didn't note the name. I was probably so beguiled by the idea of the Fonz writing YA novels (Yes, it was he.) that the other name had no chance of making an impression on my mind. And that's a pity.

We had supper at Ginza, a restaurant that is either complimentary or pay, depending on what you order. Hubby wasn’t feeling very well when we went but started to feel better as he got some food in him. He had pot stickers, Kung Po Chicken and 5 Spice chocolate cake. I had spring rolls, vegetable fried rice and coconut tapioca pudding. After eating, we called it a night and turned in.

August 7, Sunday – 3rd Icelandic Shore Excursion

Seydisfjordur Town Walk

Saturday night, I had been reading the ‘newsletter’ for Sunday, and it said to set our watches ahead an hour. So I made that note in my head before I went to sleep. When I got up on Sunday, it thought it was 6:00 AM. I got up and got dressed and wondered if I should wake Hubby. We didn’t need to meet for our excursion until 9:45, but we were supposed to allow 30 minutes for the tender ride. Yes, we were riding tenders again today.

Hubby finally woke up after 7 AM and got dressed. We went to the Main Dining room for breakfast, only to be told it was 7:45, and they didn’t open until 8, and we don’t set the clocks ahead until tonight. So we went to the buffet for breakfast. Hubby got a made-to-order omelet with just about everything in it. I started with a couple pastries and a bowl of cream of wheat, then went back for scrambled, eggs, bacon, ham and potatoes o’brien. I also had a glass of orange juice and then one of pineapple juice.

Now that I knew I had actually gotten up at 5, I was tired, so I laid back down for about an hour. Or maybe not quite an hour.

The tender ride, as usual, was uneventful. Once on shore, a man was looking at our excursion tickets and sending each excursion to a different location to wait.

Our excursion time was 9:45, but it was a bit after that before all of us showed up and the guide could get started. This was a walk through town, so there was no getting away from walking today. I hoped it wouldn’t be a forced march.

I wasn’t encouraged by the first leg of the walk, for it took us past 4-5 idling buses, and she hurried us along to get us past the noise and fumes. But that was only about a block. After that, she slowed down a bit, and stopped frequently, so we were mostly able to keep up, although our knees and feet did get tired.

The tour guide was very knowledgeable about the history and rules of the town. There is a lagoon on the edge of the fjord that was traversed by a sidewalk and street. She even explained that it was illegal to fish from that bridge. The river running through the middle of town emptied into that lagoon, and a lot of fish traveled up the fjord, into the lagoon and then up the river, and it was considered ‘unsporting’ to fish from the bridge, before they had a chance to get up the river.

She also talked about the avalanches and mudslides that their village has been subjected to. They are in the midst of constructing barriers that are intended to send avalanches in a different direction, away from the houses directly below. She also told us how a party of archeologists were busy digging through the sites where these barriers were scheduled to be built, trying to find as much of history as they could before the area was no longer available to them. I’m always interested in hearing about archeology, but that was about all she had to say on the subject.

She took us down Rainbow Street, the main commercial street in the village. It’s named for the repeating rainbow pattern painted on its center. At one point, sidewalk-type blocks had been placed down the middle of the street, but after a time, they broke into large sections. A business owner on the street got the idea of painting them in the colors of the rainbow, to make them more visible, and the colors have been there ever since. Each May, the entire village gets involved in painting the broken blocks.

She told us of the ‘adventures’ of the US troops that were stationed there during the 2^nd world war. They strung submarine nets in the fjord, but never caught a submarine, although 2 whales did lose their lives due to the nets. The town also was subjected to spy planes flying low overhead to take pictures, and the Americans would try to shoot them down, but didn’t manage it. But a theater was built in town so the solders would have something to do, and that theater was still in use today. A community center has been built attached to it.

Eventually, we got back to our starting point, where there were several posters of interviews of people who suffered from the most recent mudslide, only 3 or 4 years ago. Across the street was the town’s information center, and Hubby and I sat down and relaxed for a few minutes. Then he walked back to those posters about the mudslide and took pictures. The tour guide had been talking to other members of our group, and then Hubby conversed with her for a few minutes.

There was a water fall just on the edge of town, where the melting snow fell down from near the top of the mountain to the bottom. We could see the waterfall pretty well from the information center, and could see lots of people walking up the path next to it. The path only went about halfway up the mountain, but even that didn’t look like an easy climb.

The tour guide stated the town had 640 citizens during the winter, and 680 during the summer. I didn’t realize she and her family were among those who left for the winter until Hubby mentioned it after he had talked to her.

Having rested a bit, we walked back to the pier, where our cruise line was handing out cups of hot chocolate. Although I had sweated during the walking, my hands and face were quite chilled, and a cup of hot cocoa really hit the spot. Then we reported back to the ship and had some lunch, though I don’t remember where we went or what we had.

Later, we had supper at Aqua, another complimentary dining room. I ordered a beef dish that turned out to be beef kabobs by another name. I wasn’t completely happy that when I removed the beef pieces from the skewers, they were still pink, but I was determined to put up with it. Unfortunately, the first piece of meat I put in my mouth refused to break down into pieces small enough to swallow. I knew something was wrong when Hubby looked up as he was half-way through his meal and asked if I was still chewing my first bite. After that, I started cutting the chunks of beef in two, and had to ask for a steak knife so that I could do that! Eventually, I felt I had done my duty to the meal and dismissed that dish to order dessert.

I had ordered wine with my meal. I specified I wanted the sweetest wine they had. They brought me a Riesling, and it was decently sweet, so I was happy with that aspect of the meal. I decided I probably shouldn’t judge a restaurant by one dish, so we decided to give Aqua another try a little later in the trip.

August 6, Saturday – 2nd Icelandic Shore Excursion

Godafoss & Leisurely Akureyri

We didn’t need to meet in the Stardust Theater until 9:15 AM, but we were up about 6 again. I was feeling better today. We had breakfast, but I don’t remember where. Not at the buffet, and not at the Main Dining Room, so it was probably O’Sheehan’s.

The theater was crowded when we got there, and we wound up sitting practically at the very top to wait for them to call our excursion. Akureyri was the name of the town, but we couldn’t remember what ‘Godafoss’ referred to. I hoped it didn’t require a lot of walking, because the longer I waited, the more my stomach started to feel ‘iffy’. But I didn’t have any problems with my sinuses or head. I was startled to hear that our excursion had 6 buses devoted to it.

There were no tenders to negotiate this day; we took a gangplank straight to the pier, found our bus, and got on. We grumbled a bit about having to put on seat belts in Iceland (It’s the law!), because the straps were never easy to find, and the buckles either didn’t want to click shut or didn’t want to come open. Or both.

The bus took off, and we were headed for Godafoss, whatever that was. The only hint we got was that it was 45 minutes away. Okay, then there couldn’t be a lot of walking involved, right?

The tour guide was full of information on the scenery, Icelandic history and lore. She kept us entertained during the drive. And then we pulled off the road and drove a couple hundred yards to a parking lot. We had caught glimpses of a beautiful waterfall of to the side of the road, and the bus dropped us off at the head of a trail that would take us to it. So there was walking involved, but I didn’t mind, because I love waterfalls and rivers. So we walked up to the waterfall and down again, as far as the ‘official’ path would take us. The waterfall itself was shaped rather like a horseshoe, like I guess Niagara Falls is. But there was this one tiny section, which I kept referring to a ‘spit’ of a waterfall. The main waterfall sections were roaring and majestic. The spit of a waterfall was cute, like a baby.

Anyway, we got back to the bus just barely after the 45 minutes we were allotted to stay there. Then the drive back to Akureyri, with the tour guide being entertaining.

We had one more stop to make, at the Akureyri Botanical Gardens, where we were allotted 30 minutes to explore. I should have been recovered by our hike at the falls, but I was still feeling tired, with my knees aching, so I opted to stay on the bus. Hubby got off and managed to get back before his 30 minutes were over.

Then it was back to the pier, where we did a little shopping at the gift shop. Hubby selected a decorative magnet for our refrigerator, and I selected a little statuette of a troll for my office. The prices were in Icelandic currency, but hubby paid by credit card, so we’ll have to see how much our credit card is dinged.

Back to the ship to find lunch. We went to the buffet, but didn’t bother with any desserts, because their desserts are almost tasteless. Then we went back to our cabin, where I took a nap, and dealt with multiple spasms in my calves. At one point, hubby even laid down and tried to nap.

We had a reservation for a specialty restaurant that evening, which meant we had to go find it. It was, pretty literally, a hole-in-the-wall place that we couldn’t find until we stood in the middle of the bar that the restaurant was supposed to be before, and looked back the way we came. The door for the restaurant was tucked away around the corner, and the only sign for it was facing the bar.

This was an Italian restaurant, and it was noisy inside. Lots of hard surfaces, with no space between tables. Hubby ordered pasta, red snapper and a white wine. I ordered tomatoes with mozzarella cheese and fettuccini alfredo. I don’t know wine, so I simply asked for a ‘sweet’ wine, the sweeter the better. We expected bread sticks, but got an entire loaf of bread, which we very nearly ate completely. The food was good, I liked my (white) wine selection, but don’t remember what it was called. Riesling Blue? Does that sound right? We left without dessert, because we didn’t have any room for it. Too much bread, I suppose.

We went back to our cabin and sat on the balcony, hoping to see some whales as the ship moved out of the fjord, but no such luck. We did see what we thought were 3 dolphins, sticking their noses up out of the water to watch the ship move past. We reached the end of the fjord about 9:30, and we were getting cold, so we went inside and went to bed. It was still light out about 10 when I turned the last light off.

August 5, Friday – First Icelandic Shore Excursion

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Secluded Valley & Tasting

Our 2^nd day aboard ship, our first shore excursion, and I did not wake up refreshed, even after sleeping for 10 hours. Maybe it was the booze I’d had the night before (I am a really light drinker). Or maybe it was I hadn’t taken the time to put any water in my cpap. Whatever my problem was, I was real slow moving, my sinuses ached, which reverberated throughout my head, I felt cold, and my stomach felt pretty iffy.

Hubby got up about 6, and by 6:15, I was trying to get up, too. When I finally got dressed, we went to the main dining room for breakfast. We were the 3^rd set of guests to get there. I opted for a ham and cheese omelet, bacon, a sliced banana and some orange juice. It all stayed down, even the 2^nd glass of orange juice, but it didn’t necessarily ease my stomach any.

We didn’t need to be at the shore excursion staging area until 9:30, so we went back our cabin, and I laid down, but didn’t necessarily sleep. I was still pretty blah when I got up and we walked to the Stardust Theater, which is where we were to get our instructions for finding our tour bus. Hubby peeled away as we walked, in search of a diet pop. He didn’t find one, but did bring me a regular pop, and I thought the sugar and caffeine mixture might pick me up, but the effects in that direction were pretty quick to fade away.

The bay we were stopped in was not deep enough to accommodate our ship at the pier, so we had to take a tender (small boat) to the pier. Most of the ports we’ve visited while cruising could accommodate our ship at the piers, but there was at least one other time we’d had to take a tender, so it wasn’t a completely novel experience. Once we were at the dock, we had to walk a little way to get to the bus and get on it. The day was calm and clear, without any of the wind we’d had the day before. Still, we had elected to wear our jackets, and they felt food.

Soon we were off to see the sights. First, we drove around the end of the fjord. The fjord was surrounded by tall, very steep ‘mountains’ that still had snow on the tops. Yes, even in August. Soon, the bus pulled off the road and stopped, and the tour guide said that we could out and look at the fish drying houses some distance away, while they handed out samples of an Iclandic delicacy, dried fish. I don’t eat fish, and I still wasn’t feeling well, so I opted to stay on the bus. Most everybody else got off, but nobody opted to walk over to one of the drying houses. Everybody had their piece of fish and got back on the vehicle.

Then the driver headed back the way we had come, almost back into town, before he pulled off on a dirt road for maybe a mile. The tour guide emphasized this was the only sstop where a toilet would be available during our tour, so we should be sure to use it. She stated we were there to see the pretty waterfall, and could get a taste of beer brewed locally from seaweed. I still wasn’t feeling good, plus I don’t do beer or seaweed, and had already forgotten she had mentioned a waterfall, so I opted not to get off.

This was a longer stop than before, perhaps so everybody had a chance to use the toilet. I spent the time sitting with my eyes closed, trying to feel better so I wouldn’t waste the entire tour, but alas, it didn’t seem to help. Eventually, people got aboard again, and got ready to continue. I tried to show some interest in the tour by asking Hubby what he thought of the beer, but he just said it was beer.

Back to the highway, and then turn on another highway. This highway took us through a long tunnel. At one point, we turned into another, narrower tunnel, where we did not have right of way. If we had met another vehicle coming the other way, we would have had to pull over at one of several wide spots and let that oncoming vehicle go past us. However, we were lucky, and didn’t meet any oncoming traffic.

I had closed my eyes again during our travels through the tunnel, and finally started to feel better by the time we came out into daylight again. I was determined to get off at our next stop.

We drove past one of the few dairy farms in Iceland. There is seldom enough flat land to let cows graze or to grow hay to feed them during the long winter months. But in this area, it could be done, so there was a dairy farm. Then through a village of about 270 people, and on to a dirt road with about a 12-foot wall of rock on one side, and eventually, the sea on the other side. We were headed for a farm where they grew sheep, where we would get to taste some marriage cake. That’s what it sounded like to us, but I don’t know how it’s spelled in Icelandic, and it doesn’t mean wedding cake.

Once we got to the farmyard, they introduced us to a young redhead who lived on the farm. She led us out into a field that was very uneven walking, to a roughly flat stone that lay in the soil. This was the site of an old Viking village of about 500 people. The stone had the year 1831 carved into it, carved by a man on his 50^th birthday. Then we were shown a large field that used to be covered in flowers. (The flowers were not in sight at the time we were there.)

At that time, we returned to the farmhouse, where the family served us coffee and cake, which was like a sweet biscuit crust with rhubarb paste spread over it. I loved it. They called it what sounded like ‘marriage’ cake, but however it was spelled, it apparently had nothing to do with marriage or wedding. After we had refreshments, they brought a lamb and fed it from a bottle. The bottle’s contents didn’t satisfy it, and it started following anybody who moved, looking for somebody with another bottle. It was terribly cute, but of course, they grow up fairly quickly.

We got back on the bus, and they took us down the road, back to the coast, where we got out to examine an old fishing hut. In the old days, when fishermen came back to the shore after a day of fishing, they often didn’t want to travel all the way home, just to come back again the next day, so they would build these small huts out of stone, sod and some timber, where they could spend the night in relative comfort, and then they would stay for a few days, until they had a full load of fish to take home. It reminded me somewhat of the sod houses that were built on the prairies of America back in the olden days, but the fishing hut had more rock and timber and a lot less sod in its construction.

Then we went back, all the way back, through the tunnel, through the town of Isafjordur, and back to the dock area. Hubby and I took a quick look around the gift shop, but they did not have a lot of merchandise to choose from, and we didn’t buy anything. We walked back to the pier, boarded the tender, and tried to decide where to have lunch.

Our choices were pretty limited, as the only eating places open were the buffet, a pool-side bar and grill, and O’Sheehan’s bar and grill. We went to O’Sheehan’s because we knew their food was good, even if their menu was limited. Hubby wanted their Blue Plate Special, which was Chicken Parmigiano that day. But it turns out their Blue Plate Special is only available after 5:30, so he got some Korean Chicken wings and a hamburger with fries. I had a Pub hot dog with fries, but I had trouble getting it. They brought his food in short order, but we had to ask where mine was about 4 times. Then we both had raspberry swirl cheesecake for dessert. On our first cruise on a Norwegian ship, we had discovered that O’Sheehan’s had the best cheesecake on the ship, and were not disappointed on this ship.

After lunch, I went to the library and began writing my blogs about this trip. I also checked out a book by an author I couldn’t remember reading before. Before long, it was time to meet Hubby at the nextCruise desk, so we could claim our present. Our gift turned out to be pins proclaiming us to be Bronze members of the Norwegian Loyalty plan. Woop-dee-doo. (Sarcasm.) Then we went to the Theater for the show, which was titled Band on the Run. It was okay; I only noticed a couple of times where the dancers nearly tripped each other, but they avoided it.

Then it was time for a late supper, and we found ourselves back at O’Sheehan’s. Hubby finally got his Chicken Parmegiano, while I opted for Loaded Nachos, Cottage Pie Potato Skins and we both had cheesecake for dessert again. I daringly tried a Moscow Mule to drink.

Finally, we went back to our cabin, pulled the curtains on our balcony as tightly closed as we could (it was still light outside), and went to bed. Thankfully, Hubby reminded me to put water in my cpap, and I went to bed hoping to feel better in the morning than I had on this morning.